The Ghost Lady Of The Duke's Family (20 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 7
“Should I call this bewildering… or absurd…?”
Aeli’s pupils trembled faintly upon hearing the unexpected news of Lutis’s return.
Even when she had subtly hinted and asked the boy earlier, she had received the same answer as now.
In other words, they had explicitly told her there was no set date for his return anytime soon—it would likely take several more years.
She could still vividly recall shrugging in confusion, muttering she didn’t know herself, then discreetly questioning a servant she barely knew to gather news.
“…But who did what, exactly?”
Slit his throat?
Like a farmer harvesting cherry tomatoes—snip, just like that?
“……”
Servants hurried past Aeli, who stood frozen with her mouth agape, and exited the annex. Understandable, really—after all, their master was returning after several years, and the current staff alone couldn’t possibly manage a swift overhaul of the estate.
That hadn’t been the case before, but it certainly was now.
For some reason, the combined staff of the main house and annex barely totaled half the number of servants Aeli remembered from when she was alive.
Thus, unless they hired additional help, they’d have to gather every available person, regardless of position.
“…But why, though?”
Lutis’s sudden return—that much she could accept.
Wars rarely adhered to schedules, and predictions shifting by years were not uncommon.
Perhaps he’d simply grown homesick and hastened his return via warp. That, too, was fine.
Leaving only enough staff to maintain the estate?
Most servants were hired for the convenience of the noble family anyway, so with fewer family members present, a large retinue wasn’t necessary. She could grudgingly accept that as well.
However…
“But is it really okay for all of us to leave like this?”
“Why not?”
“Master Adi is still in the annex—being so young, shouldn’t a few stay behind for him?”
“We’re just following orders from above. How’s that our fault?”
“True, he’s always so well-behaved—it’ll be fine.”
Yet, Master Adrian remained in the estate.
With both master and mistress absent, he was the only person the staff should be attending to.
“Hmm… I just checked, and the guards are still in place.”
“Then it’s settled.”
“Hurry up—we’ll really get scolded if we’re any later.”
Was this truly an acceptable situation?
Several more maids hurried out from the annex, their figures quickly vanishing from sight.
Had any servant in the world ever abandoned their charge so thoroughly?
Aeli simply couldn’t comprehend it.
With each passing moment, the absurdity mounted until Aeli lowered her head in disbelief. Her eyes fell upon a small flowerbed at her feet.
…Come to think of it, she’d come out here because of her promise with Adrian.
Focusing intently, Aeli examined the flowerbed. Of course, there’d be no fairies—but she needed to think of some excuse to explain—
‘……?’
Why is this here? Aeli blinked rapidly and clicked her tongue softly.
“Did someone uproot the garden after I died?”
Wildflowers, the kind usually found by roadsides, were planted neatly in a row.
The flowerbed looked too deliberately tended to be an accidental mix-in, narrowing Aeli’s eyes.
“As far as I remember, roses used to grow right here.”
Just as Aeli tilted her head in confusion—
Her gaze caught the corner of the flowerbed, and her head snapped to a halt.
An awkwardly empty corner, as if the work had been abandoned midway, and nearby, a pile of rose vines seemingly moved but not yet cleared away—
“…This really does look like something left unfinished.”
Not “like”—it *was* unfinished.
The neglected, grim-looking pile of vines made Aeli exhale sharply.
Judging by the progress, it had nearly reached the final stage.
“If only they’d worked one more day—they could’ve finished it with time to spare.”
The half-finished state felt as unsatisfying as… well, as not wiping after relieving oneself.
But her irritation lasted only a moment before giving way to the emotion that followed, as expected: fury.
Aeli’s hand curled into a loose fist as it hovered over the untouched pile of thorny vines.
Their negligence was truly infuriating. If only she weren’t a ghost—she’d kick them all out herself.
She lifted her head toward the distant main estate garden, barely visible in the haze, and finally turned away.
“Ugh… how annoying.”
Unlike here, it looked dazzlingly lush and beautiful.
[This is the timeline separator]“Lea!”
After forcefully calming her boiling frustration,
No sooner had she reentered the attic than the boy, still clinging to the window like a cicada, suddenly lifted his head and called her name.
“Mm? Did you behave yourself while I was gone, Adi?”
Aeli bent down to meet his eye level—now quite accustomed to the gesture—and nodded.
At her smile tugging at the corners of her lips, the boy’s cheek dimpled faintly, though he’d earlier pouted that it’d been over 300 seconds.
“Did you see the fairy?”
“……”
“Did you see her?!”
“Oh—no? I came out too late, I guess. She wasn’t there. Maybe everyone already went home today.”
Aeli’s answer made the boy’s cheeks puff up like inflated balloons.
Having stayed beside him for what felt either long or short, Aeli now recognized that reaction well.
“No fairy…?”
“Mm…”
“But… you said she’d be there!”
“No, she just wasn’t.”
“……”
Ah—he was sulking.
Aeli’s eyes rolled as the boy let out a heavy sigh, wearing an expression as if he’d lived through centuries of hardship.
His slumped shoulders and stomping footsteps back to bed radiated exaggerated disappointment.
“Pfft…!”
Unable to hold it in, Aeli let out a soft laugh.
Their eyes met as the boy turned back at the sound.
“……”
An awkward silence stretched between them.
“…Ahem! Could it be the day hasn’t warmed up yet?”
“Doesn’t the room feel a bit dry?” Aeli fumbled for words, earning a sharp glare from the boy.
That really had been an accident—Aeli guiltily averted her gaze.
Knock knock—
“Young Master, it’s me. May I come in?”
Just then, a familiar voice accompanied a careful knock at the door.
The boy reflexively turned toward the door and opened his mouth slightly.
“…Mari?”
“Yes! Sorry I’m late—I wanted to come sooner, but something came up…”
Aeli was utterly stunned by the exchange. She’d been certain Mari had returned to the Mason estate after vanishing for over a month—but here she was.
Wide-eyed, Aeli glanced between the boy and the door. The boy’s flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes plainly showed his delight.
The only surprising thing was that, just as he seemed ready to dash to the door, he suddenly shrieked:
“D-don’t come in! I’m not letting you in! I’m mad— you didn’t keep your promise…!”
“Oh dear…”
His pout was unmistakable. Or rather—was this outright anger now?
Mari, clearly aware of his mood, continued urgently from the other side:
“I saw it too! I promised to arrive before the flowers bloomed, but on my way here, I saw they’d already opened. I’m really, really sorry for breaking my promise when you were waiting!”
“……”
“Truth is, my departure got delayed more than expected, so I rushed to catch a shortcut carriage—but the road was rough, and it started raining, so the wheels got stuck in a ditch.”
“…Liar. It’s not even raining right now.”
“Ah—it really did! It’ll probably start raining here around dawn tomorrow.”
“……”
“I missed you so, so much I came straight here without even changing clothes. Are you really not going to open the door? I even brought your dinner.”
The boy’s eyes flickered minutely—he was clearly torn over whether to let her in.
Knowing his hesitation already meant his anger had softened somewhat, Aeli decided to nudge him gently.
She missed Mari too—and she recognized the boy’s sidelong glances as silent pleas for her to intervene.
Turning to him, Aeli spoke softly:
“Should we let her in?”
The boy pouted and whined:
“…I’m not hungry anyway.”
“You still need to eat. Otherwise, you’ll get so skinny you won’t even grow taller.”
“……”
“If that happens, Adi will be only half my height even as an adult.”
Or maybe even smaller? Aeli tilted her head with deliberately exaggerated curiosity, making the boy’s plump cheeks—fattened by a month of good meals—twitch.
“What’ll we do then? A baby this tiny can’t possibly become a knight—”
“…OKAY, maybe I am a little hungry.”
The boy dashed toward the door like a little black bean. Aeli gave a small nod.
The cramped room could be crossed in just a few strides by adults like Aeli, but to the boy, it felt vast.
As he opened the door, Mari entered carrying a tray and began preparing his meal.
True to her word, her shoulders were still damp—she really had come straight after her journey without changing.
“Wow! Young Master, you’ve gotten taller! And even more handsome—you must’ve been eating well!”
“I was always handsome.”
“Of course! You’re Lady Mason’s son—naturally gorgeous! What I meant was, you were already handsome before, but now your face practically glows with holy light!”
Aeli chuckled at Mari’s shamelessly reverent words—something temple officials would surely find outrageous.
Then her eyes widened at a glass jar tucked in the corner of the tray.
Just as Mari finished setting the meal before the boy, she tapped the jar lightly.
“I remembered the old ones ran out, so I bought your favorite candies on the way.”
“Really? Can I eat them?”
“Only if you keep eating your meals well from now on. And when you have candy, I’ll tell you stories about Lady Mason too.”
“Mm… okay.”
The boy gripped his spoon with solemn determination as he nodded firmly.
Judging by their familiar ease, this wasn’t their first such exchange.
Behind the boy, Aeli stared blankly at the jar filled with colorful candies.
‘Those… are a specialty of the Mason territory?’
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
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As she recounted the memory, the boy had already fallen asleep—leaving Aeli alon
Whaatt? Did he see her or something? (･o･;) ㅤㅤㅤ
“…!”
HE. SAW. HER. He saw her! He must be in such shock.
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Okay, so he can see her. Does it have something to do with the petal (・o・)
It turns out he actually hears her voice, I’m surprised.