The Archduke’s Flower Is in Danger - Chapter 5

She wanted to escape this suffocating room immediately. She thought she had grown somewhat hardened to the insults directed at her over the years, but this was different.

The eyes glistening with lust and the faces that bore a strange resemblance to one another were horrifying. The sight of them putting a price on her purity to buy and sell her was utterly revolting.

Unable to suppress the sudden surge of nausea, Idel Fleure reached for a napkin.

“Ugh…”

No one cared about the girl who turned pale and let out a faint retching sound.

“What is this sudden unseemly behavior? And in front of such a distinguished guest! How ill-mannered!”

The Countess was busy scolding her, knitting her brows in frustration. Just as the Countess was about to snap at her again as she sat silent with her head bowed, the door burst open.

“M-Madam! Just a moment…”

“What on earth is it? I told you not to interrupt our conversation!”

The Countess frowned at the Head Maid who had rushed into the drawing room. With a panicked face, the Head Maid leaned in and whispered into the Countess’s ear.

“Wh-what? Is what you just said true?”

Hearing the report, the Countess sprang to her feet in shock.

“Countess, what is going on?”

The Marquis of Chalet asked with a scowl, clearly displeased by the disruption. The Countess replied with a look of utter bewilderment.

“Well… it seems another guest has arrived.”

“Another guest? Was I not the only one visiting today?”

“He is an unannounced guest, so…”

“Hmph! Then simply turn him away, can you not?”

“That is… the guest is…”

It was at that moment, just as the Countess was struggling to find her words, that the answer arrived.

“Though I did not make an appointment, I have business with the Count’s house.”

Two men stepped into the drawing room ahead of the servants. One was a tall man in a lounge suit, followed by another who appeared to be his aide.

The man who entered first overwhelmed the room by his mere presence. His suit fell with a heavy, precise drape over his densely knit, solid frame. The cufflinks adorning his shirt, made of the finest fabric, were engraved with a crest denoting his status as a member of the Imperial Family.

“Your Grace!”

The Marquis of Chalet’s jaw dropped. Roseline’s eyes widened, and she covered her mouth in shock. Idel, who had been lifting a glass of water to suppress her nausea, froze mid-motion.

The Grand Duke?

The Marquis of Chalet recognized him and hurriedly offered a formal greeting. The Countess and Roseline, flustered, also managed to curtsey.

The sudden appearance of the Grand Duke drew mixed reactions. The Marquis and the Countess watched him with tense, anxious expressions. Conversely, Roseline’s face flushed as she gazed at him from such a short distance, her eyes turning dreamy.

Regardless of the varied gazes fixed upon him, Kaeron Roman de Helios kept his eyes locked on only one person from the moment he entered.

The woman who stood up late to offer her greeting looked precarious. Seeing her stagger as if she might collapse at any second, Kaeron’s brow twitched.

“Had I known Your Grace would visit, I would have prepared a grand welcome…”

“I came without notice, so do not trouble yourself. More importantly, I did not expect to find the Marquis of Chalet here.”

He was an unexpectedly irritating presence. Kaeron stared at the Marquis with a chilling gaze.

“Ah, well. It is a bit embarrassing, but I am soon to take Lady Fleure as my new wife.”

“Lady Fleure, you say?”

At those words, the Grand Duke’s already stiff expression froze even colder. The Marquis of Chalet instinctively flinched at the sight of the Duke glaring at him with such piercing eyes. The Countess spoke up on behalf of the frozen Marquis.

“It is my eldest, Idel. She is quite shy, so she has not participated in social activities until now. This is her first introduction.”

“A marriage with the Marquis of Chalet…”

Kaeron murmured softly. He clenched and unclenched his fist. He applied so much pressure that his knuckles turned white.

“Ahem! It is quite an honor to welcome such a beautiful bride.”

“We are the ones who are honored to form such a meaningful bond with the Marquis’s house.”

As the Marquis managed to clear his throat and speak after being overwhelmed by the Duke’s aura, the Countess laughed awkwardly in agreement. Kaeron turned his gaze away from them to look at the woman standing motionless.

“Does Lady Idel think so as well?”

At his question, the woman who had been staring at the floor slowly raised her head. her pale, expressionless face was like that of a wax doll. At a glance, she appeared calm, but his sharp eyes did not miss the redness around her eyes.

“Idel, the Grand Duke is asking you a question! Why aren’t you answering immediately?”

At the Countess’s urging, Kaeron narrowed one eye in annoyance.

“I will hear the answer directly from her. I wish to speak with her, so would the rest of you mind leaving us?”

“Pardon? You wish to have a private audience with Idel?”

“Your Grace! I beg your pardon, but she is my betrothed…”

The Countess and the Marquis spoke in distress at the blatant dismissal, but.

“Do you think I am making a request right now?”

His voice, dropped to a low register, made his mood clear. The air in the drawing room froze instantly. At the Grand Duke’s frigid glare, the Marquis, the Countess, and even Roseline trembled in fear.

“Now, everyone, please step out for a moment.”

Gregory, the aide who had been quietly observing the situation, stepped forward to clear the room. The three were led out of the drawing room by Gregory.

The door closed, and silence descended.

Kaeron began to walk slowly with his long strides. As he drew closer, Idel felt a surge of tension rising from her toes and squeezed her clasped hands tight.

“Are you going to keep standing there? Sit.”

Passing her elegantly, Kaeron sat at the table. It was a position where they faced each other. After a moment of hesitation, she carefully took her seat.

Though a table sat between them, his presence was large enough to fill the entire space. Under his intense gaze, Idel lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling.

Trying to find her composure, Idel poured tea into the empty cup before the Grand Duke. Watching her steady movements, Kaeron finally spoke.

“We meet again.”

At his words, the hand holding the teapot shook slightly. As expected, the Grand Duke remembered her.

“At that time, I was very rude.”

Technically, the Grand Duke was the one who had been insolent first, but wrenching her hand away and running off was certainly a breach of etiquette.

“Your first impression that day was quite memorable. The way you acted so boldly.”

“Please forgive my rudeness.”

“We are both at fault, so it is not an apology I seek. However, you look different today than you did then.”

“!”

“You did not seem the type to be so submissive as to accept a marriage you do not want.”

Idel’s eyes began to quiver like leaves in the wind.

“Do you wish to escape? From this marriage with the Marquis of Chalet?”

Idel was momentarily speechless at his direct strike. Of course she wanted to escape. Thinking of the Marquis’s vulgar and lecherous gaze from earlier made her skin crawl again.

For now, she had to endure this moment of humiliation, but once she passed the university entrance, she would find a way. She saw no need to explain that to him.

“It is a problem I will resolve.”

“Resolve, you say. It seems you have a method prepared.”

Kaeron’s long, firm fingers slowly traced the smooth handle of his teacup. He lifted the cup slightly and spoke.

“For instance, entering the Imperial University. Is that the sort of method you had in mind?”

“!”

Idel’s eyes rounded in shock. Her gaze screamed, How do you know that? Looking at her, Kaeron wore a faint smile and asked.

“Well. Even if you enter the university, wouldn’t you need help to become independent from your family?”

“Even if that were true, it is a matter I will resolve myself.”

The faint smile vanished from his face. He found himself displeased with this woman who, despite looking like a lost child, stubbornly drew a line and insisted it was her own problem.

Feeling a sudden sense of frustration, he took a breath. The scent of the tea he had intentionally held to his nose faded, and her fragrance grew stronger. It was the very scent that had been provoking him since the moment he arrived at this mansion.

Truly, she is bothersome.

At first, he had hoped never to meet this woman who stirred such unnecessary emotions again. That was why he had let her go during their first encounter.

However, after chasing the traces she left behind, he had ended up coming to the Count’s estate himself.

The sight of her once again tested his patience. It was her inexplicably magnetic scent, but also the certain transaction surrounding her within this house.

The moment he heard that the Marquis of Chalet was marrying her, Kaeron barely suppressed the urge to strangle that snake-like man.

Was this the sixth time? The Marquis of Chalet taking young ladies the age of his daughters as wives. A high-ranking noble like the Countess would surely know the dark rumors surrounding the Marquis. Yet, she tried to hand over her daughter, wrapping it in the word “honor.”

He had perceived the situation keenly through the dialogue and atmosphere alone. He understood why she had taken the Imperial University exam. He could have simply handed her the top-rank acceptance certificate she so desired, but that was not enough.

I suppose I must keep her by my side.

Initially, he intended to hire her as an aide for the Grand Ducal House as Gregory wished. But he wanted to bring her into his territory more securely, to ensure she could escape this place that pushed her toward a cliff.

And keeping her by his side was also a choice for himself. In his languidly smooth life, if something ever disturbed his peace, his choice was always one of two.

Perfect extinction, or complete possession.

This time, he chose the latter. Since he could not perfectly erase her existence from his mind, he decided to keep her close and control her instead. This scent that attracted him would surely grow tiresome eventually if he smelled it long enough.

“I have a proposal to make to you.”

To achieve this, he needed to open the heart of this woman who was like a hidden flower bud. The veteran negotiator, who always obtained what he wanted, looked directly at the target sitting before him.