The dessert presentation ceremony ended sooner than expected.
It was thanks to Adrian quickly gathering the staff. The employees kept tilting their heads while showing forced smiles filled with apprehension. It seemed they were more reluctant than happy to receive treatment they'd never gotten from the Grand Duchess before.
I heard a group of employees whispering to each other—"Smell it first to see if it's spoiled"—but I just smiled and pretended not to hear. There was no way serving dessert would remove the death flag from the original story, but it didn't seem like a bad way to announce my change.
We mixed-blood demons—let's get along well from now on.
I instructed all the employees, including Mina, to take a break. Then I started touring the mansion alone with Adrian.
The inside of the Mansion of Darkness was entirely black, with light flowing brilliantly across it like obsidian. The floor, the walls, the stairs, even the huge fireplace—all gleamed darkly. It was especially beautiful to see the light pouring from the enormous chandelier fracturing across the vast black marble floor.
Completely my style.
It was truly the pinnacle of sophistication. A perfect fit for the name "Mansion of Darkness."
"It's quite different from the Mansion of Light, isn't it?"
In response to Adrian's question, I nodded repeatedly with a satisfied expression.
"Yes, very much so."
And then, after a while, something came into view.
"What is that?"
A large fountain stood in the center of the spacious lobby, between the staircases ascending on both sides. It was richly decorated with tropical flowers not typically found in the north.
"Ah, as you can see, the Mansion of Darkness is all black, so we often put colorful flower arrangements here to add a point of contrast."
"...You did this yourself, Adrian?"
"Yes. It's a bit embarrassing to admit, but I have a knack for working with flowers and plants."
Adrian smiled shyly, but I thought it was a talent that suited him perfectly. If I had to describe Adrian's image... he had the aura of a neat, refined florist.
I like that very much!
I'd secretly chosen Adrian to be the butler of the seaside mansion where I would stay after my divorce. Flower arrangement skills were useful, too. I appreciated his meticulous and sincere attitude, evident in the perfectly maintained mansion—even though it was a building where the Twins family didn't reside.
Adrian, you're going to be my butler both in the Mansion of Darkness and in the future seaside mansion.
I looked up at Adrian with a satisfied expression and smiled slightly.
"I think we'll be seeing each other often from now on."
Adrian blinked, his expression filled with disbelief. But even that was fleeting—Adrian smiled the brightest smile I'd ever seen from him.
"Really... I'm so happy, Your Highness."
He even paused to catch his breath, as if overwhelmed with emotion.
"Whenever you come here, we will always welcome you with the same warmth. If you need me, I'll come to you no matter what—even if you have to summon me separately."
I could feel the clear sincerity in his eyes, which shone like amethyst.
"Anything I can do for you would be an honor."
I looked at Adrian, who seemed genuinely thrilled, and then opened my mouth.
"...I think you're the only one who isn't afraid of me, Adrian."
A hint of bitterness crossed Adrian's face at my words.
"Do you want me to be afraid of Your Highness?"
"Not at all. Everyone else avoids me, but only you seem to truly welcome me."
"......"
"It's just... I'd like to thank you for that."
I turned my head in a different direction and muttered. Adrian let out a faint laugh, as if he'd caught my small voice. And then a soft silence followed.
Strangely enough, it had the power to gradually ease my mind. How long did that quiet moment last? A low voice came from behind me.
"I've always hoped Your Highness would come here... Because I've been waiting."
An hour later, Adrian returned from seeing Rebecca off and entered the mansion. He immediately sank into the soft chair in front of the fireplace and let out a shallow breath. Then, leaning back, he loosened the cravat that had been constricting his neck.
"Hah..."
Adrian covered his face with both hands and remained slumped in the chair for a long time.
...Her Highness the Grand Duchess came. It still didn't feel real.
Rebecca was someone who had seemed like she would never set foot in the Mansion of Darkness. To be able to share stories with her here, to even laugh together—as Rebecca's smiling face came to mind again and again, Adrian's beautiful face slowly turned red.
At last... have you forgiven me?
The first time Adrian had seen Rebecca was on the first night of her wedding to the Grand Duke.
Rebecca had been crying alone by the pond in the backyard connected to the Mansion of Light. Moonlight fell gently on the beautiful face of the weeping woman. A pure white forehead, the bridge of her nose softly shadowed, and teardrops flowing beside her red lips.
Adrian had approached her as if bewitched by the pitiful sight—she'd looked almost divine. At that time, Adrian had just arrived in the human world for training, so he hadn't known she was the Grand Duchess.
"I was abandoned even here. No one truly loves me."
Rebecca had looked like she was about to break down, tears streaming down her fragile face. Her pitiful tears had pierced Adrian's heart sharply.
Adrian had then learned that she was the Grand Duchess. And that Cedric had postponed their first night together and left the bedroom to check on Lillian's Heart.
"I'll show you the way to Mount Manakin. His Highness the Grand Duke will be there now."
He shouldn't have said that. Even though his heart had sunk at the sight of Rebecca looking like she was about to fall apart, he shouldn't have spoken those words.
After that day, the relationship between Cedric and Rebecca had begun to deteriorate rapidly. Cedric became wary of Rebecca and kept his distance, while Rebecca became obsessed with Cedric and grew increasingly hysterical. The employees' gazes toward Rebecca gradually turned cold, but Adrian could never look at her that way.
The relationship between the Grand Duke and his wife deteriorating. Rebecca's cruelty toward everyone in Twins Castle. Princess Bianca's flight. And above all—
Rebecca gradually transforming into someone suffering from mania. Adrian felt like it was all his fault. He would do anything for Rebecca to repay his debt. So he waited a long time to see her again, but she never appeared before him.
Adrian had thought the reason she didn't visit the Mansion of Darkness was because she resented him. Thus, after five years, he'd made up his mind to leave the Twins family castle and return to the demon world where he'd been raised. He'd tried to forget his guilt about Rebecca along with the memories of his time in the Mansion of Darkness.
But she came here again today...
Adrian took out the envelope he'd kept in his jacket pocket. It was a letter of resignation he'd been planning to hand over to the Grand Duke's aide that afternoon.
Adrian threw it into the fire without hesitation. The pale orange light from the fireplace shimmered across his face.
"I think we'll be seeing each other often from now on."
Rebecca's soft voice rang clearly in his ears. He didn't know if her words were sincere, but at least he could have hope again.
Mina couldn't hide her happy expression as she crossed the path between the two mansions and returned to the Mansion of Light.
"Do you like him that much?"
"Of course! It's been so long since I saw Adrian. You have no idea how popular he is in the demon world!"
Mina was so cute that I burst out laughing. "Yeah, he was handsome."
"Just handsome? Adrian is incredibly sought after in the demon world! He's the second son of a historic noble family!"
"Really? Then why is someone like that serving as a butler?"
In response to my question, Mina excitedly swung the rattan basket, then stopped and tilted her head.
"I'm not sure, actually. From what I heard, he came to the Grand Duke's estate to experience life in the human world and ended up staying without returning. I don't know why he did that, though..."
She was about to continue when—
"...Huh?"
Mina's eyes slowly widened as she inadvertently looked behind me. Her face looked like she was seeing someone she never expected to encounter.
Just then, a carriage entered the gates of the Twins family estate. Cedric, who had been lost in thought the entire journey, opened the envelope of documents he was holding. The divorce papers were stamped with the Emperor's seal and the Vatican's seal of approval.
As Emperor Letitz had said, their marriage would be dissolved perfectly as long as the couple signed. It was something he'd always wanted, and he was finally starting to see the end.
But... Cedric didn't know why he felt so uneasy.
"You know, the more intensely you love someone, the colder your feelings become when they finally fade—and there's no turning back. The Grand Duchess loved you so deeply that now she has no regrets left!"
He should have just let the comment pass. If it had been the Cedric of before, he would have definitely dismissed Emperor Letitz—who didn't know the couple's true circumstances—for uttering the laughable word "love." But after hearing the Emperor's words, strangely enough, he kept thinking about Rebecca from that night.
In particular, those eyes and that voice that showed no emotion at all. She'd said she didn't love him anymore. That she didn't want him anymore.
Until then, Cedric had been convinced that Rebecca had ulterior motives for agreeing to the divorce. He'd thought she was giving him one last chance to somehow change his mind.
But now it seemed...
Rebecca's attitude was too refreshing, too final—like someone who was truly waiting for a divorce.
That realization made Cedric replay Emperor Letitz's words over and over again in his mind.
Did Rebecca really love me?
Cedric's brow slowly furrowed as he became lost in thought. What good did it do now if Rebecca had truly loved him?
The relationship between husband and wife had long since become irreparable.
Rebecca must have acknowledged that fact and given up on her feelings, even if it was too late.
Even after he'd calmly sorted through the situation, he continued to feel uncomfortable.
A strange sensation—as if reason and emotion were operating separately. This was new for Cedric, who had always relied solely on rational judgment.
It's bothering me in many ways.
He was stroking his brow when he glanced out the carriage window. In the distance, a woman with red hair was walking out of the Mansion of Darkness.
For a moment he thought she was an illusion, but it was definitely Rebecca. Red hair, white skin, a gorgeous outfit—everything was the same as before, but something was undeniably different.
Rebecca... was smiling. A smile that brightened the surroundings more brilliantly than lilac flowers in full bloom on a spring night. Cedric didn't realize his gaze had fixed on that smile for quite some time.
"...Let's stop here."
It was around that moment that he stopped the carriage without thinking.