Lina's playful words calmed her a little, but at the same time a doubt arose in her mind.
Lina doesn't even work in the kitchen, so she doesn't usually touch knives.Is she being harassed...?>
But Blair's doubt did not last long.
—Tachan!
That's it.
I'll guide you to the dining room.
Lina, after finishing fixing Blair's hair, helped her up.
She went down to the dining room guided by Lina, and the waiting servant opened the door.
It was customary that on the first day of marriage, the newlyweds had lunch with the groom's family.
Thus, while in any other house the first married lunch would be animated with immediate family, in the large dining room only Herdin was seated.
He had no family.
Without siblings, having lost his parents at an early age, Herdin had grown up alone.
The person who was like a mother to him was Empress Esmeralda.
Seeing the empty dining room, she felt like she could understand again why he hated her so much.
Aside from his own feelings of resentment.
The butler, who had pulled out Blair's chair, deftly filled her glass with the appetizer and then left the dining room.
When they were alone in the dining room, Herdin raised his glass and asked.
—Did you sleep well?
It was a somewhat comical question coming from someone who had made Blair cry and suffer all night and had barely let her go at dawn, but Blair answered meekly.
-Yeah.
With that brief greeting, the meal began.
There followed a silence that was too desolate for newlyweds who had just celebrated their wedding and their wedding night the day before.
It was Herdin who broke the silence first.
—When the meal is over, the butler will introduce you to the servants.
He said as he skillfully cut the steak with the knife.
—After the introductions, they will show you the mansion.
Afterwards there is no agenda, you can rest.
-Thank you.
—If you have more questions or something to say, do so with confidence.
—How are you going to proceed with the investigation of the fire ten years ago?
The knife he was cutting the steak with stopped.
His normally dry blue eyes turned to Blair.
As much as it was a contractual marriage arranged for that purpose, I didn't expect him to bring it up just today.
And also at a time when his body and mind must have been tired from the wedding and the wedding night yesterday.
—Since you say you don't remember what happened, for now I'm looking for a hypnotist.
At the word 'hypnosis', Blair's body shuddered.
Because memories of the past came to him.
—Hypnosis… I've tried it several times before, but it didn't work.
—Who knows, this time it could be different.
Herdin responded naturally, but his words concealed a mockery.
He suspected that Blair hadn't really lost her memory, but rather pretended to have lost it.
—…Distrust me.
—How could I trust you?
It was a tone that implied it was obvious.
Although he would normally hide if they found out that they were suspicious, he had no intention of hiding his true feelings and appeared calm.
—Only you will know if you have really lost your memory or pretend to have lost it for some other reason.
The daughter of the imperial house, a political enemy.
That was more than enough reason for him not to trust her.
But it was one thing to think about it vaguely, and quite another to face the raw and direct hostility of the other.
—Just because I accepted the contract doesn't mean I trust you.
He was right.
This was a contract.
Not a marriage based on love and trust, but a contract made by weighing pros and cons.
Wasn't she the one who proposed it like that first?
Since they had signed the contract, she needed to explain her suspicions.
Blair accepted his request calmly.
-…OK.
So, as you say, let's try hypnosis first.
This is how the couple's first intimate meal on their first day of marriage ended.
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After the introductions with the servants, the butler Mason was in charge of showing the mansion.
He was from a family that had served the Duchy of Delmark for generations, so his loyalty to the dukedom ran deep, he had pride, and he knew the history of the dukedom better than the current lord, Herdin.
The visit to the mansion continued until after dinner.
Although Blair, who had lived in this mansion before the regression, already knew the information, he listened carefully to Mason's explanations.
Seeing it all again after returning from death gave him a new emotion.
On the way to Blair's bedroom after finishing the visit, Mason apologized as if he had just fallen for it.
—She must be tired after yesterday's ceremony.
I think I've gotten carried away and been selfish.
—These are things that the lady of the house should know.
Thanks to this I have been able to quickly learn the ins and outs of the mansion.
Mason, like most people in the dukedom, was not particularly friendly towards Blair, but he never showed his personal feelings in front of her.
Blair did not want to bother someone who, although she was an unwanted lady, treated her as such.
Besides, he had really enjoyed the visit to the mansion.
They soon arrived in front of Blair's bedroom.
—If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask me anytime.
—I would like to see the list of names of the servants and the inventory of household goods.
Mason was surprised by Blair's request.
Matters related to the household's finances, such as how much servants were paid or the state of supplies, were certainly the mistress's tasks.
But in reality, rarely did the lady of a noble house take care of it personally.
Reviewing and managing numbers was a headache, so it was usually done by someone lower in rank.
And she said she would do it personally?
"You mean you'll take care of that yourself?"
—Now I am also part of Delmark.
I must do my part.
Before the regression, Blair, like other noble ladies, delegated the internal tasks of the ducal residence to Mason.
Partly because the lady's tasks were difficult for her, but above all because the people of the duchy did not welcome her meddling in the affairs of the house.
But now he no longer cared what others thought.
Even though she was a duchess for only a year, she wanted to do her duty.
Not to be recognized by others, but because she no longer wanted to feel insignificant in front of herself.
Mason immediately nodded to Blair's words.
—I will upload the documents to you tomorrow so you can review them.
—Surely in your eyes I have many shortcomings.
Teach me a lot from now on.
Mason was internally surprised at Blair's attitude.
I hoped that, being a princess raised in cotton, she would not want to touch on complicated and difficult issues.
And furthermore, for someone raised with so much pampering, she was not ashamed of her own shortcomings and was willing to learn.
Some would think that showing that side was degrading, but in his eyes, that attitude seemed even more noble.
—I am the one who remains at your disposal, Madam.
The Mason Blair knew was someone who rarely showed his emotions.
But for a moment, he felt her gaze soften.
After saying goodbye, Mason left and Blair, after bathing, returned to her bedroom.
It was still early to sleep.
Blair decided to put his future plans in order.
He had proposed a one-year contract marriage to Herdin, but in reality, he conceived Aziel in early summer.
Herdin must not be aware of Aziel's existence, so everything must be resolved no later than in the first months of pregnancy.
Before that, I had to figure out three things.
First, recover the memories of the fire.
This would be led by Herdin, so she didn't need to plan anything about it.
Second, prepare for the divorce.
To get divorced in the empire you needed the consent of the emperor.
But would Ivan, who had promoted this marriage by targeting Herdin, agree to accept their divorce?
At least, she would never agree to a divorce because of Herdin.
The solution that occurred to him was precisely a 'scandal'.
Cause a scandal with another man.
But if such a scandal broke out, that man would be punished.
So Blair decided to escalate the scandal.
If the lover was only one, the arrows would be directed towards him, but what if there were several?
Then people, instead of blaming the adulterous men with the princess, would naturally direct their criticism towards the libertine princess who, while married, played with several men.
That was the development Blair wanted.
In the worst case scenario, if things went wrong and Aziel's existence was discovered, he could be passed off as their son.
After divorcing due to an embarrassing scandal, she would not be able to live in the empire, at least in this capital.
With bad luck, she could end up locked up by Ivan or Katrina.
But as long as she was legally the Duchess of Delmark, not even the imperial family could touch her, so she had to leave the capital as soon as the divorce became effective.
Therefore, I needed a new identity and a refuge for that moment.
That no one knew.
The place where he could get all of that was the Guild.
And third, find the person responsible for his death before the regression.
The probability that the stranger killed her for personal reasons was low.
Surely there was someone behind.
She had to find the person responsible and find out why he killed her.
Because in this life, he did not want under any circumstances to leave Aziel alone.
Then, he suddenly remembered the night before and the contract.
Blair got out of bed and took out the contract she had kept in the drawer.
The space for signatures was still blank.
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After bathing, Herdin was in his office reviewing documents with a cigar in his mouth.
He had already dispatched the important documents before the wedding, so there was nothing urgent, but he chose work instead of rest.
To forget the thoughts that had been tormenting him since this morning.
In the silent study immersed in darkness, only the rustle of papers being passed around resonated.
So.
Knock, knock—
A knock on the door broke the silence.
Ruth complained that “he was exhausted from overwork during the wedding preparations,” so she had sent him home early today; He wouldn't go around the office on his own again.
-Forward.
But the one who entered the office was not Ruth or Mason, but Blair.
…To be continued