CH 20.5

For generations, the House of Montefeltra has produced only ugly dukes.

It never occurred to them that a duke could hold up the North.

“Part of me wants to cut you all down.”

Lila’s voice was so eerie that the parlour was silent.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for her to speak. Even Emma was paralysed by Lila’s charisma.

Lila silently crossed her arms. She tilted her head to the side. Mimicking Lucas’s behaviour she had become accustomed to, she warned in a low voice.

“I’m giving you a week to fix everything, including the annex, as good as new. Then I’ll look favourably on your treatment.”

There was a collective gasp from the servants, who thought they were sure to be fired. If they were thrown out into the grounds, which was entering winter, they would be blind.

“Vincent.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“I want those four to clean the stables. You’re moving the horses for the winter, right?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Lila did not forget Emma and the three maids.

“Yes, ma’am!”

The four maids called out at her command, but Lila had already turned her back.

Jessie followed her. Emma cried out, unable to believe Lila’s changed face and Jessie’s unrecognisable appearance.

Lila said to Vincent, who had followed to see them off.

“The four of them are fired, but they’re going to pay for what they did.”

Vincent looked relieved at her firmness.

“I will obey your orders, my lady.”

The position of duchess was not an easy one. Vincent had high hopes for Lila, who would do things differently than the duchesses before her.

He loved and served Montefeltra more than anyone else, and he was looking forward to this new Duchess.

“Take care.”

Vincent bowed deeply from the bottom of the stairs. His demeanour was the same as it had been since she’d first met him, and Lila let out a pleasant laugh.

“What’s there to be careful of in a mansion…”

Lila started to make a joke, but her words were cut off. She was interrupted by a rush of scent that enveloped her.

And then there was a burst of sound.

“Wife.”

Lucas stood in the centre of the hall, Lila lightly lifted. Lila’s eyes widened as she realised they weren’t close to the stairs.

“I’ve listened to Vincent, so I suppose it can’t hurt.”

Lila, who couldn’t take her eyes off his lowly smiling eyes, turned to Jessie’s watery words.

“Ma’am, ma’am. Are you all right?”

Where she stood, the back of her horse had fallen and shattered.

“Haa…”

Looking at the mess, Lila sighed. Her ordeal wasn’t over yet.

She wondered how long this would continue. Lucas’ ghostly presence had kept her out of trouble, but if she got hurt, she’d be forced to postpone the wedding.

That was a no-no.

“Don’t worry.”

His voice fell into her ear, seemingly unfazed by the incident. In fact, it was Lucas, smiling.

“I will protect you.”

Lila seemed to hear the rest of what he didn’t say.

His promise to protect her, even if it meant risking his life. His words that she would always be happy by his side.

As if in response to his words, Lila smiled brightly. Wrapping her arms familiarly around his neck, she replied.

“You’re the best thing in the world.”

“You’re welcome.”

* * *

Lucas and Lila have decided to get married before the end of the year. They chose the last day of the year and talked about it over lunch.

“What kind of wedding do you want?”

Lila asked, and Lucas gently rinsed his mouth with water before answering.

“Whatever the lady wants.”

At his smirked reply, Lila asked again.

“Tell me about it, though. I have my own ideas, but I think it would be nice to have a wedding that reflects the two of us.”

Lucas thought as he listened to her airy voice. God, she was fragrant even when she spoke.

“Hmmm… I’d like it to be a quick and simple wedding.”

Lila gave him a look of embarrassment at his response. In return, Lucas gave a small chuckle and continued.

“In other words, do as you please, wife, because all I can think about is that I can’t wait to be husband and wife with you.”

Lucas then pecked Lila on the lips.

“It’s cute and nice to eat like a child.”

The sauce on the corner of Lila’s mouth moved to Lucas’s fingertips. He licked his fingertips casually and smiled.

At that moment, Lila’s face turned as red as the tomato that made the sauce that disappeared into his mouth.

“Well, I’ll take care of the wedding. …”

Lucas let out a cool chuckle as Lila blurted out her answer, oblivious to his blushing face.

“If there’s anything you want, just ask. I can make anything you want happen, wife.”

It was something Lucas always said out of habit. Lila wondered how much money the new duke had, but she couldn’t fathom it.

Lucas, who had already finished his meal, gestured for Vincent to join him. Beside him, Vincent cleared his plate and set down his teacup.

“Oh, and.”

He paused and pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket. It was a strange sight every time I saw it.

It’s just an inside pocket of a jacket, and what comes out is beyond her imagination.

Come to think of it, Michael seemed to have the exact same thing as Lucas.

“What’s this?”

Lila asked as she was handed over the paper. Lucas, lifting his teacup, replied.

“It’s the design for our wedding ring. I had the craftsman make it first, and it just arrived.”

“Rings? What about the ones you gave me last time?”

As many as 13 rings were presented as gifts, and she wondered what kind of ring it was. Lucas’s eyebrows went down at her question.

He looked disheartened, and Lila wondered if she’d made a mistake.

“It was just a gift for my wife. And we’re supposed to match.”

“Oh…”

Lila wanted to bang her head against the wall at her own stupidity.

“I’m sorry, I thought it was supposed to match this ring.”

Apologising as she pointed to the black ring, Lila began to scrutinise the designs, three in all, a piece of steak with sauce slipping under her lips.

Lucas, who had moved to sit beside her, offered it to her, a gentle smile on his face.

“Watch while you eat.”

Tickle tickle tickle,Lila’s chest was very itchy. Not sure why her heart was racing at such a small gesture.

She parted her lips shyly and took the steak. It must be a brain cell trick that makes it taste even better than when he cut it himself.

“Well, I think this ring would be nice.”

The design Lila chose was the most plainly shaped of the three.

The rings were crossed at an angle where they met, with gemstones in between that resembled the pupils of each other’s eyes.

Lucas quirked one eyebrow in surprise.

“I don’t think that’s my wife’s taste.”

Lucas had been trying to figure out Lila’s tastes for a while now, and what he’d discovered was that she was surprisingly fond of glamour.

Not the showy kind, but the hidden kind, like the dress she was wearing now.

It looked like a simple cream-coloured dress, but the voluminous skirt that revealed itself when she moved or sat down was a passionate red.

She often wore a black ring, the plainest of the rings he’d given her, but with it, he overlapped a ring with a large jewel.

Such a subtle unbalance seemed to stand out her beauty.

The subtle imbalance seemed to enhance her beauty.

So it’s hard not to be surprised by the design of Lila’s wedding ring.

But Lucas couldn’t help but hug her tightly when she answered.

“I think this one looks best with you, Lu.”

Lucas wrapped around her shoulder and put his nose in the nape of her neck. He murmured in a hazy tone.

“You are the loveliest being I know.”

“Ho-ho, make sure you know that.”

“Yes, wife.”

Kissing her lightly on the lips, Lucas pulled away and cut off the rest of the food and popped it into Lila’s mouth.

“Aah, you only handed me the keys and didn’t tell me where to go, did you?”

Lila’s eyes grew round as she ate the food like a baby bird.

Lucas wiped her lips lightly with a napkin and handed her the juice.

“The Duchess’s Key is the key to the Duke’s treasury. Since she’s in charge of the interior of the ducal household, it’s her prerogative to access the treasure trove inside the mansion.”

“The… treasury?”

“Yes. If you’re free later, you might want to take a look. Everything in there is yours to do with as you please.”

“…”

Lila was excited to get a glimpse of the Duke’s wealth.

She hadn’t thought much about his wealth, as he always took care of her before she even asked, but she was curious to find out.

Lyla finished her meal and made herself a cup of tea. The aroma of the tea reminded him of Lila, who had closed her eyes for a moment.

“Oh, there’s something I want to do at the wedding.”