The Duke’s Collapse
Because he had been absent from society for so long, the servants of the Krut household did not immediately recognize the Duke of Klaus. It was only after Ferdinand identified him that the butler turned pale with shock and scrambled to usher him inside.
However, the party did not react immediately to the Duke’s arrival. It was partly because he had entered without being announced, and partly because there were many young guests, but mostly because almost everyone was gathered in a wide circle around Princess Roella and Lady Laila.
“Your Grace.”
Ferdinand called out to him in a low voice, but the Duke did not listen and marched straight toward them. That hateful illegitimate child—to him, Roella was no different from a bastard—was throwing a tantrum.
“Oh my heavens! Duke Klaus, what brings you to a place like this!”
The hostess cried out, but he did not respond. He simply glared at Roella with eyes full of murderous intent.
He looked at the imperial tiara adorning her head, then glared at Roella once more. That was something that should have been worn by his granddaughter.
Roella flinched.
‘Duke Klaus? I heard he was bedridden and dying?’
The old man before her was clearly sickly, but his eyes burned with a piercing intensity.
She was dumbfounded. Why on earth was the Duke of Klaus, who had been in seclusion for twenty years, here? And why did he look as if he were taking Lady Laila’s side?
He slowly opened his mouth.
“It would be wise for the Princess to maintain her dignity.”
The Countess of Dernburg and the Marchioness of Krut quickly grabbed Roella by the arms, fearing she might lash out. There was no benefit in fighting the Duke of Klaus. The weight of such a conflict was different from merely insulting Lady Laila.
But Roella had no intention of fighting the Duke in the first place. Her spine trembled at the Duke’s killing intent. She was filled with rage and shame at the fact that she had felt fear, but she was grateful that someone was holding her back.
She spoke in a cold, relatively calm voice.
“You, too, should mind your manners, Duke.”
At that, the Duke of Klaus remained silent for a moment before gripping his cane and bowing politely.
“Otto Klaus offers his greetings to the Princess.”
It was an attitude that narrowly avoided being charged with lèse-majesté.
Roella gnashed her teeth, glanced at Olivia, snorted, and turned away. Setting aside the fact that there was no profit in bickering with the Duke, she was worried that Ezekiel might be angry. After all, the House of Klaus was not a family to be trifled with.
Confirming that Princess Roella was preparing to leave, the Marchioness of Krut felt relieved, let her go, and turned toward the Duke. The Princess was certainly a very important guest, but she was not more important than a Duke who had attended a party for the first time in twenty years.
“Duke Klaus, what brings you here without any notice? Is your health alright?”
“I apologize for coming without an invitation, Marchioness. I heard that someone I must meet is here.”
“An invitation? Why would you ever need one to visit, Duke? It is an honor that you have come.”
The Marchioness spoke quickly.
“Who is the person you wish to meet? I will find them for you immediately.”
Just who could be so important that the Duke, who had been bedridden, would walk here himself?
But the Duke did not answer. He was not in the right state of mind to do so. Ferdinand whispered something to him, but he didn't hear it. He didn't need to hear it to know. He knew exactly who he had come to find. Just by looking straight at Olivia once, he knew.
The Duke of Klaus did not remember what Gisela looked like. He remembered her name, and he remembered that his daughter had occasionally spoken of the youngest maid’s boldness, but he had never paid much attention to her while she was alive. It was only after she died that he mourned, memorizing her name and the stories his daughter had told.
So, the reason he knew just by looking at the woman standing there was not because she was Gisela’s daughter.
“Adel.”
He inadvertently muttered his daughter’s name.
She was different. Very different. His daughter had been a lady with apricot-colored hair and a neat, delicate impression. She was completely different from the alluring and sensual woman standing there.
But she resembled her. Even though he could tell where and how much they differed, the moment the image of that woman and his daughter completely overlapped within him—
He lost consciousness and collapsed.
“Your Grace!”
“Duke Klaus! Someone, call a doctor!”
Ferdinand hurriedly supported the Duke, and the Marchioness of Krut screamed in shock.
In an instant, the party was engulfed in chaos. Someone took off their coat and hurriedly spread it on the floor, and the Duke was carefully laid upon it. All the doctors residing at the Krut estate rushed over in a panic.
The party could no longer continue. Those who knew how to read the room offered a brief bow to the Marquis of Krut and left, while some, unable to suppress their curiosity, crept closer to the Duke to observe the situation.
Olivia stood rooted to the spot, staring down at the Duke lying on the floor. Just before he collapsed, the Duke had reached out to her. Mournfully, desperately...
“It seems he fainted temporarily due to overexcitement. He is a very frail man, so... if you let him rest, he will wake up.”
Only after the doctor spoke did Ferdinand let out a long sigh, loosening the tie around his neck. The Marchioness of Krut wiped the Duke’s face with cold water and said,
“It would be best to move him to a room where he can rest comfortably, wouldn't it?”
“Yes.”
Following the doctor’s instructions, the servants of the Krut household carefully moved the Duke to a lounge.
Ferdinand did not follow immediately, instead approaching Olivia, who was still standing still.
He, too, had seen the Duke reach out to her just before he collapsed. While others seemed to think the Duke had fainted from the excitement caused by Princess Roella, in his eyes, it was because of Olivia.
Ferdinand was full of questions about who Gisela was to make the Duke act that way, but regardless, that wasn't the issue right now. The situation had become too big now that the Duke of Klaus had collapsed.
So, he approached Olivia and whispered low.
“You should leave for now. I will contact you again.”
Olivia’s shoulders trembled visibly. Ferdinand thought it was an uncharacteristically weak attitude for her.
But soon, she returned to a calm demeanor and shook her head.
“I will wait here.”
“If it becomes known that you have a connection to the House of Klaus, it will not be good for what you are trying to do.”
“Now that the Duke has come all the way here, the matter has already grown too large. It’s irreversible anyway.”
The plan had already gone awry.
She had originally intended to meet the Duke of Klaus in secret. She had planned to hide her identity and act as Laila for as long as possible. At least until she had definitely seduced Ezekiel and secured the jewelry box.
But she felt no resentment toward the Duke.
The Duke of Klaus was her maternal grandfather.
She had never had a proper conversation with him. In her first life, she had fallen into Ezekiel’s hands before she even knew who she was, and in her second life, she had been caught and imprisoned while trying to flee.
It was only in her third life that she finally met him, but there was almost no time they could spend together. That was entirely Olivia’s fault. She had been so terrified of going to the capital that she had delayed it as long as she could. At that time, she had only hoped to remain deeply hidden in the Lutgarth territory under Theodore’s protection.
By the time she inevitably visited the capital, the Duke’s illness had worsened beyond repair.
Olivia remembered the old man, who had been so small and withered, as if his skin were stretched over bone. The Duke had reached out to her with trembling hands and wept endlessly.
“You, you... you were really alive, my baby...”
He was so weak he couldn't even give Olivia a proper hug. Far from sharing affection, they couldn't even exchange a few words before he passed away shortly after. She had kept his deathbed vigil and shed tears at his funeral, but that was because of the old man’s pitiful death, not because she had thought of him as family.
But now, she knew what her grandfather had done for her back then. It was only after the Duke of Klaus died that Ezekiel was able to frame the Lutgarths and raise a punitive force. In the meantime, the vast assets of the House of Klaus had all been delivered to Lutgarth as supplies.
Even while dying, he had desperately tried to protect her.
Perhaps in her first life, and her second life, if he had known of Olivia’s existence, he would have gladly given up everything for her. Simply because she was his granddaughter.
So how could she calculate, scheme, and leave this place? She had to be by his side now.
Olivia looked up at Ferdinand and asked.
“Or is there another reason I should avoid him?”
Ferdinand shook his head.
“If you have a plan, that is fine. Then let us go together.”
Olivia headed with him to the room where the Duke had been moved.