Chapter 196
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 196
“Please contact Uncle Terry. We need to bring him back to the Listerwell estate. He isn’t the kind of man who should have been dismissed so easily.”
“That’s a good idea. Experienced retainers aren’t easily replaced.”
Since she would soon be moving into Listerwell Manor, it seemed Terry could be summoned to coincide with her arrival.
“Anyway, assuming Ms. Lily Adler had Uncle Terry’s help, how did you find out about the others?”
“We found the shipwright and the adhesive vendor by tracing the materials back to their source, assuming your story was correct. Of course, it was like finding a needle in a haystack, but if you deploy enough people, clues are bound to turn up eventually.”
Harriet, who had been collecting evidence for the trial, now had a rough idea of how much it cost to hire such informants. Though they say there is nothing money and power cannot achieve, the fortune he had poured out to ensure her victory was clearly no small sum.
Harriet decided to ask the question that truly weighed on her.
“What do you gain from spending so much money? Is there something you need me to do for you in exchange for this trial?”
“Harriet.”
“I’m not questioning your motives, I genuinely don’t know. That’s why I’m asking. I’m just ignorant about these things... Oh! The new House of Listerwell will be loyal to the Ducal House and the Imperial Family. You don’t have to worry about that.”
Cedric gazed silently at her. She seemed almost anxious. He watched the tremor in her hazel eyes—the unease of a woman trying to decipher his true intentions.
“Do you truly not know?”
“Is it perhaps some kind of consolation for the upcoming broken engagement? Even if it were, it’s far too much...”
“Haha...”
Harriet was still thinking about the end of their relationship.
For the first time, Cedric regretted letting his mischievousness go too far. He had hoped she would desire him, but perhaps that was difficult for Harriet, who had spent her life having everything she wanted taken away.
He spoke again, his voice completely devoid of jest.
“I was merely trying to be loved. I hoped that if I did enough, you might choose to stay by my side.”
“What does that mean? Are you asking me to become your mistress?”
“Mistress?”
Even after he had laid it all bare, Harriet was stubbornly avoiding the truth.
“I am now Viscountess Listerwell. For me, a Viscountess, to be a Duke’s mistress... No, no matter how I look at it, that isn’t right, Cedric.”
“Wait. I just made a declaration of love. Why is your mind going there?”
“L-love? What?”
“Just so you know, there will never be a lover in my life outside of marriage. Never.”
Cedric gently lifted her chin, looking into eyes that seemed to hold secrets as deep as Tasia Lake. He spoke again, pressing each word with his heart.
“I am begging you to love me. Marry me. Don’t leave me.”
At the desperation in his voice, Harriet finally seemed to grasp his true intentions. Her eyes widened, and her lips moved as she stammered out nonsense.
“Y-you’re talking crazy! You’re the Duke of Kailas. The Emperor’s nephew! You should marry someone better!”
“I decide who is ‘better’ for me.”
“Your marriage to me would be a national loss! Even princesses from neighboring countries want you as a husband, so why...!”
Cedric almost burst out laughing, watching Harriet act as if she were desperate to push him toward another woman. Of course, it wasn’t particularly amusing.
“Harriet. You keep acting as if you don’t...”
He seized Harriet’s wrist.
“Don’t you love me?”
“...!”
“Do you have the confidence to leave me?”
It was a question that was neither roundabout nor ambiguous, yet Harriet couldn’t answer.
That was a sufficient answer for Cedric.
“If you can’t decide, then I will. There will only be one marriage in my life, and my bride will be Harriet Listerwell. You, and no other.”
“Cedric. Are you serious?”
“More desperate than ever. Do you wish for confirmation?”
He kissed her then. He surrendered to the passion that surged between them like a tidal wave. It felt as if he had been swept up in the pace of this innocent, oblivious woman, but now it didn’t matter. In his fervent desire to show her his heart, unbecoming wrinkles formed in his immaculate suit.
He had intended to hold her by force if she tried to escape, but there was no need. The moment their tongues met, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
“Harriet... Be my everything. I will give you my everything in return.”
He whispered against her lips. He had hoped his desire to possess her wouldn’t seem too crude, but perhaps that fear had been conveyed through his touch, for Harriet smiled faintly and replied.
“I’ll give myself to you. Take me.”
The heaven that had seemed beyond his grasp finally opened its gates.
*
The next day, Harriet realized just how naive her decision had been to spend the night in Cedric’s room.
“Good morning.”
The scene she encountered the moment she opened her eyes was surreal. Cedric, bare-chested with only a sheet draped over his waist, was greeting her with a sleep-heavy voice and a smile.
Harriet couldn’t even find the words to respond. She slowly moved her fingertips to trace his forearm. The firm muscle beneath his smooth skin confirmed his tangible presence.
Cedric chuckled, perhaps tickled, then suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace.
“Don’t tempt me first thing in the morning. It’s hard to resist.”
“Uh... oh... yes... I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.”
He savored the soft weight of her in his arms for a moment before returning to reality.
“I don’t want to bring this up right now, but actually, everyone has been waiting for a while.”
“What? Who? What for...?”
“Reporters are camped out in front of the manor’s main gate.”
“What?!”
Harriet’s drowsiness vanished instantly. She shot upright, hastily pulled on a nearby gown, and rushed to the window to peek through the curtains.
Though the sun was high, it was still morning. Outside the walls of the Ducal Manor, newspaper reporters and photographers were waiting for her to appear.
“Oh my goodness...!”
She realized how naive she had been to think that winning the trial meant everything was over. She was a captivating topic: the victor of a trial that had gripped the public, the new Viscountess of Listerwell at only twenty-four, and the woman about to marry a Duke.
For a while, she wouldn’t be able to escape the piercing gaze of the public, no matter where she went.
“Wh-wh-what do I do?!”
“You just need to go out and wave a little.”
“If they find out I spent the night here before we’re even married...!”
“Now, no one will dare spread rumors about our marriage falling through.”
Unlike the flustered Harriet, Cedric seemed to be in an excellent mood.
“Honestly, if it were up to me, I wouldn’t want to let you out of this room... but there are things that must be done.”
He rose from the bed, donned a gown, and gave Harriet a light kiss. Then, he pulled the cord to summon a servant.
“Have you risen, Your Grace? Shall I bring the washing water?”
The maid asked with her head bowed, not daring to meet their gaze.
“Harriet should wash up first.”
“The bathwater is prepared. If you require assistance, My Lady...”
“Oh, no! I can manage on my own.”
Embarrassed by the exchange, Harriet followed the maid out. To sleep with a man in the manor where his mother, Jeremia, resided, and then to wash up there—her face flushed with a sense of impropriety.
But the maid acted as if this were perfectly normal, assisting her with the bath and her toilette with an unperturbed expression.
“I’ve selected these three outfits. I prepared them with a somewhat subdued feel, but if you dislike them, I can bring something else.”
“The second one is lovely. But whose clothes are these?”
“These were garments Her Grace wore in her youth. They have been meticulously mended. The fabric and craftsmanship were so excellent that Her Grace cherished them.”
The maid seemed worried about being criticized for offering old clothes, but Harriet was simply aghast that they belonged to Jeremia.
‘Not only did I spend the night with him in his mother’s house, but now I’m wearing her old clothes?’
At the very least, the shock distracted her from the reporters waiting outside.
Whether the maid had received professional training or simply had a natural gift, her eye for fashion and her skill with makeup and hair were exceptional. An hour after emerging from Cedric’s bedroom, Harriet had transformed into a lady who was elegant without being overdone.
Meanwhile, Cedric had adopted the appearance of a ‘Duke on holiday’ and was waiting for her.
“Shall we go out?”
They finished breakfast and then feigned a casual stroll, naturally drifting into the reporters' line of sight.
As expected, cameras flashed. Harriet, looking slightly surprised, glanced their way, then offered a faint smile and a wave. Even that simple gesture drew an enthusiastic reaction.
“Please wave just one more time!”
“Look this way, please! This way!”
Among the shouts, some called her ‘Viscountess Listerwell,’ while others went a step further and called her ‘Duchess.’ Cedric, seemingly quite pleased with the latter, raised his hand in acknowledgment.
Afterward, the two walked along the garden path, pretending to be unaware of the lingering gazes.
“What are your plans from here?”
“The biggest task is repairing and decorating Listerwell Manor. My uncle’s family will be leaving today, but repairing the interior and exterior and decorating it to my taste will likely take at least a month.”
“I doubt they’ll leave so readily.”
At Cedric’s remark, Harriet burst into laughter. From a distance, it looked like a woman giggling at her lover’s joke, but the reality was different. Harriet’s eyes held a chilling glint.