A grand welcoming crowd was waiting for us at the station.
‘The shadows… they aren’t mixed in.’
Under the gaze of countless people, we were able to move safely. The Grand Ducal Castle, where the Grand Duke resided, was not far from the station.
“That over there is our destination, Cresthaven Castle,” a tall, thin shadow said in a smooth voice. He spoke as if nothing had happened, seemingly intent on fulfilling his duties as our guide.
“It is a very historic castle. Even during the endless wars with the northern barbarians before the Grand Duchy was elevated to its current status, the Grand Duke used that castle as a fortress to stand against the enemy.”
“His Grace fought personally? That’s incredible. Although, it sounds a bit scary.”
“What was the name of the castle? Cre… Crust?”
“Haha, it’s a long name, isn’t it? The local residents often call it the Celestial Tower.”
I stopped staring at the shadow and turned my gaze out the window.
‘I can see why it earned the nickname Celestial Tower.’
Crest-whatever castle was built atop a sheer cliff.
The castle was already situated at a high altitude, but its sharp spires rose up as if competing with one another, looking as though they could truly pierce the heavens.
‘If it were me, I would have called it the Demon King’s Castle instead.’
Its color was pitch black and its appearance was jagged and overbearing. No matter how I looked at it, the structure felt more like a fortress guarded by a general than a noble’s castle.
“Ah! I can see the sea over there!”
Lure managed to find something positive even in this bleak landscape.
“Yes. Below that cliff is the ocean. Therefore, there is no way to enter the castle other than this narrow path we are currently traveling.”
It was certainly a location that seemed advantageous for a siege.
Below the cliff, I could see rough waves crashing against the rocks, kicking up white foam.
“Waves are still crashing even in this weather?”
“It’s a bit too early for the sea to freeze. In this kind of weather, there are still people who occasionally dive into the water to catch fish.”
“Really? Even though it’s this cold?”
“Haha, to a northerner, this level of cold is nothing.”
His words reminded me of the days when we were still friends. Although we would never return to such a relationship again.
I closed my eyes and leaned back against the carriage.
***
Before long, the carriage came to a halt in front of the castle.
“Welcome. I sincerely welcome you all to the Grand Duchy.”
There was a welcoming crowd in front of the main castle as well, but it was different from the one at the train station.
‘There are shadows mixed in here.’
Among the dozen or so servants bowing their heads, a few who stood particularly far forward were black in color.
‘Judging by the atmosphere, they seem to be middle management.’
The low-level employees knew nothing, while a few of those with higher ranks were accomplices.
“Please, come this way. His Grace the Grand Duke is waiting for Miss Menzel.”
One of the black shadows took the lead and guided us.
‘Am I going to meet the Grand Duke now? Just like that?’
I followed behind the shadow, glancing at Mari. Mari, who had been silent throughout the journey, had hands that were trembling slightly.
‘It’s only natural to be nervous. This is the very situation she wanted to avoid so badly.’
I scanned our surroundings and subtly extended my fist toward Mari.
“…?”
Mari’s eyes widened, but she soon recognized my signal and gave a small smile.
— Bump.
Fist met fist.
Just like the day we first met.
— Creeeeeak!
The giant doors in front of us swung open, and a grand shadow revealed itself.
“The ruler of the Northern Grand Duchy, His Grace, Grand Duke Kalan Winchester.”
The shadow that had guided us provided the introduction and then scurried away.
“It is an honor to meet you. I am Mari Menzel.”
Mari greeted him while holding both ends of her dress. Her hands were no longer shaking.
“Miss Mari Menzel, my bride-to-be.”
It was a low, gloomy voice that sounded as if it had crawled up from hell. A black shadow with a large build slowly stood up.
“I apologize for not being able to greet you at the front gate. Lately, the condition of my knees has not been good, so I was forced to commit such a rudeness.”
‘He uses a very old-fashioned way of speaking.’
“You need not worry about it. It was a comfortable journey thanks to Your Grace’s consideration.”
“I am grateful that you say so. By the way, who are those people?”
The black shadow’s gaze shifted past Mari toward Lure and me.
“This is my maid, Miss Lure, and my guardian, Sir Heace.”
“Ah, Heace… The man Lyman spoke of.”
A brief silence followed.
‘What is the Grand Duke thinking right now?’
Is he planning to kill the detective who interfered with him? Or is he thinking of deceiving me with a suitable lie?
“You.”
“Yes?”
“Your clothes are quite impressive.”
I glanced down at my shining white ceremonial uniform. With a red cape attached to the back, I looked exactly like a prince out of a fairy tale.
“…Thank you.”
As I answered hesitantly, Mari interjected in a cheerful voice.
“I picked out all of Sir Heace’s clothes myself. What do you think of my taste?”
“Hmm… I did not realize Miss Menzel was a person of such excellent discernment.”
“Once the wedding is over, I’ll pick out Your Grace’s clothes personally as well!”
“…I shall look forward to it.”
It was refreshing to hear, but I felt uneasy at the same time.
Mari’s expression, smiling brightly as if wearing a mask, triggered my anxiety.
‘Mari… I hope you don’t overdo it.’
The reason I bumped fists with Mari earlier was purely for encouragement.
I never intended to embolden her to take dangerous risks, but it seemed Mari had recalled a different memory.
For instance, the promise she made to act as bait once we arrived at the Grand Ducal Castle.
‘No. That was back when we didn’t know about the Grand Duke’s accomplices!’
Standing out right now was too dangerous.
However, I couldn’t even stop her.
“Did you know, Your Grace?”
Mari smiled broadly and looked at the Grand Duke provocatively.
“In the capital, romantic plays featuring the Grand Duke of the North as the male lead are currently very popular.”
“I believe I have heard of that. Perhaps Elise mentioned it.”
Elise.
The Grand Duke spat out that name casually.
Mari’s face stiffened for a moment before she managed to lift the corners of her mouth.
“Yes, so Your Grace knows as well… I’ve watched many of those romantic fantasy plays. Perhaps that is why I also dreamed of a romance with Your Grace.”
“That is an honor.”
“But at the same time, I thought it was an unreachable dream. I had never even met Your Grace, and the difference in our status was great.”
“…….”
“So, when I received Your Grace’s proposal, I felt more curiosity than joy. I wondered, ‘Why? Why me?'”
The words were delivered softly, but they were no different from an interrogation.
“The noble Grand Duke Kalan. Why did you choose me as your bride?”
“That is because…”
A brief silence.
The low voice uttered that name once more.
“Because I heard your story from Elise.”
“My sister told you… about me?”
“She did more than that. Whenever we met, it was all she talked about.”
The shadow shook its head as if tired of it.
“She described you as a bold, active young lady who feared nothing in the world. I also heard you were a lovely girl who lacked tact but was overflowing with courage.”
Mari’s eyes wavered.
It seemed she had never imagined she would hear such a story from the Grand Duke.
“Elise worried about you until the very last moment of her life. She feared that if she was gone, you might be in danger, and she asked me to bring you here and look after you. And that was Elise’s final wish.”
“That’s impossible…!”
The shadow shrugged its shoulders.
“I simply thought I should fulfill Elise’s last wish.”
“That makes no sense! You’re lying!”
Mari lost her composure and raised her voice.
“Don’t use the name of the deceased! Don’t manipulate my sister Elise for your own convenience!”
“Why do you think it is a lie?”
“There’s no way my sister would have left such a wish for Your Grace! There’s no way she could have passed away so peacefully! Because my sister, she…!”
While Mari’s lips trembled as she struggled to continue.
“She didn’t have a lacquer allergy. Therefore, the cause of death was fabricated.”
“…!”
“Was that not what you wanted to say?”
I immediately pulled Mari behind my back to protect her and glared at the shadow.
“I didn’t expect Your Grace to say it personally.”
“Continuing to lie to someone who already knows the truth would only be pathetic.”
“Are you admitting to Your Grace’s crime right now?”
“I am.”
The shadow nodded calmly.
“It is true that I manipulated the cause of Elise’s death.”
‘Manipulated the cause of death?’
I paused at the meaningful phrasing.
Sure enough, the shadow continued.
“However, I was not the one who killed Elise. By the time Elise married me, she was already at death’s door.”
“What on earth…”
Mari murmured, looking dazed.
“What happened?”
“I shall tell you everything. But before that, I must confirm one thing.”
The shadow walked past me with heavy thuds. Standing behind me, in a place where Mari could see him, he whispered his question.
“Miss Mari. You must have heard it from Elise. The story of how she met Taylor John on the night she came to see me. Is that not so?”
Mari answered after some hesitation.
“…Yes. My sister told me.”
In that moment, the black shadow’s head shook minutely. It was as if he were laughing silently.
“Then the explanation will be quick. That night, Elise suffered a fatal wound from Taylor John. She managed to escape, but she was not safe.”
“My sister was wounded…”
“As she was dying, Elise regretted it. She regretted having sought you out so hastily.”
“Why? Why did she regret it?”
“Because that killer might backtrack her movements and find you.”
“…!”
“Taylor John leaves no clues. He removes every trace he leaves behind. There is no way such a man would let someone live who might have heard about his identity. He would surely try to kill you. No matter what it takes, without fail.”
A small tremor was transmitted through my back.
“One fortunate thing was that Elise’s face was not seen by the killer. Elise thought that if she became someone who died in a different way rather than being a victim of Taylor John, the killer would not be able to track her movements. Then, at least you would be safe.”
“Sister…”
I stepped forward on behalf of Mari, who was unable to speak from the shock.
“So you are saying Miss Elise wanted to create a false cause of death. And Your Grace helped her.”
“That is correct.”
If what the Grand Duke said was true, Elise’s motivation was understandable.
However…
“Then why did Your Grace go along with such a lie?”
In essence, he was accepting a dead person as his bride.
There was no way anything good could come from welcoming a ghost bride. One could see that just by looking at the sinister rumors surrounding Grand Duke Kalan.
“Well… let us just say I was moved by Elise’s will.”
The Grand Duke’s answer was highly suspicious, but since he cited emotion as the reason, it was difficult to press further.
“Miss Menzel.”
The Grand Duke spoke to Mari once more.
“As I said before, Elise worried about you until her final moment. She fretted and fretted over the possibility of Taylor John finding you. Thus, she wanted you to be brought here, to the far North, to be safely protected.”
It was the final wish of Elise that he had mentioned earlier.
“Marriage was the best way to follow that wish, but according to my duties as a high noble, I had to enter a second marriage with Miss Sarah. However, whether by a trick of the heavens or not, Miss Sarah also passed away early.”
After expressing his condolences for the deceased, the Grand Duke continued.
“That is how I came to propose to you. To protect you from the threat of Taylor John according to Elise’s wishes, and to remain by your side.”
“…I’m not sure yet. This is all too confusing.”
Even as she said that, Mari peeked out from behind my back.
“So… could you give me some time?”
The shadow nodded readily.
“I understand. I had no intention of pushing you excessively either.”
The Grand Duke proposed giving her about one week to think it over slowly.
A week of breathing room before the wedding had been secured.
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Think nothing of it.”
The Grand Duke, who returned her humble gratitude, spoke as if he had just remembered something.
“Ah, but it would be best if you did not stray from my sight during that week.”
“Pardon? Why is that?”
“I heard that you were attacked.”
The shadow’s voice turned grave.
“Undoubtedly, it must be Taylor John, who has caught the scent. He has realized who you are.”
“…….”
“Although the attack occurred before you reached the North, we cannot be careless. Therefore, stay by my side at all times. I will protect you.”
‘Sure,’ I muttered to myself.
‘Even though Your Grace is the same color as those attackers.’
The story the Grand Duke spun was quite shocking and interesting. But how much of that story was the truth?
No, was there even a single truth in there at all?