Chapter 6
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Dear, I believe you may be misunderstanding.
Episode 6
"I caused a misunderstanding, and by failing to clarify it properly, I forced you to hear words you should never have heard."
Grace Oellin lifted her head straight, fighting to keep her voice steady.
No matter how frightening he was, it would be disrespectful to avoid his gaze at a moment like this.
"It is entirely my fault."
Sincerity, after all, could only emerge when one conquered fear.
"I have been so repeatedly discourteous. I am truly sorry."
Lucas Black detected in her tone an implication that even included the incident where she had collapsed before him.
Lucas, who had been quietly turning over her words, slowly opened his mouth.
"Let me say this once more, Lady Grace Oellin."
His voice continued slowly yet firmly.
"You have done nothing wrong in this situation."
His tone was far more courteous than when he had been in conflict with Marquess Oellin moments before.
He seemed to be a man capable of projecting his voice wide and powerfully without straining his throat.
"And another thing—is there anyone quite as displeased as I am right now?"
Lucas Black's voice struck Grace Oellin's eardrums vividly, clearly, and with force.
"...What do you mean by that?"
"No matter that he is your father, he has no right to insult you by calling you 'like some woman from the Alley.'"
Grace Oellin was taken aback by Lucas's words.
She had not expected him to pay attention to such a remark.
She regarded Lucas with a peculiar expression.
"So I shall not accept your apology."
At his next words, Grace Oellin was immediately flustered.
It seemed her apology would not be enough to appease his anger.
She bit the inside of her lip and forcibly swallowed a sigh.
It was hopeless.
Would the Oellin Marquessate simply vanish from the map?
Her complexion turned pale in an instant.
Though her attachment to the family was not strong, her fate would be bound to theirs...
'If something happens to me, what will become of the children at the Orphanage I've been supporting in secret from Father?'
At least she had the title of baroness granted to her last year.
She also possessed some personal wealth granted for her contributions to developing preservation techniques.
It was secret funds her father had yet to discover.
Still, because it was a marquessate, the Oellin Family would not collapse all at once, she thought.
All she could do was hope this man was less angry than she feared.
As Grace Oellin swallowed her sigh with a dejected expression, Lucas Black observed the changes in her face.
The trembling face that had offered an apology transformed in an instant into one struck by shock at his rejection.
Then, as if considering something, her expression grew sorrowful for a moment before she quickly composed herself again.
'Her expressions are more varied than I expected.'
I had assumed her expression was perpetually frozen, yet upon closer inspection, she possessed a remarkable range of emotions.
Moreover, she seemed far from skilled at concealing them.
"I understand your wishes, Your Excellency. In that case, it would be presumptuous of me to detain you any further."
She had clung to me until my breath grew shallow, yet her farewell was bright and composed.
She was a woman whose surface seemed transparent, yet whose depths remained utterly inscrutable.
Perhaps that was why I found myself unable to look away.
I felt compelled to gaze at her more deeply still.
Grace Oellin stepped back and bent her knee in a gesture of farewell as she spoke.
"Then, I hope you depart without any ill feelings."
Lucas could not restrain himself and spoke.
"Why were you so silent on the first day, when you speak so eloquently now?"
At his sudden question, Grace Oellin's eyes widened in surprise.
'What on earth is he saying?'
He stared at her with an intensity that seemed to pierce through her very being, then abruptly let slip what lay within.
"Are you no longer trembling now?"
"I beg your pardon? What do you mean?"
"You trembled when you looked at me. I'm asking if you still tremble now."
"Ah...."
Grace Oellin's face flushed crimson.
That day, even I could see how visibly I had trembled, yet I never expected him to mention it.
But thinking this would be our last encounter, she gathered a measure of courage and replied.
"To speak truthfully."
She said, nervously moistening her lips.
"I still tremble somewhat when I see Your Excellency."
To be precise, seeing him summoned the phantom of that moment, and fear made her body quiver.
Grace Oellin's gaze fell upon her own pale hand, which trembled faintly.
Lucas's gaze followed. Though she could not discern what his piercing stare conveyed, Grace Oellin felt a measure of discomfort. She quickly lowered her trembling hand to conceal it.
"But this too shall end, will it not? Since it seems we shall not meet again...."
Grace Oellin forced herself to smile with studied composure, masking her unease.
Yet she did not know that regardless of all else, this was the first smile she had ever shown him.
Lucas's expression shifted subtly as he beheld her smile.
Grace Oellin's careful smile had touched something deep within Lucas Black.
He could not precisely determine what had stirred him—whether it was the poignancy in her words about this being their last moment, or the delicate, ethereal smile directed toward him.
But one thing was certain: he did not wish for this moment with this woman of quiet fire to be their 'last'.
Yes, he had to admit it.
Haem had been right.
A peculiar light kindled in Lucas's blue eyes.
This woman, Grace Oellin, undoubtedly harbored affection for him.
And he... found that he did not dislike it.
'Ah, this is troublesome.'
He shook his head with a look of admiration—or perhaps exasperation—breaking into a hearty laugh.
Pressing his fingers lightly to his forehead, he dragged his hand across his face as though washing it dry.
He seemed to be struggling to contain an expression that kept threatening to slip free.
"Grace, you really are... quite extraordinary."
At his abrupt words, Grace tilted her head belatedly and asked.
"...I'm sorry?"
"You seem far bolder and more forthright than I anticipated. Remarkably so."
Grace found herself staring intently at Lucas, who was saying something she couldn't possibly comprehend.
Lucas bent forward, drawing closer to her.
"Such qualities seem to stir something peculiar within me."
A smile played across his face as he drew nearer.
The corners of his mouth curved upward in a sharp smile, and the hair on the back of Grace's neck stood on end.
It was less intense than the terror she'd felt when she'd fainted that first day, yet his smile remained pure fear incarnate to her.
Grace's mouth opened to release a startled gasp, but she quickly covered it with her hand.
At the sight, he laughed again.
"You're far more stimulating than I expected."
I couldn't begin to follow either his words or this atmosphere.
His proximity alone was enough to scatter my thoughts, but with that incomprehensible smile and his cryptic remarks, my head felt as though it were spinning.
'What is this? Some new form of torture? Is he trying to intimidate me? What is this? Why, why is he doing this?'
As I stood there helplessly, Lucas suddenly made a soft sound and removed his coat.
In an instant, he draped it over my shoulders.
"We can't have people talking if you're seen wandering about in your nightclothes. Please wear this, Grace."
"Ah, I, um. Y-Your Excellency?"
"Ah, of course. You'll need to return the coat. I'm occupied this week, so next Tuesday would suit me well. I'll send a carriage—do take it here."
"I'm sorry? You mean... I should come myself?"
At his words, Grace found herself asking back, seized by apprehension.
Lucas answered with a sidelong glance, as though stating the obvious.
"Of course you'll come yourself. It would be better for everyone that way."
Hmm.
He cleared his throat, composing his expression.
The enigmatic smile vanished, replaced by his customary blank countenance.
With cold, keen eyes, he glanced at her briefly before offering a slight nod in farewell.
"Then I'll take my leave."
The carriage departed swiftly with him aboard.
The coat, far too large for Grace's slight frame, dragged across the ground.
Grace stood frozen, watching the carriage recede into the distance with a vacant stare.
Her trembling hand rose belatedly as though to grasp the departing carriage, but it fell short.
"What have I done."
Grace's face crumpled into an expression of near despair.
'I think I've made a terrible impression on that man...!'
* * *
Lucas Black glanced back from the departing carriage.
Grace Oellin still stood in that spot, watching his carriage disappear into the distance.
The sight stirred something within him—a quiet admiration he couldn't quite suppress.
"That woman is truly afflicted as well."
The corner of Lucas Black's mouth lifted so subtly that even he failed to notice.
He continued to look back at her, unaware that his eyes refused to leave her receding figure.
'She's so small, though.'
It was impossible to tell whether she was wearing the coat or drowning in it.
While the coat reached only to his knees, on her it draped like an elegant dress robe, concealing her entirely.
It appeared as though the garment itself was cradling her in its embrace.
He found that image rather pleasing.
Even in his absence, she seemed to be sheltered by his protection.
He sensed that this delicate, fragile woman needed his guardianship.
Especially from a father who berated his own daughter, calling her a common street woman.
'Still, I never expected Marquess Oellin to possess such a domineering and violent temperament.'
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