Elysia shivered.
Goosebumps raced down her arms.
The way he said those two simple words made her skin crawl.
She rubbed her sleeves briskly and pointed toward him.
"Come with me."
The boy immediately abandoned all pretense of misery.
As he followed her out of the stable yard, he shot the stable master an unbearably smug look.
The man nearly choked with indignation.
"Bloody pretty-face," he muttered under his breath.
Elysia pretended not to hear.
Behind them, Miriam instinctively moved to follow.
Elysia raised a hand.
"Wait here."
Miriam blinked.
She didn’t understand why.
Still, she had followed Elysia long enough to know that her mistress always had a reason for what she did.
Without further question, she stopped where she was.
Elysia led the boy toward the western side gate.
A single lantern hung beneath the archway.
Its dim golden light flickered against the stone walls.
Beyond the gate, a short flight of steps descended into a quieter corner of the estate.
Elysia had barely reached the first step when she felt someone move behind her.
Too close.
Much too close.
The boy’s voice drifted toward her ear.
"The past few nights, I’ve waited for Your Grace in the stables."
His tone carried a hint of wounded longing.
"And tonight..."
He stepped closer.
"You finally came."
His voice lowered further.
"Just for me."
Elysia immediately took two steps away.
A frown formed between her brows.
The boy, however, seemed encouraged rather than discouraged.
"I don’t need status, I don’t need titles."
He smiled faintly.
"I only want to remain by your side."
His gaze lingered on her.
"I can do many things."
"Oh?"
Elysia folded her arms.
"Like killing horses?"
The smile vanished.
The boy froze.
"...What?"
"You heard me."
Elysia’s expression darkened.
"You were supposed to work off the cost of a broken writing brush."
"A few days feeding horses would have settled the debt."
She pointed toward the stables.
"Instead, you somehow managed to kill one of the finest warhorses in the manor."
The boy opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Elysia continued mercilessly.
"That horse came from the Northern Plains. It was battle-bred. It cost more than your entire life is worth!"
Her irritation was genuine now.
"If I hadn’t decided to conduct a full inventory today, nobody would have discovered it until tomorrow."
The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became.
She had grown up in a military household.
She knew exactly how valuable trained warhorses were.
And thanks to him, instead of sleeping peacefully in bed, she was still outside solving problems after dark.
The boy looked genuinely bewildered.
"I... didn’t mean..."
"I should never have assigned you to the stables."
Elysia sighed heavily.
"I thought feeding horses required very little intelligence. Clearly I was mistaken."
The boy’s ears turned red.
He lowered his head.
"I wasn’t talking about horses."
"Oh, I know."
Elysia nodded.
"You were talking about sleeping together."
The boy blinked.
She continued matter-of-factly.
"The sort of things men and women do in bed."
A few days ago, she might not have understood.
Now she did.
After speaking with Bertha, Elysia finally understood what he had been insinuating that day.
The boy stared at her.
Apparently, this conversation was unfolding very differently from what he had imagined.
Slowly, he descended the steps and knelt before her.
His face tilted upward.
The lantern light illuminated his features beautifully.
Soft shadows traced the line of his jaw.
His eyes gleamed.
"Your Grace."
His voice became almost hypnotic.
"You only say that because you’ve never experienced it."
He smiled gently.
"You came here tonight. You brought me out alone. Surely it wasn’t only to scold me."
He reached for her ankle.
His voice dropped lower still.
"Just for tonight... Allow me to serve you."
Elysia narrowed her eyes.
She was already drawing back her foot.
Preparing to kick him squarely in the shoulder.
Then—
A shrill voice shattered the night.
"You shameless harlot!"
The shout echoed through the courtyard.
Elysia looked up.
A large group was marching toward them.
At the front stood Melissa.
Behind her trailed a crowd of maids, servants, and guards.
The formation looked less like a household gathering and more like a military assault.
Elysia immediately understood.
They had been followed.
Or perhaps watched from the beginning.
Still, her expression didn’t change.
"Aunt Melissa."
Her tone remained calm.
"What brings you here so late?"
Melissa nearly laughed from outrage.
"What brings me here?"
Her finger shot toward the kneeling boy.
"You sneak out in the middle of the night to meet a stable hand. Your husband lies unconscious and you’ve only been married a few days."
Her voice rose higher and higher.
"You still dare pretend innocence?"
The boy instantly shrank behind Elysia.
His shoulders trembled theatrically.
"Your Grace..."
Melissa nearly exploded.
"There!"
She pointed triumphantly.
"Everyone can see it now! Caught red-handed!"
She turned toward the servants.
"What are you waiting for? Seize her! Tie her up! In a few days, we’ll drive her out of Draevenor Manor in disgrace!"
Nobody moved.
Melissa frowned.
"What are you standing there for?"
A familiar voice answered her.
"Wait."
Bran stepped forward from the darkness.
Melissa scoffed.
"Bran, don’t tell me you’ve been fooled by this woman too."
"Fooled?"
Another voice interrupted.
Quiet.
Hoarse.
Yet carrying a weight that instantly silenced the entire courtyard.
Melissa froze.
Every servant froze.
Even the boy’s expression changed.
Slowly, Melissa turned around.
The color drained from her face.
The sound of wooden wheels rolled softly across stone.
Elysia’s heart skipped a beat.
Cassiel!
He was here.
Bran stood behind a wheeled chair, pushing it forward at an unhurried pace.
Cassiel sat upright.
His complexion remained pale.
His body was still weak.
Yet none of that diminished the overwhelming presence he carried.
Elysia stared.
He had awakened again.
But why had he come?
And more importantly—
How much had he heard?
An uncomfortable feeling settled in her chest.
The chair finally came to a stop.
Not too close.
Not too far.
Just enough.
Melissa recovered first.
Relief flooded her face.
"Your Grace!"
She practically rushed forward.
"Thank heavens you’ve arrived."
She pointed accusingly at Elysia.
"Look at the sort of woman you’ve married! Barely days after the wedding, she’s meeting another man under cover of darkness. Not only that—"
Melissa pointed toward the stable boy.
"He’s nothing but a stable hand."
Her voice rang with righteous indignation.
"And she was alone with him."
The courtyard fell silent.
Everyone waited.
Waiting to see what the Duke of Draevenor would say.
Waiting to see whether the Duchess had finally fallen into the trap prepared for her.