The Prodigal of the Esbaden Family (1)
“Puahahahaha-!”
The result was very successful.
Leila sat down and laughed for a long time, wiping away her tears.
“Acting like some giant made of ice, and it turns out it was all just bravado!”
“Rather than bravado, I think he just didn’t know his own drinking limit.”
Duha twirled a quill pen as she continued speaking.
“After all, nobles aren’t supposed to drink beyond a certain amount.”
“Was there such a rule?”
“I heard about it during etiquette lessons. They said it’s against propriety and decorum for nobles to drink to the point of intoxication.”
“Wow, the high-ranking people here really live rigid lives.”
“Indeed.”
Leila stood up and brushed off her skirt.
“By the way, did you meet that person yesterday?”
“That person?”
“The Duke’s cousin. They said he would attend the banquet yesterday.”
“Oh, Daniel?”
“Yes! How was he? Was he as handsome as the rumors say?”
“Well, he was good-looking, but not my type.”
“What did he look like?”
“He had a kind of flower-like vibe. A beautifully handsome face. His manners weren’t bad either.”
“As expected, men should look like flowers and be gentle to be enjoyable to look at. The maids have sharp eyes.”
Leila clicked her tongue regretfully.
“The Duchess should have married someone like that…”
“Don’t say such pointless things. Besides, the Duke is handsome too, isn’t he?”
“Come on, the Duke’s personality is just awful. That person is said to have an amazing personality. Very kind, gentle, and well-mannered, they say.”
“Really?”
Duha seemed to ponder for a moment before adding.
“But Daniel didn’t seem to have such a great personality either.”
“Really? Why?”
“Well, he seemed to dislike me.”
“Then he’s definitely a bad guy.”
To Leila, anyone who disliked Duha was simply a bad person.
No matter how handsome or capable they were.
Duha rose from her seat with a small smile at her maid’s response.
“Where are you going, my Lady?”
“I’m heading to the library.”
“Oh, if it’s books, I could borrow them for you…”
“No, there’s something I want to look for myself.”
She left the room, stopping her maid who tried to follow her.
To find answers to the questions that had been bothering her since yesterday.
*** *** *** *** ***
‘Is nobody here?’
Arriving at the library, Duha looked around for the librarian.
However, there wasn’t even a shadow of a person to be found, let alone the librarian.
Finally, Duha decided to search for the needed books on her own.
The library was awe-inspiring, a three-story building with its ceilings removed and every wall filled completely with books.
She slowly walked forward, inhaling the scent of old paper.
If there was one good thing about coming to the Empire, it was the access to many books.
In Bashar, where nomadic life was common, books were treated as useless burdens, and few people owned them.
‘The Duke’s family tree should be around here.’
Duha approached the most secluded bookshelf.
Just as she passed an old sign that read ‘Family History’ and entered the inner section-
“Ahh, young master, haah.”
Inappropriate sounds unsuitable for the location echoed in her ears.
The sound of rustling clothes and heavy breathing made her inadvertently make a noise with her feet.
As a result, Duha ended up making eye contact with the owner of those sounds.
“Ky-kyaaak!”
The noble lady, half-undressed, screamed upon making eye contact with her and ran away, clutching her clothes.
As Duha stood there dumbfounded watching the scene, she heard movement behind her.
“How embarrassing to be caught by the Duchess of all people.”
A voice like clear metal.
Duha slowly turned her head.
The owner of the voice had somehow approached very close and was looking down at her.
Platinum blonde hair flowing down to his shoulders, deep green eyes like thick summer foliage, and bright features.
Duha found herself gaping at this unfamiliar side of a familiar face.
The man wiped the red rouge marks from his lips with the back of his hand while leaning against the bookshelf behind Duha.
“So, Duchess, how did you enjoy observing someone else’s pleasure?”
A ruby earring dangled from the right ear of the man who smiled more radiantly than sunlight.
The man was Daniel von Esbaden.
Surprisingly, he remained completely composed despite being caught by Duha in an intimate encounter with a woman.
What on earth was he thinking, doing such things in the Duke’s library?
Duha looked at him with incomprehensive eyes.
Daniel merely returned a pure and innocent-looking smile.
“I didn’t expect to see you again so soon. It’s a pleasure.”
Looking at his bright appearance, Duha quietly spoke.
“…This is unexpected.”
“What is?”
She continued speaking while looking at Daniel’s half-unbuttoned shirt.
“I didn’t expect someone supposedly so sickly they’d be late to appointments to be such a libertine, indiscriminate about time and place.”
Somehow, she felt his lateness that evening wasn’t due to illness but rather for reasons similar to today’s situation.
“A libertine, you say.”
He continued speaking, still maintaining his eye-smile.
“I think that word doesn’t suit me at all.”
“I think it’s a very fitting word for someone caught in such a state in a place like this.”
“Isn’t ‘libertine’ a term for men who chase after women?”
Daniel slowly buttoned up his shirt with his long, white fingers.
Unlike the Duke, his soft and slender fingers seemed more suited for playing instruments than wielding a sword—delicate and beautiful.
“I do not chase after women.”
After fastening the last button, he tilted his head to the side.
His fine platinum hair, half tied up, flowed gently with the movement of his head.
“It is the women who chase after a man like me.”
Duha stood there blankly, unable to find words in the face of his confident smile.
“There are many women who pine for me, yet there is only one of me. Rejecting all of them is quite a troublesome task in itself.”
Snap.
When Daniel snapped his fingers, the pale pink coat that had fallen by his feet flew up and landed neatly on his shoulders.
“Today, I was lucky. Thanks to you, Duchess, I was spared some trouble.”
Duha had clearly witnessed him toying with a woman right before her eyes.
If he had any intention of rejecting the woman, he wouldn’t have done such a thing in the first place.
‘…So it wasn’t just my imagination after all.’
Duha looked at Daniel with confused eyes.
His bright, pretty smile resembled cosmos flowers blooming in a field, but there was a sharp hostility hidden within that smile.
Meanwhile, Daniel flashed his usual radiant smile at Duha, who was now looking at him with wary eyes.
“But what brings you to the library, Duchess?”
“I’m here to look for something.”
“Shall I help you? I know this place better than the librarian.”
“…I’m sure you do.”
The Duchess’s gaze, tinged with a hint of disillusionment, made Daniel smile awkwardly.
“Please don’t misunderstand. I am someone who knows how to choose the right time and place.”
Someone like that, doing such things with a woman in the library in broad daylight—tsk tsk.
Duha clicked her tongue inwardly and turned away to avoid him.
“Duchess, if you tell me what book you’re looking for, I’ll find it for you.”
“It’s fine. I can find it myself.”
“I insist on helping you. Consider it my way of apologizing for showing you such an embarrassing scene.”
Daniel had a surprisingly persistent side.
While his whole demeanor radiated dislike towards Duha, he still clung on without losing his smile.
He was like a leech.
Eventually, Duha chose to accept his help rather than avoid him.
“I’m looking for the Duke’s family tree. It should be around here.”
At the mention of the family tree, Daniel’s gaze sharpened slightly.
“Why are you looking for the family tree?”
“…I don’t recall having to explain my reasons to a librarian.”
“Ah, I apologize. That was rude of me.”
He took a step back at Duha’s sharp tone.
“There’s only one copy of the family tree, so it’s easy to find.”
Daniel snapped his fingers, just as he had done when picking up his coat.
A small crimson spark flew from his elegant fingers, and a massive book flew from a corner of the library.
He caught the flying book with one hand and handed it to Duha.
“Here you go, Duchess.”
As Duha took the family tree, Daniel asked, as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“Is there something about the Duke’s family that interests you?”
“There’s quite a lot, since I’m not from here.”
“Come to think of it, for someone from Bashar, your Imperial language is remarkably fluent.”
“I studied it before coming here.”
“That’s impressive. Basharian and Imperial languages have different systems, it must have been difficult to learn.”
Duha looked up from the book she was browsing at Daniel’s words.
“You know Basharian?”
“One of my hobbies is learning languages from other countries.”
He hesitated for a moment before speaking a few words in Basharian.
“Nice to meet you, you’re pretty. I’m Daniel.”
“…Huh.”
Duha couldn’t help but laugh at his clumsy pronunciation and childish content.
She never expected to hear Basharian from anyone’s lips in Imperial territory except Leila’s.
When she laughed, Daniel smiled along and continued speaking.
“I once tried to learn Basharian, but it wasn’t easy. It’s so different from Imperial.”
“Not bad for skills learned to seduce Basharian women.”
“Oh dear. It seems I’ve only added to the misunderstandings.”
Duha quietly observed him as he displayed his innocent smile, then spoke.
“May I offer you some advice?”
“I’d welcome any advice from the Duchess.”
“You don’t need to try so hard to gain favor with people you dislike.”
At that moment, the facade in Daniel’s consistently maintained smile cracked.
The corners of his upturned lips, his sharp eyes that had held such a friendly gleam, gradually shifted back to their natural expressionless state.
“…What do you mean by that?”
“I’m good at reading things. Books, winds, moods.”
Duha continued speaking while looking at his now pale, expressionless face.
“I know you don’t particularly like me. I don’t understand why you’re trying so hard to maintain conversation with me. You weren’t like this yesterday.”
“…I think there’s some misunderstanding.”
“I hope it is a misunderstanding. I don’t want to be at odds with my husband’s only cousin.”
Duha tucked the family tree under her arm and smoothed her skirt.
She smiled at Daniel, who was staring at her blankly.
“Thank you for your help, Daniel. I’ll take my leave now.”
With a slight nod, Duha departed, leaving a gentle breeze in her wake.
Behind her remained only Daniel, his eyes following the blue hem of her dress as she left.
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