OPDPS 112

While Aeryl was out, the people in the inner quarters were seized by a tension they had never known before. During what should have been a peaceful morning, the Grand Duke Asirion stormed into the East Wing with knights in tow.

The conflict between the Grand Duke and Lady Merel was nothing new. It had continued for a year or two—or perhaps even longer, dating back to the early days of his ascension.

From the moment he became the Grand Duke, Lady Merel had begun building her own faction, positioning herself in opposition to the Grand Duke. In return, the Grand Duke had always regarded her power warily. Yet in all that time, not once had he come to the East Wing to confront her directly.

‘The Grand Duke has made his decision!’

Whispers spread like wildfire: the Grand Duke was finally going to expel Lady Merel and Young Master Sorel from the castle. In truth, the fact that he had left them alone thus far—like during the reign of the previous Duke—was already a generous show of tolerance.

Soon he would be marrying the doctor; there was no reason to leave behind a hostile stepmother and a half-brother he disliked.

While speculation buzzed outside and all eyes turned anxiously to the East Wing, a breathless standoff was unfolding within.

On one side, the Grand Duke and his knights were trying to seize and escort away two of the maids. On the other, Lady Merel and her maids had gathered to block the hallway, refusing to let them pass.

“Step aside.”

The Grand Duke spoke. Though the words were polite, it was unmistakably a command.

“I will not. Not even Your Grace has the right to barge into my quarters and drag away my maids.”

Lady Merel stood her ground, her expression stormy with fury. The Grand Duke looked down at her with an impassive gaze. He had drawn no sword, merely stared—but Lady Merel felt as though a blade were pressed to her throat.

She had faced off against him many times, but this felt different. There was a strange pressure in the air, as though his fury itself had substance and weighed down on her. She did not imagine for a moment that this sensation might be the Grand Duke’s pheromones. Instead, she straightened her back and held her head high.

“They are being taken because they are under suspicion.”

Lady Merel quickly realized the Grand Duke had already resolved to take the maids no matter what. If the Grand Duke had decided on something within his castle, she knew she had no real power to stop him. Even so, to hand them over without resistance would be humiliating.

“I will need a detailed explanation.”

“If you insist.”

Lady Merel and the Grand Duke moved to the reception room to speak privately. Until their discussion was over, both sides halted and held their positions.

The moment the doors shut, Lady Merel whirled around and snapped,

“Let’s hear your excuse, then! I’m sure it’ll be absurd.”

“A venomous snake was found in the Central Wing.”

“And what does that have to do with my maids?”

“They’ve been seen frequently entering and leaving that area of late. Your maids.”

The Grand Duke’s voice was flat and unreadable.

He had heard that morning that Aeryl had discovered the snake. Since the second floor of the Central Wing was not somewhere a venomous snake could naturally appear, he had assumed someone had planted it there. They were currently detaining a few individuals whose actions had seemed suspicious—and among them were maids serving Lady Merel.

But in truth, the Grand Duke’s greatest suspicion lay not with the maids—but with Lady Merel herself.

He had noticed her increasingly friendly advances toward Aeryl. He was certain her intentions were anything but pure. Until now, he had simply warned Aeryl to be cautious, as he lacked a solid reason to confront her directly. But now, by arresting her maids, he intended to send a clear message.

‘So she doesn’t plant strange ideas in Aeryl’s head.’

The Grand Duke and Lady Merel stared each other down in silence. Then, unexpectedly, Lady Merel let out a soft laugh. It was far from a moment to laugh—so the Grand Duke’s displeasure deepened.

“My, my. Are you saying I ordered someone to release a venomous snake?”

“Didn’t you?”

“Of course not.”

Lady Merel’s tone was firm and certain.

“Then you have no reason to obstruct the investigation.”

It was a warning: if she interfered, she would be treated as a suspect. Though it wounded her pride to surrender her own maids, this time Lady Merel had no choice but to take a step back.

“They’re delicate girls. Please be gentle with them.”

The Grand Duke didn’t so much as acknowledge her request. The slight made Lady Merel seethe inwardly.

“To think—a venomous snake. I imagine Dr. Aeryl must have been surprised. I heard he went to the hospital early this morning—so it was because of that, then?”

The moment Lady Merel brought up Aeryl, the Grand Duke’s displeasure peaked.

“Don’t mention his name.”

“Oh my. Aren’t you being a little sensitive? It’s not like he’s your lover. Don’t worry—I won’t mistreat Dr. Aeryl. He’s leaving soon, after all. Might as well treat him well.”

Her voice was soft, but she was clearly baiting him. The Grand Duke knew it—and still, he couldn’t help but react.

“Where did you hear that?”

“From Dr. Aeryl,” she said. “He was talking about Your Grace, but added that there was no need for you to know, since he’d be leaving soon anyway.”

In truth, what Aeryl had said was that she should pretend she hadn’t heard it—but Lady Merel had twisted the words. The brief flicker in the Grand Duke’s eyes was more than enough to make her lie worthwhile.

“What did you say to him?”

“Oh, I don’t remember. We were just chatting about this and that,” Lady Merel said, pretending to strain to recall.

“You’d better watch what you say.”

The Grand Duke was boiling inside, but he could only leave her with a warning. After all, she was Sorel’s birth mother. He turned to exit the room.

“I thought Your Grace was flawless, but it seems even you have your weaknesses. Well, nothing’s more complicated than the human heart.”

He glanced back at her with a sharp glare, then stormed out of the room.

Bang!

The door slammed shut—and the moment it did, Lady Merel burst into laughter.

“My goodness! To think Hiello Asirion could be so flustered!”

He was completely powerless the moment his unrequited love got involved!

So he was human after all.

While she laughed, the head maid rushed into the room.

“My lady, will they be alright?” the head maid asked, worry in her voice.

“They’ll be fine. They had nothing to do with it. Just take good care of them once they’re back.”

The maids taken by the knights really had no connection to the snake. One of them had simply fallen for a kitten she’d secretly adopted, and kept sneaking off to see it.

“The Grand Duke can be wrong too, it seems. How very curious,” Lady Merel chuckled softly.

“The one who released the snake was someone else.”

The true culprit was the maid who had been found unconscious. She now lay comatose in the hospital. She had released the snake in exchange for money from Lady Merel—and had been bitten herself. Every part of it had gone exactly as the lady had expected.

By morning, people had discovered the unconscious maid and immediately thought of the castle’s ghost story. Fear spread quickly. Even Aeryl had been shaken.

Exactly as Lady Merel had planned.

She wanted to fracture the bond between Aeryl and the Grand Duke. To that end, she had orchestrated the ghost-story incident, hoping for several possible outcomes.

If Aeryl got scared and left the castle, it would be the simplest way to separate them.

But even if he wasn’t frightened, that was fine too. It would be enough to nudge his curiosity toward the basement.

“He had that room renovated just after his ascension. He must’ve hidden a fatal weakness down there.”

Whether Aeryl discovered the basement or not didn’t matter. The very fact that he was sneaking around and poking into the Grand Duke’s secrets would be enough to strain their relationship.

And the maid? She couldn’t reveal the truth. After all, she had committed a serious crime by releasing a venomous snake into the castle. Lady Merel’s involvement would never come to light. The scheme had cost a bit of money—but otherwise came with no real loss.

“Hiello lied to Aeryl and said there’s no basement. That works out perfectly.”

The moment he realized the Grand Duke had lied, she was certain Aeryl would start searching.

She had already instructed her followers to draw the Grand Duke back to the castle—and now she only had to wait for the result. Judging from the fact that he’d come to confront her, last night had gone exactly as planned.

Whether it had driven a wedge between the two of them, however, was still unclear.

“If this wasn’t enough… I’ll try something else.”

Kidnapping, threats, forced exile—or murder. Her aides had strongly pushed for those more violent measures to get rid of Aeryl.

Lady Merel had rejected them—but that didn’t mean it would stay that way. Her aides weren’t particularly loyal, and each had their own ambitions.

Perhaps they were right. And yet, she still hesitated. To protect her son, she would have to spill someone else’s blood. But that someone was surely someone’s child, too.

No one would believe it, but the truth was—she had always found it difficult to use people as tools in her schemes. But opposing the Grand Duke couldn’t be done with honesty alone. She had no choice but to endure it.

Lady Merel now hoped Aeryl would leave the castle as soon as possible. For now, she was holding her aides back—but no one could say how long that would last.

They would try to draw Aeryl’s blood. She was sure of it.