Chapter 4
Sunlight filtered through in scattered patches.
The air felt strange and unfamiliar, as if it had been asleep for thousands of years before beginning to flow again.
Damien took a deep breath.
Then he turned to face the person behind him.
It was a woman.
She had tied her reddish-blonde hair beneath a white headscarf and was holding a container of chicken feed.
Her apron was stained, and her shoes were dirty with mud.
She looked like a maid doing household chores.
It was pitiful.
“I made my presence known, but no servants came.”
Damien asked with open contempt.
“Is the owner of the manor away?”
The woman looked completely caught off guard.
“Oh… actually…”
She awkwardly wiped her hands on her apron and straightened her back.
“I’m the owner.”
To Damien’s surprise…
Even beneath her messy appearance, her dignity and graceful bearing couldn’t be hidden.
Just as he expected.
In truth, Damien knew exactly why his heart had been pounding so hard ever since he arrived.
“Are you the daughter of Count Montauban?”
She looked exactly as she had all those years ago.
He could still see traces of the proud noble young lady who had once acted as though someone as filthy as an illegitimate child wasn’t worth acknowledging.
“Ah… yes. But why do you ask?”
Clementine Cornille simply tilted her head in confusion.
She looked…
So innocent.
Almost enough to make all the anger drain out of him.
Damien wondered how he should make use of this unexpected reunion.
“Hey, Damien!”
Before he could speak, Olivier came running toward them, slightly out of breath.
“Oh! Are you Miss Clementine Cornille? The eldest daughter of Sir Arthur Cornille?”
“Yes, that’s my father’s name…”
She hesitated for a moment before shyly correcting him.
“Um… actually… it should be Sir Arthur Cornille.”
Was she embarrassed?
Or was she simply ashamed that her fallen father had lost the title he once held?
“I also…”
“I’m not just Miss Cornille…”
“I’m the eldest daughter of Count Montauban’s family…”
Neither assumption was correct.
It was simply another trace of the proud noblewoman she had always been.
The same pride that had once looked down on an illegitimate child.
Damien’s heart immediately began to burn again.
“Ah, my apologies!”
Olivier replied with his usual easygoing smile.
“That was quite rude of me.”
He apologized first.
Even though her family had fallen into ruin, proper respect should still be shown to a noble.
Especially by someone like Olivier, who was merely a gentleman rather than an aristocrat.
“It’s all right.”
Clementine gave a self-conscious smile as she gestured toward her clothes.
“No one would mistake me for a proper lady dressed like this.”
“Anyway…”
“This is the small manor where my younger sister and I live.”
She raised an eyebrow, silently asking why they had come.
“I’m Olivier Rochemont, an attorney.”
Olivier introduced himself.
“And this is…”
Naturally, Clementine’s gaze shifted toward Damien.
“The man whose legal affairs I handle…”
“Sir Damien Lambert…”
“His Grace, the Duke of Bellombre.”
The color immediately drained from Clementine’s face.
“Ah…”
It was impossible to tell what that small gasp meant.
She simply stood frozen for several seconds.
“…I’ve heard of you.”
“You’re the new lord of this estate, aren’t you?”
She barely managed to continue speaking.
“Well…”
She nervously glanced toward Damien, unsure how to continue.
“I heard your father passed away last year.”
Seeing how uncomfortable she was, Olivier gently changed the subject.
“Yes.”
“He died suddenly in an accident.”
“You have my deepest condolences.”
Olivier lowered his head respectfully.
“Th… thank you.”
Unsure what to do, Clementine nervously twisted her clasped hands together.
“I’ve completely forgotten my manners.”
“Please, come inside.”
She hurriedly invited them in.
“Thank you.”
“We’ve traveled quite a long way, so I’m rather thirsty.”
Olivier accepted cheerfully.
Clementine led the way.
“This is our drawing room.”
Strangely…
Even after entering the manor, there wasn’t a single servant in sight.
Clementine personally did everything herself.
She guided her guests, prepared the tea, and served the refreshments.
“I hope you won’t think badly of us.”
She explained awkwardly.
“Our circumstances became rather difficult…”
“So we had to dismiss all of the servants.”
“Don’t tell me…”
“You even take care of the livestock yourself?”
Damien narrowed his eyes.
There was unmistakable contempt in his voice.
“Of course.”
Clementine nodded as though it were perfectly normal.
But without realizing it, she brushed chicken feed from her apron.
Then, noticing what she had done, she hurriedly removed the apron altogether.
“What a lovely house!”
Olivier exclaimed brightly.
At the same time, he secretly kicked Damien in the shin beneath the table.
Only Olivier could get away with doing something like that.
“I like how many books you have.”
“They’re nothing special.”
“I just read them for fun.”
Clementine answered shyly.
Thanks to Olivier’s gift for conversation, the discussion flowed naturally.
They chatted about the weather…
Literature…
And recent news from around the kingdom.
Damien made no effort to join in.
Instead…
He silently watched Clementine.
Dressed so poorly.
Spending her days tending animals.
She looked less like a noble lady…
And more like a servant.
Just as he thought.
Not even the fragrance of the lily-of-the-valley flowers could hide the scent of poverty and decline surrounding her.
“…If you don’t mind me asking…”
Unable to bear Damien’s piercing stare any longer, Clementine finally spoke first.
“Is your visit today about the lease agreement?”
“Yes.”
Olivier answered for him.
“It’s simply the usual procedure whenever an estate changes ownership.”
He casually pretended to look through the documents he had already memorized.
“I heard the previous lord didn’t charge you rent for an entire year.”
“That’s right.”
“Count Bergh was an incredibly generous man.”
Clementine blushed.
“He was considerate after my father’s sudden death.”
“I completely understand.”
Olivier’s expression softened with sympathy.
“Didn’t you consider moving somewhere you could afford more easily?”
But Damien’s cold question shattered the compassionate atmosphere.
“…There isn’t another house nearby with a lower deposit than this one.”
Clementine’s face slowly turned bright red.
It was almost as though the sound of her pride cracking could be heard.
“Ah.”
“I heard your lease was already far below the normal market rate.”
Damien continued, almost as if he were enjoying a beautiful symphony.
“I suppose that was also thanks to the previous owner’s generosity?”
Clementine bit her lip.
“…While Father was alive, we always paid the rent every six months.”
Then she raised her head proudly.
“I can still pay six months’ rent.”
The fact that she wasn’t begging or humiliating herself irritated Damien.
So he changed his approach.
“No.”
“I’ll follow the previous owner’s example.”
“As the new lord, I’ll also allow you more time.”
Clementine looked genuinely surprised.
“…No!”
“I really can pay.”
“Please.”
“Allow me the honor of showing you this kindness.”
Damien cut off any chance for her to refuse.
“When I was young…”
“I could never even dream of offering kindness to a noble.”
Clementine visibly flinched.
There was no way she didn’t know about the bitter conflict between Count Montauban and Lady Saint-Fleur.
“However…”
Damien considered how best to crush her pride one last time.
Then he decided.
“I’ll be taking that oak table.”
He pointed toward it.
“It seems far too luxurious for someone in your financial situation.”
Clementine’s lips parted as though she wanted to object.
But she couldn’t.
The furniture and fixtures inside the manor legally belonged to the lord of the estate.
Even if that lord had only just taken ownership and the ink on the transfer papers had barely dried.
“I’m sure Miss Cornille will agree.”
Clementine could only lower her head in silence.
“Ah.”
“Or should I say…”
“The young lady of Count Montauban’s house?”
Damien mocked her openly.
“Then we’ll be on our way.”
With that…
Having completely accomplished the purpose of his visit,
Damien calmly brought the meeting to an end.
