The End of Your Arrogance - Chapter 79

Stepping out of the Duke’s chamber, a maid of Lady Glenn was waiting for her.

“Lady is waiting. Hurry up,” the maid urged.

Following her swiftly, Evelyn hurried behind her. Upon reaching the Duchess’s chamber, the maid knocked cautiously before entering.

“I’ve brought the illusionist,” she announced as the door creaked open.

Half-buried in a cozy chair, Lady Glenn appeared. The usual bustling maids were nowhere to be seen; only Evelyn stood beside Lady Glenn, guarding her.

“You’re late,” Lady Glenn remarked.

Evelyn approached briskly and knelt, touching her forehead to the floor in a polite bow.

“A humble sorceress greets the Duchess.”

“Greetings aside, rise,” Lady Glenn commanded.

As Evelyn rose slowly, a faint smile graced Lady Glenn’s lips.

“Do you understand why I sent for you to see the Duke?”

“I heard you sent me to help with his insomnia,” Evelyn replied clearly.

“Yes, have you managed to put him to sleep?” There was a hint of anticipation in Lady Glenn’s voice.

“With my limited skills, I couldn’t assist your Grace,” Evelyn replied with a hint of defiance. Evelyn might not know, but Pia couldn’t lull Duke Iliya of Ajauntice to sleep. The curse that haunted the ducal line was not something a mere illusionist could remedy.

“What have you been doing in that room all this time? You seem to have stayed quite a while,” Lady Glenn inquired.

“His Grace enjoys the sound of water, so I showed him views of the lakeside,” Evelyn explained.

“It seems your tricks have quite pleased the Duke,” Lady Glenn remarked, noting Evelyn’s skill.

Lady Glenn’s face twisted into a bitter smile. Moments later, after smoothing her expression, she reached out to the maid standing beside her. As the maid poured wine from a decanter on the table into a glass and offered it to Lady Glenn, she downed it in one gulp and then turned to Evelyn, staring intently.

“Do you know about the curse that haunts the ducal line of Ajauntice?” she asked.

At the mention of the curse, Evelyn tensed. “How could a mere commoner know of such a thing?”

The maid swiftly refilled the empty glass. Lady Glenn, having drained her glass, uttered a sentence as though tossing it like a dart.

“Those with the blood of Ajauntice shall never sleep eternally. Should they ever doze, dreadful nightmares shall torment them, condemning them to suffer in the clutches of time.”

As if to prove her point, the Duchess’s chamber remained brightly lit despite the late hour. Evelyn wanted to inquire further about the curse haunting the ducal line of Ajauntice, but Lady Glenn sealed her lips after those words.

Evelyn lowered her eyes, lost in thought. Iliya claimed Lady Glenn had sent Pia to him to inflict nightmares upon him. His nightmares consisted of two things: his mother, who had strangled him as a child, and the other…

“The reason I sent you to the Duke is this,” Lady Glenn’s cold voice snapped Evelyn out of her reverie. As Lady Glenn flicked her hand, the maid set a box down on the table. Opening the lid, the maid carefully retrieved something from inside. It was a magic orb. As Evelyn looked at Lady Glenn with confusion, she lifted the orb and caressed it with her fingers.

“What is this?” Evelyn asked.

“You’ll know when you see it,” Lady Glenn replied. As she continued to stroke the orb, a faint blue light emanated from it. The opaque orb gradually became transparent, revealing movement within. Evelyn couldn’t tear her eyes away from the orb.

As the vague figure within the orb began to take shape, Evelyn swallowed hard. Though the face was not visible, Evelyn recognized the person who appeared within the magic orb at once.

The slender figure with silver hair faces somewhere in the distance. Recognizing the familiar back, Evelyn cocked her head.

“Why is King Naser in Suzdal Castle?”

The place where he stood was one Evelyn knew well—the garden outside Iliya’s study in Suzdal Castle. There stood Naser as if he couldn’t decide whether to enter.

There was no mistaking this place. Before Iliya left for the battlefield, Evelyn visited this spot every day, longing to catch a glimpse of her husband who spent all day locked in his study.

“Did I meet Iliya here before we were married? King Naser has never been to Suzdal Castle,” Evelyn pondered.

As Lady Glenn tapped the magic orb a few times, Naser disappeared. Evelyn lowered her head to conceal her confusion.

“Just show this to the Duke,” Lady Glenn stated.

Evelyn grew increasingly bewildered. She couldn’t understand the connection between Naser in Suzdal Castle and Iliya’s nightmares. Despite knowing she shouldn’t ask, she couldn’t resist questioning the woman before her.

“May I ask for the reason?”

This time, Lady Glenn tapped the armrest of her chair. The slow, rhythmic sound gradually sped up and became irregular. Sensing her mistress’s discomfort, the maid scolded Evelyn instead.

“You’re just here to do as you’re told. Understand?”

Evelyn remained stubbornly silent. In response, Lady Glenn hurled the glass she was holding towards Evelyn. The glass shattered against Evelyn’s chest with a loud crash. Though her thick robe prevented injury, her heart felt cold. It was such a simple task to comply, yet she couldn’t bring herself to utter a single word.

Then it happened. Bang! A commotion erupted from the terrace.

“Who goes there?”

The guards hidden throughout the room rushed out onto the terrace.

“Is it a thief? This room contains the most valuable items in the castle, but…”

Evelyn glanced at the terrace briefly. Then the maid urgently called out to her.

“You, leave now. If you breathe a word of what happened today, you’ll be punished.”

“Yes.”

After politely bowing once again, Evelyn left the Duchess’s chamber.

****

Having spent the night in the tower, Evelyn returned to the annex early the next morning. It was Louis, not Arthas, who came to escort her back. When Louis cast a strange glance her way, Evelyn couldn’t help but ask.

“Is there a problem, Sir Louis?”

“No, nothing at all.”

Throughout the day, Louis kept glancing at Evelyn, startling them whenever their eyes met, then quickly turning away. Seeing Louis like this, Zion clicked her tongue. Evelyn lost in her thoughts, received a scolding from Zion.

“Why are you acting like this again when we have an outing planned?”

“… ”

That day, Evelyn’s mind was elsewhere. She spent the entire day thinking about the tall man who had fallen asleep in her arms the night before. As dinner came and went without him appearing, Evelyn grew despondent.

“Should I visit his study tomorrow? Lady Glenn tasked Pia with something, and we need to discuss it,” Evelyn contemplated.

Hmm… At the sound of a soft noise, Evelyn glanced at the bed. Little Libe tossed and turned, seemingly uncomfortable. After tucking her in carefully, Evelyn kissed the child’s round forehead. Watching her sleep peacefully, Evelyn recalled the words the woman had spoken last night.

Libe also had the blood of Ajauntice. She was supposed to never sleep eternally and endure dreadful nightmares if she ever dozed off. Yet the child slept peacefully, wearing the most serene expression. Evelyn’s heart constricted at the thought of the child suffering nightly.

Knock, knock. The sound of someone knocking on the door from outside made Evelyn’s heart race. There was only one person who would knock on her bedroom door at this hour. Rising from her seat, Evelyn walked towards the door. Before she could even reach for the doorknob, it swung open. A man with the same face as the sleeping child grabbed her hand and pulled her outside. Surprised, Evelyn looked at him.

“Let’s take a walk outside,” the man suggested.

Evelyn smiled faintly at the man proposing a moonlit stroll. After all, to this man, whether it was day or night didn’t matter.

Evelyn took his hand and stepped outside. Keeping the guards at a distance, the two found a spot by the pond in the garden and sat down. Evelyn scanned the pond, wondering if there were any yellow fish there as she had mentioned before. The fish seemed to be sleeping, unmoving in the water. Noticing Evelyn’s fixation on the pond, Iliya chuckled softly.

“You seem quite taken with the pond.”

“I’m looking for the fish I healed before. Remember?”

“Oh, the Thousand Day’s Red Ring. Have you thought about what to do with it?”

Evelyn paused for a moment before responding.

“That ring was said to be the key to the Black Forest. How could a ring made in Madhu’s fief open the Black Forest?”

“You want to find out?”

Evelyn nodded. Iliya chuckled lightly.

“Ask your brother-in-law to investigate.”

Evelyn tapped her fourth finger as if she were wearing the Thousand Day’s Red Ring. Seeing her bare hand, Iliya chuckled softly. Evelyn spoke with a solemn tone.

“I, Evelyn Maddus, command Odin Maddus. Uncover the secret of the Thousand Day’s Red Ring,” Evelyn wished fervently. She hoped that the ring said to open the Black Forest, would be the key to unlocking the true nature of Akrid Keep in Madhu’s fief.

The two of them silently gazed at the moon hanging in the night sky. The silence was filled with the chirping of crickets and the splashing of fish. After hesitating for a while, Evelyn finally spoke.

“Last night, Lady Glenn showed me something strange.”

As Iliya looked at her, Evelyn continued.

“She showed me a magic orb and Naser… King Naser appeared from it.”

Evelyn glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. She didn’t want to bring up Naser in front of him, but she had no choice. Iliya stared at her as if urging her to continue speaking. With great effort, Evelyn gathered her courage and spoke.

“You know the garden visible from the study in Suzdal Castle, right? He was there, gazing at something.”

“… ”

Suddenly, it felt as if the temperature around them dropped, causing Evelyn to shiver. Then, a chilling voice pierced her ears.

“Evelyn, during my absence from the castle… Has my brother ever been to Suzdal Castle?”