IRTHP 06

Chapter 6…

 Right Before Being Discovered

Aileen didn’t go to the conference room — she headed to the annex where the servants stayed. It was quiet now since most of them were at the mansion working, but there were still a fair number of employees around. To avoid being seen by them, she needed to find a good hiding spot.

Aileen knew just the place.

“The laundry room.”

If she hid herself among the bedding that needed to be washed, most people wouldn’t notice her. On top of that, the laundry room was filled with pleasant scents, which also made it a good place to mask pheromones.

Even though Aileen didn’t need to worry about pheromones right now, old habits guided her actions. As she squeezed herself into the pile and caught her breath, she recalled the promise made between the two noble houses.

Very few people knew about the arranged marriage between Count Claudia’s family and the Grand Duchy of Rihast. It had never been publicly announced — only the two families themselves were aware. Since the families hadn’t exchanged visits for so long, even Aileen hadn’t known about it until after her brother’s secondary gender manifested.

Once Ethan manifested, their parents remembered the engagement and didn’t allow him to leave the house anymore. He was a dominant omega — before the marriage took place, they were worried that some alpha might try to take him away.

The division of people into alpha, omega, and beta wasn’t a simple matter. Even a recessive alpha could become aroused and attack upon catching an omega’s scent. Though Ethan’s noble status reduced the risk, caution was never a bad idea — there were many alphas among the nobility.

Because Ethan manifested as an omega quite early, he rarely went out. Aileen, not wanting to leave her brother alone, stayed at home as well. They spent almost all their time at home, and their outings were rare.

“I wonder how Brother is feeling right now?”

Would he be shocked to find out she had ridden off in the Grand Duke’s carriage?

As Aileen was trying to imagine her brother’s thoughts, the laundry room door opened. She clapped her hands over her mouth and crouched down.

“Are they still in the meeting?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s taking forever.”

“It’s all because of that outsider.”

“Outsider? Ohhh, you mean Ethan’s sister?”

‘Ethan’s sister.’

Aileen’s eyes darkened. The voices, obviously belonging to servants, casually mentioned Ethan’s name. To them, Ethan’s presence in the Grand Duke’s household was something completely natural. Meanwhile, she was merely “his sister” — someone insignificant.

“I don’t get why they brought Ethan’s sister here.”

“How could we possibly understand what the nobles are thinking?”

“She’s a beta though. Even if she has kids, they’ll probably be betas too.”

“That’s true.”

“That’s why everyone’s trying to convince His Grace.”

“Then should we just go and bring Ethan here instead? He’s probably at home, right? The knights could get him quickly.”

“Ethan? How would you know that?”

“I saw him.”

Holding her breath, Aileen listened intently.

“This is a secret.”

“Yeah, yeah, hurry up and tell me.”

“They told me to pretend to be some random passerby and check if anyone was inside the house.”

“And?”

“I checked, and he was there. So imagine their surprise when it’s the sister who shows up here.”

Aileen exhaled a shallow breath through her teeth and closed her eyes.

‘So they knew Ethan was at home.’

Of course. How meticulous.

“Ethan is really beautiful,” one of the women sighed dreamily.

“He’s that beautiful? Well, he is a dominant omega.”

“It’s more than that. He’s gorgeous. Like an angel. An actual angel.”

“You’re exaggerating. But still, what’s the point? It’s the sister who’s here, right? She’s cute, but kind of plain.”

“She’s nothing compared to her brother.”

Aileen covered her face between her knees.

She’d heard that a thousand times — that she was nowhere near as good-looking as her brother. She’d often felt envious that she didn’t take after him. But when her secondary gender manifested, she’d changed too.

Her brown hair and eyes began to shimmer as if dusted with gold, and her skin glowed. Her facial features didn’t change drastically, but the aura she gave off did. Her beauty became noticeable, and countless marriage proposals came in. She eventually married one of the suitors.

But did she like her new appearance? Not really. Aileen didn’t particularly like her changed self. In fact, she preferred how she looked before she manifested. Yes, she wasn’t as beautiful as her brother, but she had been happy then. Now, she wasn’t. She was anxious the Grand Duke might be disappointed by her looks and decide to bring Ethan instead.

She racked her brain for ways to keep his attention — otherwise, she would spend her days uneasy and restless.

“Not in her room?”

“That’s right.”

At the butler’s report during the meeting, Lloyd’s expression shifted oddly. He’d been wondering how to overturn the boring meeting, so this was a welcome distraction. The others didn’t feel the same way.

“She left the room?”

“Did anyone see her?”

“No one gave her permission to go out, tsk.”

Hearing the doubtful questions and irritated clicks of tongues, Lloyd covered his mouth with the hand that had been propping up his chin.

They already didn’t like her because she was a beta, and now her behavior was rubbing them the wrong way too. Lloyd almost laughed. This was the same woman who’d once called him a bastard — maybe she’d cause such a ruckus that it would drive these people insane. He almost looked forward to it.

He stood up.

“I’ll go find her myself.”

“But, Your Grace, the meeting hasn’t ended yet—”

“Then wait.”

His firm voice cut off their complaints. If they wanted to keep meeting, they could wait for him. As he exited the room, his guard and aide, Sir Jeremy, followed closely behind.

“Your Grace.”

“You don’t know where she went?”

“We searched the entire mansion. No sign of her.”

“Any chance she ran away?”

“Unlikely.”

Lloyd stopped walking and crossed his arms.

“Why do you think she left?”

“I can’t guess,” Jeremy admitted honestly. He wasn’t one to make baseless assumptions.

Lloyd resumed walking, Jeremy following a step behind. He was curious — how did his lord know where to go so confidently? Well, there was something he was even more curious about.

“By the way,” Jeremy said casually, “why did you bring her here?”

Lloyd gave him a look that said, Why are you asking that? Jeremy hesitated, realizing it might have been an overstep, but decided to press on. If he misunderstood his lord’s intentions, that would be a bigger problem.

“When you said you were going to the Claudias, I thought you were bringing Ethan. I was honestly shocked when it turned out to be his sister.”

“They hid him well,” Lloyd said.

“Who did? Who hid Ethan?”

Jeremy’s breathing grew heavier. There was an arrangement between the families — so who dared to hide Ethan? It felt like an insult to his lord.

“His sister.”

“…Excuse me?”

“She lied as naturally as breathing.”

“And?”

“So I brought her instead.”

“…What?”

“I brought her. For fun. And look—she’s already coming out of hiding on her own.”

“Your Grace…”

Have you lost your mind?

Jeremy swallowed the words that almost slipped out and followed his lord stiffly, determined to see where this madness led.

‘When should I leave?’

The women who’d come in earlier had settled down to work, leaving Aileen with no chance to sneak out. She only needed a brief opening — she had to get back to her room. But time just kept ticking away uselessly.

‘No one’s looking for me… right?’

She had come as the Grand Duke’s future wife, but as an unimportant beta, her absence might have gone unnoticed. The butler’s check-ins were already becoming less frequent.

‘I should stay quiet.’

She didn’t know what the Grand Duke might do. From what she’d heard, he was extremely self-centered.

Then it happened — the door opened, and someone exclaimed in surprise.

“Y-Your Grace!”

Realizing who had entered, Aileen’s heart almost stopped.

‘Why is he here…?’

Her mind went blank in shock and panic, and she hugged her legs tightly.

“Don’t mind me. Continue your work,” a man’s voice said. The women scurried about, and after a quick “We’ll step out,” they left, their presence disappearing.

“Your Grace. She’s not here. Shall we check elsewhere?”

They were looking for her. Aileen couldn’t see her own face, but she was sure the blood had drained from it. The Grand Duke’s sudden appearance had shaken her completely.

The Grand Duke gave no reply. Her heart was now pounding so loudly she was afraid they’d hear it.

‘Go. Please… just go.’

“Wait.”

His voice was closer than she expected, making Aileen involuntarily gasp. She clamped a hand over her mouth a moment too late and darted her eyes around. All she could see was the white bedding — but it felt as though the Grand Duke was standing right in front of her. Her face turned pale as she blinked nervously.