YPDM 24

Chapter 24

From this room overlooking the front garden, the rear yard with the open space couldn’t be seen.

What if I hadn’t gone back to my original room to look for Ash?

Just imagining that “what if” made my head spin.

As I roughly ran a hand through my hair, my eyes caught something by the window.

‘Huh?’

There was only one flowerpot placed there. In it, a single beautiful red flower had been…

…but now, it was gone.

“What happened to this? It was fine just yesterday.”

With trembling hands, I picked up the flowerpot.

“Who could’ve done this…?”

The flower, once bearing lovely crimson leaves, had been chewed apart like a mouse had gotten to it.

The petals had all disappeared, and only the rough, torn remnants of leaves and stem lay miserably at the bottom of the pot.

“Could someone have broken in?”

Just as tension tightened every nerve in my body—

[It wasn’t that.]

Ash grabbed me with a clearly troubled expression on his face.

“It wasn’t?”

After rubbing the space between his eyes with the tip of his wing for a long moment, he hesitantly spoke.

[Actually… it was me.]

“What? Why?”

[Because it wasn’t just any flower. It was a sleepflower, which causes a powerful sedative effect.]

I froze in place.

“Wait, what do you mean…”

[It’s said to be excellent for insomnia, but once you fall asleep, you won’t wake for at least six hours.]

My mind went blank.

[Even after six hours, unless someone wakes you up, it’s hard to come to.]

Looking back, I had been oversleeping often since coming here.

‘I thought I was just getting more used to sleeping in… like a noble lady.’

I had assumed it was due to Olivia’s habits embedded in this body.

Suddenly, I recalled the first morning I woke up here.

‘Good morning, my lady. You’re up earlier than usual today. Did you sleep well?’

Mary had looked surprised when she came to wake me that first day.

At the time, I hadn’t thought much of it, but looking back now, she’d been startled to find me awake that early.

‘She noticed something was off from the beginning.’

And from then on, she had been observing me closely with a watchful eye.

“By the way, how did you know it was a sleepflower?”

[Well, I was alone in the room…]

“You mean when you disappeared on me?”

I remembered how my heart nearly dropped when the butler suddenly appeared that time.

[Sorry.]

Ash apologized sheepishly and continued.

[There was something strange about the flower’s aura. It felt… ominous, I guess? So I tried eating one of the petals.]

“You ate it?”

[When in doubt, that’s the most accurate method.]

He added with an apologetic face.

[I was going to tell you about it, but the sleep effect must’ve been too strong. I got drowsy and ended up falling asleep.]

Thanks to the fact that he fell asleep on the balcony of my old room, I had been able to overhear part of Karinne’s secret.

“Why would you do that? What if something had happened to you?”

[I’m fine, so it’s okay. And I learned it was a modified sleepflower.]

“Modified?”

[Yeah. If it were a regular one, I would’ve noticed right away. Remember when I said Karinne seemed knowledgeable about herbs?]

I nodded, recalling a passage from the original novel.

“Lately, in the central noble circles of Barkaan, magically enhanced and decorative flowers were becoming all the rage.”

[She must’ve modified the sleepflower so you wouldn’t recognize it.]

Her thoroughness sent chills down my spine.

Even when I suspected the tea, she didn’t flinch—what a poker face.

I shivered involuntarily, my body trembling like a leaf.

[Olivia, are you okay?]

I slowly took a deep breath and gathered my scattered thoughts.

I needed to stay calm—especially now.

‘Karinne must not have killed me yet because I’m not fully addicted to the poison.’

Not enough to turn into a vengeful spirit.

There had to be a reason she’d chosen the cumbersome method of spiritual corruption to eliminate me.

‘This place is dangerous.’

I stood up, staring at the dimly lit dawn sky outside.

Then I began packing only the essentials into my handbag.

[Olivia, what are you doing?]

“I’m leaving. Right now.”

Ash, thinking I was acting recklessly and emotionally, shouted in shock.

[Are you serious? At this hour?]

“Karinne knows I’ve agreed to marry Lennox. She won’t just sit by and let me escape through marriage.”

[But how will you leave? You don’t even have anywhere to go!]

“I’ll go to the Cravant Ducal Estate. Lennox promised to come for me.”

Ash’s eyes widened.

They clearly asked, How could you have arranged that in this situation?

“It just kind of happened.”

With no time to explain everything, I glanced down at the bracelet Lennox had given me.

Tiny gemstones, no larger than a pinky nail, shimmered beautifully as part of the charm.

“You’re right. It’s still too early.”

I murmured, gripping one golden gemstone tightly and yanking it off.

The gem, once connected by a thin golden chain, rolled into my other palm.

Without hesitation, I threw it into the fireplace.

[Why would you tear up a perfectly fine bracelet—wait, what?!]

The valuable gemstone was instantly engulfed in flames.

‘He said if danger came to me, it would be immediately detected.’

More precisely, if the charm was broken or damaged.

I stared at the gem melting in the fire and clutched the wrist that wore the bracelet with my other hand.

So Lennox…

Please come quickly.

Nisir, Lennox’s competent and loyal aide, was fairly content with his job.

Serving such a ruthless and intense man required strong nerves, but it wasn’t unmanageable.

In fact, because his master preferred thorough and efficient work, the tasks themselves were straightforward.

The problem was that the work never seemed to end.

In other words, Lennox had never once surprised his subordinates by suddenly creating extra tasks…

Until now.

At this very moment, Nisir faced one of the most shocking crises of his life.

All because his master had just dropped a bomb.

“A fortnight… did you say?”

“Yes.”

Nisir’s head spun. A groan slipped from his mouth.

“Your Grace…”

It had only been yesterday that his lord announced a sudden engagement.

Nisir had been so shocked he nearly bit his tongue.

The other shadows of the ducal household had also been dumbfounded.

‘Sir Nisir… did you eat something bad last night?’

‘I hear overwork can cause hallucinations. Perhaps you should take a break…’

That’s how unbelievable it was.

Their master had never once shown interest in women, let alone considered marriage.

To be precise, he had no interest in anyone.

He rarely came to the capital and never stepped foot into society events.

Nisir wiped his dry face with both hands, overwhelmed by the absurd situation.

Clinging to the faint hope that he had misheard, he asked again,

“So, you want the wedding preparations done within the next two weeks?”

“You heard me right.”

The answer came without hesitation.

His master’s composed tone was both shocking and not shocking at all.

Nisir had always prided himself on obeying without question, but this time, he couldn’t help but speak up.

“Wouldn’t it be better to take it slowly? There’s no need to rush—”

“There is.”

Lennox cut him off.

“I already signed a contract.”

“…Excuse me?”

Nisir’s eyes bulged, his jaw practically hitting the floor.

Lennox clicked his tongue and snapped his fingers.

With a crisp sound, a piece of paper appeared in midair.

Even at a glance, the luxurious sheen of the document was obvious.

Gold-leaf vines decorated its edges, and at the bottom were two signatures and a certified magical seal.

A marriage contract!

Nisir swallowed hard without realizing it.

“Well? Take it.”

With slightly trembling hands, he accepted the document.

Clearly written on it was:

“Within fifteen days from the date of this contract, both parties must complete all formal procedures as husband and wife…”

Nisir’s vision went dark. His ashen face said it all.

‘This is impossible.’

You couldn’t throw together a wedding with a flick of a wand.

Even though staff from the Cravant Duchy would join in, pulling off a wedding in fifteen days was no small feat.

Nisir’s mouth went dry.

Carefully choosing his words, he voiced his concern.

“The timeline is extremely tight. It will take at least ten days just to send invitations and receive RSVPs.”

But Lennox, leaning back in a high-backed leather couch, simply smiled lazily.

“We don’t need any of that. Only two people will attend the wedding.”

He added with ruthless arrogance:

“Me. And the woman I’m marrying.”