TMH Ch#14

The rich fragrance had turned into the smell of burnt ash.

Suddenly, a wave of white ash swept in, making it hard to breathe.

It smelled just like the ruined castle they had once seen.

“Bloodstone Castle…”

The ruins of the burned-down Bloodstone main estate filled the view from the low window.

It wasn’t visible when standing, but from the angle of the chair, it could be seen clearly.

There was even a hallucination of black soot heavily smeared on the walls.

It felt like a magical space.

As if sitting in this chair would recreate the fire scene of Bloodstone Castle exactly.

‘The Duke of Bloodstone set that castle on fire. And this room is a place where he can observe the result of what he created…?’

Tears welled up in Marie’s eyes.

She didn’t know why.

Her eyes just stung, and her chest felt hollow.

Something heavy blocked her throat.

Her stomach churned.

It felt like she had accidentally glimpsed a gruesome crime scene.

“…It’s just right,”

said Mildred from behind.

“Miss Marianne, don’t you think a cold place like this might actually be better?”

“Why?”

Marie asked curiously when Mildred suddenly spoke up.

“Because in a place like this, even a little effort will make a big difference. Even if it’s not perfect, it’ll look like you’ve done a great job.”

Marie’s face flushed.

Maybe Mildred was trying to help her in her own way.

But in truth, it revealed her lack of faith in her mistress’s skills.

Even the butler looked embarrassed.

“But this place is a bit…”

“Miss, may I sit there too? What do you see from that seat?”

Mildred came closer, wanting to try sitting in the chair.

But Marie suddenly jumped up from her seat.

“No.”

She turned around quickly and blocked Mildred.

“Huh?”

“This isn’t the place. We need to look somewhere else.”

“Oh, I thought this place was surprisingly nice…”

They had come to the wrong place.

Stepped into a space that shouldn’t be entered.

Driven by curiosity where it shouldn’t be.

She didn’t know what it was, but she could feel it.

That he wouldn’t want this space to be revealed.

Maybe the duke had forgotten to exclude this room from the open spaces?

Or he simply thought no one would care about such a small room.

“Butler, could you show us somewhere else?”

“Of course, miss.”

Creak. Thud.

The heavy door closed with the smell of dust in the air.

—

Cliff Castle Hallway.

The same atmosphere repeated as they passed through.

Every servant they met in the hall bowed respectfully to Marie.

Everything seemed well-managed, but at the same time, the servants all looked stiff and tense.

“Is there no room that suits your taste?”

The butler looked increasingly concerned with each room they left.

“No, it’s not that…”

How should she put it?

There was no space she wanted to work on.

No space where she could picture something the duke would approve of.

“Is there another room, besides the top one earlier, where the rock wall is left exposed?”

Marie instinctively knew that the previous room should never be touched.

But she couldn’t stop thinking about the feel of that dark, crimson rock wall.

It was the only space that seemed to reflect the duke.

“There isn’t. This is Cliff Castle, yes, but it’s still the estate of the Bloodstone family—the kingdom’s top ducal house. Of course, raw rock walls wouldn’t be left exposed inside.”

The butler looked visibly uncomfortable, as if the question had insulted him.

He already seemed uneasy about having shown her a room with exposed rock.

And now that Marie was asking if there were more, he seemed offended, as if she were belittling the Bloodstone family.

‘He’s misunderstanding a bit…’

Even though she was a noble and the butler was a commoner, Marie knew she couldn’t hurt his pride.

She needed his cooperation.

After all, he was acting as the client’s agent.

Right now, Marie could only give design directions and hope he would carry them out.

In the end, executing the project properly depended entirely on the butler’s help.

So if she upset him, proper collaboration would be impossible.

“Ugly? Not at all! The exposed stone was so unique—it looked amazing.”

She hurried to smooth things over.

“Hm, is that so?”

“Of course! The solid rock gave off the strength of Lord Bloodstone. Please don’t misunderstand me.”

Mildred looked at Marie with wide eyes.

It was hard to believe this socially awkward recluse was now trying to soothe someone’s feelings.

“Exactly! That’s right. Our master is a man as strong as stone. If it weren’t for him, the Bloodstone House would’ve been ruined in the fire.”

“…I heard about the fire. It must’ve been a difficult time.”

“It was. Everything was lost in the flames…”

At the time, the Duke of Bloodstone was a wealthy man with his domain and various businesses.

A single fire wasn’t enough to bring down such a house.

“I inhaled too much smoke and was in a coma for months…”

The heir Calix was suspected as the arsonist and imprisoned. The butler, unconscious for months.

By the time he awoke, those who had been eyeing the family fortune had forged documents and stolen everything.

“Our young master isn’t that kind of person! He loved his parents dearly!”

If the butler hadn’t defended Calix, he would’ve been framed as the arsonist without recourse.

“But our master—who is he? He suffered at first but brought the house back to be the greatest in the kingdom.”

The butler’s expression was filled with emotion.

‘They’re rich now… so why leave the burned ruins as they are?’

Marie couldn’t hold back her curiosity and cautiously asked:

“The duke is truly impressive. But… why hasn’t the main estate been rebuilt?”

“Oh… I’m rambling like an old man. That’s all in the past now.”

His voice grew quieter.

Realizing he’d said too much, he fell silent.

But then his face lit up with a sudden thought.

“Oh! There is another space with exposed rock.”

“There is?”

Marie instinctively clasped her hands together.

“Hmm, but it’s not really a place I’d recommend to you…”

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“Well… no, never mind. It’d be faster to just show you.”

The butler began descending to the basement.

—

“This is it.”

He opened a rough door on the first basement floor, revealing a space filled with boxes.

It was too cluttered to take in all at once, but the area seemed spacious and tall.

Even though it was underground, the humidity and temperature were reasonable.

There was a faint earthy smell from the dust, but it wasn’t unpleasant.

Air was clearly circulating.

As if there were a window.

“I thought it was underground?”

“It is. It’s a storage room.”

“But it feels like the wind passes through?”

“Oh, that’s because the west side of the room is a cliff wall. There are several windows on that side.”

This space was right against the cliff below the castle.

It seemed the cliff’s cave and the castle had been connected—and it was true.

“It’s… unique.”

Marie’s voice softened.

It finally felt like a space that matched the exterior of Cliff Castle.

Excited, she stepped inside.

But the uneven stone floor made it hard to stand straight.

No flooring had been laid.

“Indeed. The walls and floors are still raw stone.”

As she moved toward the windows, the duchy’s territory spread out beneath the cliff.

“What a view. But why didn’t they install any inner walls here?”

The butler responded as if he’d expected the question.

“Because of that.”

Everyone followed his pointing finger.

“Aaah…”

A sigh escaped Marie’s lips.

“The rock…”

“Yes. As you can see, a massive rock juts up from the floor—almost like a stone platform.”

Huge stones protruded from the already uneven floor.

One was large enough to resemble a proper platform.

Of course, the space couldn’t be used properly this way.

“Have you considered removing the rock?”

“Well, if it had been before the castle was built… maybe. But now that the castle sits on top of it, breaking off such a massive rock would risk destabilizing the entire structure.”

“I see…”

“Yes. I brought you here since you asked, but this isn’t really a space worth decorating.”

“…”

The butler was right.

It would be too difficult to remove the rock with limited time.

“Shall I show you somewhere else now?”

But Marie didn’t move.

Looking back at the other rooms, she didn’t think she’d find a better option.

“…No. I’ll go with this one.”

She spoke with determination.

The butler was startled.

“Huh? This room? Please reconsider. How would you even decorate such a space?”

Even Mildred whispered nervously beside her.

“Miss? What’s gotten into you? You might lose this hard-earned opportunity.”

Marie didn’t answer. She simply pulled out her sketchbook.

And without hesitation, began to draw.

Images in her

head quickly took form as swift, bold lines.

“Miss…?”

Sketch, sketch…

As Marie focused in silence, Mildred and the butler peeked over her shoulder.

“No way… how did you come up with this…?”

A look of surprise began to spread across both of their faces.