Chapter 4
“Aaagh!”
Pepper powder invaded her eyes and nose. Grace screamed as the pain struck her eyes and sinuses.
“Too spicy? Then let me make it a bit milder for you. Here.”
Benjamin lifted a cup of water and poured it directly over her.
“Aaaagh!”
Water followed the pepper into her sinuses, making them sting even more. Tears and mucus streamed down her face uncontrollably.
“Huff… Hngh… Sniff…”
Benjamin finally let go of her head. Grace collapsed forward, sobbing with her face to the ground. The pain was so intense she could hardly think straight.
“This is how we train dogs, Chloe.”
“Does it actually work?”
“Takes time, but… yeah, more or less.”
Her mind was clouded by the lingering sting. She could barely make out what her half-brothers were saying.
“If only she listened from the start, we wouldn’t have to bother.”
It hurts. It hurts. It’s too much. Grace gasped for air, repeating the words in her head.
Enduring their constant abuse was becoming harder and harder. No matter how obedient she was, they always found a new way to hurt her.
Please… please. I don’t want to live like this anymore.
Tears rolled down her chin and soaked the dirt floor.
“Haah, this is driving me insane.”
The Duke of Reinheim let out an exasperated sigh that filled his office. He clenched his fist tightly.
“Damn that bastard.”
Calling the Emperor a ‘bastard’ made Baron Fabers, standing beside him, flinch. The Duke noticed but didn’t care. It wasn’t like the Emperor could hear him from here.
“Send a bride to the Duke of Winstaine and strengthen the alliance between the two houses.”
The Emperor had delivered his will in a single edict. It was supposedly a suggestion, but in truth, it was a command arranged by the imperial family.
The Duke’s household had erupted in chaos.
“To think we’d be tied to that monster from the north…”
Gritting his teeth, the Duke glared at the Emperor’s neat handwriting.
Frederick Winstaine. Though he held the title of duke, his family had long been pushed to the outskirts. Once, they’d possessed fertile lands near the capital, but about fifty years ago, their estates were seized and they were practically exiled to the northern region.
The previous emperor had framed the Winstaine family out of suspicion and stripped them of power.
Since then, the Winstaine had faded into obscurity—until the Sarian tribe invaded a few years ago.
Frederick Winstaine, newly appointed duke, crushed the barbarian invaders with ruthless efficiency and forced their surrender, becoming a war hero in the process.
But he also earned the nickname “Monster Duke” due to his cruel nature and the brutal way he slaughtered enemies on the battlefield. Rumors spread that he indulged in bloodshed for fun, driven by twisted tastes.
Tales of the Duke of Winstaine gradually evolved and spread, eventually reaching not just nobles but commoners as well.
Naturally, the current Emperor grew wary of him.
How to keep the Winstaine family in check?
The Emperor pondered this and chose marriage—pairing him with a daughter from a loyal noble house to pull him into the imperial sphere of influence. He selected the Reinheim family.
“Haa…”
The Duke’s clenched fists bulged with veins. The thought of being tied to the Duke of Winstaine disgusted him. But he couldn’t disobey the Emperor.
“I can’t send one of my precious daughters to that beast…”
“What about sending that girl instead?”
The Duke furrowed his brow. Baron Fabers, who had been thinking for a moment, spoke carefully.
“Which girl?”
“The one raised by the mute maid. She has red hair and red eyes—should be good enough. All that matter is that she has Reinheim blood, right?”
“Ah, yes… That one. I’d nearly forgotten. Why didn’t I think of her sooner?”
The Duke’s face lit up instantly. That illegitimate child was technically his blood, after all. An ugly stain on his honor, one he’d almost completely erased from his mind.
“To think that wretch would ever be useful.”
Life is unpredictable. Who would have thought the answer would come from such an overlooked place?
“It is a bit awkward that she’s never been presented to society…”
There was one issue. The Duke thought for a moment, then shrugged.
“Well, we can say she stayed at home due to poor health. Ugh, what a bothersome man, forcing me to go through all this.”
He grumbled, but his tone was noticeably lighter. The idea of sending Diana or Sarah had been weighing on him, and now he had a way out.
“How old is she this year?”
“I’m not sure exactly, but she should be over seventeen. Old enough for marriage.”
“That’s good enough. As long as she’s over fifteen.”
The Duke nodded.
“And her condition?”
“I hear the mute maid took good care of her. No physical issues, as far as I know.”
“So she’s got mental ones?”
“I passed by her once—she couldn’t speak properly. I’ll look into it in more detail.”
“Well… fine.”
The Duke nodded slowly.
“Even if she’s lacking, it’ll be obvious soon enough… but what’s he going to do? His Majesty wouldn’t blame me for that.”
After all, this was just a political marriage to keep the Duke of Winstaine in check. Who in their right mind would offer up a proper daughter for that?
Even if the Winstaine Duke realized she was mentally deficient, he’d have no way to retaliate. The Reinheim were the Emperor’s right hand.
“Let’s proceed with sending her, then.”
“Hah… haah…”
Moaning in the middle of the night woke Grace from her sleep. Blinking in confusion, she turned and saw Emily flushed red and groaning.
“Haah… haah…”
“E-Emily?”
Grace had never seen her like this before. Alarmed, she shook Emily’s arm. Emily’s head turned toward Grace, but her eyes were unfocused.
“E… Emily?”
“Haah…”
Emily’s body was damp and radiating a strange heat. Grace touched her forehead—it was burning hot, like fire.
“Emi… Emily…”
Grace kept calling her name, but Emily showed no sign of regaining consciousness.
“Ugh… ah…”
I have to cool her down. I have to bring her fever down.
Grace grabbed two towels from the corner of the room and soaked them in cold water. She placed one on Emily’s forehead and used the other to wipe her arms and legs.
“Wh-what should I do…”
But no matter how much time passed, the fever didn’t go down. Each time she reapplied cold water, the towels quickly warmed up from Emily’s body heat.
Even after dawn broke, Emily remained unconscious and was breathing heavily. Finally, Grace left the room with a wet towel on Emily’s forehead.
Outside, she spotted a male and female servant walking by with a mop and bucket. She ran toward them and blocked their path.
“What the—?”
The two looked annoyed and confused by Grace’s sudden interruption.
“E-Emily…”
