Please Be Patient, Grand Duke

Once the final revenge was complete, she had to disappear forever. Crossing over to Geore and applying for immigration was the best option, but it wouldn’t be bad to build a small cabin deep in the forest and live quietly.

She habitually thought of Claude. And she imagined herself becoming the Duke’s wife.

Startled for a moment, Marilyn regained her cold expression and walked out of the barracks. She was acting like a fool, still harboring resentment toward the enemy who killed her parents.

As Doctor Carl had said, people dressed in Geore’s clothes suddenly increased in number, and the flag of Duke Sergio was raised in one corner of the barracks.

Ivan, who had been searching for the Duke without a moment’s rest, immediately led them towards the collapsed mine. It seemed like an incredible number of troops had been detached.

Perhaps they would be able to rescue Claude earlier than expected.

Then, Marilyn spotted Luan Sergio getting out of the car from a distance. She recognized him instantly, but Luan’s gaze was fixed elsewhere.

He reached out his hand to someone in the car. However, instead of shaking hands, the other person pushed Luan Sergio away and got out of the car.

As the wind blew, the woman’s thin cloak fell back behind her head. Her flawless, honey-colored hair flowed beautifully over her face.

The woman was none other than Canilia. Marilyn looked at Canilia, who appeared with Luan, with a despondent expression, and tightly clenched the knife in her pocket.

“No, no. Calm down.”

With a fierce glare for a moment, Canilia pushed Luan away again and leaped somewhere. Luan Sergio’s face froze as he watched her figure intently.

In that instant, Luan, who had his hand in his pocket, turned his head to aim in the direction Canilia had run. Marilyn, who had been standing dazedly, hurriedly lowered her head and fled in the opposite direction.

Of all people, it had to be Canilia…

“Hey, you there.”

Marilyn turned her head cautiously, startled by the voice calling her name. The person calling her was Luan Sergio. Afraid that he might recognize her, she anxiously hid her body in the barracks.

Sweat dripped down the bridge of her nose. As more people who knew her appeared, Marilyn’s fear grew.

Hiding behind a bush, she tightly clenched the jackknife in her pocket and threw herself into the nearby forest. Due to her small stature, she quickly disappeared among the shadows of the trees.

Marilyn decided to stay hidden in the forest until Luan’s attention disappeared, and she continued walking without stopping. Until just a moment ago, her feelings were directed towards Claude, but the moment she saw Canilia, she was engulfed in a burning jealousy.

“I thought it was all over that day.”

Canilia, who appeared as a lady, and Claude, who escorted her, ignited helplessness, jealousy, anger, and sadness within Marilyn.

The sound of machinery and people’s cries came from a distance, as if digging the ground had begun.

Confirming that Luan was no longer following her, Marilyn decided to take a quick look around the collapsed mine along the side path.

The damp sound and fragrance of wet branches and overgrown grass bothered her.

Walking into the unfamiliar but secretive forest, she soon discovered something emerging from a place that resembled a rabbit hole.

“A hand. Could it be a corpse?”

In Marilyn’s frightened gaze, she recognized a familiar ring. Without hesitation, she knew who the owner of the black diamond ring was.

“Grand Duke!”

Marilyn started digging frantically.

Not long after the collapse, Claude’s face emerged from the soft soil and stones.

Marilyn, who had discarded her cloak and mask, continued to dig the earth without caring if her nails were breaking.

“He’s alive. He’s alive!”

As he coughed, Marilyn remembered what she had to do.

His breath became shallow, and his vision blurred. As if sensing her emotions, the twisted clouds collided and unleashed a downpour of rain.

The cold, dense rain washed away the wet soil, leaving his face clean from the dirt that had covered it. In the process, his forehead revealed a deep gash. The congealed blood melted, causing the wound to reopen, and it began to flow once again.

Tears welled up in Marilyn’s eyes, as she clutched the jackknife, but they became indistinguishable from the rainwater.

Claude’s eyelids gradually fluttered as he took shallow breaths.

Marilyn hastily raised the hand holding the knife. It was the moment to strike.

“Who are you?”

He spoke as if struggling with his weakened voice.

Startled, Marilyn stammered and asked him.

“Your Grace.”

“Who are you?”

“Could it be that you don’t recognize me?”

“My head… it hurts. Where am I?”

He furrowed his brow as if he genuinely didn’t recognize himself.

Marilyn’s lungs felt like they would burst. A thunderhead loomed above her head, suffocating her.

The downpour ceased, and a dry lightning bolt struck.

“For now, let me help you.”

****

“Another scorching storm,” Claude muttered, struggling to move his body as he watched the pouring rain. But it wasn’t easy.

With his strength depleted and in disarray, he couldn’t defend against Marilyn’s attacks. If it hadn’t been for her, he would have likely sacrificed his life entirely.

“But how did it come to this?”

A little while ago, Marilyn had fetched a fur blanket from the farmhouse and propped herself against a nearby tree stump. She then opened a flask and took a sip, observing him with a bewildered gaze.

Perhaps he’s suspicious, doubting her hasty and obvious improvisation.

The light he caught before losing consciousness was connected to the surface, through the rabbit hole.

Of all places, the animal had burrowed its hole in a weak spot of the tunnel. Is that why this burial accident occurred?

No… Seeing Marilyn Selby here, it’s likely not a natural disaster.

As soon as he regained his senses, what he saw was the blade of a knife pointed at him and Marilyn’s face.

He needs to expose the darkness. He must uncover the accomplice who moves alongside her to bring this accident to a close.

“Would you like some more water?” Marilyn asked, wrapping a bandage around the wound on his forehead. Claude responded with a weary smile.

“That’s enough. Thank you.”

“But… do you remember your name?”

“It’s strange. I feel like I should know it, but I can’t seem to recall.”

Marilyn tilted her head, covering him with the fur blanket, and settled down beside him.

“I see…”