ETDO Chapter 2

Captivated by his overwhelming beauty, I fidgeted, unsure where to look. I wanted to avert my gaze, lacking the courage to look directly at him, yet at the same time, I couldn’t help but steal glances.

The Duke’s pleasant, low voice flowed from his lips again.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am the Duke of Beaufort.”

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“H…Hello, Your Grace.”

I stammered, barely managing a response in a small voice.

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“As you can see, my condition isn’t ideal, so please forgive me for not coming down to greet you personally.”

I was startled. My earlier grumbling vanished as if it had never happened. Feeling guilty for unfairly complaining about someone with a disability, I waved my hands dismissively.

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“Oh, no! I, uh… I didn’t know the circumstances well… There’s no need for you to apologize at all.”

I wondered why the lawyer hadn’t mentioned such crucial information. As I stood there, flustered and sweating, the Duke gestured elegantly towards the sofa opposite him. I carefully sat on the edge of the seat.

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“You must be tired from your long journey, so I won’t keep you long. First…”

I sat up straight, placing my stiff, clasped hands neatly on my lap. I tilted my chin down slightly, assuming the most respectful listening posture I could manage.

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“Thank you for accepting my sudden proposal, even though it must have been surprising.”

“Oh…!”

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He offered an elegant nod. I also hurriedly returned the belated greeting.

“No, I’m the one who should be grateful. Thanks to Your Grace’s help, my mother and I were spared from a terrible fate.”

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The Duke’s gentle smile made his already handsome face twice as appealing. His crescent-shaped, sky-blue eyes, sparkling brightly, even appeared seductive for a moment.
I wasn’t even sure if “seductive” was the right word to describe a man, but that’s how it seemed. Suddenly, my heart began to pound.

“I’m glad I could be of assistance.”

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“Um… but…“

Now that we were talking on that subject, I was itching to ask the questions on my mind.

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“But this marriage… why…exactly…?”

He looked at me silently for a moment, then opened his mouth with a serious expression.

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“Please consider it my own selfish desire. By the way, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

I was surprised.

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“What? You know me?”

“We first met when we were children. I think I was about eleven. You would have been around ten by then.”

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Where? 

My eyes widened at this unexpected revelation I never knew.

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“We first met in the garden of the Earl’s mansion when your grandfather was still alive.”

He answered as if he could read my mind.

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When my grandfather was alive? My grandfather was a capable businessman, and the Earl’s mansion was always bustling with people when I was young. Was he one of the people who visited the mansion back then?

“But I don’t remember at all…”

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As I looked at him with a perplexed expression, he smiled kindly.

“That’s alright. Well, enough about the past… Now, shall we talk about our future?”

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His low, resonant voice was very pleasant to listen to. 

A handsome face and a beautiful voice to match? Isn’t this so unfair? 

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I nodded, tensing up again. Now for the important main topic.

“Regardless of how this relationship began, I wish to have a perfectly ordinary married life with my lady. Most aristocratic marriages are marriages of convenience, but there are exceptions, even then.”

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As I tilted my head, unsure of what he meant, the Duke smiled faintly.

“That means there are people like me, who fall in love at first sight with a young girl and wait over a decade to propose. Of course, the method I used is a little unconventional.”

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He lowered his eyes slightly, his long lashes fanning out. They were a beautiful, slightly darker gold than the brilliant color of his hair. Lost for a moment in his beauty, his deep voice cut through my reverie.

“Nevertheless, I believe the two of us can be happy together.”

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“Yes…”

I listened to his pleasing voice as if I was entranced, and then my hair suddenly stood on end. 

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Wait, hold on a second!

“What? Did you just say… you fell in love with me at first sight?”

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He stared at my astonished face, then chuckled.

“Of course. No matter how much money a man has, one wouldn’t casually spend such a large sum on a woman he didn’t care for.”

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“Oh, yes… Th-That’s… That’s true…”

I immediately retracted my surprise at his calm remark. Recalling the numerous zeros attached to the amount of money my father had squandered, I readily agreed.

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“So you needn’t doubt my sincerity. I promise to be a better husband than anyone else.”

It was a bit strange to hear such a promise from someone I had just met, but it wasn’t bad. I had imagined the worst, so I was bewildered by this best-case outcome. There was no reason to refuse a handsome, wealthy man who voluntarily offered to be my devoted husband.

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“I’ll also try to be a good wife.”

At my reply, his smile blossomed like a peony in full bloom. The Duke stood up slowly, using his cane. Unsure why, but feeling I should follow suit, I stood up silently along with him.

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To my surprise, he was so tall that I had to crane my neck back to look up at his face. In my earlier flustered state, I hadn’t noticed his broad shoulders and well-built physique. Perhaps because of his leg, I had unconsciously assumed he wouldn’t be large, so this was unexpected.

“My name is Arthur William Beaufort. You can call me Arthur.”

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“Elizabeth Caitlin Seymour. Please call me… Lily.”

As I blushed, Arthur reached out his hand towards me. I gazed at his elegant, delicate fingers for a moment before carefully placing my hand on top of his.

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“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lily.”

With a perfect smile, he kissed the back of my hand as lightly as a feather.

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─── ⋆⋅☼⋅⋆ ───

The golden pupils, brightly lit by the autumn sunlight, shook intensely. The pink ribbons tying back her long, black hair fluttered cheerfully in the gentle breeze.

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“Wh-Who are you?”

“Huh?”

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“How did you get in here… You! Are you… a thief?”

At the completely unexpected question, the young Arthur was speechless. Standing awkwardly under a large tree, he stared blankly at the small face frozen with suspicion.

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It was an intense first meeting. As is always the case with the blossoming of a first love.

Did she, who had suddenly entered his life without warning, even know what kind of rotten person her savior, the one who rescued her from a mountain of debt, truly was?

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No, she probably didn’t. But it didn’t matter. 

What he could say for sure was that, even if he were condemned as trash, he would do anything to possess her, then and now.

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Arthur thought of Lily’s haggard appearance shortly before George Seymour’s death. She, who had transformed from a lovely girl into a mature lady, looked a little unwell.

Her beautiful face was pale as if worn down by the world, and her thin body swayed precariously, as if she might collapse at any moment. He barely suppressed the urge to rush to her side immediately.

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Everything was because of that damned George Seymour. A crazed addict who had sold his soul to gambling, even though his finances and credit were already beyond salvation, he was obsessed with raising funds for his next wager.

Thanks to him, the numerous successful businesses and lands that the previous Earl had painstakingly built were steadily ruined in his hands. George Seymour was a typical failure, with all ambition and no ability.

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“Hahaha! Do you know how beautiful my daughter is? And she’s still young! There’s no problem with producing an heir! I can give her to anyone, as long as the price is right!”

A father who would trade his daughter, who hadn’t even had her debutante ball, for a few pennies in gambling money!

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Arthur felt a deep sense of disgust when he visited the gambling den where George Seymour was a regular. Beside the Earl were an old, wrinkled man who wouldn’t be surprising if he died on the spot and a middle-aged gentleman of the wealthy gentry class, hoping for a chance to climb the social ladder through marriage.

“So? Did you come here after hearing rumors about how pretty my daughter is? And she’s still at a flower-like, youthful age. Anyone who sees her will get a rise out of it, right?”

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Excited at the prospect of properly fleecing a naive young fool, the Earl patted his fat belly and laughed heartily.

Arthur took a seat opposite the Earl. A dealer in a crisply ironed uniform began dealing the well-shuffled cards to the three men.

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Click!

Arthur slowly picked up the cards placed before him. An Ace of Hearts and a Queen of Spades. It was already blackjack. A good start from the first round.

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Gambling, after all, was an inefficient game that relied on luck and probability. The one with time and financial resources would eventually win. Conditions that did not apply to a gambling addict who had to sell his own daughter because he had neither money nor luck.

A pile of chips was already stacked high in the center of the table. Arthur placed his cards face down on the table, then pushed two stacks of his own chips, piled high like towers, into the middle of the table.

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The Earl’s eyes, gleaming with greed, stared intently at him. Arthur, with a faint smile, spoke to him in a soft voice.

“Well then, let’s see, shall we?”

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As he’d said, he would do anything to get Lily. No matter how immoral it was, it didn’t matter. Even if it meant driving her gambler father to despair.