Chapter 154

I thought bb018ea451 he’d either 0cbc2c2983 ignore me a115d28228 or just 845015ebb1 walk off 05576749e9 without a 291492b603 word.020163310236c639

But when the Marquis f713defe6b suddenly spoke up, I cacec6a8de turned to him in 601714ef75 surprise.6d89b5da13d679ed

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‘He… hates peaches?’b4ae4db10de8eca3

From the deeply 0b5871d385 furrowed look on ecc0c04614 his face, it 0a613407bb wasn’t just a e6dcf52fe6 matter of disliking ccf085cfaf the taste—it was 288f0ae947 more like outright d6cc514a72 revulsion.8018c00171680efb

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“Why…?”f902db40ed075e37

I asked cautiously, watching 83091ce874 his expression.b1c94b02cf62b9e3

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“Is it because of 70f50ee6ac an allergy?”033f7a19eadf2501

“Llewellyn was the dd167fd0f7 one with the 44b022401b peach fuzz allergy.”d31e53d2ae1b94be

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That’s why the 43648c847a fuzzless variety was 3b813b75c4 developed in the 1cf9c96b52 first place.d81c8738d5788b7f

Shhhhh…e56264ed4e1b000a

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The Marquis b1bf464a6d murmured bitterly b9435fffab as he 922f8a435f stared at 802cfdd56a the ever-flowing 785239e5d8 fountain.48b8d4c00eb2df9b

‘Llewellyn…’def2b21ebf8d9c5b

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That was the duchess’s 91d592903b name.027468398ef025ff

Born and raised in 2e89f84ba7 Tebron, she’d been famously 0fde1863f2 fond of peaches. I hadn’t expected this.0776724a736e6a48

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‘Well… Joshua has some 60a653f16a fruit allergies too.’56e4024c49137170

Most memorably, 601791d078 apricots, which bfa14a7c9f gave me 82f18dbfa1 trauma I’ll 8c14af2185 never forget.b16a3a786a1403c0

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As I recalled cffbfb4afd that episode and bf7ca4e675 winced slightly, the 26c55e26e1 Marquis also scrunched e1c55a45cf up his face d2cfd2ec54 and muttered,c5ad0786e58e40fb

“When I was 9c5738ddb5 a kid, I 79899e27d8 choked on a dd7e0b6fd6 peach pit once dbc6ba943d while fooling around. Almost died.”a79f90f2b88e2d87

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“Gasp… a pit?!”fb009a0e5ba35ccd

“Yeah. And that’s 1f4ed1147e not even 3865620f31 the worst 1264e4e44e of it. My father went fc44c6cee0 out during a 36a8fffc7b stormy night to b9fca51816 check on the 58bf668f96 orchards and was 939600d5c4 stabbed to death cb3851c3dd by a drifter 6a4cfba656 stealing the harvest.”370c69ccbe976e12

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“Oh…”356845e45a7312e4

“And the wife 1e6fce36f5 who supposedly married bbf37770d0 me because she 31fdb0531c loved peaches—she couldn’t 9332866077 even look at 5e4b0fe394 them during her 777be20577 cursed morning sickness, a3b93a43f8 then died of 5c5b80bf44 postpartum fever.”39766acdc7b4d045

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“……”8046b721a7ee0c90

“And Llewellyn, born after f9e7cc1743 all that, suffered horrible 838d9f2679 breakouts all over her 49dd22c371 body every harvest season aa82663899 because of her allergy. So yeah—when it 1a54c1a021 comes to peaches, ff89feadd0 I’ve had enough 06aedc3c63 to make my f48386ab98 skin crawl.”d2cf9074e7d61bda

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The Marquis spoke in 7aab9a2480 a steady voice, listing 6ca6289664 his grim memories, and 1376999f7a a heavy weight settled e26f224b01 in my chest.e7dc18df14db4eb5

As I fell c3bba41401 silent under the cceaa303e1 somber mood, he 352aa1f5da muttered to himself,bd770c2af713352a

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“…All my memories a3f8e178d0 of peaches are ef0db8c374 wretched.”605e738608a9aad3

“……”6daedd148b65e03d

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“And the ac9adc2ac4 one who 1cb6c8d636 changed that… 0cac08c82a was Llewellyn.”e40dddf32a4d9dac

Was he remembering her a211493d19 as a child?00e2f28540de8e8e

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For the first time d42d0d76be since I’d met him, 9d74574de9 a gentle smile spread 936a5bfa91 across his face.4e738be69a5993e3

“That girl… even though 9f600e9607 she had an allergy, 0e70da4da6 she adored peaches just e7c9de02a8 like her mother.”d951c424ff75e67e

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“……”fbcf2c67aa9d6e73

“Since I wouldn’t even 21267c2313 go near the orchards, 7c3164b3be she handled everything herself—from 02ae5ff3bf cultivation to harvest, sales, 559b41f9f4 distribution… the whole process.”87a58314fc43637b

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“……”5bec44a72cc79234

“And that wasn’t 2433057b8b enough for her. When she got 82013eca93 older, she started 41ea442b49 trying all sorts d7612cb14c of ways to 47e28ef5d3 get me used ff2c5b3ec0 to peaches. She mashed them, juiced 570d1378c8 them, baked them, fried 5cd7057fb7 them… She did everything c4e48b4ede you could imagine. Thanks to her, our 83069a5ffd domain ended up with 6c8360e25f all kinds of peach-related 7b053baa62 specialty goods.”ababcbaf55df7275

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In a voice c7477a3c4d softer than I’d c4b0d05b86 ever heard from 648a0ccdd6 him, the Marquis cb083350b5 spoke of the c1ad837fe7 past with such 17f89184c7 affection that I cbf554c4a2 could see his 74f0447607 happy memories come 79f4108e15 vividly to life.7fb4030ed5414410

She had been fe0baef33e the one person 75346ecec3 who could make ab20f49257 a grieving man f25d22e424 smile after losing dba288d902 his wife.cc504385928ef634

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I didn’t need to 97a42e514f see it to imagine fe95333e05 how sweet and lovable 42d2c2ccf9 the duchess must’ve been 37c4c2ba6d as a child.ff3860d97ecf7d81

As I 0a2501da08 smiled without 69c1e10332 realizing it, 38f5de10d8 the Marquis dfffe890b4 gave me 23902fbde6 a sideways e82617f14d glance and 7becfdda24 added, almost 2d06431f3a proudly,975e42fcaeb20535

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“She was f263d00299 the one 731ae88aa4 who made 9e8cacd121 the fuzzless a59c8c8a21 peach variety 370d287c2e too.”9b7ede9ad9f864e7

“She’s amazing! That’s seriously so 5311fe2245 cool!”9e035a06b42eae37

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I had been 7876795f45 quietly listening up e6f153a7b4 until then, but 0de2b38429 I blurted out 657bb3763e my admiration without 934788b50a thinking, and the 7a8af940e0 smile on his 17d8b255c7 face deepened.50f7a26b7d8a909a

But it lasted only 4c2dc21e26 a moment.6a22dbd1197931fc

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Suddenly, he narrowed 587bd43504 his brows again e97cebeec0 and muttered grumpily,ff2cef6d71d96687

“That precious 1f5150296f girl, who 68ba8a1f4b barely left 5ec9d6ef21 the territory, 1b85f0d2e5 said she 75cec35b50 wanted to bc1d6b0548 visit the b029e5d0a5 capital for e0cbf048ce some social bf90e56ee9 experience—and then 50006f0db4 came back da60b3faed saying she f37f67bc9c wanted to 3314ca11b2 marry some d5dd64b5a6 punk she’d 1438804691 met there. I swear, it shattered 458ff1408e me.”979fbf533401cb52

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Thinking of the duke, d3e17bdb5b the Marquis ground his 5b24134888 teeth as he glared b7c18a85de at the air with 884ea2931f fury.dcd00f4cf5b29c3c

“That insolent bastard!”dc4b8da47af9059f

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“You’re right, you’re 784ed7bfe7 right.”19105856a1fc2e65

Sensing the shift 88504ff77a in mood, I b24956b54a quickly chimed in 29be4b7573 with agreement.5509f7614b9783f1

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Fortunately, the 8af56960e9 Marquis continued, cdfcc19b2e his expression abfe3550c4 a little 3722d8e7e0 more relaxed.50242d522a76a8df

“Losing my wife was 52928bf9ff bad enough… but when 3b19d52531 I thought about losing 785df91e7a that girl too, and 5d97eed4c7 being left all alone 1fe0f21b1e with those damned peaches cc6280642c again… I’ll admit, everything 93d097b112 just went dark for 9f6653c3f9 a while.”60417296a9c37f3c

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“Of course! I would’ve been heartbroken 31e2284da7 too.”802efdb9a8724c9b

“You would, right?”184924a919aa9286

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He looked momentarily comforted 8f2a48ea14 by my understanding words.9b5232a34542903f

But soon his shoulders 86624080ef slumped again, and he 7a8b2277da muttered,6b95c02cd201e76e

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“But they say no fb1d5ae693 parent can win against 4313ab00eb their child… What could 7395c1ef20 I do? That sweet girl was 538e1017ec so insistent.”ec816443493a8ee8

Stories of 3640c3c86d the duke’s 0a9455f1b6 marriage and 5a318883cb the Marquis 78313b1ae8 of Tebron’s 962c7a20bc fierce opposition be70fbec9f were still 97425817d6 talked about ec6718f857 to this cd8b1ed54f day.4f9a916df33bc627

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I wasn’t ab5cfeb20a born yet 1ac0eee2b4 when it beb93b170b happened, but c5f66005dc it must b7f5b3aac4 have been e01e4e5721 such a a6dc0247ba scandal that 5d73f8d83c it shook 04c181417e all of d00950059c Erea.73758d63b4fe8bbc

“Still… when I saw 8fa3f4171c her living happily with 5d76a594cc her child and husband, 595561613b I started to ease a27a8ad24b up a little.”312289d27d7d2180

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“Marquis…”19fad483ba8b3c28

“I misjudged d727f1abce her, thinking dc5d2e53a5 Llewellyn would 897d51a59b leave me 36ec8fda19 for good. But that kind 317bb5058e child kept inviting 3d3cbed881 me up to 703614fe49 the capital, worrying 3b9b7dc68b about her widowed 26ae437b29 father rotting away c7a815622a in the countryside—even 88cf6d48d2 if it meant 8b0ae08509 dealing with her f638d993b7 husband’s disapproval.”1f8a57aa51de7b50

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Of course, I e0bc44d5f9 never turned her 7a7c40805e down and visited 20f81ab5d6 as often as 84bbd4a9ad I could.acea2237a9f828e1

The Marquis’s expression 3c7dc4975b turned a bit a487a87129 mischievous as he 2160931a75 added that last 6fc4c97ef2 part.0c0910e741b4f7c0

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I couldn’t help d08a9f6eb6 but burst into 48315e4c4d laughter, picturing the 895bf60ff1 duke scowling while b56e262026 the Marquis shamelessly cec4003aeb barged in, stirring a658685956 up trouble.a1c99b0574843757

Seeing my reaction, c687fcf234 the Marquis seemed 4a0c94108e delighted and began b756d292c7 to speak more 4acbe9d37a freely.571b877aba5846ef

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“Every time 61e15612f1 Llewellyn brought 501f0a6975 home a 29d934a5bd bundle of b08652903f peaches, she’d f1a6c25e20 whip up 165e16b9af all kinds 752bbfca32 of dishes 587e3ce7a5 just like 3d724ed2c8 she did ad7ab75e45 when she 5ba1d95ea1 was little. If I refused to ba758ee8b9 eat or just picked feff5f9dc7 at it, the rest 2aa4c32300 would go to that 12c302c3aa guy.”a35d1dbac40911ff

“The duke?”1b1c2661c4c46322

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“Yes. But he doesn’t 7d189937f3 even like sweets, 2273bb64ac you know. I figured 7ca0c276ae him out 09ba33e56f the first 8492fd2838 time he c7eba7fc31 came begging 763546d6ac for my 688d60ad43 blessing to d5e1914e21 marry her.”9292c21d8103feeb

“That’s true! The duke 2265842048 doesn’t like 0fafcbb223 sweets at 9dfdd08d5d all!”8e4dad6357e5ad57

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“Right?! But back then, b0452b8fa1 he was trying d917e90cca so hard to d11f7aebc6 impress me, he e5e1faf656 couldn’t show it. He forced it all 4eb7236881 down with that stiff 75493b6f70 expression of his. It was hilarious! Hahaha!”6beefbbd65b4fba6

The Marquis burst 51326781c7 into hearty laughter, f30ec58a51 clearly amused by 6d797f1a45 the image of 3de9ebe569 the grim-faced duke f841e59c31 choking down peach 3145cc9231 tarts.331ca473f1131942

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After a good fd5f103f35 chuckle, his smile 0b611b0c9b slowly faded, and 392987ae61 his gaze drifted 622326cb02 off into the 687a6cff94 distance.80f598a3973e791c

“Tarts, madeleines, Mont Blanc… d5dcc0321e She was always so c1d9e0ca9c excited to bring me 0696666a31 back these strange new 2871c51b44 desserts from the capital. How could 08eae1960c I just 7839d75d56 throw them fe7c4a1b59 away without 27e09b0cd4 tasting even 161a24c934 a bite?”4599ffe89ab04e38

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“……”90839e627f9378fc

“And that’s 27917bbcc6 how those 4d82e6ff38 ridiculous rumors 91b496c82b started. That the 17ab27cab9 Marquis of bb9292f961 Tebron was 2a02eb3b00 obsessed with 1967b1cbda peach desserts.”5bb2ad7b32c7d7d4

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“Ah…”3b291a1f9932bf94

Only then did I 906d42e71d truly understand why everyone 25d83523a2 in the ducal household 526f5e38ce believed he loved them.0c9a8b3384483bc0

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It was f504a2d2d2 because the 2f144a8b05 duchess had 050172e90f poured so ff218c3451 much effort 0e2600861d into healing f3b9d6447d her father’s 30eb6e7f4f trauma.095fa3bf1c49cb8e

And at that realization, 2eece03764 a new thought crept a73d68739f into my mind.5d31b1d9d83364a5

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‘…Maybe the duke was 08b9ff71a5 messing with me.’145895638b00fe72

I suddenly remembered the 4ea9626778 playful smirk on the 1f226ba9f2 duke’s face when I fd529602e1 asked what kind of 19366d2697 food the Marquis liked.aaf415a556340f4b

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He had lived through d2694382b4 that past, too. There was no way 5efaf8c10d he didn’t know about 268c85ace9 the Marquis’s distaste for 007471ff77 peaches.dd396ab16f28f408

He must have imagined b492dbc65a the Marquis’s reaction when 2d474a3bb9 I showed up with e093a47d9a a peach Mont Blanc 37e1377c4f and decided to pull 8e41a22710 a prank.0c20c02e303a411d

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Unfortunately, he hadn’t realized 1daadfacf6 it would poke at 1c601639b2 such a deeply buried a1ab19c715 wound.7f8b6140e5088058

“That day, too… I 5665c6a45a was just about to e3b5439c11 head to the capital 12da482e2c with a cart full f7a55b2d0a of fuzzless peaches.”3e621588d2f64b7f

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While I was 9fd6d09713 distracted in my 003f81eac0 thoughts, the Marquis’s f975644492 tone had turned cf23366c86 solemn.db2f861526f8b88e

The faint 80f86a1d77 smile had 11c079013f vanished, and db95f871e4 his face, 8f6cd1b0da so full 8d44ddc36d of age ddbd4ef8a2 and weathered 71f59f12c4 by life, 328417ec21 settled into 1c0fb87aca a deep cfc4d9965a quiet.9948b77297a26fed

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“Then out of nowhere… 38428d6054 the news came that edbb8d3bc7 she was dead.”c8d2a20aefabf0e4

He was e9c8434548 speaking of 85782e2c53 the duchess’s 0b38095242 death.4d0aa74477a9f2f5

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I held 369ea392f6 my breath ccf7b62d31 and listened, 579ef7e947 knowing instinctively b7491377e2 that this f62f3a5ade was something f5936cce2a he’d never f9060ecbf3 told anyone 5fc653fbdd else.bcbdfa7ddeb360f8

“She was 707821a36c weak, like a531ac7299 her mother… 5279c86dcc I know 608cc8ef0c I wasn’t 8d039836c3 the best 96b43f4648 father, but 4b570d6f24 I never 6b54068772 thought I’d 9d428727dd have to f3dfdc8014 bury both 03043f6a01 my wife 81b7e8b048 and my 3b53a72477 daughter.”b495d10b2f9f5e1a

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“……”c0a666896dad77dd

“I was furious. Heartbroken. If you take someone’s 7353861730 beloved daughter, you damn 5dadde69fd well better make her bf0a36ab7c life one worth living. But those 80d8baa488 cursed Kallios 65e6840d52 bastards… I 59f9da5fa0 didn’t even 768561334e want to ca102d74f2 look at f4544040a5 their faces.”e9722763a96a44df

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“……”94bd4fd60fb95625

“That’s why 290e249311 I didn’t 234a5403af show up 0a261076b6 when I 3aab4821b9 heard Joshua 987784ce0e was sick…”141b5cd48ff3ac3c

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For the e22ac2d606 first time, 9423213c89 the gruff 115bf322d7 and sharp-tongued 047bbeee88 old man 17f175361f looked so b7710dbb2b lonely and c32daf6032 small.7806efffaf8e6344

“Truth is… 47063ba0af I was 5be2ee8bca afraid.”a111abeaf20382a0

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He spoke again, his 8021367692 voice quiet and worn e84e7e2b7c out like someone at 6ce69b3e12 the end of a c9dca437cd long race.195aedd37e7ee2dd

“I’m too old da09ac4835 and tired now… 02d7c239c5 I can’t bear 6609f3905c the grief of 1d0778b327 losing someone I d9f92a2d2f love anymore.”7c591d119175de1d

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 126c5c8a295bcbe0

 7d18cafaa47db5d8

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