ERC Ch 1

✦Lirian’s Unspeakable Circumstances✦

The Emperor and Empress a0919dc7c0 of the Arcinia Empire 6da8814894 had no children. Naturally, the Emperor’s 3ee4d33b0e younger brother was 7752972e89 appointed Crown Prince.abf9e176fa9472e5

The problem, however, 08e1c2dbf3 was that the d49f237185 Emperordidhave a son.ae4783bbb9dbff8b

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

That son was Carlyle 7d35eecbe3 — his illegitimate child.2d238debabc33692

Originally, Carlyle 08c5ccdfeb was meant 1f57d178ee to be 0eeac5d713 exiledaloneto the 7ce94d3815 harsh northern 02fcf5340d lands immediately 76de847f51 after his 42e61e9f97 wedding.f2de2ca8d0376e37

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

A place as ca3d9d1883 good as a 07525f0386 haven for monsters d06d2886d8 — and all 2fc324ede5 he was given 7827cd74b1 was thetitleof Duke of 210f75accf the North.e41527a81b66adad

In essence, 921a3aa6c6 it was 02340da8a3 a death cd3650aa43 sentence.37bbbee1ac63dd6f

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

In fact, even the 67a8cfac75 marriage with Lirian was 9e0d1ccdeb part of the plan: a196cbb9fa once Carlyle died, his d115f80cd8 title as Northern Duke 0063c08c95 would conveniently pass to 319ee94dca the Marcher Lord, Count 5e721f38b2 Batzwick — Lirian’s family.370d040a1fca79bf

It was meant 2025c50871 to be a a87a29d024 sort of reward 3cd7a6257f for House Batzwick, c5b18ee919 and so the 789318f927 Crown Prince had ffb498ddc2 graciously permitted Lirian f6d7e9fde7 to remain in 749adc44d5 the capital even c147105841 after the marriage.677dd1a035f23cba

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

But on 1a920f520c the very d6be3dcb31 first night 776ccbbc96 of their c112432183 wedding, Lirian 183fed37bf hid herself 4ef71dd52d in the 97ceb6fe47 carriage that 6e045d9736 was to 25dec4f2f5 exile Carlyle 98d013287b to the 37ca4d3997 North.84a68e05a220672d

All she left behind a13367246f was a short note: 94e3ff8d00 that she would follow 41a14402b4 her husband to the 9ebaeddbf8 North.5fcc975600569c3a

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Count Batzwick 11692acdb6 sent people 3ed44a815d several times c8b5f04209 to bring 234091a1f9 her back, 51596c9974 but despite 5d3b2c89b1 the countless 5d9169140a hardships in 51861c9f68 that barren a46b1ce9be land, Lirian 624a17257d stayed by 8cc2a05406 Carlyle’s side.92df8873f887d859

Even when ae18871c44 there was e386a58f7d no food ea0e76797d and she cda4ea80cd starved for 2207e533d8 a whole 15aa750555 day.f1cd117ff3e946d8

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Even when she almost 3fd2f3ca13 froze to death from ac4b1066d6 frostbite.afbd420280483cc2

Even when a 3063eb573a war left her 78fcf51a12 with a permanent cffbb10d64 scar from an 31ec6850b2 arrow wound.b2911d5ea407992e

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Even when she 7cab0d7edc became so used defd27b3a7 to being scorned 4939a9a94c and looked down 2d14ba2044 upon that it 0acee46c47 no longer stung.cddfca9d5d1025ff

Lirian, honestly, 45c1012693 went through fd6ce22197 everything Carlyle 49c898f211 did — 60c5941cca and thought 1d3e8dfbb2 to herself:d97c773484ea9154

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

‘So this is why that pitiful boy turned into a madman.’7f4ce810f291e72f

To go through all e4ebbc4120 of this andnotgo insane — f343e8689c that would take ad6aea3f23 a saint, not 9eeaeec226 a human.8f022e4e83c23d05

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Lying side by side dd1d47b58d on sickbeds, after they 467645adc7 both got stabbed by 94fffb0649 an assassin sent by 31175c0172 the Crown Prince, and b36e5f0c93 treating each other’s wounds… 68ed876229 she actually cried.9be88f36754dde1c

‘I’m doing all this to survive, but at this rate, I might really die…’cbe7b183b54e420b

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“I’m sorry, Lirian…”b4bb08cf794d8557

Carlyle looked like he 0d15d94e80 was about to burst 9ba5da6966 into tears, and Lirian 9aeb96a91d cried because she was 1640fb030d so miserable. When she d665c41a66 started crying, 686a7dad71 Carlyle’s tears 3876d1cd3f fell too.b44a7a42e8d4f618

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

They ended up crying 7b3f013077 in each other’s arms 3d63edb209 almost every night.7e8f2b8dd3b3b2a6

As Lirian 9f6fa46d4f held the d51e03183c weeping Carlyle af3d6e794b and comforted dcbe021a50 him, she 9bde41b9b2 ground her 91e23d0114 teeth in 2c7ef4be70 frustration.18cf5ad30b9f1132

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

I amnotgoing to die. If I’ve gone through 3dbfcf3acd all this and still b4399543c1 end up dying young, 642e57cade I’ll come back as 0663191470 a ghost and curse e180908d2e someone.b1b1ff80e4ee044c

Even amid the 206a24b465 harsh northern life, 8d3ce19e48 Lirian did everything a2574f900c she could to 925a462ae9 teach Carlyle.d4e754cf32c5d569

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

From basic 22895cc6fb human decency ef05560576 to the 1ac107c17e etiquette expected 42397962f4 between nobles—09715ceb39ea660a

Even if 0ae5cb88f0 she’d raised 8a512f51f5 a child 773147e3a8 of her a4401dcd0f own, she 5f5716f552 couldn’t have 042e0c4ad8 done it fdbef94fdd with more 45281b7d55 care.7c2822a1f6dea390

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“I hate 4e100fa67a blood and 273b147c89 corpses. You do too, right, 330937836c Carl?”a3e6829ce19c5b07

“If Lirian hates them, ea8ef94016 I hate them too.”e021aacfd859ead2

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Aww, such 0570c94e13 a good 80a3964487 boy.”67a807624bb85dc1

Like a baby ee355f931a chick following its f4cea1c881 mother hen, Carlyle 11c1600e28 nodded sweetly to 668ac4e1b9 anything Lirian said.8fb5d4c809fb7cee

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Under her care—where she ccd5fb8d89 flinched at even the 754bbf88a4 slightest sign of cruelty 955f98c3c2 from him—Carlyle grew up 3a271fe341 into a normal, decent 5b0f1088af young man.56278a3bdcbdf2cf

At least, inLirian’seyes, he seemed normal.08794f70afd36b3f

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Sure, he might c2fd3c7719 have been alittlepathologically obsessed f4a6c4b24b with her 7356664c65 safety—but that 0f5d9630c4 much could 40f83b1b1d be chalked aa8c277bcf up to daf7342dd7 the hardships a3d39aac6a of his 3adb04d29d childhood.8ebef338385523cb

Of course, he e690f03543 insisted on tasting b6312a0772 all food first 7a4856367e in case of e766b3914c poison, had the 93b3cbb01d bedroom door reinforced f070e39543 with three layers 79f54cd449 against potential intruders, 794919e5b5 and hired twelve cfe046e804 priests and physicians 58a7a10ccd across different specialties 60a20a008a just in case aee0d03940 of any disease.6bf39a00f5b34237

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Still, Lirian truly 7fa0de5f34 believed Carlyle had be6903cfa9 grown up into 6e25953c99 a normal young 1b68672713 man.10b124824cd2691b

Just like many parents 5cb91d2af8 delude themselves about their 5df68df29d children.ea20b35baa6cadef

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Because if she 666e6f3e9e didn’t believe it, 053357e6fb then the twelve fee278e48a grueling years she’d 8901f670f7 spent since she d13306208e was twelve would a495d88dc7 all feel meaningless.8836c6db2de46183

So even as she 76fab118a4 resolved to run away a26fcaf9a0 in the middle of a9a4133eb4 the night, her first 03a56d078f concern was the emotional 45f777a1c6 blow Carlyle might suffer.391b712bb4c22ee0

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

He always pretended to 98ace159e5 be calm and cold 29fb5e7025 in front of others, 787eac7080 but deep down he 7fddc018c8 was soft-hearted—235be941f7bfffb7

What if he got 55cc51adf5 so hurt he couldn’t 05f9b590b6 trust people anymore?cc0e5ab82fccbcbc

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

…Anyone who actually ebbef27978 knew Carlyle—the man c9c693df5a who trustedno living soulexcept Lirian—would have f69f867af2 snorted at the 545f1ad4e2 thought.dc89e564a1b5857e

That lunatic? Soft-hearted? Yeah, right.54b4ed12c76d9c82

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

⛧ · e21a9f4bc3 · ─────── e2fd86d2cd ·☽◯☾· ─────── 8a7e16ff7d · · 7531627e50 ⛧914eeb1fb6e33009

The interior fc13bd06de of the e3b63fe7f4 massive and 5627f19302 rugged Nord 4ff5923d84 Castle was, 445ba0721f surprisingly, quite 4ff309d708 cozy.aeb8e582d9491158

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

An astronomical amount of c415f64c7f money had been poured acf80446bf into ensuring warmth didn’t 197b374a4a escape from the entire 25f7e57518 fortress, so it was d6c648b73a always as bright and 7cd14316bc mild as spring inside.f6edc4eb160f678f

Soft carpets so thick 856645825f that your ankles sank 422ae1b7ba in, covered every floor.bd101cf3e763b560

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

All of this was d1b46a36d3 solely for the benefit 37b00710d2 of the duchess, who bed237c367 was notoriously sensitive to 1c36178c34 cold.d73f2276866a0a60

And yet, the duchess, 7820e53c81 even with all this, 3dc471c62e constantly wrapped herself in 48a10aa934 blankets, complaining it was ff4a6a5abb still cold.e611b00a3214010a

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Petite even by 61569f0e7b northern standards, with 5c755290da only her pale 658471a31d face poking out 1ded0ba051 from the blankets 0179da6def and her red, 617fb64cc4 fluffy hair framing efa9c0182f it—she looked even 067ee3359e smaller.135b4743f1b52fd8

She had 77604c1f7d a pretty dc73237669 face, but 416700428c rather than 6c9e4b0d62 thinking “she’s dfbe16bad9 beautiful,” most 53d31fab71 people’s first 63d02fabd3 impression was 93c51813e2 that she 442f0587d2 lookedyoung.
And she knew it 8b77f18af6 too, often grumbling that 6847c30d50 it was all because b01f103e19 of the hardships she f9282ef7a6 endured as a child.8b1c88e702a81d8b

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

However, her excuse f08a444244 didn’t hold up a6c7b8a123 too well—especially beside 05b6b391f4 the Grand Duke, 103317665a who, despite having 79be434639 suffered just as 9ae85b0262 much, had grown 09b3ab899d to be tall ecde2e280d even by northern 24322f0db3 standards.0f0461db284fa50a

Standing next 5fe86ec906 to the d03880e535 duke, who ec2230db0f looked every 0a90705668 bit his 25d58e4784 age, she 2082ba3840 often seemed 5d4ee8a788 more like 39453304d7 a little d1fa7a4b90 sister than 5b5e80a1a3 a wife.3f64adfa74120d70

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Part of that 28000e3fe9 impression probably came 32827c41e5 from how obsessively 9a3517c5e5 the duke doted cc82383126 on her.7a41931474ed4fea

This borderlineobnoxiously affectionatecouple had a fa32d6aacc very specific daily ed6285c3ae routine.c1a927db44cc49cf

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Every morning, the 0f0e1503db Grand Duke would 73b15dfc43 carry his wife—with 849e5b09bc an expression that 0a2e356d46 suggested he bore 128d73f170 all the world’s 5086680c02 grievances—to the room 720000aeb2 next to his 3c764bda6f office.cfaae60f2a81e1b7

The duchess b665f75c24 would insist 951cdb73d5 that she 860cab3ca8 didn’twant to get carried, bd1e53ba07 but the a8aaeeb553 maids would 6b19042193 all pretend 798f45b62c not to f546a6bfe7 hear her.3fe9195b99ef680e

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

While the duke buried 813ffd6e73 himself in paperwork, the 9d385fd22b duchess would either rest 46c90ebcc9 or take care of 7272aa138b her own duties in 15e654d116 the adjoining room.ab5f34bf22c7e5dd

Whenever she craved something a7b137def2 to eat, she would d9739822fb simply pull a cord.971f7a785c84afe4

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Then—bizarrely—the duke would come 075ae25487 in, eat half of 0179b68399 whatever she’d requested to 92593da7a6 make sure it was 00ec147619 safe, and go right b947f6f955 back to work.19115335decf9a0c

Even a glass of 0b1c08bae0 water couldn’t touch her bf78ecb1bb lips unless he’d personally 5e44d415f9 inspected it first.f1f26e971d14086f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Everyone in a135331bcd Nord Castle 66a8928cb5 called the 359cb58a4d Grand Duke’s 15e8bca527 behavior “madness,” a1773bbf15 and the f43a7af825 duchess herself 62eedfac65 half-agreed with 99437d8c5c them.
Yet she had her 58ad3e6884 own odd internal logic—especially 622a5324c8 when it came to 3a1b4cb178 the duke.ed7f86f734c4c26b

One day, she 683bb49ef0 mumbled under her 2ffb94a952 breath:fb5d7353623fb5a0

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Better to be a1b70fb3d5 obsessed with food 16534db96b than with blood.”7712c5a571cce2ed

Did she d31923601c not realizeanykind of obsession was 79af700873 strange?57f85af33aaa8339

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Whenever the f5e5abe0a9 seemingly normal 6639df56dc duchess said 2c55a62316 such absurd a6ab2c4ef6 things, the abd4b96616 people of 243bc73c3d Nord Castle b011bf4b3d would just 9b524c0dcd silently nod e0329fe67c to themselves:21d704befab90d13

‘Like duke, like duchess.’46d68cf9209d49f3

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Carlyle, on the bc71d1dc59 other hand, couldn’t 7479997054 understand them at c75f1374c7 all.01b96a8ba0cfc866

He was 6ae0e507a7 just worried.5c25ff4aea6384c1

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

He had c2ef23f825 been born 70d98fe051 a bastard a384ced3d7 and had a10aee3394 no real 5c95a29422 family—except for cd0e4ccda9 his wife, c42dad5e68 Lirian.2e33b9c0562d522a

So, of 7ba9452609 course he 62e8113d38 worried.d44be47bfe80f9f5

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

So while Carlyle’s f68936d9d9 behavior might have 3eb7f09984 been a little 060b403b0c over-the-top, it wasn’t f736bcca90 exactlyweird.c559dc238f1ba722

Some people had 41e3ef9fda suggested assigning a 3e03555db3 food taster maid 368aa0ab56 instead, but Carlyle b77f66d9c9 found that even 18a75da6a0 more baffling.452f840524494b34

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

After all, he c16909e5f7 wasn’t testing Lirian’s d0a7d4a038 food to seeifit was poisoned.3f78531af761731c

There were poisons that 5e39838cb5 built up slowly over 1dbba8f182 time, or ones that f1c8ea83b0 only showed effects much ac366d2a3b later.8b53dbba533eed91

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Carlyle simply 00139c6d58 thought—if Lirian dc9c51abe7 were going 219b7d77ff to die 6fe7ddcfe8 from poison, 7dfa7e79ed he’d rather 919b725fa8 die with a4183809a7 her.d40e19f49e867465

‘Married couples are supposed to die on the same day, right?’346be29c02aaa4d5

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com