For the Dreadfully Terrifying Grand Duke Valenstein C11

Chapter 11

3. Cold Treatment (2)

This time…

Laisa had been wrong.

The Grand Duke had never truly acknowledged Mirane’s position.

Mirane realized that only after finishing his meal.

As he attempted to explore Wicker Castle, a familiar knight stepped in front of him and blocked his path.

I suppose… considering what happened to the former Grand Duke, the proud nobles of Wicker would never simply accept me.

The wedding had merely expanded the boundaries of Mirane’s confinement.

“My Lord.”

A knight with tousled blond hair resting over polished silver pauldrons smiled gently before him.

His sky-blue eyes were softer than the Grand Duke’s, and healthy rose-colored cheeks contrasted with his fully armed figure.

It was Sir Edmund.

Speaking politely, he said,

“Wicker’s winters are harsh. The cold may affect your health, so perhaps it would be best if you refrained from going outside.”

Mirane knew perfectly well that this wasn’t a suggestion.

A faint smile crossed his lips.

“What a pity. Wicker is so beautiful, yet the cold leaves no opportunity to admire it.”

Edmund answered smoothly.

“That’s simply how life is. Travelers come praising the scenery, while those who actually live here are too busy surviving to enjoy it.”

Mirane looked at him quietly.

“Have I been placed under surveillance?”

A flicker of surprise crossed Edmund’s face.

Mirane continued calmly.

“Then your words the other day were mistaken.”

“You told me no one would dare treat me lightly anymore.”

Edmund laughed awkwardly.

“Well… circumstances changed.”

“How could I possibly know what His Grace is thinking?”

Mirane fell silent.

He simply looked at Edmund.

The blond knight, who had been trying to laugh the matter away, slowly realized how serious Mirane’s gaze was.

His smile stiffened.

Only then did Mirane speak.

“Then you shouldn’t make promises you cannot keep.”

Edmund remained silent.

Mirane continued in an even tone.

“Especially as a knight.”

“Shouldn’t a knight avoid speaking with certainty about things he cannot guarantee?”

After a long pause…

Edmund finally smiled again.

“To be honest…”

“From our perspective…”

“It’s rather unexpected to hear those words coming from you.”

Mirane understood perfectly well what was hidden beneath those words.

But he chose not to respond.

Instead…

He quietly turned away.

Behind him, Edmund called out.

“You have my apologies.”

Mirane paused for only the briefest moment…

Then continued walking.

I said what needed to be said…

But that doesn’t make me feel any better.

As he climbed the stairs…

His expression, so composed before Edmund, gradually darkened.

A long sigh escaped him.

To be forbidden from even walking around the estate…

Do they intend to treat me like a puppet?

Which noble barred their own spouse from entering their room?

Mirane had never heard of such a thing.

Especially not immediately after the wedding.

A heavy feeling settled in his chest.

Surely… this won’t continue forever.

Unfortunately…

His uneasy premonition soon became reality.

Days passed.

Then an entire week.

The Grand Duke never appeared.

For the first three days, Mirane respected his wishes.

After that…

Unable to bear the uncertainty any longer…

He once again asked to see him.

“His Grace has been extremely busy…”

The answer remained the same.

A firm refusal.

I know I’m not welcome.

But how long am I expected to endure this?

He understood that protesting his treatment carried risks.

Yet…

He had no intention of quietly accepting everything.

The Grand Duke’s protection wasn’t merely a matter of comfort.

It was a matter of survival.

Mirane hadn’t traveled all the way to Wicker only to be quietly assassinated.

Suppressing his emotions, he asked gently,

“Then at least tell me where His Grace is.”

Looking at the hesitant servant, he continued kindly,

“Surely I’m entitled to know that much.”

“After all…”

“I am still his spouse.”

His warm voice eased the servant’s anxiety.

After hesitating for a while…

The servant finally answered.

“He’s at the top of the North Tower.”

“The North Tower?”

The servant offered no further explanation.

As though fleeing from something…

He hurried from the room.

The softly closing door left behind only silence.

Watching it…

A shadow crossed Mirane’s green eyes.

For a brief moment…

His beautiful face darkened.

Then…

The shadow disappeared.

His calm expression returned.

Without another word…

Mirane turned toward the terrace.

The window opened with a click.

A rush of cold, fresh air swept inside.

Resting both hands on the railing…

Mirane gazed over Wicker Castle.

The harsh northern winter reflected within eyes the color of fresh spring leaves.

The Oberth Empire.

Its northern frontier.

And beyond even that…

Wicker.

Winter in the northernmost reaches of the Empire.

Leafless trees swayed beneath relentless winds.

Taking a deep breath that seemed to empty his lungs…

Mirane looked ahead.

The castle differed greatly from the Imperial Palace.

Where the capital embraced newer architectural styles…

Wicker preserved the ancient ones.

Sharp rooftops that pierced the clouds.

Arched flying buttresses joining one structure to another.

The black stone castle felt severe…

Yet majestic.

Mirane remained there for a long time.

The winter wind whipped relentlessly around him.

His cheeks gradually turned as cold as ice.

Then…

Without warning…

He laughed quietly.

Wicker truly was different.

The buildings.

The weather.

The sky.

Even the moon.

Everything differed subtly from the capital.

The people…

Were different as well.

This is difficult.

His light brown hair fluttered wildly in the wind.

Without even a fur-lined cloak…

His body steadily grew colder.

Yet he hardly noticed.

Only exhaustion remained upon his face.

As he silently overlooked the castle…

His father’s final words resurfaced.

“Maintain a good relationship with the Grand Duke.”

Count Laster’s eyes had glowed with an eerie blue light.

“Watch everything carefully, Mirane Laster.”

“Never forget what you see.”

In other words—

Become a spy.

Report everything.

Those had been the last words spoken to a son leaving for another land.

Mirane slowly closed his eyes.

His trembling wasn’t from the cold.

It came from something far deeper.

Opening them once more…

He reached into his coat.

From his pocket…

He withdrew a silver locket.

A delicate rose was engraved upon its surface.

Around it fluttered butterflies.

And at the center…

A fairy with butterfly wings.

Click.

Opening the locket…

Mirane quietly looked at the tiny portrait inside.

His thumb gently traced the woman’s face.

After a long while…

He sighed.

Closing the locket…

He rested his forehead against the cold railing.

The icy wind rushed between Wicker’s towering spires.

Carrying away his troubled thoughts.

At any moment…

He could be assassinated.

And the one man capable of deciding his fate…

Refused even to see him.

The icy gazes of Wicker’s nobles…

Once merely uncomfortable…

Were slowly becoming genuine threats.

As time passed…

His anxiety only grew stronger.

Mirane remained standing there for a very long time.

He pretended otherwise…

But this had become incredibly difficult.

The fear for his safety cornered him.

His inability to speak freely with anyone bred loneliness.

Mirane had always been someone who found peace through his relationships with others.

Now…

Those connections had been severed.

Only Laisa and Edmund ever smiled at him.

But Laisa was constantly occupied.

And something about Edmund made Mirane instinctively keep his distance.

His disrupted routine also weighed heavily on him.

If only I could ride a horse…

For more than ten years…

His daily life had followed the same disciplined rhythm.

Now, deprived of it…

His body grew stiffer with each passing day.

The meals suited his taste.

The bedroom…

Did not.

Every night, lying beneath that ceiling overflowing with gaudy gold…

He felt as though a new layer of exhaustion settled over him.

One inconvenience alone was trivial.

Together…

They steadily wore him down.

And finally…

Just as Mirane was reaching his limit—

“Get out.”

Why is he here?

Before Mirane could recover from his surprise…

A furious shout followed.

“Get out this instant!”

It happened completely by chance…

Inside a quiet, comfortable library.