Chapter 55
“Why did you stay there all the time when you have such a nice bedroom like this? There’s nothing there.”
That mansion also had Paiki’s bedroom. He knew that Paiki had stayed there before, although after crossing a certain line, he had always slept in her room.
“Because you weren’t here. But from now on, I suppose I’ll be living here with you.”
Paiki said, pressing his lips firmly against Aniella’s cheek.
Knock, knock. Someone knocked on the bedroom door.
“It’s the butler. Here, we have to go through human hands for everything, which is bothersome, but if you tell him, most things will be resolved. If not, come find me, the universal problem-solver.”
When Paiki told them to enter, the butler stepped inside. He hadn’t expected a woman to be in the Duke’s bedroom, so he was momentarily flustered upon seeing Aniella. But he soon composed himself and looked at his master, awaiting orders.
“If she needs anything, prepare it for her. Ah, and don’t let her leave the estate.”
“Is it okay if I look around inside the estate?”
When Aniella asked, Paiki turned to look at her.
“I thought I might get bored……”
At her voice, growing smaller as she watched for his reaction, Paiki grinned. He approached her and cupped her face; Aniella averted her eyes to the side. He followed her gaze until she eventually gave up trying to escape and looked up at him.
“Okay. Look around as you please. There won’t be any doors marked with an X here.”
“Are you making fun of me…?”
“A little.”
Paiki answered honestly and kissed her forehead.
“I have some business to attend to, so I’ll be back. If you get bored, ask the butler to show you around.”
When Paiki left, silence fell over the bedroom. Aniella glanced surreptitiously at the butler. His stern appearance suggested he wouldn’t grant any requests, no matter how much she begged, if they weren’t allowed.
“I can… look around, right?”
But he would probably comply with things Paiki had permitted.
When Aniella asked cautiously, the butler nodded and opened the bedroom door. It was a polite gesture, waiting for her to exit first.
The butler didn’t even know her name. However, given how familiarly Paiki treated her, she seemed to be an important person, so he felt the need to attend to her carefully.
Aniella strolled through the ducal estate following his guidance. Unlike the bleak mansion with its bare corridor walls, the walls of the estate were hung with many paintings. The butler explained they were artworks collected over generations.
Among them were even painters whose styles Aniella could recognize. When she asked if a particular piece was indeed by a certain artist, the butler showed a slightly surprised expression and confirmed it was.
“It’s a beautiful painting. The brushstrokes are mystical.”
Aniella stepped closer to the painting and observed it intently. No, while pretending to examine the painting earnestly, she was actually surveying her surroundings out of the corner of her eye.
She couldn’t believe Paiki’s words that her family had never looked for her. She also found it suspicious how his smile, meant to convey pity for her abandonment, seemed strangely twisted. Aniella planned to escape this place and meet her family in person to ask.
To ask if they really hadn’t worried about her, not even once.
But to do that, she first had to lose the butler. Seeing her show interest in the paintings, his initially stern expression brightened, as if she had found a point of entry.
“Are there more paintings by this artist?”
“Yes. I’ll guide you this way.”
The butler led her to a corridor a bit further inside. Aniella followed him silently.
“The previous Duke was very fond of that painter and collected many of his works. It’s no exaggeration to say we have at least one piece by every leading painter of the time, besides his.”
His voice, explaining with a slightly raised pitch, carried a note of pride. Aniella played along, saying she looked forward to it, while subtly stepping back.
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