Chapter 56 - 55: Duke Williams

Chapter 56: Chapter 55: Duke Williams

Dusk. The dismissal bell rang right on time.

Today, Class A’s final period was Practical Magic. For most students, this was a nightmare. The teacher would personally step into the arena to spar with them, and they had to meet the requirements to earn their course credits.

But there were always a few exceptions—prodigies for whom earning credits was as effortless as slicing through warm butter.

Caius had passed his assessment early. According to his usual habit, he would stand silently in the corner of the classroom and wait for Lilia.

Lilia’s Magic Talent was a bit lacking, so she always worked extra hard. She would usually practice until the very last moment before challenging the teacher.

Today, however, Caius acted out of character. He left the classroom five minutes before the bell rang and hadn’t returned by the time class was dismissed.

"Lilia!"

Cecie seized the opening and leaned in close to the girl, who was packing up her belongings. "Do you want to head home together today?"

Her action immediately caught the attention of the others.

Before Cecie could stop them, another group of people crowded around. "Lilia, aren’t you leaving with Caius today?"

"Speaking of Caius, someone said they saw him heading toward the upperclassmen’s area earlier."

"Ah, I heard a fight broke out over there! Could it be..."

"Impossible!" Cecie reached out and pushed aside the crowd blocking their way. "Don’t talk nonsense. Why would Caius voluntarily pick a fight with upperclassman Lucian?"

In her nervousness, the girl—trying to hide the truth and whisk Lilia away—completely failed to realize she had just given herself away.

Fortunately, Lilia had no intention of exposing her.

The girl nodded obediently. "That’s right, Caius would never do something like that."

"Right!" Cecie shooed the others away as fast as she could. "Let’s go, Lilia. I’ll walk you home!"

"That’s okay, Cecie. I have something else to do today."

The blonde girl’s face immediately fell into a crestfallen expression.

Seeing this, and to prevent her from asking any more questions, Lilia took the initiative to hold her hand. "I’m done packing up. Want to walk to the school gates together?"

Cecie instantly tossed all her jumbled negative emotions out of her mind. "Of course!"

The two girls walked out of the school gates together.

Lilia bid farewell to Cecie, bent down, and slipped into the Beaumont family’s carriage.

"To the Duke Williams Mansion," Lilia instructed the driver as she pulled back the carriage curtain.

The driver, carefully selected by Lady Beaumont, was naturally well-trained. Without asking a single question, he delivered Lilia to her destination.

Lilia stepped out of the carriage and told the driver there was no need to wait for her; he should head straight back to Lien Academy to pick up Caius and take him home.

Caius had always executed her orders to the letter.

Lilia had told him to stall Lucian for an hour. Now, she had about forty minutes left to explore...

She had to hurry.

Outside the Beaumont Earl Mansion, a group of guards was always stationed. Except in the dead of night, there were always servants bustling back and forth within the courtyard, making it a busy and lively place.

In comparison, the Duke Williams Mansion was excessively desolate.

Looking at the somewhat withered flower branches in the garden, neglected due to a lack of care, Lilia doubted for a moment whether Lucian actually lived here.

CREAK...

Lilia pushed the front doors open.

A flurry of footsteps echoed. Upon seeing the girl at the door, an elderly maid widened her eyes. "You are..."

"Hello. I am Lucian’s classmate. My name is Lilia Sifris." Lilia lifted her skirt in a curtsy.

The maid relaxed a bit. "Miss Sifris... I’m very sorry, but Young Master Lucian hasn’t returned yet."

"Then, may I come in and sit for a while?"

"Well..."

Looking at the girl’s innocent, pure, and exquisite face, the maid found herself completely unable to utter a refusal.

After a moment of hesitation, she compromised. "P-Please come in."

Lilia followed her into the living room and took a seat on the sofa.

The sofa was a bit old but very clean; it was evident that someone cleaned it regularly.

The girl in the dark green uniform was like a delicate flower branch, born to take root and grow in the softest of soils. The maid stood to the side, watching Lilia curiously survey her surroundings, and suddenly felt a bit awkward.

"P-Please rest here for a moment. I’ll go get you something to eat." Even her choice of words became cautious. "Would black tea and cookies be alright?"

"That would be fine, thank you."

"Y-You don’t need to be so polite," the maid said, waving her hands.

She was just too well-behaved.

The maid even felt somewhat flattered and hurried to the kitchen, as if afraid that the girl would starve if she were even a second too slow.

Lilia got on her tiptoes and leaned forward, watching the maid’s back disappear around the corner. She immediately stood up and began to explore the room.

There were almost no servants in the Duke Mansion, and the furnishings were exceedingly simple. However, that didn’t change the fact that the space was massive—so massive that it felt somewhat empty at a glance.

Where should she start?

Lucian’s bedroom? Or... Lilia suddenly remembered that there should be another person living in this house: Lucian’s father.

She had heard that he was addicted to gambling. It was only dusk now, not yet the golden hour for casinos to operate... Then again, for a gambling addict, spending the entire day at the casino was entirely possible.

Lilia decided to go upstairs and have a look anyway.

The master bedroom was usually located in the area with the best lighting in the entire mansion.

Lilia walked down the corridor toward the end and pressed her ear against the tightly shut door for a moment.

Quiet. A dead silence.

Lilia hesitantly knocked on the door.

Still quiet. She didn’t receive any response.

Was no one inside?

Looking down at the doorknob, Lilia debated whether she should try pressing it to see if the door would open. What if someone was actually inside? If she opened it and ended up locking eyes with the current Duke Williams, wouldn’t that be incredibly awkward?

As she was hesitating, the maid’s exclamation suddenly rang out. "Miss Sifris!"

Looking back, Lilia saw that the maid had come upstairs at some point. She had probably come up to check after not finding her in the living room.

For some reason, the maid’s expression was a bit tense. "Miss Sifris, please come here. Stay away... stay away from there!"

Lilia tilted her head, resembling a curious kitten.

The maid took two quick steps forward, wanting to pull her away from the door. However, before she could, accompanied by a fierce gust of wind, the heavy door was abruptly yanked open from the inside.

A heavy stench of alcohol hit her face, and immediately after, a man’s arm reached out from within—

"Miss Sifris!"

The maid’s scream pierced into the man’s muddled mind.

His splayed fingers stopped just an inch away from the girl.

The man lowered his head, his somewhat blurred vision barely focusing enough to make out the figure standing at the door.

It wasn’t Lucian, but a... girl he had never seen before.

"...Who are you?" the man spoke, his voice grating, like sandpaper rubbing against the floor.

Lilia looked up at him.

The man was tall with rugged features. From the contours of his face, one could tell he must have been quite handsome in his youth. However, that spirited handsomeness had long been ground away by alcohol.

His hair sat in a messy pile on his head, and the reek of alcohol on him was so strong it was almost suffocating. He looked decadent and gloomy, as if he were going to rot away in this room with its tightly shut doors and windows.

Meeting the man’s nearly murderous gaze, Lilia blinked.

She lifted the hem of her skirt. "Good day, Duke Williams.

"I am Lilia Sifris, Lucian’s girlfriend."