NOVEL NEXT Chapter 81
“What did that guy say to you?”
As soon as they stepped out onto the terrace, Arsion repeated the same question.
“Arsion.”
“What?”
“I plan on living a long life.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
If you want to die, do it alone! Just don’t commit treason against the imperial family while I’m around!
“It’s my birthday today.”
“I know. Why do you think I’m even here?”
“So, don’t cause any trouble.”
“When have I ever caused—”
“…….”
“…Alright, fine.”
Arsion frowned, clearly annoyed that Camilla wouldn’t tell him what she and Crown Prince Edsen had talked about.
Camilla, meanwhile, finally noticed something about Arsion that made her eyes widen.
Whoa.
It was the first time she’d ever seen him look this polished.
His usual unruly hair was neatly swept back, and the all-black formalwear suited him perfectly. His slightly lean build only enhanced his tall, commanding figure.
Men really do shine in suits.
Having had the firsthand experience of poking at the taut muscles hidden beneath his slender frame, Camilla couldn’t help but admire him.
“You look good.”
Her compliment made Arsion’s expression turn awkward, as if he found the formal attire uncomfortable. His furrowed brow only added to Camilla’s amusement, prompting a quiet chuckle from her.
“Where’s the Duke?”
“He’s busy. I came instead.”
“What, so if the Duke had come, you wouldn’t have?”
“I didn’t mean—!”
Feigning disappointment, Camilla watched him fluster, unable to hide her growing smirk.
“He told me to give you this.”
“The Duke did?”
Arsion handed her a small box. When she opened it, a small tiara glittering with precious gems lay inside.
“Wow…”
It was clearly expensive.
“Make sure to thank him.”
“I have to thank him for this?”
“…Fine, I’ll thank him later myself.”
Sorry, I expected too much from you.
“Let’s head back inside.”
Not wanting to leave the party for too long, Camilla began walking toward the hall again, with Arsion quietly following behind.
“Remember, it’s my birthday today.”
“I know already.”
Giving him one last warning, she strode ahead.
***
“Hmm?”
When Camilla stepped back into the hall, she immediately stopped in her tracks.
The atmosphere was strange.
“What the…?”
The music had stopped, and the guests weren’t mingling or enjoying themselves. Instead, they all seemed frozen, their attention fixed on one spot.
Camilla followed their gaze and soon found herself stiffening as well.
“Oh! Lady Camilla!”
The heavy silence was broken by someone who greeted her cheerfully. It was Rania, whom she had met at the orphanage.
“I heard it’s your birthday today! Happy birthday! I’m so sorry—I didn’t know, so I didn’t prepare anything.”
Her smile was as radiant as ever, seemingly oblivious to the tension in the room. She waved enthusiastically, her wrist adorned with the same bracelet—a bracelet that had belonged to the late Duchess.
“Rania, was it?”
The person whose intense gaze was fixed on Rania was none other than the Duke of Sorpel. His eyes were locked onto the blue gemstone bracelet on her wrist.
“I must have startled you, showing up like this…”
Rania’s expression abruptly changed.
Her cheerful demeanor gave way to a somber look as she clasped her hands tightly together and bowed deeply toward the Duke.
“I’m sorry, Father.”
Father.
That one word was enough. Camilla understood why the hall had fallen into such a tense silence.
She, too, found herself at a loss for words. The situation was so surreal it took her a moment to process it.
Father…
But the time she needed to process everything was surprisingly short.
Instead of being overwhelmed, she felt a strange sense of clarity, as though all the nagging doubts and suspicions she’d been harboring were suddenly resolved.
How odd.
Even she was surprised by how calm she felt.
“Rania.”
Camilla took a step forward, cutting through the thick tension as she approached Rania.
“I’m sure there’s a lot to discuss. Why don’t we move to another room? As you can see, the situation here isn’t ideal. Is that alright?”
“Oh! I’m so sorry! I didn’t even know there was a party…”
Rania’s expression shifted once again.
“Did I ruin the atmosphere? What should I do?”
Her face quickly fell, as if the world were ending.
Watching her, Camilla let out a quiet sigh.
“I was just so excited to meet my father that I rushed here without thinking… I’m really sorry…”
“Luve.”
Cutting off Rania’s apology, Camilla called for the butler.
“Take her to the drawing room.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Luve, whose face was unusually tense, stepped forward to guide Rania. Camilla could only imagine how chaotic his thoughts must be, both as a butler and the head of Black Shadow.
“His daughter?”
“How did this happen?”
“Could the late Duchess have…?”
“But she died in that carriage accident, didn’t she?”
“They never found her body.”
“She looks so much like the Duke.”
“She really does…”
The party quickly devolved into a mess of murmurs and speculation.
This birthday is ruined, too.
Camilla sighed inwardly, forcing herself to smile brightly.
If she showed even the slightest sign of distress, she knew the rumors that would circulate in the social world the next day:
“The fake daughter broke down in tears when the real one appeared!”
I won’t give them that satisfaction.
“Another one of those smiles,” Crown Prince Edsen muttered from the sidelines, clicking his tongue.
Standing beside him, Petro’s face was filled with concern.
****
“What exactly happened, Father?”
The party had fizzled out in confusion.
But no one cared. Before they could have a proper conversation with Rania, it was essential to confront the Duke of Sorpel and get some answers.
“……”
Ravi’s question hung heavy in the air as the Duke struggled to speak.
“A daughter, you say… How on earth—!”
“Brother,” Camilla interjected softly, cutting through his rising frustration.
“How about some tea?”
“Now’s not the time for tea.”
“Not a tea person? I can get you something else.”
“I don’t need—!”
Ravi stopped mid-sentence, his annoyance deflating when he caught sight of Camilla’s steady, almost calming gaze.
‘Damn it.’
It hit him like a slap: today was Camilla’s birthday.
Of all people, she had the right to be the most upset right now. Yet, here she was, the one trying to settle
his
nerves.
Letting out a resigned sigh, Ravi sank into a chair. Almost unconsciously, his eyes drifted toward Ludville.
If anyone had the right to feel utterly bewildered, it was him. A daughter of the late Duchess—his supposed mother—had appeared out of nowhere. How was he processing this?
“……”
Yet Ludville sat there, composed as ever, his face an unreadable mask as he sipped his tea. It was as though this revelation barely registered to him, whether the woman was truly his sister or not.
“Camilla,” the Duke finally spoke, his voice low and deliberate.
“Yes, Father?”
“Have you met that girl before?”
“I saw her not long ago during a visit to the orphanage.”
“Orphanage?”
“Yes, she was there for volunteer work.”
Camilla briefly recounted her first meeting with Rania, mentioning the bracelet Rania had worn and the video crystal she had discovered in the storage room.
“Camilla, that bracelet is—”
“Father,” Camilla interrupted firmly.
The Duke’s words faltered, and his troubled expression deepened.
Over the past few days, Camilla had pieced together all the details she’d uncovered. There was only one conclusion that made sense.
“Anna… she didn’t die in that accident, did she?”
Anna. The late Duchess. Ludville’s biological mother and, if Rania’s claim was true, hers as well.
The Duchess who was said to have died in a carriage accident when Ludville was just five years old.
But now, her supposed daughter had appeared.
‘And she’s wearing a bracelet that belonged to the Duchess—an irreplaceable, one-of-a-kind piece.’
And then there was the reaction of Derin, the ghostly butler.
“Was she a woman in her forties?”
Forties.
That single word had gnawed at Camilla ever since.
If the Duchess were alive today, she would be around that age.
One by one, the pieces fell into place, leading Camilla to her inevitable conclusion.
“She was alive, wasn’t she?”
The truth no one had dared to speak.
Ravi was the first to react, his voice sharp with disbelief.
“What nonsense are you talking about? She was alive? That’s absurd—!”
“I’m sorry.”
The Duke’s quiet words landed like a thunderclap, silencing the room.
“Father…” Ravi whispered, his voice unsteady.
“Camilla is right,” the Duke admitted with a heavy sigh. “Anna didn’t die that day.”
His confession left the room in stunned silence.
***
The truth, when it finally came out, was more shocking than any of them could have anticipated.
Anna, the late Duchess, had not come from noble stock. She was a gypsy dancer, renowned for her breathtaking performances and striking beauty. The Duke had fallen for her the moment he saw her.
‘Oh, Father…’ Camilla sighed inwardly.
It was a pattern. The Duke’s penchant for women who defied convention seemed to be his trademark.
After all, Camilla’s own mother had also come from a less-than-prestigious background. According to Duke Jabilon, hers was a family so lowly it barely registered in the social hierarchy.
And now this: the late Duchess had been a dancer.
“We were happy,” the Duke continued, his voice soft with nostalgia.
Despite opposition from all sides—including his closest allies—the Duke had been steadfast. He married Anna against all odds, determined to create a life with her.
And for a time, they had been blissfully happy, to the point where even his staunchest critics had eventually conceded.
But that happiness was fleeting.
“She left us,” the Duke admitted.
Anna had been a free spirit, unbound by the rigid rules of noble society. Though she tried to adapt, the constraints of her new life weighed heavily on her.
“She couldn’t endure it anymore,” the Duke said, his voice thick with regret. “She loved Ludville and me, but she couldn’t stay.”
The supposed carriage accident had been a ruse. Anna had staged her death to disappear from their lives entirely.
“But why?” Ravi’s voice trembled. “Why didn’t you look for her? Why didn’t you tell us?”
“I did look,” the Duke replied, his tone sorrowful. “But she was gone. Truly gone.”
“She just left us behind?” Ravi’s anger flared. “For what? To live as a commoner again?”
Camilla interjected, her voice calm.
“She had her reasons, Brother. And it seems one of those reasons was Rania.”
Her words silenced the room.
Rania’s existence was proof of the life Anna had chosen to live after leaving them behind.
But for Camilla, there was still one unanswered question gnawing at her.
“Father,” she began slowly, her gaze steady, “Did you ever think she would come back?”
The Duke’s face, for the briefest moment, betrayed a flicker of hope.
“I did,” he admitted. “For a long time, I hoped.”
But that hope had withered, buried beneath the weight of years.
Camilla leaned back in her chair, her thoughts swirling.
The late Duchess, alive. A new sister, Rania.
And a past that refused to stay buried.