“Ah, that really could have ended badly. If it weren’t for the Duchess of Baldwin, I might have been in danger.”
“How did you know the Baldwin family kept the original?”
“Pardon? I almost got scammed that day. It was all due to my own lack of experience.”
“We investigated the Hesse estate’s finances. You do have enough assets to cover the amount stated in the contract. But had you paid that sum, it would have left you barely able to afford the Baroness’s medication. Massive roadwork like you’re doing now? Unthinkable.”
Heinrich hadn’t just investigated Nadia—he had investigated everything about the Hesse estate.
And he hadn’t stopped at just gathering facts—he had accurately identified every inconsistency in their story.
Nadia’s golden eyes stared back at him blankly, but internally she was full of awe.
‘You’ve grown up well, Heini. I knew you were smart, but now you’re truly worthy of leading a noble house.’
She might be able to fool careless lords, but Heinrich was clearly a different league.
With a deliberate sigh, Nadia finally gave up the act and looked him straight in the eye.
“If Your Grace has come prepared to this extent, I suppose I have no choice. Yes—I did know about it.”
“And how exactly did you know?”
“That’s personal. I’d rather not say.”
This was just the opening move. Nadia knew someone like Heinrich wouldn’t retreat over a vague answer.
As expected, Heinrich leaned forward, gripping his knee tightly.
“You will tell me, my lady.”
His crimson eyes gleamed with a chilling light. It was the first time Nadia realized Heinrich had the power to truly threaten and dominate others.
The Heinrich she remembered had always been polite, kind, and earnest. A boy who returned affection with even more dedication—Nadia had once loved that version of him.
For a moment, Nadia froze, and Heinrich seemed to take her pause as hesitation. He leaned back into the sofa and spoke calmly once more.
“This is an issue of great importance to me. If I get the answer I’m looking for… I may even reward you.”
“It’s not a great secret, really. Just something personal.”
Nadia hesitated on purpose and then began speaking slowly.
“It’s not that I don’t remember my childhood… It’s just all a little hazy, like fog. But there’s one vivid memory I can’t forget. When I was starving to death, a noblewoman saved me.”
Of course, it was all a lie.
But Nadia was a skilled liar and actress. Her voice turned dreamy, as if she were speaking of a long-lost hope.
“That noblewoman became my friend. I could never forget her kindness. So when I was adopted into House Hesse, I tried to find her. And through that search, I started learning various things.”
“You’re implying that this woman was the Duchess of Baldwin.”
Nadia nodded solemnly, praying that the lie would pass.
Heinrich’s crimson eyes flickered briefly—but then narrowed sharply.
“As for The Emperor’s Bird, I only learned of it very recently. After I had spare funds, I hired an informant. But I swear, my intentions weren’t malicious.”
“Then what were your intentions?”
“To express my gratitude, of course. I wanted to become a noblewoman like her. Though… I suppose someone who snoops into other people’s lives can’t truly become someone like her.”
Calling her past self a “great noblewoman” made her cringe inside—but Nadia delivered the line smoothly.
…Or so she thought.
If Heinrich hadn’t been glaring at her with such fury, she might’ve believed she’d succeeded.
“Your Grace?”
“You never can.”
“What…?”
“No one can. No one can be like my wife. So don’t try to imitate her, or chase after her shadow. This is a warning.”
Nadia was caught off guard. She hadn’t expected such violent rage from Heinrich.
Was Livenia’s death truly his deepest wound…?
While Nadia stood there in silence, Heinrich rose from his seat, his heavy footsteps brushing past her.
She quickly stood and called out to him.
“Your Grace, the late Duchess of Baldwin… she didn’t die because of you. I’m sure she didn’t think so. She was a good person.”
At least, she had tried to be—especially for you.
Nadia poured her heart into those words, hoping to reach Heinrich.
But instead, he drew the sword from his belt and aimed it at her neck.
His pale face looked like that of Death itself. The cold glint in his eyes was murderous.
“How dare someone like you speak of my wife…”
He spoke in a savage, growling tone like a beast.
Yet Nadia’s gaze didn’t waver.
“…I was out of line. I apologize.”
Her voice, soft and serene like a quiet lake, was free of fear.
Her golden eyes were filled only with Heinrich—full of warmth, as if trying to embrace all his sorrow, rage, and despair.
Heinrich slowly lowered his sword.
“Don’t let me see you again. I find your presence offensive.”
Despite the harshness of his words, Nadia only offered a bitter smile. There was no trace of resentment on her face.
Heinrich didn’t wait for the maid to assist him. He opened the door himself and walked out.
Once he climbed into the carriage and left the shabby estate hall behind, shame surged through him.
‘Why do I see Livenia in that woman…?’
They shared no resemblance.
Age, height, hair, eyes, voice—everything was different.
But the way she walked through a door… the way she adjusted her dress as she sat… how she stared straight at her conversation partner, how she kept distance yet remained flawlessly courteous—every little detail reminded him of Livenia.
“I wanted to become a noblewoman like her.”
If Nadia’s words were true, then she was intentionally mimicking Livenia.
That was something he could never forgive. There could never be another Livenia in this world.
But what was even less forgivable…
“Your Grace, she didn’t die because of you. She was a good person.”
…was the fact that he felt comforted by those words.
Livenia was gone—buried in the cold earth—yet he, Heinrich Baldwin, had just found solace in the voice of a woman mimicking her.
After Heinrich left the manor, Nadia locked herself in her room and didn’t come out.
Outside her door, she heard the Baron and a maid whispering.
“…She didn’t eat dinner after all?”
“She had a bit of soup when I told her you were worried.”
“She’s always had a small appetite… I’m even more worried now. Please take care of her. I’ll stay with my wife. If anything happens, let me know immediately.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Worry filled the Baron’s voice.
Normally, Nadia wouldn’t do anything that might cause her adoptive father concern.
But today… she hadn’t even been able to think that far.
‘No one can be like my wife.’
‘How dare someone like you…’
The image of Heinrich, consumed by rage to the point of self-destruction, wouldn’t leave her mind.
With those beast-like eyes, he had looked to Nadia… like an abandoned child.
Nadia sat by the window, lost in thought well into the night.
But she wasn’t staying up just to reflect.
Knock knock, knock knock.
Just before dawn, a rhythmic knock tapped against the window.
Nadia rose and opened it.
A black shadow slipped into the room, kneeling before her.
“You called, Lady Nadia.”
“You came quickly, Conrad.”
Conrad raised his head slightly at the compliment.
His single eye looked straight at her.
“Since you were here, I’ve been staying close by as well.”
“Thank you. Now get up. I’m not a duchess anymore—no need for the excessive formalities.”
Nadia smiled and reached out a hand.
Ironically, even that small gesture exuded noble elegance—like a true lady of high standing.
Conrad didn’t comment on it. He simply rose to his feet properly.
Nadia returned to the chair she’d been sitting in all night.
“Heini came to the Hesse estate today.”
“…Yes.”
Conrad clearly already knew. With Nadia’s recent return, he was surely paying close attention to everything.
“He was… strange. I thought that kind boy would have mourned me deeply after I died. But today, he didn’t look like someone who had simply grieved a friend.”
The more she spoke of Heinrich, the more Nadia’s expression hardened.
“It’s been ten years. That’s more than enough time to bury any grief. But he looked like Livenia Baldwin had just died yesterday. I know that feeling. That kind of grief… it means guilt.”
Conrad understood who she was talking about.
After all, Nadia—no, Livenia—had also taken a long time to recover from her biological mother’s death…
“…”
Conrad kept his lips tightly shut, worry in his heart. But his own feelings didn’t matter now.
“Conrad, that carriage accident that killed me… was it really just an accident?”