Cersinia was surprised that the old man, whom she never met, knew her. The old man, lying on the floor with a dying face, was so skinny that only his skin and bones remained. Judging by his appearance, it seems that he had been imprisoned for a long time.

“How do you know my name?” Cersinia said with a surprised look.

“Oh, dear I know it very well. Since I heard it to the point that your name has now nailed itself in my brain. Seeing that you’re here now, that brat eventually brought you into the Grand Duchy.”

“Devil… that brat? Who are you talking about right now?”

She glanced at the old man with her eyes squinted. Because he kept saying the words “devil” and “brat” annoyed her greatly. Especially since she did not know who it was referring to.

“The half who brought you into this house. That brat is a devil. A devil that will destroy this family.”

When Cersinia looked confused, the old man sneered and added.

“Looks like that brat didn’t tell you anything. And yet you followed him, right?”

Cersinia’s shoulders trembled. His words hit the nail straight away. She didn’t know anything but only believed words from Limapheus and came all the way here.

“Who are you, and what are you talking about?”

Just by looking at the old man, it was clear that he had a bad feeling toward Ben. But she reminded herself not to trust people’s words recklessly.

“I’m Verdik, the ears, hands, and feet of Shorevarce. There is nothing in this family that has not gone through me. Cough…”

The old man panted because his stamina had run out.

‘Verdik.’

Cersinia remained silent from hearing the old man’s name.

‘Verdik. Verdik.’

It was a familiar name to her.

“Butler Verdik, who was there before, had served the former Grand Duke, but he stepped down from his position and went to a new place.”

It was what Verne said when they went out to Fabian Street.

The only butler who has worked in this family ever since the former Grand Duke. Cersinia heard that he stepped down from his position because he was not feeling well, but why is he imprisoned here?

“My Master and I planned our whole lives for so long but that brat came and instantly… ruined everything. How dare he do that to my Master when he is just a half-noble.”

Cersinia frowned at his words that flowed out his mouth like curses. She could see why this old man was imprisoned here. It was because of his attitude, he seemed to only believe in the former Grand Duke and disrespected Ben. Even though Ben is now the owner of Shorevarce.

“You and your previous master’s plans don’t matter to me. Tell me if Ben had been imprisoned here and the story behind it.”

“That brat killed my Master. That illegitimate child killed my Master! Cough, cough!”

Verdik screamed, ignoring the question thoroughly. Then he coughed so hard that he could barely breathe.

“Illegitimate child…?”

For a moment, Cersinia’s mind went blank.

‘Ben is an illegitimate child?’‘It’s true that Ben killed his own father…?’

The novel says that Ben killed his father and took the power. But she thought there must have been some misunderstanding. Because the Ben that she knows wasn’t that kind of person. But is that really true?

‘No, let’s not believe it. Don’t believe anything he said. Just believe what Ben says.’

Cersinia made up her mind. She didn’t want to judge or criticize Ben after hearing about him from someone she had met just once. She didn’t want to have any prejudice about Ben. And so she decides that she will only listen to Ben.

“That brat is an imposter. Everything he had was originally owned by someone else. A fake even that brat can’t reveal by himself because he is hidden in the shadows for the rest of his life. It’s really the perfect life for that half-noble.”

Angry at the old man who judges Ben’s life at his will, Cersinia replied with clenched teeth.

“Don’t talk carelessly without knowing anything. Someone like you can’t understand what kind of effort he’s been making or what he’s been through.”

Cersinia turned around without glancing back. She didn’t want to hear any more from the old man who seemed to think that he had the right to judge Ben’s life carelessly and easily talked about it as if it was his. She clenched her fists and felt her sharp nails penetrated through the palm of her hand. Cersinia could say so much about what kind of life Ben had lived since childhood and how fiercely he had survived this mansion for three years.

‘He had been here… He must have been lonely.’

In this place full of hostility, Ben, who had to endure everything alone, nevertheless tried countless times to come to her. The image of him drew itself in front of Cersinia’s eyes as if she had actually seen it.

Her heart ached. Tears welled up and blurred her vision. But Cersinia kept walking without hesitation. Even though her ankle was hurting, she couldn’t care less. Now she had to go to Ben. She misses him and wants to hear his story. She wanted to know him completely.

“That brat will ruin everything! There is nothing that half-noble with no roots can’t do. It’s the same for you too!”

Cersinia heard the commotion behind her, but she didn’t pay it no mind. She hurriedly climbed the basement stairs. The sound of footsteps filled the basement and resounded. Standing in front of the door, she lifted her foot and kicked the door.

BANG

The closed-door was crushed beyond recognition.

“Hiiik!”

The maid who was standing in front of the door freaked out. Cersinia glanced at the maid with cold eyes which didn’t contain any sympathy, unlike before.

“W-Where are you going! You can’t go! Never!”

The maid grabbed Cersinia’s clothes violently. It was clear that Cersinia would go to her Master, so she had to stop her.

“Get lost.”

She didn’t have time to waste, so Cersinia pushed the maid without hesitation. The maid rolled around the floor screaming, but she didn’t give her a glance. She left the annex, passed the connected corridor, and ran toward the mansion. The wind hitting her cheek was cold, but she didn’t care. She had to see Ben as soon as possible.

“Ben! Where is Ben!”

Upon arriving at the mansion’s main building, Cersinia called him without hesitation. The servants murmured, and Murchen glanced at her with displeased eyes, but she ignored them. What important is she had to meet Ben right now.

“Ben!”

She looked everywhere Ben could be. From the parlour room, the study, to the training center in the garden. But his figure was nowhere to be seen.

“Lady Cersinia?”

When she turned around to the sound of her name, Archen was approaching her with a puzzled expression on his face.“Archen, where did Ben go?”

“Your Excellency left early in the morning.”

Archen looked anxiously at Cersinia, who appeared to be in a hurry.

“What happened to you?”

Cersinia took a breath, now feeling tired from running around and swept away the hair that stuck to her face. After she calmed herself down to some extent, she faced Archen. Before Ben returned, she wanted to ask Archen something.

“Archen, I just came back from the annex.”

“…”

Archen’s pupils shook violently.

“I found a hidden door. When I went down, it led to the basement. There I met a man named Verdik, and I found another prison with traces of someone who lived there before.”

Archen closed his trembling eyes with a devastated expression.

“The second prison…did Ben live there? The wound on his back…was it because of the whip hanging on the wall?”

Heavy air sank between the two people. Archen opened his mouth, with a painful expression, as if he recalled old memories.

“Lady Cersinia, no matter what Verdik said, please believe in Your Excellency.”

“Yes, I don’t believe what he said. All I want to know is whether Ben lived in that prison before.”

“…That’s right.”

“Ha… F-For h-how long was it?”

As Cersinia staggered because of the shock, Archen quickly grabbed her arm and supported her.

“I think it’s better to find somewhere for you to rest first.”

* * *

Cersinia followed Archen into his room. As he poured out the hot tea for them, she stared intently at him. Recognizing her rushing gaze, Archen stopped pouring tea and set the teapot on the table.

“Lady Cersinia.”

“Tell me, Archen.”

“What do you think it would feel to live someone else’s life?”

Someone else’s life. Those words made her remember what Verdik had said.

“Is that what Ben is doing now?”

“Yes, that’s right. Your Excellency came to this Grand Duchy for this reason.”

She couldn’t digest Archen’s words right away.

“Your Excellency is not the first successor but the illegitimate child of the previous Grand Duke.”

“I heard about that earlier.”

Archen nodded, saying, “Is that so?”

He couldn’t believe that Cersinia understood the situation since it was something that no one could or would believe.

“The former Grand Duke had another child. He was the child born from the Grand Duchess. But he was too sickly to appear in public, and he didn’t leave his bedroom until the moment he closed his eyes.”

Archen continued to speak.

“The former Grand Duke was a man with great ambition. The biggest desire in his life was to sit on the throne. But to do that, he needed a successor that would support him, not a sickly child.”

It was the beginning story of Ben’s long and painful past.