The scarlet high-waisted dress slipped from Serena's hand and fell onto the carpet with a soft thud. Her heart raced violently in her chest as the world seemed to hush around her. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"I must be mistaken. This can't be real," Serena muttered, her throat dry and tight. She clenched her fists and cautiously walked towards the door, her mind filled with her mother's teasing joke on the way here.
A non-human maid, a count who knew black magic, and a magnificent yet eerie mansion standing alone in the desolate wilderness by a wild lake.
"Don't scare yourself," she tried to reassure herself. Gathering her courage, Serena hastened her pace towards the door—only to find emptiness.
No one was there, no shadows either. Everything seemed like a figment of her imagination. But was it really?
Facing the empty corridor, Serena unconsciously gripped the doorframe made of fir wood, feeling its solidness, while a low howling wind whistled outside the window, pounding against the flower-patterned window frame. The damp evening breeze from the lakeside engulfed her body, making her sweat cling to her clothes, cold and sticky.
...
Chille opened the thick and heavy historical notes on his desk, taking out a file that had just been delivered by Delfina Delettrez Fendi. It contained detailed information about the current situation of the Hamovi family.
"So, apart from Lady Tiagov's main line, the Hamovi family also has a collateral branch?" He asked.
"Yes, just as it says in the document. Although Lady Tiagov's main line currently has priority over the Hamovi family's title, the collateral branch also has inheritance rights. They can take over in case the main line becomes extinct," Delfina explained.
"Oh, no wonder Lady Tiagov, who is terminally ill, decided to entrust her fortune and daughter to me," Chille folded the file neatly and locked it away in a special drawer. Thoughts swirled in his mind as he sighed softly, "It seems like my cousin Serena's future is bleak... but for me, it's useful information."
"Not every young aristocratic descendant has lost both parents and seen their relatives fall ill one after another, like the young master," Delfina commented.
"You're right, one after another, leaving no one alive," Chille said. Delfina's gaze shifted to his delicate and slender fingers, which were currently clean and spotless, unlike the moment when they held the steel knife, slicing open a throat and penetrating a chest, oozing out a scorching dark red, pure and pristine.
"It's such a tragic thing," she said in a calm tone before dismissing the lingering sounds of grief and wailing. "This morning, as I was going through the events of the Borg dynasty, I paid special attention to the history of the Hamovi family and found some interesting snippets."
He looked up and silently observed the maid.
"Delfina Delettrez Fendi, do you know the most famous thing in the Hamovi family's territory?" he asked.
"The Rosenthal Rose?" the maid thought for a moment and then pointed to the cobalt blue porcelain cup.
Nodding, Chille picked up the open historical notes titled "Lord of Blood and Roses" and pointed to the marked passages. "Do you know the origin of the Rosenthal Rose?"
No response.
Delfina Delettrez Fendi sat down, gathered her skirt, and poured herself a cup of rose red tea, patiently waiting for Chille to reveal the interesting discoveries.
"During the Borg dynasty, there was a family called Sicar ruling over what is now Roseham County. At that time, Roseham County didn't have the vast blooming roses it has today." Chille's fingers traced the yellowed and aged paper as he read each word carefully.
"But the reason why roses became so abundant there is said to be related to the last generation of the Sicar family, Lady Mary Sicar. According to the book, this Baroness Mary was a witch who practiced black magic.""Oh?"
With a slight sound of surprise, Delfina Delettrez Fendi became quite interested and leaned towards the direction of the historical notes in Chille's hand. Her exquisite and beautiful face slowly pressed against the young count, naturally embracing him in her arms.
"Legend has it that the Marquise Marie would regularly abduct and imprison the young boys from Roseham County. After fully exploiting their bodies, she would use them as sacrifices to continue her own life by drinking their blood and bathing in it," she softly recited every word.
The warm and sweet breath of the two gradually melted together, gently teasing their hair and their hearts.
"But one day, this cruel and bloody Marquise met her fated enemy: a young and beautiful boy named Luke Hamovi, the ancestor of the Hamovi family. It is said that he was so beautiful that even demons were enchanted by him, and even angels coveted him," she read aloud the praises of Luke's beauty written in the book. Chille, however, rolled her eyes at the exaggerated compliments.
"There should be a limit to exaggeration," she remarked.
Silently, the maid looked at her own arms wrapped around the young count's waist without her realizing. She slightly loosened her grip before embracing him again, snugly leaning against him, small and soft. She delicately sniffed the elegant and light fragrance of the iris between Chille's strands of hair.
Delfina Delettrez Fendi spoke softly,
"Exactly, there is no such person in the world."
She nodded her head and the young count continued reading while leaning on the maid.
"When Mary abducted Luke, instead of sacrificing him like the others, she fell hopelessly in love with him. In order to win his heart, she revealed all her secrets to him. However, Luke grew disgusted and repulsed by this cruel lady. So, he conspired with others and eventually managed to kill Mary, ending her rule over Roseham County."
"So, what does this have to do with the Roseham Roses?" Delfina Delettrez Fendi blinked her deep purple eyes.
"Because when Luke killed Mary, the blood that flowed from her body transformed into numerous vivid crimson roses that grew rampant in Roseham County. No matter what methods were used, they couldn't be removed. People say that they are the manifestation of the desperate love that the Marquise burned with."
Chille gently closed the pages of the book.
"Of course, that's not the main point. The main point is that Luke Hamovi, who legally became the Marquise's husband and inherited her title, is recorded in history as having lived for nearly 150 years."
The young count placed the historical notes on the table and turned to look at Miss Demon.
It is said that it was because he knew the secret of Marquise Marie Sicarle that he ultimately used her methods to live for such a long time."
The inky black eyes shimmered with intense curiosity, like constellations twinkling with radiant light.
