Chapter 1: One Night With a Stranger

“Ugh.”

Penelope tugged the bright white sheets up to her neck, blinking her two sparkling emerald eyes.

Her eyes and mouth were dry, and her head was aching from the hangover.

“Where am I?”

‘Wait now. I do remember talking with someone…’

“Hmmm.”

“Oh, good lord!”

As she turned toward the low muffled moan, Penelope’s eyes widened.

The sheets slowly slid down to reveal the bare back of the stranger.

“I’m, so, doomed.”

She shut her eyes tight and tried to remember.

* * *

One week ago.

“Oh, how refreshing. My back feels so warm.”

Penelope lay on her back under the poplar tree emitting warmth from the ground.

Her fair visage was tingled with a mild-tempered wind, and the entailing scent of grass cleared her mind.

“My lady! Here you are again. I told you your fiance is to visit today!”

“What? What for?”

As she slightly opened her eyes, Penelope saw her maid Jenny glaring.

Having turned red as a carrot, she appeared to have been looking everywhere for Penelope.

“Come now, get up, my lady. I need to bathe and clothe you. What is this in your mouth?”

“Just bebbermint candy. Would you like one?”

Bebbermint candy was Penelope’s favorite snack made with the minty fruit from the Bebbermint tree, only grown along the coastal cliffs of Lavata.

As Penelope pulled one out, Jenny shook her head and began to talk.

“Oh goodness, no, no, thank you. You really do have unique taste buds. Bebbermint, such an elderly liking. I am alright with everything else, but the scent is just really hard to get used to!”

Penelope paid no attention and grinned.

“You don’t know what you’re missing out.”

“Alright, well, come get up now, miss. We have no time!”

“It looks like it’s about to rain. All my joints are restless. Can’t we stay just a bit longer on the warm ground?”

“My lady!”

Jenny finally exploded and shouted with her hands on her hips.

“Do you not know what an event it is for a lady of a baron’s family to be wed to a count?! And besides, Count Gordon said he urgently had important news for you.”

“Important news?”

“Yes! Perhaps it is a romantic proposal!”

Penelope watched indifferently as Jenny’s eyes glowed, holding her hands together.

‘Could I not marry and just be on my own?’

Penelope swallowed these words down hard as they made their way up her throat.

Jenny immediately noticed her struggle and pouted.

“If you speak of not marrying again, the Baroness is sure to faint this time!”

‘Oh, of course. My fainthearted mother!’

Jenny tugged on Penelope’s arms and grumbled.

“Come on, get up now, my lady. We mustn’t keep the Count waiting!”

“Let him wait if he must.”

“Good lord! Don’t speak such words. You won’t find a better man as sweet or as rich with as good a title as Count Gordon!”

Dragged by her arm, Penelope’s beautiful visage was shadowed with boredom.

Penelope Arina Zecalion.

Just 24, at the prime age for marriage, she is the youngest daughter to the honorable Baron Zecalion.

Shining blonde hair as golden as the sand of the Balkan Peninsula and brilliant emerald eyes.

Just below her ample bosom was a fistful waist.

Anyone would believe it if they were told this beautiful damsel was the star of society in Lavata.

“Oh, what bugger all this is!”

But the truth was quite the opposite.

She resented aristocratic society, going out, and any activities a noble lady would enjoy.

Penelope’s pessimistic preferences all hindered her from becoming the rose of the noble circle.

Her peculiar personality dates back to a secret from years before.

One day when she was seven, Penelope fell while climbing a tree and hit her head, which brought back memories from her previous life.

Unfortunately, the last memory she recalled was that of a stubborn old woman.

From the aching joints on a rainy day to the idiosyncratic swearing when aggravated, the tendencies of an old granny were still left inside her.

“Bugger? There would be no such man like him even if you searched throughout all of Lavata. Come now, quickly!”

Praising Count Gordon relentlessly, Jenny led Penelope with quick steps.

Just then, Penelope’s pink lips gaped, and cranky words unmatching her elegant voice came out.

“Darn it. All men are the same.”

* * *

“I’d like our engagement to be… called off.”

Penelope slowly blinked her eyes, looking at Count Gordon.

“I apologize, Penelope.”

As Count Gordon frowned, his large nose twitched.

At that moment, Penelope’s gaze lingered at his nose.

‘That nose. I would never have accepted the proposal if not for that large nose.’

In fact, Penelope never wished for marriage.

All she wanted was a country house to live out her days in comfort, with her dog and a garden.

That was all.

However, her parents could not leave their daughter alone at a suitable age.

Eventually, countless suitors were called upon.

Penelope only chose him based on the peculiar memory as a granny that she favored a man with a big nose.

Now she realized that she had made the wrong choice.

Disengagement! Unbelievable!

Now all of Lavata would be whispering how the proud Lady Penelope was disengaged…

Penelope felt dull as if hit with a stone on the head and her palms clammed with sweat.

But in truth, it wasn’t what she wanted in the first place.

The dissolution only brought her closer to her dream of living alone, spending her remaining days tending to her garden.

‘So what?’

Penelope spoke in a flat tone.

“Fine. Then it shall be, Count Gordon.”

“So that is it.”

Count Gordon swallowed a bitter smile as he watched Penelope easily accept his request.

“Once again, I apologize, my lady. But I know that you don’t love me at all, and I cannot bear it.”

“Love…?”

“Yes, I do not wish to marry without love.”

Penelope tried her best to remain calm, gulped on her dried throat, and spoke.

“You loved me?”

“Yes, I did.”

But the Count’s late confession of love only left a feeling of heavy discomfort instead of the magical dream come true.

“I now plan to love… another woman.”

Count Gordon acted somewhat strangely.

While announcing a dissolution, he acted as though he wanted her to stop him.

Penelope could think of nothing else but how lucky she was to have heard his calm confession.

‘Disengagement is a thousand-fold better than a forced marriage.’

“Is that so? Then I wish you happiness with the woman who you’ll love in the future.”

Penelope’s indifference made Count Gordon’s lips shudder.

“Yes... of course. I also wish for your happiness, my lady.”

He bowed slightly to bid farewell and turned quickly to leave the parlor.

Owing to that, no one noticed his reddened eyes shining with tears.

* * *

One week later, the House of Baron Elisya.

House Elisya had accumulated wealth from generations of marine trade.

Lavata was located on the southern coast of the Continent of Quan, and many noble families were engaged in the marine industry.

Baroness Elisya enjoyed luxurious balls, and many young aristocrats favored the masquerade of April that would mark the beginning of the social season.

[Have you heard? The daughter of house Zecalion. Her engagement was called off at her age!]

[Really? How sweet, considering how she excluded herself from society, acting all aloof.]

[What’s more shocking is that Count Gordon married another woman just yesterday.]

[Then can it be…?]

[Yes. She was abandoned! And the new bride is only a debutante fresh out for this season.]

[Oh, that’s a shame. Who will take her now when she’s too old now?]

[I know. Perhaps I should introduce her to my uncle. Although he is divorced with kids.]

[Oh, Jaline! You are so bad!]

“Uncle... What nonsense.”

Taking the role of the unvisited flower on the wall and sticking to it like a spider, Penelope was glad she had her mask on and continued sipping on her drink.

She was still in shock.

[I now plan to love another woman.]

She only truly understood those sly words once she arrived at the ball.

That bastard took on a new bride less than a week after the disengagement.

To be caught by such surprise left Penelope with a sense of dullness.

The bastard’s not even worth feeding pudding fried in shit!

“If only I had known the wedding was yesterday. I shouldn’t have come.”

Countless glasses were sipped on.

The wine tasted sweet as it countered the bitter feeling of betrayal.

Penelope felt her face flush and walked out to the terrace to cool down.

“How breezy.”

As her chest rose and fell with deep breaths, she gazed indifferently at the glass full of dancing red liquid.

“Bugger…”

She quickly covered her mouth with her palms.

As she grew intoxicated, the rough talk started to make its way out again.

Though she may not have loved him, she resented Count Gordon for humiliating her as such.

The most annoying part was how her parents, every servant at the mansion, and every passer-by on the street gave her a sympathetic look.

“What about me? I am perfectly fine! Yeeeap!”

She lowered her hands and breathed in deep. Penelope looked up at the stars in the night sky.

“Lucky you have no worries. All you need to do is stay up there and shine all night.”

Suddenly she felt pent-up as if she had indigestion.

She shouted in an attempt to relieve herself from irritation.

“Count Gordon! I hope you end up in a dragon’s stomach on your honeymoon! Hiccup.”

But there was no chance of dragons suddenly reappearing from extinction.

She needed more.

Load! And fire!

“You damned man! I hope you drown yourself in a puddle of mud!”

The grannyness she had struggled to keep down was finally unleashed.

She felt a sense of relief but not enough to lift her spirits.

What to do then? Ready yourself and fire again!

“You effing son of a witch!”

Whoa, what a feeling! She felt like cool ice had slid into the fire pit.

‘Is this why people say such vulgar words?’

At last, Penelope grinned lazily.

As she lowered to sit on a chair on the terrace, she slipped.

“Oh! OH! OHH!”

She swung her arms about frantically, but she had already lost control.

Penelope closed her eyes shut, anticipating the pain that would follow.

But…

Huh? It doesn’t hurt?

“You have a foul mouth for a noblewoman.”

A low but pleasantly strong voice.

Penelope found herself caught in a strange man’s arms.

“Oh, dear!”

She tried to stand.

But the sudden tipsiness made her go limp like a soaking wet dress.

She tried to open her eyes but they failed to stay open from the drinking.

‘Wow.’

Her heart was pounding on its own beat, and her breath was taken away.

Though almost entirely veiled with a golden mask, the voluptuous lips and masculine jawline were enough to deem him quite a charm.

A lukewarm night breeze announcing the start of Lavata’s summer season made its way and blew between the two.

Penelope admired the man’s silver hair shining under the starlight as she stood still, stunned by how unrealistic he looked.

Am I dreaming? I sure must be.

“How about... you stop drinking?”

Penelope looked at the wine glass dangling off her fingers.

A mysterious sensation of disobedience began to make itself known.

“I haven bin dringin da much.”

Unlike her will, her tongue was giving away how much she had been drinking.

The man looked at Penelope and sneered.

“Is that so? You were gushing down that wine like the men at the harbor of the Balkan Peninsula.”

She became speechless.

Perhaps it was the presence of the man or the hazy moonlight dumbing her senses, but something was hindering her voice from coming out.

“If you keep up like that, you won’t remember a thing from tonight.”

‘Yeah, right!’

Penelope struggled as she felt her eyelids lowering against her will.

“Haha.”

Instead, tiny giggles seeped out.

Oh, how can a stranger’s arms feel so warm?

Penelope dug her face into the sturdy chest and mumbled.

“Hmmmm. Bery, wam…”

“It won’t be safe to fall asleep here.”

Penelope beamed with confidence and answered back,

“I’m not sleeping! I cam handle this mush an more!”

But with those words, her consciousness fell into darkness.

* * *

Rustle.

Again the man was restless in his sleep.

His movement brought Penelope back from her thoughts.

She looked around, and as she saw the sight of his bareback, Penelope flushed.

That was it. She was in bed with a strange man.

‘Argh, no! This is a disaster!’

Penelope made a long face.

“How did this happen?”

She suddenly felt very light herself.

The duvet had quietly slid off her shoulders and was hanging just about her breasts.

“What the devil!”

Penelope quickly pulled up the covers up to her neck and reluctantly made a peak.

She just realized the ugly truth.

‘So, I have spent the night with a stranger, is that it?’

You stupid, stupid, crazy woman!

“Hmmm.”

As Penelope kicked herself about in her head chanting endlessly, the man gently stretched and turned around.

‘This man is…?’

Could he be the golden mask who had saved her from her fall on the terrace?

‘It wasn’t just a dream?’

But he appeared to be still deep asleep.

Phew.

Penelope stared at his peaceful face as he mumbled like a baby.

‘With that face, he could demand an entire mansion. No, more like the palace!’

He did give off hints of his looks even when covered last night, but to see it unveiled!

His handsome looks were surely breathtaking.

The profound and almost mystical strands of silver-gray hair.

Firm muscles like a playball ready for rebound covered his arms, chest, and abs.

He was perfect, almost enough to rouse her to touch and feel them.

The dazzle even smelled of raw masculinity.

‘Ugh! What am I thinking!’

Penelope gulped anxiously.

What is a girl to do in such a situation?

Penelope started thinking, almost fast enough for the clanking of her empty vessel of a head to be heard out loud.

‘First, let’s get out of here.’

Once she made a decision, she moved about as quickly as a deer galloping through the forest.

Quietly pulling the sheets off, she sprinted down the bed and started making a hassle to put on her dress thrown on the floor.

And once she was done, she took one last look at the man’s sleek visage, tranquil in sleep.

‘Good heavens!’

Penelope frowned and twitched.

How on earth did this come to happen?

‘To be disengaged is one thing, but to lose virginity to a stranger!’

If last night’s event became known, there was no doubt her reputation would sink to the bottom of the earth.

Penelope pulled up the edges of her dress and started to tiptoe.

‘Why do I feel an itch on my back?’

Perhaps it was the tossing and turning of the one still in bed.

Oh, goddess Helenia, please save me.

She had to avoid him waking up to see her like this.

As she took one step out the door, Penelope finally let out a small sigh of relief.

Unaware that the man was awake and glaring with a sharp look…

* * *

Bart did not lose sight of Penelope as she fled with hurried steps.

He had been following her for months.

What an incomprehensibly strange girl.

Any other woman would seize the opportunity to be a leech and tie him down.

But to run away?

“Ha.”

Bart chuckled, dispirited.

Suddenly his pupils dilated, like a beast on the brink of its meal.

‘How dare she leave me behind and run?’

Not a hair on her body was touched through the night.

But he never felt a stronger desire for a woman than now.

No, there was never the need.

He was, after all, Bart Dermian, the Emperor of Lavata, capable of getting his hands on anything he craved.

So the pretty bunny ran away.

He wasn’t sure whether to offer a carrot or a snare, but he would catch her soon.

Bart’s violet eyes with a touch of scarlet like the mysterious Helenia flower shone with a glow.

“Should I…”

Bart smiled softly.

“Reward her if I catch her or punish her?”