Chapter Text
Vinter Verdandi sat in his office, his pen smoothly writing on the paperwork he had to do for his territory. He may have been a magician with his own guild, but he was also a marquis who had to deal with many issues regarding the people under him.
Noble society was in a ruckus and he was to blame. In hindsight, it probably wasn’t a good idea to announce Yvonne’s identity in front of all the gossip mongers, but he couldn’t help it. Yvonne Eckhart was such a pure hearted girl and she deserved to be celebrated just as much as the adopted daughter.
Especially since that adopted daughter was the complete opposite of the kind light pink haired princess. Rumors of her horrible personality followed her around and he had a displeasure of witnessing her arguing with other noble ladies.
It was unfair that she had a grand ceremony dedicated to her when the real daughter had to live a completely different life, surviving in hardship and yet, she still had the heart to serve those orphans.
When Vinter told her that he was going to bring her back to her family, her eyes were wide in surprise and her whole face lit up. She was that cute and charming girl that any man would fall for, and even he admitted that his heart beat skipped when he saw it.
But she had yet to know his real identity. She had only see him with his signature rabbit mask as he had yet to see face her as Marquis Verdandi.
The Duke, who was a close friend of his father, was so elated when Vinter announced that his real daughter has returned. It was also his pleasure to escort Yvonne back to the duchy, as Duke Eckhart had also taken care of him and gave him guidance when he first inherited the marquis title.
Days after the debut and big reveal, the duchy formally announced the return of Yvonne Eckhart. She was named as the third oldest child and the eldest daughter, which was indirectly saying that Penelope Eckhart was still very much part of the family.
Everybody waited in bated breath if Penelope was going to pull off some wicked scheme to get rid of Yvonne or if she was going to go parading around in high society, trashing Yvonne’s name.
But none of that happened.
In fact, nobody heard a peep from her. Since the Duke and his sons appeared in public every now and then, those who were close to them would throw in a casual question about how the sisters were getting along.
“Yvonne is still adjusting to her new environment and Penelope is a little bit distant so she needs some time to get used to her new sister.”
It wasn’t much but it implied that there weren’t any mishaps between them.
It was completely different from Vinter’s expectations. He thought that the mad dog of Eckhart would use all means to retain her title as the only princess of Eckhart, and he was so worried that he even prepared an antidote just in case Penelope would go far as poisoning.
But once again, it was unnecessary.
Vinter’s hand paused from writing and he stared out of the window. He felt somewhat eerie, that his gut feeling told him that something wrong was going to happen. He didn’t know what or how it involved him, but tonight felt wrong for some odd reason.
He placed down his pen and sighed, pushing himself up from his chair. He exited his office where a servant was assigned to stand outside just in case he rang the bell.
“Grab me a coat, I’m going out,” he said and the servant dutifully bowed before walking away to do his task. It might be weird for a noble man to suddenly leave in the middle of the night with no prior plans, but the people in his mansion were already used to their master taking random walks at late hours of the night.
He did his job well and he was kind to all of his employees so nobody questioned it.
The streets were empty and the night blanketed the world in darkness. With his hands stuffed in his pockets to keep them warm, he strolled through the streets, his eyes alert for anything out of the ordinary.
A sorcerer’s instinct wasn’t to be ignored.
Until finally, he heard the soles of shoes thumping on the ground. He quickly turned to the direction of the sound, his hands poised to create a defensive magic if ever the person was someone who dared attack him.
But what stood there wasn’t a thug nor anyone who posed any danger. In fact, it was the complete opposite.
It was a thin woman with a dark brown cloak, carrying what appeared to be a heavy bag. She was obviously struggling, her steps slow as her arms were definitely straining.
“My lady, do you need any help?” he offered as he approached her. It was nothing but mindless chivalry that was drilled into him since he was young.
The woman flinched, slowly facing him and when he saw the face of the said woman, he couldn’t stop the sharp inhale from escaping.
Penelope Eckhart.
No, it couldn’t be.
Because the image of Penelope Eckhart that he remembered was that of someone surrounded by luxury – whether it was the extravagant dresses she wore or the glimmering jewelry she donned. Her favorite accessory was a fan to hit those who she assumed was lower than her and her words were like a whip laced with venom.
“I would rather die than to be helped by you,” she replied. Well, at least she was still the same Penelope Eckhart when it came to speaking with a harsh tone.
“What are you doing out here, Princess?” he couldn’t help but ask, “It’s dangerous.”
The streets were vastly different from the high walls of the duchy. A noble lady like her would find it hard to navigate through. So while he didn’t have any good thoughts about her, he was ready to offer that he would escort her back home just like any gentleman would do.
“Marquis Verdandi,” she drawled out slowly, lifting her head to stare directly into his eyes. Her pupils reflected the eye of the storm in them – calm but it was the center of a disaster.
He gulped audibly as that eerie feeling from earlier grew stronger.
“Wasn’t this your goal, Marquis?” she smirked, “To get me out of the duchy.”
He felt all color drained from his face. Now he figured out what was the purpose of heavy bag – she was running away.
“What are you talking about?”
“You brought back the real daughter and now, it’s time for the fake daughter to exit the stage.”
Her words kept repeating in his head.
You brought back the real daughter.
You.
She knew.
It was impossible. He was in disguise – even the Duke, who had seen him since he was a young boy, didn’t recognize him.
No, she must be bluffing and simply wanted to take out her frustration. It was just that he was the first person she encountered after leaving the mansion.
“There must be a mistake. I have never-“
Penelope lifted a hand and he got a full view of just how much she truly lost weight. Her wrist looked like it was ready to snap at one wrong move.
With her thin finger, she pointed right at his face, “Eyes don’t lie. I’m far more observant than you think.”
He didn’t know how to diffuse the situation. Penelope Eckhart, the one who shows no mercy to her victims, had gotten hold of his weakness. The only thing he can count on was that she was still naïve and childish, which was the reason why she was known for her tantrums.
“My lady, I was just…” he started off but she lifted her hand again to stop him.
“Why?” she asked, her expression now blunt. It no longer had the annoyance that she once displayed when she first saw him, “Why did you do it? You could have waited another day or even just a few more hours until the party was done, but why did you do it at that exact time?”
She looked firm and spectacularly dignified. He was a Marquis, a bachelor at that, and so many noble ladies vied for his attention. They were either playfully flirty or expectantly haughty, but they all had one thing in common – they never looked at him in the eye.
But she wasn’t like that. She looked straight at him, as if challenging him to tell her the truth.
And in that moment, Vinter could only think of one thing – she looked absolutely breathtaking.
“I apologize, it was brought by my bad impression of you,” he said, bowing his head just enough to show his sincerity, “But I see now it was just my misunderstanding.”
“What misunderstanding?”
Vinter didn’t want to elaborate any further. He found it difficult to say what was actually going on his brain – that he thought Yvonne was the poor heroine and Penelope was the wicked villainess who took her place.
“I have heard you say some rather harsh things in the past, but I should have removed my prejudice for I know that words are a noble’s weapon,” he said, attempting to find a roundabout way to soothe her temper so that she would no longer interrogate him.
It was painfully obvious that he was avoiding directly answering her question of why he chose that specific moment to walk in with Yvonne. While he now knew that Penelope was observant, he prayed that it was only for physical aspects and not for reading in-between the lines of his words.
“But those words were not my weapon,” she told him, “They were my shield.”
“What?”
She dropped her heavy bag, creating a thud as it hit the ground.
She lifted one finger, “A pathetic commoner.”
A second finger, “The daughter of a whore who taught her how to seduce nobleman to get herself adopted.”
A third finger, “The mad dog of Eckhart.”
Her fourth, “Nothing more than a replacement.”
Then finally, her fifth finger, “A fake.”
She didn’t have to point it out loud, but Vinter already figured out that those were the words that she might’ve heard every time she face noble society. And her tantrums, her insults, those harsh screeches, were all that she could’ve done to protect herself.
And all he thought when he watched her make a scene was that she was too immature for the Eckhart name.
And when he brought Yvonne to her celebration, he exposed her to the fangs of those nobles who wanted nothing more but to see her crack.
There was a bitter feeling that started to erupt in his chest, taking root into his heart and wrapping it with thorns.
Guilt.
“So let me ask you again, why did you do it?” she said, going back to her previous question.
Just as she said, the eyes don’t lie, And when he looked into hers, he determined that she already knew his reason. She was just daring him to admit it to her face.
Penelope Eckhart looked far more noble than any lady he had seen.
As he stared at her, he came to realize something. She wasn’t the wicked villain in Yvonne’s story. No, she was main character of her own tragedy.
A tragedy that he, himself, contributed to.
“It was to ruin your event…” he finally murmured the truth.
She nodded slowly, satisfied that he answered but that was as much emotions she decided to give away to him. She was too tired of being angry, too exhausted of being annoyed, and too weary to continue on with this conversation.
“I see,” she muttered before curtsying to him, although he did feel like it was more mocking than a sign of politeness, “I bid you goodbye then.”
As she was about to pick up her heavy bag again, he immediately scrambled forward and took it into his hand before she could. Penelope’s hand stopped midair and she glared at him, “What now?”
“I cannot let you continue on with what you’re planning. Please understand this might just be because of temporary frustrations and you might regret it later,” he said to her, placing his hand on his chest, “Please, let me escort you back home.”
She sighed, crossing her arms in front of her chest, “Do you noblemen have a fetish of doing misplaced good deeds?”
Such vulgar words suddenly coming from a young lady made his eyebrows shoot up in surprise, “What do you mean, my lady?”
“The Duke took me in, making everybody think that he was doing charity but it was just because he was so heartbroken by his daughter’s disappearance that he decided to take in another little girl with pink hair as her replacement when in fact, that action of his caused me more misery than I can ever imagine,” she told him, her voice full and unhesitating, “And you caused me a new wave of misery by bringing in the real daughter during my debut. Now, you want to act chivalrous by bringing me back to that hell?”
He was speechless.
“You think it’s righteous that you brought back Yvonne because I was a villain and didn’t deserve the good things I have without even thinking about why I acted like that. Now you still want to keep on with this good man act by stopping me from leaving that horrible situation that you, yourself, caused,” she bent forward and snatched her bag back, staggering a little bit because of its weight but the fire in her eyes remain, “Who gave you the authority to decide what is righteous and what’s not? Who gave you the right to pick and choose who is the heroine and who is the villainess?”
Penelope was wrong when she said her words weren’t her weapon, because each sentence that came out of her mouth was like a sword that repeatedly stabbed him in the chest.
“You’re an evil man, Vinter Verdandi,” she stated, “And a very pathetic one at that.”
Vinter tried to think of a response, anything to counter what she said, but he couldn’t because of all the battling thoughts in his head.
He was brought up to be a good person. He spent so much of his time doing charity and caring for children who were ostracized by society due to their magical powers. Every noble knew of his kind heart, the men lauded him and the women fawned over him.
No, he can’t be evil.
But the woman in front of him in her skinny state, worn out clothes, and heavy bag, nailed it into him that what he did was horrible.
“If you want to repent in order to ease your fragile conscience, then forget this encounter ever happened,” she huffed, pulling down her hood to hide more of her face, “You didn’t see me, we never had this conversation. If news came out that Penelope Eckhart has disappeared, say you know nothing.”
He wanted to stop her but he knew that the moment he did, she would never forgive him. So he could only watch in despair as she slowly stepped back and finally broke eye contact, walking away and leaving him there in the middle of the street.
Penelope Eckhart was gone.
A few days later, the news was finally publicized. Her image was plastered all over the capital, word was that the Eckhart family was desperately searching for the youngest daughter.
The Duke visited him one day for some business matters and while they were having tea, he casually asked if he had any clue to Penelope’s whereabouts. Vinter sat there in silence for a long time, a storm swirling in his mind.
He could tell this man, who was much like a father figure to him, all that he knew – that he encountered her on the exact place and time that she ran away. While it might not be a lot, it might aid them in knowing where to search and how far she had gotten. He looked so pale and tired, he must have worked day and night trying to keep up with duties as the Duke while also searching for his daughter.
However, Penelope’s words echoed in him.
“And you caused me a new wave of misery by bringing in the real daughter during my debut. Now, you want to act chivalrous by bringing me back to that hell?”
Hell.
She called her home, the duchy, hell.
If he admitted everything to the Duke, would that mean dragging her back to her hell?
“I apologize, but I have no information,” he lied through his pearly white teeth, another part of his perfect nobleman mask.
Bringing Yvonne to Penelope’s coming of age was the right thing to do. Letting Penelope run away when she wanted to was the right thing to do. Lying to the Duke about her whereabouts was the right thing to do.
He shouldn’t regret.
But as he watched the Duke’s carriage leave, he still felt the pain of all his wrongs.
He should have waited another day to bring back Yvonne to the duchy. He should have found a safe shelter for Penelope when she wanted to run away, at least until her mind was cleared. He shouldn’t have lied to the man who he looked up to like a father.
Most importantly, he shouldn’t have allowed his prejudice to cloud his judgements and label Penelope as the villain. How many lives within this web of wrongs did he ruin?
She may never forgive him, but Vinter Verdandi desperately clung to this false sense of righteousness. He convinced himself that everything he had done was right thing to do.
Even if it wasn’t.