#1. The Woman Who Must Be Found 

“There’s a woman I must find.”  

Thud.  

At Duke Hughgray Wulfaz’s words, Chloe Liden felt as if she could actually hear the sound of her heart dropping.  

A woman.  

The word ‘woman’ had come out of the Duke’s mouth. And not just that—he needed to find her?  

“Ah…”  

A sigh involuntarily escaped Chloe’s lips.  

Both the Duke and Sir Joyce, who was listening to the Duke’s orders, frowned as they turned to look at her.  

“Ahem! My apologies. It’s just… hearing you say ‘woman’ surprised me…”  

Chloe tried to collect herself and offered an excuse, but her trembling heart betrayed her, and she couldn’t even finish her sentence properly.  

Fortunately, the Duke nodded slightly, as if he understood.  

As if he, too, recognized how shocking it was for the word ‘woman’ to come out of his own mouth.  

If there was one word that seemed least likely to ever come from Duke Hughgray Wulfaz’s lips, it was undoubtedly ‘woman.’  

“What kind of woman is it?”  

Sir Joyce asked.  

Chloe swallowed discreetly as she closely watched the Duke’s lips.  

She needed to stay calm.  

It had nothing to do with her, after all.  

“A woman who stayed at an inn in Arne last night.”  

Hah…  

She felt as if she were choking.  

Please, let him not mention the name ‘The Night of the Dog and Cat.’  

Before she knew it, Chloe was clasping her hands together in prayer.  

“The inn’s name is ‘The Night of the Dog and Cat.’”  

As if mocking her prayer, the Duke added that detail.  

Of course, it was that name.  

It was so unique that one couldn’t possibly forget it after hearing it once.  

What nonsense about dogs and cats.  

Last night had been the third time Chloe stayed at that inn.  

And not once during those three times had she seen a dog or a cat there.  

Now that she thought about it, even the inn’s name was absurd.  

“She had long blonde hair and blue eyes.”  

While Chloe’s heart raced out of control, the Duke continued his explanation in a calm tone.  

Behind Chloe’s thick glasses, which had no prescription but had lenses so thick they covered half her face, her blue eyes shook uncontrollably.  

At least her long blonde hair was safely hidden under a short brown wig—that much was a relief.  

“She was about this tall, around my shoulder…”  

The Duke stopped mid-sentence.  

Chloe, who had been bowing her head low, suddenly felt something hot pricking her left cheek. Slowly, she lifted her head, only to gasp and swallow her breath.  

The Duke was staring straight at her.  

“Your Grace…?”  

Her voice trembled slightly.  

“Clyne, how tall are you?”  

“Pardon?”  

She almost hiccupped out of shock.  

Could he have realized that the woman from last night was her?  

A cold sweat broke out along Chloe’s spine.  

“She’s exactly your height. How tall are you?”  

Ah!  

Relief that she hadn’t been caught yet mixed with the fear that she might still be discovered. Her heart pounded even harder, as if it would burst from her chest.  

Yes, she would be her height.  

The Duke’s attention to detail was annoyingly accurate.  

“I’m 168 cm.”  

Chloe wanted to bite her tongue but instead answered obediently.  

“Why are you looking for her?”  

Sir Joyce asked.  

‘Because she’s the woman I slept with.’  

“She’s the woman I slept with.”  

Chloe’s internal answer and the Duke’s actual response came out at the same time.  

Chloe felt as if her face would burst into flames at any moment.  

Even though both the Duke and Sir Joyce believed she was a man and had no idea that the woman the Duke had spent the night with was actually her.  

“Oh! My goodness!”  

Sir Joyce suddenly exclaimed after hearing the Duke’s response.  

What’s with him?  

“How could such a thing happen! Oh no!”  

Sir Joyce, nearly sobbing, clenched his fists and began trembling.  

His dark complexion flushed a deep red, as if he were suppressing tears.  

Seeing Sir Joyce’s reaction, Chloe felt as though she had somehow stolen the Duke’s pure chastity.  

“How could this happen… How could this be…!”  

At last, Sir Joyce began to cry.  

Watching him sob, Chloe’s already low mood from last night’s mishap sank even further.  

However, Sir Joyce’s ridiculous words and actions were far less shocking than the Duke’s next statement.  

“Stop making a fuss, Joyce. What’s done is done. This must be my fate.”  

Chloe felt as if the floor beneath her feet flipped over and then spun around, leaving her dizzy.  

Fate?  

It was just a one-night mistake.  

At least she knew who her partner was—the Duke.  

The Duke, on the other hand, didn’t even recognize the woman he had spent the night with, even though she was standing right in front of him.  

Of course, it was understandable that he wouldn’t suspect the woman he slept with was a servant disguised as a man, but still!  

It was a meaningless night for both of them.  

Just a moment of indulgence in desire.  

And yet!  

Why!  

Why was he not only deciding to find her on his own but also calling it fate?  

“Was she a commoner… a human?”  

Sir Joyce asked, his red eyes blazing with fury.  

Who was that anger directed at?  

And what did he mean by ‘a commoner human’?  

So, commoners were animals now?  

How offensive to commoners.  

“Probably.”  

The Duke’s voice carried a hint of resignation.  

Both the Duke and Sir Joyce were nobles.  

For those with ‘blue blood,’ the feelings of a commoner servant in their presence didn’t matter at all.  

Ugh, I must’ve committed a grave sin.  

To think that a mere commoner like me had an accident with the Duke.  

Chloe lowered her head further to hide her irritation.  

She hadn’t asked the Duke to take responsibility, so why did it feel like the sky was falling for them?  

The commoner woman didn’t like this situation either.  

So just stop looking for her!  

Of course, she only grumbled inwardly.  

“One more thing—she had a scar on her shoulder.”  

The Duke added another piece of information in a calm tone, completely unaffected by Sir Joyce’s despair and grief.  

“It was a slightly dented circular scar, as if she’d been bitten by a beast. I didn’t see it clearly, so I’m not certain.”  

Crazy!  

Not certain?  

The description couldn’t have been more accurate.  

Her shoulder scar indeed looked as though it had been bitten by a beast.  

“Understood.”  

Sir Joyce responded, barely suppressing his anger.  

The more Chloe watched, the more ridiculous it all seemed.  

“Find her as soon as possible.”  

“Yes, I’ll set out immediately.”  

As she watched Sir Joyce’s determined back as he left, Chloe couldn’t help but frown.  

The moment Sir Joyce left, the Duke leaned on his desk with his elbows and buried his head in his hands.  

Whether it was from a headache or something else, he let out a faint sigh and furrowed his eyebrows.  

“Then I’ll take my leave as well, Your Grace.”  

After last night’s ‘beastly’ encounter with the Duke, Chloe felt as if her entire body had been beaten.  

She had no energy left to even stand.  

“Hmm…”  

The Duke gave a vague response, still with his head lowered, but Chloe took it as permission and quickly turned to leave.  

“Clyne!”  

But the Duke’s call grabbed her by the back of her neck.  

Ah, why!  

“Yes?”  

Chloe responded politely despite her inner frustration and turned to face the Duke.  

“This smell… What is it?”  

“Pardon?”  

“I’ve been noticing a smell for a while now.”  

A smell?  

“It’s clearer now that Joyce is gone. I think it’s coming from you.”  

“That can’t be…”  

“Come closer.”  

“No, I don’t think—”  

“I said come closer.”  

She had no choice. Reluctantly, she stepped closer to the Duke. Just half a step.  

“Closer.”  

She took another half-step.  

“Right here, in front of me.”