[56.5] A Single Woman

Caldwell took her to the Garden, where Syrus was waiting in his best clothes and his hair slicked back neatly without a hair out of place. Seeing him still alive and untouched, Caldwell blew out a sigh of relief. However, his breath was sucked back in when he realized what his brother was holding in his hand…

A ring.

Celane noticed as well, "S-Syrus… What's that?"

He held it out, "Lady Celane. I have loved you since the moment I met you… Won't you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?"

Celane went silent and removed her hood slowly. Her blonde hair bounced out, long and smooth as it reflected the light. She bit her lip and shook her head, "I… I can't."

Syrus's face dropped, "W-Why!?!"

"You… You don't want to marry a person like me."

"What are you talking about?!" He rushed over to her side and held her hands, "Of course I would! I love everything about you. I look forward to each conversation we have, each one more exciting than the previous ones. Every day I see you, I can't stop smiling. Why wouldn't I want to marry you?!"

Celane looked as if she would burst into tears at any moment, "B-Because of this…"

She removed her hand and held it out.

A butterfly suddenly appeared, flapping its wings. It wasn't a normal butterfly, but instead, it looked as if it was cursed. The wings were pure black and with each flap they took, an ominous smoke billowed out as if it was a carrier of pestilence.

Caldwell's eyes lit up in understanding as he clearly recognized the demonic magic. He whispered, "It's an illusion."

Shame was written clearly on her face as she spoke, "Do you understand it now? I am Princess Celane. I'm the taint of the Royal family who carries demonic blood. Although I can only make these hideous butterflies since my magic is weak, I'm still cursed."

Syrus responded with a blank face, "So?"

She flinched in surprise, "S-So? So it means I am unworthy! I am the shame of the Kingdom because of my demonic ancestry?"

Syrus still didn't understand, "I don't know why that matters. Caldwell and I-"

He was abruptly cut off by Caldwell who was shaking his head abruptly and holding a finger to his lips in warning. Syrus was so confused, he lost the words he was going to say. Celane didn't notice the momentary confusion as she was too anxious.

"My family hates me! The Kingdom hates me! I have no allies, no friends…" She looked as if she would cry at any moment, "But I can't even leave. I'm chained here."

Syrus smiled gently and wiped away the single tear that escaped her eye. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, "Well I don't hate you. And neither does Caldwell-"

Caldwell made a face.

He continued, "-If you marry me, we can be family. You won't have to be alone anymore."

"But I can't leave this place… Would you be satisfied with being here with me?"

He answered without hesitation, "I will. As long as I'm with you, it doesn't matter where we are."

Caldwell sucked in his breath.

His little brother…

His little brother who was desperate to leave home to travel the world, only to agree to be confined…

All because of a single woman.

Celane burst into tears of joy and wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug, "I love you, Syrus! Of course I will marry you!"

As Caldwell watched them hug and kiss, a foreboding feeling came over him. His stomach dropped and his pupils retracted.

The distance between him and the couple seemed to grow larger.

The new couple hurried to get married overnight, even rushing to the King to get his approval. Once it was confirmed, there was no one to question it. The reason why they hurried was simple:

The Head of the Ophelio family.

No Noble could ever marry a nameless Commoner. Even if that Noble was the one everyone called a stain to nobility.

However, with the King's approval, there was nothing the Ophelio family could do to break them up…

So they could only make their lives worse.

Syrus was allowed to move in and he brought Caldwell with him. Caldwell dressed as a butler, looking nearly identical to Syrus, and was the only one allowed to wait on the two newlyweds. He went to the kitchen to grab their meals and grimaced upon seeing the bland meals that he was given. He raised his head to shoot an accusatory stare at the head cook who shrugged nonchalantly.

"Just be happy it's not moldy. If you complain, the Head of the family will retaliate."

Caldwell let out a sigh, "And if I were to use the kitchen to cook for them?"

The Head cook thought, "As long as you don't get caught and buy the ingredients yourself, I won't say a thing."

Caldwell gave him a nod, "Thanks."

He turned and walked out of the room making a mental note to sneak out and buy ingredients later.

Suddenly, Albert stood in front of him, smirking with his head held high despite Caldwell being taller. Caldwell lowered his head, "Duke Albert."

Albert whistled, "Wooow! So this is what that commoner scum would look like if he was a servant. Sure enough, it suits him far better to be in the help hidden where I can't see him."

Caldwell didn't speak but wore a polite smile. Under that calm expression was a rage building from deep inside him. His brown eyes started to turn yellow and his grasp on his transformation started to wane. Luckily, Albert was laughing with his eyes closed so he didn't notice the lapse in identity of the person in front of him.

Caldwell regained control of his anger and stifled it quickly, lowering his head to appear amicable on the surface. No matter how much he or his brother was insulted, his polite smile never faded. However, on the inside, Caldwell was cursing this disgusting outsider that he was being forced to bow to.

Albert eventually got bored with Caldwell's submission and stomped away, leaving Caldwell behind.

Caldwell immediately straightened up and kept walking, the smile on his face now absent. He walked all the way through the halls and out of the main building. He went to a large stone wall, taller than his head, where he stepped inside the gate. Behind the wall was a shabby and gloomy looking house that was poorer quality than the servants quarters. He opened the door with one hand while holding the tray of food with the other.

He called out once he was inside, "I brought dinner."

The house was so small, the two immediately emerged. Caldwell silently set the table for two and stood off to the side. He raised an eyebrow when he noticed they were sitting, "Aren't you both hungry?"

Syrus grinned cheekily, "We got you something."

"Hm?"

Syrus took out a pair of circular rimmed glasses and put it on his head, "We found it in the trash and thought of you."

His eyebrow twitched, "The… Trash?"

Celane laughed, "He looks like an owl in that, doesn't he?"

"Haha! Maybe because he is-"

Caldwell threw his hand over Syrus's mouth, shutting him up before he could cause problems. He changed the subject, "Hurry up and eat before the food starts tasting worse than it already is."

The two reluctantly gave up teasing him and went to the table. Neither complained about the meal, but it was still unsightly in Caldwell's eyes. He spoke with a sharp tongue, "The head cook said I can use the kitchen when no one is around. Hopefully I can start making you better food at night while everyone sleeps."

Syrus ate without hesitation, "It's really not that bad. I would rather you made yourself a meal at night since you never seem to eat around us."

Celane agreed, "Yes. Treat yourself. Plus, the quality of the food has increased since you've been here Caldwell. I guess you're really popular with the servants."

"Hmm…"

Caldwell hummed to himself, but both of their words fell on deaf ears. He was already thinking about which meals would be best to make that wouldn't go bad before breakfast.