~Unlike my sisters, it had taken me a great deal of time to become accustomed to life at the Duke's manor. I wasn't used to servants cooking my meals and making my beds, and to be honest, I wasn't altogether comfortable with either.

I was perfectly content being independent. I enjoyed doing things for myself, and the feeling of accomplishment that accompanies a job well done.

            I counted down the days until I would be able to leave, until my father would return. But soon, the days turned to weeks, and the weeks to months, until it had been a full 3 moons since my father had left on his journey.

I could feel dread wash through my bones every morning I woke up with no news of him, and even my sisters had begun to grown concerned.

The Duke remained incredibly kind to us, and did not deny us anything we desired- a fact which thrilled my sisters half to death.

In order not to seem to demanding, I felt it would be for the best if I didn't ask for anything if I could help it. My only request thus far had been the location of the library, where I had an intense desire to browse through the Duke's collection of historical tomes.

Research about the wilds was incredibly limited, especially of late.

Most of it had been gathered during the time when the stone tunnels were being built, and even then only the most foolhardy of adventurers would dare risk leaving the safety of encampments to learn anything new. But still, as rare as such findings were, it was more than I'd ever been able to examine earlier, and so I spent almost all of my time in the library, scouring away at any little hints I could discover- which, I'll admit, were not much.

But there was no harm in looking anyway, and I believed that the Duke found my passion of the subject endearing. He would often join me, and we would share what we knew about the times of old, when nature was abundant.

For a man so powerful within Fiore society, I was incredibly surprised by the amount of interest that he showed in the past, since most leaders of the country were bound on seeing the stone-walled city through to the future, instead of looking towards things long past.

In truth, it was the Duke's vision that I found more appealing, for without looking towards the past, how could we ever hope to change the future? That had always been my father's opinion, and I was inclined to agree with them both.

But it wasn't only the Duke who spent time with me in the library, much to my surprise. His nephew, Taehyung often kept me company as well.

He was a handsome man, just as my sisters had said before we'd arrived, and the two of them had been vying for his attention since our arrival.

A marriage to him would be far above any of our stations, and far below his, so I hardly took their desires seriously.

 Taehyung's presence wasn't wholly unwelcome, though it was strange.

I found it odd that he wished to spend time in the library, since he did not share his father's interests about the wilds, or even the artifacts they could contain.

Setting aside my book, which was proving to be rather unhelpful anyway, I approached him in a fit of what was probably immense foolishness.

"Is there a reason you see fit to do your work here instead of in your, no doubt, lavish private rooms? Or does staring at me intermittently give you some sort of pleasure" I asked, so irked with the behavior I couldn't stand it anymore.

I instantly regretted my decision, since I watched as his dark eyebrows knitted together in confusion, and then utter shock. I wouldn't have been surprised if it was the first time that anyone had ever spoken to him like that before- especially not a woman.

Most of them were probably too busy fawning over his looks and position, not necessarily in that order. So true to form, the man didn't know how to answer my accusation right away.

I thought about apologizing then, but really it wasn't my fault. Staring was just downright rude, and I'd never done it to him. If he was going to stare at anyone it should have been at Iris or Lily, who probably never gave him a moments peace when he was near them anyway.

(I'd never done any such thing.)

But then, to my immense surprise, Taehyung laughed heartily, clearly realizing that he'd been caught staring and now had to find an excuse or simply fess up to his actions.

"I come here for the view," he answered, in all seriousness, and it took me a moment to realize that he wasn't talking about the mounds of books, or even the ornate fireplace. He was talking about me.

It wasn't the first time I'd received such compliments from men, though personally I felt that my beauty paled in comparison to that of my sisters.

But I supposed I had my own, unique charm. Still, being spoken to by someone who could probably have any woman he desired in all of Fiore was quite a jolt, and so I chose to ignore his implications, instead focusing on his words at face value.

"Indeed. The carving on the fireplace is quite intricate," I answered, and then made an attempt to return to the book, so at least it would look like I was busy even if I wasn't.

"Oh I doubt you are that naive," was his answer, accompanied by an insolent looking smirk. I couldn't tell if he was trying to be charming or not, but he certainly wasn't appealing to me in particular.

"No I'm not. But I am very good at avoiding subjects I'd rather not breech. Though you'll forgive me if I wonder why, if you could have anyone you desired, my sisters included, you would deign to work in the library to catch a glimpse of me. It cannot be exciting for you," I pointed out.

"Are you always this blunt?" Was his amused reply.

"I wouldn't say I was blunt sir. But curious? Always."

"Then I should be honored to appease your need for answers Miss Heart. I suppose it's only fair to be as honest as you've been to me. I find you incredibly intriguing. I've never met a woman so eager to lea