Bianca de Blanchefort.
The wife of Zachary de Arno, thrown out of Arno family after his death due to her self-indulgent, frivolous, and immoral behavior. She had nowhere to go, the Blanchefort family having already fallen to ruin, and was more or le...
Bianca paused multiple times on her way to Zachary’s room, wondering if she was going in the right direction as it was a place she seldom visited.
When she finally arrived at his door, she found that it was ajar. She could hear the sound of the servants moving around through the crack. It seemed they were busily assisting their lord who had returned for the first time in a long while.
Bianca gave several graceful knocks on the door. It would be impolite of her to step in without notice regardless of the door being open or not.
“Who is… Madam?”
Vincent furrowed his eyebrows when he opened the doors and discovered the unexpected visitor. Bianca wasn’t surprised. Though Vincent failed to hide his troubled expression, she remained unperturbed, not even raising a brow, and quietly asked, “The count?”
“He is getting ready to bathe,” Vincent replied curtly.
Every time Zachary returned from war, the first thing he did after stepping into his castle was bathe. It was a habit, something he never skipped. Vincent found it ridiculous that Bianca, his lord’s wife, was unaware of that fact. It only further cemented the steward’s view that she had absolutely no interest in her husband.
“I’m here because I have something I would like to discuss with the count.”
Bianca felt a small sense of relief at how her voice came out steady without a single tremble.
Bianca suddenly asking to see Zachary was an event akin to the sun rising in the west. Vincent’s eye inspected Bianca while the latter pretended to be unbothered by his openly suspicious gaze, only raising her chin casually. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest from the fear of how things would play out.
No matter how hesitant he was, Vincent was not in a position where he could hinder the lady of the house. Having no other choice, he let Bianca in.
“Please wait a moment, I’ll go and notify the lord.”
“Alright.”
The steward disappeared, leaving Bianca alone in the room. Her trembling hands reflected how anxious she felt. She was able to hide her hands with her sleeves but she could not do anything to stop her legs from pacing back and forth.
Zachary’s room was much larger and wider than hers, but it was also that much more empty. The walls did not hold any particular decorative design, the curtains were plain, and the carpet was generic and monotone. The only items in the room that could be called decorations was a tapestry with the Arno crest and a few weapons hanging on the walls.
Thanks to the servants who had dutifully worked to prepare the room, the fireplace was already ablaze. It might have been because Bianca was continuously tense and nervous since the morning, but it only took a second for her attention to falter and be stolen by the flickering embers of the burning firewood.
A deep voice belonging to a man interrupted her thoughts.
“It’s been a while.”
Startled, Bianca turned her head. Standing tall like a mountain next to the door was her husband, Zachary de Arno.
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