"By the way father, the men you sent to investigate… have they found out who tried to assassinate me?" Dokja asked while they were eating at the dining table. The duke set down his knife and fork on the table and wiped his mouth with his table napkin.
"No, no new information about the case has surfaced yet..." The duke said. The atmosphere was tense. "Whoever ordered it most likely has a lot of resources and influence at their disposal, seeing how they can avoid even our best attempts to uncover them" the duke concluded calmly. Kim Dokja hummed, lost in his thoughts until the duchess spoke.
"Don't worry, my dear. We will find the person who dared to do this and make sure they realize the consequences of meddling with the Underworld Ducal." While the duchess had the same elegant composure as always, Dokja would be a fool to miss the murderous glint in her eye. He just smiled awkwardly at the duchess before returning to his meal.
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It was dark outside, with the only light illuminating the manor being the moonlight and the soft glow of the lamps.
Most of the servants and maids were finishing their duties for the day, with some already asleep back in the servants' quarters. Yet here Dokja was, facing the mirror as the maids prepared him for the banquet being held that night. Just as the first banquet, they fixed his hair and applied a variety of makeup. He almost sneezed because of all the powder layered on his face .
The duchess and Lady Jiwon worked together to choose his outfit for the banquet, the same day Lady Jiwon had come to the Manor to discuss the details of her marriage to Dokja.
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"Greetings..." Lady Jiwon formally bowed to the duke and duchess. Her nervousness was apparent. Even if she was able to see past the rumors about 'Kim Dokja's' unhinged behavior, the Underworld Ducal still had a reputation forbbeing one of the most formidable families of the empire. It was widely known that the passion between Sir Hades and Lady Persephone was just as strong as their ability to crush anyone that dared oppose them.
So, it was to her awe when one of the most powerful women in the empire rushed forward to embrace her, cooing at her all the while. "No need to be so formal when you are going to be part of our family, dear" the duchess reassured her. After stepping back from the hug, Lady Jiwon smiled at her appreciatively and nodded.
"Have a seat already, darling, we have so much to discuss!" The duchess led Lady Jiwon to sit next to her on the sofa, and signaled the maids to bring tea and pastries. While the Count of the Min County was supposed to be present for the meeting, Lady Jiwon informed the family that the Count was sick upon her arrival.
As the maids arrived with trays of pastries and tea, The duchess started talking Lady Jiwon's ears of about how she couldn't wait to see them get married, asking what plans the two had for each other, how the two of them met, and which of her son's qualities made the heiress seek him out in the first place.
In her tirade, Persephone seemed to forget that the duke and her son were sitting right across from her, focusing all of her attention on her future daughter-in-law. Seeing Lady Jiwon starting to get overwhelmed by the duchess, Hades cleared his throat to get his wife's attention.
"Persephone, this can be saved for later, we need to talk about the conditions for marriage, remember dear?" The duke reminded her. Persephone blinked, and then chuckled at herself.
"Right, right I'm sorry. Looks like I got ahead of myself." Straightening herself up, she grabbed a cup of tea from the table. The four of them delved into plans for the marriage, deciding that it would be best for the marriage to happen after the upcoming hunting competition.
The ceremony would be for show only, just to get the word out to the nobles that Lady Jiwon was married and therefore eligible to take over the County. When asked if she would consider becoming the duchess of the Underworld Ducal after their marriage, Lady Jiwon quickly rejected the of er.
"I only want to be married on paper. Just as Dokja will have no obligation or power over the Min County, I won't have a say in the matters of the Underworld Ducal." In the end, they agreed to the partnership under the condition that she would provide the Underworld Ducal with an heir.
The duke stood up and reached his hand out to Lady Jiwon. "Welcome to the family, young lady." She paused for a moment, but stood up and shook hands with the Duke.
After that conversation, the duchess asked Lady Jiwon to join them in choosing an outfit for Kim Dokja for the banquet, since the two of them would be attending together and the Queen wanted him to match whatever dress
Lady Jiwon had already picked out. When he noticed the maids were done dressing him, he checked over himself in the mirror. He donned a white shirt with puffy sleeves and black pants with high boots, along with a large black coat draped over his shoulders.
Once again, the thing that irked him the most was the black corset he was wearing, which showed off how slim his hips were. He wanted to remove it, but the maids insisted that it suited him and that it was what the duchess and Lady Jiwon had wanted him to wear. To top off his embarrassment was the dark blue butterfly pin in his hair.
Sighing to himself, he left the chamber to go pick up Lady Jiwon. Making his way through the hallway he was still self-conscious about the corset. It wasn't that tight, but he was still shy about it. When he stepped outside the mansion, he was greeted by the duchess and the duke awaiting him.
"Oh my!" The duchess went over to fawn over him. "You look so handsome my dear!"
"Of course, Mother, I inherited your looks after all" he joked, making the Duchess laugh. Dokja looked over to the duke.
"If you're going to pick up Lady Jiwon then go now, it's rude to make a lady wait after all..." The duke wore a small smile on his face. Even if the circumstances were different, Hades was taken back to his own days of courting Persephone.
Though the marriage was only for business, he wanted his son to get at least a little enjoyment out of this experience. Dokja nodded to his father as his carriage pulled up to the manor. Parting with his parents, he entered the carriage, which took off to the Min household.
While sitting in the carriage he gazed at the night sky, the moon shining bright and full, accompanied by the plethora of stars in the sky, illuminating the dark night. He was staring so intently that he didn't notice that he arrived in Min County. The manor's gates opened for them, and the carriage entered the villa stopping in front of the household entrance. Stepping out, the maids immediately greeted him.
"Is Lady Jiwon ready?" Dokja asked a maid and she nodded.
"Yes, please follow me Sir Dokja". The maid took him to the guest lounge, where tea and pastries were already prepared for him. He sat on the sofa and looked around. There were paintings hanging along the walls and vases on display, typical of a noble's house.
After a few minutes of waiting and treating himself to some macaroons, the door suddenly opened, and Lady Jiwon entered. She wore a strapless dark blue gown that reached the floor. It was lightly covered with small white diamonds and jewels, emulating the night sky. White gloves covered her delicate hands, and a blue necklace adorned her collar. Dokja immediately stood up to approach her and bowed low.
"Greetings Lady Jiwon."
"Greetings to you too Sir Dokja"
The two then stood awkwardly in front of each other, not really sure what to do next. The two were now unofficially engaged to each other, but neither had any relationship experience, leaving them to flounder on how to act around each other. After staring at each other in silence for a bit, they both broke into light-hearted chuckles, laughing at their awkwardness.
"You look nice in that gown, Lady Jiwon." Dokja complemented, softly smiling at her.
"Thank you, don't worry you look good too Sir Dokja '' she jokingly told him, he just laughed. Dokja offered an arm to Lady Jiwon, and she accepted it, hooking her hand through his arm.
"Shall we get going?"