My Disfigured Duke Husband Helps Me Plot My Revenge
Chapter 183: His Turn to Rest

Chapter 183: His Turn to Rest

Leonor was much more well-rested than when they arrived at the outpost as they were leaving. As the carriage pulled forward, she knew she wouldn’t fall asleep anytime soon.

The air was crisp but at least the carriage had been warmed up by hot stones in a compartment underneath the seats. Leonor felt comfortable enough to remove her cloak as she settled on the bench and watched the scenery pass them by.

Dotted between thick evergreen trees were orange and red trees slowly losing their leaves. That morning was windy and she was sure many branches would soon be bare. It amazed her at how early things changed for autumn in Montclair. In Burien, things were likely still mostly green.

From the safety of Montclair Estate, Leonor hadn’t gotten to experience autumn up close like that. Her eyes never stopped at all the beautiful colors. It felt like a painting surrounding the sloping road they took that brought them off of the mountain pass and to lower elevations.

They were still above the valley that held Piedmont but it was less precarious than the travel from the day before.

For an hour, Leonor was able to admire the view before they were sent back into the heart of forests and more mountains that would lead them to Montville later that day.

There were few words between Desmond and Leonor but it wasn’t uncomfortable since they were both occupied with their thoughts.

The duke was the first to acknowledge the silence when he pressed his foot against Leonor’s, wanting her eyes to be on him for a moment. That day, it was he who was feeling tired. While he spoke with the soldiers about the winter ahead, they shared ale and stayed up later than he wanted to.

"What are you thinking about?" Leonor asked the duke.

He seemed embarrassed and it caused Leonor to lean forward.

"I’m feeling a bit tired," he admitted. "Would you mind lending me a pillow, please?"

Only then did she notice that under his eye seemed hollow and he lacked energy once he was no longer commanding his men.

"How late did you stay up last night?" she asked.

"Breaking the news to a few men that they would have to bear the cold at the outpost led to breaking open a barrel of ale," he confessed. "I can’t say I blame them. Monsters slow in winter but the loneliness coupled with other’s loneliness compounds and seems heavier."

He seemed to speak out of experience and Leonor moved herself to his bench. She clasped his hand.

"Then rest," Leonor said. "Yesterday was my day of rest, yours is today."

Her skirts were fluffy and thick, showing off a proper winter style considering they would be in a more densely populated town that evening. For the time being, they would make a perfect pillow for an exhausted duke.

Leonor had to scoot herself to the window since Desmond was tall. He kissed her cheek before he made his head comfortably on her lap, his face practically disappearing into her dress. His unscathed left side was what faced her.

Since Desmond was usually asleep after her, she had never experimented with how to comfort him to sleep. She decided to gently rub his neck then scratch his back in a continuous pattern until she saw his face relax and sleep capture him.

She smiled down at him, satisfied with how easy it was. He must have been exhausted.

Multiple times before she had noticed that Desmond with his eyes closed looked innocent and pure. He was as close as he could get to looking like himself when he was barely an adult. The sight of him squeezed her heart.

Sometimes she wished he was never scarred, but it wasn’t because she found him unappealing. She simply wanted his life to be easier and for him to never know what pain like that was like.

Even without his sacrifice, they would have made it by whatever means possible. If she never inherited her father’s county, she would have found a way to escape with Desmond.

However, a peaceful existence wasn’t in their cards until much later. They were only just being able to settle down.

The more she thought about Desmond as she watched his peacefully sleeping self slowly breathe in and out, she realized some people were meant to suffer. It was never fair, it just was.

Not only did he have to face the loss of everyone he knew as a child and being orphaned in a strange land, but he also faced a dragon and almost died. He was undoubtedly traumatized from that experience considering he was forced into it by her father.

She was so gentle with him and not resentful because the hardest trials he faced could be traced back to her. If her father never sent him, he never would have been hurt.

That was her burden. She hoped that he didn’t feel guilty because she was being punished with the feeling as well.

The thoughts were heavy and Leonor decided to look up from the man who held her heart and appreciate her surroundings.

Neither of them were hurting at that moment. That’s all they could ask for. They were being spoiled as they were taken to a township in the middle of the mountains; a place dared to be settled because of the rich mining history of that area.

Leonor had read extensive history of Montville while preparing for the travel.

King Stephano I was nearly as greedy as his son, the previous king. He chased gems like his son and started wars like his son as well. There were various places created under the guise of creating jobs.

The reality was that he needed men to fill the position of miners. They would sacrifice themselves and their families would be met with ’they knew the risk they were taking by becoming a miner’. The pay was good enough that they would do anything at the expense of themselves for their families’ sake.

Amongst these families was the Durand family who managed to survive the horrible working conditions they were subjected to. The survival of Montville was entirely on their shoulders.

Rather than giving up and moving to a region easier to survive in and better connected to the wider area of Montclair, they remained in the mountains. They found a way to keep the mines open.

Eventually, their work paid off as small gems became large diamonds. They could sell to nobility across Castille and make a name for themselves.

The Durand de Montville family was a force to be reckoned with. Those were the kinds of people Leonor wanted to support.

However, their lack of noble background meant that the ancient king didn’t pay attention to them as much as he should have. Because of this oversight, it was Desmond who made the request of giving him a title. He felt they deserved more recognition for the rich history they contributed to northern Montclair.

They had good news to give to the Durand family when they arrived.