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Chapter 5 - The Duke Of Equiron

There were many reasons why Raymond sought out Lilith. The first being that she was not someone he was aware would be attending the Duke's ball. Second, he wondered where she had come from. Purple fabric was something very hard to come by and she had a lot of it. The most beautiful dress he had ever laid his eyes on. But as someone wearing a fabric like that also came the correct mannerisms and it seemed that that girl was not very royal-like. She did not carry herself with any sort of grace or like anyone who held an important title. So it only made sense that he would be curious to find out who she was and how she got the dress.

But of course, the most striking thing was that she had asked him what year it was. As if it was not common knowledge that even the poorest peasant or richest monarch wouldln't know.

It had taken a couple of days but he was eventually able to track her down. And she just so happened to have settled down in the county that he was in charge of. His suspicions were further confirmed when he found out that she was working in a library.

"Come with me," he said to her, towering over her smaller frame.

Lilith tried to go back but her cart was stopping her. She had seen the man before. The night of the ball. She of course remembered him because not only was he handsome but hewas the one who told her that she was in 1815.

Looking around, she tried to get the attention of someone else in the library to help her out but they were all looking the other way. Clearly aware of the situation but unwilling to do anything. Just who was this person?

Raymond did not like to say things twice and gritted his teeth in frustration. "Now."

There was nothing she could have done in the short time she was here that would have garnered the attention of anyone. He acted like an authority figure, ready to interrogate her. And if that really was the case then it would have been best if Lilith did follow him.

Raymond led Lilith to the side of the building. It was afternoon and thankfully the sun had just passed over their building so the alley had a slight shadow cast over it. It was just the two of them. Raymond had left his carriage in the front of the building alongside the guards that accompanied him just so that he would not have any interruptions.

"Who are you?" Raymond asked her.

"Who am I?" Lilith raised her eyebrows. "Who are you? You suddenly appear here demanding to speak with me and yet you do not even bother to introduce yourself first."

He was handsome, Lilith had to admit. He had this awfully cold yet attractive face. It was intimidating but she was sure it probably had the opposite effect on a lot of women. He was dressed in a black tailcoat, white dress shirt, and black fall-front trousers with black riding boots. He was definitely someone of a higher class. But of course, he was, he had attended a ball at Avarice Manor in the 1815s. Not just anyone could attend those.

"I am the Duke of Equiron. Raymond Cavill." He did think that he should have made himself known to her. Whoever she was, a simple citizen or a royal, he should have told her so that she knew who he was and knew the power he had. Hopefully, with this information, she would think twice about not answering his questions.

"The Duke of Equiron." Of course, Lilith knew who he was. Now it all made sense. He was known to be cold and handsome. Lilith had read many excerpts from the past about people going on and on about his looks and how they wished they could marry him or marry their daughters to him. And according to history, he never had a lover. But that was just speculation since it was not public knowledge and people assumed that he may have had someone in the shadows.

It was weird, once gossiping about someone that was dead only for them to appear in front of you one day.

"The tabloids really did you dirty," Lilith muttered to herself. They had not even captured a fraction of how handsome he was. She was sure that there may have been similarities like hair color and maybe the shape of his nose, but he did not really look like what she had been shown.

"Excuse me? Tabloids?" Raymond leaned forward as if he had misheard her.

At his sudden closeness, Lilith's eyes widened, her heart jumping a bit. Although his looks were really a force to be reckoned with, they were not what she should be focusing on. Even if it was not her fault he flustered her like that. Why was he talking to her? Yes, she had asked him what year it was but that should not be enough to have him track her down. Unless he was here to find out if she was the mysterious Princess. If that was so, she would be in a bit of a bind there.

"Now who are you? Where did you come from?" the Duke asked.

"You came all the way here after tracking me down and yet you don't know my name?" Lilith was surprised, but also had to remind herself that this was not the present day.

Raymond did not say anything and just stared at her with his domineering expression. Of course he knew her name, but he wanted much more than just a name from her. He was not going to repeat himself, so he was going to wait until she answered him. And with the way she was behaving, the way she carried herself and spoke, it was obvious that she was not royalty. So that answered one of his questions but it made the others more serious.

"Where did you get the dress? Where did you steal it from?" he accused.

"Steal?" she let out a laugh. "I did not steal anything."

"Then where did you get the dress?"

"What's it to you?"

"I am the Duke of this territory and so it is my responsibility to question anyone that I find suspicious." his tone was clear and strong.

For someone who was labeled as taciturn, he did say a lot. "Where I got the dress is my business. I did not steal it or take it unfairly.

"The more you avoid the question the guiltier you look."

Lilith tapped her foot in annoyance. "If you came all of this way to try and satisfy your curiosity then I'm sorry but you have the wrong person."

"Well, then I have no choice but to detain you."

"Oh come on-"

"I do not appreciate the tone you are using." her gave her a cold glare. "Detaining you is the only I see this going if you continue refusing to answer my questions."

"You know, for a Prince, I thought that you would have had better manners." Lilith said before she could stop herself.

Raymond Cavill. Named by the King himself. All the children of the King had different last names except for the firstborn. The firstborn was the one who was going to succeed the throne and so the other children were not needed to be shown to the public. It put all of the public's attention on firstborn and it was also a precautionary measure so that if the firstborn were to get assassinated, there would be other children to take their place.

This was information that only the closest of servants and advisors of the royal court knew. This was in no way public knowledge. But was known in the future because of DNA tests and the fact that they were killed off by the firstborn. Which meant that Lilith just made the situation ten times worse for her.

The chance of her getting killed because she knew a national secret was looking to be in the nineties. She just added that on top of her unwillingness to compromise with him. Since she knew he was a Prince then she should have shown more respect and answered the questions he wanted. Hopefully, his coldness was just a front and he was not actually like that and have mercy on her.

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