Secret Wardrobe of the Duchess

Chapter 1

NOTE: This novel belongs to its rightful author Jeonryeongga.

“Arman.”

Rubica looked up at the man who was trying to protect her from the falling bombs without caring about his own safety.

“Arman.”

“Please… don’t say anything more.”

She couldn’t feel her body already. She knew the end was near, but she wasn’t sad about her death. Although her life had been dramatic, it had been normal.

“There’s no hope for me.”

“Rubica, no.”

She tried to use what was left of her strength to at least put on a pale smile. If anyone had seen her, they would have felt pain in their heart. Her smile was that sad.

She just tried to memorize Arman’s white hair and kind wrinkled eyes using her fading sight.

“I want to tell you something.”

Arman shook his head, knowing it would be her last words. He didn’t want to hear her last words. He wanted her to believe that she could survive. He couldn’t imagine living without her.
“Ar… man,” Rubica said.

She was already seventy years old and she had been enduring well. She had suffered so much, working at a small abbey in a land razed by the war.

Still, she felt she had led a quite decent life. She had found happiness in healing the wounded and helping the people suffering from the war like herself.

Before the war, she had had no place to go to. Ironically, it gave her a place to stay. However, she still had one regret remaining in her heart. It was that she hadn’t told Arman that she loved him.

He had shown up about a decade ago at Hue’s Abbey where Rubica was staying at. He was another victim of the war. He was blind. However, Rubica had never seen anyone as capable as him. He knew many languages, enough to communicate with everyone at the abbey where people from many countries lived mixed together and knew much more.

Oh, if Rubica hadn’t had his help, she wouldn’t have been able to save and heal so many people.

Moreover, he was so kind to Rubica. When she overworked even a little, he cooked food to help her recover sooner, and he always volunteered to do the hard work. Rubica fell in love with him. However, she couldn’t bring herself to say that out loud.

She was an old woman, withering more and more every day. Her confessing love would have been something to laugh at. She was ashamed of the spring that came to her at an old age. So, she couldn’t tell that to Arman.

Now, she was regretting it when the time to face death had come. Human beings are so foolish, regardless of age. She raised her weak hand to touch Arman’s cheek.

His skin was just as wrinkled as her own. Although he was quite handsome, he was old just like herself.
Why had she fallen for him?
Nevertheless, she enjoyed looking at him more than looking at young and good-looking men. The thought made her smile.

Why had she hesitated? Why had she given up, thinking others would think it was wrong? She had experienced more than enough that life never waited.

“Arman, I…”

“Rubica, I…”

They spoke at the same moment. Rubica’s old heart started beating fast. She wanted to tell him the last remaining feeling to him.

‘Ah…’

But maybe, it was too late. Her fussy sight turned black, and she couldn’t hear the sound of the bombs anymore.
She could only hear a faint buzzing.
She wanted to say her last words, but she could no longer move her lips.