’Now that I think about it, I haven’t gotten a chance to explore this place at all, even though this will already be my third night here,’ Aliana thought quietly to herself as her eyes wandered inside the mansion.

So far, she had only seen the main foyer, the living room, and the second floor where her room was located right beside Gavriel’s.

But every time she had been here, something chaotic had always happened, and with her constantly teetering on the edge of exhaustion, she had never truly gotten the chance to take in the place that was soon going to become her home.

Now that she would be living here for a long time, she realised she needed to familiarise herself with every corner of it.

’Is that why he asked Winston to show me around?’ she wondered silently.

The thought made a small twinge of guilt settle inside her chest for how childishly she had behaved in front of him earlier.

’Did he notice it?’ That question immediately invaded her mind.

Knowing Gavriel... he probably had.

That realization only made her press her lips together harder as she quietly judged her own behaviour while walking across the living room towards another grand door that opened into a long corridor.

The corridor was lined with polished chequered tiles, with dark abstract paintings decorating one side of the wall while the other side consisted of black panelled floor-to-ceiling windows, offering a view of the large courtyard outside.

At the very centre of the courtyard stood a grand fountain. A dragon was coiled tightly around a sword, its stone form appearing almost alive beneath the flowing water.

Beyond it stretched a winding pathway disappearing into lush greenery and....roses.

Rows and rows of dark crimson roses swayed softly beneath the night breeze.

Aliana found herself slowing unconsciously at the sight until her feet came to a complete stop, captivated by how strangely mesmerizing the flowers looked beneath the shadows of the estate.

Noticing her pause, Winston stopped as well.

He turned back to see her gazing out the window and offered gently, "That is the courtyard of the mansion. It extends far ahead, eventually leading to the woods surrounding the property."

"I see," Aliana replied absentmindedly.

Winston hesitated for a moment, his posture tightening slightly before he added, "Madam, it would be wise not to venture out into those woods alone... especially during the night."

At that, Aliana turned her gaze back to the butler, her curiosity piqued. "Why? Isn’t this private property?"

"It is, but it is also incredibly vast. Because of the sheer size of the estate, wild animals occasionally find their way onto the grounds. They never dare to enter the courtyard, but the woods remain silent and distant from the main house, so beasts often wander through them."

"Alright," Aliana nodded, taking in the warning.

"Should we proceed, Madam?" Winston asked courteously.

"Yes."

With that, they resumed their walk.

The mansion was so quiet that Aliana began to wonder why she hadn’t seen a single maid or footman in sight. Considering how massive the estate was, a house of this caliber would surely require a small army of staff to maintain.

Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, she spoke up. "Winston, where are the others?"

"The others, Madam?" Winston questioned, tilting his head slightly.

"Yes. Are there no other staff members working here?" she asked, looking down the empty, polished corridor.

"No, Madam. It is only me here," Winston replied smoothly. "There is no other staff, except for the chef, who leaves immediately after preparing the meals for the day."

This revelation caused Aliana’s eyebrows to rise in sheer surprise. "So you are telling me that you alone are responsible for keeping this entire mansion up and running?"

"That is correct, Madam," Winston replied, his tone perfectly nonchalant, as if there were absolutely nothing odd about his statement.

Aliana studied the butler, taking note of his graying hair and wrinkled features. She could only assume that he was quite advanced in age.

’How can he possibly manage a mansion of this scale entirely by himself?’ she wondered. ’He looks to be well into his sixties. Doesn’t he ever get tired?’

Her gaze drifted over the vast mansion around her once more before her thoughts immediately spiralled into displeasure.

’How can Gavriel allow this old man to do everything alone? Doesn’t he feel even a little pity?’ she thought in disbelief before another suspicious thought suddenly entered her mind.

’Or don’t tell me he’s stingy with money!’

As she continued to walk, taking in the light yet luxurious interior of the estate, she noticed that there was not a single photograph or portrait of any person on the walls.

There were no family pictures, nor were there any of Gavriel himself.

Another pressing question rose within her, ’Where is his family? Or... does he even have one?’

She recalled the background check Nigel had run on Gavriel when she first investigated him.

The report had explicitly stated there was absolutely nothing to be found regarding his family or lineage.

It had made her wonder if his relatives simply lived abroad, keeping their identities entirely shielded from the world, just as Gavriel had done until recently.

She suspected this because she knew certain elite sections of high society despised disclosing their presence to the public, choosing to live completely shrouded in privacy.

Aliana, coming from old money herself, knew her own family would have adopted that exact same reclusive lifestyle had their ancestors not attached the family name to the Van Empire, and had her father not chosen to actively lead the corporate empire.

So she called, "Winston?"

"Yes, Madam?" he answered over his shoulder, not breaking his steady pace.

"Have you been working here for long?" Aliana asked.

"Yes, Madam. I have been here for a very long time. More than twenty years must have passed," Winston replied, his tone entirely flat and monotonous.

"I see. So you must have met other members of his family?" she asked carefully, keeping her eyes fixed on his profile, trying to gauge the butler’s reaction.

Winston suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, forcing her to halt as well.

"No, Madam, I have not. I have only ever served Master." Winston’s answer caused her brows to furrow in deep confusion.

"Then... what about his family? Do they not live in this country?" Aliana pressed, refusing to let the matter drop.

Winston went completely silent for a moment before slowly turning his head to look back at her over his shoulder. "As long as I have known Master, he has always lived alone, Madam. I am not aware of any details regarding a family."

"Alone?" Aliana repeated in disbelief.

She quickly did the math in her head before asking, "But if you have worked here for over twenty years, that means Gavriel must have been very young when you started. Did he... live by himself all this time, even as a child?"