Paleness crept over Erich’s face, tension settling in.
“Are you really acting like this just because I said a few words?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Then what do you mean it’s not?”
Erich suddenly snapped in anger. Then, as if realizing something, he reluctantly added,
“I think I misspoke. So please come down quickly.”
No matter how I looked at it, his reaction felt strange. Had something happened outside?
Or could it be that he thinks I’m in danger?
But that was odd. This window was not the kind that one would fall out of just from slipping a little. I looked down once more, wondering if I misunderstood the windowsill. Just as I thought the ground looked a bit distant, Erich shouted again, “Now!” The sound startled me and I almost slipped further.
But why is Erich concerned about my safety?
From his perspective, shouldn’t he want me to fall and die here? It would be an easy way to get rid of an enemy.
Or is it possible he wants to make my death more painful?
That reason definitely seemed possible. Since things were already like this, I wiped away my tears and asked him:
“…Why?”
“What do you mean why?”
“Weren’t you hoping for that?”
Erich’s steel-blue eyes grew unexpectedly hollow.
“…That is…”
After a moment of silence, Erich spoke with a strained voice:
“But even so, I can’t just let you die easily.”
I was right after all! Erich’s steel-blue eyes, fixed on me standing on the windowsill, kept trembling. Looking closely, even his clenched fists were shaking. It seemed he was very angry about having to save someone like me.
“So don’t try to run away like this.”
His final words were irritable. Having confirmed his point, I had no reason to stay by the window any longer. I slowly stepped down. Seeing me come down, Erich seemed to lose strength in his legs and slumped.
Why is he acting like that?
While Erich was distracted, I quietly took the magic book I had hidden and moved outside. At that moment, Erich called me without turning his head.
“You.”
This guy didn’t even call me “my lady” anymore. I tensed, fearing he might try to take the magic book away.
“If I hadn’t stopped you, would you really have fallen?”
“No.”
“…Are you asking me to believe that?”
Trust between people is so important. No matter how honestly I spoke, I felt it wouldn’t be accepted.
“Then do you have any reason not to believe me?”
I was about to walk away when I caught a glimpse of Erich’s hand. It was clenched so tightly I thought it might bleed.
Sigh.
Leaving someone shocked like that and just walking away didn’t seem like the act of a decent person. I calmly said to Erich,
“What’s the point of worrying about something that didn’t happen?”
“…”
“The reality is still the same.”
After telling him I was unharmed, I hugged the book and quickly ran off. Luckily, Erich didn’t notice I had taken the magic book.
Erich recognized her at first sight.
“Estelle Libertan.”
It wasn’t just because of her sweet colors like a freshly bloomed flower bud. Estelle exuded the noble and lovely air of a lady raised with care.
“Nice to meet you, Baron Blonay.”
Hateful Libertan. Erich sought revenge against Libertan, who had betrayed the family he had loyally served, killed his parents, and left him with irreparable scars. Since the Blonay baron family had been Libertan’s loyal vassals who took care of his dirty work, they had to pay the price for losing their master. Erich thought the price should be the death of his beloved adopted daughter.
“Oh, I came to find a book to pass the time.”
As an aide, Erich was to follow the orders of his master Johan perfectly. But seeing Estelle’s pure face, he couldn’t suppress his rising anger.
No matter how much it’s for revenge.
The fact that someone like her could live comfortably here irritated him deeply.
“Yes. I just arrived, but everyone is very kind and nice.”
So he looked at the woman with eyes full of hatred and sneered.
“This is not Libertan’s place. It’s not a place where my lady can roam freely and smile. You should keep that in mind.”
At those words, her already pale face turned even whiter — a face that looked like it could crumble at any moment. Something felt off.
“…I understand.”
Despite looking like she might collapse, Estelle did not cry.
“Sorry for coming into your study uninvited. Maybe I got too excited and forgot my place.”
No matter how much Erich insulted or belittled her, Estelle didn’t get angry. She seemed almost accustomed to such insults.
“It’s because I’m not the wife the baron expected. Then it’s my fault.”
The more Erich talked with the pitiful Estelle, the more he felt like the perpetrator. Why was that? Her uniquely dark navy eyes shimmered with a strange sadness.
“But there’s nothing I can do except apologize.”
Eventually, Erich couldn’t hold it anymore and ran away. Yet even after fleeing, he couldn’t easily calm down. It wasn’t about running away. Even if she apologized, he should have resisted, condemned, or treated her harshly. If he had, he wouldn’t be foolishly thinking about Estelle now. Now, a strange anxiety began to rise. That woman who once smiled so purely might ultimately ruin the grand revenge she built against Libertan. So Erich watched Estelle’s every move with sharper eyes. He suspected she was conspiring with Libertan. But then something strange happened.
“Oh, I think I was mistaken.”
This wasn’t a mistake anyone could make. Baron Gaspier looked completely different from Lexius Paulman and wasn’t even a relative.
“That amethyst brooch is very pretty. It suits your outfit well.”
Estelle complimented an amethyst brooch that Baron Gaspier never even wore. And in the Blanchet Duke family, there was only one famous incident involving an amethyst brooch — the one involving Lexius Paulman, which Estelle herself mentioned. At first, Erich was very confused by Estelle’s words. Although the incident was famous in Blanchet, he never thought Estelle would bring it up.
“…The amethyst brooch was found in Baron Gaspier’s bedroom.”
In fact, Baron Gaspier was revealed to be the culprit.
What is she thinking?
If she wanted to build trust with the Blanchet family, it would have been better to just openly say she knew the culprit. But Estelle’s behavior was too ambiguous to be trying to expose the criminal.
What on earth…
After saying everything so calmly, Estelle even turned around and let out a sigh of relief. She had clearly made a big decision.
What is her goal?
Thinking about Estelle made Erich’s mind spin. Then, entering the study again, he witnessed a shocking scene. He caught the title of the book Estelle was holding: “A Death Without Pain…” It was hard to see from afar, but the first part was clear. Erich approached Estelle, who was sneaking around the forbidden library and had pulled out that book.
“[I want to die. When trapped in an inescapable situation, it seems that’s the only way—]”
Was she protesting just because of some harsh words? The complicated thoughts disappeared and were replaced by rising anger. He felt pathetic for trying to understand the heart of such a woman.
Shameless woman.
It seemed Libertan’s vulgar nature could not be hidden. So Erich was no longer shaken by Estelle’s apology.
Good that I realized that terrible nature.
Then, driven by a bad feeling, he returned to the study.
What is she doing…?
Estelle was now standing by the window. Her shining platinum hair dangerously fluttered near the windowsill. The wind blowing by was so strong it seemed it might push her off.
“Is it my fault…?”
There, Estelle was crying.
“In the end, it comes to this.”
In that moment, Erich’s mind went blank. He suddenly recalled what he had said before.
Why is she asking me that? Isn’t atonement something she should consider herself?
Could she really think dying like that was atonement?
Or… was betraying Baron Gaspier her own choice?
Once he thought about it, her behavior seemed strange but somewhat understandable. And with understanding came fear.
Is she really going to die like that?
Guilt flooded him like he had tormented a defenseless young animal. Estelle didn’t even move when he looked at her. Her calm face seemed like a mirage, faint and distant.
“Wait!”
Finally, Erich couldn’t bear it and grabbed Estelle.
“…Why?”
“What do you mean why?”
“Weren’t you hoping for that?”
It was something Erich wanted more than anyone else. Not long ago, he had said there was no reason to bother saving such a woman. If it weren’t for his master Johan, Estelle would already be on the execution block, bringing despair to her parents. He thought losing a beloved child was the most certain pain.
“If I hadn’t stopped you, would you really have fallen?”
He asked Estelle as she left with a lonely expression. He couldn’t bring himself to look at her face.
“No.”
“…Are you asking me to believe that?”
“What’s the point of worrying about something that didn’t happen?”
Erich thought he knew her expression without seeing it. Hearing her voice with moisture, he could only imagine her silently flowing tears.
“The reality is the same.”
He heard the sound of Estelle’s footsteps disappearing from the study. Only then did he turn and could not easily take his eyes off the empty space.
I decided to run away to the garden. I had already gotten permission from Johan to go there, and from the window, not many people came or went there. It seemed like a perfect place to hide and read a book. But someone had already arrived before me in the garden.
“Duke?”
Under the huge tree where I had planned to read, Johan was already sitting comfortably in casual clothes, leaning back leisurely. Johan, shaded by the huge tree, looked like a well-fed wild beast resting after a hunt. He was handsome enough to be picturesque even when still.
“I was waiting.”
Johan waved and patted the spot next to him.
“Come quickly. Isn’t the weather perfect right now?”
I tried to act natural and flipped my book cover down, then sat next to Johan. Johan used his right hand to let me rest my head on his shoulder. Since he was taller, I barely reached his shoulder. But leaning on Johan felt more comfortable than on the tree. When I glanced at him sideways, Johan’s gorgeous profile from his forehead to his strong chin stood out. He looked handsome from every angle.
“Did you know I’d come here?”
I hadn’t met anyone on the way. He smiled drowsily and replied,
“There’s a way to know everything.”
“A way like that?”
“This mansion is all under my influence. If I want, I can know anything.”
That ‘way’ seemed to be black magic.
That’s really unfair.
Even if he was the mastermind, didn’t he have too much power?
“So you’ve been watching me all this time?”
“Not all the time. You probably have some privacy too.”
He smiled mischievously, squinting his eyes.
“I do want to know everything about you, though.”
The way he said it sounded like, if I allowed, he would.
Strange.
Though it meant he was watching to keep the fake who played with him from running away, I somehow felt something else.
Since when did Johan’s gaze start feeling different?
It was ridiculous, but I even felt like he was seeing me for who I really was. I puffed my cheeks awkwardly and smiled.
“That’s a bit unfair.”
“In what way?”
“I don’t know exactly, but only you can keep knowing about me.”
“That is unfair.”
Johan nodded readily and smirked.
“Then if you feel wronged, you should find a way yourself.”
“There’s no such thing.”
“If you want something, you have to work for it.”
Watching Johan lightly shrug his shoulders, I felt even more frustrated. How can a powerless person not feel bitter? Then suddenly Johan grabbed my wrist with his big hand.
“But, my lady—”
Still, his gaze was on my face. I couldn’t avoid his eyes and looked back.
“Did you just meet another man?”
His low voice held a strange irritation.
Irritation?
That emotion really didn’t suit the mastermind. Surprised, I blinked and retorted,
“Another man?”
“Yes. From my wife…”
Johan brought my wrist to his lips and bit it lightly.
“It smells like another man.”
Johan’s red mark remained on my delicate wrist. He twisted his mouth with satisfaction at the mark.
