A dry, rough laugh escaped from between Ricardo's lips.
Something had changed.
At first, he just felt good. Perhaps it was a sense of relief. After all, she was a woman who always exhausted people.
But now, her attitude was different.
That was certainly a good sign.
The woman who had only been stubborn had suddenly changed.
Her pure love had once been too much for him.
To the point of suffocation.
And now she says she supports his love?
Who does she think she is?
What does she know about him?
Her confession rather felt like a sense of loss to him.
He had been deceived,
and the more he felt that way, the more pathetic he felt.
Ricardo roughly wiped his face.
...Bianca.
You are truly difficult.
Like an eternal, unsolvable riddle.
I don't know how I should treat you.
Ricardo furrowed his brow slightly.
Feeling frustrated, he put a cigarette in his mouth but didn't light it.
He sank back into deep thought, then finally took the cigarette out of his mouth.
Knock knock—
"Your Grace, it's Elia. A letter has arrived. It seems urgent—"
"Come in."
Am I truly ill?
Why do I keep thinking only of her?
The remnants of the past had unknowingly become a tenacious, sticky swamp, holding him captive.
"A letter from Roygin."
Elia carefully handed over the letter.
"...From the Marquis family?"
"I'm not certain. It was a messenger from Roygin... a woman in a robe."
Ricardo, who had been wearily rubbing his face, muttered lowly.
"How discourteous of them."
Sending someone at this late hour without prior notice.
He sighed deeply, rose from his seat, and headed to the terrace.
Leaning against the railing, he looked at the letter.
Under the bright moonlight, the Roygin crest shone beautifully.
With an expressionless face, he opened the envelope.
The moment he saw the handwriting, his eyes narrowed.
It was familiar.
Bianca?
As if in disbelief, he read the letter,
and read it again.
...Is this really the Bianca I knew?
---
[ ...I apologize for contacting you so suddenly at this late hour.
But I felt I could wait no longer.
Today, you said I was the same as before.
And perhaps... you might be right.
As you said, ten years have already passed.
During that time, I had countless opportunities to apologize, but I didn't say a single word.
I want to apologize for everything I did to you in the past.
I cannot offer any excuses.
I am truly sorry.
The same goes for what happened today.
My desire not to waste your time was so earnest that I ended up raising my voice.
I have not forgotten the past.
I am still living with that past even now.
And I am still facing you from that same place.
I don't know if my future self can reach your past self,
but I am sorry that it is too late.
...I am truly sorry. ]
Ricardo's lips parted as if he wanted to say something.
Even as the moon shifted its position in the sky, he stood frozen, just staring at the letter.
...She apologized?
She said she's facing the past?
He remembered the beginning vividly.
She always smiled brightly and reached out first.
And now too.
She was reaching out again.
It felt like slowly sinking into her densely written sentences.
There wasn't a single gap between the lines—
But strangely,
he didn't feel suffocated.
---
Of course, Ricardo did not send a reply.
But that was fine. Bianca hadn't expected a reply in the first place.
She was willing to apologize as many times as he wanted.
And if his heart didn't want an apology,
she was willing to quietly accept the broken engagement.
That was her goal.
Besides, there was something more important now.
"My lady..."
"Isn't it perfect?"
"Hmm... I can see you embroidered, but I'm not sure what it's supposed to mean."
...A rose.
Bianca slumped over the table in frustration at Emily's answer.
Seeing this, Emily clenched her fist and exclaimed.
"You'll be able to recognize it soon! Besides, who would dislike a handkerchief embroidered by you personally, my lady?"
There are many, Emily...
I started to say something but only let out a long sigh.
The problem was the hunting competition.
Like any typical hunting competition,
ladies were supposed to gift handkerchiefs to the winning candidates, praying for their safe return.
Yes.
The reason I was going through this hardship was ultimately because of that useless tradition.
I stared blankly at the clumsy embroidery and sighed again.
What am I going to do with this...
Even I could see it was terrible.
---
At that moment.
Ricardo was tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
Having stayed up all night, he finally bolted upright.
The letter he had carefully placed on his pillow fluttered to the floor.
Staring blankly, Ricardo muttered.
"...Why can't I sleep?"
---
A few days later.
I stood in front of the Sun Shop, taking a deep breath.
[Please come to the shop by tomorrow morning.]
That was the content of the letter I had received yesterday.
It was a short sentence, but I could immediately tell who had sent it.
Thank goodness.
Feril is awake.
With a nervous heart, I opened the shop door.
Jingle
"Welcome—"
The woman who had greeted brightly stiffened her expression as soon as she recognized me.
"...You came."
She looked just as nervous as I was.
After hesitating for a moment, she carefully spoke.
"Before we begin, let me ask you just one thing."
"What is it?"
"How did you know that Bave had woken up?"
Because I read the original novel.
"It was just a feeling."
"...So you mean you don't intend to tell me."
I wish I could, but then you'd think I was crazy.
"So, what did Bave-nim say?"
"I haven't met him yet either. But I heard he's very angry."
...I'm doomed.
Suddenly, I started worrying about my future.
"I don't know how much you know about him, but he's not as great a person as you might think."
For someone who has lived a thousand years, that's quite impressive...
But she seemed to think I didn't know Bave was the Magic Tower Lord.
There was a sharp edge to her voice.
"He's just an ordinary man who sells accessories to make a living day by day."
"But there are also people who barely survive by selling their time. And those are the people who need his help."
She bit her lip and changed the subject.
"...You know the hunting competition is coming up soon, right?"
"Yes."
"Bave-nim also plans to attend."
At those words, I froze completely.
It was completely unexpected.
In the original story, Feril did not attend the hunting competition.
That episode was about Erkishian and Ricardo fighting over Idette.
...Is something changing because of me?
"He said he would meet you there."
"Is that information reliable?"
I asked again, finding it hard to believe.
Feril was originally a person whose existence was erased from the world.
He wasn't someone who could attend such a public event.
Of course, he had gone to meet Idette in disguise before, but...
Then surely he'd appear in disguise this time too.
"Yes. He said it himself, so it's reliable."
"...Thank you."
"I just hope you don't do anything to displease him."
The woman smiled faintly.
...It sounded almost like she wanted me to incur Feril's wrath.
But it was probably just my imagination.
---
Time passed quickly,
and before I knew it, the hunting competition was right around the corner.
There was very little I liked about this event,
but it had one advantage.
I didn't have to wear a terrible dress!
Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I smiled contentedly.
The pants, designed for mobility, were incredibly comfortable.
I wish every day were a hunting competition!
"My lady, you need to leave now!"
Emily urgently called out to me as I lingered in front of the mirror.
Is it that late already?
Snapping out of it, I hurried out of the room.
Cedric was standing in front of the entrance.
"..."
I expected him to scold me for being late, but surprisingly, he said nothing.
...Could it be that even my brother is nervous?
