“I……”
Kae-earn let out another short sigh before speaking again.
“Yes, it’s clear that I left you alone for too long.”
“What?”
Why is he bringing that up again? As he mentioned what he said at the banquet again, I tilted my head, asking him to clarify.
“I can’t just stand by and let this happen to my fiancée.”
Instead of answering my question, Kae-earn continued with his thoughts and then abruptly stood up from his seat.
“Let’s have tea another time.”
“What? But Amy will bring it soon.”
“I have urgent matters to attend to.”
Suddenly, he excused himself to leave.
The tea and cookies would have been so delicious.
A wave of disappointment washed over me as Kae-earn left without trying what I had prepared. However, I couldn’t hold back a busy person just for that.
Pushing aside my disappointment, I stood up to see him off.
“You don’t need to come out.”
“No, it’s only right. You are a guest in our house.”
Saying so, I accompanied him out of the room.
As we stepped outside, just as I had expected, it wasn’t a carriage waiting for him but a horse. Adelia once mentioned that he cherished a black horse, and it seemed to be the one.
Kae-earn glanced at me, then swiftly walked towards the horse and mounted it in a fluid, graceful motion that left me internally admiring his elegance. Truly, he was a man who carried an aura of dignity in everything he did.
“Then, I should be going.”
“Take care, Lord Kae-earn.”
He nodded in response to my last greeting and rode off from the mansion.
After he left, I realized I hadn’t been able to say any of the things I had planned to.
‘I should visit him soon.’
Knowing he would be busy after just returning to the capital, I decided it would be better to wait a bit before visiting.
‘I’ll bring the tea and cookies next time.’
And that time, I was determined to say everything I wanted to say as I walked back into the mansion.
Several days passed since Kae-earn’s visit.
During this time, I was relieved that Lucas didn’t visit again. I wondered if something happened to him, but I didn’t want to reach out first. The current situation was more comfortable for me.
‘It must be something urgent.’
I didn’t dwell on it, focusing instead on the scholarship for studying abroad that Evelyn had mentioned.
A week later, the announcement about the scholarship was posted all around the capital, becoming the talk of the town.
‘It’s really a good opportunity.’
The more I thought about it, the more I felt the urge to seize this chance.
Right. I can’t waste time like this.
Having spent the last week considering the practicalities and financial aspects, I decided not to delay any further and planned to meet Kae-earn as soon as possible.
‘He must be less busy by now.’
After arranging through Amy to visit the Laverion mansion, I finished my preparations and headed towards the bustling part of the city in a carriage.
If I were to leave for studies, today might be the last time I see him.
So, before leaving, I wanted to give him a small but heartfelt gift.
What should I buy?
He was a man with the wealth to buy anything in the world, so expressing my feelings with something expensive wouldn’t mean much to him. Besides, I didn’t have that kind of money.
I thought and thought, but couldn’t decide on a suitable gift.
So, I still hadn’t decided on a gift for him by the time I reached the bustling area.
Stepping out of the carriage, I quickly scanned the shops lined up on either side of the street.
However, nothing particularly stood out to me.
‘If only Adelia were here, it would have been easier.’
Shaking off my disappointment, I stepped into the busy street, determined to at least browse around.
But finding a gift for Kae-earn was no easy task.
Considering his tastes and discernment, I couldn’t just pick anything carelessly.
Even after visiting several shops, nothing caught my eye.
How long had I roamed the streets?
It was then, a little weary, as I passed a store, that something caught my attention.
‘Oh?’
A handkerchief displayed in the shop window drew my eye.
And immediately, I remembered the white handkerchief Kae-earn had given me at Adelia’s wedding.
‘A handkerchief would be a good choice.’
It’s always useful to carry around.
Relieved to have finally found a suitable gift, I hurried into the shop selling handkerchiefs.
“Welcome, miss. What are you looking for?”
The shop owner greeted me politely.
“I’d like to buy a handkerchief.”
“Is it for your own use, miss?”
“No, it’s a gift.”
“For whom, may I ask?”
“For a gentleman.”
“Ah, I see. Please, follow me to this section.”
Following the owner’s lead, I browsed through various handkerchiefs.
“This one is made of fine fabric imported from the west and…”
As the owner explained, each handkerchief seemed appealing.
After much thought, I chose a particularly soft, pure white handkerchief.
“I’ll take this one.”
Somehow, anything with color or patterns didn’t seem to suit him.
“You have a good eye. Would you like to add an embroidery to it?”
“Embroidery?”
“Yes. We can embroider the recipient’s name or the family crest to make it a unique gift.”
“Embroidery… How long will it take?”
“It depends on the design and size, but we have skilled staff, so it won’t take long. What would you like to have embroidered?”
“Please wait a moment.”
What should I have embroidered?
I initially thought of K for his name.
It seemed the most appropriate.
Or maybe the Laverion family crest?
But that seemed too complicated and slightly embarrassing.
I decided on the initials.
“Please embroider a K.”
“Understood.”
“Wait. Make it KH, please.”
“KH? Alright. That won’t take long. You can sit here or look around while you wait.”
“Thank you.”
I quickly changed it to KH.
While KH stood for his initials, it also secretly represented ‘K’ for Kae-earn and ‘H’ for Helena.
‘I can just say it’s a name, they’ll never know.’
It could have been a lingering affection for someone I liked.
Even as I was about to end things, I wanted to leave him with a trace of my fondness.
While the embroidery was being done, I browsed the store, which sold ties, belts, and other men’s accessories.
“The embroidery is done. Here, take a look.”
The shop owner soon brought the handkerchief with the embroidery.
The initials KH neatly embroidered in the bottom right corner made it feel truly unique.
“It’s perfect.”
“Isn’t it? I’ll wrap it up for you.”
“Please do.”
After receiving the wrapped handkerchief, I promptly completed the payment.
Despite its price, owing to the quality fabric, I had no regrets.
“Please visit us again. Thank you.”
With the gift purchased, it was time to head to Laverion’s residence.
I hummed a little tune, walking light-heartedly to the carriage, pleased with the good choice I had made.
Just as I was about to reach the carriage, something caught my attention.
“Oh? Lucas?”
I felt someone’s gaze from afar and instinctively looked towards a distant alleyway.
Unexpectedly, the person there was Lucas.
“It does look like Lucas.”
As I moved closer to confirm, the figure resembling Lucas startled and began to back away.
In what seemed like urgency, he quickly disappeared from view.
My Step-brother Is Obsessed With Me (Female-dominant)
A gentle female protagonist vs pitiful in the early stage, and a sick male protagonist in the later stage
Cheng Songer transmigrated into the body of a vicious cannon fodder female supporting character with the same name as her in a female-dominant novel.
In the original story, the cannon fodder female supporting character was inhumane, committing domestic violence, gambling excessively, being lustful, and even wanting to sell her stepbrother to a brothel for money.
As luck would have it, she just happened to transmigrate at this time.
Seeing Cheng Qingzhi biting his lip, enduring the tears in his eyes, looking pitiful, her heart softened.
She stuffed the money back into the Madam’s hand and reached out to him.
“Brother, come home with me.”
