Carson pulled her from the water, and in his mansion she ate, slept, and was fully dressed in newly washed clothes. She never imagined that a time like this would come.

Moreover, he also mentioned that he had been on a boat with her. It was like a buoy floating in the vast ocean meeting a constellation that guided the way. So, one could only say it was like walking in a dream….

“Was there… Sir Joseph as well?”

Suddenly, Ines’s dream shattered at the sound of that horrible name.

“Yes, he came as Count Graham’s escort.”

“My goodness… He must be quite a capable person.”

Ines responded with a wry smile. In some ways, he was indeed a capable person. Joseph was someone who could do anything to get what he wanted. The most horrifying thing he had wanted was to continue their married life for more than six months.

During their marriage, Joseph was always busy and couldn’t spend time with Ines, but he would touch her every night. She thought that was love back then. She never thought it was a dirty and disgusting lust.

The horrible memories rushed back, and Ines shook her head to erase the thoughts.

“How did you end up dancing with the lord?”

“Why do you look more excited than I do?”

“Of course I’m excited.”

Susan leaned closer to Ines as if she had something more confidential to say, even though they were alone in the carriage.

“I found it.”

“What?”

“His portrait.”

“Really?”

“Why would I lie about that?”

Ines smiled at Susan’s imitation of her words.

“It was very hard to find. I had to get a portrait drawn from a magazine that is only available in the capital.”

“Really?”

“The artist is no beginner either.”

Ines felt a flutter in her chest for the first time in a while. Looking back, she realized that she had been unable to define exactly what she was feeling. But Carson was the exception. Just thinking about him continued to give her a pleasant thrill.

His portrait was to be carefully placed inside her Bible. Not long ago, her mother had beautifully crafted a cover for Ines’s Bible. It was wonderfully embossed with the family crest and Ines’s name on soft sheepskin.

The cover she received in Romfield had been made of roughly hewn thin wood. Every time Ines touched the Bible her mother made, she felt anew that she had really returned to the past.

“But… Miss, I have a rather awkward question.”

“It’s okay. Go ahead.”

“You won’t meet Sir Joseph anymore, will you?”

At Susan’s question, Ines considered Joseph’s usefulness. Now that she knew his intentions, should she continue to meet him?

She knew his intentions but not exactly how he would act. She didn’t know why Earl Graham wanted to steal a manor by disguising Joseph as dead.

If things went as they were, Joseph would soon receive a baronet title and promptly send Ines a proposal letter. A family that received a proposal had a duty to refuse or accept it within one month, and if not, to get engaged or married within six months.

“Well, what should I do?”

But her contemplation did not last long. It was interrupted by an unwelcome visitor who stopped the carriage.

(This is a time marker.)

Ines stared at Sir Joseph standing before her with a furious expression.

“Didn’t you promise me?”

“What promise?”

“The vow that you would never dance with another man.”

“Oh.”

‘Did I really make that promise?’

If she had been Ines of that time, she might have made such a promise according to his words. It was a meaningless and futile promise she did not remember now.

“But Joseph, how can I socialize and not dance with anyone?”

“It’s a promise you made just a year ago.”
Ines chose to comfort him rather than scold him. There was no need to show him all of Ines’s thoughts, as everything was still uncertain. If she indicated that she would not marry, it would have clearly exposed her dishonesty.

“Of course it was, but I was in a situation where I couldn’t help it.”

“A situation you couldn’t help?”

“The lord asked me to dance in gratitude for saving his sister. How could I refuse that? Right?”

“But people didn’t think so.”

“What do people think?”

“I don’t want to say it myself. And is it true that the dress you are wearing today was sent by the lord?”

“It’s just a gift.”

“But! Everyone said today that the lord’s gaze at you was unusual.”

Ines looked at him with unfamiliar eyes as he blushed with genuine anger. If she hadn’t seen the misdeeds of his daughter and the Count of Graham herself, it would have been an act convincing enough to deceive her that he was blinded by jealousy.

“Joseph, no matter how angry you are, you should refer to him as the lord.”

“Is that important in this situation?”

Ines suddenly felt fatigue. To escape the situation quickly, she slowly reached out and slightly grabbed Joseph’s clenched fist. His eyes seemed to be hit by a wave.

“People just talk. You know that too, Joseph. How cruel humans can be about others. They fabricate stories if it’s amusing to the nobles.”

“…….”

“Ah, do you not yet know the nature of the nobility?”