It was a reasonable suspicion.

The way Hertian looked at Elenore was markedly different.

While his gaze upon me was impenetrable, the look he gave Elenore brimmed with affection, tinged with nostalgia and memories.

He had never shown such an expression even to Osen, whom he had spent much time with.

If Liri were here, she would have been able to tell more accurately.

‘Still, that face is unmistakably that of a man in love.’

I was full of confidence.

Even though I’ve always been single, other people’s love lives are clear to me.

‘But why didn’t something happen between Hertian and Elenore?’ This question was quickly answered.

“Elenore, you are married, aren’t you?”

Elenore, who had already downed three glasses of wine in the dining room, widened her eyes in surprise.

“Is it that obvious? Oh my, I must be getting old. I have been getting more wrinkles lately.”

“Your face would be better if you didn’t roll around in the dirt.”

Hertian playfully said this as he saw her reflection in the dishware.

As I suspected, Elenore was a married woman whom Hertian had unrequited love for.

“If you have any secrets to becoming beautiful like you, please tell me. My husband keeps nagging about my dull skin.”

“I don’t know if it will help, but I can give you some herbs that are good for skin when mixed with wash water.”

“There’s such a herb?”

“Plenty. If you need something for wounds or recovery, just let me know. I’ll get it for you.”

“Your Highness.”

She called me with a disappointed face, then asked seriously.

“Would you divorce Hertian and marry me?”

Upon hearing that, Hertian seemed to choke and coughed.

“If you came to ruin someone’s life, go back to the palace.”

“If I knew you were this beautiful and kindhearted, I would have stolen you from your husband.”

The joke exchanged between them made me laugh out loud.

Elenore truly was a woman worth loving. Open and straightforward, without any intention of hiding anything.

She was the complete opposite of me, brimming with her own unique charm. Was she very different from the adorable, shy Violet?

Hertian had every reason to like her. And me, sitting beside her, also found myself smiling naturally.

“Is she already mine?”

Hertian was still performing well in front of the woman he loved.

I sighed silently, shaking my head from side to side.

It’s clear as day. He couldn’t even show that he liked her in front of Elenore.

“Do people change when they get married? Are you the person I know?”

No, it’s not that, Lady Elenore.

Knowing the circumstances, I felt Hertian’s situation was quite miserable.

A pitiable man.

“How long have you two known each other?”

I interrupted the two who were exchanging jokes.

“Um. I haven’t counted, but I think it’s over ten years.”

“12 years.”

“You remember that?”

Elenore asked in surprise.

Hertian nonchalantly took a sip of his wine.

“I marked it.”

A sigh escaped from my innermost being.

You should have said, ‘I remember everything about you!’

Good at pretending to be in love but hopeless when it actually comes to it.

Why can’t these handsome men in novels get love right? It was a pity.

“Anyway, the joke is—”

“It’s not a joke. I don’t care how long we’ve known each other.”

“Do you care about anything? You’re the guy who’s always soullessly catching swords.”

“I do. You just don’t know.”

My heart almost jumped, causing me to nearly drop the fork I was eating dessert with.

‘Elenore, you’re the only one who doesn’t know!’

So this is why Betty reads romance novels.

In fact, I didn’t look into romance for a while after reading ‘Hoping for Your Desperate Regret,’ which serves as the background to this place.
The reason the intensity of Serdis’ karma towards Violet was weak was because he had loudly accumulated it, making several victims in the process. As someone who had never dated, the mere thought of romance made my skin crawl.

Yet watching someone else’s love affair for the first time was unexpectedly interesting.

Before I knew it, I was in spectator mode.

“Come to think of it, you were quite lively when you attended the academy.”

At Eleanor’s words, I looked back at Hertian.

“Did the Duke attend the academy?”

But he stiffened at my question. Hertian’s dark pupils noticeably wavered. Just as I was about to question this, Eleanor answered.

“Marca…”

“I did. Briefly enrolled but had to quit due to some issues at the castle.”

And even before Eleanor’s answer could finish, Hertian cut her off. She looked at him with puzzled eyes.

Their gazes met briefly, then Eleanor lowered her eyes and closed her mouth.

Afterward, a suffocating silence took over the dining room.

I was lost in the sudden desolate atmosphere.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

Hertian rose from his seat, gesturing to Eleanor. Then, he turned to me with a polite, albeit fake, smile.

“My lady, you must be tired from receiving guests. Please take a rest.”

I could only nod.

Somehow, there didn’t seem to be room for me between the two.

(This is a time marker.)

At the training ground of Blanche Duchy.