“Thanks to that, the regular gatherings held there can’t be held anymore. Do you know how disheartened Hazel is because of that? Knowing how much she cherishes those gatherings, how could you do such a thing?”

Daniel continued in a contemptuous tone.

“Not only that, but that article even subtly dug up Hazel’s past. The wound of having lost a husband once before! Damn it!”

Bang! Unable to contain his anger, his fist struck the nearby wall.

Kisa’s body flinched at that violent act. An instinctive fear threatened to overwhelm her again.

“When I went to overturn that damn magazine company, they said the reporter who wrote the article had already left. They were quite quick, weren’t they? They put up a scarecrow, threw out some suitable bait, and quickly erased their traces.”

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, Daniel, whose eyes were clouded with anger, hadn’t yet noticed Kisa’s state.

“A young master blinded by a commoner widow while having the most beautiful fiancée in high society! Yes, that’s the kind of thing humans would swarm to like a pack of dogs! How hilarious and entertaining!”

Daniel’s voice grew louder, and proportionally, the fear in Kisa’s heart swelled.

“Fine, let’s say that’s how it is about me. The more they make me out to be the world’s biggest fool, the more justification Vanspelt gains to unilaterally announce the broken engagement.”

“…”

“But what does Hazel have to do with it! How could they touch that fragile and pitiful person!”

She was battling the urge to flee this place right now. She wanted to hurry back to her room and lock herself in. To go to a safe place, somewhere Daniel couldn’t follow.

“Hey, Kisa?”

Daniel spoke with a puzzled tone, seeing his counterpart silent with her head bowed low.

“If you have a mouth, say something.”

Yet still, when no answer came, he grabbed Kisa’s shoulder with his right hand and shook her. Her body trembled greatly at that somewhat rough touch.

“Kisa?”

A wave of nausea hit her. A strong desire to get away from Daniel’s side arose in Kisa’s heart. Yes, rather than showing weakness in front of this man again, it was better to retreat.

Anyway, the broken engagement was already a decided matter, and no amount of Daniel’s protests could stop it. Then, was there any use in dealing with him here? So this wasn’t running away.

Having reached this conclusion, Kisa swatted away Daniel’s hand with a ‘thwack’ and quickly walked towards the direction of the reception room’s exit.

Daniel shouted her name from behind, but she intended to ignore it. However, at that moment, a question flashed through her mind.

‘Am I not really running away?’

Why did she come here to meet Daniel in the first place? Because she wanted to give him a piece of her mind, even if just once.

But what use is it to become scared and avoid him just because he glares and raises his voice?

If she can only say what she wants to say when Daniel is beyond the door, when they’re not face to face, can that really be called giving him a piece of her mind?

The door through which she could escape this place was right in front of her, just a few more steps away, but Kisa didn’t grab the doorknob. No, she chose not to grab it.

“Kisa, don’t worry. Everything will be alright.”

The gentle encouragement Seyerd had given her the last time they met came back to her. Come to think of it, the broken engagement was an achievement gained through his power.

If it weren’t for Seyerd, Kisa wouldn’t have been able to persuade her father and wouldn’t have been able to break off her relationship with Daniel.

Then shouldn’t she at least deal with her former fiancé who came to confront her on her own?

If she avoided this now, the Count would take care of removing Daniel from this mansion, but she couldn’t hide in his shadow forever.

Having changed her mind, Kisa turned around and met Daniel’s gaze straight on.

Daniel had moved a few steps from where he was before, as if he had been thinking of chasing after Kisa. With a strange look in his eyes, he asked.

“What’s wrong with you suddenly? You don’t look well.”

Kisa slowly opened her mouth.

“It’s nothing.”

Now that she was facing him head-on, it wasn’t much. It wasn’t as scary as she had thought.

“Daniel, let me tell you one thing. Don’t touch my body carelessly anymore.”

“What?”

“Since the engagement is broken, we’re not in any kind of relationship now, right? And in fact, even if we were engaged, touching someone’s body without permission isn’t polite.”

At those words, Daniel’s anger, which had been quiet for a moment, awakened. He contorted his face.

“I wondered what you were going to say, and it’s just this?”

“Yes.”

“After thoroughly digging up Hazel’s weaknesses and throwing her in front of drooling wolves, you dare to talk about politeness. Impressive, truly impressive.”

“I never did such a thing.”

“Of course you’d deny it.”

It wasn’t denial, Kisa really had never been involved with Daniel’s article.

When the Count showed her that article, it was already after the magazine had been published. Kisa only properly read the article after returning to her room from the Count’s office.

“I saw your fiancé courting a widow.”

It was then that she realized once again that the words Mrs. Oshuana, whom she had met long ago at Melissa’s tea party, had spoken were correct.

But so what? What was she supposed to do about it?

Of course, Hazel’s past is personal history that has little to do with this matter. From her perspective, it might seem unfair that her past is being dragged out because of Kisa and Daniel’s engagement problem.

Someone might feel sympathy for Hazel. They might ask why she should endure such humiliation just for being close to a man who has a fiancée.

However, at least that person wasn’t Kisa Vanspelt. Kisa wasn’t that overflowing with sympathy, nor was she that composed. She was barely managing to resolve her own issues right in front of her.

It took considerable courage just to say what she wanted to say to her fiancé who was coming at her with false accusations.

“Daniel, you said it yourself before. That I just obey my father’s will.”

He raised one eyebrow as if wondering why that story was suddenly coming up.

“If I’m really just my father’s puppet doll as you say, then it’s unreasonable, isn’t it?”

“What is?”

“Both finding out about that woman you love’s past and exposing it in an article.”

For a moment, Daniel’s lips twitched.

“You, how dare you say that-”

“Then what? Do you really think I personally hired someone to investigate her past and then recruited some reporter to expose it? Really?”

Daniel couldn’t answer right away. He knew it too.

That Miss Vanspelt, who was just born with good bloodline and a pretty face, didn’t have such skill or ability. He was the one who had pointed that out most scathingly.

“I don’t understand. Let’s say that article was released by our family as you suspect. Then isn’t there someone else you should confront?”

“…”

“But why are you only grabbing me and yelling? Are you perhaps scared? To confront our father?”

“Shut your mouth.”

Daniel muttered ominously, but he couldn’t stop Kisa’s words.

“Right, it can’t be. How could the great Daniel Lowens be too scared to confront the person he thinks is the real culprit and instead take out his anger on an innocent person?”

A sigh escaped from his lips.

“You sure talk well. As if you have no responsibility at all.”

“What about you? Don’t you bear any responsibility for the wound of your precious friend? Mr. Daniel Lowens, who played around with another woman while having a fiancée.”

“I told you! Hazel and I are just friends.”

Daniel raised his voice again, but this time it wasn’t so frightening.

“Oh, really? That’s unfortunate then. It seems the world doesn’t call a woman you spend more time with than your fiancée just a friend.”

“Kisa!”

“If the world’s perception is wrong, don’t yell at me, yell at the people of the world.”

Until just a moment ago, he had been acting as if he would lash out, but now he’s just breathing heavily without a word. It seems he didn’t expect his stupid fiancée to come at him like this.

Kisa looked at the panting Daniel with cold eyes and then turned her head.

“I’ve said what I needed to say. It’s time for dinner now, so go back.”

Of course, Daniel didn’t budge. There was no reason to ask for his understanding, so Kisa tried to leave the reception room first.

“Why so proud? When you’re about to be sold off to an old man.”

Until she heard this from behind her.

“What did you say?”

Turning around at this incomprehensible statement, Kisa saw Daniel wearing an expression that seemed both angry and mocking.

“I didn’t know you were such a frightening woman.”

“What on earth are you talking about?”

“You’re siding with a father who’s trying to sell his own daughter to an old lecher out of blind jealousy.”

What is this? Though they were surely using the same language, Kisa couldn’t understand a word of what Daniel was saying.

“I’ll give you credit for your acting skills. That’s a truly adorable face pretending to know nothing.”

The man lowered his body to meet Kisa’s eye level and stroked her chin with his finger.

“But did you think I’d never find out? The fact that your father broke off our engagement to make you the queen of the Chamal Kingdom.”

Kisa forgot even that she should swat away Daniel’s hand that was touching her again at will. What she had just heard was too absurd.

But Daniel seems to have interpreted her silence, caused by absurdity, in a different way.

“Were you that jealous of Hazel, Kisa?”

His face was colored with a confident smile.