Young master, my heart sank.

‘Did Mother perhaps know where I went today……’

The numerous questions quickly crumbled before Mother’s unfocused gaze.

Mother seemed to be just recalling some moment from the past. As the doctor had said.

It was a coincidence that she brought up the young master’s story now, but it wasn’t that strange.

“The young master…… why?”

“Because I’m grateful to him. At dawn when the lord was approaching……”

Mother’s face, consumed by fear, was vivid in my eyes.

Mother continued speaking weakly in that state.

“Because he saved us.”

“……”

“At that time, I was so frantic I couldn’t even properly say thank you……”

Thank you? For what exactly?

The incomprehensible words narrowed down to one thing as I pieced them together.

One dawn, the lord tried to do something to Mother, and the young master helped her.

Of course, Mother said this in a state where her memory and mind weren’t intact, so it might just be words born from confusion.

But…….

The evening I returned to my room.

Thoughts tangled complexly, about to burst.

Trying to organize them, I took out the dresses one by one and hung them in the closet, and neatly placed the changer on top of the closet.

Looking at the suddenly glamorous wardrobe, my complicated thoughts solidified coldly.

That man is someone who gives me this kind of gaudy trash instead of medicine.

Is it even possible for such a person to help anyone?

It must be Mother’s confusion. Or…… just something from a day when he was absorbed in playing hero.

A rather materialistic thought spread hotly over my cooled head.

‘How many pills could I get if I sold those?’

A number far short of the remaining pills immediately came to mind.

Even those expensive items are just pretty trash to me in the end.

I turned my gaze away from the dazzling sight that was unpleasant to look at and closed the door, finally able to take a long breath.

As I sat down in front of the closet, memories of that man, pushed aside beyond the door, came flooding in.

The sultry whispers of the man who said he loved me.

The gaze that stared at me intently.

The heat of the man transmitted through our interlocked fingers…….

What on earth was that man thinking to act that way towards me?

With each exhale, I pushed away those things one by one.

Though it was paradoxical for me to think this way when I had openly tried to seduce him, it really was incomprehensible.

What was the intention behind uttering words of love with that mouth that suited saying he would kill me.

What was that man thinking as he smiled while holding my hand.

And…… was that man really involved in the change of Alphonse’s lord?

As the flood of questions began to swell like a balloon.

I quickly took out a papyrus and began writing a letter.

The letter that began with formal greetings asking how they had been, ended with questions about Alphonse’s lord, filled with sentences that pressed down my feelings.

On top of the enclosed letter, I wrote Mary’s name and address neatly.

After returning to the capital, life flowed as usual.

As if the trip to Alphonse with that man had been just a dream.

The tracking device project progressed rapidly after finding a sponsor.

Once investment funds came in, the magic tower reviewed everything positively and accelerated the research.

In the midst of the busy daily life, the letter sent to Mary gradually faded from memory.

On my way back to the dormitory after visiting the magic tower as usual.

Someone blocked my path.

“Are you Miss Yuriel?”

How does he know my name? I frowned, but the man paid no heed.

There were quite a few people around.

After calculating that nothing would happen, I turned my gaze.

“Yes. What is it?”

“You’ll need to come with me.”

The man, who appeared to be around my age, had the face of a pretty boy.

I tried to recall if I knew the face, but couldn’t remember at all.

It would be difficult not to remember if I had seen him once, so he must be someone I’m seeing for the first time.

“Who are you?”

The man hesitated for a moment before revealing his identity.

“I am a knight serving Lady Fiocell Perrot.”

Lady Fiocell Perrot?

That man’s fiancée, whom I had only seen in newspapers, briefly crossed my mind.

The public often gossiped about how the engagement must be over since there was no more interaction between the Perrot and Blanchet families.

Occasionally, when I saw such news in print, my heart would race with the absurd delusion that perhaps I was the cause.

In reality, it’s not even a laughable delusion.

To that man, I’m nothing but a mere toy.

There’s no way the heir of a great noble family would ruin his plans over someone like me.

The most rational guess was that the interests of both families simply didn’t align, or there were other reasons mixed in.

Either way, I selfishly thought it was fortunate, on one hand.

And for some time now, I had been consciously distancing myself from anything related to her.

Because it was uncomfortable, feeling pricked by guilt as if I had committed theft.

Fearing that such unnecessary emotions might ruin everything I would eventually do, and must do, with that man.

But why is she looking for me?

‘I thought Lady Fiocell wouldn’t even know of my existence……’

The man who introduced himself as a knight stared intently at me as I grew pale.

It felt with my whole body that this was something I couldn’t avoid anyway.

“Let’s go.”

The man bowed his head and immediately took the lead.

My heart raced steeply and my breathing was irregular the entire time I walked following the guide.

Tens of thousands of thoughts stirred my head at will.

No matter how much I thought about it, there was only one reason Lady Fiocell would call for me.

Because that man is the only connection between her and me.

How much does she know?

It was just laughable, how even in this moment I was moving like a thief, looking around.

Two elegant coffee cups were neatly placed on the table.

Hot steam split the air, not matching the cooled space.

There wasn’t a single person around.

Recalling the bustle of late afternoon, it was clear that Lady Fiocell had already given instructions.

Seated in the center where sunlight flickered uniquely in the dark space, she was aristocratic in her very bearing.

Intelligent platinum blonde hair with a silky soft texture under the fedora, a snow-white face that must have been groomed under a veil at all times, ruby-red eyes like polished garnets.

All of it emitted a uniquely lofty light.

As much as the reputation of the Perrot family.

It felt quite different from when I had seen portraits drawn by some painters in books.

The woman who resembled a splendid rose in the paintings felt truly like a person from another world when seen in person.

Her red eyes, the same as that man’s but with a much higher saturation, brimmed with vitality like a freshly bloomed rose.

I place that person beside her in my mind.

The two people with completely different hair colors and seemingly similar eye colors would surely look good together.

They would be a perfect pair beyond compare.

Even as the steam cooled, she silently gazed at Yuriel without a word.

Only after an embarrassingly long time passed did she open her mouth.

“You probably know why I called you, don’t you?”

Fiocell looked at Yuriel’s reflection on the table with her eyes lowered elegantly.

She’s a clear and pretty wench.

Despite having vivid red hair, she exudes a pure aura that stimulates protective instincts with her somewhat fragile appearance.

Her slender and delicate body, contrasting with my own voluptuous one, is just like a swaying willow branch.

I had guessed from the first report I received.

That the woman that man chose over me would be quite beautiful.

Yes. A beautiful and base toy, that’s all she should have been.

Even when I heard he occasionally called her to hotels, when I heard he took this wench with him on the way to Alphonse……

I thought all those actions were just a series of processes to enjoy the night.

Even if not, I was certain he would return after a seasonal fling passed.

But…….

That colorless man visits shops for this wench, chooses gifts, chooses clothes.

And then takes this wench along to other places…….

The interpretation narrowed to one thing.

That man has now inclined his heart, not just his body, towards this woman.

Ah, of course, such stories didn’t leak out at all thanks to my keeping people’s mouths shut, but they flowed directly to my ears intact.

‘Since when did such a relationship form?’

‘From the moment he foretold a marriage without any emotion for me?’

That must be it. One thing is certain.

The reason for that man’s elegant and cold-blooded face is all because of this wench.

Does that man show a different face in front of this wench than he does in front of me?

The feeling is nauseating just to imagine.

Of course, I don’t have the right to question that man about it since we’re not even married.

It would be the same even after marriage.

So nothing will change by talking to that man.

I just need to remove this wench from that man’s sight.

The wench I thought would be brazen was sitting like a weak small animal, avoiding my gaze.

Fiocell looked at that figure calmly and raised the corners of her mouth crookedly.

“You surely know what kind of relationship I have with Young Master Cassian.”

Yuriel’s body trembled.

It felt like the lady was strangling my neck.

Despite the fact that she was sitting across the table at a distance of over one step.

Though I had already anticipated these words on my way here, actually hearing them was a different matter entirely.

The sound of my heart rising to my chest paralyzed my brain.

“I’ll get straight to the point.”

Fiocell took a sip of coffee and leisurely put down the cup.

The clinking sound spread over the teacup.

“As you know, that man and I are to be married.”

Her elegant tone was thoroughly aristocratic.

“A few toys slipping in between noble couples, it’s a common thing so I was going to ignore it, but……”

Fiocell inwardly sneered at Yuriel, who turned pale anew at the mention of toys.

It seemed subduing the wench would be easier than expected.

“That won’t do. I like that man’s style.”

“……”

“Leave, from his side.”

As Fiocell wiggled her finger, someone from behind brought a snow-white envelope.

Fiocell placed the envelope on the table and pushed it towards Yuriel.

“This should be sufficient compensation, don’t you think?”

The sound of tapping the envelope sharply echoed through the unusually quiet space.

“You’d better think carefully.”

Fiocell smiled brilliantly as she looked at Yuriel’s eyes shaking aimlessly.

“This will be the last mercy I bestow.”

Blood was tinged at the end of her rose-like smile.

“I trust you’re not so stupid as to not know you’ll be discarded anyway.”

Fiocell stood up, wiping away the smile that had been lingering on her lips.