When Lily left without even glancing at me, as if running away, Herald’s eyes narrowed. His eyes, filled with displeasure, followed Lily’s trail.

He was a bit surprised by the sudden reunion, as he hadn’t expected Lily to be at Count Stacy’s mansion, but he had no intention of acknowledging her. If it became known that they were acquainted, it would put Lily in an awkward position. It would be equally troublesome for Herald.

Lily probably had the same thought and ignored him as she passed by, but it still didn’t feel good. Herald twisted his lips, feeling a bit annoyed that she couldn’t even give him a nod of recognition, instead fleeing as if she’d seen a ghost.

If Kennedy hadn’t been holding his arm, Herald would have chased after Lily. He would have grabbed her small shoulders and asked why she was ignoring him.

It was a ridiculous thought. It was funny to think of asking such a question when he had ignored Lily as well, but he was still curious about how she would react. He felt a bit regretful that he couldn’t confirm it.

“I’m sorry, Young Duke.”

Herald, who had been persistently following Lily’s trail with lingering regret, turned his head when he heard a voice so fragile it seemed about to shatter.

Kennedy’s large eyes were filled with tears. Seeing the transparent droplets sparkling, the image of Lily crying profusely while drunk briefly flashed before his eyes.

“You must have been very surprised by the sudden situation. I’m truly sorry.”

“It’s nothing.”

It was true that the situation was sudden and he was surprised, but it wasn’t Kennedy’s fault. He was surprised purely because of Lily.

No, the fact that he met Lily again at the Stacy Count’s mansion was also one of the reasons he was surprised, so perhaps it was related to Kennedy Stacy after all.

More than that, Herald was curious about who had called Liliana Benjamin here and why. According to his expectations, it didn’t make sense for her to be at the Stacy Count’s mansion.

The relationship between Lily and Kennedy was also puzzling. Judging by Kennedy’s reaction, they seemed to be friends, but seeing Lily draw a line as if telling Kennedy not to act familiar was confusing.

“Are you acquainted with the lady we just met? You called her name quite familiarly.”

If you’re curious, just ask. Herald asked casually as he climbed the stairs again, as if it were nothing important, but Kennedy awkwardly smiled like someone who had been caught out and glanced in the direction Lily had disappeared.

“Ah, um… Yes. We were friends.”

“‘Were friends’ implies you’re not anymore. Why? Did you have a fight?”

“No. We didn’t fight, but…”

Kennedy trailed off, as if unsure how to answer.

If Kennedy had fought with Lily, she would have blamed everything on Lily for their ruined relationship and claimed her own innocence. But the fact that she couldn’t answer immediately suggested they hadn’t fought.

Or perhaps the relationship had soured entirely due to Kennedy’s fault, so she couldn’t bring herself to blame Lily.

Herald thought it might be the latter, seeing as Lily was the one drawing the line first.

Then is my guess correct after all?

Herald’s golden eyes sparkled sharply as they captured Kennedy’s pondering expression. Unfortunately or fortunately, Kennedy, not noticing those eyes, opened her lips, which were beautifully painted with rouge, as if she had thought of a good excuse.

“We didn’t fight… We just grew apart because we were both too busy to meet. You must have friends like that too, Young Duke.”

Her attitude of trying to gloss over it somehow because she couldn’t tell the real reason added credibility to Herald’s hypothesis.

“For that to be the case, the lady’s attitude towards you seemed quite sharp.”

Herald probed further, wanting to gain not just credibility but certainty, but Kennedy proved to be a tougher opponent than expected.

“Was it? I didn’t notice.”

Kennedy answered nonchalantly as if she really didn’t know anything, then looked at Herald with coy eyes.

“Seeing how you keep talking about Baroness Benjamin, it seems you’re quite taken with her.”

More than with you. Herald swallowed his true feelings and smiled gentlemanly.

“That’s not the case, but if I’ve offended you, I apologize.”

“Then invite me to the Maximilian Duke’s mansion next time. I’d like to see the rose greenhouse that the Duchess loves so much.”

The rose greenhouse, which Duchess Maximilian cherished like her own child, was off-limits to anyone except the gardeners tending to it and the Maximilian family members. Even Crown Prince Austin had only seen it from the outside, never having gone inside.

So wanting to enter the rose greenhouse meant she wanted to marry Herald and become a member of the Maximilian ducal family.

“Yes. I’ll invite you when the opportunity arises.”

It was an impossible dream, but Herald let her continue dreaming instead of revealing the reality. That was how he would get one step closer to his own dream.

Herald’s kindness towards Kennedy was solely to achieve his goal; there wasn’t even a speck of any other reason.

All the way from Count Stacy’s mansion to Baron Benjamin’s mansion, Lily’s mind was filled with thoughts of that man. The man she had spent one impulsive night with, knowing neither his name nor his status.

As she recalled the memory, the firm muscles she had glimpsed between the folds of his snow-white robe came to mind, and Lily cupped her slightly reddened cheeks. Having never shared a bed with her husband even though she was married, it was the first time she had directly seen a man’s bare skin.

…It was also the first time I had slept with a man.

Lily couldn’t remember at all how she had rolled around in bed with that man. The last thing she remembered was kissing him, and everything after that was as black as if ink had been poured on a drawing paper.

Should she consider this fortunate or unfortunate?

She wasn’t sure which it was, but what was certain was that she didn’t want to be involved with that man anymore. Even recalling that day felt uncomfortable, and she had been trying to forget it, but all her efforts had been in vain after meeting that man again.

“I just need to forget again.”

Lily squeezed her eyes shut and tried to forget everything that had happened with that man, but it was futile. Rather, the memories became clearer, driving her crazy. The memories that had gone back to the distant past now came rushing back, recalling even the events that had just happened at Count Stacy’s mansion.

Naturally, the image of Kennedy Stacy, arm in arm affectionately with that man, came to mind.

It was irritating how she had ignored him earlier, pretending not to know him, and now acted familiar, but more than that, she was curious about his relationship with that man.

Judging by their appearance, they seemed like lovers or fiancés, but the fiancé Liliana remembered for Kennedy was someone else.

Shorter than that man, less handsome than that man, and less… than that man.

“What am I doing right now.”

Liliana shook her head in disbelief at herself for comparing Kennedy’s fiancé to that man.

She wasn’t sure what kind of relationship that man and Kennedy had, but it certainly didn’t seem ordinary. That’s probably why Kennedy was arm in arm with him even at her own house.

“Did her fiancé change in the meantime?”

It had been almost two years since she stopped paying attention to the Stacy Count’s family, so Kennedy’s fiancé could have changed in that time.

If that were the case, it would mean Liliana had spent a night with the fiancé of someone who was once her friend.

“This is a mess.”

Even the plot of a novel wouldn’t be this convoluted. Liliana laughed wryly as she rubbed her face. This gave her another reason to forget that man.

So forget it. Forget everything, Liliana. You can do it.

Liliana hugged her knees to her chest, burying her face as she muttered to herself like a self-hypnosis. Fortunately, it had some effect, but the problem was that not long after, she had another reason to think about the man.

It was when Liliana arrived at the Benjamin Baron’s mansion and was undressing to bathe.

“Ah.”

Feeling a stinging pain on her knee where her clothes had brushed against it, Liliana frowned and checked the wound on her knee. It was a wound she had gotten a few days ago when she had run out of the mansion, unable to bear Fredrick’s verbal abuse, and had fallen.

The wounds on her palms and elbows weren’t severe and had healed quickly, but the knee wound still had a scab. It was thanks to that man applying medicine to the wound that it had healed this much; otherwise, it might have become infected and left a scar.

“…I should probably thank him for this.”

She wanted to express her gratitude for the help she received, but the problem was that to do so, she would have to speak with that man. If they started talking, that night might be mentioned, so even expressing thanks wasn’t easy.

“I’ll have to say it later when I get the chance.”

Though she didn’t know when that chance would come.

Liliana erased the thoughts of the man that had resurfaced and entered the bathroom. After washing herself clean in water warm enough to make her body feel languid, she returned to the bedroom and stopped in her tracks when she saw Fredrick sitting on the sofa. Her hand tightly gripped the slightly open front of her robe.

“…Why are you here?”

“Is there anywhere I can’t go in my own mansion?”

Liliana was about to add, “What are you doing in a bedroom with no owner?” but swallowed her words at Fredrick’s reply and made a different request.

“If you have something to say to me, could you wait outside for a moment? I’ll change quickly and come out.”

Despite Liliana’s request, Fredrick didn’t budge. Instead, he sank deeper into the sofa, crossed his arms, and looked her up and down.

Liliana’s face hardened at the extremely unpleasant gaze. Her hand gripping the robe tightened.

“What… are you doing right now?”

Liliana asked in a trembling voice, but Fredrick answered with his characteristic shameless smile, as if he didn’t care about her emotions at all.

“I thought you had an unremarkable body, but seeing it directly, I’m a bit surprised that it’s better than I expected.”