“You know, when I feel like crying, I think I should cry.”

Tears that had been held back by her subdued voice were about to overflow.

“So today, just for today, cry without thinking about anything.”
Jane’s affectionate words caused tears to flow from Seren’s eyes, seemingly like lies.

The tears, flowing silently, had now fallen to the point where they could wet his knees.

“Oh, this is strange. Haha. I’m really fine now, not bothered at all. Truly.”

Despite saying he was fine, Seren’s face was already stained with tears.

“Seren, I hope you cherish yourself. You are someone who can be loved just as you are. So don’t try to prove your worth by conforming to others’ standards.”

Perhaps due to Jane’s warm embrace, Seren couldn’t overcome the surging emotions and began to cry like a child.

Seren, who couldn’t let go of the ties to Cedric despite screaming in agony, finally realized.

For the past eight years, his life belonged entirely to Cedric.

His life was nothing but an empty shell controlled by Cedric.

Although not receiving Cedric’s approval didn’t mean the end of the world, Seren was desperate.

Even if Cedric treated him like an insect, there was no one left for him but Cedric.

He just wanted to be loved.

It was a bright moonlit night.

Seren, who had vowed not to cry again, wept bitterly in Jane’s embrace.

He collapsed not under the storm that overwhelmed him but under the warm sunlight.

On the deserted edge of the rotten lake, where no living being existed, a small flower bloomed.

A single flower took root on the stinking lake’s edge.

Miraculously, a flower had blossomed on the dead lake.

The flower was a ray of light purifying the rotted inner lake.

Seren’s suppressed identity wriggled and blossomed.

He, who was no more than a chess piece of Cedric, had stepped off the chessboard.

Rose’s actions that deviated from the original work changed not only Duke Artem’s life.

Meanwhile, Eric and his party heading south.

Dowana, who had been sitting at the very end, had somehow taken a seat between Eric and Belial.

Laughter echoed continuously in the carriage where Eric, Dowana, and Belial were seated.

Of course, the laughter belonged solely to Dowana; she was the only one laughing.

Eric, tired of hearing Dowana’s continuous chattering without anyone responding, eventually grew weary. Since there was no one to answer, Dowana kept on jabbering.

The carriage, which had set off when the sun was shining brightly, could only reach its destination when the night turned pitch dark.

The wheels, rolling endlessly, finally began to slow down.

“Oh my, looks like we’re about to arrive soon. Shall we take a walk and then go inside?”

Dowana, hanging onto Eric’s arm, shook her fox tail.

‘When we’re alone, I should ask about today’s events.’

She couldn’t ask in front of Belial; he would only mock her.

But Eric’s response was icy.

“I’m tired.”
He casually pushed Dowana aside and responded indifferently. Carriages carrying Eric’s entourage came to a stop one after another behind Eric’s carriage.

The knights who accompanied Eric dismounted from their horses and tied them to the stable posts.

Belial received an escort from the knights and stepped down from the carriage. Following him, Dowana reached out her hand, but there was no one to hold it.

“How dare they… ignore me?”

While Belial confidently accepted Dowana’s hand, as soon as she extended it, everyone avoided eye contact.

“Oh dear, Lady Dowana. Let me help you.”

At that moment, a red-haired knight approached Dowana. With a wink, he took Dowana’s hand.

Only then did Dowana smile, looking at the person holding her hand. But soon, her expression hardened.

“Of course, I run into him.”

He was Dowana’s unofficial friend, occasionally sought out when feeling lonely.

Though she wanted to reject him, she didn’t push him away. If she were to stumble down the stairs, the precious child inside her belly could be at risk.

The knight holding Dowana’s hand discreetly wiped her hand. His touch felt unpleasantly sticky.

He had no intention of joining Belial and Eric on their honeymoon escapade.

What mattered to Dowana was preventing the two from being together.

Only after descending from the carriage did Dowana reject his hand.

The red-haired knight continued to send subtle glances, but Dowana paid him no attention.

Ignoring him completely, Dowana exclaimed,

“What a palace-like lodging!”

While the mansion in the capital was splendid, it felt ordinary compared to this exotic annex owned by the Wens family.

“Now, all of this is mine.”

This palace-like annex and the luxurious mansion in the capital, both were now hers.

Confirming Eric’s wealth once again, Dowana couldn’t help but smile contentedly.