As the hardliners independently pushed forward with the revolution, the Whitney family, who had secretly supported the moderates, fell from grace, and the Rose Faction suffered a massive purge.

This incident temporarily subdued the hardliners’ momentum, but it was only for a moment.

As the Rose Faction’s power grew again, those who voiced their opinions strongly also increased.

With frequent internal conflicts, the Rose Faction elected representatives to speak for the moderate and hardline positions respectively.

From then on, all decisions were made with the consent of both representatives.

Currently, Augustus was the representative of the hardliners, and Cedric was the representative of the moderates.

Augustus was a man born as a farmer’s son with a tragic fate of having his land and family taken away by a lord.

Perhaps because of this, he showed an extremely radical tendency even among the hardliners, with exceptional animosity towards the nobility.

The attacks on Denver’s security forces to steal weapons and the burning of a small local lord’s castle were all his work.

Cedric was uncomfortable with his extreme operations, but allowed them on the condition of no casualties, fearing Augustus might cause even bigger trouble if not permitted at all.

Cedric kept making concessions to Augustus in this way.

But when it came to Jane, there was no compromise.

“Look here, Cedric. If she’s not on our side, it’s better to eliminate her. The Rose Faction members are struggling because of her betrayal. We need to show how we deal with traitors at this opportunity.”

“Augustus, Jane is not a traitor. She was never part of the Rose Faction in the first place.”

“Her father was part of the Rose Faction! Then the daughter must be the same!”

Augustus shouted, veins popping on his neck.

“Calm down, Augustus. Count Whitney was merely a sponsor.”

It was Cedric who had secured that sponsorship.

“If he sponsored us knowing what we were trying to do, then he’s part of the Rose Faction!”

Augustus was unreasonable. He seemed out of his mind with anger over the Rose Faction members arrested by Cain today.

Cedric sighed.

“Please calm down. Jane knows nothing. Not then, not now. So leave her alone.”

“Cedric, wake up. It doesn’t matter whether Jane knows or not. What matters is how she affects us. Don’t you see?”

Augustus pounded his chest.

“We need Jane! If Jane, with noble parents who made a noble sacrifice, joins the Rose Faction, it will change how others view the Rose Faction!”

Spit flew everywhere as the agitated Augustus spoke.

Cedric agreed with Augustus’s argument to some extent. That’s why he approached Jane 7 years ago.

Augustus’s voice grew louder and louder.

“But if she’s sided with Hastings, that queen’s dog, it’s a different story! It will break our morale. So she needs to disappear from this world.”

Augustus downed his lukewarm beer in one go.

“Cedric, it’s been 7 years. A whole 7 years we’ve waited for Jane to come to the Rose Faction on her own! I can’t wait any longer. Tell Jane clearly. Tell her to choose her side.”

“Jane knows nothing. She has no interest in the Rose Faction.”

Cedric was just as frustrated. He ruffled his hair and rubbed his face roughly, stretching the skin.

During the 7 years of keeping in touch with her, Cedric tried to make Jane favorable towards the Rose Faction.

But Jane became as wary as a rabbit facing a trap at the slightest hint of anything related to the Rose Faction.

She consciously avoided the Rose Faction. It was a natural reaction, given that her family had fallen due to connections with the Rose Faction.

But Augustus didn’t understand Jane at all.

“Cedric, we’ve already made a decision. If Jane doesn’t choose us, we won’t leave her alone.”

With a face flushed red from alcohol, Augustus uttered these chilling words without hesitation.

Cedric bit the inside of his mouth. There was no point in further conversation with someone so unreasonable.

“Give me more time. Time to persuade Jane.”

“We’ve given enough time. Now it’s time for us to test her.”

“Augustus, please.”

Cedric grasped Augustus’s thick hand tightly. The hand covered in calluses seemed to represent his harsh life.

Augustus turned his head, avoiding Cedric’s desperate gaze. Then he drank Cedric’s alcohol as well.

“Ugh, how frustrating. Both of you!”

Augustus burst out shouting.

“One month, that’s it. I can’t compromise any more than that.”

Augustus delivered his ultimatum.

“But in return, you must agree to whatever we do within that time, no matter what.”

Cedric, thinking only of protecting Jane, nodded quickly.

In reality, it was a negotiation that left only a thread for Cedric.

* * *

Joseph, taking a hint from Jane, chose the best horse at the Two-O Ranch.

“You chose the best horse. Clever.”

Having heard how Joseph came to ride horses together, Cain praised him in a very awkward tone.

Haley, who was present, couldn’t help but ask, “Is that praise?” given his stiff attitude.

However, Joseph took it as sincere praise. He even shed tears of emotion and burrowed into Cain’s arms.

Cain’s pants became wet with the child’s tears and snot. Cain quickly made a displeased expression, but still didn’t forcibly push the child away.

Instead, Jane intervened at the right moment.

“Joseph, shall we name your horse?”

Joseph quickly shifted his attention, missing the deep furrow in Cain’s brow.

The horse was named ‘Jay’. It was the result of Joseph’s insistence on naming it similar to his own name.

At first, he wanted to name it exactly the same, which earned him a sharp glare from Cain.

“You seem to have enjoyed your outing.”

Haley said while receiving and organizing Jane’s outer garments.

“I did.”

“What happened?”

They bought a horse for Joseph, and the child was extremely happy.

And riding a horse after a long time was also an enjoyable experience.

The best part was the gradually closer relationship between Cain and Joseph.

Cain wasn’t a kind and affectionate father, but at least he showed efforts to fulfill his duties.

And Joseph.

‘He really likes Cain, probably because he’s his father.’

Despite Cain not being overly friendly, Joseph was devoted to him. That unconditional affection would likely melt Cain’s heart before long.

‘By the time I leave here, Cain and Joseph will be close enough.’

Jane’s face turned bitter.

“Did something unpleasant happen too?”

Haley approached closer and peered at Jane’s face.

Jane touched her cheek and shook her head.

“No, not at all. It was only enjoyable.”

Let’s put aside the matter with Cedric for now.

‘It’s not something I can do anything about right away.’

It wouldn’t be easy to meet him secretly. But given the content, Jane’s heart felt heavy.

Jane deliberately smiled more brightly.

“That’s good then. Are you going straight down to the dining room?”

After a moment’s consideration, Jane shook her head.

“Is Mrs. Burnett in her room?”

“Probably? Should I go check?”

“I’ll go see for myself. I’ll go to the dining room with Mrs. Burnett, so you go about your business.”

Jane separated from Haley and headed towards Mrs. Burnett’s room.

Jane ran into Mrs. Burnett just as she was coming out of the room and gestured towards the inside of the room, saying,

“Let’s talk.”

“I have nothing to say to you.”

Mrs. Burnett brushed past Jane. Or rather, she tried to.

“I can’t pay for the diamond set.”

If only Jane hadn’t said those words.

“What?”

Mrs. Burnett raised her eyes fiercely. Jane slowly turned her head to meet those eyes.

Eyes tainted with greed.

“The bill for the diamond set you ordered from Mr. Luke Pearl’s shop this time came to the Hastings household. You wrote the Hastings name by mistake, right?”

“…Let’s talk inside.”

Mrs. Burnett gritted her teeth and entered the room first.

Jane followed, smirking as she entered.

“You’ve done quite a lot so far.”

Mrs. Burnett, who had been pacing around the room, stopped.

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. Since the late Duke and Duchess passed away, the amount of money you and the Baron Gillian’s family have taken from the Hastings family is enormous.”

“Cain said it was okay.”

“Including the amount?”

At those words, Mrs. Burnett pressed her lips tightly.

‘My guess was right. She never specifically told Cain. She probably just said she needed it vaguely.’

“Is there a need to tell every little detail to a child handling big affairs?”

Jane found Mrs. Burnett’s hypocrisy disgusting. She pretended to care for Cain while deceiving him.

Jane couldn’t forgive this woman who had fattened herself by exploiting Cain’s goodwill towards her. To be precise, she didn’t want to forgive her.

But she disliked Cain getting hurt even more.

“Creating double ledgers isn’t a small matter.”

Mrs. Burnett’s face cracked, not having expected Jane to have uncovered that much.

“…What do you want?”

“Never interfere in Hastings affairs again. And pack your bags and leave immediately. Don’t even think about coming back up, no matter what Cain says.”

“You, you, are you trying to drive a wedge between Cain and me? I’m Cain’s aunt!”

“Yes! You’re his aunt! Is that why you deceived Cain and stole?”

When Mrs. Burnett shouted, Jane stood her ground and shouted back.

“Stealing! If what I did was stealing, then your parents? They must be murderers who killed my brother and sister-in-law!”

“How dare you say such nonsense!”

Jane glared at Mrs. Burnett. She could tolerate being insulted herself, but it was hard to bear her parents being slandered.

“Ha, do you really not know, or are you pretending not to know? How the late Duke Hastings! How the Duchess! Do you really not know how they died?”

“No, I don’t know. If you know, please tell me.”

Jane crossed her arms across her chest at Mrs. Burnett’s audacious attitude. Mrs. Burnett burst into laughter.

“So you didn’t know. Yes, you didn’t know, that’s why you could confront me so brazenly.”

A bitter smile hung on Mrs. Burnett’s lips.

“Listen well. Cain’s parents, that is, my brother and sister-in-law!”