A thin beam of light drew a stripe on the floor through the gap in the blackout curtains covering the window. Edwin, who had woken up early, was buried in the seconds ticking by without ringing the bell.
Vivian Eveline, who would appear right on time along with the servants, would first open the curtains on the bedroom side, and then their eyes would meet. Then the awkward and embarrassing, that hesitant smile would naturally be imagined.
Of course, recalling Vivian’s sullen face all night last night, it seemed she would act roughly and coarsely, unlike the usual memory.
Even such imagination filled Edwin’s morning with anticipation.
But today was an exception.
Although it was not even time yet, Vivian, who opened the door fiercely and entered, was truly at the level of barging in.
There was no one who would dare to burst into Edwin’s room, without knocking or without warning.
“Your Grace. Your Grace! Wake u… Oh, you’re already awake.”
Vivian, who had rushed straight to the bed without hesitation, committed countless acts of rudeness and reached the pinnacle of today’s misconduct by grabbing the manor owner’s arm and shaking him awake. As Edwin sat up unsteadily, she straightened her shoulders and waist as if there had been no vulgar and disrespectful attitude just now.
“Your Grace, I just…”
“The curtains first.”
There was a need to remind Vivian, whose tone was tinged with urgency. Ah, Vivian, who let out a small sound, went around the bed to stand by the window and opened the curtains. Then the fresh and noble color of morning settled throughout the bedroom.
“So what’s the urgent matter that made you barge in this morning?”
“Do you know what I just saw?”
“What did you see that…”
Vivian’s face seen under the bright sunlight was paler than expected. It was a complexion that would make one curious about what had ruined her day.
“I discovered Theo’s letter that arrived yesterday, this morning.”
That irritating name was confronted first thing in the morning.
These days, it was rare for the two of them to exchange letters. To the extent that it could be considered that contact had been cut off, to the extent that it was embarrassing to even call it a frequency.
Theo’s letters to Vivian were mostly dealt with at Royce’s level. It was because even the detestable handwriting that asked about welfare, worried, and comforted in detail had become tiresome. Royce had no particular words about Theo’s letters, and if they had safely reached Vivian, he expected there wouldn’t be any particularly surprising news.
“When you sent Miss Windler out of the mansion, did you really send her out with nothing? Is it true that you sent her out with just Marian, without proper lodgings and even a small safety measure for Miss Windler to stay?”
He pondered the reason why the topic had flowed from Theo’s letter to Charlotte’s story.
Charlotte must have gone to Evans.
Having reached this conclusion, Edwin let out a hollow laugh, but he admired the somewhat appropriate behavior. Unlike the nonchalant Edwin, Vivian was aghast, clutching her forehead.
“When I heard the news that Your Grace had sent Miss Windler away, I thought it was just at the level of scolding. Or did you send her back to Rotermond! What would have happened if Theo hadn’t been in the village?”
The nightingale-like scolding filled the bedroom. Instead of rebutting, Edwin leaned his upper body against the bed’s headboard and merely observed this unfamiliar sight.
“How could you abandon a grown lady like that? What if something had happened? My heart is sinking just thinking about it. I’ll go down to the village today and bring Miss Windler back immediately. So please allow it.”
Vivian, who had been blaming and rebuking, now requested a compromise. Edwin left the bed and filled a cup full with water from the bottle placed on the table. Vivian, who had followed him closely, waited for his answer with anticipation as he put down the cup.
“Charlotte will not return to the mansion.”
Vivian’s shoulders dropped listlessly at the immediately disappointing answer.
“So tell Evans. If he’s not going to raise Charlotte, tell him to send her away quickly.”
“Your Grace!”
Edwin, who turned around at the call, shrugged innocently and left the spot. Vivian, who never gave up, continued her nagging disguised as persuasion to his back.
“It will be dangerous if she stays out there any longer. Your Grace, you are Miss Windler’s guardian. How could you leave a lady who hasn’t come of age yet so defenseless?”
“Should a ward be forgiven even if they ignore their guardian’s warning and refuse to obey, charging at them?”
“She’s still young, that’s why. Everyone makes mistakes when they’re young.”
He stopped walking and turned to Vivian with a gentle smile.
“Like you did to me 14 years ago?”
Unexpected attack caused ripples in her ash-gray eyes. If it was to stop the mouth that had been tormenting with incessant scolding, Edwin had achieved his purpose. Edwin smiled slightly as he read the subdued expression.
“A few days ago, Baron Zimmerman sent a letter saying he wouldn’t marry. Charlotte has achieved her goal. Shouldn’t she take responsibility accordingly? I gave her enough time, and if she still wants to pioneer her own life despite that, I have no intention of stopping her. However, she must give up everything she has enjoyed until now. Even if it’s safety.”
She didn’t think he would be this harsh just because Charlotte had used Marian to torment her. With the broken engagement involved behind it, it wasn’t that she couldn’t understand his anger.
How can he be so heartless?
Vivian felt more pity than hatred towards Charlotte. So she wanted to be presumptuous and wanted to help Charlotte escape from crisis. She wished Edwin, Charlotte’s only family, would understand why Charlotte was so negative about marriage.
“She said… she has someone she loves.”
After blurting it out, she felt a bit of regret. Because the indifferent expression did not consider Charlotte’s pitiful circumstances.
“Love?”
The retort was filled with mockery. If Charlotte had seen this, it would have been clear that she would have been deeply hurt.
His decision was so firm that persuasion simply wouldn’t work. Unable to turn a blind eye to Charlotte in crisis like this, she stood in front of him, blocking his way as he was about to turn around. Although it wasn’t a particularly welcome act, if this could be a solution, she was willing to bend her pride.
“Your Grace. I’ll beg you like this. Please let Miss Windler return to the mansion. I’ll… plead like this. Please?”
Enough coquettish charm to seduce the other person, but not enough to be burdensome.
Her eyes, which drooped at the corners and whimpered, sparkled brightly, but only cold and chilly gazes settled on such a Vivian.
“I’ll try to persuade Miss Windler. Since the Baron also has deep feelings of love, if Miss Windler changes her mind, he will agree to marry. So can’t you forgive Miss Windler just once?”
The gentle voice resembled a southern wind that could melt winter. It was clearly intentional and certainly calculated. Whenever she tries to save others, she bends her noble nose. It was an uninteresting habit with an unexciting inertia.
Eveline should have known.
Exactly what the other person wanted.
“You’ve become loose.”
The unfiltered, rough and coarse sound was something she had never heard before. Even in all the rumors, no one had dared to say she was loose towards her.
Vivian, touching her hurt heart, pressed her lips tightly with surprised eyes.
“Do you think you’ve caught a weakness? Do you really think I’ll grant anything if you do that?”
Her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment at having her intentions figured out. Vivian, averting her eyes, just rubbed the tips of her innocent fingernails. As his shadow moved away, only a sorrowful woman remained alone in that place.
***
‘Brother! Miss Eveline has come to take Windler! Mother says to hurry and bring you!’
Familiar scenery passed by quickly around Theo, who was running without even feeling the intense heat. The younger brother running with him couldn’t avoid falling behind. Even as his breath rose to the tip of his chin and his forehead was scratched by an unseen branch, he didn’t stop running.
As he entered the entrance, he discovered a carriage standing in front of the house. It was the Baitness family’s carriage. Vivian, Charlotte, and Marian appeared in order through the opening front door. Behind them was the figure of his mother looking regretful.
“Our Henry should walk a bit slower. Thanks to that, Theo will be very disappointed.”
“It’s not the last time, madam. I’ll come by again soon. Our Miss Windler…”
“Miss!”
At the cry that shook the sky, their gazes all turned to one place at once. Theo, panting, ran using his last bit of strength. The moment he came to stand in front of Vivian, the lost sensation slowly regained its place.
His shirt and hair were soaked with sweat, and his thighs were twitching as if about to burst. His chest, rising and falling rapidly, showed how much air he had lacked as it hastily gulped down sweet air.
“Theo!”
A bright smile also hung on Vivian’s lips, which brightened at the sight of him. Unlike Charlotte’s story, Vivian’s complexion was bright and clean.
Theo quickly scanned Vivian. Any injuries, any pains. He worried about Vivian who might have been damaged doing rough work, but apart from the unfamiliar dress, there were no visible external injuries. He sighed in relief that at least that was fortunate.
“Why did you run here like this? It must have been hard.”
“How could I not run when I heard you had come, miss?”
“We could have seen each other next time.”
Maybe even if it’s a face I can see every day, I’d be anxious about not being able to see it tomorrow.
Suppressing his bitter sincerity, Theo looked at Vivian’s dress. Feeling Theo’s gaze, Vivian unconsciously tidied her clothes. She seemed quite worried about causing Theo anxiety with the duke’s words.
“The, the duke gave it to me, but there’s nothing to worry about. He said I might need something I can wear casually since the clothes I had were too dirty and Theo’s clothes were too fancy. I gladly accepted it since I didn’t have proper clothes to wear anyway.”
Theo smiled bitterly, deeply reflecting on the past days that made Vivian feel the need to make excuses even for just a change of dress.
“I heard. That you’re doing maid work to earn money.”
Vivian, expecting that Charlotte would have explained the circumstances, wore a relatively calm face. She also seemed slightly scared of what kind of nagging she might hear, and tried to gloss it over by forcibly pulling up the corners of her mouth.
“Now… I’m not. I was fired.”
“That’s really admirable, miss.”
Vivian’s eyes widened at the unexpected response.
“It couldn’t have been an easy choice, but I’m really proud of you. I’m sure Mr. Eveline would have said the same thing.”
At her close friend’s continued encouragement and praise, Vivian brightened and smiled vigorously.
So this was it. What you needed.
A bright and clean smile couldn’t bloom in worry or anxiety. It flourished radiantly in faith and trust.
“Thank you, Theo. The work was really hard indeed. I’ll tell you everything later. About what efforts I had to make just to get one egg.”
Seeing Vivian joking after a long time, Theo also felt relieved.
She wasn’t a person who would easily crumble. Rather, she was a strong and solid person. It was none other than himself who had confined Vivian with prejudice and distanced her.
***
On the way to the mansion. The three women in the carriage were quietly silent. Only the sound of wheels rolling could be heard through the open carriage window. Charlotte, who had been lowering her head, slowly raised her eyes.
Then her eyes met Vivian’s ash-gray eyes. More precisely, Vivian’s eyes had not left Charlotte since the moment they boarded the carriage.
Vivian was waiting. And Charlotte knew what she was waiting for.
“…Miss Eveline.”
This was the only chance. Once they returned to the mansion, it was clear that she would not get a chance to speak again, let alone greater courage than now. So it had to be now. No matter how much she might be criticized for being thoughtless, she knew how to distinguish the right time.
“I was… really sorry. And thank you.”
Charlotte’s eyes remained on her hands, neatly gathered on her lap. Until a hand suddenly entered her field of vision and held her hand.
She raised her head with a start in surprise. Vivian held Charlotte’s hand tightly with a calm face.
“I want to hear what you’re sorry for and what you’re thankful for. Tell me, Miss Windler.”
Even after experiencing that humiliation, Vivian had never given her a harsh glance. Rather, she had given her a hat as a gift, and after receiving Theo’s letter, she had persuaded Edwin and come this far.
I am such a small person, but you were infinitely generous.
At that gap, Charlotte’s eyes became hot.
“For… speaking ill of Miss Eveline. I spoke with malice and carelessly said things that weren’t true. Yet you persuaded the duke, I’m really grateful… Though it may be hard to believe, I never told Marian to torment Miss Eveline.”
“It’s true, miss. It wasn’t something Miss Windler ordered, it was all my doing. I’m truly sorry, miss…”
Vivian, who had been looking back and forth between the two, thought for a moment and then straightened her body. When the warmth that had been enveloping her disappeared, she became suddenly scared.
“I’ll believe you. And I’ll forget.”
But with Vivian’s forgiveness, her frozen blood regained its heat. Charlotte’s large doll-like eyes, greatly relieved, dropped candy-like tears.
“Actually, I was hurt a lot by Miss Windler’s words. When I heard rumors that Miss Windler had Marian attack me, I was hurt, but as time passed, those feelings were easily diluted. Isn’t it strange?”
Now there was no longer any excuse to hate Vivian. Charlotte vaguely felt that her heart had crossed an irreversible river, too far to be jealous, claiming that Vivian had won Edwin’s favor, attracted his attention, and even stolen his time.
“Strangely, whenever I see Miss Windler, I try to find myself in her. I have many memories of going through really difficult times, so I hope Miss Windler doesn’t have to. I don’t have a younger sister, but I guess I’m seeing Miss Windler that way.”
Charlotte Windler’s love had ended.
A first love that couldn’t be confessed, nor was there hope for it to continue, an unrequited love for her only family and sole guardian.
Unable to be a woman to him, yet wanting to be more of a woman than anyone else, as the time approached to bury those past days in her heart, Charlotte couldn’t hold back her bursting tears.
So let’s get along well from now on.
Vivian’s gentle voice was sweet yet stinging.
__________
Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up! (Female-dominant)
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead