Louisa spoke sincerely.

“I truly regret what you’ve gone through. Still, Ed is a person with a very strong sense of responsibility.”

She placed her hand on her chest as she spoke.

“You know well how our family fell and how we rose again, Evan.”

Intending to disparage Edward, she instead ended up reminding him of his achievements. As Evan bit his lip tightly, Julia, who had been watching their conversation, smirked at the sight of her brother falling into his own trap.

He, who had tried to ignore the Averitt family as if cutting losses after reassessing their worth, knew better than anyone how great a feat Edward Allen had accomplished.

That’s why he disliked Edward even more. Edward’s very existence kept reminding him of his own powerless past.

However, unlike Julia, Louisa, unaware of Evan’s inner thoughts, continued speaking out of concern for Edward.

“Rudeness is certainly unavoidable in some cases by aristocratic standards. But since my husband is making efforts himself, he will surely be a good business partner for you.”

“…Right. It’s your words, after all. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Evan smiled, his eyes curving gently.

But even as he smiled, he couldn’t hide his trembling lips. The humiliation he felt from someone he had been sincere with hurt his pride more than he had imagined.

‘He’s upset.’

Louisa noticed that subtle movement.

Lately, she had become more attuned to such minute movements, as she had to pay close attention to people’s lip movements.

Her tone just now had been the same as usual. So if there was a cause, it must have been the content of her words.

Probably because she had defended Edward.

‘Perhaps the immediate contract will be problematic…’

Louisa thought that it might be impossible to recruit Winston as Edward’s ally.

Evan picked up the hat he had been wearing and said,

“Well, I’ve finished my business here. I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“Already?”

Daniel objected.

“Isn’t it best to leave when things are still pleasant to ensure a swift next meeting?”

“You smooth talker. Well then, take care on your way.”

Evan bowed his head, holding his hat, as a gesture of farewell to him. Then he waved his hand to get Louisa’s attention.

“I’ll come often. See you, Louisa.”

Louisa returned a formal smile to the slow, deliberate farewell addressed to her.

“Yes. See you next time, Evan.”

A human voice echoed through the Allen mansion, which had been as silent as an empty house for a long time.

Following Jeffrey, Guilford had come to visit.

“Please guide me to the president.”

He politely requested the Johnsons who greeted him.

The Johnsons welcomed this stranger’s visit with open arms.

The atmosphere at the Allen mansion had been utterly chaotic lately.

The mistress of the house, Louisa Allen, had suddenly packed her bags and left the mansion, while the master of the house, Edward Allen, had been holed up in his room for days after an abrupt outing.

Moreover, from the conversations they occasionally overheard, it seemed that divorce talks were in progress.

With such events unfolding, the servants were naturally on high alert.

The Johnsons hoped that this young man would provide a clue to resolving the situation.

Guilford stood in front of Edward’s bedroom door. He knocked on the room as usual.

Knock knock.

“Sir. It’s Guilford.”

As with Jeffrey, there was naturally no response from Edward.

At this stage, Jeffrey had shouted and vented his anger at Edward. However, unlike him, Guilford calmly left just one sentence.

“Since there’s no answer, I’ll take the liberty of breaking down the door.”

Break it down?

Mrs. Johnson’s eyes widened.

Guilford stepped back a bit, placing his right foot behind him in a preparatory stance. Then he immediately kicked the door hard with all his might.

Bang!

“Oh my goodness!”

Mrs. Johnson, who was standing nearby, screamed in surprise.

The door kicked by Guilford swung inward and then bounced back due to the recoil.

On the floor lay the bent door latch and the lock mechanism that had been completely torn off.

As soon as he opened the door, Guilford covered his nose against the thick cigar smoke that wafted out.

Mrs. Johnson, who had walked in a few steps to check on Edward’s condition, exclaimed, turning pale.

“Oh heavens, Master!”

Edward was sprawled on the sofa like a dead person. Like a doll without any thoughts or desires, he was just staring blankly into space.

‘Like a marionette with its strings cut.’

Guilford inwardly reflected his honest impression of the situation upon seeing him.

He glanced around once and then strode into the room. Mrs. Johnson, who had been watching cautiously, also slipped in quietly.

She looked around the room and muttered in astonishment.

“Goodness. What if he really falls ill like this…”

The room was dim even in broad daylight as the curtains hadn’t been drawn.

It was filled only with cigars and liquor bottles.

Dozens of cigar butts stuffed into a small ashtray, and numerous bottles of liquor rolling on the floor, who knows when they were drunk.

As if he hadn’t tried to sleep in bed, the bedding remained in its freshly made state amidst all the mess.

Guilford approached him and said,

“If you intend to do nothing and just waste away like this, hurry up and deal with the divorce issue.”

Divorce.

Edward’s head lifted at those two syllables.

Edward spoke in a voice cracked from disuse for days.

“Don’t… talk nonsense.”

“If you continue to impact the company like this, Mrs. Allen will also have to bear responsibility for the resulting problems.”

“…”

“Do you understand? I’m telling you that if you don’t come out right now, you’ll become exactly like your father whom you so terribly despise.”

Guilford stood straight, neither bending his waist nor bowing his head, with his back to the light coming from the door as he spoke.

Edward gave no response to his reprimand. Whatever he was staring at, he just remained silent with empty eyes, lost in thought.

To think there would be no reaction even after saying this much.

Guilford decided to make up his mind. He played his final card.

“…If you truly wish to follow in the footsteps of your father, Benjamin Allen, I won’t stop you.”

That was a complete denial of the life Edward had lived so far.

Clearly, he couldn’t just let that comment slide. Fortunately, this time Edward responded.

“It’s already no different.”

A voice so weak it seemed about to fade away. He continued with a face contorted in pain.

“My father, you know. He took away Mrs. Averitt’s voice.”

Edward laughed self-mockingly.

“Of course, he took her money too.”

His slightly parted lips trembled as he tried to continue speaking.

Guilford waited tensely for his next words.

“But you know what? It seems blood really does tell.”

Edward’s expression suddenly twisted. After opening and closing his mouth a few times and pausing for a while, he continued, almost sobbing.

“What should I do? I too have taken Louisa’s voice…”

Edward gasped for breath. He didn’t know if he was laughing or crying. After taking in deep breaths for a while, bitter emotions were plainly visible on his face.

“…If I understand your words correctly, I regret to hear that.”

Guilford, who had been watching him, spoke words of comfort.

But soon, he said with an expression even more sunken than his usual expressionlessness, coldly severe:

“So are you saying you’re going to irresponsibly turn your back on everything you’ve already done?”

“Irresponsible?”

Edward muttered. He who had been sitting as if resigned, spoke as if venting:

“I’m someone who shouldn’t try to take responsibility for anything. The more I struggle, the more I ruin things. You understand? I ruin them!”

He soon cried out as if wailing, his emotions seemingly overwhelming him.

“Do you think I wanted to send my wife away? Do you think I want to be like this? But every time I do something, my wife suffers more, so what can I do? When she says it’s too painful to be by my side, that it’s destroying her body, what on earth am I supposed to do…”

The end of his shout turned into a sob.

Tears flowed from Edward’s eyes as he yelled.

Mrs. Johnson, moved to tears as well, covered her mouth. For the first time, the master of the mansion who had seemed so grand looked pitiful.

However, Guilford still spoke in a voice so cold it seemed to freeze the air:

“I misjudged you. My wife often tells me I have no eye for people, and looking at you now, it seems she’s right.”

He delivered his final words to Edward.

“The negotiations with Winston haven’t been finalized yet. If you let this opportunity slip away without any countermeasures, the company will become unstable in many ways.”

“…”

“So make your choice. Whether you’ll return to being the person I knew, or continue to follow in Benjamin Allen’s negative footsteps like this.”

Guilford waited for his answer.

For several minutes, he just stared at him without saying a word.

The waiting Guilford sighed.

“…I’m disappointed.”

Guilford said quietly. As he turned around, Mrs. Johnson looked back and forth between him and Edward, not knowing what to do.

Guilford moved his feet, turning his back on Edward.

It was just as he was about to leave the room. Edward forced himself to move and called out to him.

“Guilford.”

“…Yes.”

Guilford stopped in his tracks and turned around.

Edward opened his mouth with eyes full of self-loathing.

“Winston…”

He seemed to be struggling even as he spoke. Deep anguish was evident in his sunken eyes.

Choking up, he swallowed a few times before speaking.

“Set up… an appointment with Winston.”

While he didn’t know what he should do, he clearly knew what he shouldn’t do.

He couldn’t live like his cowardly father.

The next day.

Mrs. Johnson came up to Edward’s room in high spirits, greeting the morning routine after a long time.

Beside her as she tidied his outdoor clothes, Edward occasionally fell into a daze.

Traces of his wife remained all over the room.

The collar that Louisa would occasionally adjust, the tie she would loosen. The careful touch that would fix his attire.

The empty space next to Mrs. Johnson now.

‘It was always the place where my wife stood.’

Edward looked at that space bitterly. He silently mouthed the name that no one would hear.

Louisa. Louisa…

If only I could see you just once more.

Once that thought occurred to him, he desperately missed his wife.

I should have taken at least one photograph.

Once the floodgates opened, he couldn’t bear the rush of regret.

‘What was that poverty? What was that pride that made me act so stupidly?’

For such trivial things, why did I push you aside?

The image of his wife smiling brightly would appear clearly, then fade into unfamiliarity.

The foolish decisions that couldn’t be undone pierced his heart like a knife after the passage of years.