To You, Whom I Shouldn't Love (24 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 9
Riena, too, had dreamed of a romantic proposal ever since she was a little girl, just like any other girl. To be honest, Cassel’s proposal was far from what she had imagined.
First of all, they weren’t in love with each other. The place of his proposal wasn’t a flower-filled garden but a muddy swamp where her feet sank in deeply. And she wasn’t wearing her favorite dress, but rather old, worn-out clothes chosen solely for ease of movement.
In fact, not just her—no woman would feel fluttered in this situation. It was that disastrously chaotic of a proposal.
Yet, there was one single thing that matched what she had once dreamed of.
Cassel’s gaze as he looked at her.
‘I wonder if something’s wrong with my hair.’
Though he was clearly a stranger, his eyes looking at her felt filled with affection. Even his calm voice somehow seemed laced with nervous tension.
It couldn’t possibly be true—yet he seemed genuinely in love with her.
She had certainly received a proposal from Johannes as well, but it was Cassel’s earnest eyes that stirred her heart more deeply.
But Riena quickly shook off such emotions. Now was the time to think rationally. She mentally weighed the outcomes of accepting or rejecting Cassel’s proposal.
If she accepted his proposal, she would be entering married life with a man she had just met. Whether that marriage would bring happiness or not was impossible to know.
‘But…’
On the other hand, if she rejected this proposal—since she’d already been caught running away, she’d inevitably be forced to marry Viscount Rotman. And she could declare with certainty that marriage would bring her unhappiness.
If not that, then she’d have to accept Johannes’s proposal, which already felt suspicious. That, too, was unappealing.
Was it a future full of uncertainty—or one certain to bring misery?
It wasn’t even a question worth pondering. Besides, didn’t Cassel carry a letter written in her father’s own hand? If her father had entrusted his daughter to this man, surely he wouldn’t treat her carelessly.
Riena trusted her father’s judgment.
‘But is this truly the right choice?’
In noble families, many married without love. In fact, marrying for love was the unusual case.
Riena had fled in disgust from the marriage talk with Viscount Rotman, but she knew plenty of girls her age who were expected to marry men old enough to be their fathers due to familial interests.
Considering that, marrying Cassel wouldn’t be such a bad choice.
She didn’t even know his social standing—or if he was noble, what title he held—but she trusted her father’s letter. Even if he turned out to be a blacksmith and she became his wife working all day long, it might still be acceptable. If it was her father’s choice.
But would this be a good choice for him as well? That was what troubled Riena.
Judging from the contents of the letter, Cassel’s father and Riena’s father must have been close friends. Moreover, Cassel himself likely had some connection with Count Daik—perhaps even a deep one.
That must be why he rushed here so urgently, just because of a letter asking him to look after her.
But for him, wouldn’t marrying her be as shocking as a bolt from the blue?
Perhaps Cassel already had a woman he cherished. If he had no desire to marry her and was only doing this out of duty…
‘I wouldn’t like that.’
She couldn’t bring unhappiness upon someone else just to escape her own misery.
Riena gathered her thoughts and opened her mouth.
“I don’t wish to choose one marriage simply to avoid an unhappy one.”
“…”
“I’m deeply grateful that you came all this way upon receiving my father’s letter to help me, but I can’t impose on you, my lord. Moreover, marriage isn’t something to be decided so lightly.”
She tried her best to speak as politely as possible while looking at the man whose expression remained unreadable.
“I appreciate your kindness, but I cannot accept your proposal, my lord. After all, I don’t even know you well—and neither do you know me.”
“…If I told you we had met before, would you then consider accepting my proposal?”
The man, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. Riena was startled.
“You’re saying we’ve met before?”
Riena had no memory of ever meeting this man in reality—only in her dreams had she seen him.
Yet he claimed they’d met?
Though it sounded like a foolish fantasy, for a brief moment Riena wondered whether this man might have had the same dream she’d had.
If he, too, had dreamed of kneeling before her, pleading desperately…
But what came from the man’s lips was something entirely unexpected.
“Do you remember a boy named Case who stayed briefly at Count Daik’s estate when you were young?”
“Case?”
Riena soon pulled that name from a corner of her memory.
Only now did the hazy pieces of memory that had been floating since she read Count Daik’s letter finally click into place.
“Cowardly Case?”
About ten years ago, Count Daik, who had been away visiting a friend for a long time, returned with a strange boy.
The boy, with black hair and blue eyes, was named Case. He stayed at the Daik manor and lived together with Riena.
The last time she saw him was when he left the estate after hearing news of his brother’s death half a year later.
Seeing that Riena recalled him, the man finally gave a faint smile—so subtle it would have been missed if one hadn’t been paying close attention.
“I don’t think I was ever really a coward.”
Though he didn’t answer directly, his words were clear enough for Riena.
“Really? You’re really Case?”
“Yes. That’s what I was called when I was young.”
“Goodness, how on earth…”
Riena examined Cassel’s face anew, but she couldn’t find in him—whose presence now felt sharp as a finely honed blade—the timid boy she once knew.
“You look so different from how I remember…”
He still had the same black hair and blue eyes.
But the Case she remembered had been a fragile child who flinched at the sound of rain falling at night.
Cassel, however, appeared so strong that nothing in the world could make him blink.
“A great deal of time has passed, hasn’t it?”
“But still…”
Even if ten years had gone by, was such a transformation truly possible?
While Riena remained bewildered, the Captain of the Knights, who had been silently observing their conversation, interrupted.
“Didn’t you hear what the young lady said? I don’t know where you crawled out from, but leave right now. Don’t make a scene, and don’t try to trick the lady with nonsense about some ‘Case’ or whatever.”
When Cassel still showed no sign of standing up, the Captain reached for his sword—but he never got to draw it. The moment his hand touched the hilt, someone pressed a blade against his neck from behind.
“Wh—when did you…”
It was one of the men who had come with Cassel. He’d been standing at a distance, hooded and watching the situation unfold—but the instant the Captain moved, he’d closed the gap so swiftly no one had noticed.
A flicker of shock crossed the Captain’s face.
‘I didn’t even sense his presence?’
The Daik earldom guarded the southern border of the Empire. All the knights serving under the Count were top-tier fighters, and the Captain himself was skilled enough to have been scouted by the Imperial Knights.
So what level of strength must someone possess to overpower him like this? A chill ran down the Captain’s spine.
Unrestrained killing intent poured from behind him—he truly meant to kill.
‘At this rate, I might die…’
Paralyzed, barely daring to breathe, the Captain stood frozen—until Cassel spoke.
“Dean. Stand down.”
“…”
The man called Dean sheathed his blade and returned to his original position. Cassel glanced briefly behind him and added,
“I also need to speak with the young lady alone for a moment. I’d appreciate it if you’d step aside as well, my lord.”
The Captain bristled.
“How can I trust you to step away when I don’t even know what you might do to the young lady?”
“If you’re worried I might kidnap her and run, then just block the path—it’s that simple.”
“That’s not enough!”
“It seems you’re mistaken about something—this isn’t a request.”
Though Riena couldn’t see it, Cassel’s eyes had changed. The sorrowful, pleading gaze he’d fixed on her was gone, replaced now by the sharp, predatory eyes of a true apex predator.
The Captain flinched.
Just as Cassel had said—this wasn’t a request.
It was a command.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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Chapter Comments (2)
Inline Comments (5)
“Taking a walk in the rain at this hour of night? Do you have any idea what kind
Fuck that pedophile freak!!! 😡😡😒😒 I hope the step mother suffers 😡
“Why should I care about that, Joanna?”
Nah this is foul. Joanna’s a commoner this is the only way for her to survive. I don’t blame her. Pretty classist sentiment this is.
“It’s been a while, Lord Winkler. Or should I say, Your Grace, now that you’ve i
I physically can not take this mf seriously when his last name is ‘ringlet’. Bruh whatttt
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I still don’t get how the countess has this much power when she’s not even blood related. Like I get she’s the elder but then when riena turns of age shouldn’t she be the proxy head or smth?? Idk I feel like that’s more plausible.
Wat happened to the other guy—raol or smth??? Wasn’t as going to go to him first?