“Yes.”

The brown-haired man slightly raised his head that he had bowed respectfully.

“Let him loose so he can escape.”

“Without any instructions?”

“He’ll move on his own. That’s all he’s been thinking about while he was there.”

“Yes.”

Alessandro’s expression slowly relaxed.

“Why are there so many that need to be killed…”

A red light flashed in his mysterious eyes, a mix of gray and purple, and soon a slow curl of his lips revealed a wicked smile.

“This is surprisingly exciting.”

The brown-haired man watched Alessandro, who was now just smiling innocently with no trace of his previous anger and excitement, without any sign of being fazed, as if used to it.

Before returning to the north, Ranireo quickly taught Emilia how to use the inherited assets such as investment rights and land, and then left.

Fortunately, everything could be managed by Emilia alone, as he had meticulously annotated each document and provided detailed instruction letters on how to proceed further.

The only problem was that settling such a large amount of assets at once could attract the attention of the upper class due to the enormous sum of money moving.

So for now, the plan was to postpone the big transactions and only collect smaller amounts of money one by one.

However, since the bank that could handle this was closed on Sundays, the only time available was during lunch hours, so Emilia decided to make her first mid-day outing since joining the troupe.

In the practice room that was still warm, there were quite a few dancers staying late to stretch.

But Emilia, who could always be counted as one of those dancers, quickly washed up and prepared to go out as soon as the morning practice ended, drawing curious glances from those around her.

Among them, Juliana even went as far as to follow Emilia around, looking at her with concern.

“What are you going to do about lunch?”

“I’ll just eat something simple.”

Although it was a time when she wanted to focus on practice, the desire to sort things out with Enrico as much as possible before the performance of [Cinderella] began was stronger, so it couldn’t be helped.

Emilia smiled reassuringly at Juliana, who had followed her to the entrance, and quickly left the theater.

Since the Avaliante Opera House itself was located in a busy area, quite a few important facilities were gathered nearby, and the bank was one of them. Walking along the neatly arranged tree-lined street, one could arrive quickly.

Forgetting the heat, Emilia quickly stated her business as soon as she entered the bank.

“You handle investment rights here too, right? Here are the documents and account number. Could you give me some of the money in checks?”

“Ah… Yes! The documents have been verified, could you wait a moment? It might take a little time.”

“Yes. I’ll wait.”

When she submitted the documents prepared by Ranireo and spoke as he had instructed, the employee immediately began reviewing without any further questions.

Emilia watched quietly, blinking her eyes in surprise as she saw the amount the employee was writing.

‘Father must have been incredibly good at business. Even just settling the small things, the amount is enormous. Paying off Giorgio’s debt shouldn’t be a problem at all.’

Of course, she wanted to ignore Giorgio’s debt, but she didn’t want to leave it in the state where Enrico had paid it off.

So even after calculating the money to pay off that debt and separately to buy a house, there was still quite a bit of surplus left. And this was just from settling the small things.

‘The problem is how to pay off the debt…’

If she gave it directly, Enrico would absolutely not accept it and would rather ignore it.

‘Should I just leave it at the mansion? Even though I’m trying to pay back the money, it’s not going as I want.’

Emilia sighed softly with an annoyed look. The lunch break was about three hours long, so she had plenty of time as the bank business finished faster than expected.

As she was about to walk slowly back to the theater, a familiar face entered her field of vision.

Emilia slowly stopped walking as she saw the person getting closer. She thought about just passing by, but somehow felt that he wouldn’t let that happen.

“What are you doing here?”

And that prediction was accurate. Enrico blocked her way and asked in a cold voice.

“…I had some business to attend to.”

It was unfortunate to meet already when she didn’t want to. Emilia replied quietly, trying to hide her true feelings.

“You, who never left the practice room before sunset?”

“Yes, I had to come out today.”

“…To settle your assets?”

Could it be that he had received reports about what she was doing and came to check? Or was it a coincidence? Looking at him, who seemed to know exactly what she had been doing just moments ago, she bit the inside of her cheek slightly.

Had he not only placed surveillance around her house but also arranged for someone to follow her all day?

Feeling suffocated by the seeming confinement, Emilia took a deep breath and then rolled her eyes to the side as she felt a piercing gaze on her cheek. She saw people watching her and Enrico with interested eyes.

“Ah…”

She realized she had momentarily forgotten where she was, focusing only on Enrico approaching from the front.

It was natural for people’s attention to be drawn to them, with a man who catches the eye even from afar standing in the middle of the street blocking a woman’s way.

Emilia suddenly felt anxious that a noble who recognized Enrico might appear.

“Let’s move somewhere else for now.”

She felt like he wouldn’t listen if she suggested parting ways now, and she wanted to at least change locations.

“Why.”

“It’s too hot.”

Emilia frowned, pointing at the sky for no reason. The summer sun, busily radiating heat, seemed like a suitable excuse, and Enrico clicked his tongue shortly as if displeased.

“Let’s go over there.”

Enrico didn’t take his eyes off her throughout the move. His gaze, both oppressive and strangely clingy, seemed ready to bore through Emilia’s face, but she stubbornly kept looking straight ahead as she walked.

As they entered the cafe he had vaguely pointed to, they were greeted by the sound of sweet piano music along with the chatter from various tables.

The first floor was open-style, and the second floor seemed to be in a room format. He naturally went upstairs and entered a room at the end.

“Now, let’s continue our conversation. Why did you suddenly go to the bank, somewhere you’ve never been before?”

Emilia looked at Enrico for a moment as he immediately got to the point upon sitting down, then spoke calmly.

“Well, I need to pay back what I owe. I’d like to first settle Giorgio’s debt that you paid on my behalf. Should I give it to Fabio?”

“I told you it wasn’t urgent.”

“That might be the case if I were in a difficult situation, but it makes me uncomfortable to have the money and not pay it back.”

The corner of Enrico’s mouth curled up habitually. He showed a smile as beautiful as a painting, but the chilly atmosphere remained as always.

Despite his unsettling reaction, she simply met his eyes like an indifferent person, and seeing her like this, a strange, uneasy energy began to cloud Enrico’s purple eyes.

“But why does your behavior seem unlike someone who’s just trying to pay back a debt?”

Like someone who’s determined to distance themselves completely. The words he didn’t utter somehow seemed to reach her ears.

Emilia just blinked her eyes instead of answering. His guess was correct, but she found it hard to suggest terminating the contract right now. Was it because she hadn’t prepared properly yet?

Or was it because she had made up her mind to say it next week, but now that they met so suddenly, she was hesitating? Emilia took a deep breath, her eyes a mix of confusion and bewilderment.

‘…It must be because I need to return to the ballet company now. Because there’s no time, that’s why I want to say it when I have more leisure.’

Despite her firm resolution before meeting him, now she just wanted to leave her seat.

In the end, she regretted suggesting to come inside, worried that he might persistently pursue the matter.

However, contrary to Emilia’s expectation that he would press for an answer, Enrico stared intently into space and then sighed.

“Stop trying to test me.”

That was all he said. At Enrico’s tone, which seemed to be comforting himself, Emilia tried to ignore the sensations that made not only her solar plexus uncomfortable but now her chest ache as well.

She had endured his arrogance for her parents’ sake, but now that very arrogance was holding her back, and she couldn’t let herself be swayed any longer.

Even if she rationalized that she couldn’t speak today because she wasn’t prepared, she absolutely had to say it next week. But if she couldn’t bring it up now, she worried whether she’d be able to do it next week.

Why couldn’t she firmly reject his constraints when she was so sick of them? Could it be because of that fickle kindness? She suddenly felt foolish.

“…”

As the silence choked her, Emilia just wanted to get out of there. She was about to slowly open her mouth to make an excuse about the lunch break time when-

“So the subjects of the rumors were here.”

Alessandro appeared, opening the door.

“I couldn’t just pass by, as everyone around was talking too much about Uncle and Emilia.”