Riley suffered from a high fever.

Despite consistently giving her medicine, the fever did not easily subside. Still, her complexion was better than when first seen.

Givnen, despite his busy schedule, did not return to the magic tower and stayed by Riley’s side.

“Shouldn’t we send her back to the Eadalin mansion now? An official letter came down from the Magic Department. It says to visit the Magic Department immediately upon Blestege’s return.”

“What happened to the old man?”

“He was released and sent home.”

“As expected.”

“When we arrived, weren’t the assassins trying to rape her? So it seems Count Ermeints insisted that he never directly harmed her himself, and that those assassins suddenly turned on him and threatened him to do such things.”

“They believe that ridiculous nonsense?”

“There’s an atmosphere of hushing it up.”

“Don’t let Riley know about this.”

She would likely be heartbroken if she found out that Count Ermeints received no punishment.

“If we had wanted to definitely drag Count Ermeints to court, we should have arrived a bit earlier. The timing wasn’t good. Or we could have waited longer on purpose…”

Givnen turned his head to look at the sleeping Riley’s face.

A much more emaciated appearance than when seen before. It was clear she had suffered emotionally over that mere infidelity rumor.

When reports of this incident go out, I intend to thoroughly ensure that Riley Eadalin’s personal information is not exposed, but now that I think about it, I wonder if this is right.

It will be noisy for a while, but will she, the victim, be able to be free from that noise? Even if we try our best to block it, if the matter grows, we can’t rule out the possibility of her personal information being exposed.

Moreover, anyway… it’s not easy to actually bring Count Ermeints to trial and have him punished.

All the assassins who were parties to that incident were killed, and it was obvious that Count Ermeints would assemble a huge team of lawyers to lead the court battle as favorably as possible.

There’s a lack of definitive evidence and witnesses, and above all, Riley, the victim, would have to be put on the stand.

Since Riley is alive and all the assassins who were the instigators of the murder are dead, attempted murder is out of the question, and it’s obvious the fight would end with just assault charges at best. That sentence would also be infinitely light. It will likely be concluded by roughly imposing a huge fine.

Is there any need to involve Riley in such a fight and cover her with dirty water? Especially when she’s already in an emotionally unstable state.

“Hah.”

Givnen, who let out a short sigh, stood up from his seat.

“Sack.”

“Yes, Master.”

“Shut up all the journalists and collect the photos.”

“…Pardon? Suddenly? Why?”

Sack couldn’t understand. If this incident became a hot potato, couldn’t public opinion about the infidelity rumors following Givnen be reversed at once?

It was clear that Count Ermeints, who had tried to kill his former fiancée, would suffer a much greater blow than any infidelity rumor?

He wasn’t the type to miss such a good opportunity, so why suddenly?

“Just because.”

“…”

“Lost interest.”

Are you crazy?

Sack, who was about to say something, closed his mouth after seeing the look in Givnen’s eyes as he gazed at Riley.

“Understood.”

The reason for covering up all of this.

“Master.”

“What.”

“You lie so well.”

“What do you mean.”

“Your words and actions are even more at odds.”

If you had shown such a caring and humane side to others, it would have been much better. It seemed like a choice unlike someone who had consistently been indifferent to both his own and others’ reputations.

“Still, I think it’s a good choice.”

He decided to cover up this entire incident.

All for the sake of one lady.

“I’m going to visit the baron’s house. The household must be in an uproar since Riley disappeared.”

[This is the timeline separator]

“What do you mean Riley has disappeared!”

“Well… the window was open, and the bedding was in disarray.”

Ah, Ryan staggered, clutching his head.

What a bolt from the blue since morning.

The baroness beside him bit her nails nervously and said in an anxious voice.

“Surely she didn’t run away…?”

“Run away? For what reason?”

“Well… she might have disliked this marriage despite pretending to like it. Or it could be due to lingering resentment towards us.”

“No! What were you doing not watching the child?”

“Oh my, do you think I’m just sitting around doing nothing? I was just on my way home after attending a meeting!”

Ryan and the baroness, who only found out about Riley’s disappearance in the evening, were in a panic.

The mansion’s servants also said they had known about Riley’s disappearance since last evening.

Of all times, Ryan didn’t return home yesterday due to work, and the baroness was also away from the mansion, so the report of Riley’s disappearance was only conveyed this morning.

“The young lady said she wasn’t feeling well, and told us not to come to her room until she called. Also, since she had been overworking herself recently, we thought she was just sleeping longer…”

“And you’re telling me this now! You should have at least looked into the room!”

“We, we’re sorry, Master.”

This couldn’t be entirely blamed on the servants, as it wasn’t easy for them to habitually care for a young lady who had been out of concern for a lifetime.

Habits need to solidify over a long time, and although the treatment towards Riley had changed recently, they needed a bit more adaptation period to care for her as devotedly as Claire.

Moreover, they had thought too lightly of it. They thought there was no reason for her to run away when she was about to marry a millionaire, no, a billionaire.

The assumption that Riley might have been ‘kidnapped’ was excluded from the start.

The story of an assassin breaking in through the window to kidnap or assassinate was nothing more than a tale far removed from their world. Isn’t it something you’d only see in the so-called ‘makjang dramas’ popular on the streets?

The idea that Riley had run away on her own gained more weight.

“Right now! Go out and bring Riley back right now!”

Ryan shouted, turning pale.

At this, all the mansion’s servants were mobilized to search for Riley.

If this marriage falls through, it really is the end of everything. The future of the Eadalin family rests solely in Riley’s hands.

The path to success was right in front of him… The central advancement he had so desperately longed for had arrived right at his doorstep!

“Even if we neglected her a bit, we still fed her, clothed her, and gave her a place to sleep! Hah! This is exactly why they say you shouldn’t take in dark-haired beasts!”

“Be quiet! Instead of saying such things, you should go out and look for Riley too!”

“Oh my, why are you getting angry at me? If you hadn’t tried to marry her off to that old man in the first place, it wouldn’t have come to this. She was such a docile child by nature and had been obedient all this time, but she started acting strange after you tried to marry her off to that old man.”

“Who was it that kept nagging me to send her away somewhere immediately!”

Their voices rise as they blame each other. Claire, who was watching this, smiled with satisfaction.

‘It seems they’ve finally realized their place. Yes, they should have been like this from the start.’

Claire hoped that Riley would never return.

And at that moment…

“Master, um, well… The Tower Master of Horizon has come to visit.”

Ryan’s face turned as white as a sheet.

“…Count Ryanster?”

What day is it today?

Why are such unexpected events pouring in one after another? Why has he come all this way at this time, just when Riley has disappeared?

“You say the Tower Master of Horizon has come? All the way here?”

Claire, who had come downstairs by now, couldn’t hide her excitement at the news of Givnen’s visit.

‘He must be here to break off the engagement!’

Claire was certain that he had come all this way to cancel the engagement.

Ryan was also thinking the same as Claire, which made him terrified.

“Prepare to receive the guest in the reception room immediately!”

·

·

·

“We-welcome, Count Ryanster.”

“Pardon my intrusion, father-in-law.”

‘Fa-father-in-law?’

For a moment, Ryan’s face lit up. A thrilling shiver ran through his whole body.

To think that the Tower Master of Horizon would call him father-in-law. It sounded so good. Ryan thought that perhaps he hadn’t come here for the purpose of breaking off the engagement after all.

“Pl-please come in, Count.”

Ryan hurriedly guided him to the reception room.

‘What if he asks to call Riley when Riley isn’t here…’

Ryan’s face turned pale white.

While he was wracking his brains trying to think of an excuse, they arrived at the reception room. Givnen leisurely took a seat in a chair as if he were the master of this house, and Ryan, trying hard to hide his anxious look, took a seat opposite him.

The waiting servants brought out refreshments.

Ryan smiled awkwardly and said,

“What brings you all this way so suddenly, Count?”

“I couldn’t bear not seeing my wife-to-be.”

‘As I thought, he came to see Riley. What should I do…’

“Ah? Haha, I see. So you came all this way to see Riley?”

“That’s right.”

“Hehe, what a pity. The timing is not good, we’ve missed each other. Unfortunately, Riley is out at the moment and not at home.”

Givnen looked at Ryan quizzically and asked,

“Where did she go?”

Ryan, feeling caught, hastily stammered out an excuse.

“Th-that… Ah, yes. She went out shopping for clothes with my wife.”

“Is that so.”

Givnen calmly replied and then took a sip of tea from his cup. Then he said nonchalantly,

“That can’t be true.”

“…”

“You seem too indifferent to your daughter, both when you tried to sell her off to an old pervert and now.”

Ryan’s face turned pale. His hands trembling, he stammered,

“Wh-what do you mean by that…”

“Seeing how calmly you’re receiving me when your daughter is missing, I can well imagine how she’s been treated in this house.”

“…H-how did you… know about that…”

“Because I came to tell you that I have Riley safe with me.”

What is this now? Ryan asked, dumbfounded,

“Why would you have our Riley…”

Givnen snorted with disbelief and retorted,

“What have you been doing, father-in-law, until now, a full day after your daughter was kidnapped?”

“…Ki-kidnapped?”

“It seems you didn’t even know your daughter had been kidnapped. Even if you’re adoptive parents, you’re still blood relatives, not complete strangers. Isn’t this too much?”

Ryan became speechless. Givnen continued to speak to him calmly and clearly.

“If I had been a little late, my bride would have become a cold corpse.”

“…”

“How can family be so insensitive? How can I feel at ease leaving my wife here when she’s so neglected?”

“We-we’re sorry, Count. We were so shocked when the child suddenly disappeared…”

“Then you should have honestly confessed the situation instead of trying to avoid it. Why make lies you can’t handle?”

“…There’s no room for excuses.”

Ryan belatedly admitted his mistake. Givnen clicked his tongue at him.

“I’m disappointed, father-in-law.”

“…”

“With trust at rock bottom, it’s impossible to keep my wife here any longer.”

“Pardon? Do you mean…”

It wasn’t something he had planned, but Givnen became certain after coming here.

“I’ll take my wife with me.”

“Pardon? Do you mean you’ll take Riley to Blestege to live together?”

Instead of answering, Givnen nodded.

Ryan blinked his eyes in bewilderment and studied Givnen’s expression. No matter how he looked at it, it didn’t seem like a joke.

His head spun at the bombshell announcement of living together before marriage. No matter how much they were promised to marry, until the marriage papers were stamped, they were still strangers. Do all young people these days have such radical ways of thinking?

Besides, Riley isn’t in a prepared state yet!

“Even so, we haven’t even had the formal meeting of the families yet, and starting with pre-marital cohabitation is a bit…”

“Who cares about such things these days?”

Ryan felt dizzy at this explosive statement.

“It would be good to hurry with the move as well.”

“…Well.”

“Or you can come with just your body. I’ll prepare everything necessary so you can live with just your body.”

At Givnen’s words, Ryan flinched and then carefully asked.

“…Are, are you serious?”

“So I hope you’ll wrap up things here and come up to the capital quickly. Until then, I’ll keep my wife with me.”

Ryan cleared his throat.

Come to think of it, it didn’t seem necessary to strictly adhere to tradition. Times have changed a lot these days. Besides, at this point, what stubbornness is there left to insist on?

It’s regrettable that more preparations couldn’t be made, but still, he’ll probably teach her well after taking her, right?

Moreover, isn’t it fortunate that it’s not a request to break off the engagement? Given how noisy the situation is with his infidelity rumors, there’s no need to force this marriage, and if he’s being so accommodating, isn’t it rather a blessing?

Having finished his hopeful circuit, Ryan politely replied.

“Ve-very well, please do so.”

“I will send someone, so please send my wife’s belongings with them. Well, there probably won’t be much in terms of belongings.”

Givnen stood up, thinking about how many of her things there would be in this house.

“Then I’ll be going now.”

[This is the timeline separator]

‘Things worked out easily.’

Givnen smiled at his satisfactory business acumen.

He had intended to simply say that he had Riley with him so not to worry, and that he would send her back home once her health recovered, but thanks to Baron Ryan’s foolish act, there was no need to return her anymore.

“We-well… Ah, yes. She went out shopping for clothes with my wife.”

A stupid answer.

The moment he heard the baron’s absurd words, Givnen’s mind worked quickly.

He thought that if he played his cards right, he could have Riley in his hands even sooner. And the baron dug his own hole. He showed the image of an incompetent father who was so stupid and foolish that he didn’t even know his daughter had been kidnapped.

Now that he can keep Riley under his control, there’s no need to get involved in such troublesome matters. Management will become a bit easier.

“Ex-excuse me.”

Givnen, who had been walking with long strides, stopped abruptly. He turned around slowly.

“What is it, young lady?”

He answered in the most gentlemanly manner possible while trying to recall who she was.

She was definitely Riley’s younger sister. Also the actual biological daughter of Baron Ryan and his wife.

What was her name again?

“Did you finish your conversation with father well?”

“Yes, well.”

Claire’s face brightened at Givnen’s response.

“I’m really so sorry. I know there’s been a big problem because of my elder sister… We’ve all been so worried about the trouble she’s caused.”

“Is that so.”

“It’s regrettable that things have turned out this way. But breaking off the engagement is for the best for both parties. I hope you’re not too heartbroken, sir. Even though the situation has become complicated because of my elder sister, it’s not like she did it on purpose… Please don’t blame her too much. My elder sister is actually in quite a pitiful situation if you get to know her.”

Givnen, who had been listening quietly to the conversation, wondered what this was all about, but soon realized the meaning and smirked. He leaned slightly against the wall and asked.

“Breaking off the engagement?”

“Isn’t that why you came all the way here?”

Givnen, who had intended to show some courtesy since she was Riley’s sister, completely dropped the honorifics and sneered.

“Why would I?”

“We-well, because of all the fuss about that infidelity rumor lately?”

Why are both sisters so concerned about the infidelity rumor? Though it seems they’re concerned for entirely different reasons.

“I don’t see how that leads to breaking off the engagement.”

“…Then are you saying you’ll bear that dishonorable scandal?”

“I don’t think it’s something for you to be concerned about, young lady.”

“…Sir, I think you’re making a very foolish choice. This isn’t right. I think proceeding with the marriage is like making the worst move from both families’ perspectives.”

“I’ll say it again, but it’s not something for you to be concerned about.”

“…I’m saying this out of concern for my elder sister. Because I’m her younger sister. Are you doing this because you pity my elder sister now? Because you feel sorry that her marriage prospects have been ruined. Is that it?”

Givnen, who had been listening quietly to Claire’s words, burst into laughter. After laughing for a while, he stopped and asked in a kind voice.

“Young lady, do you dislike the idea of your elder sister and I getting married?”

“…That’s not it.”

“Stop beating around the bush. And don’t treat me like an idiot.”

“…”

“Your intentions are quite malicious.”

Despite the kind voice, the sarcastic tone made Claire’s face turn bright red.

“You grew up in the same house, yet the sisters are so different. One has too much greed, and the other has too little.”

“Sir, I was just expressing my concern! It’s troubling if you misinterpret my opinion in such a way.”

“Concern for whom?”

“…Of course, for our family and for you, sir.”

“Is your elder sister included in that family?”

“…”

“Unfortunately, I’m not marrying her out of pity. I’m not the type to care about such things in the first place. You’ve seen me as too kind. I’m not that kind or nice of a person.”

Givnen patted Claire’s shoulder lightly as he spoke.

“There’s not much age difference, but the difference in level is quite severe.”

“…Well, that’s because my elder sister didn’t receive proper education.”

“The one I’m saying is of a lower level is you. It seems the difference in comprehension is also big.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

Feeling humiliated by the insulting words, Claire trembled and clutched her skirt.

This wasn’t the reaction she had expected. Such ungentlemanly behavior and words!

A kind face with unkind words!

“If you’re done talking, I’ll be going now.”

“W-wait a moment!”

“It seems you still haven’t grasped the situation.”

Givnen said with a serious expression.

“Every minute and second I spend talking to you is a waste of time. Do you know how much my time is worth?”