Ch 4.4
My tone was quite prickly, even to my own ears.
However, I couldn’t help it, as I was currently suppressing my temper as much as I possibly could.
Eden seemed slightly taken aback by my attitude.
“Are you feeling unwell anywhere?”
“No, I am fine.”
I replied, forcing the corners of my mouth upward.
“Then why—”
“If you go straight that way, you will find your sister. I believe Lady Bayon is in worse health than I am, so wouldn’t it be better for you to go to her quickly?”
These were words spoken to part ways with him even a moment sooner.
And for someone who cared for his sister dearly, they were perfectly effective.
Eden stared at me for a moment with unreadable eyes, then ran quickly in the direction I had pointed.
I watched his retreating figure until it vanished, then withdrew my gaze.
I began walking forward again.
But…
‘What is truly going on today?’
As if crossing one mountain only to find another, I encountered yet another massive mountain right in front of the banquet hall doors after leaving the garden.
‘I should have listened to my father.’
I should have pretended to give in when he told me not to go.
Looking at the man before me, I immensely regretted coming here.
“Lady, where have you been?”
Why should I have to tell you that?
“I don’t believe there is any reason for me to tell the Duke that.”
My thoughts came out exactly as they were, accompanied by a sharp voice.
“Were you walking through the garden?”
He showed almost no change in expression despite my attitude.
“Yes, I took a short walk.”
Let’s just give a quick answer and escape.
It was just as I intended to brush past him.
I felt a hand grip my wrist.
Without hiding my displeasure, I immediately shook off Kane’s hand.
“Do not touch me!”
The moment Kane touched me, I snapped at him, raising my voice without even having the presence of mind to consider our social status.
At my rejection, Kane’s expression, which had seemed solid until just now, distorted for the first time.
“Lady.”
“Do not touch me recklessly without my permission. Weren’t you the one who loathed even the slightest contact with me?”
“Lady, that is not it.”
“I still remember vividly how the Duke treated me. So, if you have even a shred of conscience, do not say it isn’t so. And since I find this kind of contact even more unpleasant now, please do not touch me without permission.”
It was all because of this man.
Everything was like this because this man was the way he was.
If he had come to know love, he should have protected that love.
Because that is the male lead, and that is his role.
If only Kane hadn’t changed, if only he had guarded his heart well, I wouldn’t be cornered like this.
But this man failed to protect his love and even went so far as to beg for mine.
I found him utterly pathetic right now.
“Why— no, never mind.”
I was about to demand why he had changed, why on earth he had done that, but I realized once again that it was useless and remained silent.
When I first made up my mind to attend the banquet, I was confident that I could act very well.
I intended to show everyone that I was doing fine, and that I was living well after forgetting everything during my trip.
Yes, I did well at first.
Until the moment I met the Crown Prince, my mind was quite at ease.
But meeting Kane, meeting Adela, meeting Eden, and meeting Kane again caused the intense emotions hidden within me to surge.
The people here thought of me as Belita.
Therefore, while I was not Belita, I was also Belita.
Consequently, a deep anger arose toward the humans who treated Belita in this manner.
‘Belita is not someone who deserves to be treated like this.’
But who were they!
To treat Belita in such a way.
However, it was not good to reveal my anger here.
This was because I had resolved that I, having decided to be Belita from now on, would not live that way.
I had to minimize emotional agitation, think and judge rationally, and handle everything accordingly.
‘So, let’s calm down.’
Let’s stay calm and respond composedly.
“I will head inside first.”
“Lady, please don’t do that and talk with—”
But this man would not help me do so.
When Kane tried to grab my arm again despite my warning, I quickly stepped back.
Then I looked at him coldly with an expression of disgust.
“I believe I told you not to touch me.”
“I am sorry. But you left like that earlier. I want you to listen to me until the end. After you left like that, I realized that my true love is you. Lady Bayon was merely a momentary whim. So, I hope you will give me just one chance. I will do better. I cannot undo the wounds you received because of me, but I will do better so that you can forget them. So Lady, for our sake, once again—”
“……Duke?”
Before Kane could finish his sentence, a voice calling him was heard.
It was a voice both I and Kane knew.
It was Adela’s voice.
A moment of silence ensued.
Ah…
How can the situation keep spiraling into the absolute worst?
Since Kane and I had been talking beside a giant pillar, we did not know who was nearby.
Normally, I would have been sensitive to any presence, but I was in a highly agitated state due to the successive situations and did not realize.
On the other hand, the two people approaching must have heard the entirety of our conversation.
‘This is driving me crazy.’
I lowered my head slightly and bit my lip hard.
Adela stepped closer to the pillar and stood before us.
Eden was with her as well.
“Duke, is what you said really true?”
Adela’s voice was trembling violently.
“Was I…… merely a momentary whim to the Duke?”
The woman standing before us looked incredibly precarious.
Eden must have felt it too, as he was supporting Adela with his arm around her shoulders.
“Sister, let’s go.”
“Eden, wait, just a moment is enough.”
Adela remained stubborn despite Eden’s urge to leave.
And she waited with her mouth tightly shut until Kane gave an answer.
“That is correct.”
Oh, dear.
“I am sorry, but what happened with Lady Bayon was merely a passing thing for me.”
I glared at Kane involuntarily at his words, which were like a dagger to Adela’s heart.
He was truly shameless and rude.
Seeing Kane speak without even a change
in his complexion, I felt even the slightest bit of lingering regard for him vanish.
“I believed in you…… I believed you would return to me…… I did……”
However, Adela’s complexion was unusual.
She had turned deathly pale and looked as if she might collapse at any moment.
“To think that I was only that much to the
Duke……”
Her murmuring voice grew smaller and smaller.
For a split second, my eyes met Eden’s.
I signaled to Eden with my eyes to take her away quickly.
Eden also seemed to notice that Adela’s condition was poor, and it was just as he was about to pull her away.
However, perhaps he realized her state too late, as Adela collapsed into Eden’s arms before he could even support her.
“Lady!”
“……Sister!”
Adela had lost consciousness and fainted.
I hurried toward her, but Eden picked Adela up and immediately ran past me toward the exit.
I intended to follow because I was worried about her, but Kane hurriedly called me from behind.
“Lady, there is no need for us to go that far.”
How can a person be so heartless?
I felt that if I stayed in the same space as this man any longer, my hand would strike him first.
I glowered at him with a frown.
“Then the Duke can stay here. Because I must go.”
I said that and ran quickly to where Eden had gone, fearing he might grab me again.
I heard him calling me from behind, but I ignored it.
The place where Eden had carried Adela was where the nobles’ carriages were parked.
As I approached the carriage that seemed to belong to the Bayon family among those marked with family crests, it was chaotic.
Peering slightly through the open window of the carriage, I saw Eden’s face.
Seeing his serious expression, it appeared Adela’s condition was not good.
At that moment, perhaps sensing my gaze, he looked up.
My eyes met his purple ones.
The moment he disappeared from view, the carriage door opened.
Eden stepped down from the carriage and approached me.
“Lady Hates.”
“Is Lady Bayon very unwell?”
“That is…… I believe we must return home in a hurry.”
A strange sense of dissonance struck me for a moment.
Eden used to make eye contact to a burdensome degree whenever he spoke with me.
But now, I felt as if he were somehow avoiding my eyes.
“Yes, please go quickly. I will inform His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince.”
However, given the chaotic nature of the situation, it could simply be that he was distracted.
“Thank you. Then, I shall see you again next time.”
I did not say anything more and gave him a slight nod.
He nodded back as I did and quickly boarded the carriage.
With the neighing of the horses, the carriage departed in a hurry.
I did not take my eyes off the back of the carriage.
And once the carriage had completely vanished, I also wanted to return home.
But since I had made a promise to Eden, I couldn’t just leave.
Dragging my heavy feet, I returned to the banquet hall.
Kane was still standing in front of the banquet hall doors.
I passed him quickly as if he were a stranger and went inside the hall.
This time, he did not stop me either, and I
felt him following silently behind me.
