“When Father was still alive, he divided the inheritance according to Grandfather’s will… But you weren’t satisfied with that, were you?”
“Aileen.”
For the first time, the hypocritical kindness vanished from Count Cassier’s voice.
At last.
This was who he truly was.
Using his sick child as an excuse, he had demanded more money and taken a larger share of the inheritance than he was entitled to. After using the Cassier family name to commit fraud and cause enormous financial losses, he had shamelessly demanded that his relatives clean up the mess.
That was the kind of man he had always been.
A person consumed by petty, despicable greed.
“The more greedy you become, the harder it will be to get rid of the label of an illegitimate heir.”
Aileen met the count’s eyes directly.
The anger she had suppressed for years seeped into every word.
“Do you really think spraying the most expensive perfume over a pile of garbage will make it smell pleasant?”
“Enough!”
Smack!
A sharp sound rang through the room, and Aileen’s head snapped to the side.
For a moment, she couldn’t even understand what had happened.
Then the pain spreading across her cheek and the metallic taste of blood in her mouth brought her back to reality.
Right.
She had deliberately said things she knew would provoke him.
Still, she had never imagined he would actually strike her.
“I let you stay in this house out of my generosity, and this is how you repay me?!”
“You say that as if it were some great act of charity. You’ve done things that would make even common thugs ashamed of themselves.”
Aileen didn’t even touch her throbbing cheek.
Instead, she clenched her skirt and lifted her chin.
“You little—!”
The count’s hand trembled again.
It looked as though he might slap her a second time, but this time reason prevailed over anger.
“Why? Are you afraid now? Afraid I’ll run to that precious fiancé of mine and tell him everything you’ve done?”
Aileen let out a cold laugh.
The count gripped the edge of his desk so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
At last, he slammed his fist down on the desk and strode toward the door.
Then he shouted at the servants.
“Don’t let Aileen leave the estate. If anyone asks, tell them she’s seriously ill. Say it’s a contagious disease and that she needs at least a month of recovery.”
It was a ridiculous excuse.
But it would work.
The only person likely to come looking for her was Cedric Lowell.
And after what had happened yesterday...
The chances of him contacting her first were almost nonexistent.
In the meantime, there was no telling what lies the count might feed Cedric to tarnish her reputation.
The maids who had come to carry out the order gasped the moment they saw her face.
Apparently, he had hit her harder than she realized.
“It’s fine. I can walk by myself.”
Aileen ignored their stares.
She passed them and climbed the stairs on her own.
“My lady! What happened to your face? Who could have done such a thing?!”
“It’s fine. It’ll heal soon.”
Mary, who had been pacing anxiously around the room, was horrified when she saw the bruises.
With a sigh, Aileen sat beside the window.
The same place where she always sat to look out at the world beyond.
“There’s blood on your lip too. This isn’t something that will heal overnight. I’ll bring some medicine.”
“Don’t make such a fuss.”
Her cheek burned, but her head hurt more.
Resting her forehead against the cold glass, she watched the snow begin to fall.
Quietly.
Softly.
Slowly.
One flake.
Then another.
Aileen closed her eyes.
At that moment, Cedric’s voice surfaced in her mind.
—Stop bothering me and leave.
Maybe...
Maybe he had been right.
Maybe her impulsive meddling had never helped him at all.
She had promised herself she would never do it again.
Yet her arrogance—the arrogance of believing she knew the future—had slowly consumed her.
For a moment.
Only for a brief moment.
She had believed she could change the future for the better.
She thought she had already abandoned that foolish notion.
But she hadn’t.
Deep down, she still hadn’t let it go.
“Mary. Don’t try sneaking off to the Lowell Duchy. I’m really fine. I was simply careless.”
“I-I wouldn’t do that…”
Of course, the loyal maid had been seriously considering slipping past the guards and knocking on the doors of the Lowell estate herself.
The way she startled and avoided eye contact made that painfully obvious.
“Even so… If Lord Lowell finds out about this…”
“So what? Will he break off the engagement? Destroy the Cassier family?”
To be honest, Aileen didn’t believe Cedric would care that much.
Even if he learned the truth, nothing would change.
The count might be upset because of his pride, but there was no one who would punish him.
At most, the Cassier family’s reputation would suffer a little more.
“...But he is your fiancé, my lady.”
Mary spoke as though Cedric should immediately grab the count by the collar.
But Aileen knew better.
Cedric wasn’t that kind of person.
And, if she was honest, she didn’t want him to be.
Which was why she was so shocked.
Less than a week later, Cedric Lowell stormed into the Cassier estate.
“M-My Lord Lowell! This is a lady’s room!”
“Please step aside.”
It was a quiet morning.
Aileen sat reading a book, her shoulders hunched against the cold.
Just like the day they had first met.
With the blue light of dawn at his back, Cedric appeared without warning.
“Aileen. Are you inside? Answer me.”
Bang! Bang!
His urgent knocking rattled the door.
It was an outrageously rude visit.
Yet the moment she heard his voice, an inexplicable sense of relief washed over her.
“You may come in.”
The door flew open.
A rather chaotic procession followed behind him.
Count Cassier, still half-asleep.
The servants who had failed to stop Cedric.
The head maid.
Even the butler.
Everyone’s gaze shifted from Aileen to Cedric.
His face held both anger—
And another emotion that was much harder to define.
“I believe I mentioned before that visiting a lady at such an early hour is considered improper—”
“Your face.”
Cedric stepped forward.
The moment he saw her clearly, he froze.
“What happened to your face?”
His eyes moved between the bruise on her cheek and the wound on her lip, which had not yet fully healed.
Meanwhile, in the Lowell territory—
Cedric was breaking his third quill.
Cassel let out a sigh before offering some advice.
“Why not contact her again?”
“Why?”
Picking up a fresh quill, Cedric asked the question as casually as possible.
All the while glaring at an unimportant document as though it were the most critical report of his life.
“I don’t know what happened between you and Lady Aileen, but if a few days without hearing from the Cassier estate is bothering you this much, perhaps you should simply contact her first.”
“Nothing happened.”
But saying that only confirmed that something had happened.
He scrawled his signature with excessive force.
Ink splattered across the page.
Cedric shoved the ruined document aside.
Still...
He had expected her to come.
Naturally.
Even after he had told her about his injury.
Aileen had never responded.
Not once.
Cedric couldn’t understand why that irritated him so much.
Even though he knew it was his own fault.
He was the one who had told her to leave.
He was the one who had decided to put work before her.
Then why did her silence bother him this much?
Could it be...
That she didn’t even care enough to be angry?
At times, he found himself wishing she would show up and yell at him.
Perhaps his cold behavior.
His harsh words.
Perhaps all of it had been an attempt to provoke some sort of reaction from her.
Those calm green eyes.
Too indifferent.
Too tranquil.
Whenever he looked into them, he wanted to shake something loose.
To create change.
“How is the territory? No problems, I assume?”
He had to change the subject.
He didn’t want to talk about this anymore.
“According to the latest reports, everything is running smoothly.”
Recognizing his intent, Cassel answered naturally.
“As for the trade negotiations currently underway, we have already contacted the Kingdom of Arwyn. The First Prince is known to be quite open in foreign affairs and has responded positively to the proposal from the Rottner Merchant Company.”
“And Baron Rottner?”
“He says he is prepared to join the negotiations the moment Arwyn gives the signal.”
“Good. That should be enough.”
Cedric answered shortly and lowered his gaze back to the documents.
But there was still only one person occupying his thoughts.
Aileen Cassier.