Chapter 28

“Aren’t you coming out too late?”

When Cecia got back on the Royne carriage, a grumbling voice came in. The author of that voice was Ralph.

“You said you would only look at the jewels.”

The impatient Ralph spoke in an irritated tone. He swept his hair with his gloved hand.

“There was a situation.”

Cecia admitted, looking somewhat dazed. However, her hand which was clasping the hem of her dress expressed otherwise.

“Is it because of that man?”

Ralph recalled the carriage that had departed before Cecia came out. He knew it was the Duke of Tonz that Ben had been talking about. There was a woman next to him ascending the carriage but he couldn’t see her face too well.

“Let’s head home.”

Cecia saw the ridicule in Ralph’s knowing smile. Then, her dismal feelings turned to Prillance, who had created this situation.

The carriage arrived at Viscount Royne’s residence and Ralph got off without escorting Cecia. Not wanting that from him either, she descended with the assistance of the coachman.

“Welcome. Baron Ralph Jeanette, milady.”

Reese politely greeted Ralph.

“A letter came from the Marquis Weiand residence.”

He handed the letter to Cecia. The sender was Prillance, whom she had met today.

“After confirming that it was urgent, I was asked for an immediate answer.”

Reese added, looking at Cecia who seemed to have no intention of opening the letter.

Ralph observed as Cecia regarded the letter. The letter became crumpled to the point that it could be thrown away without having been opened. The movement from her hand resembled how she had tightly clutched her dress when they were still in the carriage.

“Hmm.”

Ralph watched her series of actions. ‘It must be blind love’, he concluded as he headed to the room designated to him.

He sighed as he had to go out again.

***

When Prillance returned to the mansion, a single question continued to revolve around her head.

‘Why did Cecia ask Roman to be her partner?’

She had expected that things would have worked out well for Cecia and Ver, and that they would go together as partners for the imperial ball. However, as she mulled over why Cecia would ask Roman to be her partner, an unpleasant idea popped inside her head.

Perhaps, even after confirming Ver’s heart, she couldn’t let Roman go.

However, she soon shook her head, dismissing it as a hasty thought. Nevertheless, in the corner of the mind, doubts had arisen.

Either way, she wanted to confirm the truth. So as soon as she arrived, she sent an urgent message to Viscount Royne’s residence, asking Cecia to come as soon as she received the letter.

“Lady Royne has arrived.”

Perhaps because of their encounter earlier, she arrived fairly quickly. Prillance, who had been unable to still and kept pacing back and forth in her room, quickly headed to the reception room after hearing the butler’s words.

“It is Cecia of the Royne family.”

Cecia greeted Prillance. Wearing a composed face, it seemed she knew why she had been called.

“Lady Royne. Please explain this situation.”

Prillance went straight to the main subject without even asking for her to sit down. She had no time to think about anything else.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

Prillance became furious at her pretense.

“I have already told you – I’m giving you a chance to be happy. But are you saying you’re going to blow that opportunity yourself?”

Only then did Cecia raise her head and stared at Prillance. Just like her, there was anger in Cecia’s eyes. But Prillance did not have time to notice it.

“No. It wasn’t that I was missing an opportunity, but rather I got caught [in a trap].”

“Ha……Does that mean you no longer hold affections for Viscount Grant?”

In the novel, even during the imperial ball, Cecia still held Ver in her heart. Prillance could not understand Cecia, who had implied that her feelings had already changed.

“To what extent is Duke Tonz…”

“Don’t assume that you can do whatever you want to a person’s heart, just because they are lower than you, Lady Weiand.”

Prillance’s words couldn’t continue as Cecia’s enraged voice interrupted her speech. This time, Cecia was practically glowering at her.

“Did you think I wouldn’t go? Or did you think I would give up my engagement with Duke Tonz? Whatever you thought my response would be, you were wrong!”

The conversation between the two wasn’t on the same page, but they didn’t notice.

Cecia only said what she wanted to say.

“What do you mean ‘do whatever you want’?! I was wishing for you and Viscount Grant to go well!”

In the same way, Prillance only kept speaking her truth. She had not noticed the strange misunderstanding created by the gap between the two’s remarks up till now.

“No matter how much you try, I will definitely be engaged to Duke Tonz!”

Seeing Cecia spitting out malice, Prillance could not help but blankly stare at her. She became speechless at her words. Prillance hoped she had heard her words incorrectly.

“So I will prove to you that things won’t always turn out the way you want them to.”

However, Cecia uttered words that were completely different from her wishes.

As Cecia took a breath after finishing her words, Prillance considered what she had just said. According to her reaction, she had gone to the promenade but became furious about it.

And the anger was directed at Prillance.

‘Why? Why are you angry?’

“If you went there, you would have seen…”

‘There’s no way this could have happened.’

Prillance shook her head in disbelief, while Cecia’s face crumpled. She felt Prillance was truly excellent at being brazen until the end.

“If you go to that place, you will know why I made this choice, Lady Weiand. That is all I have to say. It may be rude, but I will be leaving first.”

Cecia halted her steps in front of Prillance.

“You shouldn’t have played with a person’s heart, Lady Weiand.”

Cecia quickly left the reception room. And as soon as the carriage arrived, she opened the door herself and climbed onto the carriage.

Looking at the moving scenery reminded her of that day. And of her foolish self who had been full of expectations.

Cecia had gone to the place Prillance spoke about. It was a place she hadn’t visited for a long time, but it was a place that had been familiar to her since she was young. So she grasped her dress with both hands and ran.

With her breath filled up to the top of her lungs, she heard rough breaths coming from herself. Her legs up to her feet hurt, but she ran without stopping. She wanted to confirm it quickly.

Cecia arrived at the place that she thought would be filled with flowers

And she collapsed on the spot. Not a single flower could be found. Around her, she could only see the dug-up soil. She looked at the space full of gravel for a long beat.

‘That day I decided. Engagement with the Duke of Tonz that you’ve always wanted – I’ll do it.’

She leaned on the carriage and closed her eyes. Cecia recalled the day she had pledged these words to herself while clenching the gravel in her hands.