I couldn’t answer right away. The fact that he had never shown any interest from the beginning, and that I had expected too much on our wedding day—those thoughts came to mind every time I saw pink roses and made me miserable.
But I was also worried that if I said all this, Cedric might grow tired of me. I was afraid he would think I expected too much.
While I hesitated to speak, Cedric spoke in a cold voice.
“Let’s move the trial date up. Nothing good will happen if you stay here any longer.”
I wanted to say more, but the door had already shut completely.
Where did everything start to go wrong?
Thinking about it, maybe marrying Cedric in the first place was the mistake.
My heart felt heavy, but I still felt like I needed to say something properly, so I left the room. I wanted to say the words I had hesitated to say earlier. After all, now that everything had been exposed, what did it matter if I showed him even the deepest part of my heart?
Just then, I saw Cedric going down the stairs. I hurried to call him, but an old nobleman with a serious expression approached him.
The atmosphere didn’t feel right. While I hesitated, they went down the stairs. A moment later, Cedric disappeared from my sight completely.
With no other choice, I returned to my room and sat there, lost in thought, then looked out the window. On the windowsill was a half-finished sachet.
Cedric had liked the sachets I made. Since he seemed busy, I thought it might help to make him one and give it to him. Maybe that would help change his mind. It might even be a good way to start talking to him.
I brought the materials right away and filled the sachet. Since I had made many before, I quickly finished several in just a few minutes. After packing them up, I headed to Cedric’s office.
The atmosphere in the mansion wasn’t good. The servants all had stiff faces, and there was no sound of laughter. Clearly, Selena’s collapse had a big impact.
Before long, I arrived in front of the office. I knocked on the door nervously, but there was no answer. When I gently turned the handle, the door opened easily. Suddenly, I remembered the last time I entered Cedric’s office. Back then, I had moved something on his desk without knowing and caused a huge problem.
His desk was still messy. I placed the sachets on the desk just as they were. As I turned to leave, I noticed a drawer slightly open.
I thought I should at least close it before leaving, so I walked over. Then I saw a familiar shine. Slowly opening the drawer, I found a bright, glowing ring and a small photo frame with my picture inside.
My mind went blank for a moment. That ring was the wedding ring Cedric always used to wear. And the photo frame was the one he always kept by his side back when we lived at the Bestine mansion. It showed me holding a pink rose with a nervous expression.
Without blinking, I stared at the photo of myself, then at the wedding ring again. He hadn’t thrown the ring away. Just that fact made my heart swell with emotion.
Even if Cedric misunderstood me and spoke coldly, I was still in his heart. Sure, the ring was in a drawer, but the fact that he didn’t throw it away gave me comfort.
I left the office with a bright heart. Since all the servants were avoiding me, I managed to ask one who had his head down.
“Where is Cedric?”
The servant hesitated for a moment before answering.
“He’s in the east wing library.”
“The east wing?”
When I asked, confused, the servant pointed in the opposite direction from where I came.
“If you go that way, you’ll see a small staircase. Go through it and it will lead to the east wing building.”
I nodded and walked in the direction he pointed. As I walked, the surroundings felt familiar. The portraits on the wall reminded me of the hallway I had walked through when I first came here to meet Cedric.
Eventually, I realized that the library where I first met Cedric was in the east wing.
My steps naturally became faster. I wanted to say everything I had been holding back and clear up all the misunderstandings between us.
Just then, I saw the library door slightly open. I took a deep breath to calm down and ran my fingers through my hair to tidy it. I was just about to knock when I heard his voice.
“Tell Selena exactly what I said. There will be a big announcement at the banquet, so she should come even if she’s sick.”
“Are you sure it’s okay not to tell her in advance?”
“The more surprised she is, the better.”
Cedric’s lips curled into a smile. Seeing that made it feel like all my hopes were crushed, but I still tried to believe there was more to it. I had misunderstood things before by only hearing bits and pieces.
“So you’re finally going to make the announcement?”
Cedric nodded and opened something. It was a small ring box. The snake emblem on the box stood out clearly. It was unmistakably the ring from the jewelry shop I had received for my birthday.
Cedric stared at the ring box intently. His expression looked a little complicated. I wondered if saying something now would change things. If I told him not to get engaged to Selena.
My pride had already been shattered, so I tried to move.
“What happened with Count Svetra?”
As Cedric asked, the assistant quickly replied.
“That matter has been taken care of.”
Cedric nodded and looked at the ring box again.
“It’s better than a family with no background. At least this way, she’ll have some honor.”
A family with no background—that had always followed me. It felt like an unbreakable wall. No matter how hard I struggled, I couldn’t seem to get past it.
Would it even matter if I told Cedric not to marry Selena? No, it would probably just sound pathetic and pitiful, just like Cedric had said.
With a hardened face, I let go of the door handle. Now that I thought about it, Cedric had always been like this. Every time I had hope, he crushed it completely.
I hurried back to my room. If someone saw me, they would’ve thought I had lost my mind. As soon as I got back, I lay down on the bed. I didn’t want to think anymore.
When I opened my eyes, it was morning. Even though I gave him the sachets yesterday, he hadn’t said a word. My heart felt heavy. Yesterday had been too shocking, so I walked away, but now I kept thinking about the ring I saw in his office. The wedding ring he had kept with my photo.
I thought it would be better to hear the truth directly from Cedric.
My mind was a mess, but I still went to his office. When I arrived, I saw the servants coming out. They were carrying baskets filled with things, and among them, I saw something familiar—the sachets.
I rushed over to one of the servants.
“Are you throwing these away?”
I hoped not. The servant nodded casually and said,
“We’re just taking out what the master told us to throw away.”
My mind went blank, as if I had been struck. My blood felt ice-cold. The servants glanced at me as they passed. One of them approached carefully.
“Are you all right?”
I barely managed to nod. I wasn’t okay, but there was nothing I could do in this mansion. I stood there, dazed, then finally gathered myself and asked,
“Do you know where Cedric is?”
I still wanted to ask him. I wanted to hear his voice.
“He’s not at the mansion right now. He’s busy because of the delegation of proxy rule.”
My heart sank. Still, shouldn’t I at least say what I need to say? Even if I was treated worse than a servant in this mansion.
The servant looked at me cautiously. I barely nodded and turned back toward my room. As I climbed the stairs, all I felt was betrayal. Even if he said he wanted me, it was only my body he wanted. In the end…
I forced myself to stop thinking and returned to my room. Cedric was right. Staying here would only make things worse. I couldn’t watch it anymore.
I sat in my room, completely drained, when I heard a knock on the door. My mind was blank, and I couldn’t even answer. Maybe they thought I wasn’t inside, because the door opened.
When the maid saw me, she was startled and bowed her head. Since I didn’t say anything, she slowly approached.
“Lady Revril, the trial date has been changed to tomorrow.”
Tomorrow? I thought I misheard and asked again.
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes, and there will be a banquet that night. The master said you must attend.”
I was speechless. Attend the banquet? Was he really trying to show me exactly where I stood?
