Because I was Terminally Ill, I Married the Male Lead's Brother, and Now He's Obsessed with Me

Episode 32

 

“Lady Anaïs.”

 

“Lady, it’s been a while.”

 

Examining their faces up close, I remembered that they were the ones I had met at the tea party not long ago.

 

It was easy to recognize them because Young Lady of Baron, who hosted the tea party that day, was present.

 

And one of them was…

 

“Oh, I remember.”

 

It was Lady Demos, who had brought up the topic of Lloydin and the Brighton family at the tea party.

 

Although they hadn’t been particularly pleasant gossipers about Lloydin in front of many people, I still greeted them with a smiling face.

 

“Yes, it’s been a while.”

 

“Thank you for inviting us to the reception. I’ve never seen such a beautiful garden before. Lady, you truly have exceptional taste.”

 

“That’s right. The garden is so beautiful that I fell in love with it at first sight.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

Starting with the usual greetings, everyday words were exchanged between the two of them and me.

 

Then, feeling that I wanted to be alone for a moment, I decided to leave.

 

“Well then.”

 

“Wait, Lady!”

 

As I was about to turn around, Lady Demos urgently stopped me.

 

“I…”

 

Turning back to look at Lady Demos, it seemed like she had something to say to me.

 

However, she was hesitating and fumbling nervously, unable to easily open her mouth.

 

It was a completely different attitude from the one she had at the tea party, where she spoke without hesitation.

 

“Do you have anything else to say to me?”

 

“Well, um…”

 

I looked at Young Lady of Baron, who was standing beside her, feeling puzzled.

 

Like Lady Demos, she also seemed anxious and uneasy, glancing at me with a nervous expression.

 

“Please, speak freely.”

 

I urged her to speak quickly, afraid that we would be stuck here wasting precious time.

 

After exchanging glances with each other, Lady Demos finally spoke up.

 

“I want to apologize to you, Lady, for what happened at the tea party.”

 

“Apologize to me?”

 

“At that time, we were talking nonsense about Lord Brighton and his family without knowing anything, and it must have disturbed you. I’m really sorry.”

 

“I apologize, Lady.”

 

Young Lady of Baron also apologized to me, following Lady Demos.

 

“I simply believed the rumors I heard and discussed them with other ladies. But recently, I found out that those rumors were false.”

 

“I heard the same from my father. Someone spread malicious rumors.”

 

After listening to their words, I pondered for a moment.

 

Was I in a position to accept their apologies?

 

It was true that I felt upset seeing them gossiping recklessly that day.

 

However, the ones who should apologize were not me, who felt bitter, but Lloydin and Ian, the victims of the rumors.

 

Yet, if I were to tell them to apologize to Lloydin instead of me, he would find out about what happened at the tea party.

 

I wasn’t keen on informing Lloydin, who was already aware that people didn’t view him and his family favorably, about it.

 

“The ones who should receive apologies are the people who were present on the day we talked about as a topic, not me.”

 

“Huh? What?”

 

They looked at me as if they didn’t understand my words.

 

I inwardly sighed deeply at their reaction.

 

Despite my clear explanation, they seemed unaware that they were apologizing to the wrong person.

 

Why, why didn’t they feel an ounce of guilt towards Lloydin and the Brighton family?

 

But I couldn’t just do nothing.

 

He had given me a future that didn’t exist for me before, so I had to give him a better future than the present.

 

“The ones you should apologize to are Lord Brighton, the victim of the false rumors, right?”

 

“Ah… right. Lady’s correct. We should apologize to Lord Brighton.”

 

“Yes, that’s right. We misunderstood.”

 

Lady Demos and Young Lady of Baronhastily replied while looking apprehensive.

 

However, despite their obligation to apologize, there was no sincerity in their eyes.

 

Even after I directly pointed it out, they still didn’t understand why they should apologize to Lloydin.

 

“But I don’t want Lord to know about what happened at the tea party. So I’ll accept the apologies on his behalf. However, if such a thing happens again in the future, it won’t just end with words. You should be careful.”

 

“Yes? Oh, yes. Thank you, Lady.”

 

“Lady, thank you so much. But, Lady, I’m sorry, but could you please convey to Lord Brighton that I regret my mistake? My father has been worried sick, afraid that Lord Brighton might hold it against me. Please, I beg you.”

 

Ah, this was it.

 

As soon as I heard my father’s name from Young Lady of Demos mouth, a wave of disappointment and bitterness washed over me.

 

The reason for the apology, which didn’t seem sincere and was clearly purposeful, was because of my father’s urging.

 

If that was the case, there was no need for me to accept the apology on his behalf.

 

As expected, the apology wasn’t directed towards Lloydin.

 

I glanced at Lady Demos with a cold gaze before turning to Young Lady of Baronand speaking.

 

“Do you have something to ask of me, Young Lady of Baron?”

 

“Huh? Um, no, I…”

 

“Why? Didn’t Lord also…”

 

“Veronica, please!”

 

Young Lady of Baron, who quickly sensed the tense atmosphere emanating from me, hastily interrupted Lady Demos.

 

“We’ll be going now. We need to greet other people as well. Thank you for accepting the apology, Lady.”

 

“Olivia, but…”

 

Young Lady of Baron grabbed Lady Demos and quickly moved away from me.

 

As I watched them disappear before my eyes, along with the feeling of futility, a sense of determination rose within me.

 

“There’s going to be a lot to do from now on.”

 

Seeing how difficult it was for people to change their fixed beliefs and ingrained thoughts, I realized once again while watching them that it might take even longer than recovering from my illness.

 

But as I said before, I would never give up. I made a determined decision to persistently strive to change them.

 

‘Where is Lloydin?’

 

After chatting longer than expected with the Young Ladies, there was no one in the spot where my father and Lloydin were earlier.

 

It was then that I realized I was standing in the middle of the garden, looking around.

 

“Ayla.”

 

Suddenly, I heard someone calling my name from behind.

 

It was a voice I hadn’t heard before.

 

But the only person who would call me by my name was a family member.

 

Turning my head in the direction of the voice with a slight smile in my mind, I saw a stranger standing there.

 

The man had quite a handsome appearance.

 

Of course, it wasn’t as shocking as when I first saw Lloydin, but the man in front of me was handsome enough to catch anyone’s eye wherever he went.

 

“Who is he? He looks familiar from somewhere…”

 

Although he was clearly someone I was seeing for the first time, strangely, he seemed familiar.

 

A person so good-looking like him would be unforgettable.

 

Especially his light pinkish hair, which seemed brownish overall, was quite unique and harmonious, making it hard to forget once seen.

 

But no matter how much I thought, I couldn’t remember who he was.

 

“Wait. You really don’t recognize me?”

 

Do I know this person after all?

 

According to his words, it seemed like we knew each other, but…

 

“…Who are you?”

 

“Wow, you really don’t recognize me? That’s disappointing.”

 

The man looked genuinely disappointed.

 

Wait, as I looked at him, there was only one person who came to mind.

 

It was Luke.

 

He had the same easygoing manner of speech and rich variety of expressions as Luke.

 

Thanks to Luke, I was almost an expert at dealing with people like him.

 

Without intending to reveal who he was, the man only spoke his mind, so I patiently asked again.

 

“I’m sorry, but I really don’t know who you are. Have we met before?”

 

“Ha, even though a lot of time has passed, you still can’t recognize me?”

 

He sighed deeply, expressing his disappointment.

 

Silence fell between us.

 

We were just staring at each other quietly.

 

I deliberately didn’t say anything more.

 

After all, people like him, similar to Luke, would be the first to feel uncomfortable and speak up.