Chapter 039
Lorencia clutched her thigh. A sharp pain was rising from her ankle.
“Damn it, Janice!”
She said it was just a small thing!
The pain crawling up from her ankle made her dizzy.
“The doctor will be here soon. Just hold on a little longer, Lady Lorencia.”
Charlotte, looking pale, comforted her.
“Who is comforting who?”
With that face, it wasn’t comforting at all. And a doctor? That wasn’t who Lorencia was waiting for.
Cassius.
As Lorencia whimpered in pain, footsteps echoed through the hallway. Someone was running.
With heavy, determined steps, the first person arrived.
“Charlotte!”
It was Cassius.
The person she had been waiting for. But his attention wasn’t on her.
Cassius lifted Charlotte into his arms.
“You’re not hurt, are you? Charlotte, let’s go inside and get you checked—”
“It’s not me!”
Charlotte shouted in a sharp voice.
Pushing lightly against Cassius’s chest, she pointed to Lorencia, who was lying on the floor.
“Lady Lorencia is injured. She needs to see the doctor right away.”
Lorencia bit her lip hard.
She felt utterly miserable.
Cassius, who didn’t even notice her.
Charlotte, pointing at her and fussing over her.
But the most miserable thing of all—
“The maids will be here soon. I can’t support an unmarried lady myself.”
Cassius cut off the conversation like a cold blade.
Lorencia let her body slump in frustration.
“What? Attract the Duke’s attention?”
Janice had failed.
Cassius didn’t care about Lorencia at all.
His entire focus was on Charlotte.
“Damn it, damn it!”
She hadn’t come all the way to the North to be treated like this.
Lorencia trembled with anger.
“Anyway, put me down.”
“Why?”
“Didn’t you hear me? I’m not hurt, Cassius.”
Charlotte spoke firmly.
But Cassius, as if the conversation was already over, carried her away.
“Lorencia is still—”
“The maids are coming. Don’t worry, Charlotte. She won’t die.”
Cassius spoke indifferently and disappeared inside, still holding Charlotte.
Charlotte looked at him, startled.
Lorencia was the female lead.
“How much are you planning to suffer later?”
Charlotte swallowed her sigh.
At this rate, even the “Regretful Male Lead” tag wouldn’t be surprising.
“Lorencia doesn’t seem easy to deal with either. This is crazy.”
Charlotte sighed.
For the original story to proceed smoothly, she needed to step aside soon.
“Three times. I’ll just check three more times and leave.”
She looked at Cassius with pity.
Of course, she felt a bit disappointed and even a little sad, but that was just her own feeling.
This wasn’t a world where she was the only one who mattered.
She couldn’t sacrifice an entire story just for her emotions.
Charlotte sighed and leaned her head against Cassius’s chest.
For the first time, she was being held like this.
Really, for the first time.
And for the first time, someone was this passionate about protecting her.
It was a strange feeling.
Cassius’s embrace was warmer than she expected, and his scent was deep and calming.
A warmth that left a stinging feeling in her heart.
Charlotte closed her eyes.
Thump, thump.
She could hear his steady heartbeat.
A mix of citrus and woody fragrance lingered in the air.
“So this is your scent.”
Really—
Even his scent was that of a male lead.
Charlotte let out a small laugh.
Fortunately, Charlotte wasn’t injured.
Lorencia had a slight ankle injury, but it wasn’t serious enough to stop her lessons or require rest.
Since it happened in the Duke’s mansion, Cassius made sure the head maid provided enough compensation.
Now, it was time for punishment.
Before Cassius could even begin his large-scale investigation, someone confessed.
“I-I’m sorry! I really am!”
A young maid, bowing her head, pleaded for mercy.
Cassius looked down coldly at the girl kneeling on the floor, sobbing.
“I was moving the flowerpot, and I put it near the window for a moment… but I looked away, and it fell… I was scared when I saw someone got hurt, so I ran away. It’s all my fault! I’m really sorry!”
The maid trembled, barely forming coherent sentences.
Cassius clicked his tongue quietly.
With her reacting like this, it was difficult to even scold her.
And she claimed it was an accident.
Cassius glanced at Charlotte.
Then at a nanny beside her.
Charlotte looked at the maid with sympathy, while the nanny’s gaze was sharp as a blade.
Cassius slowly spoke.
“Charlotte, what do you think?”
“She understands her mistake and is apologizing, Cassius. How about she apologizes to Lorencia and gets a salary deduction as punishment?”
Cassius’s gaze shifted to the nanny.
“What do you think?”
“She should be dismissed immediately. This could have killed someone.”
At that moment, Cassius turned back to the trembling maid.
Cassius narrowed his eyes. The maid had a look of acceptance, ready to take her punishment.
He let out a small hum. He had wondered if the nanny would defend the maid or if the maid would react to the nanny’s words.
“Was I overthinking?”
Without realizing it, Cassius had been looking for a connection between the maid and the nanny.
The maid was still young and had only recently joined the Duke’s household. Cassius tapped his fingers against his arm.
If she had been bribed by the nanny, her loyalty was weak.
Even if she wasn’t involved in anything suspicious, she had made a mistake that could have put someone’s life in danger.
“Pack your things and leave immediately. Since you admitted your mistake, I won’t give you any further punishment.”
“Thank you, Your Grace.”
Cassius planned to keep an eye on her even after she left. Then, he turned his gaze toward Charlotte.
She still looked at the maid with sympathy.
At that moment, Cassius realized something.
He was paying attention to Charlotte.
He was watching to see if she was upset by his decision.
By choosing the nanny’s judgment over Charlotte’s, he had ignored her words.
In the past, the old Cassius wouldn’t have cared about anyone’s opinions. He would have simply done what he believed was right.
His own reaction felt unfamiliar.
Cassius frowned slightly and ran a hand over his face.
Then, with a softer voice, he added,
“Before you leave, apologize to Lady Lorencia.”
“Yes, Your Grace! Thank you, thank you…!”
Cassius noticed Charlotte sigh. He took in every little detail.
When Charlotte lifted her head, their eyes met. She tilted her head at his intense stare.
“Cassius?”
“It was a crime worthy of expulsion.”
“I know.”
Charlotte shrugged.
“I think you did the right thing.”
“But you wanted to forgive her.”
“That was just my personal feeling.”
Hearing her say that so plainly, Cassius felt relieved without realizing it.
She didn’t seem upset at all.
“…Let’s have lunch together.”
“I’ll bring the kids too. They’re probably waiting like hungry baby birds.”
At Charlotte’s words, Cassius fell silent, wearing a strange expression.
She always included Theo and the dragon so naturally in their conversations.
Come to think of it, they had never done anything alone together.
From the side, the nanny watched Cassius with sharp eyes.
