Chapter 14
“Pregnant?”
“The rumor is already spreading like wildfire. They say the real reason for the sudden rush to get married is because Lady Ruper is carrying the Count’s child.”
Cayente was usually someone who rarely showed emotion in front of others, but this time, the absurdity of it all made him burst into loud laughter.
“Why are you laughing? I heard Lady Ruper is pregnant with your child. Isn’t that why you’re in such a hurry?”
Who’s pregnant with my child?
—…Please let me go.
The girl who trembled just from being held, who teared up the moment he tried to kiss her?
“They say it’s because Lady Ruper, desperate due to her financial situation, used her body to cling to the Count, with whom she supposedly had an old acquaintance.”
The people of the Empire loved gossip so much they’d even make up stories, but he didn’t expect something this far-fetched to be circulating. Who’s clinging to whose ankle now?
“So anyway… how about dinner tonight?”
As Cayente felt a bitter taste spread in his mouth for some reason, Abelle pulled down the neckline of her dress, revealing more of her already exposed chest, and smiled seductively with her eyes.
“After dinner, we could have a pleasant time and discuss the diamond price. If I like how the discussion goes, I might even sell it to you for half the price.”
Did she think now that he had some experience with women, he’d be willing to roll around with her?
Even though he exuded the chill of a midwinter wind, women who looked at Cayente and licked their lips were always around. But few were as openly seductive as Abelle.
“What do you say?”
She must have been that confident in herself.
Did her exaggerated movements to emphasize her chest tempt him at all? Not in the least. What stirred Cayente more was Yuria’s hunched shoulders, as if trying to make herself smaller.
Was that his type? Maybe he preferred shy women who flinched at the smallest stimuli rather than bold, aggressive ones like this.
“Excuse me.”
At any rate, Cayente felt a stronger bitterness in his mouth from Abelle’s actions and frowned deeply. He didn’t even deem it worth a response, so he kept silent. Just then, Henry walked into the office with a tray of tea and cookies.
“I apologize for the lack of preparation due to the unexpected visit. I hope the tea suits your taste. It’s black tea with an orange scent from the Principality of Esacudia.”
“The scent is disappointing. If I had known, I would have brought some tea from Kasad myself.”
Abelle shamelessly ignored the effort that went into the hospitality, leisurely enjoying her tea. Watching her, Cayente tilted his lips to the side and opened them without hesitation.
“You must have a lot of free time.”
“…What?”
“I thought only people from the Empire were nosy, but it seems people from Kasad are the same.”
“Who’s nosy—”
“When you started talking about prices, I thought maybe you were finally serious about inheriting the family business. I wondered if we could have a meaningful conversation, but that was pointless. I’m busy, so could you please leave now?”
“Count Clou.”
Abelle’s expression twisted with anger as she glared at Cayente, but he did not look away.
“If you still want to sell pink diamonds across the continent in the future, you’ll need to refrain from such behavior. Just because our continents are connected doesn’t mean Kasad’s promiscuous culture works in the Lucican Empire or the Principality of Esacudia.”
“What did you say?”
At that moment, he had already let go of any personal regard.
“If such private behavior interferes with business, I doubt Marquis Dines will stay silent, especially since your brother is far more focused on business than you. Henry, please escort the lady out.”
“You said you were expanding your business, didn’t you? Do you think you can still sell Clou’s textile products in Kasad after treating me this way?”
“Of course.”
Cayente always made decisions based solely on reason, never doing anything that would harm business even slightly. But he wasn’t so lacking in ability that he had to put up with this bitter taste. In some ways, swallowing this kind of insult to avoid a loss was a blow to his pride.
Hadn’t he already achieved enough to ignore a woman like this?
So, following his instincts, he lashed out—and the enraged Abelle stormed out, slamming the door without so much as a goodbye.
“Will this be okay, Count? Kasad is one of Clou Textile’s major trading countries. Considering Marquis Dines’ influence in Kasad…”
“It doesn’t matter. Once the cotton mill is complete, I have no intention of only selling products within the continent.”
Henry expressed concern, but Cayente didn’t care in the slightest. He had also factored in the belief that Marquis Dines’ heir was smarter than his sister and wouldn’t be foolish enough to antagonize Clou Textile over something like this.
“The tea tastes sweet.”
“Sweet, sir? It does have a sweet aroma…”
Though there were personal feelings involved, he had no regrets about what just happened. The bitterness lingering in his mouth disappeared entirely with that action.
As soon as breakfast was over, the shoemaker arrived.
Yulia assumed he’d only be crafting a few pairs for the imperial parties or wedding, but that wasn’t the case. He entered with every type of leather imaginable and even thick fabrics suitable for slippers, as if determined to craft shoes for a lifetime.
“For indoor slippers, this dark brown silk with jacquard patterns would be nice. Ah! This deep pink will look lovely too when made into shoes. As you know, nothing beats lambskin from the Principality of Esacudia. It’s not as strong as woolen fabric, but Clou Textile made good money with it. It’s soft, so it’s often used for casual shoes worn for short walks nearby.”
“Look at that… Seems like the Count really dotes on the lady.”
“I told you, Emma. Since childhood, Cayente was completely smitten with our Yulia. If they hadn’t lost contact, he would’ve swept her off her feet before she even danced with another man at the ball.”
While Yulia was overwhelmed by the abundance of choices, the Baroness and Emma looked at the materials spread across the drawing room with sparkling eyes. That the Count was planning to make her so many shoes even before the wedding showed just how much he liked her.
If someone didn’t know better, they might think the Baroness wasn’t even there when the marriage was first decided. The way Cayente acted then—she had clearly forgotten, repeating again and again how much Cayente cherished Yulia.
With money being spent like this, it was easy to be mistaken. But Yulia knew.
This too… was simply about preparing her to fit the role of Countess.
“This one has a unique texture, doesn’t it? It’s crocodile leather. Very hard to obtain, so I rarely bring it out. But since the future Countess might need to inspect the estate, I thought sturdy shoes would be essential.”
“How many pairs did he ask you to make?”
At this rate, it seemed like the shoemaker intended to use up all the materials he brought…
