What?
I struggled to control my expression. What does he want? He wants me? Am I an object?
No. First, let’s calm down. I was married when we first met, remember!
Of course! Not anymore, but still!
I rubbed my forehead as it felt like my head was starting to throb again.
Ugh, damn it. I can’t even hit him.
I wanted to grab him by the collar and ask what kind of trick he was playing. Things were already hectic because of Carlothian.
“Are you saying that you love me?”
I said it somewhat mockingly without realizing it. He widened his eyes and then spoke as if he had just understood.
“Miss Ariadeline, I am confessing my love to you right now.”
“……”
What the hell, seriously? Love is being talked about everywhere.
Do you even know what love is!?
Of course, I don’t know either! The only thing I’ve loved in my life is music!
What does love feel like to me? Well, um. It feels like I would die without it, and it feels like I would die from joy when I’m with someone.
Anyway, it seems that feeling like you might die is love.
I gave a somewhat tired look to the man named Seth in front of me, following Carlothian.
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that. It doesn’t make much sense to me.”
“Oh dear, it seems my sincerity was lacking.”
Where in the world is there a love that can be spoken of so smoothly? I felt a bit offended and crossed my legs, leaning comfortably against the backrest.
“It was lacking, to say the least. So is that the main point?”
“Even if you don’t believe in my love for you, I could at least propose a spot as a partner for the banquet, right?”
I looked at him for a moment without saying anything.
“That is…”
I was about to say I would go with Carlothian. But the words got stuck in my throat.
What if Carlothian got upset about it and wouldn’t come with me?
Of course, I knew he wasn’t the type to abandon his duties over something like that. Still, an uneasy feeling crept in.
“I will go with Carlothian.”
“Is that so?”
He looked surprised. He must have visited the main building when he came here.
“The Duke didn’t mention anything like that.”
So, he must have seen Carlothian. But did he really allow a man like this to spout such nonsense?
My head was spinning. What on earth was Carlothian thinking?
“Did you talk to Carlothian about the partner matter?”
“Yes.”
“And he didn’t say anything at all?”
He nodded as if it were obvious. “Yes. He didn’t object at all.”
“……”
I was a bit. Well, a bit. No, in fact, I was very angry. Did he really say nothing at all?
As I silently bit my lip, Seth spoke to me gently.
“So, I came to ask you. I wanted to know if I could take that spot.”
To be honest, how could I trust that sly character? But I didn’t have the courage to go find Carlothian and ask him if it was true.
On one hand, my pride was hurt. Honestly, I didn’t love you, but I did everything for you, didn’t I? Is that all I am to you?
So I clenched my fists and forced a smile. Carlothian, you jerk. How about I give you a taste of your own medicine?
“…Let me think about it.”
“Oh dear, that’s not the answer I wanted.”
Seth Dolorante quietly stood up.
“Since hope hasn’t completely extinguished, I’ll be satisfied with this for today and take my leave.”
“Do that.”
I was also feeling heated, my head spinning, so I slowly stood up. He walked over the table and extended his arm to me.
I didn’t want to be escorted by him, but as I tried to step forward, I felt dizzy, so I had no choice but to take his arm.
“You’re still as stubborn as ever.”
“Please don’t act like you know me well.”
After all, the Ariadeline you know is a completely different person from me!
We stepped out of the reception room, and I roughly saw him off. So, I only walked him to the entrance of the annex and waved my hand at him.
“It’s sad.”
“Is it?”
Seth pretended to be sad and left the mansion quietly, while fatigue washed over me, and I rushed into my room and collapsed. He was the type to drain my energy in a different way than Carlothian.
I lay sprawled on the bed, struggling to recall memories.
So, what was it like when I first met that man?
I briefly pulled up Ariadeline’s memories.
The first time I met him was at a social gathering held in a madam’s salon.
He was a popular man, surrounded by numerous women. And I, Ariadeline, was surrounded by my followers, only conversing with them.
“Ariadeline, how are you feeling today?”
“Duchess, your dress is so beautiful today.”
Ariadeline tried to lift her spirits upon hearing such compliments.
Because that day, she had been turned down for a lunch invitation by Carlothian.
Ariadeline slowly fanned her face, revealing her discomfort, causing the surrounding ladies to watch her closely for a while.
And then, Seth Dolorante approached.
“You look bored sitting there.”
“Oh my, Lord Dolorante.”
At that time, he was still referred to by the honorific title since her father had not yet passed away.
He merged the group of ladies he had brought with Ariadeline’s entourage. It was quite an achievement.
Ariadeline was notorious in high society, so there were hardly any ladies or noblewomen who dared to approach her unless they were her followers.
He gathered the ladies on a nearby sofa and charmed them with his soft voice and manner. Ariadeline showed no interest in him at all.
From the beginning, Ariadeline’s heart was completely occupied by Carlothian, so no one, whether male or female, could capture her attention.
At that moment, Dolorante, who had been chatting with the ladies, suddenly brought up an unknown story.
“Speaking of which, I met a boy the other day.”
The story that began like that was about a very unfortunate boy.
“He was a boy shunned by his parents and mistreated by the servants, left alone in the mansion.”
“Oh, how sad.”
“It’s so heartbreaking that he was rejected by his parents, isn’t it?”
The women around him clasped their hands together, showing expressions of sympathy. Ariadeline seemed to smile inwardly at that moment.
It felt so much like a scene from a play.
“That boy had nothing and achieved nothing. So I advised him: Trust no one but yourself and defeat your enemies.”
“And then? What happened?”
“The boy was too fragile to carry out those words.”
He continued to recount that unfortunate story and then asked the ladies.
“No matter how much he struggled, there wasn’t a single person to lend a hand, and no one to listen no matter how loud he shouted.”
“Oh my…”
“Of course, since then, I lost contact with him, so I don’t know what happened.”
“He must have done well, right?”
“Well… What do you think is the point we should take from this?”
“That boy is so pitiful.”
“If such a boy existed, I would have taken him in and loved him.”
“Absolutely, it’s just heartbreaking.”
The noblewomen, eager for even a single glance from the Marquis Seth Dolorante, continued to chatter away.
Seth Dolorante nodded along to each of their words, listening earnestly.
Then, suddenly, his gaze landed on Ariadeline. And he asked her.
“So… What do you think, madam?”
Ariadeline met his gaze for the first time. There was nothing in Dolorante’s green eyes. They were too empty for someone who was listening so kindly to the ladies’ stories.
