YED Chapter 141

Kaela had lived without doing ‘bad things.’ She lived refraining from all actions that harm others and all words that leave scars.

Beatrice Ravalley was the only being who made her repeatedly cross the line she had learned never to cross. Today too, Kaela crossed the line because of Beatrice. Far crossed it.

Entering the bedroom, Peon saw Kaela lying face down on the bed as he removed his gloves and light coat.

She lay motionless under a thin blanket despite the hot summer. He rolled up his sleeves after undoing his cuffs and washed his hands thoroughly in cold water. White soap bubbles flowed down his veined, firm hands.

“I heard you bravely drove her away.”

Just as Peon decided what to say after contemplating, Kaela threw a pillow.

The first pillow completely missed him, and the second one at least hit his leg before falling. Standing still, ready to be hit intentionally, he smoothed his mouth and loosened his tie.

“Did I do something wrong?”

Surely he must have. So Peon had considered apologizing first, but worried Kaela might get angrier, he put the apology aside for now.

“You’re stupid.”

“I was wrong. I’m sorry.”

When her tearful voice blamed him, it was naturally his fault. Peon approached the bed and pulled out Kaela’s hand hidden completely in the pillow. He forcefully pulled back the hand that tried to retreat.

“Let me see. I need to check if you’re hurt.”

“I’m not hurt.”

“Still.”

She might have hurt herself gripping the teapot too hard, having never wielded violence in her life.

“You did well.”

He said while examining her palm.

“You’ll say I did well no matter what I did.”

“Oh, you know that too?”

She meant don’t just blindly say she did well without meaning it, but Peon smiled and was pleased. That makes it more annoying. Kaela tried to push him away, but the man, twice as large and solid as her, didn’t budge an inch.

“I heard you won.”

Kaela remained motionless with her face buried in the pillow.

“I heard Lady Ravalley ran away from bees while smelling of lemon and ginger.”

Bees? Ah, of course, since sweet sugar syrup was mixed in the tea.

“Then why are you crying?”

“I wasn’t crying.”

“Alright.”

Let’s leave it at that. Peon was stroking Kaela’s hair when she suddenly sat up, and he withdrew his hand.

“Why am I entangled with such a person, why!”

She was so angry. The proud princess was angry enough to cry.

She tried to pour out everything she felt while dealing with Beatrice and everything she thought while crying alone to Peon. But the moment their eyes met, words wouldn’t come out. He already had an expression of understanding everything.

“…This is why I hate this.”

Kaela’s face contorted.

“I see.”

Peon nodded and supported his wife who was staggering after shouting, crying, and getting angry.

“She was nothing more than that. Just that kind of person – really stupid, vulgar, and not even that calculating, but I…!”

She and her husband had suffered for such a long time because of such a person. They were victimized by Beatrice Ravalley, who was nothing more than that. That felt unfair, and the fact that Peon was victimized made her even angrier.

“It was nothing.”

No one but Peon knows that futility and anger best. He understood it best, being both perpetrator and victim to Kaela.

Peon empathized more than anyone with these emotions Kaela was feeling now – this futility, anger, and once again damaged self-esteem.

“It’s not your fault.”

“I know!”

“You were just a normal person showing courtesy to a mean and stupid person.”

“I know that too.”

“You did well. What you did today is enough.”

Peon held her tight and kissed her reddened cheeks and eyes several times.

“Why did we let such a person do this to us?”

There were several reasons. Behind Beatrice was the Emperor, and there was magic that ordinary people couldn’t resist. But Kaela wasn’t asking because she didn’t know these things.

“Why does she make me do such mean things?”

To think such a low-level being made her cross lines she shouldn’t cross. Kaela writhed in self-loathing.

“It’s okay. You did well.”

Spilling some tea and throwing some harsh words doesn’t ruin your soul or lower your dignity. Peon wanted to hold Kaela, and Kaela was angry on his behalf too.

“From now on, I won’t care about her.”

“Right.”

“I’ll treat her the same way.”

“That’s right. You did well.”

Filled with determination, Kaela will do even better next time. Something that turned out to be nothing once you tried it – she had endured it for years. Among the reasons she had simply endured quietly, despite knowing how to be angry and how to fight, was Peon.

What was so good that made her endure? Even with such great pride as a princess, she endured and endured, crushing even that pride. Peon looked down with dark eyes, thinking of that time he could never have again.

“How do you know? Did you see?”

Meanwhile, Kaela didn’t miss even small details and suddenly raised her head. If he had kept her in his arms like this earlier, she wouldn’t have been crying with hurt pride today. Then he wouldn’t have lost Kaela’s heart forever either.

“The teacup bounced back before it reached me. What did you set up? Right?”

“Ah. It was a teacup?”

Peon’s face hardened.

“She dared to throw a teacup at you after having the audacity to show her face?”

“You deflected it, didn’t you?”

“I set up a barrier to deflect flying objects, in case you might get hurt when I’m not around. It’s a kind of protective barrier. Done crying?”

“I wasn’t crying.”

“Alright.”

He nodded and wiped her eyes.

“What did Beatrice say?”

“She asked to borrow ten million liquettes. How much did she ask you for?”

“She wasn’t even allowed to mention an amount, but ten million – she’s crazy.”

Kaela hesitated.

“You told her you couldn’t give it because it’s all my money, right?”

“Everything I have is yours.”

He said to her reddened eyes.

“I’ve told you many times. Everything I have is yours.”

“I see.”

“That’s right. What else did Beatrice say?”

She hesitated again. Somehow it bothered her that Peon called Beatrice just ‘Beatrice.’

“Why are you asking?”

“Don’t want to tell me?”

Peon asked back as if he would listen to everything, as if he was ready to listen for hours.

He sat Kaela on the bed and just waited until she would speak. Only he could understand this situation, understand her. He even understood her aggrieved feelings of wanting to tell someone about being wronged.

“It’s okay.”

But somehow it was too embarrassing to say more. Especially, she still had the habit of being afraid and hesitant to tell Peon about anything related to Beatrice, worried he might think badly of her.

“Aren’t you upset?”

Seeing how a teacup was flying towards Beatrice and how tea was splashed on her before driving her out, surely Kaela must be upset about losing her dignity as a refined lady.

“I won since I won, so it’s fine.”

“Is that so?”

Peon’s voice brightened noticeably as he responded. Is he saying I did well? Kaela looked up at him again. Peon smiled down at her and kept touching her face. After touching it, he kissed her as if he couldn’t resist.

“You did well. Do the same next time you meet her. That’s fine too.”

“Mmm.”

“You did well. Very well.”

“I didn’t splash the tea on her first.”

“I know. Beatrice must have done it first. She must have made you very angry.”

There he goes calling her Beatrice again. Well, what else could he call her? Kaela, who had been staring intently at Peon’s constant smiling, didn’t tell him more about what happened.

She still keeps many things to herself. Despite most of them being things Peon should know. Of course, he had no intention of tiredly prying further.

There’s nothing more exhausting than a clingy husband.

****

It’s summer. Flowers bloom everywhere, and bees and all sorts of insects are crazy about rushing toward things that emit sweet scents in summer.

Beatrice, who had to fight even bees while drenched in sticky tea and smelling strongly of lemon and ginger, barely emerged from the cramped apartment bathtub.

The taste of defeat was bitter, and the humiliation would be forever etched in her mind, never to disappear.

She can’t express how embarrassing it was. No one on the street helped her. Even the gentlemen who had been so kind didn’t extend their hands to her.

Ah. She finally realized. Beatrice Ravalley’s name had somehow disappeared from the top of Craine’s representative nobility list. It wasn’t even a fall. It was just immediately erased. How could this happen!

‘I’ll kill them.’

She’ll kill them. She won’t let this slide. Beatrice rummaged through her densely packed luggage and took out the weapons she had brought so preciously.

Even if everything was already ruined, she couldn’t quietly back down like this. She absolutely couldn’t! She had always stepped on others. Stepped on them and climbed up. The bigger the target to step on, the higher you could climb, right?

Anyway, after taking out her final weapon, Beatrice sat down carelessly. She was so angry that she opened a wine bottle and drank straight from it.

The more sober she was alone, the more miserable she felt. Should she be thankful there was at least wine? Until tomorrow came, she didn’t have much to do alone. So after fuming about this woman and that woman, she dozed off from the alcohol.

Even in her dream, Kaela de Chasser looked down at Beatrice with those brazen eyes wide open.

-If you want to borrow money, shouldn’t you go to Peon oppa first? That seems like the proper order.

That damned woman! Beatrice reached out her hand like a claw to grab Kaela’s well-braided hair.

“Where do you think…”

But since it was a dream, her body wouldn’t move. Kaela, visible before her, went back to the beginning and stared at Beatrice. She rambled on asking to borrow ten million liquettes.

-Peon oppa is rich too.

Kaela was acting all noble while saying if you need money, why come to the legal wife instead of going to your lover. She wanted to hit her once, but her body wouldn’t budge.

However, a sigh was heard from far away. Who’s sighing? Beatrice wanted to turn around, but she had to feel again all the humiliation Kaela gave her today.

-I don’t care about oppa and unni’s private life. But family assets are important.

The presence beside her controlled all of this. Beatrice could naturally know this since it was her dream. He repeated what Beatrice experienced and sometimes made Kaela’s words repeat continuously.

-Because husband and wife share a joint economy. Because husband and wife share a joint economy. Because husband and wife share a joint economy.

-You’re vulgar. You’re vulgar. You’re vulgar.

-And stupid too. And stupid too. And stupid too.

He especially picked and repeated the words Beatrice hated hearing the most. Kaela de Chasser, that annoying girl, repeated only the words that would make Beatrice the angriest.

-Get out of my life and my husband’s life!

-Get out of my husband’s life!

-Get out of my husband’s life!

-My husband

-My husband

-My husband

-My husband

-My husband

“Hahahaha!”

When suddenly a man’s maniacal laughter was heard nearby, Beatrice was certain this dream was a nightmare. She wanted to see who was laughing but couldn’t.

She could only look forward. A terrifying presence was forcibly pushing her into memories and making her keep seeing shameful scenes. To make sure she could never forget no matter how much she tried, it engraved them in her mind again and again.

When Beatrice finally woke up, she was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. The sun had already set and it was dark around her. She had planned to go to the royal palace, but couldn’t.

But what dream did she have?

She couldn’t remember.