Chapter 68
“Of all people, it had to be Count Clue who won over such a beauty… it really burns me up.”
Cain brought up Cayente again, but this time he mentioned something Julia already knew—just how cold Cayente could be.
“Actually, I’ve often run into Count Clue because of work, no matter where, but I’ve never seen him greet anyone warmly.”
Julia recalled the times she had run into Cayente herself—he rarely gave a warm greeting, and most of the time just looked annoyed. She laughed in agreement rather than replying.
“Not even inviting someone to a wedding… I thought you two were close enough for that. I was so disappointed…”
Even hearing Cain complain about Cayente’s behavior made her laugh in sympathy. But as she continued to listen to what might have simply been statements of fact, her smile gradually faded. No matter how politely one might phrase it, Cain’s words were like what anyone else would say:
Cayente lacked manners and was arrogant, indifferent to the lives of those beneath him, showing no intention of caring for them, thinking everything could be solved with money, and while his business acumen was high, as a human being he had nothing to teach.
“He wasn’t always like that.”
Back when she had been hurt by Cayente’s indifference, she had just wanted someone to understand her feelings. People shouldn’t be like that—it was too cruel. She had thought it would be fun to talk with him, but it wasn’t. Even now, concerning last night, only she cared about it—Cayente had returned to his room at dawn, perhaps considering it meaningless, and though they were married, the distance remained.
“He used to be a very good person. If he had met vagrants like the ones earlier, he would have emptied his wallet for them and even taken off his gloves. Not only that—he might have even given some of them jobs at his factories.”
“That Count Clue… really?”
“It’s true. Back then… he really was a good person.”
She disliked hearing people criticize Cayente. Suddenly, memories of him shivering in the underground on the island came to mind, and she recalled the gentle touch of his arms and hands that comforted her during her father’s troubles.
“When was that ever the case? The Count I know has always been like this.”
“Until eight years ago, definitely. Maybe even four years ago.”
“I’ve known Count Clue for three years, so I can’t say for certain, but it’s hard to believe.”
If Cain hadn’t let it go casually, Julia could have spent hours talking about how kind and warm Cayente used to be.
“Still, you must have had something going for you to have won over someone like Count Clue, right? So, even now, is he still a good person to you?”
She could talk endlessly about his past kindness, but if asked about the present, she couldn’t confidently say that Cayente was a good person to her. He had improved just slightly… very slightly.
“I never trusted the so-called great love stories in gossip magazines. Was it anything like that? Anyway, it’s a relief that one rumor circulating isn’t true.”
“A rumor?”
“A false rumor. You’d only get upset hearing it.”
“What rumor?”
“It’s irrelevant since it’s a false rumor. There was a story that Count Clue bought a woman with money. But what mad noble would hand over his daughter… I’ll leave it at that. I spoke too harshly about your husband. My apologies.”
Rumors weren’t always completely made up. Her face had stiffened because she realized part of it was true, and Cain’s usually cheerful face grew slightly serious.
“Other noble families are probably no different unless the two people fall for each other naturally. Women’s families choose men based on title or money. You don’t need to react to that every time.”
But even so, Cain didn’t just laugh it off like other nobles might. Instead, he approached the situation in a way Julia had never seen before, and she felt more at ease. Until now, she had felt as though she had been sold for money, unable to feel proud in front of Cayente, but that seemed unnecessary now.
“So defending Count Clue earlier… that was because you’re such a good person, Julia. Thinking about it now, it makes me regret things a little.”
Though partly a joke, seeing Cain laugh openly made Julia briefly wonder what it would have been like if she had met a man like him. Would her heart have felt more at ease?
“What are you doing here?”
But Julia couldn’t dwell on that thought for long. Cayente appeared at the pie shop, as if he knew she would be there.
Appearing without warning, Cayente didn’t even nod to Cain. In a voice as cold as ice, he ordered Julia to rise and scolded Cain.
“Does the freedom of Casadean people extend even to married women?”
“I didn’t know whether it mattered if she was married or not when helping her.”
“I don’t know what kind of help you gave, but you should’ve been careful meeting a married woman alone.”
“Strict, indeed.”
Julia worried that Cayente’s aggressive tone might lead to a fight, but Cain laughed it off. Julia had to follow after Cayente when he left the shop and try to explain.
“In the Duchy of Esacudia, I didn’t know a married woman couldn’t meet another man without her husband’s permission. Truly.”
“You met secretly with a man your lady doesn’t even know, while you were sitting in the break room drinking tea?”
“I’m sorry, Count! My lady willingly followed, so…”
After leaving the shop, Cayente walked swiftly toward the main street without looking back. Julia hurried after him, repeatedly explaining that she hadn’t known, but Cayente’s anger showed no signs of subsiding. Suddenly, he stopped and seized poor Becky.
“Becky did nothing wrong. I… I just helped her when she was in trouble. The pie incident—she followed me without any particular reason, just wanting to offer it as thanks.”
“You think I’m a joke?”
Every time… what did he mean by that? Julia’s heart was already racing just from his gaze.
In front of the angriest Cayente she had ever seen, Julia had no idea what to say.
She had already said countless times that it wasn’t funny, but now she couldn’t understand why he was so furious. Cain had been awkward knowing she was married, but he hadn’t left the room, so it didn’t seem like a matter that would dishonor the family name… was it really something to get this angry over?
“You should get my permission for everything. I said you needed my permission to move. Even your beloved cello—you need my permission to play. Isn’t that right?”
“Wait… I forgot for just a moment… I just didn’t know it was inappropriate behavior in the Duchy, so… for a moment… And I thought you meant general behavior, not who I meet—”
“This isn’t about the Duchy!”
Cayente, enraged to the tip of his hair, cut her off and shouted. Julia gasped and froze as he stepped right up in front of her, his eyes blazing.
“You heard me right—general behavior. You should have followed that. I gave you free time to look around the city while I handled work. You could’ve just gone sightseeing quietly. But instead, you met—of all people—Dines… that man?”
“It happened that way…”
She couldn’t understand, but his fury was so overwhelming that she could hardly exhale in front of him.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know… I was wrong. I won’t do it again.”
The thought that this marriage was for money and she had to tread lightly had long disappeared from Julia’s mind. Now, pressed against the wall and facing a seemingly stranger, she had to hold onto Cayente.
Before the marriage, and even more so now that things were worse, it was vital for her to behave well in front of him.
“I truly didn’t know… I didn’t think that far… I had no other intention. Really.”
Like before, when she had acted on impulse fearing the marriage might be canceled and her family left destitute, she was uneasy. Then and now, Julia had a clear reason to show herself favorably to Cayente, no matter her feelings toward him.
“I didn’t even know who he was. Even if it was by chance, if I had been told not to greet him, I would have obeyed. So please… calm down, brother.”
“Follow me.”
But now, the situation was worse, and such hypotheticals meant even less to Julia. Still, she knew she would be anxiously trailing behind Cayente. Today, the burden felt unusually heavy, and she swallowed her tears as she followed him.
