Chapter 80
Unaware—or perhaps willfully ignoring—that Cayente felt absolutely no fondness for her, the Baroness burst into the office and, barely sitting down, immediately began to complain.
“Suddenly, the checks were stopped! Ruper says he can’t give more items under his name, but my daughter is the Countess of Clou, so they should at least listen to me!”
Cayente, who had no intention of facing the Baroness directly, remained seated at his desk and merely looked at her. The Baroness, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she had so thoroughly upset Yulia, spoke as if she were completely justified in her actions.
“This dress was adjusted by the Duchess of Growen, but since she gained weight and couldn’t wear it, I had it altered for myself. The fabric is fine, but doesn’t it look completely wrong on me?”
Her words had grown short and casual, as if she were addressing Cayente like her own son. Even when Cayente, unable to hide his feelings any longer, gave her a colder-than-usual stare, the oblivious Baroness continued talking, completely absorbed in herself.
“But still, isn’t it inappropriate for our Yulia, the Countess of Clou, to go around dressed like this? So, speaking of which… could you give me back the checkbook that was given when Yulia’s wedding preparations started?”
“Hah!”
Cayente couldn’t hide his laughter, which escaped spontaneously. The Baroness, noticing his laugh of disbelief and frustration, finally stiffened slightly. Cayente spoke, his voice so cold it seemed to radiate frost.
“There isn’t one.”
“Huh?”
“I have no intention of giving you the checkbook issued under the Clou name.”
“Oh, come on—”
“Listen carefully, Baroness.”
The Baroness, who usually brushed off anything said to her like a stone bouncing, stared at Cayente’s face, now mercilessly sharp, with all traces of laughter gone. Irritated, Cayente swept his hair back with a hand, then drummed his fingers on the desk, restraining his anger.
He couldn’t afford to be too harsh; if Yulia heard that he had been rough with her mother, she would undoubtedly cry again.
“Ian’s salary will be 30 gold per month, paid on the first of each month. After deducting 10 gold for the mansion’s rent, what’s left for you will be 20 gold.”
“Twenty gold…! How is that supposed to last a month? And mansion rent? What do you mean? Didn’t we buy that house?”
“I did, in my name. But Baroness, I am a businessman. Did you really think I’d hand over the house for free? Even so, I am offering it below the market price, for Yulia’s sake.”
“What?!”
The Baroness shouted in outrage, her face turning red and blue. She clearly hadn’t expected Cayente to treat her like this even after the marriage. Unbothered by her reaction, Cayente continued in a strictly businesslike tone.
“I will gradually reduce the number of staff working at the mansion. Still, since it’s the house where the mother of my wife lives, at least I’ll leave a servant to polish the nameplate on the front gate.”
“Our Yulia won’t just sit still if this continues!”
The Baroness leapt to her feet, shouting angrily. At least her tone had reverted to polite language, suggesting she wasn’t completely thoughtless.
Cayente smirked lightly, then glared at her sharply.
“Not sit still?”
Startled, the Baroness trembled, while Cayente let a faint smile play across his face.
“You seem to forget that it’s only because Yulia is with me that I am tolerating this. If you want to take home even 20 gold a month, your son will also need to cooperate. Otherwise, he could end up being fired from the company.”
“Wha… Why Ian? He’s such a smart boy!”
“Smart or stupid, I don’t know, but he needs to learn some discipline. At this point, Yulia is the only normal one in that family.”
“Discipline him?!”
Cayente implied that Ian wasn’t performing well, but the Baroness picked apart his words and shouted even louder. Cayente, tired of arguing, gestured to Henry.
“Henry!”
“Yes, Count?”
“Escort the Baroness out of the office. And inform the staff to ensure she never sets foot in here again.”
Even a brief encounter with her made his neck tense in anger. Cayente felt pity for the Baron, who had gotten involved in the textile business because of the Baroness, imagining how much suffering he must have endured.
So much so, he thought, that he almost wanted to send the rest of the family straight to the ranch. Both the Baroness and Ian were individuals he didn’t even want to engage with.
“Baroness, you shouldn’t be doing this here. Please, go home.”
“Isn’t that right, Henry? Our Yulia isn’t just some ordinary girl!”
When Yulia hurriedly parked her carriage and approached her mother, the Baroness was shouting loudly, claiming the situation was unacceptable. Henry tried to calm her by gauging the attention of the bystanders, but nothing seemed to work.
“Mother!”
“Yulia! Listen to me! Everyone, just hear me out!”
Even with Yulia there, the Baroness continued her tantrum. She had once scolded Yulia to be grateful to Cayente, but now she rambled about Yulia’s intelligence, beauty, and figure without shame.
“If you could get that girl for that amount of money, anyone would drool over her! And what? You can’t even treat your own daughter’s mother properly? Told never to come to the office again? That’s outrageous! Isn’t it?!”
“Mother! Please stop!”
This time, Yulia couldn’t tolerate it and clamped her hand over her mother’s mouth. Judging by the context, it seemed her mother had been refused money by Cayente and now was venting her frustration.
“Let go. Are you acting like this just because you’re part of the Clou family now?”
“What’s the problem now? Why did you even come here?”
“What problem? Didn’t you hear me yesterday? The house is too small! And look at my clothes! It’s almost summer, yet I’m still in spring dresses. I asked to be allowed to spend money freely, and do you know what he said?”
People had gathered, enjoying the spectacle, and now that Yulia appeared, their attention increased. The Baroness was not someone who would quiet down just because someone tried to stop her. Yulia tried to get her into the carriage, but the Baroness resisted to the end.
“Just get in!”
“Where am I going? People need to know! How clueless the Count of Clou is!”
“Mother! Please!”
“Lorina, take her away. Go and talk to her, okay?”
Even Lucy pulled on her arm, but the Baroness didn’t budge. Multiple attempts were made to push her into the carriage, yet she clung back each time.
“Ma’am!!!”
“Ahhh!”
As the Baroness resisted, Yulia was pushed toward the carriage road. Unaware someone would suddenly appear, the approaching carriage didn’t slow down in time and came dangerously close.
Yulia turned her head toward the carriage but froze, unable to move out of the way. Just as it seemed she would be hit, a hand from across the fountain pulled her back.
“That was close, ma’am!”
Turning her head, she saw Kane smiling gently.
While the Baroness froze in surprise, Henry and Lucy managed to get her into the carriage. With her mother secured, the carriage departed, leaving Yulia with Kane in front of the fountain.
“Is she your mother?”
“Yes…”
Though grateful for the rescue, Yulia felt embarrassed, trailing off in her words. Kane smiled lightly as if it were nothing.
“Every family has one or two immature members.”
His relaxed smile was refreshing, making Yulia unconsciously nod. She withdrew her arm from Kane’s hand and took a step back to properly thank him.
“Thank you.”
“Do we have to keep our distance even here? I thought the Empire would be different.”
“Ah…”
Hearing the chaos outside, she wondered if Cayente had come out, but he was nowhere in sight. Perhaps it was for the best; while she was distracted, Kane had already taken the initiative.
“If you’re grateful, would you buy me a cup of tea? I’m parched after witnessing such a nerve-wracking situation upon arriving in the Empire.”
Despite being told to seek permission to meet anyone, Yulia couldn’t refuse this. After all, he had helped her despite the earlier chaos, so it would have been rude to leave without even a cup of tea.
“Nearby is fine,” she replied.
She wanted someone to recognize that Cayente could be a good person. After all, people seldom change without positive expectations.
