CHAPTER 24…………………………………..
Uuuuh…?
Without realizing it, my body jolted.
“No! I’m grateful for the thought, but that’s a bit…”
“Why?”
“Well… I’m still a married woman, and staying at the home of a young unmarried man… if people saw, they might think it strange. Of course! I’m not saying we’re that kind of relationship, but… wouldn’t it be different from simply having you escort me?”
That was just how the noble world worked.
Having servants or guards beneath you was considered the bare minimum right of a noble—almost as if those people weren’t seen as equals.
So a master and servant of the opposite sex spending time close together wasn’t much of an issue.
But if both were nobles, it was different.
If rumors spread that I—still not divorced—was staying alone as a guest at Marquis Freiheiden’s estate…
It would never be interpreted in a good way.
Terrence’s eyes widened slightly before the corner of his mouth curved.
“I see. I misunderstood. I wasn’t suggesting the Freiheiden estate.”
He continued calmly.
“Let’s go to a villa outside the capital instead.”
“A villa?”
“A place I prepared for times when I need to stay out of sight. On paper, it belongs to someone else, and aside from a few people, no one even knows it’s mine. I’m confident even Cassius wouldn’t easily find it.”
That was… tempting.
There was no guarantee Leandro and Rienna wouldn’t come looking again.
Even if I changed lodgings, if Cassius truly wanted to find me somewhere in the capital, it would be effortless.
I was planning to move around periodically anyway…
So I decided to accept Terrence’s offer.
“Then I will gratefully accept your kindness.”
“It’s nothing.”
Terrence held out his hand.
“We’re officially in the same boat now. Shall we shake hands?”
I stared at him quietly.
What was he thinking?
He was cautious by nature, yet he’d accepted my proposal far sooner than expected.
And he seemed… oddly more generous toward me than necessary.
Was it because this was before his fall into darkness?
Or had he found me useful beyond just providing medicine?
Or perhaps…
I pushed away the pointless thoughts trying to surface and placed my hand into his black-gloved one.
“You won’t regret this choice.”
Whatever the case, Terrence Freiheiden was now my partner.
For some reason, a strange warmth spread from the point where our hands touched.
* * *
“This isn’t like me.”
Terrence muttered softly.
“Hm?”
Jack, his attendant and aide, asked in confusion.
“No… just talking to myself.”
The location was Terrence’s secret villa outside the capital.
Jack glanced at his master, who was sitting at the desk with his chin resting on his hand.
It was surprising enough that Terrence had announced—without warning—that he would be bringing a guest to the villa.
But the guest was a woman of mysterious age.
What kind of relationship was this?
Jack couldn’t bring himself to ask outright.
He’d tried to hint at it, but Terrence had only told him not to pry.
Could she be a lover?
But judging from their atmosphere, and from the bits of conversation Jack overheard during meals…
It didn’t seem like that.
There wasn’t even a trace of romantic tension.
Especially not from the guest, whose demeanor was composed and elegant.
In the first place, Jack had never once seen his master grow close to a woman his own age.
And Jack had served him for ten whole years.
It wasn’t only assassins with daggers who came for Terrence.
Many approached wearing kind faces, offering friendliness.
Sometimes as servants, sometimes as neighbors…
Sometimes as beautiful women.
Because of that, the marquis had always been wary of others since childhood, keeping everyone at a distance.
He rarely revealed his true feelings even to Jack, the closest person at his side.
Jack could only guess his intentions from the fragments Terrence occasionally let slip.
Like now.
“Why did I offer the check right then? Too soon. I was going to observe her for at least a week.”
His gaze lowered in dissatisfaction.
“And even exposing the villa’s location…”
Terrence recalled what had happened earlier that day at the tea shop.
“Please cooperate with my divorce, Marquis Freiheiden.”
When she’d called him that for the first time, he had been genuinely surprised.
And when she explained how she’d realized his identity…
He understood she was far more clever than he’d assumed.
At the same time, he realized how careless he’d been.
He had never imagined Edel might already know who he was.
When he wasn’t acting as the marquis, his vigilance naturally loosened.
Even someone with strong will couldn’t remain on guard every second.
Still…
He’d been too careless.
Even as he considered Edel’s proposal, he tried to find the reason behind it.
From their first meeting, she hadn’t seemed like an agent.
She was too sloppy.
Those sent by the Empress and House Virode had approached him smoothly and naturally.
Not like Edel, who had practically dropped from the sky.
The more he observed, the more convinced he became.
She showed none of the movements typical of someone trained.
She always tasted food and tea first.
And above all…
Unlike other women, she hadn’t approached him with romantic intentions.
She was almost refreshingly indifferent.
Yet even considering all of that…
He couldn’t deny the fact that he had let his guard down too much.
He resolved firmly:
Outwardly, he would treat her the same as before…
But he would watch her from a step away.
Whether she was an agent or not, she was undeniably an unwelcome presence—
Because she had broken down one of the walls inside him.
And then, as if mocking that resolution…
“Ah…?”
A single tear slid down her soft cheek.
Terrence impulsively offered her a handkerchief.
And by the time he handed over the blank check…
His decision was already made.
His vow of caution vanished without a trace.
He accepted her proposal.
Pity?
Objectively, there were countless people in worse situations than Edel.
He had never felt sorry for them.
Romantic interest?
There were women among his enemies just as beautiful as Edel.
He had never been swayed by them.
So then…
“It was practical benefit.”
Edel had confessed that her ex-husband had a problem regarding producing an heir.
That was… welcome news.
For nobles, succession was the most critical matter of all.
If it became known that Cassius’s heir carried such an issue…
The consequences would be enormous.
The family’s prestige would suffer, and calls to replace the heir would inevitably rise.
It could even spiral into factional conflict.
Cassius’s house had always been full of internal power struggles.
If that happened, Cassius would be too busy dealing with his own family affairs to involve himself in the imperial succession.
Even now, he kept himself aloof from politics…
But giving the Empire’s strongest crown prince supporter a headache?
There was no downside.
“So that was it…”
That was why his heart had moved without him realizing.
Instinctively, he had sensed it would benefit him.
That was why hearing about that idiot ex-husband’s fatal flaw had pleased him.
All doubts were resolved.
Then Jack broke into his thoughts.
“Um… I don’t know much, but she doesn’t seem like an ordinary guest.”
Jack assumed Terrence was giving her the best room to lower her guard.
“If you order it, I’ll have the maid observe her every move. I’ll keep an eye on her myself as well—”
Terrence’s eyes sharpened dangerously.
“Stop talking nonsense and prepare.”
“…Prepare what?”
“I’ll be staying elsewhere with the guest for a few days.”
“Wha—?! For several days?!”
Leaving the estate unattended for long was dangerous.
What if the Emperor visited?
What would the Empress’s agents do if they learned Terrence was absent?
And why in the world would he travel with the guest?
Jack couldn’t stop him or ask personal questions.
So instead, he asked something safer.
“Where are you going?”
“Ashton.”
“Ashton…?”
The largest northern city of the Empire—
The capital city of Duke Cassius’s territory.
* * *
“Ahh… we finally arrived.”
As soon as I stepped onto the platform and stretched, Terrence said,
“You must be tired. It wasn’t a short journey.”
“Oh, no. Thanks to you, I got to ride comfortably in first class.”
“It was nothing special.”
Nothing special, my foot.
First class on a magic-powered train running on enormous quantities of mana stones?
Of course it was expensive.
I’d ridden between the capital and Cassius territory a few times because of Leandro…
And the ticket price had nearly made my eyes pop out.
Second and third class were no different from ordinary train cars.
But first class was basically a luxury hotel room in miniature.
With my original tight budget, it would’ve been an impossible indulgence.
Money really is the best.
Thanks to Terrence casually reserving two entire first-class cabins,
I’d enjoyed two full days of travel in absolute comfort.
“Shall we move before it gets crowded?”
As other passengers began disembarking, he stepped protectively in front of me and pointed toward the exit.
We left our luggage in the station storage and walked out of Ashton Station.
Ashton, the capital city of Cassius territory.
It had always been wealthy, but with Cassius’s prosperity, it had become the largest city in the north.
Located relatively south compared to other northern regions, its climate was mild.
This was where Rienna had spent most of her childhood—
And the main setting of Part One of After Regressing, I’ll Only Walk the Flower Path.
The novel was divided into two major parts:
Part One was young Rienna’s era of restoring House Cassius.
Part Two was Rienna’s conquest of the Empire after coming to the capital.
Timeline-wise, this was somewhere between the early and middle portion of Part Two.
About a month before the hidden mastermind Terrence would appear before Rienna…
And signal the true beginning of conflict.
Though thanks to this divorce chaos involving “big brother,” things probably aren’t so peaceful anymore.
Yes. Divorce.
There was a very important reason I’d come all the way to Ashton…
Just days before the critical divorce lawsuit.
