Chapter 3
Even though the touch came through her clothes, goosebumps rose along her skin, and Ilianna nearly slapped his hand away.
“Does it still hurt a lot?”
Cedric spoke while staring straight into her silent eyes. His light brown gaze held only her, filled with a sickening kind of pity—as if nothing else in the world concerned him but her.
She hated that face, staring at her with the same eyes as Rian.
“Rina?”
She didn’t even want to hear her name come out of that filthy mouth. The urge to twist Cedric’s neck right then and there surged within her—the man who sat before her wearing a disgusting mask of kindness and innocence.
She wanted to make him kneel at her feet and beg for his life. No… killing him outright would be too merciful. If she severed the heads of those he cherished most right before his eyes, would he finally understand even a fraction of her pain?
The first name on that list would be Bella Louise. She would make her cling desperately, begging to be killed.
Next would be Marquis Piaget, who had stood by and watched her die. Then the imperial family, who had condoned it. Her father, who sold her off to save his own life. And finally…
‘The last name on that list will be you, Cedric.’
The helplessness of being unable to act would hurt him more than any wound on her body. When the title of marquis and the Empress’s backing no longer protected him, he would understand. The moment he realized his great power was useless—that would be the moment he should die.
Holding her breath, veins rose in her neck and her eyes reddened. Time in the same room with Cedric seemed to crawl unbearably slowly.
‘Not yet.’
Thinking alone wouldn’t accomplish anything.
With a blank expression, Ilianna removed his arm and walked over to the sofa. Her unusual behavior made Cedric frown slightly in confusion, but he soon followed and sat across from her. An awkward silence filled the room.
She needed to speak, but her lips wouldn’t move. Her mind was filled only with curses toward Cedric and cruel punishments she wished to inflict on him. Her emotions kept clashing against her reason.
A sharp sting suddenly ran through her fingertips. Only then did she realize how tightly she had been gripping her dress. She bit her lower lip hard enough to draw blood before she could finally suppress her anger.
She needed to do what she could now. The first step was breaking off their engagement. But the problem was that it wasn’t something she could decide on her own.
In the Empire, a unilateral engagement annulment was only recognized under serious circumstances—clear fault from one side or death.
If she slandered him without proof, she could end up being falsely accused instead.
‘He’ll definitely try to shift the blame onto me.’
So she needed solid evidence. Revealing his affair with Bella would be the perfect justification.
Lifting her long lashes, she slowly looked at Cedric. He appeared relaxed with a gentle smile, but the anxiety in his eyes couldn’t be hidden. It was obvious he was trying to figure out what he had done wrong.
In her past life, the moment he learned she was going to die, Cedric had sneered and confessed everything. No matter how much he pretended to be proper, his shallowness couldn’t be concealed.
He would eventually expose himself again—but even waiting for that was painful. She wanted to tell him to get lost and end the engagement immediately.
But she didn’t want to give him an easy way out with something as trivial as that.
To inflict a pain worse than death, she would make him slowly lose everything he had.
‘When should I do it?’
While Ilianna was calculating her timing, Cedric was lost in his own thoughts.
‘Do you know how much effort it took to bring this?’
He carefully pulled something out from behind his back and was just about to hand it to her—
“My lady, I’ve brought the tea.”
At that moment, Bessie entered the drawing room. She skillfully poured tea and set the cups before them.
“I’ll take my leave.”
Looking down at the teacup, Ilianna lowered her gaze meaningfully.
“You must have been quite busy, since your fiancée was ill. Or perhaps something more important came up.”
At her words, both Bessie—who had been about to leave—and Cedric—who was offering the gift—froze in place. Time seemed to stop for everyone except Ilianna, who calmly sipped her tea as if nothing had happened.
“Ah, there was a hunting competition.”
A lie. He didn’t like hunting—not out of compassion for animals, but because he didn’t want his poor archery skills exposed.
“Really?”
“It was quite far away, so I was delayed on the way back.”
“Where exactly?”
“It was in the south… Ah, Sonia territory.”
Of all excuses, that was the best he could come up with? A hollow laugh nearly escaped her.
At the very least, he could have prepared a better lie before coming to see her.
In her past life, he had frequently visited Sonia under the pretense of inspecting grain fields. But that region wasn’t just about wheat—it housed vast vineyards that produced 80% of the Empire’s wine. And the owner of those vineyards was none other than Baron Louise—Bella’s father.
‘It was happening right in front of me.’
She couldn’t understand how she had been so blind.
Cedric, meanwhile, was equally confused. Maybe her illness had affected her mind. Or was she sulking because he had been inattentive lately?
‘Tch, this is why pretty women are troublesome.’
Only then did he think he understood her cold attitude.
Leaning forward with his legs crossed, Cedric clasped his hands together, then quickly placed a bouquet onto her lap with a charming smile.
The moment Ilianna saw the roses, her face froze.
“They’re your favorite—roses. The finest quality, even supplied to the imperial family.”
She had known the moment he entered. The roses filled the room with their scent.
Still… he shouldn’t have made it so obvious.
She had meant to endure it. But her patience was already reaching its limit.
“That’s not true.”
“…What?”
“I don’t like flowers. Especially red roses.”
Because roses were the favorite flower of your vulgar mistress—and the one I despise the most.
“Rina, what’s gotten into you?”
He reached for her wrist again. When she pulled back, he stood and approached her instead.
“You’d better stay right there.”
“If something’s upsetting you, tell me. No matter how angry you are, this isn’t right.”
Was he pretending not to understand—or was he truly that stupid?
Her lowered gaze slowly lifted as she stared straight at him.
“Don’t take another step. I don’t know what I might do.”
“Why are you being so serious all of a sudden?”
After hesitating briefly, Cedric let out a small laugh and walked around the table as if nothing was wrong.
At this point, he was outright ignoring her.
Closing her eyes briefly, her gaze fell upon the bouquet on her lap.
‘I don’t want to see it.’
It felt like proof of the filth between him and Bella.
Her fingers tightened around the roses. As Cedric’s hand brushed against hers—
That was the final straw.
She threw the bouquet onto the floor and stomped on it mercilessly.
“What are you doing?!”
Cedric shouted, so shocked he forgot whose estate he was in.
“My lady!”
Bessie was horrified, having never seen her mistress like this.
She rushed forward to stop her but hesitated, unable to intervene under Ilianna’s fierce gaze.
Ilianna continued stomping until the petals were torn to shreds. Only when the inside of her white slippers turned red did she finally stop.
Enraged, Cedric grabbed her wrist roughly. When she shoved him away, he seized both her hands and forced her to turn. As she resisted, he raised his hand—
And just as he was about to strike her—
Splash.
The cold tea from the table was thrown straight into his face.
The sweet scent filled the air as the liquid dripped down his shoulders and onto the back of her hand. Yet her expression remained icy.
Cedric’s mind went blank. She was never like this.
She had always been elegant and gentle. Shy around him. Even a little affectionate.
That was why, despite disliking Count Critia’s ambitions, he had agreed to the marriage.
He had endured Bella’s tearful pleas, comforting her while turning away—because he believed that if he waited just a little longer, everything would be his.
But now…
“Have you lost your mind? Do you even realize what you’re doing?!”
Cedric snapped in fury.
“I’m clearer than ever. No… I’ve been the one who was insane all this time.”
Her cold blue eyes burned like the crushed red roses beneath her feet.
She shoved him away and stepped back.
“I’m breaking off the engagement.”
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
“Do you want me to repeat it? We’re done.”
“How dare you—!”
Even as he shouted in rage, her expression didn’t waver in the slightest. Instead, she raised her chin and pointed toward the door.
“I don’t think we’ll be seeing each other like this again. Please leave.”
“Does your father, Count Critia, feel the same way?”
“…”
If her father found out, he would throw her out immediately. That would be the best outcome. More likely, he would slap her—or worse.
He never hit her openly for the sake of appearances, but the sound of whips that sometimes echoed through the estate suggested otherwise. It would only be a matter of time before she was treated the same.
After every visit from guests, she would be scolded for reasons she didn’t even know. He would vent his anger on her without hesitation.
So she couldn’t be sure he wouldn’t strike her.
Seeing her silence, Cedric lifted his chin arrogantly and looked down at her.
“It’s normal to feel conflicted before marriage.”
As if nothing had happened, he softened his expression and tried to placate her.
“No one wants a broken engagement.”
“I do. So leave this house immediately!”
“I’ve done nothing wrong. If you insist, it will be considered an insult to the imperial family—”
But before he could finish, the door opened and someone entered, cutting him off.
