Chapter 55
It was the kind of dazzling beauty that could steal attention just by being in the same space.
“You seem to have a lot to say.”
Tristan let out a low breath as he felt Seren’s gaze.
He didn’t mind revealing his true self. After all, he had leverage over Seren just as much as she did over him.
“Let’s eat dinner first.”
Because Maya must be hungry.
Swallowing back what he wanted to say, Tristan sat across from Maya and Seren, who were seated side by side.
As the dishes were served one by one, Maya’s eyes sparkled.
During the meal, Tristan didn’t ask Seren why she had come.
He had no intention of spoiling the mood by bringing up business during dinner.
It was the least courtesy one could show as a person.
‘As expected. He’s even considerate enough to wait until after the meal.’
Of course, he didn’t realize this only deepened Maya’s misunderstanding.
‘Huh. It’s kind of new to hear Tristan speak informally.’
Maya couldn’t help but notice how naturally Tristan spoke in casual speech.
She had thought Tristan was polite to everyone, but now she caught a glimpse of his lordly side.
‘There’s a side of Tristan I didn’t know.’
Getting to know this new side of him wasn’t so bad.
Maya enjoyed her meal in a good mood.
As soon as they moved to the parlor, Tristan got to the point.
“I heard you want to cut ties with your family.”
He didn’t comment at all on her changed appearance.
He could more or less guess this was the reason the head of the Beiadon family had disappeared.
That much was enough for an outsider to know.
There was no need to reveal—or risk—more than that.
Facing each other, Tristan and Seren made Maya tense.
‘Well, well.’
She wondered how this conversation would unfold.
Maya squeezed her limited imagination for possibilities.
‘Thank you so much for last time, Duke.’
‘It was only what I was supposed to do.’
‘How could you think of such a thing…?’
Just imagining it made her feel queasy.
‘It’s better not to watch this.’
Maya abruptly stood up.
“I’ll excuse myself to give you privacy.”
“No!”
“You can’t leave, Maya.”
Seren’s firm tone and Tristan’s refusal made Maya sit back down obediently.
‘I really don’t want to see them getting all flirty…’
She continued worrying about things no one else was thinking.
Of course, neither Tristan nor Seren had even a speck of romantic thought about each other.
They just wanted to finish the deal quickly.
In fact, both their gazes were on Maya, who sat nervously between them.
‘I’d like to talk more with the Duchess once this is over.’
‘Let’s wrap this up so I can rest with Maya.’
Tristan cut to the heart of it.
“What kind of help do you want from House Beiadon?”
Though Beiadon had been away from the capital for some time, its prestige remained.
Not only that—thanks to the ledgers he brought this time, Tristan now held the nobles’ weaknesses in the palm of his hand.
Of course, using those weaknesses had to be done carefully.
They would likely be searching for the missing ledgers.
But if he wrapped things up nicely or found solid evidence, he could always play it off as coincidence.
Seren took a deep breath and said,
“I want to take my father’s place.”
Not just dreaming of it—she wanted to bring him down.
Being able to speak of such long-held ambition came only because Maya had opened her heart to her.
‘And because we each have something on the other.’
With quick intuition, Seren realized that the Duke’s other face was likely the reason he hadn’t debuted in high society.
“You want to become the head of House Baker?”
“Yes.”
If Count Baker stayed in power, Seren would be dragged around forever.
Now it was her turn to take the lead.
“I’m aware that it may sound absurd.”
“Absurd? It suits you well.”
Maya, imagining Seren as the family head, gave her a sincere compliment.
Seren blushed. She hadn’t expected encouragement.
She calmly continued,
“My fa…”
She corrected herself before saying “father.”
“Count Baker says otherwise, but he has no intention of actually handing me the title.”
His words were just bluster.
Count Baker was a man stuck in the noble society’s outdated belief that only men should inherit titles.
“Do you have anything prepared to bring the count down?”
“…I do, but not enough to force him to step down.”
“That’s where I come in.”
Tristan decided to tie Seren’s situation to Dossen’s revenge and Count Baker’s downfall.
“You have something?”
“Tristan does?”
Seren, and even Maya, looked surprised.
How could he have such information when he hadn’t been in the capital long?
‘Come to think of it, Tristan always had talented people around him.’
Could that be connected to this too?
“If we draft a contract for mutual benefit, I’ll put together a plan and inform you. I can’t tell you everything now, but I swear there’s not a shred of falsehood in what I say.”
When you don’t know each other well, a contract becomes a safety net.
Even without the oath, Seren didn’t have other options.
Though the Duke held a much stronger position in this negotiation, he made Seren feel as if she were his equal.
“Understood.”
After Seren’s brief reply, Tristan signed the contract. They exchanged copies, and he stood from his seat.
That signaled the business was done.
“How will you get back?”
“I’ll take her, like I did on the way here.”
‘Does Tristan have feelings for her?’
Even so, his tone with Seren remained businesslike—unlike how he spoke to Maya.
Not that she disliked it. Who wants to feel the romantic tension between the man they like and another woman?
‘Maybe he really does like her?’
Some people do act stiffly in front of the person they like.
After pondering alone, Maya came to a firm conclusion—there’s no need to overthink.
‘I can just ask Tristan.’
She wasn’t the type to get shy over a question like this.
If she asked whether he liked Seren and he said no, that was good. If he said yes, then she’d help him.
With that thought, she felt lighter.
Maya embraced Seren again as they headed toward House Baker.
The mansion was easier to enter under the cover of night, when the guards were more relaxed.
Maya gently placed Seren in the room where she’d originally been.
Then she tightly held her hand.
She hoped her courage would be passed on through her touch.
“I support you.”
She didn’t want to call her Lady of House Baker.
“Please call me Seren.”
Seren didn’t want Maya to keep calling her “you” so formally either.
“Then please call me Maya.”
Maya smiled as she replied.
Maybe in this life, she could make another friend.
A friend with so much in common.
After bathing and returning to her room, Maya found a letter from Kendrick.
Dossen must have brought it—it was sitting neatly on the table.
She sat at her desk and opened the envelope with a knife.
[Maya, I’ll come to see you in three days.]
That was it.
Much shorter than usual.
There were no warm greetings, no daily updates, no reassurances for her.
‘Did something happen?’
The uncharacteristic tone unsettled her, but they’d be meeting in three days anyway.
If something was off, she’d see it for herself then.
‘Don’t overthink it. That’s not like me.’
There was no need for unnecessary worry.
It might just be that now that she had a husband—even a contractual one—he was giving her space.
‘Let’s talk to Tristan and get some sleep.’
She needed to mentally prepare for her visit to the palace tomorrow to meet Lisepield.
She had to train herself to handle her anger—by seeing good things, eating good things.
“You’ve done well today.”
“I think you had it worse, Tristan. Thank you for being so welcoming to my unexpected guest.”
“She’s someone you brought, I couldn’t just send her away.”
Maya smiled brightly.
“Thanks to you, I managed to keep my dignity in front of a guest. The food was delicious too.”
Maya seemed genuinely happy as she spoke of her time with Seren.
‘…Though I don’t particularly like it when she enjoys time with someone else.’
But he couldn’t isolate her forever.
No—he corrected himself. He wanted to, but he knew how crazy that would be.
Tristan silently nodded now and then, focusing entirely on Maya’s face and voice.
“I have something I want to ask, Tristan.”
He had just been nodding along absentmindedly when—
“Do you have feelings for Seren Baker?”
Why is that name coming up now?
