Chapter 126…
Only then did Tesion’s lips curl upward.
Seeing that his mood had finally lifted, Cynthia looked up at him and gave him the same bright smile.
Hehe…
Tesion grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. Cynthia buried her face in his chest, inhaling his familiar scent deeply as she moved her head slightly.
Once he wrapped her in his embrace and blocked her view, the smile vanished from Tesion’s lips. As though struggling to keep his anger down, he lifted his head toward the ceiling and blinked slowly.
“…….”
Annoyance surged within him.
Whether it was the Baileys or Rikaion—he was fed up with the people who refused to leave the woman by his side alone.
Until now, he had endured it for Cynthia’s sake, but if they continued to provoke him like this, he wouldn’t be able to hold back any longer. A thought seized him: he would soon have to go to His Majesty the Emperor and settle things once and for all.
And to do that, thorough preparation would be required.
“Your Grace, have you eaten yet?”
After staying nestled in his arms for quite some time, Cynthia peeked out and asked.
Tesion quickly erased the expression that had hovered over his face and smiled down at her.
“Not yet. What about you, Cynthia?”
“I… I haven’t eaten either!”
Looks like she has eaten something.
Tesion looked down at Cynthia, who hesitated slightly, and let out a soft laugh as he poked her cheek. With her cheek pressed under his touch, Cynthia chattered on.
“I mean, I did eat, but I couldn’t finish it! So that counts as not having eaten yet, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Then shall we go to the dining hall together?”
“Sure.”
Tesion walked while still holding her in his arms. From below, he heard Cynthia chuckle softly as she clung to him. She was so lovable—how absurd it was that they’d tried to take her back to the Bailey estate.
He tightened his arm around her, pulling her even closer.
“You didn’t bring her? I told you to bring her even if you had to kidnap her!!”
Before him, Dale stood silently while Castleton raged, nearly jumping with fury.
“I knew you weren’t the ideal person for this kind of job, but I sent you because you at least had some connection to Cynthia White. And this is how you botch it?”
“…….”
“Get lost! I should’ve sent someone else in the first place. I have no need for your help anymore—get out!!”
“By someone else, do you mean the one you hired when you attempted to discreetly dispose of Miss Cynthia White?”
“What?”
At Dale’s words, Castleton—who had been turning to light his cigar—froze and slowly turned around.
His pale green eyes were filled with rage.
“What did you just say?”
“Is it true you tried to harm Miss Cynthia after the contract was completed?”
“You insolent brat… say that again.”
Castleton threw his cigar onto the desk and turned fully toward him. Dale, unfazed by the outburst, continued calmly.
“You said that after that incident, things like that would never happen again.”
“What do you know to meddle in the family head’s affairs? I treated you kindly because you worked well, and now you forget your place? It was all for the good of the Bailey family.”
“That was something you promised me as well—for the sake of the Bailey family.”
Castleton was momentarily speechless under Dale’s firm gaze. After taking several forced breaths to calm himself, he finally spoke.
“Fine. I tried to get rid of Cynthia White. I simply wanted to prevent unnecessary trouble after the contract was finalized. That was the cleanest and safest solution.”
“You broke our agreement.”
“And so what?”
Castleton’s voice rose again as his temper flared.
“Why should I keep a promise with the likes of you?!”
“I will resign.”
“What?”
Dale removed the white gloves he always wore, carefully folded them, and held them out toward Castleton.
“I resign from my position as butler of the Bailey family as of today.”
Castleton stared at the gloves with a deep frown. After a moment of silently suppressing his anger, he lifted his icy green gaze to Dale.
“Dale, is this truly the only way?”
“This is the decision I must make to preserve my principles. If you allow me to leave peacefully, everything I’ve seen and heard in this mansion will remain forgotten.”
“And if I refuse?”
“Then I will leave noisily. Either way, the result will be the same.”
Castleton inhaled sharply, then exhaled a long sigh as he accepted the gloves.
“Fine. If this is truly your choice…”
Taking his acceptance as permission, Dale bowed deeply and turned around.
“I will take my leave. Thank you for everything.”
“…….”
Castleton watched Dale’s back as he walked out of the study with unwavering posture. Once Dale had fully disappeared, he clenched the gloves tightly.
“I thought he was smarter than this…”
This was a butler who almost never disappointed him—someone who handled tasks flawlessly. It was a shame to let such a capable subordinate go, but there was no other choice.
“In the end, I’m digging my own grave.”
Castleton muttered bitterly as he opened a drawer and took out a thick cigar.
His mind churned with thoughts on how best to dispose of the foolish, insolent butler.
He dares to quit on his own before my command?
He had intended to avoid drawing suspicion with rash actions, but now, as the head of the Bailey family, he had to make sure everything ended neatly.
“Haah…”
Soon, the study of the Bailey estate filled with thick cigar smoke.
After leaving Castleton’s study, Dale went straight to his room and pulled out a large suitcase from the back of his wardrobe.
He had been a butler since childhood—naturally, he had accumulated far more belongings than when he first arrived. Most of it was useless, but still.
“…….”
He scanned the room, then placed a hand over the Bailey family badge pinned to his chest.
Fiddling with it absentmindedly, he took a deep breath.
‘So it really was true.’
‘Keep your head down for a while…’
‘I’m disappointed, but I’m not surprised.’
‘…’
‘Thank you, anyway. You and Violet were the only ones here who didn’t treat me like something special.’
The clear voice of the mansion’s lone young lady echoed faintly in his memory. Her voice had always sounded strangely refreshing and relieved.
Lost in thought for a moment, Dale frowned slightly and tore the badge off completely.
He didn’t have time to waste. The Baileys might already be taking action.
He quickly started packing his belongings into the large suitcase.
Today, she would finally confront the black orb!
Cynthia placed the pitch-black sphere on her desk and glared at it.
What had Elizabeth done with this thing? Had she, like Cynthia, wished to leave the place she originally belonged to? And did that wish come true?
“Cynthia, that glare is going to bore a hole through the orb.”
Tesion, sitting beside her and watching the orb together, whispered.
“Shh! I’m concentrating.”
“Why… in my office, though…?”
Tesion trailed off.
Cynthia tore her eyes away from the black orb and retorted,
“You told me to come!”
“I asked you to stay by my side, not to take over my desk and push me aside.”
Well… he wasn’t wrong.
Feeling awkward, Cynthia slid a little to the side.
“There. Satisfied?”
See? She was being generous!
Tesion let out a soft, deflated laugh and leaned closer.
“What did this poor black orb do to you? Why are you staring at it so fiercely?”
“It didn’t do anything. I just want to know what it actually does. According to Lysandra, this orb can do a lot more than it seems!”
“You said you brought it from the Bailey estate?”
“Yes! Honestly, I want to sneak back into Lady Elizabeth’s room and search it one more time…”
She remembered getting lost in that huge estate while pretending to be Elizabeth Bailey and accidentally wandering into her room.
She had found Elizabeth’s diary on the desk—but at the time, she thought it was improper to read someone else’s journal, so she left it alone. But maybe… maybe the clues she needed had been inside.
At the very least, she might have learned what Elizabeth truly wanted…
