Chapter 13
“That is incredibly ill-mannered.”
The Duke clicked his tongue briefly, lowered his hand, and hid Kainess behind his back.
He could not allow anyone to see Kainess covered in wounds. He could not let his reputation be stained.
“So noisy this early in the morning, young lady.”
“Uncle!!”
Uncle, uncle—she had been calling him that from the start.
Was that something a noble lady should say?
The Duke’s brows furrowed even deeper. He was so dumbfounded he could hardly speak.
“Uncle, why are you hitting Kainess? Don’t you know child abuse is a serious crime? Do you think it’s okay just because you hit him with that hand? Do you even know what kind of child Kainess is?!”
I rattled off my words in a rush and shook the iron bars blocking the wall.
I made such a commotion that even the ducal servants, who had been working since dawn, began peeking over.
The Duke gestured coldly for them to go inside. Startled, they hurried back in.
When I couldn’t calm down at all, the Duke walked over to stand in front of me himself.
Up close, Kainess looked even more miserable, and my face twisted without meaning to.
The Duke stood before the bars and looked down at me arrogantly.
“Abuse? How can educating one’s son be called abuse?”
“Since when were education and abuse the same thing? What Your Grace just showed was clearly abuse.”
As I argued firmly, the Duke muttered in a threatening tone, clearly displeased.
“I’ve always said this is not a place for you to interfere, young lady.”
“And that’s not something a father should do to his son either!”
I wanted to climb over the bars immediately to protect Kainess, but the cursed iron bars wouldn’t budge.
When I grabbed and shook them, the loud clang of metal rang out.
Perhaps the sound annoyed him, because the Duke took out a key from his coat and unlocked the gate.
It was suspicious how easily he opened it, but I cautiously stepped toward Kainess.
“Are you okay? Does it hurt a lot?”
But the words that came from Kainess’s mouth were outrageous.
“…Please stop meddling in my affairs and go back.”
His suppressed voice made my heart ache.
“You shouldn’t do things you can’t take responsibility for.”
The Duke’s icy voice sounded as if he agreed with Kainess telling me to go back.
“Things I can’t take responsibility for?”
“Ha… young lady. If you’re about to break off the engagement, it’s not good to be overly concerned with someone else’s affairs.”
“Someone else? We’re still engaged!”
“And who was it that tried to break that engagement first?”
“…Even if we break it off, Kainess and I are still friends.”
“A shallow relationship that can end in an instant.”
It wasn’t only I who could argue point by point.
I clenched my teeth but had no comeback.
Once the last thread connecting me to Kainess was cut, I would have no right to interfere in his life.
And this world was ruthless when it came to children’s rights. Not only that, both children and women had very low status. Kainess, still a minor and unmarried, could not easily escape his father.
Suddenly, I remembered the dark and broken Kainess from the original story.
I had wondered why he had turned out that way.
Now the reason stood right in front of me.
“Will you return now? My lecture isn’t finished yet.”
The Duke grabbed my shoulder and pushed me hard. I almost stumbled.
This man, seriously!
“…I-I’ll take responsibility!”
“Responsibility?”
Oh no.
In my rush to save Kainess, I had blurted out nonsense.
The Duke’s lips curved into a smile.
“How do you intend to take responsibility for my son, young lady?”
“….”
“Were those just empty words?”
The Duke crossed his arms and stroked his chin. Looking at him now, he was nothing but a cunning fox.
He had set this up from the start. He probably already knew that I had been waiting here for Kainess these past few days, that I wouldn’t be able to ignore him being abused, and that I wouldn’t go through with the annulment if responsibility was involved.
I had played right into his hands—but I didn’t regret it.
“How will you take responsibility, young lady?”
His tone carried subtle pressure.
I stood at a crossroads. Should I pretend not to know anything, return to the estate, and break off the engagement? Or should I stay engaged and take responsibility for Kainess?
The decision didn’t take long.
The moment my eyes met Kainess’s trembling ones, I gave him a reassuring smile.
I strode up to him and grabbed his hand.
“I won’t break off the engagement. That means I can take responsibility, right?”
“Of course.”
The Duke grinned, clearly satisfied. Seeing that smug expression made my stomach twist.
He had the same face as Kainess, yet it was somehow so irritating.
“Your Grace, I have something more to say.”
“Speak.”
He looked pleased enough to grant any request.
“I want to marry Kainess.”
The Duke’s smiling face turned cold in an instant.
“What?”
Serves you right.
“You told me to take responsibility. Or were those empty words?”
I landed a clean blow.
In truth, I had danced perfectly in the Duke’s palm. The fact that he carried the boundary gate’s key himself was suspicious enough.
He must have locked it himself from the start, thinking Esta was desperately in love with Kainess.
Then an anxious Esta would see Kainess being beaten before her eyes, and the annulment would vanish.
Even though I had been manipulated so neatly, I didn’t regret it.
“Marriage?”
Kainess, sitting across from me, stared with clear displeasure.
But once again—I had no complaints.
“Ha ha… I had no choice. You heard him. He kept forcing the issue of responsibility…”
“So you said you’d marry me? The very person who wanted to break off the engagement because you hated even being engaged?”
Kainess looked angry. Arms crossed, he sat stiffly in his chair.
He wasn’t limping today, but his cheek was still slightly swollen.
I had been so worried that when I saw him coming up the stairs from the first floor, I almost ran and picked him up in my arms.
Kainess had looked horrified and told me to stop, so I barely restrained myself.
The image of him limping was still vivid in my mind.
“Does… the Duke… do that often?”
Worried my question might be rude, I asked carefully. Kainess let out a long sigh.
“Esta, let’s break off the engagement.”
“…I said let’s get married.”
“Why you? Because you pity me?”
“….”
I couldn’t say no.
It was true that I had suggested marriage because I felt sorry for him.
When I hesitated, Kainess’s face slowly filled with shock.
Knowing something and hearing it directly were completely different.
“Kainess…”
I tried to smooth things over, but he already looked hurt.
“There was no other way to save you except marriage.”
“You’re proposing marriage out of mere sympathy? Did you think I would gladly accept that?”
His voice was eerily calm. I was the one flustered.
Why did he look so wounded?
“Did you not consider that my pride would be shattered by a marriage built on pity?”
“I was thoughtless. If I hurt you, I’m sorry. I mean it.”
I met his gaze without avoiding it. His eyes felt like a sharp reprimand.
But gradually, that gaze wavered, like waves struck by a headwind.
“Why are you going this far…?”
Because you’re the male lead. Because I want you to be happy.
“You said you don’t even like me.”
“I do. As a friend.”
And as a reader.
I still wanted to see him with the heroine someday. But I also wanted the wounded male lead to be a little happier.
Seeing him in person, he looked so exhausted.
Children are supposed to be happy—that alone is enough!
“I thought you were too mature for your age.”
I didn’t finish the sentence, but Kainess seemed to understand.
It was criticism of the Duke.
“Marriage… I said that because I wanted to be your refuge. I have no ulterior motives at all. Let’s separate before you become an adult.”
“….”
Kainess’s brows furrowed slightly as he listened.
“No ulterior motives?”
“None. Not even one.”
I couldn’t show him my heart. How frustrating!
I grabbed his hand and looked at him earnestly, asking him to believe me.
“I understand, so let go.”
He pulled his hand away sharply and turned his head.
As if.
Holding his hand felt pleasantly cool. I found myself staring at the hand I had just let go of—then suddenly noticed the tips of his ears had turned slightly red.
He must have hated it that much…
He was so angry he couldn’t contain the heat, even in his ears.
I guess I shouldn’t grab his hand so casually…
After making that resolution, I called him softly.
“Kainess, I’m sorry to ask this suddenly, but could you heal me? I haven’t done it lately, so I feel weak.”
Saying I felt weak was just an excuse. I had practically tried to break iron bars earlier.
Ahem.
I cleared my throat awkwardly. He let out a short sigh and held out his hand.
Yes!
I quickly grabbed it, and a cool energy spread through my body.
“Close your eyes.”
Whenever he healed me, he always made me close my eyes. Otherwise, he refused.
I shut them quickly. A chilling sensation—cold enough to freeze my hand—wrapped around my body.
A premium air-conditioning service!
He must have been moved after all. The cold was twice as strong as usual.
Happiness spread through me, and my lips curled upward.
“It feels so good!”
