Chapter 53
“What are you doing?!”
Yulia nearly toppled forward, but fortunately, Cayente caught her around the waist from behind.
“You’d risk your life for a damn hat?!”
Just as Yulia was about to disappear beyond the window, Cayente grabbed her waist just in time and shouted with a volume that bordered on excessive. For some reason, his heart pounded so hard it echoed in his head.
Had he been a second late, she might have actually died.
Turning to thank him, Yulia paused, noticing that Cayente’s expression looked different from usual. He was angry as always, but this anger felt somehow… different.
“Do you even realize how high this place is? Or would you rather die than marry me?”
She thought about retorting that if she’d truly hated the marriage enough to die, there would’ve been a scene the moment it was arranged. But something about Cayente’s tone made her feel like, just this once, he was genuinely worried about her. Maybe it was just her imagination, but his heartbeat—felt through their close contact—seemed faster than usual.
“My hand moved on its own. It was dangerous… Thank you.”
“Dangerous? You almost died! How can someone twenty years old be so careless?”
And for once, Cayente didn’t dismiss her gratitude. Instead, his voice—still shocked—only continued to nag like a concerned guardian.
* * *
The unbearable tension Cayente had felt while watching Yulia dissipated only after her childish stunt. Even as they descended the stairs, he couldn’t relax until she was safely on the ground floor, afraid she might slip and fall at any moment.
“What happened up there?”
Maria asked, noting how tense Cayente looked compared to when he went up. Yulia answered with a smile.
“I lost my balance trying to catch my hat, but my brother helped me.”
“Oh dear, that could’ve been serious. Cay, is that why you looked so rattled?”
Rattled? Me?
Cayente wanted to deny it, but the cold sweat down his back said otherwise. Even coming down the stairs, he’d been anxious—not just about a twisted ankle, but that her slender neck might snap like a twig.
“If the bride dies right before the wedding, I’d be branded an unlucky man for life.”
Yulia’s death wouldn’t have been a personal loss—but it would’ve been a problem. She hadn’t outlived her usefulness yet, and given the money poured into this wedding, it would’ve been an enormous loss. When Yulia walked ahead with Lucy, looking a little disappointed, Maria fell into step beside Cayente and asked quietly:
“I asked about your feelings, not your logic. Since when did my son stop understanding what his mother says?”
He tried to deflect her concern, but Maria saw right through him. Cayente sighed as he looked at Yulia heading toward the picnic spot Henry had prepared.
“I was surprised. How could I not be when someone nearly fell in front of me?”
“So you’re saying it wasn’t because it was Yulia who almost fell?”
“Mother…”
He trailed off, as if asking why she even bothered to ask what she already knew. Maria gently looped her arm through his and smiled as she looked ahead to Yulia.
“She’ll be a good wife, Cay.”
“I know.”
“It’d be even better if she were a happy wife.”
That won’t happen. Yulia might enjoy the wealth she never had before—but she wouldn’t be happy. He would make sure of that.
“Then make it so. Don’t be the kind of pathetic man who can’t make his own wife happy.”
He couldn’t agree with that—but he didn’t say it out loud. He knew too well what a miserable life his mother had endured because of his father, a man who had been pathetic.
“I won’t say anything about what you do to Baron Ruppert.”
Even if that man was her husband, Maria hadn’t forgotten her hatred toward Baron Ruppert. But Yulia was different.
“As long as you do well, she’ll love you a lot.”
“I don’t need love.”
“Why not? They say love can save the world.”
But Cayente wasn’t waiting for anyone to save his world. His world had ended the day he learned Baron Ruppert had killed his father. What moved him now was the desire for revenge and the duty to protect his family.
Since then, he hadn’t been able to trust anyone—so how could he love someone or expect love in return?
He kept those thoughts to himself. If he said them aloud, his mother would cry harder than she did the day his father died.
* * *
After visiting the lighthouse, the group spread out a thick checkered wool blanket on a nearby gentle hill and enjoyed a picnic. The area was covered in fresh green grass with no shade, but the distant view of the coastline and the breeze from the sea kept the heat at bay.
Perhaps it was the nice weather, but the sandwiches with layers of ham were especially delicious, and Yulia ended up eating more than usual.
With Henry’s tea and fruit peeled by Lucy, they were just finishing up when the painter Maria had invited arrived.
“Shall I have everyone just turn this way a little?”
The group sitting in a circle turned toward the painter, who stood at the base of the hill. Yulia, who had been facing away from him, awkwardly shifted, but the painter wasn’t satisfied and stepped in to rearrange everyone.
He positioned Maria and Cayente at angles that faced him diagonally and made Yulia stand up entirely.
“You two are the couple, right? It would be best if you sat closely together. Madam, could you move a bit closer to the Count?”
Yulia moved near Cayente but left a small gap between them. When Cayente told her to do it properly, she subtly scooted back, settling into the space between his right arm and his side. Maria smiled approvingly.
“The others can stand nearby, yes?”
“That would be perfect. Please look this way. I won’t ask you to stay perfectly still, but try to maintain your posture.”
The bearded painter began sketching briskly the moment he found a composition he liked.
“Can he really finish a portrait in such a short time?”
“He’s famous for his speed. They say once he sees something, he remembers it perfectly. He’ll finish the sketch here and do the coloring back at his studio. I’ll ask for an extra copy to hang in your home too.”
“Yes, Lady Maria.”
After a brief exchange with Maria, Yulia fell silent, and Henry, feeling awkward just standing there, asked with a smile:
“Wouldn’t it be better if we stepped aside?”
“No, Henry. With Lucy now part of our lives, we’re all family. We should be in it together.”
“I’m honored, Lady Maria.”
As Lucy teared up at the word family, Yulia snuck a glance at Cayente. She’d expected him to reject the idea of calling Lucy family, but since it came from his mother, he said nothing.
“What’ll we do when we miss our Yulia too much? Maybe it’ll suddenly pour.”
“Wouldn’t that trouble your brother?”
“A break from work wouldn’t kill him. Once he’s gone, it’ll be hard to see his face again with all his excuses.”
“We’d love for you to come with us…”
“Not yet… I still struggle around people. If I get lonely, I’ll just have you bring me a son who looks exactly like Cay.”
“Lady Maria…”
At those words, a child just like Cayente, Yulia turned to look at him. Even recalling his younger self, she was sure that a son who resembled him would be adorable.
If only he didn’t have that personality, he’d be perfect…
“Young lady, no matter how good your fiancé looks, please face forward.”
“Ah… yes…”
She hadn’t realized she’d been staring. As she turned to face the painter, she felt Cayente’s eyes boring into the back of her head.
“Count, if you would also kindly stop staring at your fiancée.”
Feeling his gaze without a hint of embarrassment, Yulia thought: He can pass on his face, but not that cold, ruthless personality.
They had been sitting quietly for some time when suddenly, raindrops began to fall from the sky.
* * *
“Just as Lady Maria said.”
Island weather was unpredictable—it rained and stopped again multiple times. Although they managed to reach the harbor during a dry spell, a heavier storm blew in the moment they arrived, forcing them to return to Maria’s house.
Even while worrying whether they’d be able to leave the island the next day, the rain came and went. By bedtime, even thunder was rolling across the sky.
“Young lady, I’ll go get some rest now. If you need anything, please call.”
“Thank you, Lucy. Go rest.”
Thanks to Maria’s consideration, Yulia was staying in the same room as before, separate from Cayente. Even after Lucy left, she couldn’t tear herself from the window. The crashing thunder immediately reminded her of Cayente.
Was she really okay hearing thunder now? Even though he was a man who said he wished for her misfortune?
“Haa…”
Yulia sighed. She felt like she’d spend her whole life like this—worried about Cayente again.
“Young lady, pardon me.”
Just then, Henry knocked on the door.
“Yes? What is it?”
“The Count… isn’t here. Have you seen him? I waited a long time to say goodnight and ask about tomorrow’s schedule, but he hasn’t returned.”
Cayente had vanished—and no one had seen him since.
* * *
After his father’s death, Cayente sold their family home in the Duchy of Esacudia while settling the estate. He sent his siblings to study abroad and his mother to a secluded resort island. Left alone, the house felt far too big.
He hated the echoing emptiness every time he came home. It felt like all the precious things he once had had been stripped away.
So he moved to a newly built house—still large but devoid of any warmth. It had no unnecessary belongings, only things needed for survival: clothes, food, a bed.
“There it is.”
When he sold the family estate, everything valuable had been transferred to Maria’s house. Among them were his father’s old ledgers.
Cayente pulled out one of the ledgers neatly arranged by date in the basement and brushed off the dust.
BOOM!
Suddenly, a crack of thunder exploded through the small window near the ceiling.
