“Did I go around saying I hated you going to the hunting ground?”

Is that why others said that to me? What was I to you? Even though I was a wife in name only, I gave it my all.

“Tell me. Was I a bad woman who prevented you from enjoying your hobbies? I don’t think that’s the case.”

“It’s a misunderstanding. My lady, it’s all a misunderstanding—I’ll explain everything.”

“At this point, even if you call it a misunderstanding… do you think that’ll sound right?”

Like she was saying he was being frustratingly obtuse, Thea wore a sneer and tried to change the subject, leaving the deep sense of betrayal behind.

“Fine, since it’s come to this, arguing would be ridiculous. So you’re planning to hunt when it’s dark?”

“That’s right. I think we’ll probably move around the time the stars are visible.”

At the immediate confirmation, Thea’s brow furrowed sharply. It was far too dangerous. The evenings in Utro were so pitch black you couldn’t see ahead, so even the locals didn’t travel much. Yet people unfamiliar with this place were going hunting together.

How should she take this? If he wanted to die, he could just die alone.

She couldn’t understand why he had to create such a disaster with others.

“I’ll ask again. You’re going hunting when it’s dark, not when it’s bright?”

“Bear hunting during this season is usually done well when it’s dark.”

“What if you get seriously hurt?”

They shouldn’t take this region lightly. Even experienced hunters didn’t move in the evening—rather, they avoided it.

From her perspective, he seemed to be stubbornly insisting for no reason.

There was a saying that those who know nothing are brave, but she didn’t want to learn the meaning of that here.

“Think about it again.”

“It’ll be fine. The servants will do the hunting. We just need to fire the last shot at the already caught bear.”

To him saying it wasn’t dangerous at all, Thea showed the same reaction.

“I have a bad feeling about this.”

“I told you there won’t be any problems. I’m not a child—would I really do something dangerous?”

Like he was telling her not to bring this up anymore, he wrapped things up and pointed with his hand at the new carriage the coachman had brought.

“Get in.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll escort you and get in right away.”

Like she’d asked something obvious, he replied nonchalantly and pushed Thea into the carriage.

“Watch your head. The carriage is lower than you think.”

“…Alright. I’ll be careful.”

His touch protecting her from hitting her head was so affectionate that she almost forgot they were a couple who didn’t get along.

* * *

Quite some time had passed since Acel went hunting.

Thea was organizing ledgers she hadn’t finished processing in the office.

Black was the writing, brown was the parchment, but nothing registered in her eyes.

The numbers spun in circles. She must be very tired.

‘I don’t think I’ve been like this recently.’

Thanks to that, just as she raised one hand to press firmly on her brow, beyond her casually turned gaze, she spotted work she hadn’t noticed before.

She thought she’d handled everything, but something must have remained.

The moment she turned her head wondering what was left, a sigh escaped her lips.

This wasn’t something Thea could handle. It was a document addressed to Count Winter. And it was sent directly from the imperial family.

Grand Duke, imperial family.

People she never thought she’d be involved with in her life kept coming.

What on earth was Acel plotting?

Before that, was he even someone who could plot such things?

To call it expanding business connections, the subtle sense of déjà vu wouldn’t disappear.

“The you I knew.”

Only the thought that he wasn’t someone who would do such things dominated her mind.

She didn’t know if she’d stopped knowing him because so much time had passed, or if it was natural progression, but one thing was certain—they weren’t right.

* * *

Having finished up while leaving the troublesome documents alone, Thea returned to the bedroom and walked to the window as she did every night, sitting on the windowsill.

Looking at how clear the night sky was today, she felt like she might be able to see the Milky Way.

Small stars dotted throughout the night sky were slowly waving their hands.

She was so glad to see the Milky Way after who knows how long that tears almost came.

It was then, as she swallowed hard at the fact that she’d been living such a life without leisure.

Along with rough boot sounds, the firmly closed bedroom door was urgently knocked on.

Bang bang bang—!

Thea showed displeasure at the unfamiliar intruder’s visit and turned her body halfway toward the door.

“What is it? At this late hour.”

—…It’s, an emergency, you need to come right away.

At the question, the other party only gave her panting sounds along with broken static, like they’d come in a rush.

Feeling conversation wouldn’t continue like this, Thea indicated for them to come inside.

With the consent given, the person who burst through the door in a fluster was none other than Lord Philip.

“Wait, why are you… here at this hour? You should be at the hunting ground with Count Winter.”

Throughout her words, a chilling sensation struck and passed through her fingertips and skin. An ominous premonition rang out madly.

Surely not.

‘Right, surely not. Someone who was so confident.’

What could have happened? Thea slightly closed and opened her stiff eyes from fatigue and looked at Philip.

There stood Philip, pale beyond white to the point of being blue, trembling like an aspen tree like someone who’d received a huge shock.

At that scene, Thea felt she needed to calm him down before having a conversation, so she guided Philip to a small single-person sofa placed in one corner of the bedroom.

“You must have rushed here from far away, so sit down and catch your breath before speaking.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Not at all. I’ll go get some warm tea for you to drink while you catch your breath, Lord Philip.”

“Yes, yes.”

Leaving Philip, who couldn’t easily calm down, in the room, Thea came out to the corridor and carefully closed the bedroom door.

Then, as soon as the door closed, she raised both hands to cover her mouth.

A terrible situation kept repeating in her mind. She shouldn’t have sent him to the hunting ground.

When Philip came looking so pale, it wasn’t an ordinary incident.

He must have been seriously injured somewhere. So much so that he couldn’t come to her right away.

She should have clung more strongly, saying it was dangerous. Then this wouldn’t have happened.

Belated regret painfully touched Thea’s heart.

But it was already a ship that had sailed. A ship that couldn’t return.

Still unable to shake off the terrible thoughts, she forcibly grabbed her trembling hands and headed to the kitchen.

Soon arriving at the kitchen, she said to the chef with a haggard face:

“Warm black tea and a cup of heated milk with plenty of honey, please.”

“Miss, you’re going to drink heated milk at this hour? You’ll gain weight.”

The chef threw out a joke as usual, but the current Thea didn’t even have the energy to respond to those words.

She just waved her hand weakly, telling them to hurry up and handle it.

At that scene, the chef stopped joking and quickly handed over warm black tea and heated milk.

“Miss, you look unwell—shall I call a maid?”

“Would you?”

“Yes, it’s not difficult at all.”

“Then please do that.”

With the light conversation over, Thea headed to the bedroom first.

Before she’d walked far, a maid stuck close behind her, with the ordered beverages and unfamiliar snacks placed on her hands.

Probably the chef’s consideration.

She wasn’t a child, but at the sight of butter cookies placed there, she briefly smiled and opened her mouth to the maid.

“Let’s go to the bedroom.”

“Pardon?”

“An important guest from House Winter came, so I urgently brought them to the bedroom.”

At the mention of Winter, the maid seemed to understand. She seemed to think they couldn’t guide them to the reception room since they were a secret guest.

It was a completely different reason, but liking the suddenly quieted atmosphere, she didn’t bother to point out the mistake.

Soon, when they walked in step on the soft carpet and arrived at the bedroom:

Through the slightly open door gap, she could tell Lord Philip had opened the door because he felt stuffy. His neatly tied necktie was loosened, and he’d even taken off his shoes.

Since it was someone else’s house, he probably couldn’t open the window wide.

At the obviously visible reality, Thea let out a deep sigh, took the tray from the maid’s hands beside her, and dismissed the maid with a look.

As the maid quickly disappeared with quick steps, she opened the door with her shoulder and entered.

“Lord Philip.”

“You’ve come, Lady Winter.”

She handed the black tea in her hands to Philip, who was staring intently with a slightly flushed face, and sat on the console chair opposite him.

“So what business brings you running here in the dead of night?”

“I had urgent news to deliver, so I took the liberty.”

At the mention of urgent news, Thea’s heart trembled. Please, it shouldn’t be that bad story she’d thought of.

Pretending to be fine, she took a sip of the milk in her hands.

When the sweetness dominated her tongue and then disappeared, she could see Philip’s serious face.

“My lady, don’t be shocked. Count Winter has gone missing.”

“What? Missing? What on earth does that…”

She’d only thought he’d been attacked by a beast, but that wasn’t it. He went hunting and was now missing.

Shocked, she half-rose from her seat when Philip’s words continued.

“To be precise, the carriage Count Winter was riding in disappeared. We’re still conducting an intensive search, but… the Count said something strange, so you might have known.”

“What does that mean? What… did he say?”

“Well, he said to take good care of you, my lady. Like he anticipated disappearing.”

“…Like he anticipated it?”

“Yes, if you didn’t consent, he told me to show you this letter. He said you’d surely understand.”

Letter, missing, Philip.

‘Come back and ask.’

She could tell at once that this missing incident was connected to Acel.

He’d left so many clues—you’d be a fool not to know.

Moreover, hadn’t he implied that he was entrusting Thea to Philip?  

At that thought, the grip on the cup tightened.

‘You’re alive. And very healthy at that.’

Otherwise, there’s no way he could plot such a scheme.

You, who hated even the touch of others, entrusted me to Philip.

That was a confirmation that he could come back to get me anytime.

‘So you said you’d leave me with this man. What on earth are you scheming?’

The moments ago when she was restless thinking something big might have happened at the hunting ground seemed ridiculous.

She never imagined he’d repay her worry this way.

She’d thought he wasn’t someone who would use such cheap tricks… but it must have all been her misconception.

Saying he had a talent for making people’s livers and hearts drop, Thea wore a hollow laugh and said:

“Don’t worry, Lord Philip. Count Winter originally has a mischievous side, doesn’t he? This is just another one of those incidents.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m saying Lord Philip fell for Count Winter’s prank. When day breaks, he’ll return like nothing happened.”

Guaranteeing that would surely be the case, Thea finished drinking the milk in her hands.