33. Bianca’s First Love (1)

Not far from the dock where Katya and Nikolai stood, someone was observing the affectionate scene.

“Damn it!”

Hiding behind an old tree, Ivan clenched his fist and slammed it against the trunk in frustration.

While he was dealing with a life-or-death situation, it seemed like their heads were filled with nothing but flowers and romance.

Earlier that morning, debt collectors had stormed into the Petrovsky family’s villa, demanding repayment of gambling debts.

To be more specific, they were thugs hired by a loan shark, relentless men who had chased Ivan all the way from the North to the South.

As soon as he saw them, Ivan dismissed all the servants, fearing they might report the incident to the main family.

While the thugs smashed furniture and created chaos, their leader grabbed Ivan by the hair and forced him to kneel.

“How dare you lowlifes lay a hand on a noble!”

Ivan roared, but the thugs merely picked their ears in mock boredom.

If he went to court to expose their illegal debt collection practices, Ivan would end up suffering the most damage.

Count Petrovsky had made it clear that if Ivan gambled even one more time, he would be disowned from the family.

Being disowned wouldn’t just mean being kicked out of the house.

It meant that the family would no longer vouch for his identity, effectively stripping him of his noble status permanently.

“If you’re a noble, you should set an example by repaying your debts. If you’re so wronged, why don’t you take it up with the state?”

Ivan shut his mouth.

The thugs were seasoned veterans in debt collection and had dealt with countless nobles like him.

The higher the social rank, the more they valued their honor above all else.

Especially since the Petrovsky family was part of the high noble Boyarin class and a founding family of the empire. The thugs knew Ivan wouldn’t dare go to court, which was why they acted so brazenly.

“Bring that out.”

At the leader’s signal, one of the men pulled out an axe slung over his shoulder.

While one thug pinned Ivan down, another placed his right hand on the table.

“It’s been quite a while since your payments were overdue. Let’s settle this by taking a finger for each month you’re late. Even if we chop off all ten fingers, it wouldn’t be enough to cover a week’s worth.”

“Stop it, you lunatics!”

“Well, you’ll need to get married someday, so I’ll leave your ring finger intact. You’ll need it for a wedding ring, won’t you? I’m quite the romantic, you see. Haha!”

As the thug raised the axe high toward the ceiling, its blade gleamed menacingly in the light of the chandelier.

“Wait! Listen to me! I have a solution!”

At Ivan’s desperate plea, the leader raised his hand, signaling the thug to stop mid-swing.

“Do you have a way to get the money?”

“You know Duke Smirnov, right? I’m engaged to his eldest daughter. Once I receive her dowry, I’ll be able to pay you back with interest. Isn’t it better for you to wait a bit and get your interest rather than end up with nothing?”

“Don’t try to fool me. Rumors about your broken engagement are already widespread in the South. Who are you trying to trick?”

“The wedding is still on! We just had a little lovers’ quarrel, and the girl has a bit of a temper, so things got blown out of proportion. It’s just a pre-wedding power struggle, you know?”

The leader, who had been scoffing, tilted his head, seemingly intrigued.

“Is that true?”

“It is! We even lived together, you know? Who would take a woman who’s already lived with another man? Women, you see, just need a bit of sweet-talking and flattery, and they’ll eventually come crawling back to you!”

The leader, who had initially been laughing, seemed to consider Ivan’s words seriously.

“Alright, I’ll give you a week. Try to win your bride back within that time.”

The man ultimately gave Ivan one more chance.

Since the news of the Grand Duke’s visit and his proposal to Katya hadn’t yet spread, the thugs had no way of knowing that Ivan’s ‘wedding card’ was useless.

After promising to return in a week, the thugs disappeared.

Having barely bought himself some time, Ivan went to the duke’s estate to talk to Katya, only to see her boarding a carriage with Nikolai. He had followed them all the way here.

Katya, when with Nikolai, often smiled.

“She smiles so easily with him, but she’s never smiled at me even once…!”

The woman who had always looked at him with contempt was now smiling beautifully in front of another man.

Ivan, of course, failed to realize that it was entirely his own fault.

The possessiveness that had taken root in his heart the day he first met her began to boil over once more.

From that moment until now, he had been hopelessly infatuated with her.

***

Ivan had first met Katya a year before the day she had mercilessly shot him with a rubber arrow at Duke Smirnov’s estate.

Thirteen years ago, at a certain resort.

“Our children have met the young ladies before. Kids, what are you doing? Hurry and greet His Grace properly!”

“Oh, now that I think about it, we did meet during a trip to the North.”

“They were so young back then that the young ladies might not remember.”

That day became an unforgettable memory not only for Ivan but also for Bianca.

It was the day she met her first love.

“Oh my, look! Here comes Duke Smirnov!”

At the words of the noble lady, the nobles gathered on the beach all turned their heads in unison toward where she was pointing.

As soon as they saw Baptiski Smirnov walking across the sandy shore with his wife and two daughters, everyone, without exception, rushed toward him.

They all wanted to establish a connection with Baptiski, the wealthy magnate of the South.

Since he was there for his wife’s health and recuperation, bringing up investments right away would have been counterproductive.

Through southern connections, the nobles had caught wind of his vacation schedule and had been waiting here in hopes of making an acquaintance with his family.

Among them were Count Petrovsky and his wife.

Though the Petrovsky family appeared to spend lavishly in public, they were actually in dire financial straits due to a failed business venture, and they desperately needed investment.

“Just do as I’ve instructed.”

Count Petrovsky told his son.

The count planned to put his son Ivan, who was around the same age as the Smirnov sisters, in the spotlight.

Rumor had it that the duke was famously doting on his daughters, so if the children became friends, it might lead to a favorable reaction regarding investments.

Dragged out against his will when he wanted to sleep in at the lodging, Ivan puffed out his cheeks in frustration and kicked at the sandy ground.

His friends, who had also been dragged there by their parents for similar reasons, wore equally sullen expressions.

“See those two girls with strawberry-blonde and platinum-blonde hair? Go over and ask them to play with you. Be polite and friendly. Got it?”

Ivan turned his gaze toward the direction his father had indicated.

At that moment, for the first time in his eight-year-old life, Ivan experienced a strange sensation, as if lightning had struck him from above.

While the other boys were looking at the platinum-blonde girl, Ivan couldn’t take his eyes off the girl with the strawberry-blonde hair.

She looked like a doll walking toward him.

He had never seen such a beautiful child before.

Though he didn’t realize it at the time, looking back, it was love at first sight.

“Greetings, Your Grace!”

While the adults surrounded Duke Smirnov and his wife, exchanging greetings, eight-year-old Katya slipped away from the crowd, holding her younger sister’s hand.

The sisters found a spot on the sandy beach and sat down.

Countess Petrovsky, along with a group of noble ladies, nudged Ivan and his friends in their direction.

The boys hesitantly shuffled toward the two sisters, trying to approach them.

Katya and Bianca were busy building a sandcastle, occasionally splashing seawater on it.

Or at least, they were attempting to build a sandcastle—it was more of a shapeless mound.

However, the sisters seemed more interested in playing with the sand itself than in creating an actual castle.

Giggling and laughing brightly, the sisters were a delightful sight, and Ivan was the first to approach them.

“I could build something much better than that.”

He muttered, not directly addressing them but speaking loud enough to be heard.

It was his clumsy way of trying to impress the girl who had caught his attention.

But Katya didn’t seem interested in the slightest.

Her attention was entirely focused on her younger sister.

“Bianca, isn’t this fun?”

Bianca smiled brightly and nodded silently.

Feeling ignored, Ivan spoke again, his tone more insistent this time.

“I’m telling you, I can make it much better!”

At his words, Katya turned her head toward him, her expression one of mild annoyance.

“Do I know you?”

“Huh?”

“Why do you keep talking to me when I don’t even know who you are?”

It was only then that Ivan realized he hadn’t introduced himself properly, as etiquette dictated. His face flushed with embarrassment.

“My name is Ivan. Ivan Petrovsky.”

“Alright.”

“Aren’t you going to tell me your name?”

“I’m Katarina.”

“Do you want to play together?”

Mustering his courage, Ivan asked.

“Sorry, but that’s not going to work. Can’t you play somewhere else?”

“What?”

“My sister is shy around strangers. She feels uncomfortable when people she doesn’t know are nearby.”

Katya politely but firmly asked Ivan and his friends to leave.

Ivan glanced at Bianca and saw her clutching Katya’s sleeve tightly, her face uneasy as she hid behind her older sister.

It was the first time Ivan had ever been rejected.

Usually, he could get whatever he wanted by whining, throwing a tantrum, or getting angry. But this time was different.

Winning over the girl’s heart wasn’t going to be easy.

“But—”

“Sorry. Maybe next time.”

Katya’s resolute demeanor left the boys with no choice but to leave.

Ivan, however, couldn’t help but glance back over his shoulder.

The sisters were laughing again, as if nothing had happened.

Seeing that made him feel a surge of frustration.

He was embarrassed to have been rejected by a girl he considered insignificant.

‘Why is she so protective of her sister?’

It was so different from his own relationship with his older brother.

Ivan’s older brother, who had matured early, avoided spending time with his arrogant and manipulative younger sibling, who often bullied the weak.

It was easier to blame others than to acknowledge his own faults.

Ivan concluded that there was something abnormal about the Smirnov sisters, not himself and his brother.

‘If it weren’t for that girl…’

Seeing the timid Bianca, who couldn’t even utter a word in their presence, Ivan smirked unpleasantly.

A mischievous idea came to him.