“As Your Majesty said, the Adenauer family is no longer a house of glory,” Aneta began, reiterating the harsh truth Russell had pointed out.

Her unshaken demeanor made Carlos realize she had a plan, prompting him to remain silent and watch the situation unfold. Still wearing a crooked smile, Russell gestured with his chin for her to continue.

Aneta showed no signs of faltering. Instead, her voice grew clearer and more confident.

“However, even after the glory has faded, Adenauer has steadfastly maintained its original position. I believe that alone sufficiently proves the value of myself and my family.”

The reason no other family could replace Adenauer was simple:

Wealth.

No matter how she thought about it, that was the most confident asset she could present.

Some might consider revealing one’s possessions to be vulgar, but Aneta’s perspective was somewhat different.

The truly vulgar act was not showing what one has but misusing it. Therefore, Aneta intended to display her assets without a hint of shame.

“You asked what I could show you to entrust Carlos to me, did you not?” she said.

Aneta took a key from her pocket. She then aligned it with the keyhole of the case she had placed on the table.

As she turned the key, a small click sounded, and the lock was released.

Aneta opened the case and turned it toward Russell, revealing the contents inside.

A gleaming jewel, imbued with fiery red brilliance, sparkled in the light.

“It seems you can send him based on this wealth.”

The object Aneta had brought to bargain with Russell was a blood-red diamond. Even someone like Russell could not hide his astonishment upon seeing it.

“This is quite a surprise. I didn’t expect you to bring a family heirloom,” Russell said, his eyes fixated on the dazzling gem.

The crimson diamond, larger and more vibrant than the one adorning Russell’s crown, was an oval gem slightly smaller than two fingers.

While the Henriène mines owned by the Adenauer family mostly yielded pink diamonds, red diamonds were occasionally found, albeit extremely rarely. The gem Aneta presented was one of those rare finds.

Pink diamonds were precious, but they paled in comparison to the rarity and value of red diamonds.

The red diamond in Aneta’s possession was one of the few known to exist and the largest, making its value astronomical.

At its discovery, the head of the Adenauer family had christened the diamond with the grandiose title “The Heart of the Continent” and designated it as a family heirloom.

Thanks to its fame, it became a treasure of the Adenauer family, as renowned as its former glory.

Now that the glory of miracles had faded, “The Heart of the Continent” was undoubtedly the most valuable treasure of the Adenauer family. Russell sought to understand Aneta’s intentions, given her willingness to part with it.

“Are you saying you’ll give this to me?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure you won’t regret it?”

Russell’s rigid expression softened slightly at her unwavering response, though his gaze remained probing as if still testing her.

Aneta met his gaze with firm resolve.

“I won’t regret it. If I thought I might, I would have prepared something else. No, more than that—I wouldn’t have decided to remarry in the first place. That’s how deeply I love Carlos. Please understand that this is not a decision I made lightly.”

One must offer the most precious thing to obtain the most precious person. That was why, among all her wealth, Aneta had chosen to bring “The Heart of the Continent.”

“I will never again cause Carlos pain over the same matter. Please, just this once, trust me.”

Aneta lowered herself respectfully in front of Russell and remained perfectly still until he spoke.

“Raise your head,” Russell commanded, seemingly satisfied.

“It seems you knew from the beginning that I wouldn’t truly oppose you. Yet you go this far for the sake of a deal, is that right?”

“Yes.”

“I can already guess what you’ll ask for. No doubt, you want to retain your title and name, just like before.”

“That’s correct.”

Russell’s assumption was spot on, and Aneta confirmed it without hesitation.

Her plea to Russell wasn’t merely about preserving power or privilege for herself. She would have relinquished her position without a second thought if she had a relative to whom she could entrust the family.

However, apart from the Visount Kainer family, the only remaining family was her maternal relatives, who had sold their daughter for the sake of their only son.

If her name changed, her maternal relatives would undoubtedly rush in, demanding control of the Adenauer estate.

Aneta would never allow that, even in death.

Though she wouldn’t yield the family to them, she didn’t even want to leave the slightest chance for them to take advantage. The mere thought of dealing with them again was agonizing.

Aneta did not need to explain this to Russell—he already knew her circumstances better than anyone.

Uncrossing his legs, Russell lightly tapped the armrest of his chair with his fingers.

The deliberation was brief. Russell was certain of Aneta’s sincerity, so there was no reason to continue stalling. Her request was hardly demanding compared to what she was offering, so he eventually accepted her proposal.

“Very well. I grant permission for the remarriage, with your title and name intact.”

“Thank you.”

Aneta bowed her head once more in gratitude.

***

Having achieved her goal, Aneta left Russell’s office.

Standing outside the office, Carlos had no idea how he’d even managed to walk out. Led by Aneta’s hand, he stood in a daze.

Aneta waved her hand before Carlos, snapping him out of his stupor. His eyes regained focus.

“Why that look? I thought you’d be happy. Was I mistaken?
”
“No, you weren’t. It’s just… I can’t believe what just happened. It feels like I’m dreaming.”

“Do you ‘wish’ it were a dream?”

“Of course not. Aneta, are you going to marry me again?”

“I am. I can’t imagine a world without you anymore.”

Their relationship had long since moved past the days when only one yearned for the other. Aneta wanted Carlos to understand that.

“And besides, you caught the bouquet, didn’t you? There’s a saying that if you don’t get married within six months, you won’t for three years. I don’t think I can wait that long.”

Though she didn’t believe in such superstitions, her sudden shyness made her bring it up anyway.

Aneta pressed Carlos for an answer.

“What, don’t you want to?”

“Of course I do. I’m so happy that I can’t put it into words.”

Carlos’s voice caught with emotion. Overwhelmed by his feelings, he pulled Aneta into his arms.

He kissed the top of her head as if even that wasn’t enough. His lips moved from her hair to her forehead, then down to her eyes and nose, leaving lingering kisses in their wake.

The final stop was her lips. Carlos gently pressed his lips to hers.

Aneta didn’t push him away. Instead, she burrowed deeper into his embrace, prompting his arms around her waist to tighten.

The shift in Carlos’s fervor became noticeable as their lips remained locked.

Carlos parted Aneta’s lips with his tongue, forgetting where they were.

The sudden intrusion made Aneta flinch momentarily, but the tremor soon subsided.

Carlos gently stroked her cheek as if to soothe her, even as his restless tongue explored her mouth with an insatiable hunger. Their mingled breaths and saliva blurred the boundaries of ownership. Aneta’s senses honed in on him entirely, the heat of his body seeping through the fabric of their clothes.

Her vision flickered repeatedly, flashes of light sparking behind her eyelids. Overwhelmed by the dizzying sensations, Aneta instinctively tried to step back. But this only seemed to spur Carlos on further.

He greedily swallowed her breath, drawing it deep into himself as if it were his own.

Just as Carlos was indulging himself in her lips, the sound of the door opening caught his attention, and he looked toward the person who had just come in.

It was only after locking eyes with Russell, who was frowning, that Carlos became aware of where he was standing.

He tried to pull away from Aneta, but Russell was quicker to close the door.

Bang!

As the door slammed shut, Aneta, gasping for breath, finally turned her gaze to Russell’s office door.

“He must’ve seen, right?”

“Yeah.”

Carlos’s frank reply made Aneta feel the heat rushing to her face. It would be in their best interest to leave quickly.

But before she could depart, there was something she had to do. Spotting the smear of lipstick on Carlos’s lips, she reached for his face.

Carlos bent down obligingly, oblivious to her intention, bringing his face closer to hers. The proximity made her spit a gasp.

“It’s almost a shame to wipe it off.”

The red stain against his pale skin looked almost unbearably sensual.

Aneta reached out deliberately, her fingers smudging the lipstick further instead of erasing it.

“Somehow, this lipstick seems to suit you better than it does me.”

Rising onto her toes, she leaned in to press another kiss against the deepened smudge.

***

Meanwhile, inside his office, effectively imprisoned by the scene he had stumbled upon, Russell rubbed his forehead in exasperation.

“How did my life come to this?”

Sighing in frustration changed nothing. He remembered the sight that had greeted him outside his office moments earlier.

No matter how much he cared for his brother, there were some things he had no desire to witness.

Previously, they had indulged in intimate moments within his unoccupied office, exuding a peculiar atmosphere. Now, unable to do so inside, they had taken it outside instead.

Once again, Russell found himself in the role of the unwelcome intruder, breaking their moment.

The two of them were far too audacious for him even to consider quietly closing the door and sparing them embarrassment. Why did they insist on flaunting their relationship so openly in front of him every time? It was beyond comprehension.

He might have teased them a bit longer before granting his approval if he had known it would come to this. Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Russell muttered to himself,

“If you’re going to be all lovey-dovey, at least do it somewhere else.”

And so his sighs deepened once again.