Winter no longer concealed the truth.

Even when they were together, she had endured all her suffering alone.

She had always known that their time together would eventually come to an end.

That was why she had tried so hard.

Why she had been so careful.

Why it had hurt so much.

Ultimately, however, all those days were rendered meaningless by a single sentence from him.

“The support I’ve given you should be more than enough.”

Maybe Eden had been overwhelmed by guilt after hearing the news of her death.

Maybe that was why he was talking about turning back time.

But none of that mattered anymore.

Breaking through the suffocating silence, Eden finally found her voice.

“Winter… I know I ruined everything. Back then, I truly believed pushing you away… was the best thing I could do. I convinced myself it was the only way to protect you…”

“It was unbelievably foolish… but at the time, I truly believed it.”

The words he needed came to him in scattered fragments.

But the moment he looked into Winter’s calm, composed face, he could not bring himself to speak.

The weight pressing against his chest became so overwhelming that he found it difficult to breathe.

Nevertheless, he couldn’t let her see him like this.

Eden forced himself to take slow, measured breaths.

As he struggled to regain his composure, he slowly unclenched the fist he hadn’t realized he had been gripping so tightly.

Winter quietly looked away from the man whose mere presence had once set her heart racing.

Her gaze lingered on her hands in her lap for a moment before drifting to the tightly closed car door.

“I don’t have anything else to say.”

“Please don’t come looking for me again.”

To Winter, this was enough.

She had no desire to keep explaining the new life she had built in Santero after severing every tie to her past.

“Winter, wait. I…”

Eden reached out almost instinctively.

The moment his fingertips touched the thick cuff of her sleeve, however, Winter turned away, evading his touch.

The movement was so natural.

It was as though she were avoiding the touch of a stranger.

Eden’s outstretched arm froze in mid-air.

Her resolute rejection struck him in the heart.

“Goodbye, Your Grace.”

Click.

The soft click of the door handle broke the silence.

As soon as the car door opened, a rush of icy air swept in.

Winter didn’t hesitate.

Without pausing for a moment, she stepped out of the car.

Before she could close the door, Eden was already following her out.

He had to stop her somehow.

But Winter had already turned her back on him and started walking away.

Her slender figure moved quietly past the grey stone wall.

She looked like someone who had no intention of ever looking back.

Creeeak…

The iron gate groaned as it slowly opened, the sound echoing through the narrow alleyway.

A moment later, her familiar silhouette disappeared beyond it.

The gate began to move again.

Clang.

As the sound of the door closing faded, Winter disappeared from view.

All that remained was the bitter silence.

The cold wind stirred memories he had tried so hard to forget.

***

Morning arrived, as it always did.

As usual, Winter finished her last sip of tea.

After rinsing the cup with lukewarm water, the faint fragrance of black tea lingered in the air.

She carefully dried the cup with a cloth, returned it neatly to the shelf, and refilled the small sugar jar beside it with a few cubes of sugar.

Next, she washed the work apron and wrist cloth that she had not had time to clean the previous day and hung them by the sunlit window to dry.

Having tied her hair back, Winter opened the windows wide, letting the crisp morning air drift into the house.

When she stepped into her studio, the familiar space welcomed her just as it had the day before.

Her art supplies were arranged neatly across the desk.

The paint jars sat with their lids tightly sealed.

The canvases rested in perfect order against the wall.

Everything was spotless.

Everything was exactly where it belonged.

Winter moved through the room with the quiet ease of long-established habit.

She took out her brushes, carefully shaped their bristles, and put a clean palette next to them.

She hadn’t slept well, leaving her head feeling heavy and her thoughts sluggish.

Even so, it seemed like an ordinary morning.

But the moment she stood before the canvas…

The same problem that had been troubling her for days confronted her once again.

The colors that had once blended so effortlessly now seemed strangely dull.

Then, little by little…

One imperfection after another began to catch her eye.

Winter lifted her brush and tried to paint over them.

But even that didn’t feel right.

When she relaxed her hand, the painting felt lifeless.

However, when she applied even a little more pressure, the brushstrokes became harsh and heavy.

In the end…

Winter stopped.

She stood in silence, gazing at the canvas, before slowly putting down her brush.

What had happened a few days ago shouldn’t have affected her anymore.

It had simply been an unexpected meeting with someone who no longer belonged in her life.

She had refused to leave any room for lingering attachment.

Or for feelings that should have faded long ago.

And that was exactly what she had done.

The moment she stepped out of the car, she walked straight into the house without looking back.

So why…

Why was her heart still so unsettled?

She picked up her brush once more.

But the sense of unease remained.

In the dim light of the car, she remembered the man sitting behind the steering wheel.

His face was half-hidden beneath the dim glow of the gas lamps.

His eyes remained vividly clear.

A lingering chill settled deep in Winter’s heart, resurfacing again and again.

“Winter… please. Just listen to me.”

Eden had sounded as though he still had more to say.

But there was nothing left she wanted to hear.

‘You said you wouldn’t give it any meaning anymore. So don’t be foolish.’

Winter pressed her lips into a thin line as if scolding herself and rose from her seat.

Rather than sitting in front of the canvas and passively watching the hours go by, she decided to keep herself busy.

She had originally planned to go to the town square that afternoon.

Until Mrs. Roche arrived with Lily, she had intended to spend the morning painting.

But today…

She thought it would be better to leave early and help with the festival preparations instead.

Winter took off her apron, hung it neatly on its hook, and quickly put away her painting supplies.

By then, sunlight was streaming through the window and spreading across the floor through the narrow gap beneath the door.

She hoped that walking beneath the bright afternoon sun and losing herself in the lively crowds would calm the unrest in her heart.

After finishing getting ready, she murmured quietly to herself, almost as if making a promise.

“It’s all right.”

“It didn’t mean anything.”

Whispering the words under her breath, Winter opened the front door.

***

“The foundation work is progressing well, with no major issues to date. Construction has slowed down slightly due to the winter weather, but we anticipate a significant increase in pace once the weather warms up. There’s also a good chance that we’ll be able to bring the transportation schedule forward by about a day.”

Eden, who had been silently reviewing the documents, looked up at the project manager.

“You’ve changed the transportation route?”

“Yes, Your Grace. If we use the route through the old harbour, which is currently closed, our construction vehicles won’t need to pass through the eastern road.”

The East.

The place where Winter lived.

The slightest connection to it was enough to conjure up an image of her face.

Did she spend her days working at the salon?

And her nights in front of a canvas?

She probably did.

The landscape painting he had seen at the Regner estate must have been Winter’s work.

He didn’t need anyone to confirm it.

He simply knew.

If that painting had truly come from Winter’s hands…

Then the inexplicable pull he had felt towards it would require no explanation.

He hadn’t been able to look away because it was a landscape she had painted.

As Eden remained silent, his gaze fixed on the documents before him, the technical director gradually began to grow uneasy.

This was Eden’s first visit to the meeting room at the steel mill construction site.

Although he had been staying in Santero on an extended business trip, he had never come to inspect the site personally before.

His sudden announcement that he was coming threw the entire office into chaos.

The day before, every employee had spent hours cleaning and organizing the workplace in preparation.

Even the report he was holding had been revised repeatedly until dawn, until the team was finally satisfied with it.

‘Did we make a mistake somewhere?’

The project manager stood there, frozen to the spot and blinking nervously.

Seeing that the awkward silence was lingering, Parker stepped in smoothly.

“So far, everything is progressing without any major issues, Your Grace. Once the area around the site has been cleared and the equipment relocated, we can start installing the internal steel framework.”

“Yes, that’s correct. The second construction shift will start work tomorrow. All of the equipment has arrived safely, and unless we experience severe cold or heavy snowfall, the project should remain on schedule.”

Without looking up, Eden closed the final page of the report.

“Good.”

That single word was enough.

The project manager’s rigid shoulders relaxed immediately.

The tension drained from his face as he let out a quiet sigh of relief and hurriedly searched through the papers on his desk.

After fumbling for a moment, he pulled out a thin booklet that had been buried beneath a stack of documents.

“The city and harbour are currently hosting the annual festival. It opened last week and will continue until next week, making it a significant event. There are lots of things to see, so if you have any free time, you might enjoy visiting. That’s why I prepared this.”

Smiling sheepishly, he carefully smoothed the folded corner of the guidebook’s cover.

“Since the steel mill project is such a significant development for Santero, the Mayer Company has also been supporting local events. Donating to the festival fund under the name of the Mayer Company was part of that effort.”

He hesitated briefly before adding,

“Of course… it may be presumptuous of me to recommend something like this to someone as busy as you, Your Grace…”