Chapter 3

“Hugo.”

Since their eyes met, Catherine had no choice but to acknowledge him.

At her softly spoken call, Hugo’s lips parted. His eyelids blinked rapidly.

His eyes, revealed in the process, were dazed and then became clear.

Only after seeing him did Catherine realize.

‘I really missed him.’

She thought she had forgotten everything, but that wasn’t the case. She had merely buried her feelings for a while.

However, Catherine wasn’t someone who would shamelessly reveal such immature emotions on her face.

She approached Hugo, putting on a composed expression.

Hugo’s face, which she saw for the first time in years, was gaunt. His jawline was sharper, making him look more sensitive.

‘He must have had a hard time on the battlefield.’

Hugo left for the battlefield immediately after their divorce.

Catherine knew how he had struggled and endured on the battlefield.

And wanting to help him even a little, she had pretended to be an unknown benefactor through letters.

Thanks to her, a war that would have lasted eight years was reduced to four, and Hugo achieved great feats.

Ironically, the reason Catherine could help Hugo was because she had been lonely in her past life.

Hugo had entrusted none of the estate’s affairs to Catherine, and with plenty of time on her hands, she had immersed herself in all sorts of books, newspapers, and information sheets from various places.

She learned a lot about the war from newspapers that detailed it quite thoroughly and from books published by scholars after the war ended.

It was one of the things Catherine was most proud of after her return in time.

“It’s been a while, Catherine.”

His hoarse voice was dripping with fatigue. The awkwardness of not seeing each other for four years dissipated surprisingly quickly.

“It’s been a while, Hugo.”

“You seem to have been doing well.”

Hugo said, sweeping his hair back. His tone, dripping with resentment, startled Catherine.

Before her return in time, Hugo was a man who didn’t know how to express his emotions. He always hid his true feelings and showed Catherine only the minimum.

Catherine was a bit confused by the unexpected display of his emotions.

Hugo took a step closer to her. A dark shadow fell over her head.

When he stood before her, Catherine’s eyes were filled with him. It wasn’t just because of his large frame.

To Catherine, his presence was simply that overwhelming.

“I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”

His tone genuinely sounded relieved, yet the lingering resentment confused Catherine about his true feelings.

Anyway, it was now her turn to speak.

“I heard you had a hard time in the war. I’m glad you returned safely.”

“Are you really glad?”

“Yes. Truly.”

She had spent several sleepless nights worrying after hearing he went to the battlefield.

She spared no expense to get war news faster than the military officials.

But Hugo wouldn’t know that.

“You’re glad I returned?”

Hugo murmured to himself. His lips twitched. Catherine, thinking she might have misspoken, changed the subject.

Talking about the four years they had been apart might spill out her feelings of missing him.

“More importantly, what brings you to the capital? You didn’t like living here.”

She recalled the day she first met Hugo.

Hugo had stepped into the capital’s social scene to find a marriage partner.

Unlike other noblemen who started looking for brides as soon as they came of age, he entered the social scene at twenty-two, a bit late.

It was because of money. Hugo didn’t have the funds to cover the living expenses of the capital’s social season.

When he finally managed to gather enough for one season, he was twenty-two and thus was able to witness Catherine’s debutante.

Catherine remembered the first time she saw Hugo.

He was wandering around, unable to blend in with the people dancing.

His outdated, rustic attire contrasted with his excessively handsome face, and his stiff but polite demeanor caught Catherine’s eye.

‘That’s why I approached him first.’

He seemed like he would just stand there all night, blending in with the pillar, so Catherine approached him out of curiosity.

At first, it was curiosity.

Even though she hovered around, he didn’t speak, so Catherine made a clumsy attempt.

The second time, it was out of stubbornness.

• Is the lemonade good?

Catherine chuckled.

“Catherine?”

Hugo called her, pulling her out of her reverie. Catherine looked at him, snapping out of her thoughts.

“Sorry, I was lost in thought for a moment.”

“Ah, I’m not good at conversations, am I?”

Hugo blamed himself for something odd.

“About living in the capital, I don’t dislike it.”

He continued.

“Really?”

It was unexpected. But Catherine quickly accepted it.

Four years was enough time to change a person’s preferences.

After wandering through desolate battlefields, one might long for the glittering social scene of the capital.

‘Wait, does that mean Hugo will participate in social events?’

Catherine’s heart sank.

The primary purpose of the capital’s social events at this time was one.

Finding a partner.

Noblewomen attended parties to find matches for their children, and young men and women attended to find their own matches.

For an unmarried man to get a house in the capital during the social season meant he intended to attend social events, which implied he was looking for a partner.

Especially for someone like Hugo, who had no interest in central politics, staying in the capital during the social season could mean only one thing.

Catherine’s heart pounded. She couldn’t calm down.

Even though she had resolved to let Hugo go, thinking of him standing next to another woman made her heart ache.

“Since we’re neighbors now, I look forward to your kind cooperation, Catherine.”

Hugo extended his hand, oblivious to Catherine’s feelings.

His low but soft voice was the same as ever. It was a captivating voice that grabbed her attention even from afar, making Catherine lift her head.

To hide her agitation, Catherine clenched her fists tightly.

She barely suppressed the question of why he had moved next door.

“I’ve taken too much of your time when you need to move in. I’ll be going now.”

Catherine hurriedly greeted him and started to pass by, ignoring his outstretched hand.

“You left something at the estate.”

Hugo stopped her.

Her wrist, briefly caught and released, felt hot. Catherine held her hot wrist and asked.

“Something?”

She had hurriedly married and then divorced, so there shouldn’t have been anything left behind.

Hugo searched through his coat.

He took out a small teaspoon, which seemed out of place in his large hand.

Hugo held out a gold teaspoon with a rose-shaped handle to Catherine.

“This is something you left behind. It wasn’t mine, so I couldn’t just throw it away.”

He had kept a trivial teaspoon for four years?

And didn’t that teaspoon just come out of his jacket pocket?

Though she couldn’t pinpoint it, his actions felt suspicious.

When Catherine hesitated, Hugo took her hand.

The natural touch made Catherine look up at him.

He spread her hand open and placed the teaspoon on it.

“See you next time, Catherine.”

Hugo smiled. It was a bittersweet smile that pricked Catherine’s heart.

“Hugh……”

Hugo turned around, leaving Catherine, who was about to ask about his well-being.

Hugo walked towards his house, Catherine’s next-door neighbor, without any hesitation, as if he had only intended to return the item from the beginning.

Catherine alternated between looking at his broad back and the teaspoon, then closed her mouth.

The teaspoon was warm.

***

Hugo entered his still-unorganized study. He slumped into a high-backed chair and leaned his head back.

“I’m coming in.”

Despite wanting to rest, an uninvited guest appeared. It was John, his aide who had grown up with him since childhood.

“Did you meet her?”

John asked, observing Hugo’s darkened face.

“Yes. I met Catherine.”

“What did you think of seeing her again?”

Hugo opened his eyes and turned his head back to its original position. He looked directly at John.

“It was nice.”

Seeing his softened expression, John clicked his tongue.

“What good is liking her? She’s the ex-wife who demanded a divorce right after marriage!”

John didn’t like Catherine.

He had witnessed Hugo’s determination and struggles because of her.

Even putting aside his attachment to Hugo and their friendship, Catherine was a bad person.

She seduced Hugo into marriage and demanded a divorce after their first night together.

There was no justifiable reason or cause.

And she had the audacity to ask for her dowry back.

At that time, the dowry from the Bedwig family was meager, but Catherine acted as if it was a substantial amount.

Hugo had given her more money than the dowry he received.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he gave away the entire wealth of a viscount’s family. He even incurred debts on top of that.

“You still don’t know? The dowry……”