Chapter 3.9

Melosi Bailey sat on the wide sofa, biting her nails with an anxious face. Her nails, chewed ragged, had been in this state ever since Kaiden dropped her off and left.  

It was obvious where Kaiden Bannon had gone.  

‘Brienne Ford.’  

He must have gone to that woman.  

As always, Melosi herself was put aside.  

How could he do this?  

Today was not just any day, but their engagement day. If it had been any other day, she might have tried a hundred times to understand him somehow.  

He was a man of few words, so maybe there was some circumstance, or at the very least, maybe that woman had coaxed him.  

But right now, she neither wanted to understand nor could she.  

‘……Because of whom did I get humiliated in front of all those people?’  

Instead of comforting his fiancée, he went to the woman who caused it all?  

Melosi clenched both hands tightly on her knees. She knew that her engagement to Kaiden was nothing more than a family transaction.  

An engagement that neither party wanted was nothing but a business deal based on mutual interests.  

But still……  

Wasn’t this too much, no matter what?  

Even if marriages among nobles were loveless, at the very least, they made an effort to understand and love each other. If things didn’t work out, then they would take on lovers, and sometimes even become friends—that was their way.  

But Kaiden, until now, had never made any such effort, only maintaining the minimum courtesy in front of others. Even though his coldness hurt Melosi, she always smiled and endured it.  

No matter how much he liked Brienne Ford, he would never be able to annul their engagement. In the end, it would be her standing next to Kaiden Bannon.  

But.  

‘Will it really be that way?’

Tears fell from her pale blue eyes. Between Brienne Ford and Kaiden, there was now the variable of Herace Belif.  

Before, it seemed Kaiden didn’t know his own feelings, but now he would surely come to realize them.  

Everyone around them knew, except for that foolish heart who was the only one unaware.  

Melosi irritably tore off her now-blackened dress. The more she looked at that wretched dress, the angrier she became, unable to bear it.  

“Um, Miss……”  

The maid watching her with concern offered her a glass of cold water. Melosi snatched the glass and drained it in one go.  

“……Was there another white dress among the spares I brought?”  

Melosi gestured toward the door with her chin.  

“Bring it. If there isn’t one, make one somehow and bring it to me right away.”  

But the maid said nothing. It was Melosi who had insisted that one white dress was enough, so there was no way she could bring another immediately.  

“And place several months’ worth of orders at the dress shop that made that woman’s dress. The first one I get should be a very, very blue dress. The more extravagant, the better—just make it prettier than hers, whatever it takes.”  

A troubled look appeared on the maid’s face. If the woman Melosi meant was the young lady of the Ford family, she wouldn’t be able to place an order at that atelier.

After a brief hesitation, the maid avoided stating the exact reason and offered another excuse.  

“Miss…… But Madame Rosie’s atelier is fully booked for the entire year.”

“What?”  

“It’s always like that. To get a dress from Madame Rosie, you have to reserve at least a year in advance.”  

“……Then what about Brienne Ford? Are you saying she prepared her dress for my engagement years in advance? That’s not true.”

The maid hesitated, glancing nervously at Melosi. She had tried to change the subject, but it was all for nothing.  

“Ma, Madame Rosie is the long-time friend of Marchioness Ford. I heard she’s been making Young Lady Ford’s clothes since she was a child……”  

“So what if she’s the Marchioness’s friend? Is she so busy that she can refuse an order from the fiancée of Young Master Bannon?”  

“It’s not that…… The dress shop itself is called ‘Brie’s Atelier,’ after Brienne Ford……”  

Melosi’s gaze turned sharp. The maid, thinking she hadn’t explained enough, ended up saying more than she needed to.  

“So what I mean is, no matter what, your relationship with Miss Brienne Ford……”

“……That Brienne Ford, Brienne Ford! Stop saying that name already!”  

With a look of utter disgust, Melosi threw the glass she was holding at the wall.  

Clang!  

The shattered glass sparkled under the light. For a moment, Melosi recalled a memory from the past as she looked at the sharp shards.  

<Promise me, at least you will never, ever live a failed life like mine.>  

A promise made at fifteen, now a dying wish.  

She must marry the man she loves, become a noble lady, and live a happy life.  

A life abandoned by her husband, unloved by anyone, was a life without any value. Her mother’s life, even though she was alive, was a lonely and empty existence.

No matter what it took, even if she had to become a bad person, Melosi Bailey had to keep that promise.  

Catching her breath, Melosi lifted her head. The first attempt might have failed, but this plan seemed quite plausible.  

“……Call Derrick Harrington. Right now.”  

“Huh? Who……?”  

“The second son of the Harrington Earldom!”  

The maid, meeting Melosi’s bloodshot eyes, quickly bowed her head.  

“Y-yes!”  

Fearing another glass might be thrown, the maid hurried out of the room.

* * *

“Ahem! Has everyone heard? I run a business, you know. Lately, it’s even expanded to Roeta.”  

Just because it was a pre-ceremony party didn’t mean there weren’t any drunk people. While waiting for the main ceremony to begin, Derrick, having discovered the finest liquor at the prepared bar, happily finished off an entire bottle. At this rate, it would be ample compensation for being punched in the face by Kaiden Bannon—a decent outcome.  

Recognizing Derrick, whose face was now flushed as he wandered about, Viscount Myers approached.  

“Ah, I heard from your father! Earl Harrington was delighted that you finally came to your senses.”  

“Ha ha, Viscount, you flatter me…… I suppose it’s about time I matured.”  

Derrick clinked glasses with Viscount Myers and smiled awkwardly. He had planned to talk about business and maybe even find a fiancée, but Viscount Myers had ruined his dignity.  

“It’s a relief if you know that. For your father’s sake, I’ll invest a share myself.”  

“Oh! Really? An investment from someone like you, Viscount Myers, is always welcome!”  

Derrick, eyes shining as if nothing had happened, joked around. But just as they were about to discuss the details of the investment, someone approached him.  

“Sir Derrick, someone is looking for you.”  

“What, at this crucial moment?”  

Derrick’s face, which had been beaming at the talk of investment, twisted instantly.

* * *

“Young Master……! Where have you been without a word? After escorting Miss Bailey, you didn’t return, and we’ve been looking for you!”  

“I had something to take care of. If you waited long, I apologize.”  

Kaiden, with his usual smile, returned to his place without the slightest sign of disarray. The attendant, who had been nervously pacing, sighed in relief and stepped back.  

He had been gone for thirty minutes.  

Kaiden glanced down at his wristwatch and thought calmly. 

Good. 

It hadn’t taken long, so there was no reason for his father to be suspicious.  

“Where is Father?”  

“He’s still in his office. He said he’d come down before the ceremony begins.”  

“Ah, I see.”  

Nodding calmly, Kaiden looked with indifferent eyes at the people enjoying the party. But inside, he could not be as calm as usual.  

He felt something special for Brienne Ford.  

Admitting that wasn’t so difficult. The only important thing was that, even now that he realized his feelings, nothing should change.  

He was engaged to Melosi Bailey, and that meant Brienne Ford could never know his feelings.  

But Kaiden realized the moment he met Brienne’s eyes.  

He was still inside them.

It couldn’t be said that things were the same as before, but at the very least, he knew well what kind of light shone in those eyes when they looked at him.  

So, he could not stir up those feelings again. Unless it was to sever them completely, so there was no turning back.  

Unless even the faint memories left became something to hate.

<We’re not even friends anymore, from now on.>

And as a result, Brienne kissed Herace.  

From now on, there would be no place for him in Brienne Ford’s life. It was the expected result, and it was a relationship that should have ended long ago. He could not give Brienne anything she wanted.  

That was the kind of person Kaiden had always been.  

A life where he could neither return anything to others nor expect anything in return. The heir of the Bannon Ducal House, admired and envied by all.