Chapter 87: Individual Thoughts

Latte glared at Leonard with cold eyes. How did he know?

“Did you think you were the only one watching me?”

“Did you interfere with my plans this time too?”

The trap she had set must have failed since Bliss came out unharmed. Seeing this, Latte had been wondering how she could possibly kill Bliss.

Was that why her earlier conversation with Bliss had felt so unsettling?

“That’s your problem. You always set things in motion but never verify them yourself.”

Leonard openly mocked Latte. The reason she had failed to achieve her desired results despite all her machinations was that she always stayed in the background.

“It must have been the same this time. You probably just assumed your arrow had missed its mark.”

Since Leonard’s words weren’t wrong, Latte bit her lip and glared at him.

“Not knowing that arrow ended up in Caelan’s body.”

“…Who did you say it hit?”

Latte asked in confusion. As Leonard said, she had set the trap with the arrow but hadn’t been present. She had been careful, worried about failure and getting caught.

Until now, Latte had only acted directly once. Anyway, since everyone seemed fine despite the arrow being shot, she had vaguely assumed it had failed, but now… Caelan?

“I’m saying Caelan nearly died taking the arrow instead.”

Latte’s gaze grew increasingly unfocused.

“Did you think all the blood from his body in the finals was from what I caused?”

Leonard looked at Latte with contempt.

“If you keep acting like this, you’ll end up killing Caelan before Bliss. Well, that’s fine by me.”

Leonard stood up after venting his frustration about not being able to take Bliss from Caelan on Latte. He felt somewhat better now and should head home. The runner-up position and the party were never his interests to begin with. He had come out here because he didn’t want to see Bliss with Caelan, and that worked out well.

“Keep setting traps for the rest of your life. That seems to be your charm.”

Leonard mocked Latte and left the room. Left alone, Latte trembled, clenching her fists and breathing heavily before raising her head. She couldn’t stay still with this unresolved anger. She wanted to scream right now and throw everything she could get her hands on.

Just as Latte’s eyes fiercely scanned her surroundings, her face red enough to show in the mirror, someone entered.

“Latte?”

Thinking it was Leonard and about to burst in anger, Latte froze at the female voice before slowly turning around.

“Countess… Azel?”

“Yes. I happened to see through the open door.”

At Countess Azel’s words, Latte looked at the door. She too had seen Leonard through the gap and entered. Realizing that Countess Azel must have seen her as well, her heart felt like it was freezing over.

She had almost thrown things without knowing someone was watching.

“What brings you here?”

Latte spoke while forcing a smile back onto her face. Until now, except for Leonard, she had never revealed her true self to anyone. She didn’t want to be so easily discovered by Countess Azel.

“Have you seen Marchioness Adrian?”

“The Marchioness?”

When Bliss was mentioned, Latte tilted her head and asked back. Though her eyes appeared innocent as if she knew nothing, her heart was racing with inexplicable anxiety about why Bliss was being mentioned in this situation.

“I had talked with her about you. She left right after, so I thought she might have come to find you.”

“About me?”

Latte looked at Countess Azel while ignoring her heart that felt like it might burst out.

“The day Marchioness Adrian received the necklace, you came to the ball too, didn’t you? I saw you arrive but you didn’t enter the hall – that’s what we talked about.”

So that was it.

Not Leonard, but the necklace.

Though she had felt something was off about her conversation with Bliss but couldn’t pinpoint why, now she knew. Bliss had used the necklace as an excuse to try to learn something from her.

‘I’ve been had.’

Latte didn’t realize she had missed her chance to respond to Countess Azel while trying to compose her crumbling expression.

“Was it a secret?”

“Ah… I’ll explain later.”

Latte hurriedly passed by Countess Azel and left the room. Her anger from the conversation with Leonard had disappeared like foam. Now she needed to meet Bliss and find out how much she suspected.

***

Leonard walked quickly, ignoring the greetings directed at him. Neither his second-place finish in the knight tournament nor the possibility that his future path could be more solid mattered at all.

Nothing was as important to Leonard as Bliss.

“Ugh.”

Leonard stopped briefly and let out a low groan. His excitement hadn’t subsided due to things not going according to his plans.

Walking aimlessly had brought him to the garden, and as he focused on his breathing, he eventually slumped against a tree.

‘I don’t understand what’s so great about Bliss that you’re like this. She’s not pretty, and she’s not even kind.’

As he focused quietly on his breathing, Latte’s words came to mind. Her tone suggesting she couldn’t understand what charm Bliss had. Even after having a man stolen by her, she still wouldn’t acknowledge it.

“Bliss is charming because she is.”

Leonard loved Bliss. He didn’t mind seeing her torment others. Rather, because she didn’t hide it and showed it openly, he never considered her a bad woman.

Everyone Leonard had known had different faces for public and private – like his parents who treated him as if he was the most loved in the world in front of others but were cold at home. Everyone had two faces. Even Latte, whom everyone called kind, frequently schemed behind others’ backs, so there was no reason to criticize Bliss.

Rather, Bliss, whose outside matched her inside, was the best. At least she was consistent in how she treated Leonard. Bliss was a pure person.

“How could anyone not love such a woman?”

That’s why Leonard loved Bliss and wanted to make her his wife. If she wanted, he could hold parties every day and provide commoners for her to torment as much as she liked.

But nothing went according to his wishes. Bliss became another man’s wife and didn’t seem likely to be abandoned.

It seemed that person had also discovered Bliss’s true charm that only he had recognized. That’s why he wouldn’t let her go.

Though angry, he had missed his chance to take Bliss.

Leonard ground his teeth in frustration.

“I will definitely make Bliss my wife.”

***

“Who are you looking for?”

“Bliss.”

Karhen, who had approached to offer congratulations, noticed Caelan’s busy gaze and asked, receiving that answer.

“If you mean the Marchioness, I saw her talking with Countess Azel. I’m not sure if they’re still together though…”

Karhen shrugged and blocked Caelan’s path as if to obstruct his way.

“Move.”

“Are you going to check on her because you’re worried something might have happened? If not, why don’t you let her be?”

Karhen put his arm around Caelan’s shoulders and handed him some wine.

“Today is a celebration not just for you but for her too. So why not let her enjoy it?”

Karhen’s words seemed to work as Caelan’s movements noticeably slowed. Having kindly placed a wine glass in his hand, Karhen raised his own wine.

“I’m asking this because I’m really curious…”

Karhen smelled the wine’s aroma and, as if drunk, leaned against Caelan.

“Between the Bliss who swept through everything without caring about others’ feelings and the kind Bliss who got absorbed in experiments with Princess Jasmin, which is the real one?”

He wasn’t drunk but had stuck close to ensure Caelan wouldn’t miss his quietly whispered words.

“What useless things are you trying to say?”

“It seems like the kind Bliss is the one you find interesting to watch… But I wonder if that’s her real self. Before, I just accepted what you said, but now I can’t just leave it at that.”

Karhen subtly pointed to someone over there.

“Since you publicly confessed to Princess Jasmin, I should know more about the Marchioness too.”

“There’s no need for that.”

Caelan cut him off firmly. It was an unreasonable excuse to begin with. Simply saying he was curious would have been more convincing.

“Don’t be like that, tell me. What exactly is Bliss, your wife’s charm?”

Karhen clung to Caelan as if he wouldn’t let him go until he explained. Shouldn’t he be spending as much time as possible with Princess Jasmin instead of doing this here?

“Things are fine between the Princess and me. I haven’t been summoned by His Majesty yet, and though the Princess might have some trouble because of the women who like me, all of that can be endured with the excitement of newly beginning love.”

“…Excitement. That’s it.”

“Huh?”

Karhen asked back with uncomprehending eyes.

“She was the same inside and out so I had no interest, but then one day she suddenly became wary of me and tried to hide her true self, and she showed unexpected reactions.”

Karhen wanted to ask what he meant but held back and listened for more.

“She seemed to move inconspicuously, but that turned into interesting situations that kept catching my eye. I think there was an excitement about wondering what she would do next.”

“So you’re saying the Marchioness did that?”

Though Karhen asked if it was true, Caelan closed his mouth, unwilling to explain further.

Not being happy about and refusing the necklace he gave her, appearing with a cold body after saying she was going to wash, being unexpectedly absorbed in admiring the beauty of the rose garden without immediately realizing why it was opened, boldly declaring to Duke Blast that she would bring the dagger herself and then appearing as a maid. And…

There were too many instances to count.