Adrian slowly stepped aside from where he had been blocking the doorway.

Cornelia’s lips parted slightly.

After standing there like an immovable wall, was he really letting this go just like that?

She couldn’t believe it.

But rather than dwell on her doubts, she decided to take the opportunity to leave.

When you’re holding the weaker hand, it’s best to retreat before your opponent finds a flaw in your story.

If she lingered any longer and Adrian caught an inconsistency in her words, things would get complicated.

“Then, I’ll go rest—”

“I won’t tell our parents about this.”

So much for getting away quietly…

Cornelia halted mid-sentence and slowly turned back to face Adrian.

“Am I supposed to thank you for that?”

“We’ll see. If you still think so after hearing what I have to say.”

A smirk tugged at the corner of Adrian’s lips.

What was he planning?

His leisurely demeanor made her uneasy.

From experience, she knew that his smooth, crescent-shaped smile was always followed by something entirely unexpected.

“Whatever it is, I hope it’s something good.”

“It could be good or bad. Especially for you, Cori.”

“Ad.”

“I won’t inform our parents. But that doesn’t mean I’ll just let this go.”

“And if you don’t let it go?”

For a brief moment, Adrian’s gaze sharpened as he stared at her.

“Someone has to take responsibility for failing to properly attend to their mistress.”

“You don’t mean… Sophie, do you?”

Cornelia’s eyes widened in alarm.

Her light brown irises quivered ever so slightly, mirroring her shaken emotions.

“You’re going to punish Sophie? That’s ridiculous! You can’t do that!”

Her sharp voice echoed through the high-ceilinged corridor, but Adrian’s cold expression remained unchanged.

“I can. You tend to forget who you are, Cornelia.”

“I know exactly who I am.”

“I don’t doubt that. To some extent, at least.”

“Ad, stop twisting my words.”

Though he claimed he was punishing Sophie and Sir Edin, Cornelia knew this was really a lesson meant for her.

She wasn’t sure whether Adrian was acting on their parents’ behalf, but one thing was clear—he had been waiting for this moment all along.

“Cori, you’re the precious flower of the Olsen Marquisate. If you requested a room at the Imperial Palace, your maid and your knight should have stayed with you.”

“I sent them back to the estate myself. Both Sophie and Sir Edin.”

“Even so, that doesn’t change the fact that they neglected their duty. It may be natural for them to follow your orders, but that only applies when you’re safe.”

“Ad!”

Cornelia’s elegant brows arched high in frustration.

She usually controlled her emotions well, but in truth, she was more like a flame that flared up easily.

“Then you decide—should I inform our parents?”

He was giving her a choice, but the message was clear: accept this quietly and don’t escalate the situation.

So he never intended to let it go in the first place!

“Do you really have to go this far?”

“The harsher the lesson, the better it sticks.”

“Ha!”

‘Since when was the Imperial Palace such a dangerous place?’

Cornelia wanted to protest further, but she couldn’t.

The moment she opened her mouth, Carlisle’s face surfaced in her mind.

In front of her sharp-witted brother, she couldn’t afford to act suspiciously.

If he started digging, he would inevitably discover that she had spent the night with Carlisle.

And the aftermath of that revelation…

It wouldn’t just shatter her peaceful life—it might very well set off a civil war.

Just imagining it made her feel lightheaded.

“Go rest.”

“I’ll do as I please!”

Frustration made Cornelia’s tone sharper than she intended, but—

“Don’t skip dinner.”

“What?”

“I’ll inform Benjamin, so don’t think about pretending you ate.”

Adrian remained unfazed.

He merely raised a single dark eyebrow.

Was he seriously messing with her right now?

Dinner?

After all this, he was talking about dinner?

She was about to choke on her favorite snowflake brownies at this rate!

Cornelia let out a disbelieving laugh before sighing deeply.

‘I feel awful for Sophie and Sir Edin…’

Adrian was truly impossible.

***

The next day, Cornelia heard the news—Sophie and Sir Edin’s wages had been cut for a week.

She had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but unfortunately, Adrian had kept his word.

“Since they returned to the estate without you, it’s understandable that the young master was angry.”

“I was the one who sent them back.”

“That may be true, but you spent the entire night at the Imperial Palace.”

“I even sent word ahead.”

Everyone in the empire knew about Adrian’s overprotectiveness and deep attachment to Cornelia.

As she grumbled in frustration, the head maid merely shrugged, unfazed.

“Normally, a simple notice would have sufficed. But our young master isn’t exactly ‘normal,’ is he?”

“……”

“Still, we should be grateful. At least this didn’t reach the Marquis and Marchioness. It was just a week’s—oh, dear! My lady? Please, calm down!”

Cornelia, who had just risen with a determined expression to go find Adrian, was urgently stopped by her nanny.

As a result, the neatly folded yellow and white silk handkerchiefs that the nanny had just arranged flew into the air and scattered.

“Oh my! It’s no use going! The young master has already left for the palace.”

“Sigh…”

Cornelia slumped onto the bed, watching her nanny, who was desperately trying to stop her.

Her thick, wavy golden hair spread around her.

She knew that once Adrian made a decision, he never changed his mind.

Still, she had held onto a sliver of hope.

She couldn’t help it.

Sophie and Sir Edin, who had been by her side since childhood, were the ones being punished.

That made it all the more difficult.

“Nanny, what about Sophie and Sir Edin?”

“They’re the same as always. If anything, they were more worried about you, my lady.”

Seeing how casually the nanny dismissed it, Cornelia’s heart grew even heavier.

She had been careful her entire life, never doing anything that would burden those around her.

“I’m sorry.”

“My lady, you have nothing to apologize for.”

“Just… for everything.”

She felt deeply disappointed in herself.

She was the one who had made the mistake, yet someone else had suffered the consequences.

“Don’t think like that. There’s no need to feel sorry. It is our duty to serve you well. Sophie and Sir Edin neglected that duty.”

Duty…

The resentment she had felt toward Adrian faded at the nanny’s words.

Yes. Who could she blame?

In the end, it was all her fault.

She had failed to conduct herself properly.

She had given in to impulse and spent the night with Carlisle, and now she was facing the consequences.

“My lady, what are these jewels? Surely, you don’t mean to give them all to us?”

Cornelia recalled Sophie and Sir Edin’s bewildered expressions as they received the dazzling, radiant gemstones.

Their hesitant eyes were filled with both curiosity and unease.

She should have explained, but there was nothing she could say.

She couldn’t let anything about Carlisle slip from her lips.

All she could do was apologize and offer them appropriate compensation.

***

Knock, knock.

A light tapping on the door made Cornelia turn her head.

“Come in.”

She expected it to be the nanny, but—

“Sophie?”

“Good morning, my lady!”

The one who entered, carrying an armful of flowers fragrant with spring, was none other than Sophie, the very person Cornelia had just been feeling guilty about.

“Good morning. But… what’s that?”

Flowers? This early in the morning?

Cornelia’s eyes widened in surprise.

“This? It was sent for you, my lady.”

“For me? From whom?”

“I’m not sure. There was no family crest, so I thought I’d ask you.”

There had been a few young nobles who sent her flowers in the past, but thanks to Adrian’s impenetrable vigilance, they had stopped long ago.

Who could it be?

She had no idea.

Then, her eyes caught the distinctive geometric pattern in shades of blue and white.

Philium flowers.

An unusual choice.

That flower symbolized the Imperial Family…!

Her heart sank in an instant.

She saw Sophie setting the bouquet down on the table and reaching for the letter to check the sender.

No—!

There was no time to think about the refined etiquette of a noble lady, which had been ingrained in her for years.

Cornelia acted on instinct, moving swiftly.

“My lady…?”

“I’ll take care of this myself.”

“You will? Do you know who sent it?”

Sophie asked, surprised.

“Yes. I had forgotten. Don’t worry about it, and go on your way.”

“Then should I prepare a thank-you letter in response—”

“That too! I’ll handle it myself.”

Cornelia quickly cut her off, hastily ushering her out of the room before she could say anything more.

Left alone in the sudden quiet, Cornelia stood frozen for a moment before collapsing into the chair behind her.

Ah…!

Her heart nearly dropped to the floor this time.

She ran a hand through her thick golden hair and glanced down at the letter in her hands.

[I never thought I’d find myself looking up the meaning of flowers. With eternal affection for the enchanting you. -K-]

Of course, it was from Carlisle.

‘Did Philium flowers have such a meaning?’

‘Eternal affection from someone who doesn’t even believe in love…’

“It’s beautiful, but…”

This was a problem.

Right now, her parents and Adrian were away, so she had managed to avoid any trouble.

But if they had been home, the bouquet wouldn’t have even made it into her hands. The entire household would have been thrown into chaos.

‘Was it because I turned down his invitation?’

Or was his pride wounded?

Cornelia bit her red lips briefly.

Whatever his reason for sending the flowers, one thing was certain.

She needed to meet with Carlisle as soon as possible and put an end to this absurd situation.