“Hello.”

Amel turned around, startled. In truth, she was quite surprised. She hadn’t expected him to greet her first.

Cervel greeted her casually from behind. Amel had been leaning back in her chair, but she immediately straightened.

He pulled out a chair and sat down as he asked.

“Would you mind if I joined you?”

He was already seated by the time he asked.

“……Please, go ahead.”

“Did I sit down without waiting for your permission?”

“No. Please, make yourself comfortable.”

Amel carefully rose from her seat and bowed.

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Grace. I am Amel Monterio of House Monterio.”

“Oh, there’s no need to stand. You may sit. We’re outside the formal setting of court, so let’s dispense with the formalities.”

Amel offered him a slight nod, and Cervel returned the greeting.

“Miss Amel?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t expect to see a noble lady staying at a place like this.”

“I was quite surprised myself. I encountered the rain while traveling, so I decided to take my time and rest along the way. I didn’t expect to meet you here.”

“The weather has been troublesome, hasn’t it?”

He had naturally initiated the conversation. Amel felt a momentary flicker of unease but smoothly continued the exchange.

“The rain has been coming down rather frighteningly these past few days.”

“With rain like this… I’m afraid there will be cause for concern even after it stops.”

“I know. They say it’s supposed to rain all day today. The sound of it seems to be growing louder.”

“Still, the sound of rain is rather pleasant to listen to.”

Cervel gently lightened the mood. Neither of them had acknowledged what happened the previous day, leaving it as an unspoken understanding.

Rather than letting the encounter become awkward, Amel spoke pleasantly.

“You should have something to eat. Shall I order a meal for you first?”

Cervel crossed his legs and replied.

“Yeah. Have you ordered already?”

“No. Not yet.”

“Then let’s order together. I’ll have milk soup. What about you?”

Amel ordered potato soup.

After ordering their meals, Cervel wiped his hands with a handkerchief.

A short while later, the madam brought their food. Steam rose from the hot soup.

While waiting for the soup to cool, he casually asked.

“Where were you headed?”

“Pardon?”

“……You don’t seem like someone I’d expect to meet in a place like this.”

“I was on my way to a recuperation retreat.”

“Recuperation? You don’t look like you’re in need of one.”

Amel smiled awkwardly. Cervel then casually urged her to eat.

“It’s cooled enough. Eat.”

By then, the soup had cooled to a comfortable temperature.

Amel finished a modest portion of her soup and looked at him, but Cervel was still eating. When she carefully set down her spoon, he looked up.

“Finished?”

“Yes.”

“That’s all you’re going to eat?”

Amel dabbed the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

“I’m fine, so please finish your meal.”

“You have a small appetite.”

“I’m full.”

He pointed toward her bowl of soup.

“You said you were recuperating. Is it really enough to eat so little?”

“It’s enough. And I’m not here because I’m ill.”

“If it’s not because you’re ill, then…”

“It’s partly a recuperation retreat and partly a period of seclusion.”

“What happened?”

“I broke off my engagement.”

The words came out smoothly. Even when she announced that she had called off her engagement, she remained calm.

After all, theirs had been a political marriage. There had been no love between them, only a sense of duty. They had been engaged since childhood—ten years in total.

But who could have imagined that, just before the wedding, he would suddenly claim that he had fallen in love with someone else and cause such a scandal?

He said it was because he loved her too much.

“I’m sorry! But love isn’t a sin, is it? Is it a sin that I love him? I’m pregnant. You’ll congratulate me, won’t you?”

When Lady Liz became embroiled in the scandal, she pleaded through her tears. Even after becoming pregnant, she had been completely unapologetic.

“Lady Liz. Love may not be a sin, but there is nothing honorable about your pregnancy.”

“Miss Amel! That’s too cruel! Don’t you feel sorry for our baby? People are already condemning this child before it’s even been born! This poor baby is being treated like a sinner simply for existing inside my womb. Sob! I’m so sad!”

Looking back now, it was fortunate that her engagement had at least been broken off. She had almost ended up with a pregnant mistress to deal with as well.

“Breaking off your engagement?”

“Yes.”

“So, if you broke off your engagement at this point, was it a love affair?”

“Yes. It caused quite a stir because of the whole affair.”

Thanks to that sordid scandal, Amel herself had ended up looking ridiculous.

“So you broke off the engagement and came here to recuperate?”

“Yes. They told me to leave until things quiet down.”

Cervel gave a vague nod and offered her a casual word of consolation.

“I see. You’ve had a rough time.”

“……You’re not going to ask anything else?”

“Why bother? What does it have to do with me?”

Resting his chin on his hand, Cervel asked.

“Do you need someone to take an interest?”

“No. There’s no need for that.”

“If you came all the way here to recuperate, there must have been a reason.”

Cervel made it clear that anything beyond that was none of his concern, drawing a line between them.

Just then, their eyes met.

“So, where were you headed?”

“Countess Bliana’s estate.”

“Ah, the resort town famous for its beaches.”

The Bliana estate had developed along the coast, with the town stretching out beside the beach. Every summer, it was packed with vacationers seeking a seaside escape. The casino hotel located right by the shore was particularly famous for its spectacular view.

“How long do you plan to stay in Bliana?”

“Until the scandal dies down.”

“Because of the broken engagement?”

“Yes.”

“That must be upsetting.”

“……It is upsetting, but I also feel relieved.”

She almost ended up married to a man who planned to bring his pregnant mistress into their home immediately after the wedding. Fortunately, he broke off the engagement.

Otherwise, she would have gone through with the marriage.

They had been engaged for ten years. Even if she had married immediately, she would still have been considered late to marry.

If he had ended the engagement sooner, she could have looked for someone else. Instead, she spent so many years waiting that she passed the ideal age for marriage. Ultimately, all those years amounted to nothing but wasted time.

After being abandoned by her fiancé, she went on a recuperation retreat where she encountered him.

He was touching himself, running his hand over his body.

She was old enough to be thinking about marriage herself. Now an adult, she understood exactly what he had been doing.

‘Self-pleasure……’

The act of comforting oneself.

As she had grown older, she had heard about it through social gatherings and the maids, eventually figuring it out through context clues.

‘Ah, I shouldn’t think about it anymore.’

It was his private business. She had no desire to concern herself with the private affairs of a strange man.

But the more carefully she tried not to think about it, the more conscious she became of him.

“Miss Amel?”

“Yes?”

“What are you looking at?”

Amel stared down at him blankly.

As he crossed his legs, there was a noticeable weight between them. The area gradually grew taut, becoming conspicuously pronounced beneath the front of his trousers.

Why was it swelling?

A long, unmistakable presence stood out near his left groin.

‘Ah. Oh, no.’

Amel went pale with embarrassment.

“Miss Amel.”

Startled, Amel immediately squeezed her eyes shut.

“I-I’m sorry.”

In her panic, Amel abruptly shot to her feet, pushing back from the table. The table slid, causing the soup to spill over the rims of the bowls.

“Be careful. At least the soup had cooled down.”

He flicked the moisture from his wet hand. Perhaps because of the milk, a faintly fishy yet savory scent lingered as he shook it dry. His hand was coated in a pale film.

He gently scolded her.

“You almost burned yourself.”

“I’m sorry. It’s not that…….”

“Are you going to keep standing there? My neck hurts. Sit down.”

Amel pulled her chair back into place and sat down again, cautiously watching his reaction.

“Did you get burned?”

“No, I didn’t.”

Cervel wiped his wet hand with his handkerchief before tossing the used cloth onto the table.

When he lifted his eyes, their gazes met.

“You spilled the soup yourself, yet you seem more startled than I am.”

“I’m sorry. I was startled, so…… Hic!”

“I should be the one asking whether you’re all right. Are you?”

Amel’s throat spasmed and she began to tremble. Struggling to breathe, she lightly pounded her fist against the area just below her breastbone.

Her chest felt constricted, as though it were filled with crushed stone. Holding her breath, she abruptly turned her head away.

“Do you want some water?”

Cervel brought over a cup and poured her some water. Amel barely managed to wet her throat.

“Drink.”

“……Thank you.”

He gave Amel a brief glance. There was no sign that he blamed her.

“Anyway, I look forward to getting along with you.”

“Pardon?”

“You’ll be staying here until the rain stops, won’t you?”

“What? Yes. I suppose I will. I look forward to getting along with you, too.”

“Finished eating? Shall we get up?”

He wiped his hands with his handkerchief and brought the meal to an end first.

“Oh, right. Congratulations on running away and leaving your bridegroom behind, Miss Amel.”