Chapter 90

“Understood.”  

“Thank you for understanding.”  

“Now, why don’t you stop working?”  

Jeffrey let out a sigh and swiftly snatched the documents from Logan’s desk, tucking them into his own coat. Logan’s bewildered gaze turned toward Jeffrey.  

“You should take a break today.”  

“……”  

“You’ve been overworking yourself, taking on tasks that Miss Hudson used to handle, and with Sir Usher visiting, your mood isn’t great either.”  

However, Jeffrey’s actions had a reason, and it was quite valid. Logan couldn’t bring himself to ask for the documents back, nor could he say anything.  

He was tired. Recently, all the work Eleanor had been doing had fallen onto his shoulders. He couldn’t return the power he had taken from Cindy Claven, nor did he have anyone else to delegate the tasks to, so everything became Logan’s responsibility.  

Managing the staff and the mansion, reviewing the effectiveness of planned events and projects, recruiting people to assist with work—all of it fell to him.  

“Physically and mentally, I know you’re exhausted.”  

Even if Logan was a man of iron will, he was still human. There were limits to what he could endure. Jeffrey had tried to intervene earlier when Logan seemed to be overworking himself, but he lacked a proper reason to do so. Now that he knew everything, Jeffrey felt it was the right time to step in.  

“Take a rest, at least for today.”  

It was just past 8 o’clock, meaning Logan could rest for at least four extra hours compared to usual. Having calculated this, Jeffrey gestured for Logan to get up.  

In the end, Logan couldn’t resist Jeffrey’s gaze and rose from his seat.  

“Go ahead. I’ll tidy up here before leaving.”  

Jeffrey smiled as he saw Logan off.  

Logan left the study, feeling like a guest in his own home. The long hallway, where the servants had mostly finished their daily duties, was enveloped in silence.  

“Your Grace, shall I prepare something light for you to eat?”  

The head maid, who had been patrolling the hallway one last time, was startled to see Logan and asked him. It was rare for Logan to be walking in the hallway at this hour.  

“A bottle of wine would be nice as well.”  

The maid nodded and quickly descended the stairs. Meanwhile, Logan entered his bedroom. The weight of fatigue settled heavily on his shoulders and neck, making him feel stiff.  

Soon, the maid returned and placed a bottle of wine and some light snacks on the bedroom table before leaving. Logan, who had removed his shirt and donned a robe over his bare body, chose the sofa over the comfort of his bed.  

“……”  

Before putting anything in his mouth, he uncorked the wine bottle. Recently, he had been struggling to fall asleep again. He found that fatigue or intoxication were the best remedies for sleepless nights.  

‘You seem to be drinking too often, whether it’s strong or mild. You ask for it almost every day.’  

Whenever Eleanor’s concerns came to mind, he felt an urge to do the exact opposite. It was a feeling similar to the defiance of a child.  

Logan erased Eleanor’s voice from his memory and poured himself a full glass of wine, swallowing it down.  

‘Miss Olivia visits Miss Hudson every day. Shouldn’t we tell her the truth?’  

Come to think of it, the time would come when he would have to tell Olivia the truth. At least before explaining their relationship at a royal event. But every time he heard Olivia talk about how she cried daily, longing for Eleanor, he couldn’t bring himself to speak.  

When Eleanor left for Kent last time, Olivia cried as if she had lost the world, sobbing for days. Well, Eleanor was probably Olivia’s entire world.  

But if she was going to leave like this, she shouldn’t have stolen people’s hearts so thoroughly. Logan had resented Eleanor for that.  

“Just for today.”  

This time was no different. But Logan couldn’t wallow in self-pity forever. He was the master of the Claven Duchy, after all. Just for today, he decided to indulge in his misery.  

Logan poured himself another glass of wine and looked at the chair awkwardly positioned in the room. Behind it was a door large enough for one person to pass through comfortably.  

“……”  

It was the door leading to the Duchess’s bedroom. Logan impulsively stood up. Previously, he had consciously restrained himself from heading to Eleanor’s room, but now there was no need to do so.  

With a creak, the door opened, revealing a small study. Logan passed through the study and opened the door to the Duchess’s bedroom.  

‘Is it really alright for me to use a bedroom like this?’  

Eleanor had once turned to him and said the room felt overwhelming. Now, the bedroom was empty. Naturally so—no one was using it.  

The servants still cleaned and organized the room daily, thinking Eleanor might return at any moment. But the bedroom, unused for nearly a month, carried a cold and desolate air.  

Logan’s footsteps, clad in indoor slippers, headed toward the center of the room. The moonlight poured into the bedroom, which had no curtains drawn, making it easy to distinguish the surroundings even without turning on the lights.  

‘She seems to have only taken her clothes. Surely she’ll need accessories for meeting people occasionally.’  

Logan recalled Rosie, Eleanor’s maid, saying this. He approached the dressing table that Eleanor had used and cautiously opened a drawer. The drawer glided open smoothly, without a single creak, as if it had been well-polished.  

Inside was a case that clearly contained valuable items. Logan slowly reached out and picked up the case. Though he had gifted Eleanor many things, he could immediately tell what was inside this one.  

“……”  

Logan exhaled slowly, his chest heaving. His trembling hand opened the case. With a soft clicking sound, the case revealed an emerald necklace resting on a plush cushion. The diamonds surrounding it reflected the moonlight brilliantly.  

She left this behind too.  

A bitter feeling arose instinctively. Initially, he had thought of repaying her with money, but this necklace had become a fragment of his feelings for Eleanor. From the moment he clasped it around her slender neck, it had been so.  

And Eleanor wasn’t a foolish woman. She must have left it behind to free herself from the burden.  

“Cruel woman.”  

Logan chuckled self-deprecatingly. Eleanor, the cruel woman, had ultimately abandoned his heart and left.  

He remembered the sparkle of their first dance—the glow of her faint smile, her peach-colored cheeks, the swirling hem of her dress, the shyly revealed shoes, and the strands of hair brushing against her exposed neck.  

The vivid intensity of that moment, as if everything was being destroyed, remained sharp in his memory.  

“Had I known earlier…”  

Had he recognized his feelings as love, would anything have been different?  

“Foolish man.”  

Logan muttered briefly, a sharp critique aimed at himself. Yet, even so, he couldn’t stop his thoughts from wandering.  

If only he hadn’t run away like a fool, startled by unfamiliar emotions. If only he had confessed that he felt a thrill in her presence. Perhaps he could have been the one by her side.  

‘Call me Ellie now.’  

Perhaps he could have been the one granted that nickname early on.  

Logan sat on the edge of the bed, shaking off his futile imaginings. It was too late for such realizations. Reality was entirely different. Dwelling on “what ifs” would only trap him in a fantasy world of his own making.  

‘But what can you do? You know it too, don’t you?’  

‘Eleanor has never once wavered for you.’  

Eleanor had never given Logan even a piece of her heart. Everything he had offered her had dissolved like sugar in water, disappearing entirely.  

And now, she was nowhere to be found.  

“……”  

Logan was reflecting on Usher’s sarcastic remark when something surged within him.  

Did she truly never waver?  

It was a question Eleanor could neither hear nor answer. Yet, like a stone thrown into a lake, it caused ripples in Logan’s heart. He bit his lower lip and furrowed his brow, struggling to suppress his emotions. He didn’t want to shed tears like Olivia, as if he were broken.  

But he couldn’t overcome it. Some things in this world couldn’t be conquered by sheer willpower. Logan stared blankly at the teardrop that fell onto the back of his hand.  

“Ha…”  

Logan laughed hollowly. No matter how strong a man he was, he couldn’t stop it. He was helpless against the torrent of emotions pouring out like a broken dam.  

He felt lonely. Sad and tormented. Angry. Resentful. But above all, he felt miserable.  

…To love a woman who does not love him back.