Ains returned to his daily routine the following day, but he felt unmotivated. On his way to the Graham Trading Company after finishing his work at the mansion, he paused his horse, glancing toward the Marves Viscountess’ residence nearby.

By chance, he noticed a figure standing by a third-floor window. Although it was too far to see clearly, he believed it was Cecilia. There were few people with platinum blonde hair at the Marves residence, and the figure seemed to recognize him among the crowd.

Conflicted, he stared at the window for a long time. Cecilia had been right about everything, from her illness to the side effects of her treatment. He had learned from Dr. Watt that the Marves Viscountess was the recent buyer of the Tieria flower at the Reflen Auction House.

He had asked Jackson to investigate Cecilia’s past, a topic he had previously ignored. Since Cecilia had lived at the Graham mansion from a young age after losing her parents, it was easy to gather information about her.

Rachel Lorette, the head maid who had served Cecilia for many years, provided detailed insights. Cecilia had recognized her illness about six months ago. She had initially complained about stiffness, but a fall caused by her body freezing revealed the severity of her condition.

Since then, Cecilia had searched for treatment and realized she needed the Tieria flower. She had asked Ains for an increased allowance to participate in the auction, but he had refused, unaware of her situation.

Cecilia eventually found a temporary solution by absorbing mana stones. As a major client of the Graham Trading Company, the Magic Tower provided her with high-grade mana stones as part of her allowance. Although it was rare for these stones to be released outside the Tower, the trust between the Graham Trading Company and the Magic Tower allowed for special provisions.

Reflecting on everything he learned, Ains wondered if he would have obtained the medicine for Cecilia had he known the full truth. He felt confident he would have done so now, but he wasn’t sure he would have acted the same way before their divorce. In his narrow-mindedness, he might have demanded a divorce in exchange for the medicine.

To Ains, Cecilia had always been a shadow of his grandfather, both before and after their separation.

Lost in thought, he noticed the figure at the window disappear behind the curtains. Still, he found it hard to leave.

“Your Grace, are you alright?” Jackson asked, concerned.

Ains slowly nodded, turning his gaze from the Marves residence. “Let’s move quickly. We’ve delayed too long because of me.”

As he resumed his journey, Jackson and the attendants followed.

Throughout the day at the trading company, Ains often drifted into memories of his past with Cecilia. When she first arrived at the Graham mansion after losing both parents, their relationship had been quite good.

Both Ains, who had lost his mother to illness, and Cecilia, who had lost her parents in an accident, found solace in each other’s company. Ains, buoyed by his father’s support, made efforts to bring smiles to Cecilia, who often seemed engulfed in despair.

Ains picked flowers for Cecilia, took her to secret spots in the mansion known only to him, and learned to remain silent so she could speak freely.

As time passed and Cecilia began to open up, an incident changed everything. Ains’ grandfather, Damon Graham, pressured Ains’ father, Alex Graham, to join a monster subjugation force. Despite Ains’ desperate pleas for his father not to go, Alex volunteered and returned home as a corpse.

This tragedy marked the beginning of a deep rift between Ains and Cecilia. As Ains grew to hate Damon Graham, he also found himself resenting Cecilia, the girl whom Damon had brought into their lives. Their marriage, proposed by Damon, was merely a means for him to secure the title of Duke and control the Graham Trading Company.

Ains felt sympathy for Cecilia, trapped in a loveless marriage, but he couldn’t express it because of Damon’s influence over her. He believed he needed to take everything from his grandfather to gain independence, both mentally and materially. Eventually, he achieved his goals: the title, control of the trading company, and the head of the family position.

Yet, the emptiness remained. For someone who had lost both a mother and a father in quick succession, titles and power offered no solace.

Cecilia attempted to comfort him, but Ains found it hard to accept her kindness, knowing Damon was behind her. As their cold marriage persisted, Cecilia’s mood darkened, and she spoke less.

Ains recalled Cecilia’s vibrant childhood and couldn’t bear to see her spirit fade under the weight of Damon’s influence and his own. In a misguided attempt to protect her, he pushed her away more harshly, ignoring her and insisting on a divorce.

Though he thought he was acting in Cecilia’s best interest, he eventually realized it was a grave mistake.

Overwhelmed by these thoughts, Ains struggled to concentrate on his work and set aside the unfinished documents from the previous day. He rubbed his face in frustration before standing up, deciding it was better to meet Cecilia again than to remain in the office.

When he left his work behind, Jackson and Jacob looked puzzled as they were also reviewing documents.

“Where are you going?” Jacob asked, sensing Ains was not merely taking a stroll.

“You don’t need to follow. I’ll go alone,” Ains replied firmly.

“But…”

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“…Understood.”

Intimidated by Ains’ resolute tone, Jacob and Jackson watched him leave awkwardly.

Ains departed from the Graham Trading Company and rode toward the Marves Viscountess’ residence. The journey felt unusually long today.

After riding without pause, he finally reached the Marves residence. Just as he approached the main gate, he sensed a strange mana phenomenon nearby, as if someone was deliberately condensing mana around them.

While such energy would be expected at the Magic Tower or a knights’ training ground, it was unusual to feel it emanating from the rear garden of the Marves residence.

Dismounting his horse, Ains walked toward the source of the mana.

After walking a short distance, Ains reached the vicinity of the rear garden of the Marves mansion. Through the low fence and sparse garden trees, the inside of the rear garden became visible.

At the center of the mana were two people, both familiar to Ains.

Cecilia Marves and Master Cesare of the Magic Tower.

Master Cesare was reaching out to Cecilia, condensing mana, and Cecilia stood with her eyes closed amidst the concentrated mana.

Ains instantly understood what they were doing.

It was a training method that senior mages or knights used to help their juniors feel and manipulate mana more easily.

From his guess, Cecilia had sought Master Cesare’s help to overcome the aftereffects of the Trintz disease. Since she had been receiving mana stones from him, it wasn’t very strange for her to seek his help.

However, watching this scene made Ains feel strangely uncomfortable.

It was something he could have done for her.

Ains had inherited his father’s swordsmanship skills and was very adept at handling mana.

People praised him, saying he might become a swordsman surpassing his father, Alex, who was known as the Empire’s Sword. In fact, his skills were so good that he was highly regarded as a knight.

Helping Cecilia feel mana was nothing to him.

Was it because someone else did what he could have done? He couldn’t control the boiling emotions inside and gritted his teeth.

He had felt a similar emotion before. When Cecilia was with Viscount Moldovan, he felt something similar.

But today was very different from that time. The emotions were much more intense and violent than back then.

At that moment, Master Cesare sensed something strange and turned his head.

His eyes met Ains’.

Despite Ains’ intense gaze, Master Cesare did not avert his eyes. Instead, he stared back, puzzled as to why Ains was looking at him in such a way. Then, suddenly, Master Cesare turned his gaze to Cecilia. He seemed to understand the situation roughly.

Suppressing a laugh, he turned back to where Ains had been standing, but Ains was no longer there.