“Who…!”

Nadeira almost screamed in outrage at the shameless retort, but perhaps having matured a little over the years, she took a deep breath and regained her composure.

“Regina Odair. You’ve been praised for your intelligence since the social season, haven’t you? I even liked to hear that we were rivals. But look at you now.”

She swept her eyes over Regina theatrically.

“I’ve hardly seen or heard from you since you got married, and now that I’ve finally seen you, you look like a sack of wheat left in a storeroom! I don’t even need to ask if you’re happy. Your withered face says it all.”

Regina suddenly felt strange. She didn’t think she’d changed that much, but everyone from her past said the same thing. That they never expected her to end up like this.

Even if she wasn’t as good as she thought she was, she certainly wasn’t as miserable as they made her out to be. And even if she were, she had no intention of admitting it to Nadeira.

She understood Nadeira’s motives only too well.

‘She is trying to drive a wedge between me and my husband.’

Whether it was to insert herself into the business or to seek a second marriage, Regina could clearly see the efforts to manipulate her, depending on her goals.

“I know how much you love Grey Cabil. But acting like a well-trained pet isn’t exactly a skill, you know.”

And yet the reason her words stung must have been because of how stale and worn she herself had become.

“Do you think I haven’t tried? Playing the obedient wife, trying to please him? But the more you do, the more your husband tires of you. Men dream of conquering strong women, but when they succeed, they wake up from the dream.”

“I think you’re misunderstanding something, Nadeira.”

Regina said calmly, unable to hear any more.

“My husband doesn’t neglect me. We simply respect each other’s space. The business was something Grey built up long before we were married. There’s no reason for me to interfere now that I’m his wife. It’s not even something I’m interested in.”

“Isn’t it like you’re pretending not to care? You’re afraid he’ll resent you if you interfere, aren’t you? Not that he’d let you in anyway.”

“Say what you like. I’m content to spend the money my husband earns. I have no desire to stress about business or where the money goes.”

“My God. That kind of bluff doesn’t suit you, do you know that?”

Nadeira shrugged and let out a sharp, almost bitter laugh.

“This conversation is ridiculous. What a joke!”

Regina silently agreed. The way they were arguing, it was as if they’d gone back to being teenage girls – immature and petty.

“But you haven’t changed, Regina. Still the same. I can’t tell if you’re really nice or just pretending to be.”

“What now? Pick another fight?”

“Don’t play dumb. You heard I got divorced, didn’t you?”

Nadeira folded her arms, her laughter gone. For the first time, a trace of exhaustion flickered across her usually proud and haughty face.

“Why didn’t you use that to attack me? Like everyone else.”

Regina was silent for a moment.

There were many reasons why she hadn’t mentioned Nadeira’s divorce. Because she, too, had once dreamed of a divorce. Because, although she didn’t like Nadeira, she didn’t hate her enough to dig into such a deep wound.

But she had no intention of admitting that, so she spoke carelessly instead.

“Don’t flatter yourself. You think your divorce is such a big deal?”

“Stop being so polite, Regina Odair. Everyone in Wailin knows. Don’t pretend someone hasn’t run up to you and whispered it in your ear.”

Suddenly Regina felt tired. It seemed time to stop this pointless back and forth.

“Let me be clear. I don’t like your rudeness and hostility, Nadeira Beaufort.”

She pointed at Nadeira with the tip of her parasol, like a jab.

“You asked earlier why I didn’t mention your divorce? I’ll tell you the truth. It’s because I don’t care. Whether you get divorced once or a hundred times, it has nothing to do with me. I don’t care – so could you please stop hovering around me and my husband?”

“Who the hell do you think you are…!”

“Wake up. Our social season ended long ago. How long are you going to stay in that empty ballroom all by yourself?”

Nadeira let out a scoff, as if both offended and stunned, too stunned to even speak.

“I think I’ve entertained you long enough as a guest. I’ll be leaving now.”

The scarlet sunset poured down directly in front of her like a long blade of golden light. As Regina turned away, Nadeira grabbed her sharply, her expression turning vicious.

“Don’t you dare turn your back on me! I’m not done talking yet.”

“Then keep talking to yourself. The way you were singing earlier, you seem used to it.”

“Why did you refuse my visit?”

She was probably talking about the time she came by a few days ago. Her pride had clearly been wounded – Nadeira gritted her teeth in frustration as she snapped.

“I had a legitimate reason to visit you!”

“How many times do I have to tell you I’m not interested?”

“You don’t even know what I was going to say!”

“I don’t think I’ll ever have to find out.”

Regina replied indifferently and gave a subtle sign to the knights. The knights, who had been watching the argument with their mouths agape, quickly snapped to attention.

With Regina practically shielded by their large, imposing frames, Nadeira shouted her final curse.

“Regina Odair!!”

“My last name is Cabil now.”

“If you don’t listen to me, you’ll regret it. I warned you!”

Nadeira’s “warnings” were nothing new. She had shouted the same thing three years ago – telling her not to marry Grey Cabil, that she would definitely regret it.

Wait. Thinking back now, was that not a curse but a prophecy?

“You will see! You will be swept away by a huge wave!”

Even as Regina stepped away, Nadeira’s shrill voice didn’t seem to fade. Regina rubbed her ringing ear irritably.

‘Ugh. My head hurts.’

Why had she gone to the harbour today of all days? This was exactly how people ended up regretting choices they wouldn’t normally make.

Tapping her foot beneath her skirt as she waited for the coachman to open the door, she didn’t expect anything out of the ordinary. But when the door finally swung open, Regina froze—unsure if she could trust her eyes.

“Grey?”

Framed by the soft drizzle slipping through the window, he looked like a fragment of winter that had wandered into autumn.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to check the docking conditions. Then I saw your carriage and asked the driver—he said you’d be back soon.”

“You’re here to take me home?”

“Did you really think I’d let you walk?”

He tilted his head with a teasing smile.

As strands of his silver hair fell gently across his perfectly shaped brows and nose, her heart pounded uncontrollably in her chest.

He never gets tired of it.

“Did you get a chance to see the cruise ships?”

“Yes. They were very large and extravagant.”

She deliberately left out the part about the stench near the docks. But Grey was the kind of man who knew every detail about his business, down to a single protruding nail.

“Once the construction on the docks is finished and we do a complete cleaning, it will be much more sanitary.”

His navy blue eyes gleamed strangely in the red glow of the sunset as he asked.

“More importantly, what brings you here, my lady?”

Regina rarely left the mansion, so her appearance in such a small and secluded harbour didn’t go unnoticed. Even without an overly observant husband, it would have struck anyone as odd.

“Was it the fishermen’s words that disturbed you?”

“That’s right.”

Regina hesitated before admitting the truth,

“They asked me directly… so I wanted to see for myself. Has the Dalsuro harbour issue been resolved?”

“There is no need for you to interfere.”

Once again, she was pushed beyond the invisible line he had drawn.

It felt like being struck by something invisible – a sharp, jarring pain that made her head throb.

They say you can get used to anything if it happens often enough.

So why, no matter how many times it happened, could she never get used to the pain he caused her?

“Finley is investigating. If there’s smuggling going on, we’ll catch them soon.”

She nodded stiffly at the information he threw at her like a handout.

“I see. I’m sure you’ll handle it well, as always.”

“I’ll make sure your trust is rewarded.”

Trust? Was there any of that left between them?

There was a wall in his face – clear as glass, but harder than steel.

She had a sinking feeling that she could spend her whole life pounding on that wall, only to die with bloodied hands and nothing to show for it.

“Does he let you in on his business at all? Does he tell you where he goes, what he does, who he meets?”

Nadeira – irritating as she was – hadn’t uttered a false word.

“Did something happen in Dalsuro Harbour?”