100

In the end, Nick turned his attention back to Vieta to avoid continuing his argument with Amelia, and their exchange came to a stop.

“You startled the girl with all that shouting.”

“I think your pink blush scared her more.”

“Speaking of makeup, your lips look like you bit into the scruff of a large lion’s neck.”

Amelia did not yield a single word, and Nick kept provoking her without end.

Unable to watch this unstoppable force meet an immovable object any longer, Vieta turned to Amelia first.

“You’re so beautiful! You must be the ones who’ve come to sing for us.”

Amelia, who had been entirely focused on Nick, crouched down to meet Vieta‘s eyes.

“Do I really look beautiful to you?”

Vieta nodded quickly.

“Hearing it from a child rather than some bearded old man gives me a whole new feeling.”

“Isn’t it the same thing?”

Nick cut in again from the side, and Amelia shot him a sideways glare.

“It’s entirely different. This child‘s words are pure!”

“Those bearded old men were pure too, you know? Honestly, you just rejected them because they weren’t to your taste. Because you’re in love with Dielun!”

Nick stuck out his lips and backed three steps away to escape Amelia as she shot to her feet. Behind the two of them, a servant appeared carrying desserts.

Vieta stepped aside as though making room for the servants placing the desserts, and pulled the plate toward herself.

The servants set down slices of cranberry pie and fresh cream cake topped with figs.

They placed the last empty teacup, turned to leave, straightened their backs, and passed by Amelia and Nick.

Nick stared blankly after the servants, and Amelia nudged his stomach with her elbow.

“You’re absolutely smitten, aren’t you? Wake up. They have no interest in you. Don’t go getting hurt for nothing.”

“Then you should give up too. Dielun doesn’t belong in our world anymore.”

Amelia said nothing.

Vieta used that opening to slip quietly away from between them.

With Vieta gone as well, Nick felt even more conscious of Amelia’s mood and walked toward the table with the desserts to try to cheer her up.

“Look at this! Doesn’t it look absolutely delicious?”

He dipped a finger into the cream and tasted it, forcing a grin and pulling an exaggerated expression.

“It’s different, even the cream, probably because it’s a grand ducal household. It’s so sweet I think my teeth are melting.”

Amelia pretended to give in and walked over to the table, dropping into a seat.

She thought of Vieta, who had disappeared, and let out a breath.

“Don’t go saying Dielun’s name carelessly in front of other people. Mac is living a new life with a new name, and it could cause him trouble.”

“All right. I won’t say it anymore.”

Nick thought she had calmed down and held out a slice of pie, but Amelia did not even glance at it.

Her reaction was still cold, and growing anxious, he held the plate up for her to see.

“Look at this plate. It must be worth a fortune, right? A place like this probably has so many they trip over them. They wouldn’t even notice if one went missing.”

Amelia grabbed his hand as Nick moved to pocket the plate.

“Don’t do anything that could cause trouble for Mac.”

“But we could make good money selling this.”

Nick picked up the plate in front of Amelia as well.

Amelia snatched it from him and spotted a note sitting on the table.

She loosened her grip on the plate, and Nick, unable to manage the force he had been pulling with, toppled backward.

Fortunately, the plate did not break because he clutched it to his chest.

Amelia spared a brief glance at Nick struggling to get up and picked up the note from the table.

※※※

Vieta spotted the spy who had appeared carrying a basket of lemons and was about to leave the greenhouse when she came face to face with Hesion running frantically.

The light green cravat suited him well.

Hesion had changed into clothes that matched the tea party dress code and was breathing hard as he looked at Vieta.

“Why weren’t you in your room?”

“Just because. I wanted to come early.”

Hesion let out a helpless laugh and pulled her by the hand.

Vieta was dragged along without knowing why and eventually arrived at Hesion‘s room.

“Why did you bring me here?”

He did not answer and simply sat her down on the sofa without preamble.

Then he took a box out of his desk drawer and set it down at her feet.

Hesion knelt and opened the lid, taking out a pair of white ribbon shoes.

Vieta spotted the shoes and grabbed Hesion‘s shoulder.

“It’s fine. I can just cover the boots with the hem of my dress.”

“When you walk, the boots sticking out from under the dress will be noticeable.”

Vieta could not argue further at his serious expression.

“You don’t need to feel burdened just because I’m giving you shoes. It’s just a small return gift. Like the dress you had made and gave to my mother.”

Hesion deliberately hid his true feelings.

He had chosen Vieta‘s gift long before his mother received the dress, but he was afraid that without even this excuse, Vieta would not accept it.

Before Vieta could stop him, Hesion reached for her boot. Thinking of the bruise on her ankle, Vieta grabbed his hand quickly.

“I’ll take them off myself.”

But Hesion would not let go of the boot he had already taken hold of.

“I practiced tying the ribbon all night.”

The boot came off. Hesion picked up the shoe and, between Vieta‘s fingers reaching for the boot, noticed a purple bruise and a healing scratch.

He took off the other boot and found the same bruising in the same place.

Hesion took hold of Vieta‘s hand as she reached to cover the bruise and pushed up her sleeve.

The bruise that appeared was the same color as the one on her ankle.

Vieta knocked his hand away and pulled her sleeve back down quickly.

“Pretend you didn’t see it.”

Hesion narrowed his eyes at her flat words.

“When did those bruises happen. Were you tied up in that attic until I came to the Lukbiche family?”

Unlike the agitated Hesion, Vieta spoke evenly.

“Does it matter? It’s all in the past.”

Hesion was thrown by her indifferent response to the mistreatment.

He had always kept watch over her feelings, but this hollow ache was something he had never felt before.

The comfort he thought he had been giving her was an illusion, and the marks of the past remained clearly on her body.

Vieta was still living inside the pain of what had happened.

Hesion‘s face twisted as the bruises on her wrists and ankles struck him like shackles.

Something hot inside his chest felt ready to break through.

But still there was nothing he could do.

He could not punish the Duke and Duchess, and he could not reach the depth of Vieta‘s wounds.

Pushed down by a heavy, helpless defeat, Hesion bowed his head so she would not see his expression.

But his lowered head was lifted again by Vieta.

“There’s no need to be sad.”

At the expression that seemed to be worrying about him, Hesion steadied the turmoil in his chest, walked to the dresser, and took out a bruise ointment.

He pulled Vieta‘s foot toward him and applied it.

At the touch of the cold ointment on her skin, Vieta narrowed her eyes and reached out.

“Give it. I’ll put it on myself.”

Hesion said nothing.

She tried to stop him, but he blocked her hand more stubbornly than before, and she could do nothing.

She watched Hesion applying the ointment himself and noticed tears forming in his eyes.

‘There’s no need to cry over this.’

Apart from Susan, he was the first person to show tears out of worry for her.

Vieta felt an unexpected pang of guilt and lightly wiped away the tear forming in Hesion‘s eye with her finger.

“Save your tears.”

“Why?”

Vieta‘s lips parted.

She thought of him crying after the engagement ended.

Right now she could let his tears pass without letting them settle in her heart, but if they spent much more time together, those tears might end up holding her back.

Having made up her mind, Vieta spoke firmly.

“Because our ending is already decided.”

Hesion, listening to her words, said nothing and pulled her hand toward him, blowing a warm breath over the bruised wrist.

Warm breath and soft moisture touched her skin.

The dull ache traveling up from her wrist and Hesion‘s trembling eyelids caught Vieta off guard.

Hesion‘s closed eyes slowly opened and looked at her.

“What if the ending could be changed?”

At his impossible question, Vieta pushed him away and stood up.

“I’m only borrowing your help for a little while. I’m not asking for anything more than that.”

Vieta pulled down her rolled-up sleeve and reached for the boots she had come in wearing, thinking to return to the greenhouse. But Lady Rekton appeared in the doorway without warning, and she could not move freely.

“So this is where you both were!”

Lady Rekton came in with a man carrying painting supplies, none the wiser.

In the moment Vieta was caught off guard, Hesion quickly slipped the shoes he had prepared onto her feet.

Then he wrapped the ribbon around her ankle and tied it.

With his quick hands, the bruise on Vieta‘s ankle was hidden in an instant.

Vieta looked down at Hesion doing his best for her.

Lady Rekton came closer to the sofa and noticed the shoes on Vieta‘s feet and smiled.

“You told me not to worry about Vieta‘s shoes, and here you had it all figured out, didn’t you, Hesion.”

She looked at the two children with a fond expression and gestured to the man she had brought with her.