102

The other ladies reacted with surprised expressions and a flurry of exclamations.

“Which bank is providing the investment?”

“Come to think of it, I heard the diamond mine was also funded through an investor. The same bank, I suppose? The Duke is so gifted in business. How wonderful for you, Lady Winter.”

Parents with daughters around Vilter’s age crowded close to her and fired off questions.

“Well, I don’t know much about business myself. It’s something Vilter will need to learn going forward, so I have no worries.”

The other ladies clasped their hands together and looked at her with expectant eyes.

“Then the succession lessons you mentioned earlier must include business education as well. It is the family trade, after all.”

“That’s right.”

Thoroughly pleased with herself, she enjoyed having every lady’s attention on her.

But the pleasure did not last long. The arrival of Lady Rekton with an older woman cut through the lively conversation.

The woman who entered with Lady Rekton was Lady Manila, who had lost her husband three years ago and had left the capital for a time before returning.

The children she and her husband had shared had left her side young, and Lady Manila had been in danger of losing all the wealth her husband had left behind to his cousin.

But Lady Rekton had not turned away from her and had given her a small cottage on the outskirts of the capital.

Toward the two women in their somewhat outdated dresses, the other ladies either sneered inwardly or exchanged glances with those nearby and mocked them.

“It’s been a while, Lady Manila. I heard you had been away from the capital for a time.”

“Just a little trip. I stayed and wandered around the places I once visited with my late husband, and the time simply flew by. If I had left a little sooner, I might have even remarried. I can’t tell you how much I resented myself for leaving when I could no longer count the wrinkles around my eyes.”

Lady Manila delivered the self-deprecating remark smoothly and attached a smile at the end to signal it was a joke before she finished.

The other ladies responded with uncertain smiles and staccato laughter.

Lady Rekton ran both hands over Lady Manila’s shoulders and pulled her into a firm embrace.

“Shall we head to the greenhouse then? I’ve set up a spring scene there to match the tea party theme.”

All the ladies except Winter, who had already been to the greenhouse, looked on with eager expressions.

Lady Manila led the way, and the other ladies and their children followed behind.

Amy came out of the drawing room mingling with the other young ladies and looked back at the empty corridor.

‘Without a dress, she won’t even be able to show her face at the tea party.’

Amy scoffed at Vieta for not appearing and walked on.

※※※

Soft, sweet classical music drifted through the greenhouse.

But Amelia, having read the note all the way to the end, was trembling.

The note slipped from her hands and fell to the floor, and Nick, having just managed to get himself up, picked it up and read it.

[ T.
Our plan is proceeding well, I trust?
Let’s use the performers as a signal. The moment their song ends, the greenhouse ceiling should come down. If Hesion and Dielun standing beside him are dead, does that mean our mission is complete?
There will be no way for them to avoid the falling ceiling. No one will be able to tell it is coming. If anyone does notice, we eliminate them along with the rest.
L. ]

Nick checked the back of the note, but the clean reverse side had nothing written on it.

“What on earth does any of this mean?”

Nick set the note down in front of Amelia with a baffled expression.

“What’s this about the ceiling coming down, and killing Dielun?”

He looked up at the dome made of iron and glass.

“It looks so solid. It’s going to collapse? But if it really does, we’d die too.”

“Keep your voice down, Nick. Are you trying to announce that you read the note?”

Nick grabbed Amelia’s hand with a face full of worry at her whisper.

“This is no time to sit around. Let’s get out of here now! Let’s run!”

Amelia narrowed her eyes at the panicked Nick and looked around.

“Just us? What about Dielun? Are you saying we leave Dielun behind?”

Nick, catching her fear, lowered his voice and looked around with her.

“Dielun can look after himself! He’s stronger and tougher than us!”

Amelia knocked his hand away at his cold words.

“How can you say that? Dielun is our friend!”

“Don’t fool yourself, Amelia. Dielun is the one who brought us here. He’s the one who put us in danger!”

Nick tore off the wig he was wearing and flung it to the floor.

“He used us. Lured us in with money, gave us some strange lyric to sing. Someone is trying to kill Dielun because of whatever he’s been scheming, and we’re caught in the middle.”

Amelia let out a small laugh and glared at Nick.

“He would never abandon us. Don’t you know Dielun? When you got caught stealing and nearly got beaten to death, Dielun was the one who saved you! Are you really going to abandon the person who saved your life like this?”

Nick felt a flush of shame at Amelia’s quiet but clear words and stuck out his lip.

“Then what about you! You said Dielun abandoned you in the Empire! And you still care about him?”

“Because I was the one who refused to get off the pirate ship! That’s why he left me. He was afraid I’d get hurt.”

Nick blinked at the unexpected truth and fell silent.

“And he left me with plenty of money to live on in the Empire. He sent letters sometimes. Sent gifts too. How could I not care about a man who saved my life, worried about me, looked after me, and is even handsome on top of it all?”

Nick picked his wig back up off the floor at Amelia’s rapid-fire words.

“All right, I respect your feelings. But, Amelia. ……Amelia?”

Nick spotted Amelia walking toward the center of the greenhouse with the note in hand and grabbed her urgently.

“Dielun said not to acknowledge him even if we see him. How are you planning to get the message to him?”

Amelia stopped in her tracks, belatedly remembering Dielun’s instruction not to acknowledge him.

“What if we ask that little girl? Ask her to pass the message to Dielun.”

“Did you forget the last part of the note? It says anyone who finds out gets eliminated.”

“Amelia. There’s no other way.”

“I can’t get that girl killed just to save Dielun. And she probably only knows him as Mac anyway.”

“Then what do you plan to do!”

Amelia fell silent at Nick’s pressing.

Even with her silence, Nick’s complaints kept coming.

Unable to bear it any longer, Amelia fixed him with a look of genuine exasperation.

“You’re so loud.”

“You always switch to Zahad when you don’t want to talk to me.”

“That’s because you’re so annoying……”

In that instant, Amelia stopped chewing her nail and her face came alive.

Her eyes lit up, and Nick took a step back.

“What is it. Why are you suddenly like that.”

“I’ve got it. Through the song. We can let Dielun know through the song. They said our song is the signal, so we use them right back.”

“Amelia. Do you not care about my life at all? If we say it in the song, it won’t just be Dielun who hears it. Everyone will! Then whoever wrote this note won’t let us off either.”

Amelia smiled with quiet triumph at Nick’s terrified expression.

“We say it in Zahad. Dielun understands Zahad!”

※※※

The painter finished the rough sketch and waved a hand to signal they could move, and Vieta set down her pen with a breath of relief.

She rolled her stiff neck from side to side and stretched.

Hesion smiled at the sight and hid the book he had been holding behind his back. He then noticed the ribbon on Vieta‘s shoe had come loose and tied it again without a word.

Vieta watched the painter gather his supplies and leave, then spoke.

“You could just tell me. I can tie a ribbon myself.”

“Sure. You’d probably tie it better than me. But what if I wanted to tie it anyway?”

Hesion pulled the ribbon taut on both sides and looked up at Vieta.

But Vieta gave him a warning instead of thanks.

“Keep ignoring what I say and you’ll regret it.”

“Why?”

“Because I won’t be able to meet your expectations.”

At Vieta‘s utterly resolute expression, Hesion held the finished ribbon ends and could not let go.

“Exchanging feelings for no reason is far too inefficient.”

Vieta knocked away Hesion‘s hand holding the ribbon and stepped down to the floor.

“You may not know this, but parting always hurts. So if you want to avoid the pain later, starting now you should……”

“Not every relationship begins with the end already in sight.”

Hesion put forward his own argument before Vieta could finish.

“That’s not to say I won’t respect your choice to break the engagement and leave.”

Hesion hesitated for a moment, then opened his mouth again.

“We haven’t even received permission for the engagement yet. Nothing has started. There’s no need to make it complicated. Can’t we at least be friends and stay beside each other?”

Vieta‘s eyes wavered.

What Hesion said sounded far too sweet to her. But just as sweet, a hollow emptiness of unknowable depth washed over her at the same time.

If she became Hesion‘s fiancee, she could live at the Rekton family. That would mean freedom from her father, stepmother, and half-siblings’ neglect, *buse, and torment.

If Hesion gave her the same unwavering heart he had once shown Esta, she would give him her own in return.

The childlike engagement would end in marriage, and she would become a beloved grand duchess.

Loved by a new family, loving in return, burying the pain of the past and simply living on. It was a simple enough picture, but Vieta could not let go of Susan. So this kind of imagining was pointless from the start.

Every time Hesion drew closer, she felt a strange unease, as though all the scenarios she had imagined might actually come true.

‘Get a hold of yourself, Vieta. Happiness is not yours to have.’

Vieta recalled the resolve she had made to live for Susan’s revenge.

“Let’s be honest with each other instead, Hesion.”