Even after he lifted his lips from the back of her hand, Michael made no move to release her.

The light from the bedside lamp stretched the shadow of their joined hands across the room.

Eveline quietly put a little more strength into her arm and slipped her hand free.

The spot where Michael’s lips had touched the back of her hand felt as though it had been branded with a hot iron.

Still, she forced herself to remain composed. As if nothing had happened, she clasped her free hand with the other and rested them both neatly on her lap.

Watching her slender hand slip from his grasp, Michael perched lightly on the edge of the table in front of the sofa where Eveline was sitting.

They were so close that his knees could almost touch hers.

Eveline instinctively drew her legs back as far as possible, retreating deeper into the sofa.

“You look as though you’ve forgotten everything, Eveline.”

Somewhere beneath the man’s low voice lingered a weary sigh.

Although she had leaned back as far as she could, Michael’s long legs still brought the hem of his suit trousers into contact with her bare calves.

The faint brush of the fabric against her skin tickled her in an oddly unsettling way.

“As I remember it, we became rather close after our engagement ceremony. Or am I mistaken?”

Resting his chin on one hand propped against his knee, Michael asked with genuine curiosity.

Eveline didn’t know where to begin.

[Trust no one. Leave Entian immediately. Cross over to Kaimon and seek out Princess Bastes. No matter what happens… survive.]

In truth, the letter her father had left her five years ago had been his final farewell.

As soon as the king died, a fierce struggle for the throne erupted between his half-brother, Heman, and the crown prince.

Marquis Beaufort — Eveline’s father — and her older brother fought on the crown prince’s side.

The outcome was devastating.

At the time, Eveline had been staying at the Beaufort estate, far from the capital.

Just before sunset, the family’s loyal aide came rushing in with the news of the defeat.

Her father and brother had fallen alongside the crown prince.

Following the death of the crown prince, it was inevitable that Heman would ascend to the throne.

Anyone who had fought for the crown prince would now be branded a traitor.

The punishment for treason was simple.

Execution.

Alternatively, they would be imprisoned for life.

Of course, Eveline herself had never been involved in the capital’s politics or noble society.

Whether she lived or died depended entirely on the mercy of the new king, Heman.

By the slimmest chance, she might have been allowed to keep her life.

However, there was little reason to believe that Heman would spare the daughter of Marquis Beaufort, whom he had regarded as a thorn in his side.

Eveline’s mother had passed away when she was still a child.

Now…

She had no family left.

There was only one option.

Eveline made her decision.

She would survive.

Crossing the rugged mountain pass — the shortest route to the border — took several exhausting days.

She ran without stopping.

Just before they reached the border guards, the aide spoke to her one last time.

“‘From this moment on, you must live under a new name, my lady. Forget the name Eveline. The world will believe that, upon hearing of the Marquis and the young master’s deaths, you took your own life.'”

And so, Eveline became someone who no longer existed.

She began a new life in Kaimon.

Where was she even supposed to begin explaining everything that had happened?

Eveline carefully chose her words before speaking to Michael.

“I owe you an apology, Your Grace. You must have been shocked to hear that I had died. Even if I had no other choice, I am still responsible for deceiving you.”

He had been her intended husband in a political marriage, and no matter how desperate her circumstances had been at the time, she could not deny that she had deceived him.

But there was little point in reopening old wounds now.

The promise between their families had already been broken years ago.

“And yet… do you truly intend to go through with this trial?”

Eveline knew that Michael was not the kind of man to make tasteless jokes.

Nevertheless, she found it impossible to believe that he intended to file a lawsuit unlike anything ever recorded.

Not to dissolve their engagement…

But to have it declared invalid.

The trial date written on the document was only two days away.

For a long moment, Michael simply looked at her without saying a word.

His blue eyes, reflecting the warm glow of the lamp, gleamed like polished glass.

“So after five years apart… you really have nothing else to say to me.”

“…Your Grace.”

The remark came so abruptly that it clashed with the atmosphere between them.

For the briefest instant, a storm of conflicting emotions surfaced across his face, as though there were countless other things he wished to say.

But just as quickly, they disappeared.

Michael rose to his feet.

“The trial will proceed as scheduled.”

His tone made it clear that he would entertain no further questions.

Eveline had assumed that, having said everything he came to say, he would leave.

Instead…

Michael remained in the bedroom.

After the relentless journey by carriage and the succession of earth-shattering revelations, all Eveline wanted was to be alone.

“You should get some rest for today. If you need anything, ring for a servant.”

“…Pardon?”

Eveline followed Michael’s gaze to the call bell on the table before turning back to him.

He looked at her as though he couldn’t fathom the problem.

He sat back down on the sofa calmly and looked completely at ease, as though it were his own room.

It was only then that Eveline began to truly notice her surroundings.

The furniture was unmistakably the work of a master craftsman.

The pale blue wallpaper had been embroidered by hand with silver thread.

Golden drapes hung elegantly throughout the unusually spacious room.

No matter how grand the Parsen estate might be…

This was far too lavish to be a guest bedroom.

“Oh… I’m sorry. I thought I was being shown to the room where I’d be staying.”

The maid who had escorted her there had offered no explanation, so Eveline apologized for her misunderstanding.

Michael’s reply, however, was utterly matter-of-fact.

“Of course this is my bedroom. And from now on, this is where you’ll be staying.”

“N-No. I can’t possibly do that.”

Eveline shook her head.

Eveline understood why Michael had become her guarantor and why she had been brought to the ducal estate.

But sharing a bedroom with him on top of that?

“I can’t possibly share a bedroom with you, Your Grace.”

“You could repeat that all night, and it wouldn’t change anything. With the trial so close, I have no guarantee that you won’t change your mind.”

“But…”

“If anything happens to you, the responsibility falls entirely on me.”

Cutting her off without hesitation, Michael drove the point home.

“Besides, you’ve already managed to evade the border guards and flee once before. I can’t leave you unattended, if only for security.”

“…”

His expression remained perfectly impassive as he finished speaking.

The moment he was done, he rang the call bell.

A short while later, a maid entered alongside an elderly butler whose hair had long since turned white.

“It’s been a long time, my lady. We’ve brought clothing that should fit you, along with anything else you might need.”

The butler, Owen, started to lay out clothes and other necessities on the table.

Eveline recognized him immediately.

He had overseen the ducal household many years ago.

Despite her sudden reappearance after all this time, he greeted her as though he had seen her yesterday.

Overwhelmed by everything that had happened, Eveline remained silent.

A heavy stillness settled over the bedroom.

Soon, the faint sound of running water could be heard from the bathroom, where Michael had gone.

“If there’s anything you require, please don’t hesitate to let us know.”

Maintaining the impeccable posture expected of a model butler, Owen waited patiently.

After a brief hesitation, Eveline finally asked,

“…Will I really have to stay in this room the entire time I’m at the ducal estate?”

“Yes. Those were His Grace’s instructions.”

The answer was exactly what she had expected.

“Then please have a restful evening.”

After offering a respectful bow, Owen and the maid left the room quietly.

Only once she was alone did Eveline become fully aware of the headache that had been troubling her for hours.

It seemed to worsen as night fell.

Closing her tired eyes for a moment, she began to replay the day’s events one by one.

Just then, she heard footsteps.

The soft sound of slippers against the wooden floor announced Michael’s return from the shower.

His black hair looked even darker now that it was damp, and a robe hung loosely over his shoulders.

Unsure of what to do, Eveline could only blink at him.

Michael turned towards her.

“Stop forcing yourself to stay awake when you look like you’re about to collapse. Go wash up and get some rest.”

It was the most ordinary thing he had said to her all day.

The sofa was already beginning to feel like a bed of thorns beneath her.

Without another word, Eveline rose to her feet.

After days of travelling by carriage in a state of constant tension and anxiety, every muscle in her exhausted body stiffened in protest.

As the warm bathwater enveloped her, the deep-seated tension in her body eased slightly.

For a long while, Eveline stood before the mirror, its surface clouded with steam.

Through the haze, she could make out her own reflection.

Her face was deathly pale, utterly devoid of color.

Realizing that she had spent the entire day facing the man outside with this exhausted, lifeless expression made her instinctively lower her head.

Determined to clear her head, Eveline scooped cold water from the basin and splashed it over her face.

‘Pull yourself together.’

She still didn’t know all the details.

But one thing was certain: House Beaufort had been returned to her.

Everything else, however, remained shrouded in uncertainty.

Letting out a quiet sigh, Eveline stepped out of the bathroom.

By then, darkness had settled over the bedroom.

The lamp had been turned down so much that it was casting only the faintest glow, leaving the room so dim that she couldn’t see Michael immediately.

‘Did he give up the room after all?’

Grasping at that faint hope, Eveline cautiously took a step forward.

Then she stopped.

There was a figure stretched out on the sofa.

It was Michael.

She crept closer quietly.

His eyes were already closed.

The bedroom was silent, disturbed only by their breathing.

Standing there for a moment, Eveline slowly surveyed the room.

Ultimately, she had no choice.

Careful not to make a sound, she walked towards the bed.

She was worn down by overwhelming exhaustion and the relentless pounding in her head.

She curled up into the smallest ball she could manage, lying on her side at the very edge of the enormous bed.

She took up only a tiny corner — just enough to stop her from falling off.

Without moving another inch, she simply blinked into the darkness.

Not long afterwards, sleep overtook her as if she had collapsed.

Only then…

The tightly shut eyes on the sofa slowly opened.

In the darkened room, Michael’s vivid blue eyes shone with startling clarity.

Long after Eveline had fallen asleep…

They remained open.