Viola pretended to be fine, but she swallowed her tears while nestled in Rachel’s embrace.

Knowing Viola’s sensitive nature, Rachel gently patted her back, giving her time to compose herself.

Before long, Viola stopped crying and pulled away from Rachel. Embarrassed about having cried, she kept her flushed face bowed low.

“Are you okay now?”

“Yeah. Sorry, Rachel. I’m being needy again.”

Viola spoke in a tiny, barely audible voice. Rachel looked at her and chuckled.

“Don’t worry about it. That’s what friends are for.”

When Rachel dismissed it casually, Viola felt reassured and lifted her head.

“Still, I’m really relieved. I was so worried that you two might never reconcile.”

“It was my fault. Because I was being stupid.”

Tervan interjected into Viola’s comment. His voice was laced with guilt.

“Yes, it was your fault, Tervan.”

Viola pointed to Tervan as the root cause of the problem.

Although he had admitted it was his fault, when Viola suddenly changed her attitude and blamed him, Tervan blinked in surprise.

Seeing his reaction, Viola let out a small laugh.

Only then did Tervan realize Viola was teasing him.

Tervan joined her with a quiet laugh. Then, after composing himself, he turned his gaze toward Rachel.

“Yes, that’s right. It was my fault. I’m sorry, Rachel. I’ll do better from now on.”

“I’ll be watching you.”

When Rachel responded with a mischievous voice, Viola burst into laughter.

At least for now, it seemed the three had returned to their previous relationship when there were no problems.

Tervan quietly sighed in relief as he observed Rachel.

Rachel was chatting animatedly with Viola, appearing completely at ease.

He watched the two for a moment, then turned his head when he sensed movement beside him.

Edward was standing there. After confirming that Viola and Rachel were engaged in conversation, he was moving to leave the room.

Tervan watched Edward for a moment, then quietly followed him out.

“Edward.”

Once in the hallway, Tervan called out to stop Edward.

Edward halted and turned to face Tervan.

“If it’s alright with you, could we move somewhere else to talk?”

Tervan proposed to him.

Edward silently regarded Tervan for a moment before eventually nodding.

“Sure.”

With Edward’s permission, Tervan turned first. Then he walked to a corridor far from Rachel’s bedroom.

“What is it?”

At his question, Tervan hesitated briefly before opening his mouth with a slight smile.

“I heard that you’ll be escorting Rachel to Viola’s upcoming birthday party.”

When Rachel was mentioned by Tervan, Edward nodded with a composed expression.

“That’s right.”

There was nothing to deny. When the relationship between Tervan and Rachel had broken down, Edward had volunteered to escort her out of consideration.

Though Viola had delivered the message, it had been entirely Edward’s decision.

Tervan hesitated for a moment before speaking with a smile.

“That day, I’ll escort Rachel. So you don’t need to go out of your way to come to the Pluret estate.”

Tervan spoke to Edward with what he considered thoughtful consideration.

Having just witnessed Tervan and Rachel’s reconciliation, Tervan didn’t feel the need to provide any further explanation.

Tervan expected Edward to readily agree.

Since that’s how things had always been, he thought it would save Edward the trouble.

But Edward’s response differed from Tervan’s expectation.

Edward crossed his arms and stared at Tervan.

“Why?”

“What?”

Not expecting Edward to ask for a reason, Tervan turned his head to look at him.

“Well, Rachel and I have reconciled. So there’s no need for you to go out of your way.”

Tervan calmly explained to Edward, thinking perhaps he hadn’t understood.

But Edward, without changing his expression, spoke again.

“I understand that you and Rachel have reconciled. But is that the reason?”

At Edward’s repeated question, Tervan nodded.

Edward then let out a long sigh.

“Then I refuse.”

“…What? Refuse?”

Tervan frowned, not understanding Edward’s words.

“Yes. I refuse. As planned, I’ll be escorting Rachel that day.”

“…”

Since Tervan hadn’t expected Edward to refuse, he remained silent for a moment, studying Edward to assess the situation.

The always kind and gentle Edward was nowhere to be seen, replaced by someone with a cold expression standing before him.

This was a side of Edward that Tervan had never seen before.

“Edward? Are you serious?”

Tervan finally asked. Edward nodded.

“Yes.”

After his brief answer, he immediately continued.

“You’re still being selfish even in this situation.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Did you ask for Rachel’s consent about changing her escort?”

“That’s…”

Since Tervan had planned to speak with Rachel after first discussing with Edward, he couldn’t answer Edward’s question.

Edward let out a derisive laugh and took a step toward Tervan.

“If you’re changing partners, you should have asked Rachel first. That’s the proper order. But you were only going to ask me and then just inform Rachel, weren’t you?”

“…”

“That’s why you’re selfish. You’ve always been that way.”

Edward spoke to Tervan in an exasperated voice, almost accusingly.

“Without understanding how Rachel has felt all this time, now you think everything’s fine just because you’ve reconciled?”

Edward took another step toward Tervan.

“Isn’t it that Rachel forgave you because she couldn’t bear your selfish attitude anymore?”

“What!”

“Are you going to deny it? Even after reflecting on your own actions?”

Tervan couldn’t refute Edward’s question.

It was Tervan who had approached Rachel with another apology after she had rejected his first one.

And it was also Tervan who had tried to reopen communication with her when they rolled down the hillside together.

But Tervan felt he had something to say in his defense. If he hadn’t acted that way, there would have been no opportunity to restore his relationship with Rachel.

“I—”

“You’ll say it was unavoidable. Just like you’ve always done.”

Edward spoke seemingly reading Tervan’s thoughts.

“I have no intention of giving someone like you the right to escort Rachel.”

Edward maintained his firm stance.

Tervan could only open and close his mouth without being able to retort.

Edward, who had been watching him, turned around. Then he began to leave without any hesitation.

Tervan quietly watched Edward walk away before finally coming to his senses.

“Edward!”

When Tervan called Edward’s name, he stopped in his tracks. Then he turned to look at Tervan with a cold gaze.

“Do you have something else to say?”

Edward’s voice matched his gaze—cold and unyielding. Having known the usual Edward for so long, Tervan couldn’t help but feel deeply uncomfortable seeing him in this unfamiliar state. This Edward seemed like an entirely different person from the one Tervan had come to know.

After a moment of hesitation, Tervan finally gathered his courage to press for a clear answer.

“…Do you like Rachel?”

Edward faltered momentarily at Tervan’s question. Meanwhile, Tervan spoke again.

“Because otherwise, I don’t understand your behavior right now.”

When Tervan finished speaking, Edward briefly glanced in the direction of Rachel’s bedroom.

Then, not long after, he turned back to Tervan.

“What if I do?”

“…”

“Fine, I’ll admit it. I like Rachel. That’s why I’ve been respecting her feelings. Because she liked you. But what was the result?”

Edward asked Tervan in a low voice. However, since he wasn’t actually seeking an answer from Tervan, he immediately added:

“I hope Rachel won’t be hurt any more than this. Because I don’t think I could stand it otherwise.”

After finishing his words, Edward clenched his fist tightly. It was his true feelings that he had never revealed to anyone until now.

He would have preferred to keep it a secret, but he had no choice but to confess it to Tervan.

Edward began to walk away again, ignoring the silent Tervan.

Edward’s footsteps echoed steadily in the quiet corridor. Tervan could only stare blankly at Edward’s retreating figure.

Left alone in the hallway, Tervan was only able to recall Edward’s words after he had disappeared from sight.

Edward had feelings for Rachel.

That was something even Tervan hadn’t known.