When Dalia spoke the facts out loud, she found it hard to believe at first. But that didn’t last long.

“Ah!”

She quickly put the whole situation together.

If Curtis had blocked the articles completely, that would make sense! He probably thought it would be a burden on Irvelyn.

Before the regression, there had been vicious articles portraying Irvelyn as a pathetic, helpless woman desperately seducing all the prominent men of the Empire.

The reason these articles eventually disappeared wasn’t just because of Curtis, but because the influential men around her had used their power to make them disappear.

Finally, her frantic heartbeat slowed and Dalia’s shoulders relaxed. Leaning back against the hard bench, she let out a dry laugh and thought for a moment about her hasty assumptions.

Yes, that must be why the articles didn’t appear. But intuition can be a frightening thing. Even though she had concluded everything logically, a sudden feeling of unease washed over her.

“Could it be… that there really isn’t any relationship between Curtis and Irvelyn?”

A faint, unlikely thought flashed through her mind and Dalia immediately shook her head.

It can’t be. It’s unlikely. Yes, that’s it. He must have blocked the articles.

Not remembering the old saying ‘doubt kills’, Dalia sighed deeply again.

“Haa…” “Hoo…”

As if on cue, a deeper sigh echoed nearby. Reflexively, Dalia turned her eyes towards the sound and was startled to find a man’s eyes staring back at her.

No, it was probably just a feeling, for his face was hidden beneath his cloak. His light brown hair took on a faint hue in the morning sunlight, and his green eyes were much darker than hers.

The man had a neat, pleasant appearance, with slightly drooping eyes that made him stand out even if he only passed by once.

His face, however, was filled with deep concern. Startled by how close he was, Dalia quickly looked away. She could still feel his eyes on her, but they soon faded into the distance. 

This wasn’t the time. She had to get home quickly. The calm and peace she had felt while breathing in the fresh air outside the temple was instantly replaced by a sharp sense of urgency.

Though she didn’t want to admit it, an instinctive feeling told her that something was following her. 

Dalia stood up and quickly left the park, leaving the man who had sighed with her still seated, lost in thought.

***

Dalia’s journey after leaving the lands of Count Romand went smoothly. Her pace wasn’t particularly fast, but it wasn’t slow either, which allowed her to reach the point where she could mount the horse sooner than expected.

As she rode, she removed the cloak that had covered her face. The refreshing breeze against her cheeks helped to ease her anxiety and she decided to calm herself.

She had felt light-hearted before leaving the temple, but the fact that there was no mention of Curtis and Irvelyn in the newspapers had shaken her to the core.

It felt as if the two years of silence had been in vain.

Dalia mocked her own pitifulness for a moment, then rode on for a while before deciding to take a break. Looking around, she spotted a small rest area at the intersection of two roads, a perfect place to take a break.

Without hesitation, Dalia urged the horse forward, and when she reached her destination, she brushed the dust from her clothes. It was then that she noticed a man with brown hair and green eyes, still wearing a sombre expression. 

“Ha?”

Without thinking, Dalia made a small sound, and somehow the man heard it and turned his gaze to her. As their eyes met for the second time, Dalia instinctively lowered her head slightly and greeted him. 

She greeted him with the etiquette of the Temple, not the formal aristocratic customs of the Empire, but immediately regretted it.

She hadn’t intended to acknowledge or speak to a stranger. In such an unexpected place, with such an unexpected person, she had made a noise without meaning to.

Well, if he returned the greeting, that would be the end of it.

“Good day.”

Just as Dalia was thinking this, the man greeted her, but she didn’t respond. Instead, she sat a little farther away from him. While adjusting her disheveled hair and clothes from riding, she almost forgot about the man’s presence. However, it seemed he hadn’t forgotten her.

“Do we know each other? I think I saw you at the park outside the Romand estate.”

Dalia had expected the man not to recognize her, given that her face was mostly covered, but she was mistaken—he had identified her.

It felt awkward to deny it, and there was no real reason to, so Dalia simply nodded. It was her way of silently indicating that she didn’t want to engage in conversation, but the man, either unaware or uninterested, continued talking.

“This is the second coincidence, isn’t it? They say if something happens three times, it’s fate. So if we meet again, does that mean we’re meant to be together?”

What? That man?

While Dalia half-listened to his words, her mind was completely taken over by his statement.

They had only met twice and suddenly he was talking about fate and destiny. They hadn’t even introduced themselves properly.

Wasn’t it absurd to say such a thing to a complete stranger?

But soon Dalia was even more confused.

“I’m sorry. I guess I spoke too quickly and overthought it.”

The man, his face flushed, covered his face with both hands and apologised for his ridiculous statement, clearly embarrassed.

The situation was so absurd that Dalia briefly reversed her decision to avoid the conversation and spoke up.

“If you’re so embarrassed, why did you say it in the first place?”

Perhaps because he was a complete stranger, Dalia asked the question bluntly, without choosing her words. The man took a deep breath.

“Ah… I’m really sorry again.”

“An apology is enough.”

It wasn’t really an answer, but the man apologised again. Dalia didn’t press him further. The situation was so absurd that she had started a conversation, but had no intention of continuing it. And so silence fell between them. 

During this time, Dalia slowly ate the dried food she had prepared and drank some water. She also made sure the horse had enough to drink. 

“It’s just a habit.”

It had nothing to do with their earlier conversation, but when Dalia realised it was his answer to her earlier question, she let out a small smile. She had met all sorts of people, but there really were those with the strangest habits.

Holding back her thoughts, Dalia gave a brief nod and rose to continue.

Those thoughts lingered in Dalia’s mind only as a courtesy, and after a quick nod she rose.

She didn’t say goodbye, and as she mounted her horse and left, the man sat in the same place until she was out of sight. Unlike before, though, he only stared at her back.

***

The third meeting, neither expected nor planned, happened again by chance.

“Good day.”

Along with a slight creaking sound from the door opening, Dalia heard the man’s awkward voice shortly after the inn’s front door opened.

Let’s rewind a few minutes before their third encounter, whether it was fate or just coincidence.

Avoiding hotels with good facilities, Dalia entered an inn that looked old from the outside, but was well kept. As a noblewoman raised in luxury and surrounded by extravagant things as the wife of the Duke of Fraser, she was used to such comforts.

If necessary, however, she didn’t hesitate to put up with coarse bedding and simple meals. After all, she had managed well for two years in the humble temple.

Of course, there was no need for her to be so cautious and uncomfortable in her movements.

But Dalia remembered her grandfather’s words, that it was always right to be prepared for the unexpected. So she opened the door of the inn where the man was, and they met again.

“An… annyeonghaseyo.”

When their eyes met and she couldn’t ignore his direct greeting, Dalia reluctantly returned the greeting and sat awkwardly on the edge of the chair, unsure of what to do.

“Should I just leave?”

She began to doubt that this was just a coincidence and that the man might be following her. But she couldn’t ask him directly, “Are you following me?” for fear that the man, who had been calm and collected, might suddenly change.

Uncertain, Dalia decided to leave, but was stopped when the man stood up quickly.