The Peyton brothers held Ariadne in high regard.

It wasn’t just because she was the youngest; it was because she had inherited their mother’s love and devotion.

Gentle, kind and endlessly affectionate, Ariadne herself was a source of comfort to them all.

Of the three brothers, it was undoubtedly the third son, Heidel Peyton, who adored her the most.

Perhaps because they were close in age, she wasn’t someone he felt obligated to protect; she was someone he always wanted by his side.

Someone to play with, study with, and share stories with.

Heidel kept constant watch over his little sister, observing her, listening to her and caring for her with all his heart.

The more time he spent with her, the more possessive he became.

He wanted to keep his beloved sister close for as long as possible. He wanted to shower her with love so that she would grow up happy and remain by his side for many years to come.

But that desire was crushed by none other than Kieron Ambrose.

From Heidel’s perspective, Kieron was neither kind nor affectionate towards Ariadne.

Heidel had no reason to like a man who didn’t seem to cherish — or even hold on to — his sister.

He wanted Ariadne to wake up and leave Kieron quickly. To realize for herself that she should leave that man. Only then, he believed, could she be happy again.

So, when Sylvia expressed her wish to grow close to Ariadne, he agreed without hesitation.

Sylvia was a wise woman — keen-eyed and perceptive, with an easy ability to read people. He believed she would find a solution that suited Ariadne perfectly.

After all, there had been a time when Ariadne would listen to neither him nor their brothers. A time when she acted as though nothing mattered except her husband.

But time passed, and slowly she regained her clarity. She seemed willing to lean on her family again, and that alone was a relief.

To Heidel, this meant that the time had finally come to end his sister’s absurd marriage. That was why he kept leaving Sylvia and Ariadne together.

“…Heidel. Isn’t it time to stop now?”

Jade, who didn’t understand anything, snapped at him every time.

He insisted that Ariadne was not a fool and had a mind of her own. He said that Heidel shouldn’t interfere so recklessly, and that Sylvia must feel uncomfortable. Ridiculously, he even claimed that all of this made him feel guilty whenever he saw Ariadne.

Heidel couldn’t make sense of any of it.

He deliberately avoided leaving Ariadne and Jade alone together when Jade was present, specifically so that she wouldn’t feel awkward.

So why did Jade act like it made everything harder?

Whenever he confronted her about it, she would look at him with sheer exhaustion. Sometimes she muttered that, friend or not, he was crossing a line.

But he never understood her reaction.

He never even tried to understand it.

After all, it wasn’t Jade who knew Ariadne best.

It was him: Heidel Peyton.

No matter what Jade said, he was determined to carry on as he was.

He would keep creating opportunities for Ariadne and Jade to meet, keep asking Sylvia to persuade Jade, and keep moving forward.

He had heard that the Duke of Ambrose disliked these meetings, but that didn’t matter to him.

After all, he was the same man who hadn’t wanted his wife to be a bridesmaid.

Didn’t he once approach Sylvia, asking her to stop Ariadne from taking part and requesting that Jade Derayan not be chosen as best man?

However, when Sylvia suggested replacing the best man with the Duke of Ambrose, he rejected the idea outright, making it clear that he would never reconsider.

This was not only for Sylvia’s sake, but also because he believed it was the best decision for himself and Ariadne.

Fortunately, the Duke eventually relented. Even then, however, he still didn’t seem pleased with anything his wife was doing.

When Ariadne first visited Jade’s estate to practice her duties as a bridesmaid, she arrived without an escort, accompanied only by a maid.

If the Duke had truly supported his wife, such a thing would have been unthinkable.

To Heidel, even though the Duke of Ambrose seemed to be softening, he was still the same cold brother-in-law who had mistreated and constrained Ariadne.

After making several more trips to the Derayan estate, Ariadne eventually started arriving accompanied by a few guards.

Heidel watched, wondering if the man had finally started treating her properly. However, he still left her unattended far too often.

He would insist it wasn’t neglect, of course, but Heidel thought otherwise.

Heidel had grown up with a father who would drop everything the moment his wife needed him. If their mother mentioned going somewhere, their father would accompany her without hesitation, no matter how busy he was.

That was simply the norm in their household.

Because of that upbringing, Heidel and his brothers always put their wives’ needs first. If their wives wanted to go somewhere, they accompanied them.

If they needed anything, they took care of it. Even on the busiest days, they made time. And Ariadne, who was raised in the same household, deserved even more care than that.

She was precious. Far too precious.

Seeing her wander outside with hardly any escort and being exposed to danger made Heidel want to seize the Duke of Ambrose by the collar.

Given this situation, Heidel believed he had only one choice: to do everything he could to make Ariadne’s life more comfortable, if only by a little.

“So stop now? We haven’t even reached the end. What do you mean, stop already?”

“Ariadne doesn’t want any of this. How do you not understand that?”

But his friend — and sometimes even his fiancée — kept telling him to pull himself together.

To wake up.

They told him to stop forcing something that Ariadne had never asked for. They told him to consider how devastated she would be if she ever found out.

Heidel asked himself what he would do if that day came. Heidel didn’t deny that the possibility worried him. But that wasn’t enough to stop him.

Jade and Sylvia weren’t the only ones to warn him. His older brothers, Hern and Hermes, had said the same when they found out about his plans.

They asked if he could be absolutely sure that this was what Ariadne wanted. They asked if he could swear that none of this would harm her.

They weren’t wrong. But even so, doing nothing wasn’t an option.

Heidel believed that necessary things should be faced head-on rather than avoided because of vague anxieties. Besides, Ariadne’s happiness mattered more than all those warnings.

Of course, things would get tricky if she ever found out what he was doing.

She was such a gentle girl that she wouldn’t want to hurt the Duke of Ambrose. She’d insist that he didn’t deserve that kind of pain.

However, Heidel couldn’t leave his precious sister with a man he believed to be unworthy of her.

So, it was time.

Time to end everything once and for all.

He needed to end Ariadne’s relationship with the Duke of Ambrose and arrange for her to marry Jade instead, someone who could cherish and support her properly.

He believed this would be the best possible future for Ariadne. At the very least, he was absolutely convinced of it.

“Ariadne might not realize it yet. She’s always had a hard time knowing what’s truly important to her.”

“Heidel. Ariadne is an adult.”

“She’s still just a child. Everything she knows of the world begins and ends with the marquisate.”

To Heidel, Ariadne seemed fragile. She was like a delicate seedling, someone who needed protection, shelter, care and constant attention.

It was precisely because she was that kind of person that he had no intention of changing his mind.

He met Jade’s exasperated gaze with unshakable resolve.

“I know Rene better than you do, Jade. What she needs most right now is someone at her side who can set her on the right path.”

“And I’m telling you, why do you think you get to decide that all on your own?!”

Jade thumped a hand against his chest in frustration, but Heidel didn’t flinch.

He spoke as though his thoughts were the only correct answer, and his experience and perspective the only measure of truth.

Jade felt as though his insides were about to burst.

If things continued as they were, something truly unreasonable was going to happen to Ariadne.

Could he really just sit there and do nothing?

He decided he could not.

“Get a grip, Heidel. The person you should be worrying about right now isn’t Rene, who’s living her life just fine—it’s you and your fiancée, who are about to get married.”

“We’re fine. The wedding’s soon, and there’s nothing in particular to worry about.”

“What happens after you’re married is what actually matters, don’t you think?”

What on earth had turned his friend into this?

Jade stared at Heidel, whom he had once considered sharp and sensible, and swallowed the curses that had risen to his lips.

“Wake up, Heidel. I’m serious. If you keep this up, you’re going to get yourself into real trouble.”

“I’ll be fine. You’re the one who should be careful. At this rate, she might be taken away right in front of your eyes.”

“I told you—I don’t care!”

‘So this is what it feels like to talk to a brick wall.’

Jade felt like he was going to lose his mind; he felt like he could scream.

What on earth did the imperial princess see in this man? He was just a lunatic obsessed with his little sister.

Jade was pounding at his chest in frustration when…

“Sir, are you in there?”

“…Yeah. Come in.”

The parlor door where they were sitting opened, and Jade’s attendant stepped inside. After offering a polite bow, the attendant glanced briefly at Heidel, who sat beside his master, then approached Jade and spoke quietly.

“You have a visitor, sir.”

“A visitor? For me?”

“There shouldn’t be anyone coming.”

Jade said, frowning at the unexpected word “visitor”.

The attendant shook his head slightly and glanced at Heidel again, as if gauging the mood.

Just as Jade was about to encourage him to speak, the attendant opened his mouth.

“The Duke of Ambrose has arrived to escort the Duchess home, sir.”

What impeccable timing.

Jade couldn’t stop himself from muttering these words under his breath, despite how Heidel’s expression hardened into something downright murderous beside him.