“Of course, it’s too far to go right away.”

A feeling she had long forgotten stirred within her.

A longing she had abandoned while living so busily crept back in, awakening her heart.

“How long would it take from here?”

“Just to get there… perhaps half a day.”

Half a day.

“If you include the return trip, it would take more than a full day.”

Which meant she would have to stay the night.

The anticipation that had been quietly filling her chest slowly drained away.

Disappointment.

A feeling she now knew all too well settled heavily within her.

“…Then I don’t think I can go. He would definitely be angry. He would say that leaving this place is something I must not do.”

There was no way Delphius would allow it.

A man who confined someone here because even divorce was not permitted—and who, even that wasn’t enough, kept watch at every moment.

Let alone allowing her to go see the sea alone.

Recalling his firm words, she lowered her head.

“I’m sorry. I spoke too lightly.”

“No… it’s fine.”

Ilenia shook her head.

Nothing had really changed.

She had only grown momentarily excited, simply because she had been able to think of the sea again for the first time in a long while.

Still, Raymond apologized again and again.

Watching him made her feel almost guilty, as he repeated his apologies several times. Only after promising something to make up for it did he finally stop.

“I boasted that our town is famous for its scenery, so at the very least, I think I should show it to you myself.”

He smiled again as he said that.

The longer she looked, the more his smile reminded her of Marlenda’s — gentle and warm, and strikingly similar.

Raymond came again the very next day.

He had a short message from Marlenda and casually asked where they should go this time.

He never pressured Ilenia for an answer.

If she took a long time to respond, he simply waited.

If she couldn’t answer at all, he accepted that too.

Occasionally, the names of places she had considered would slip out hesitantly and uncertainly.

More often, though, she would falter, unable to say anything at all.

Each time, Raymond would gently offer a suggestion, which Ilenia would then follow.

Unless it rained, they went out together every day.

Raymond showed her all kinds of places. Sometimes it was a quiet field. Other times, it was a small village nestled at the foot of a hill.

What they did depended on the place.

In the fields, they would lie down and gaze up at the sky.

On the hills, they would point at the tiny houses below, which looked like toys scattered across the landscape.

And every time, Raymond would explain things to her with quiet patience.

Even when her curiosity surfaced hesitantly and uncertainly, he never dismissed it or laughed at her.

He answered everything he knew.

Having studied abroad, he had never encountered a question he couldn’t answer.

Ilenia was different from other nobles in Raymond’s eyes.

Rather than admiring grand, sweeping vistas, she seemed drawn to unpaved paths — rough and uneven.

More than breathtaking scenery, she noticed the smooth stones scattered beneath her feet.

Even the small, insignificant flowers blooming along fences caught her attention.

Most nobles disliked walking altogether. But Ilenia was different.

Sometimes, even when a carriage had been prepared for her, she would quietly say that she wanted to walk instead.

He held no prejudice against nobles.

Nevertheless, certain expectations naturally came to mind when one thought of nobility.

Ilenia —

—was far removed from all of them.

“…Sometimes, I envy you, Raymond.”

“Me…?”

He looked momentarily taken aback, but she quietly nodded.

It was a feeling—envy, admiration—that nobles rarely expressed so openly. While Raymond was still processing her words, Ilenia continued.

“I don’t know much. That’s why… I was always afraid people would discover my ignorance.”

“Not knowing something is not a sin, my lady.”

“No. It is a sin, Raymond.”

She shook her head firmly.

Lowering her gaze as though she might collapse into the softly flowing stream at her feet, she murmured in a small voice—

“…Because I couldn’t do anything. I can’t even forgive myself.”

The sorrow in her eyes was unmistakable.

Whenever he saw it, Raymond was reminded of the word ‘sea’ and how her face had lit up when she talked about it.

That vivid joy.

The way her pale skin had flushed with warmth.

Somewhere between pity and something deeper, Raymond felt his chest tighten.

***

Delphius had arrived.

Unlike the grand estate, the small house felt filled to the brim by his mere presence in the corridor.

In this quiet town, most homes were modest in size, except for the castle.

They had chosen the largest house in the area by local standards, but even so, it was only two storeys high with a small terrace.

There wasn’t enough space to accommodate all the maids they had brought with them and more than half of them had to be sent back.

Dusting off the hastily purchased, somewhat crude furniture, he turned his head.

“Have you been well?”

“Living in a place this quiet… what reason would I have not to be?”

“Still, you never know. Even in a peaceful village like this, a wild beast might suddenly appear. Or perhaps a bandit.”

‘You’re the bandit.’

The words rose to her lips, but she swallowed them and lowered her gaze instead.

At some point, his presence had begun to make her feel uneasy.

It must have begun on the day she confessed her true feelings to him.

Since then, facing Delphius had become unbearably difficult for Ilenia. She had confessed that she could no longer go on.

She had hoped that, little by little, both her body and her heart would drift away from him and that this would naturally lead to a divorce over time.

And yet—

Delphius came to her just as he always had.

Divorce now felt impossibly far away.

He said he was busy again. He mentioned starting another business or carrying out his duties as a duke under imperial command. She only vaguely remembered this.

There would never be a day when he was no longer needed in this world.

Just as there would never be a day when she — Ilenia — became someone it needed.

She watched him approach and pull her into his arms. Despite carving time out of his relentless schedule, he still came to see her.

Once, she would have been overjoyed.

But now—

— her heart didn’t even race.

It was as if her heart had broken when her mind did.

Her heart had shattered with it.

“You’ve put on a little weight.”

“….”

“Nothing’s been bothering you?”

For a long moment, Ilenia couldn’t answer.

She didn’t even know what it meant to be “doing well.”

It was only natural that her lips hesitated, searching for a response she could not find.

“Have you been eating properly?”

“Yes… I finished most of my breakfast this morning.”

“That’s good. You look a bit healthier than when you were staying at the estate.”

Delphius continued asking trivial things.

Most of them were things he had never cared to ask about when she lived in the Lukehardt estate.

“Why are you asking about these things?”

“Because I don’t know much about you.”

His voice softened as he went on.

“What you like. What catches your interest. When I thought about it… I realized I didn’t know a single thing.”

There was even a hint of playfulness in his tone.

As if he had completely forgotten everything that had happened—forgotten that he had confined her here.

“You never liked anything I gave you—except money. But that’s not something I can simply give you.”

“The money you’ve already given me is more than enough. And the things, the gifts… they were all—”

“Even so, it’s been a while since we last saw each other.”

Delphius slipped an arm around Ilenia’s waist.

Only then did he notice—

Not a single one of his gifts remained among everything she had brought with her.

Despite him providing more than enough for her daily needs, her belongings were far too modest for a duchess.

In that small, sparse bundle, there was no trace of him at all.

In that moment, Delphius finally understood.

He had never truly known what Ilenia liked.

Unlike other women — unlike most people — she could not be won over with jewels alone.

“Let me at least do this much.”

Delphius pulled out a bouquet he had been hiding behind his back.

“A gift.”

It was a lavish arrangement, overflowing with vibrant blossoms. Each flower was large and striking, proudly displaying its beauty.

As Ilenia looked at it, she felt as though the heavy fragrance might suffocate her.

“Thank you. I’ll have someone place it in a vase.”

“All right.”

She placed the bouquet on the table, holding it at arm’s length.

But Delphius made no move to release her.

Perhaps he simply believed that she couldn’t walk alone.

Whenever she was with him, she could count on one hand the number of times she had walked alone.

He seemed unwilling to let her go, as if he feared what she might do if she was left alone.

Every garment she wore had been stripped of anything that could cinch at the waist.

She was always dressed in loose, flowing clothes that looked almost like nightwear, and held tightly in his arms.

His arm beneath her chest tightened as though it were a belt, holding her in place.

And that wasn’t all.

Even when she stood right beside him, Delphius would sometimes call her name.

Again and again—

— until her lowered gaze finally lifted to meet his.

He would either call for her…

Or he would push her until she could no longer avoid looking at him.

“…Mm.”

Judging by the way his hand began to move, it seemed to be the latter today.

His hand slid upwards and carefully closed around her chest.

As he tugged at the fabric, the shape beneath became clearer. His finger pressed lightly against it when the sound of a bell rang from downstairs.

In this small house, even the bell announcing a guest echoed throughout.

Soon, voices and movement could be heard from the first floor, followed by the door opening.

“My apologies for being late. Is the lady in?”

It was Raymond, who had come in Marlenda’s place.