The Past Catches Up
Ren was stunned.
“What the hell is this?”
It wasn’t just under the bed. When he opened the wardrobe, it was piled high with gold coins there as well.
Was something like this here before?
Confused, he frantically searched through his memories.
Yesterday, after arriving at the royal palace.
He had been assigned the room next to his client’s and was resting for a bit.
He went out to the garden because he wanted to smoke a cigarette.
He climbed a tree, looked down at the royal palace scenery, and smoked.
That was when he saw Tatiana arguing with her lover.
And when I returned.
After that, he had an unexpected quarrel with the client. Ren had returned to his room in a daze, washed up, and fallen straight into bed.
Then, when he woke up this morning, the space beneath the bed and the entire wardrobe were filled with every kind of gold, silver, and jewel imaginable.
Wait. This couldn’t possibly be…
The client’s complaint yesterday about being robbed flashed through his mind.
No matter how I look at it, this has to be it…
He suddenly noticed a single card resting atop the gold coins. He snatched it up and unfolded it at once.
As you probably expected, this is Tatiana’s property. I didn’t have enough time to hide it properly, so I left it here for now.
Only by doing this will you have a justification to remain by her side longer.
So dispose of it as you see fit.
You know that no one will believe you if you claim it wasn’t your doing, right?
If you’re discovered, you’ll be branded a thief, so be careful.
“Who the hell…?”
Ren muttered in a tormented voice.
Canna had tossed and turned all night.
The Holy Spirit’s impending arrival weighed on her, but the most immediate, practical problem was money.
My entire fortune is gone.
Who could have done it?
Among those currently inside the palace, who possessed the strength to snap iron with their bare hands?
Who could slip into her room without the guards noticing?
Excluding Ren, whose timing made it impossible.
……Orsini.
For him, it would be as easy as blowing his nose.
The fact that he left first was suspicious, too.
But why would he do something like this?
His motive was unclear. It seemed far too elaborate to be a mere prank meant to spite her.
I need to meet Orsini.
Besides, she had something she wanted to ask him.
To meet Orsini, Canna had to pull her robe hood low over her face.
There were too many people here who knew her. She had nearly run into Prince Argon just moments ago.
All sorts of distinguished guests had gathered for Amelia’s engagement ceremony.
“Lord Esthea.”
Canna managed to reach Orsini’s door without being recognized, asking the servants along the way.
“I’ve come to see Lord Orsini. Could you inform him?”
“Please wait here a moment.”
Esthea stepped inside Orsini’s room. And then… nothing. A long silence followed.
Why is it taking so long?
Roughly ten minutes had passed.
When she grew tired of waiting and was about to knock, Lord Esthea finally emerged.
“I apologize. I was delayed helping Lord Orsini change his clothes.”
“Change his clothes?”
“Yes. He doesn’t keep a personal servant, so I assist him.”
She already knew.
Orsini had always hated having others dress him. He used to throw on whatever simple, comfortable clothes he could find.
Yet now he was accepting help.
Canna realized anew how much he had changed.
“Please go in. He’s waiting for you.”
Orsini sat at the desk by the window, reviewing documents.
Orsini reading documents was shocking enough, but what stunned her even more was—
He tied a cravat? Orsini?
The deep blue cravat, neatly knotted beneath the stiff collar of his shirt, suited him so well it was almost startling.
That wasn’t all.
His usual messy hair had been combed back smoothly, and he wore a perfectly fitted shirt buttoned all the way to the top.
If he simply added a vest and jacket, he could walk straight into a palace banquet.
This is the first time I’ve ever seen him dressed so properly.
The meticulous, almost measured neatness left Canna flustered. Even the sunlight melting across his forehead looked perfectly arranged.
“What is your business?”
For a second, the question Did you sneak into my room and steal my fortune? felt incredibly stupid.
The Orsini before her now was so aristocratic that he didn’t look like the type who would commit such a crude act.
“I have something to ask you.”
“Then make it quick.”
Orsini glanced at the pocket watch on his desk.
“I must attend your lover’s engagement ceremony soon.”
Ah. The engagement ceremony.
So it was today.
That explained the formal attire. That explained why Lord Esthea had helped him dress.
Without realizing it, Canna muttered in displeasure.
“Don’t call him my lover. He isn’t anymore.”
Orsini sneered, eyes still fixed on his documents.
“You must not have known. It seems the Crown Prince Alexei kept it well hidden.”
He was frighteningly quick-witted.
“Serves you right. Did you run away from Addis just to receive treatment like this?”
“I didn’t come here to talk about that.”
“Of course not. You wouldn’t come to me to spout such trivial nonsense. So what is it?”
“A thief broke into my room. My entire fortune disappeared. Was it you?”
“Crazy bitch.”
For the first time, he lifted his gaze to her.
Canna flinched. The eyes that met hers were far too dark.
Like lava that had boiled bright red before burning down into pitch blackness.
What is this?
Would the eyes of someone being led to the stake look like this?
Canna was taken aback by the despair that twisted and crushed those eyes.
Yet Orsini’s attitude remained exactly as usual. He was simply his ordinary, ferocious self.
“If you’re going to spout rubbish, get out.”
Canna stayed silent for a moment.
She soon shook the question from her mind.
Whatever pain Orsini was suffering, it was none of her concern.
She stated her purpose plainly.
“The thief broke the lock with his bare hands.”
Orsini closed his mouth. Canna continued.
“In this palace, the only one capable of that is you, isn’t it?”
“Why must it be only me? Your ex-husband is here as well.”
Ex-husband. Sylvien?
Canna frowned. Now that she thought about it, Sylvien must have come here too.
“There’s no way he would do something like that.”
“You must mistake him for a gentle scholar because Duke Valentino walks around smiling elegantly every day.”
Orsini mocked her and flipped a page.
“On the battlefield, the duke is no different from me.”
Suddenly Canna remembered the feel of Sylvien’s body.
Indeed, beneath that crystal-like face, his physique was a weapon in itself.
“……Anyway, it can’t be him. He doesn’t even know I’m here. And even if he did, he would have no reason to do it.”
“I know nothing about it. So stop talking nonsense and get lost.”
“That’s not my only business here.”
Canna took a step forward.
One step. Then another. She slowly approached the desk where he sat.
“I have something to ask you.”
The closer she came, the whiter the hand holding his fountain pen grew.
Yet his eyes remained stubbornly fixed on the documents.
“You said you saw someone who looked exactly like me not long ago, didn’t you?”
“……Yes.”
“Can you tell me about that?”
“……”
“Orsini.”
When she spoke his name, he let out a sigh that sounded like a groan.
“I’m busy right now.”
His voice sounded as if it had been scraped out by force.
“I’ll write it down in detail and send it to you later. So leave.”
“……”
“Get out of my sight.”
It sounded like both an order and a plea.
For some reason it seemed terribly fragile. She felt she shouldn’t push any further.
Sensing an ominous premonition, Canna held her breath and stepped back. She left the room without a word of farewell.
Why is he acting like that?
What on earth had happened between him and her doll?
Juhwa, what exactly did you do to Orsini?
She had no way of knowing what had occurred that day to change him so drastically.
Just then, as Canna walked down the corridor, her feet suddenly stopped.
A man was approaching from the opposite direction.
The moment she saw his face, Canna froze completely.
He seemed backlit by a halo. The light streaming through the windows looked as though it poured onto him alone.
Sylvien.
Sylvien Valentino was drawing near.
Canna quickly pulled her hood even lower.
I must not be recognized…
But the corridor was narrow and long, with nowhere to hide.
She lowered her head only enough to avoid seeming suspicious.
Please. Just walk past.
Canna kept her eyes politely downcast as she walked.
Thud. Thud.
The footsteps grew closer. As the distance shrank, Canna held her breath.
He approached little by little, right up to her.
And then…
He passed by.
Canna barely suppressed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness. It seemed he hadn’t recognized her.
……But why couldn’t she hear any more footsteps?
A chill crawled up her spine.
Canna swallowed hard and focused on the sound.
Sylvien’s footsteps had stopped.
“One moment.”
Instead, his voice rang out. He was calling her.
“You there. Just a second.”
Canna’s heart plummeted. Still, she pretended not to hear and kept walking.
“Please wait a moment.”
Yet Sylvien relentlessly closed the distance. He approached with impossible speed.
“……!”
Canna bit down hard on the inside of her cheek. His large hand had settled on her shoulder.
Has he lost his mind?
Sylvien, touching a stranger’s body without permission? A man with such severe mysophobia?
Dizziness swept over her from the shock.
When steady pressure entered the hand gripping her shoulder, her mind grew even hazier.
It seemed he intended to forcibly turn her around to see her face.
This was completely unlike the ever-courteous Sylvien.
“Let go.”
Canna distorted her voice as much as she could.
“How can you place your hand on a lady you’ve never met? It is improper.”
“I know.”
What? He knew?
“I apologize.”
Sylvien calmly admitted his rudeness. Then, with perfect composure, he declared.
“I will commit one more discourtesy.”
Sylvien spun Canna’s body around.