Chapter 3
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The Male and Female Leads Broke Up - Episode 3
"Since the Duke pays me no attention whatsoever, I had no choice but to resort to such measures!"
I let the words spill from my lips, as though blaming him for my own actions.
At my words, a weary sigh escaped from Kane's lips.
"I can no longer tolerate the Lady's outrageous conduct. Rather, I refuse to witness it any longer."
"It was a joke, a mere jest!"
"A jest?"
"Yes, yes! You know better than anyone that such tactics have no effect on you, don't you?"
"Are you claiming this was a jest?"
"Yes, I was merely grasping at straws—"
Whether my invocation of the word "jest" further inflamed his anger, Kane regarded me with contemptuous eyes before his gaze drifted into the void for a moment.
<line id="17">Even I felt a flicker of fear in that instant.
Even I couldn't help but feel a little scared at that moment.
When his eyes returned to meet mine, all trace of fury had vanished, replaced by his characteristic cold composure.
"Let us dissolve our engagement."
And what he said was precisely that—a proposal to break the engagement.
"What are you saying..."
Outwardly, I wore an expression of shock, yet inwardly I was celebrating in triumph, knowing I had finally succeeded.
My joy was so overwhelming that I had to consciously suppress the urge to let my body quiver with excitement.
But from this moment forward, everything truly mattered, and I could not afford to relax my vigilance.
I had to exercise the utmost care in every word, every gesture, every expression—ensuring my performance remained undetected while somehow achieving my objective.
"Are you truly suggesting we dissolve our engagement merely because I placed a single bottle beneath your bed? Do you truly believe such a trivial matter warrants a broken engagement?"
"I have fallen in love with someone."
"Pardon?"
I stared at him with an expression of utter bewilderment, as though I had heard something utterly absurd.
"Duke... I must have misheard you, surely? Didn't I?"
Kane remained silent.
"This makes no sense. I must have misheard. Or perhaps I'm dreaming."
I continued to deny reality, my body trembling slightly.
'Wow, my acting has really improved.'
Even I had to admit—my current performance seemed genuine rather than mere acting.
"Lady Heitz."
"I can't do this anymore. I'm far too exhausted to remain here. I wish to return home."
With those words, I even covered my ears to signal my unwillingness to hear more, turning toward the door.
Yet my pace was deliberately unhurried, and inwardly I was desperately pleading for him to stop me.
"Our conversation is not yet finished."
Phew, what a relief.
Kane had reached out to stop me from opening the door, but then hastily withdrew his hand and positioned himself in front of it instead.
'Am I really that repulsive to him?'
He seemed to despise me so thoroughly that even a fleeting touch was unbearable for him.
'Well, that works out perfectly.'
I was exhausted from coming here every day anyway, and each moment felt like a waste of time.
The thought that I wouldn't have to see his face after today actually lifted my spirits considerably.
"How could you do this to me?!"
So I needed to end everything today.
That's why I decided to push him even harder.
"You know how I feel. I've harbored feelings for you for over ten years now. So how could you... how could you...?"
"From the beginning, I never had any feelings for you."
Good, good. Keep going, push further.
"I knew... I knew you didn't care for me. That only I held you in my heart. But I'm fine with that. I can endure and bear it all! As long as you stay by my side like this, I don't mind. So—"
"We're finished now."
We never even started, so what's there to end?
"Is it Adela Byon? The woman you love?"
I fixed him with an intense stare and demanded an answer.
He seemed unaware that I knew about the female lead's existence—shock flickered across his eyes for just a moment.
"How did you find out?"
"I know everything about you. Everyone you meet, everywhere you go, even what you ate today, what time you woke up, what time you went to bed—everything."
Kane frowned as if fed up with my words, but since this was exactly what I wanted, I paid no attention to his expression and continued.
"Your Grace, it's common for married nobles to take mistresses. I'm not so rigid. It's just a passing fancy, after all. A momentary whim. You'll come back eventually, won't you? So I can wait until you return to me. Because I'll be your end."
If someone's obsessed, they should recite lines like these.
Besides, if you treat the person you love as a mistress, wouldn't that naturally provoke anger?
I recalled the countless novels I'd read before and delivered the prepared lines one by one, ensuring he'd grow even more disgusted with me.
"So please, don't speak of breaking the engagement. Alright? Your Grace. I love you. I love you so much. I'll love only you until the day I die. No, if you were to pass first, I'd follow you, and I'd be buried alive beside you."
'Was the "buried alive" part too much?'
No, I need to go that far. That's what will make him truly sick of me.
As expected, the phrase "buried alive" had the desired effect—Kane's expression twisted as if he'd heard something horrifying.
I approached him gradually while delivering a desperate false confession of love tinged with obsession.
After all, nothing is more repulsive than having someone you despise draw near.
Sensing my intention, Kane raised his hand to stop me.
"Don't come any closer."
"Your Grace...!"
"Since you already know, I'll tell you plainly. My feelings for Adela Byon are nothing like the passing fancy you describe. From the moment I first saw her, my heart was stolen. Now she is my entire world. Since that day, everything revolves around her alone, and I cannot even imagine a world without her. That's why there is no room in my heart for anyone else."
He countered my love confession by pouring out his feelings for Adela as if to overwhelm me.
The rapture in his eyes when speaking of Adela was so evident that it was clear to me at a glance—he loved her deeply.
'Quite the romantic, isn't he? Quite the romantic indeed.'
"This heart will never change. For me, my first and last is not you, but Adela Byon. So please, let me go now."
The moment his words ended, I acted as though I'd received a devastating shock, letting my legs give way beneath me as I collapsed to the floor.
"You can't do this to me... If you have even the slightest respect for me, you cannot treat me this way..."
Then, with an expression as though the world were crumbling around me, I spoke each word with a voice laden with despair.
"My lady, get up."
Though I'd half-expected it, Cain merely told me to rise without offering to help me to my feet, showing no intention of lifting me up.
"How could you do this to me?! Duke, what am I lacking? What do I lack compared to the Byon Family lady! Sob...!"
I wailed more intensely, pounding the floor with the desperation of someone who couldn't bear the injustice.
Yet he remained unmoved.
I refused to give up, continuing to murmur through sobs that "this cannot be."
All while hoping to appear as someone who had suffered a tremendous shock.
But hidden beneath the hair that had fallen across my face as I kept my head bowed, my hands were moving quite frantically.
Since this entire situation was merely an act for me, I felt no genuine sorrow and couldn't produce real tears, yet I needed to appear as though I were crying.
So I had no choice but to pinch my eyes mercilessly behind Cain's back to force tears to flow.
After a bit more time had passed, I felt I'd done enough.
Once tears had come sufficiently, I decided it was time to stand.
The real reason I decided to rise was that my feet were beginning to go numb, losing sensation.
I had no desire to stumble awkwardly on deadened legs and fall.
I rose weakly from the floor, still keeping my head bowed low.
As I stood, I made sure not to forget a slight stumble to see how he would react—and true to form, Cain pretended not to notice.
I was grateful that this man was so heartless and cold.
Had Cain shown even a hint of pity toward Belita, I might not have made it this far.
But he was exactly as I'd anticipated—cold and ruthless.
Now it was time to bring this performance to its finale.
For a beautiful ending, I transformed my expression from one of sorrow, despair, and emptiness into one of anger, indignation, and fury, glaring at him with eyes wide open.
"Unbelievable! You're truly too much!"
And with an exaggerated gesture, I let out a hollow laugh.
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