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81.
I was certain I had never ‌‌‌seen this woman before. Yet as her figure vanished abruptly, an overwhelming longing crashed over me like a tidal wave.
In that moment, the Duke's fiancée's retreating silhouette overlapped with the image of my beloved from my dreams.
'Her name... I must ask for her name at least!'
Beyond knowing she was Julian's fiancée, I couldn't even recall her name.
Zeppelin hastily raised his hand, but Octavio stepped before him.
"Count, the preparations for the Hall of Light are complete. Shall we escort the ‌‌‌‌distinguished guests there at once?"
Octavio gently placed his ‌‌hand on Zeppelin's outstretched arm ‌‌‌‌and whispered into his ear.
"Surely you don't intend to ruin a perfect party." ‌‌‌‌
At his words, Zeppelin's arm fell limply to his side.
Perhaps... it was merely my imagination.
My beloved was here—Alicia, smiling with such innocent ‌‌purity.
I convinced myself ‌‌that my fragmented memories were playing tricks on me.
"Yes. Let us proceed. Have the guests informed that they are to make their way to the Hall of Light."
"Very well, Count."
Octavio withdrew with a satisfied smile.
Moments later, all the lights in the Ballroom extinguished.
"Ah!"
Gasps of wonder erupted from the bewildered guests at the sudden darkness.
Beyond the glass windows, brilliant light cascaded down.
The Hall of Light revealed itself in magnificent splendor amid the manicured Garden, bathed in dazzling illumination.
The glass dome of the hall, ‌assembled from countless small glass fragments, gleamed with the radiance of an enormous diamond.
While everyone gazed transfixed at the Hall of Light, Zeppelin, standing at the top of the staircase, spoke.
"This is the evening's greatest spectacle. ‌‌Allow me to escort you all to the Hall of Light!"
Cheers erupted from every corner.
The crowd surging toward the entrance resembled starving rats scrambling toward food.
Zeppelin gazed into empty space with the detached expression of a master tossing scraps to his animals.
Though this was the moment I had long anticipated, joy eluded me entirely.
My attention was fixed elsewhere.
On the Duke of Johannes and his fiancée.
The afterimage of beautiful golden hair rippling like waves, of deep blue eyes that seemed to consume me, lingered in my vision.
Though our eyes had met but once, my heart felt as though it were plummeting to the earth.
I wanted to see the face hidden beneath her mask.
As I thought of her, a name buried in the depths of my consciousness slowly surfaced.
"Rebecca..."
I murmured Rebecca's name.
That name halted Alicia's steps as she ‌‌‌gathered her skirts to descend ‌‌the staircase.
Alicia's face drained of all color.
* * *
The twisted ankle had been nothing but a pretext to escape the Ballroom.
Rebecca and Julian hurried to where the carriage awaited them.
From this moment forward, time was of the essence.
The two climbed urgently into the House of Johannes carriage, its crest concealed.
The carriage came to a halt on ‌‌‌a sparsely populated forest path not far from ‌‌the Count's Mansion.
As Julian peered through the curtains, surveying the surroundings, Rebecca hesitantly posed a question to him.
It wasn't a true marriage, but a contract marriage was still a marriage.
Rebecca was terrified of what Julian, soon ‌‌‌to be her husband, would think of her meeting alone with another man without his knowledge.
"You weren't angry that I was alone with the Emperor?"
Julian's gaze, which had been fixed on the forest path shrouded in darkness, turned toward Rebecca.
Under the weight of his penetrating stare, Rebecca's shoulders instinctively tensed.
The shadow of the past crept toward her with sinister ‌‌intent.
'Why was I talking to a strange man?'
'Zeppelin, it's a misunderstanding. I simply dropped my handkerchief....' ‌‍
'Silence! You dropped it on purpose, didn't you? Acting like a wanton woman—you deserve punishment today. Alice, come ‌here at once!'
'No! Zeppelin!'
My breathing grew ragged. This cursed past seized me regardless of place or circumstance.
Though I told myself ‌‌‌Julian would never be like that, my body reacted before ‌‌‌reason could intervene.
Rebecca squeezed her eyes shut. ‌
Whatever expression she saw on Julian's face, she feared she would misinterpret his intentions.
Rebecca trembled like a frightened chick caught in a sudden downpour.
Sorrow settled into Julian's eyes as he witnessed her state.
Julian spoke his final words in a tone that concealed his emotions as much as possible.
"I wasn't angry."
Though his voice was remarkably gentle, Rebecca's trembling ‌‌hands did not cease.
Julian longed to embrace her and offer comfort, yet he hesitated to do so.
The slightest touch seemed as though it might shatter her.
Julian clenched his fists tightly.
"Even if I felt jealousy in that situation, it is not your fault."
Rebecca slowly opened her eyes.
Julian's warm golden eyes, now calm and composed, blinked slowly as if to soothe her.
Julian spoke once more, his words firm as a wedge driven home.
"It is not your fault."
Rebecca's trembling gradually subsided.
Confirming that she had calmed, Julian knelt before her.
And he took her hand.
"Now, only ‌those who cherish and truly love you remain by your side. So whenever such vile memories surface, I wish for you to think of your people ‍‌instead."
At Julian's words, Rebecca recalled her family.
She thought of Kanna and the people of Obelia, of Eustaf, Croa, Robert, and Julian, who now gazed at her before her eyes.
From the hand clasped in his, she felt ‌‌the rough calluses formed by drilling with sword and ‌‌‌gun.
Unlike the noble reputation of the Duke of Johannes, his hands were weathered and coarse.
But it was warm, just ‌‌like when I first held her hand.
Rebecca's rigid lips melted ‌like frozen earth thawing after a long winter.
A smile gradually bloomed ‌‌‌across Rebecca's ‌‌lips.
Her true feelings, hidden all this time, flickered softly between her serene, folded eyes.
Julian's eyes widened.
His chest stirred at the tenderness in Rebecca's gaze, brimming with affection.
Her voice, emerging from lips curved in a smile, was utterly sweet.
"Thank you for saying that. Julian."
Following the gentle caress of her hand against his own, a tremor seemed to ripple through his entire body.
Julian's pupils trembled violently.
"Rebecca..."
Overcome by the heat, Julian's body slowly leaned toward Rebecca.
As he drew closer, the glimpses of Rebecca's true heart that had been seeping through vanished in an instant.
Rebecca pressed down firmly ‌‌on Julian's shoulders as he tried to rise.
Julian's eyes, finding nowhere else to go, remained fixed on her face, which wore a cold smile.
Rebecca spoke in a hushed voice.
"Now ‌‌then, take off your clothes."
* * *
"This sculpture expresses a yearning for freedom. The delicate wave ‌‌patterns stretching toward the sky are truly magnificent, are they not?"
Contrary to Alicia's concerns, Zeppelin was explaining the artwork to the gathered guests with a radiant, animated expression.
'Rebecca...'
The murmur Zeppelin had uttered in the ballroom earlier kept circling through Alicia's mind.
Alicia worried that if Zeppelin heard Rebecca's name, his ‌‌‌memories might return.
That's why she had made every effort to avoid mentioning Rebecca's name.
But where on earth had he heard that name to be reciting it so tenderly?
What if he hadn't heard it ‌‌‌at all?
What if Zeppelin ‌had recalled ‌‌‌Rebecca on his own?
Alicia brought her fingernails to her lips, anxiety gnawing at ‌‌‌her.
The nails she had meticulously maintained were now perfectly ‌‌‌manicured, bearing no trace of her rustic origins.
Just as she was about to bite her carefully groomed nails, Octavio pulled her hand away.
"How much more education do you need before dignity finally takes root in that body of yours?"
Octavio's navy blue eyes pierced Alicia with sharp reproach.
Alicia quickly cornered Octavio and spoke in a frightened voice. ‌‌‌
"Octavio! Zeppelin called out Rebecca's name. What if his memories come back?"
"He called out Rebecca's name?"
Octavio ‌‌‍stroked his chin.
He seemed lost in thought for a moment, but soon he laughed with a hollow sound.
"So what? He merely spoke a name, that's all."
"So what? ‌‌‌If Zeppelin recovers his memories, it won't be good for either me or you."
"Speak properly, Alicia. It's you who stands to lose, not me."
"Octavio! ‌‌‌You promised you'd make me a ‌‌‌Countess!"
Irritation flashed across Octavio's face.
"Yeah. That damned promise is exactly why I'm playing along with this ridiculous charade. It would've been far easier to just dispose of you and find a new woman."
Alicia ‌‌‌stared at Octavio with a ‌‌‌‌‌look of shock before her eyes widened.
"If you're going to be like that, I won't stay silent either!"
"And what exactly can you do?"
"I'll tell everyone about your relationship with Fabiola."
Octavio's eyebrows shot up.
Alicia continued.
"Did you think I wouldn't notice? That ring you always wore—Fabiola had it around her neck. And when Zeppelin cast her out, you hid her in your own Estate."
'This cunning little rat...'
Octavio considered disposing of Alicia right then and there, but reconsidered.
Alicia had endured potent toxins for her ambitions.
She'd abandoned all pride and even mimicked Rebecca.
She was a woman with utility—give her what she desired, and she'd gladly ‌‌‌move mountains for him.
Octavio's hostile gaze softened, and a smile played at his eyes.
"You've become quite resourceful, haven't you? Did you have someone investigate?"
"I didn't need anyone. ‌‌‌‌It was simple deduction."
"Whether you tell the Count or not doesn't matter much, but if he regains his memories, it'll certainly become troublesome. I'll need to prepare countermeasures."
"Countermeasures?"
"Let's make good use of your meager talents. Your tearful acting is quite masterful, after all."
Alicia furrowed her brow ‌‌‌at Octavio's words—whether they were praise or insult, she couldn't tell.
She glanced around briefly before speaking.
"By the way, do you know anything about ‌‌‌‌‌the Duke of Johannes's fiancée?"
Octavio's gaze fixed on the upper floor.
"No. I saw her for the first time today. There's information I don't ‌‌‌‌have? The Hounds at Duke of Johannes Castle need to be replaced."
"That woman... didn't she seem familiar?"
"She was wearing a mask. How would you know who she is?"
"But Octavio, she had blonde hair and blue eyes."
At her cautious words, Octavio let out a scoff.
He confirmed the servants moving busily on the upper floor, then turned his head toward Alicia.
"Surely you're not suggesting it's Rebecca? By that logic, thirty percent of today's guests would all be ‌Rebecca."
The runaway Countess has returned.
E-book ‌‌‌publication.

January ‌12, 2022
Author.

Long Night Sky
Published by.

Desert Fox
Published ‌‌at.

Woongjin ThinkBig Co., Ltd. ‌‌‌
Submissions.

naver.me/54VzzLSn
Blog.

blog.naver.com/wj_fennecfox
Twitter.

@wjt_fennecfox
‌‌‌‌‌

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