Chapter 2
§ Present §
“Did you send the proposal?”
“Yes, I sent it first thing in the morning. I did send it, but…”
But…?
At the unfinished sentence, the Marquis turned his head to his aide, Kolabe. Kolabe Peroto looked somewhat skeptical.
“Do you think she will really accept it?”
“Yes, she will.”
After all, she herself had said she would gladly accept it.
She seemed unwell, but she was not drunk, so she would not retract her words.
Annecy Bethelgius, who had inadvertently thought of Goyo Rubiette, trembled slightly. It was because unnecessary thoughts had followed.
The Marquis muttered quietly.
“She’s bolder than I thought.”
“Are you talking about Lady Rubiette? She didn’t seem that way.”
“Appearances aren’t everything. I just tried to tease her a bit.”
What was he saying? Although the Marquis stopped speaking thoughtlessly, Kolabe had already heard what he needed to hear.
“Did you kiss her?”
“Not that far.”
“Then just a peck? It is unexpected, but who lives exactly as they look.”
The Marquis raised his eyebrows at his aide’s nonchalant response, as if it were no big deal.
No big deal? A kiss?
“Why are you acting like this? As if it were your first time.”
“…”
“Could it really be your first time? Unbelievable… You look like the most dazzling person in the empire, and at twenty-four, it’s your first time, even though just by looking at you, it wouldn’t be surprising if you had 2,000 lovers. If you have less romantic experience than me, this is really a pretty but useless fruit…”
“If you don’t want to never fall in love again, perhaps you should stop now.”
Indeed, Kolabe closed his mouth. Since he rarely got to tease the Marquis, he was somewhat excited.
“I am cautious. What’s good about being as light as you?”
“My romantic experience is just average… Being cautious is a good thing. Yes, the Marquis is right.”
Kolabe rolled his eyes. Kolabe Peroto was not a man of words when it came to pleasing the Marquis. Blatantly, he decided to change the subject.
“Anyway, the timing was good. To think she broke off her engagement with Young Duke Alte just in time.”
“Well, yes.”
“On that day, Young Duke Alte escorted her to the ball, didn’t he? It didn’t seem like they had a fight, but why did they break off the engagement? Should we find out if the rumors are true, that he had an affair with her younger sister?”
“Don’t be overly interested in other people’s private lives. It’s unbecoming.”
Ignoring his aide, who muttered sullenly that it wasn’t just anyone’s business, the Marquis leaned back in his chair.
Why did Goyo Rubiette break off her engagement with Terio Alte? Was there a need to think deeply about it? The Marquis recalled the events at the previous ball.
“That’s because she has a nasty personality.”
“Yes?”
“I’m talking about Young Duke Alte. When I saw him in person, he was like an old train. Lady Rubiette must have realized it late and hurriedly decided to scrap him.”
“His reputation is quite good. It’s not enough to be called scrap… If even Young Duke Alte’s personality didn’t please her, doesn’t that mean your proposal has no chance? You, Marquis, are more like an old train, or rather a ticking bomb.”
“Kolabe, do they sell spare necks in the capital?”
As if he had two necks, Bethelgius asked with a bright smile.
Kolabe had bought all sorts of things in the capital, but since he hadn’t yet found a spare neck, he had to be careful with his own.
“And can’t you tell from the fact that the young lady accepted my proposal? Even in the eyes of a wise young lady, I’m a thousand times better than a piece of scrap.”
“Oh, yes…”
Kolabe doubted whether she had really accepted the proposal, but he muttered to himself, as he had gained something from the previous conversation.
“Anyway, since you said she would accept, I’ll prepare for the wedding. I’ll schedule it for December as you mentioned.”
“Please do. Ah, the designer should be Brigitte rather than Ayle, as she’s thinner than I thought.”
“That’s sexual harassment, Marquis.”
“Alright, it seems like you picked a fight today, keep barking.”
“This time it was a joke!”
I was joking too. The Marquis responded nonchalantly as he stretched.
Glancing out the window, he saw the sun high in the sky. A sun in Solaris, how luxurious.
“And, just asking out of curiosity, Marquis, you didn’t propose because you have feelings for her, right?”
“Nonsense.”
“I thought so.”
Even if he had feelings for Goyo Rubiette, it would be mere sympathy. Falling for a woman he had met for only one day—what a fairy tale that would be.
Annecy Bethelgius was not someone close to fairy tales, and if he had to choose a genre, it would be horror-thriller.
“It’s not like that, so don’t worry.”
The Marquis answered firmly, almost excessively so.
Knock, knock. The sound of someone knocking on the door was heard. With the Marquis’ permission, the office door opened, and someone entered. It was Bled, who had delivered the proposal to the Rubiette family.
“You’re back early. Did you get a response?”
“Yes, as you mentioned, they accepted. They agreed to all your suggestions regarding the wedding.”
“My, she really accepted…”
“It’s only natural.”
After thanking Bled for bringing the response, the Marquis gestured for him to leave. However, Bled hesitated and didn’t leave. His gray eyes narrowed.
“Uh, Marquis.”
“Did the Duke of Rubiette attach any conditions?”
“No, that’s not it… When I delivered the proposal, there was a guest.”
A guest? That morning?
Thinking it might affect the marriage, Bled continued hesitantly.
“Yes, it was the young Alte. Young Duke Alte.”
“Terio Alte, you mean Lady Rubiette’s ‘former’ fiancé?”
Yes. Seeing Bled nod cautiously, the Marquis rubbed his forehead.
To cause such a scene on the terrace and then show up the next morning… The Marquis couldn’t help but sigh at Terio Alte’s proactive behavior.
“Ah, truly a piece of scrap.”
Excuse me? Ignoring the bewildered Bled and Kolabe, the Marquis picked up a long coat hanging to the side. The black coat he liked to wear was just flashy enough to intimidate others.
Where are you going? Kolabe asked reflexively.
“I hope you aren’t asking because you truly don’t know.”
“Sorry?”
“I don’t want to be sad because my aide is too stupid. I’ll be back soon, so handle the documents.”
Annecy Bethelgius left the mansion.
* * *
“Who did you say is here?”
Goyo asked again, hoping she had misheard.
But Annie cruelly confirmed that Goyo’s hearing was perfectly fine.
“Young Duke Alte. He’s been here since morning, waiting for you to wake up.”
“Terio knows I went to the ball.”
“He said he would wait until you woke up.”
Goyo let out a large sigh. Normally, she wouldn’t sigh in front of others, but right now, it was all she could do to avoid frowning.
In her daily life filled with accumulating stress, she didn’t have the luxury to restrain herself even in front of someone she didn’t need to be cautious around.
“He’s not here to see Melissy, is he?”
“No, Miss Melissy went out for an errand.”
“She left the house in the morning?”
“Yes, well… I heard she went with the madam to get her dress for the engagement ceremony fitted.”
Come to think of it, the ball was yesterday. With Goyo Rubiette’s conditions with Terio fulfilled, it was time to prepare for the engagement ceremony.
Still, did they have to go out at dawn? The dress shop might not even be open at this hour.
If they were going to leave, couldn’t they have waited a bit and taken her fiancé with them?
Musing over this pointless thought, Goyo swallowed her regret.
“Miss, aren’t you going to get ready?”
“Get ready… Yes, I should.”
Goyo muttered gloomily. Terio Alte said she had been acting strange recently, but now that was her line.
Terio Alte had become strange. It should have been enough to break the engagement and let him get engaged to the one he desperately wanted, so why was he ignoring Melissy and coming to see her?
Even thinking back, Goyo hadn’t done anything particularly strange in the past few days. She hadn’t spoken much, using the excuse of being tired, but she really had been feeling unwell. She had felt a cold coming on last night, though it had disappeared by morning.
“Could you bring me some clothes, something simple… preferably something that looks like I’m sick.”
Even if she hadn’t been sick, she couldn’t remember what normal behavior would be at this time. The days of getting along well with Terio Alte were a distant past.
Goyo sighed again.
* * *
“Is your head okay?”
Why did it sound like an insult?
Goyo nodded awkwardly at Terio’s concern.
Thank goodness, Terio mumbled, fiddling with the back of his head and looking down at the floor. He seemed somewhat remorseful about what happened last night, as he couldn’t meet her gaze.
“I’m sorry about yesterday. I had a bit to drink, you know how it is, Goyo. When I get nervous, I’m too weak to alcohol and make mistakes. Your shoulder, it’s not bruised or anything, right?”
“I’m fine. Did you come to apologize for that?”
“That’s part of it, but also…”
Terio let out a long sigh.
“I think we need to talk more.”
“Talk about what, Melissy? Melissy went out to get her engagement dress fitted.”
Should I tell you where? Goyo wanted to say this and send Terio away, but that wasn’t the right answer. Terio’s face hardened slightly.
“That’s not it right now. We have more to talk about than just Melissy.”
What else could there be between Goyo Rubiette and Terio Alte besides Melissy Rubiette?
Goyo looked at her ex-fiancé with indifferent eyes.
“Goyo, did I do something wrong? At first, I thought you were mad because of Melissy, but it’s strange. You were the one who first suggested breaking the engagement, and you really… didn’t seem to care.”
“Is it strange that I don’t treat you with the same intimacy as before?”
“…Yes.”
Though she couldn’t smell any alcohol, it seemed Terio Alte was still drunk. Did he not listen to a word she said yesterday?
Goyo felt beyond incredulous, almost nauseated. She tried not to glare at Terio and composed her outward expression as much as possible.
“Terio, we’ve been friends since we were young. Then our feelings changed, and we became lovers, and until recently, yes, we were engaged.”
“Are you upset because the engagement is broken? Do I make you uncomfortable?”
“You think… that we can just go back to being friends after breaking off the engagement.”
How could he think so conveniently? The taste in her mouth turned bitter.
She remembered the day Terio first confessed his love. Goyo Rubiette had been flustered, angry, and fearful of losing her friend.
If he had always assumed their friendship was guaranteed, what did Terio think when Goyo got angry and scared that day?
Goyo had thought Terio Alte’s confession was brave. But looking back, it wasn’t courage. It was the simple-mindedness of someone who believed he had nothing to lose.
Where had the delicate and considerate Terio Alte gone? And who was this man sitting before her?
I really have no judgment, do I? Goyo thought with a bitter smile as she looked at Terio.
“Our friendship ended when we started dating, Terio.”
“What?”
“I’m not your fiancée anymore, nor your lover. And even before that, I wasn’t your friend anymore.”
Goyo slowly closed and opened her eyes. Her dark eyes were calm, as if looking at a stranger, and Goyo Rubiette said her farewell.
“So, Young Duke Alte, I hope you won’t visit me privately again.”