HST 62

Chapter 62

“This damn bastard!”
Eric’s neatly styled hair fell limply as he spoke.

“Your Grace!”
Eric’s bodyguards charged into the house, weapons raised toward Demon. Eric quickly swept his hair back and gestured for them to stand down. The guards lowered their weapons but kept their eyes on Demon warily.

Eric slowly straightened his clothes and addressed Demon.
“It’s been a while.”

Unlike Eric’s calm greeting, Demon was visibly furious. He had just overheard what Eric said to his daughter, so his anger was understandable. To make matters worse, Eric had not only impregnated another woman and asked someone else to raise her child but had also mentioned a miscarriage! Demon could never forgive seeing his cherished daughter treated this way.

“Quite a warm welcome, isn’t it?”
Eric’s face showed no trace of a smile as he shook the damp clothes off.

“Welcome? Get out immediately!”
Eric frowned at Demon’s emotionally charged outburst. No matter how composed Eric tried to remain, the other had no intention of calming down.

‘…Seems like continuing this conversation today is impossible.’
Sighing, Eric glanced at Demon, who looked ready to kill him at any moment. Then, he fixed his gaze on Rose, who watched him with a cold expression.

‘…What could have changed you so much?’
This was a person who used to threaten that she would die without him. Eric had grown weary of her obsessive tendencies, but now her attitude had shifted so drastically that he felt utterly confused. Rose pushing him away felt strange and unfamiliar.

He had assumed that simply giving her attention as she wanted would restore things to normal—but now, that certainty was cracking. He had the unsettling feeling that Rose’s rejection was genuine.

Eric felt a strange, sharp pain in his chest, unlike anything he had experienced before. The prickling sensation was deeply irritating.

‘Maybe it’s from the cold water… I don’t feel well.’
Placing a hand gently over his left chest, Eric grimaced, then spoke calmly to Demon.
“I’ll leave it at that for today.”

From behind him came Demon’s cursing, but Eric ignored it. Before stepping out the door, he turned back to look at Rose.
“I’ll be back. We’ll talk then.”

“Never show that disgusting face here again!”
Demon shouted, attempting to block any chance of Eric returning. Eric ignored him to the very end and left the house.

“Meow~”

“Oh, look at the cuteness.”
Back in the capital, Doana was spending time with a kitten she had brought from the South, unaware that Eric had visited Rose.

The trip to the South had been a complete mess. A woman named Beliar and her nanny had interfered with every little thing Doana did.

“Ugh, it still annoys me just thinking about it.”
Smiling at the kitten, she quickly hardened her expression and spoke sharply. A loveless political marriage and meddling strangers—she had no reason to tolerate them.

“Besides, Eric acted like a completely absent-minded person during the whole Southern trip. I didn’t even get a proper conversation out of him.”
Normally, Doana could have given him a proper scolding, but during the Southern trip, Eric seemed off, distracted, as if his mind had been elsewhere.

Doana had no idea that Eric’s odd behavior during the trip was all because of Rose. He had been lost in memories of her throughout the journey. His immediate visit to Rose after returning from the honeymoon was for the same reason—he had felt her absence deeply.

“Kitty, this is your big sister’s room. Isn’t it pretty?”
Doana lifted the kitten and giggled.

“Home is the best. My stomach hurt the whole time in the South, but now that I’m home, it’s perfectly fine.”

As Doana played with the kitten, the head maid knocked and entered.

“What is it?! I just started resting. Why are you coming in?”
Doana shouted at the maid, who calmly delivered her message.

“Countess Tersia has come. She’s looking for you, Doana.”

“Ah, that old fox is here.”
At the mention of ‘Tersia,’ Doana’s expression hardened. The woman who had made her life miserable at the wedding had come to see her.

“Why does she want me?”
“She brought many gifts for you.”

“…What?”
Doana couldn’t believe her ears. The same woman who had humiliated her at the wedding was now acting like this?

Hmmm… Doana narrowed her eyes, trying to read Tersia’s true intentions. Yet, just from the story, it was difficult to discern what she really wanted.

“Fine. Prepare me.”
Doana quickly got ready and moved to the reception room.

As promised, Tersia had brought a huge pile of gift packages. Doana glanced at her lazily.

Seeing Doana, Tersia set down the teacup she was holding and welcomed her with a high-pitched voice.
“My dear! Come in quickly.”

It wasn’t the voice of someone intending to leave Doana alone on the honeymoon. Tersia’s eyes curved in a crescent as she spread her arms toward Doana.

“You called me, Mother?”
Doana remained cautious, observing Tersia carefully.

“Yes, did you enjoy the trip? Come sit here.”
Tersia beckoned Doana to sit beside her, rather than across from her.

“Are you upset about the wedding? I’ll explain everything.”
Tersia acted like a tender, middle-aged woman, speaking with a seemingly heartfelt tone.

‘Hmph. Let’s hear what you have to say.’
Doana sat beside Tersia, keeping a proud air.

“I should have explained properly. The servants told me you were under a big misunderstanding?”
Tersia acted as if she had no intention behind her actions.

“Relax your face. You look too scared to speak. Now, let’s deal with these gifts first. I personally bought them all for your future child.”

Doana reluctantly opened the gifts. They were all baby items, all in blue, even though the gender wasn’t known yet, as if pressuring her to have a son.

From the beginning, Tersia had no intention of letting Doana’s child survive—regardless of gender—but she had to appear nurturing for appearances’ sake.

Doana’s expression was indifferent. She had no interest in baby items.
‘What the hell… all baby stuff. Nothing for me.’

Seeing this, Tersia smirked knowingly.
“And lastly, this is a gift for our dear little one.”

Tersia handed a luxury-brand box to Doana.
“This is the most popular brand among noble ladies these days. I got it with difficulty for our little one.”

“Is it for me?”
“Yes, it’s yours, Doana.”

“Oh, I thought you meant someone else by ‘little one.’”
Tersia laughed at Doana’s boldness.

“Of course, the young Lady of the Marquisate is also our little one, but you are one too.”
Tersia smiled, speaking words she didn’t mean.

Doana untied the ribbon and opened the box. It was a luxury handbag, carefully wrapped in protective layers.
‘Oh… it’s actually pretty.’

“Do you like it?”
Doana’s lips twitched slightly, and she replied with a pout:
“Well… it’s pretty.”

Just then, the reception room door swung open.

“Oh my, has our little one arrived?”
Tersia jumped up, contrasting sharply with her previous seated posture.

“Mother, you’re here?”
Beliar entered the room.

“Yes, did you enjoy your trip?”
Tersia held Beliar’s hand carefully.

Doana lifted her head proudly, showing off the gifts beside her.
‘Look at how much Mother loves me.’

“Mother, thank you so much for all these gifts for me and my child. I’m truly touched.”
Doana spoke a bit louder than before.

“Beliar, don’t be jealous. I got a gift for you too.”
Tersia handed her a box identical to Doana’s.

“This is an Ermea bag. You know it’s a difficult design to get.”

Doana wondered if Beliar’s bag matched hers. She smirked inside:
‘Pfft, that’s terrible. So small compared to mine.’

Beliar looked at Doana’s bag and smirked slightly, but still said politely:
“Thank you, Mother.”

“Oh, I forgot to mention. We should clear up our misunderstandings now, Doana.”
Tersia smiled, though her eyes were full of contempt.

‘That old fox! She timed this to speak with Beliar nearby.’
Doana’s suspicion was correct. Tersia acted innocent but brought up the wedding incident.

“I truly wanted to apologize. I didn’t intend any harm…”

“Mother, really, it’s okay now. Let’s stop talking about that.”
Doana tried to cut her off, but Tersia ignored her.

“Well, you know, she thought it was her wedding day too.”
Tersia laughed, holding her belly.

“I couldn’t explain properly, so Doana misunderstood. I am very sorry. If she grumbled at you during the honeymoon, please understand.”

Beliar smiled faintly, having endured a frustrating honeymoon because of Doana. Doana, desperate to relax, had been constantly nagged by her nanny to deal with her.

Beliar quietly muttered:
“Ah… so that’s why she was wearing that ridiculous white dress?”

Doana blushed at Beliar’s teasing.

She grabbed the bag Tersia gave her and stood abruptly.
“I’ll go first. I’m not feeling well. Mother, please have the servants put the baby items in my room.”

She left swiftly, clutching the bag tightly.

‘I’m holding myself back because of this bag…!’
Doana never imagined that even in the story world, there might be counterfeit bags. She restrained her anger, focusing on the luxury bag in her arms.