Chapter 4
When Lydia’s name was brought up, Yuaan set down his fork and knife. With an expressionless face, he picked up his napkin and neatly dabbed his lips.
“What a trivial topic, Lady Inohater.”
His voice carried no emotion, but his ash-gray eyes held a chilling sharpness.
It was the look of a man displeased with the turn of conversation. Serret met his cold gaze. He seemed irritated because someone had brought up the woman he loved.
It was the same in her previous life. Yuaan always disliked hearing Lydia’s name from Serret’s lips.
How dare you talk about my woman? Was that what he was thinking? Serret let out a quiet laugh.
“Isn’t it best to marry the one you love?”
“Serret.”
Baron Inohater called her name in a stern tone.
But Serret did not look away from Yuaan’s face.
“You’re quite the romantic, Lady Inohater.”
“And are you not, Your Grace?”
“Do you think a man can be the same as a woman in this matter?”
“So you mean women who dream of romance are narrow-minded and foolish?”
Serret smiled faintly as she spoke.
“You’re twisting my words.”
“If that’s not what you meant, then I apologize.”
“Do you wish to marry someone you love, Lady Inohater?”
Yuaan’s eyes sharpened, his gaze fixed on her face as if he wouldn’t let a single flicker of her expression escape him.
“Yes. I want to marry someone I love, and who loves me. I suppose I’m narrow-minded and foolish enough to dream of such things.”
For an instant, Yuaan’s composed expression collapsed. But he quickly restored it.
“If I were to misinterpret your words, Lady Inohater, are you saying you love someone other than your fiancé?”
“Cough!”
Baron Inohater’s coughing broke the air — a cough born of sheer embarrassment. His face darkened rapidly. This was the most exhausting meal he had endured in years.
“……”
Serret did not answer Yuaan. To her, nothing was as foolish as love.
Loving her husband had earned her death by poison immediately after childbirth. To Serret, love only made people stupid and narrow-minded.
“I’d like to hear your answer, Lady Inohater.”
Yuaan pressed again, uncharacteristically persistent.
“In that case, will you annul the engagement?”
Serret asked, meeting his gaze directly.
“Oh, Serret! Please!”
The baron, worn to the bone, finally raised his voice at the table.
“No.”
Yuaan answered firmly, without sparing the baron a glance. His tone was sharp with finality.
“How generous of you. To take as your wife a madwoman who loves another man.”
“Hahaha…”
The baron gave a half-crazed laugh, as if his mind had left him.
“Think nothing of it.”
Yuaan calmly repositioned his utensils on the plate, signaling the end of the meal.
And so, what was a dreadful dining experience for Baron Inohater finally came to a close.
Serret stared vacantly out the carriage window.
Inside the rattling carriage, each jolt sent her mind back to the moment she drank the poison. She remembered the sensation of her insides being shaken apart.
It had been brief, yet vivid enough that even now she felt the poison coursing through her body.
With a shallow sigh, she pulled her gaze away from the window. Opposite her, Yuaan was leafing through documents.
The thought of how vast the Frectuster family’s enterprises were made Serret frown.
“Are you unwell?”
Sensing her eyes on him, Yuaan lowered the papers and looked at her.
“No. If anything, Your Grace must be uncomfortable.”
“I wouldn’t say so.”
He closed the folder as he answered.
“The carriage must feel small compared to a duke’s.”
“The station isn’t far now.”
He checked his pocket watch. The carriage was indeed cramped, but his tone implied she needn’t concern herself — they’d be disembarking soon.
Serret didn’t care whether he was comfortable or not. She spoke what was on her mind.
“The only reason I’m accompanying you to the capital is because of the imperial summons I cannot refuse.”
“……”
“I still wish to break off the engagement. I hope Your Grace will respect that.”
Yuaan frowned at her words.
“And what is your sudden reason for wanting this annulment?”
“I don’t wish to interfere in your life.”
More truthfully, she didn’t want to stand between him and Lydia. In this life, she wanted no ties to them.
“That’s an odd thing to say.”
“What’s odd about it?”
Her brow furrowed.
“It sounds as though Lady Inohater believes she could have great influence over my life.”
He leaned back against the seat, speaking lazily, as if to say she was no more consequential to him than a pen rolling across the desk.
“……”
At that, Serret’s face flushed. She had briefly forgotten what sort of man Yuaan Frectuster was.
He was the kind who treated his wife as mere furniture, just another possession meant to fill his mansion.
“I dislike when my plans go awry. You would do well to keep that in mind.”
“Then let me be clear as well. Whatever role Your Grace expects me to play in your plans, you’d be better off finding a more naïve young lady.”
Serret’s tone was firm. She knew why he had chosen to marry her.
Society gossiped endlessly that the emperor had opposed Yuaan’s relationship with Lydia, forcing them apart. The precise reason wasn’t known, but many assumed it was concern that Lydia would be hurt by Yuaan’s cold temperament.
Thus, unable to be with Lydia, Yuaan must have thought that anyone else would do. And at that time, Serret Inohater happened to catch his eye.
When he proposed to her, she hadn’t known of his history with Lydia. She had only been thrilled — not realizing she was nothing more than Lydia Elliot’s substitute.
“I doubt you’ll find anyone more naïve than Serret Inohater.”
Yuaan smirked faintly.
“You’ve misjudged me, Your Grace.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Entirely.”
Her reply was resolute. Just then, the carriage stopped at their destination, and the door opened.
Yuaan glanced at her, then stepped out first. He turned and extended his hand to her.
Serret hesitated briefly, then took it and descended. His hand, unlike his demeanor, was warm.
The moment she stepped down, Hanna came running toward her.
“My lady!”
Hanna’s face was bright with excitement, a wide smile blooming at the thought of traveling by train.
“Thank you so much for bringing me.”
“That’s the fourth time you’ve said that, Hanna. Enough thanks.”
Serret whispered softly.
In her previous life, she had gone to the capital alone, leaving Hanna behind. She didn’t care to remember the humiliations she had suffered in a strange place without an ally by her side.
Yuaan approached and offered his arm. Without thinking, Serret placed her hand on it — a habit ingrained from her past life.
“This is your first time on a train?”
“Yes—no.”
She corrected herself hastily. In her past life, she had often taken the train between the capital and the estate. At first it was exciting, but soon the long journeys grew tedious.
Yuaan raised an eyebrow at her odd reply but simply smiled and led her into the station. They boarded the first-class carriage.
The private cabin occupied an entire train car, spacious and luxurious, with beds, a long sofa, and a dining table.
“My goodness!”
Hanna gasped in awe, her mouth wide open. Serret smiled faintly at her reaction. She herself had once been just as amazed. Trains she’d seen in books and magazines had never looked like this.
Yuaan and his aide moved to the table, while Serret and Hanna sat together on the sofa.
Serret removed her bonnet and set it aside, glancing toward Yuaan as he conferred with his aide.
Only a handful of people in the Ailun Empire could afford such accommodations. Seeing Yuaan among them reminded her once more of just how extraordinary he was.
“My lady, this is wonderful. What a luxury! Thank you so much for bringing me.”
Hanna’s cheerful voice pulled Serret’s gaze away from Yuaan.
“Do you like it that much?”
“Yes, of course! I’ll write to my siblings and brag about it.”
Hanna nodded eagerly, her cheeks flushed with excitement. She looked so lively. The thought that someone so full of life would die young from illness filled Serret with sorrow.
“Hanna, I’ll make sure you live.”
Serret clasped her hand tightly.
“Why, am I dying?”
Hanna giggled.
“You mustn’t die.”
Serret gave a troubled smile.
“Don’t worry, I won’t, ever.”
Not knowing her mistress’s true feelings, Hanna hummed a tune happily, gazing out the window.
Serret looked at her tenderly, then turned her eyes back to Yuaan.
He sat at the table, flipping through documents while listening to his aide. His handsome profile as he worked made Serret wrinkle her nose.
Wherever he was, Yuaan shone too brightly. He was the kind of man who drew every eye. Even royals seemed to fade beside him.
And beside such a man, Serret Inohater was painfully ordinary.
In her previous life, that contrast had made her easy prey in society. A plain woman married to a brilliant man — a perfect target for whispers and mockery.
Often, she had even been branded a clueless villainess for “getting in the way” of Yuaan and Lydia’s supposed love.
“Horrible,” Serret muttered under her breath.
“Hm? What is?”
Hanna glanced at her curiously.
“Nothing. Forget it.”
She shook her head.
If she wanted to avoid such misery again, she had to break off this engagement. Clenching her fist, Serret stared intently at Yuaan, immersed in his work.
