🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 19
Cassian Sarkis’s daily life was flawless.
Everything went according to his wishes—except for his gradually failing heart.
But recently, a troublesome issue had begun to disrupt that perfect routine.
“Um… Young Viscount, it seems Miss Damia won’t be able to see you today.”
It was his temporary fiancée, Damia Ponti.
“…Again?”
She had already visited the Viscount’s estate several times, but each time he could only see Romy’s troubled face instead of Damia’s.
She wouldn’t even meet a perfectly suitable fiancée like him and just turn him away?
“She… she’s been very busy these past few days. Perhaps she’s not feeling well.”
“How unwell exactly?”
Romy hesitated, moving her lips without answering.
The fact that an answer didn’t come immediately made it obvious that her illness was just an excuse.
“Then what has kept her so busy?”
“Just… this and that…”
Romy fidgeted nervously, rolling her eyes.
“If she refuses to come even when called, I’ll go get her myself.”
He couldn’t keep falling for such obvious tricks forever. Up until now, he had held back because Damia was hiding something from him.
“I need to see her face at least today, so step aside.”
“B-but—”
“Step aside.”
“…She isn’t at the estate?”
He asked, wondering if that was the case, as Romy desperately blocked his way.
Romy sealed her lips, confirming his suspicion.
‘She’s really not home?’
Had she really been like this all these past days? Where on earth had she been going?
She had no friends and hated going out!
“Then I’ll wait until she returns. I happen to have something to receive anyway.”
The remedy was highly effective even in small amounts—he wasn’t truly lacking.
Cassian only needed an excuse to see Damia. Of course, it wasn’t that he wanted to see her for its own sake.
Damia Ponti was the only person capable of making his heart race.
After not seeing her for a while, he began to wonder if it had all been a delusion.
‘Damn it. No matter how I phrase it, it’ll sound strange.’
“Ah! Young Viscount, could it be because of this?”
Romy pointed to a wooden box in the corner of the parlor.
“Miss said you should have this when you arrived. It’s a stamina potion to drink after training, apparently.”
Cassian opened the lid. Inside were about ten neatly arranged glass bottles filled with purple remedy.
‘She went to this much trouble?’
It seemed Damia wanted to keep this emotional distance unless he approached honestly first.
Had unrequited feelings started to weigh on her?
He still wasn’t ready to tell her the truth—she had become far too important to him.
He also needed to consider how to adjust the terms of their contract.
Moreover…
‘If I tell her exactly how I feel, she’ll think I’m crazy.’
That his heart raced simply from holding her hand—no matter how he explained it, it would sound ridiculous.
‘Still, I need to make a decision. I’m the one who’ll regret it more.’
Biting his lips tightly, Cassian braced himself against the truth he refused to admit.
“Damn it!”
Marquis Soro threw his glass. Red wine splattered across the carpet.
“Are you saying she’ll really come in person?”
“Yes, Marquis.”
The messenger bowed, delivering the news.
“You don’t trust me, then?”
“No, not at all. It’s just… the Yongsal Herb is dangerous, so she seems to want to assess the situation herself.”
The marquis groaned in displeasure.
It wasn’t a response he could easily dispute—the Yongsal Herb was dangerous and not easily destroyed.
Burning it was the best solution, yet even its smoke was lethal to dragons.
Moreover, the horrifying plant appeared in different forms depending on the era.
“I should have just killed that Ponti girl, so her precious footsteps wouldn’t be wasted!”
“No, Marquis. Our master wishes to meet her.”
“Why bother with that insignificant girl?”
“Please remain calm. We still need to investigate the background.”
“….”
“Our master wishes to bring her to the Nest. Even if traces are left along the way.”
“…To the Nest?”
“Yes. He also ordered that the work be carried out as quickly as possible.”
A cunning smile spread across his lips.
“Tsk… A grown girl, and she’s getting her hands dirty with soil.”
While inspecting the herb garden, an unwelcome scolding reached her ears.
“Oh? You’re up early today. Not very father-like.”
Damia intercepted her father before he reached the flower beds.
A white snake slithered across the garden. Feeling sorry it was confined, she was letting it take a walk.
Over time, she had grown fond of it and even named it Ruby, after its pretty pink eyes.
“Romy.”
Damia signaled, and Romy quickly cupped Ruby in her hands.
Though she had been afraid of snakes as a citizen of the Empire, she had grown used to it.
“The young Viscount has been absent for a while.”
Damia nonchalantly brushed dirt off her skirt.
“Only a few days. He must have been busy.”
Cassian, who frequently visited the Viscount’s estate, had stopped coming when Damia refused to meet him.
It was frustrating how he hid his suspicions while pretending otherwise, but she wasn’t avoiding him intentionally.
She had been busy traveling between the village and her garden.
Unfortunately, Cassian often arrived when she was making remedies or out in the village.
‘Even if he’s a trustworthy contract partner, there are things I want to hide.’
‘Has he already lost interest in me?’
“Well… I’m not sure. But he always sends gifts, ones I really like!”
Her father sighed disapprovingly.
“Tsk, just a pile of things that are hard to cash. What good is that?”
“You’ve been dissatisfied all this time, haven’t you?”
“Yes, of course… Wait, Young Viscount! Why are you here without notice?”
He was standing at the garden entrance.
“The butler guided me here.”
“Welcome. Ah, I should have come to greet you.”
Cassian’s handsome face had grown thin over the past few days, but his gaze remained sharp.
“Many of the gifts were personally chosen by my mother, and yet the Marquis wasn’t satisfied. I regret that.”
Since sending the marriage proposal, Cassian had begun observing proper etiquette toward the Marquis.
Still, the father remained uncertain in his position.
“Th-that wasn’t my intention! Everything was more than enough… I just worried Damia might forget her place.”
“I never regret giving my fiancée anything. Don’t you feel the same, Marquis?”
Cassian’s sharp gaze silenced the awkward response.
“Oh… of course, my only daughter…”
No one seemed to believe his words, and silence fell.
“I… missed my medicine time, so I must go quickly.”
Unable to endure the uncomfortable tension, her father excused himself.
“Ah. Wishing you a speedy recovery.”
Cassian politely replied, though he clearly knew it was just an excuse.
“Thank you, Young Viscount.”
After her father hurried away, Damia finally spoke.
“What brings you here, Young Viscount? As you can see, I’m rather busy. If it’s not urgent, perhaps another time…”
“You said to keep some distance, but that’s impossible.”
Cassian cut her off firmly.
Her father’s steps faltered as he left the garden.
“I didn’t want to admit it, but I realize I need you. I’ve painfully understood this over the past few days. I can’t imagine life without you now.”
“…Excuse me?”
Though it shouldn’t have sounded like a confession, it did.
‘He’s always so careful with the remedies… Is he worried I might stop getting them?’
Damia glanced at him in surprise. As expected, his footsteps had come to a halt.
“W-what are you saying all of a sudden?”
“Let’s discuss the rest somewhere we can be alone.”
He slowly gestured toward the carriage.
