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Chapter 001
Dorothy’s mother passed away after leaving behind the words, “Live happily.”
Orphaned at a young age, Dorothy became engaged in the year she turned eighteen.
Her fiancé was her childhood friend, a boy named Charles.
But as time passed, a question began to surface in her mind.
Would she truly be able to live happily if she married Charles?
“Did you know? I’m rich now! I’m not some snot-nosed country bumpkin anymore.”
Dorothy had followed her fiancé Charles to Sailbrams just last year.
Not long after their engagement, Charles inherited a fortune.
The wealth of a family with no daughters passed down and down until it finally reached him.
Charles, who had once lived in a small single-room house in a rural village, suddenly became the heir to a grand mansion complete with servants.
“I told you when we got engaged, didn’t I? That I’d make you happy.”
“You really are lucky,” he said habitually.
That was when his attitude began to change.
He started spending money lavishly, and before long, rumors spread that Charles had taken a mistress.
“It’s comfortable being with you, sure, but my heart doesn’t flutter.”
At times, he even shouted at her or mocked her without a second thought.
“When I’m with other women, I get excited—my heart races. But strangely, not when I’m with you.”
Could she really be happy marrying Charles?
More precisely, she no longer felt certain that marriage alone would make her life special.
Around the time she was agonizing over this, Charles’s mother, Madame Marthe, spoke to Dorothy.
“Dorothy.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“There’s a smell when I’m with you.”
“A smell?”
“A rustic, country smell.”
Dorothy tilted her head, unable to understand what she meant.
“Maybe a cow pooped nearby.”
“…….”
“Should I close the window?”
Though Sailbrams was a city, it was not the capital. Just beyond the main roads were crops and livestock.
Thinking a cow pulling a cart might have relieved itself nearby, Dorothy asked politely.
Madame Marthe, at a loss for words, answered hollowly.
“……No.”
“Yes.”
As her dresses grew more extravagant, Madame Marthe’s attitude toward Dorothy grew sharper.
She had once liked Dorothy’s devotion to Charles—but no longer.
No matter how I look at it, my son is too good for her.
She felt they were mismatched in every way.
Wouldn’t it be better to be a little ambitious and have him marry a young lady from a noble family?
It felt like a waste for her only son to marry a woman from the countryside.
In the end, Madame Marthe suggested breaking off the engagement.
It happened to coincide with the very moment Dorothy was questioning marriage herself.
“Here. This is money.”
“Why are you giving me money?”
Caught off guard, Dorothy tilted her head.
Living with her future mother-in-law, Dorothy had learned a few things about her.
One of them was that Charles’s mother was extremely frugal.
She would never give Dorothy money personally without a special reason.
She must be entrusting me with something very serious.
Dorothy’s expression grew grave.
“With this money…”
“……Am I siphoning it off?”
There had already been an incident involving embezzling money related to stock shares.
Firmly believing she was being assigned that task, Dorothy asked seriously.
“That’s not it.”
“Then should I go pay off a year’s worth of credit?”
“That’s not it either.”
“Ah—then I suppose I should repay the money borrowed from acquaintances back home?”
“No!”
Cough, cough. Madame Marthe cleared her throat awkwardly.
“I’m talking about you, Dorothy. Take this money and break off your engagement with Charles.”
“Break off the engagement?”
Unaware of the thoughts troubling her own son, Madame Marthe lifted her chin and spoke arrogantly.
“You must promise that you’ll never come begging later.”
Paying money now—
Madame Marthe was seized by a thrilling sense of pleasure.
“It’s already over between Charles and you. All you have to do is take the money and leave.”
Perhaps she would cling to her skirt, tearfully begging.
If it came to that, maybe she could even allow her a concubine’s position.
Madame Marthe imagined Dorothy kneeling in tears.
But Dorothy’s reaction was completely unexpected.
“Sniff—Mother! Thank you so much for worrying about me like this!”
“What? When did I ever worry about—”
“Mother!”
With an emotional face, Dorothy stepped forward and hugged her tightly.
“Kgh—ck—cough—what kind of arm strength is this?”
Caught off guard, Madame Marthe struggled for breath.
“D-Didn’t you hear me? Break off the engagement and never think about marrying my son again—”
“I won’t.”
“And later, no changing your—”
“Not even if I die.”
Until now, Dorothy had never seriously considered breaking off the engagement.
Not only was it difficult, she also lacked the means to live on her own.
But an offer like this sounded rather appealing.
She would no longer have to suffer watching Charles with another woman.
Above all, she was deeply grateful that Madame Marthe had made the suggestion first, for her sake.
Surely this was the wisdom of an adult—reading her worries and stepping in first.
“Mother!”
“Ck—can’t breathe—”
Overwhelmed with emotion, Dorothy hugged Madame Marthe for a long while.
“Thank you so much, Mother! Be happy. May you be blessed.”
After taking the envelope of money, Dorothy packed her belongings and left shortly afterward.
Of course, she did not forget to express her gratitude.
“……Go quickly.”
“Oh dear, don’t worry about me!”
Dorothy mistook the drained look on Madame Marthe’s face for sorrow.
So before leaving the mansion for the last time, she even gave her a farewell hug.
After a tearful goodbye, Dorothy headed toward her newly rented home, feeling oddly hollow.
I should write Mother a thank-you letter later.
She was genuinely moved by Madame Marthe’s warm and considerate gesture.
To suggest breaking off the engagement just when she herself was agonizing over marriage—
How incredibly thoughtful.
The money Madame Marthe gave her was not enough for luxury, but more than sufficient for a comfortable life.
Thanks to it, Dorothy hired her first maid and secured a temporary place to stay.
It was a respectable townhouse in a bustling district.
As she was looking around the neighborhood with a full heart—
“Excuse me, miss.”
A man with blond hair and clear blue eyes spoke to her with a gentle curve at the corners of his eyes.
“If you don’t mind, could you hold my hat and cane for a moment?”
His tone was extremely polite and courteous.
He was tall and slender, wearing a crisp suit without a single wrinkle.
With his narrow-brimmed hat and cane, he looked like a gentleman straight out of a painting.
“Of course.”
When she readily agreed, the man thanked her and handed over his hat and cane.
Then he walked toward the house right next door to hers.
Is he my neighbor?
Dorothy felt secretly pleased at the thought of having such a kind neighbor.
Noticing her gaze, the man smiled at her from the front door and even waved leisurely.
An excited Dorothy waved back.
What kind of neighbor will he be? Surely kind and warm—
Bang!
Suddenly, the man took a deep breath and kicked the front door with all his strength.
The sturdy-looking door collapsed helplessly, dust rising into the air.
The loud crash startled nearby pedestrians.
Dorothy, equally shocked, stood frozen in place.
Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest.
“Thank you, miss.”
The man who had just destroyed the door approached her with a smile, seemingly unconcerned by the stares around him.
His steps were almost cheerful.
“They were things I cherished.”
“Oh—yes.”
“Why do you look like that? Are you feeling unwell?”
He approached her with genuine concern.
Still dazed, Dorothy examined his face.
Up close, she noticed his eyes were sanpaku.
“Just in case, it might be wise to get a checkup from a physician.”
He did not seem to consider, even for a moment, that she might be shocked because he had smashed a door.
“Well then, thank you.”
Waving at the stunned Dorothy, the man slipped right into the house next door.
