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Chapter 12
“Is it always like this?”
After a long silence, Kadiya spoke to me. Realizing what she meant, I shook my head.
“No. This is my first time experiencing something like this too.”
“…That’s a relief.”
Watching Kadiya sincerely say that, I let out a quiet laugh.
Truly, I had no idea why Ains had suddenly started acting like that.
“From the looks of it, it seems the Duke has feelings for you, Cecilia.”
“That can’t be.”
I denied her words immediately.
There was no way Ains had feelings for me. It was nothing more than him venting his frustration over a situation he couldn’t control.
Perhaps, for the past ten years, Ains had simply thought of me as his possession. That must be why, after the divorce, seeing me interact with others bothered him.
“And if what he just showed was because he likes me, I’d rather refuse it.”
“Well… he was pretty rough.”
At Kadiya’s agreement, I smiled faintly.
After walking for quite some time, we finally arrived in front of the fountain.
Kadiya looked like she wanted to escort me all the way back to my residence, but I had already arranged for a hired carriage before leaving.
“Then, I’ll see you next time.”
“Alright. Thank you for becoming my friend, Cecilia.”
With that brief encounter coming to an end, I parted ways with Kadiya and began heading back to my residence.
It had been an unusually exhausting day.
Ains Graham stood frozen in place, staring at the backs of Cecilia and Viscount Moldovan as they walked away.
“Friend,” he thought?
Even now, he couldn’t shake the hollow feeling brought on by that word.
There was a clear reason why Ains was wary of Viscount Moldovan and wanted to keep him away from Cecilia.
As far as he knew, Kadiya Moldovan and her group of so-called friends were infamous for being lowlifes.
They were known for repeatedly seducing wealthy noblewomen and draining them of their money.
He had known about them for some time, but since they weren’t the type to pose any threat to him, he hadn’t bothered to get involved.
But at the ballroom celebrating the Emperor’s birthday, Ains had witnessed something unexpected.
Cecilia and Viscount Moldovan, talking intimately together on the terrace.
The moment he saw them, he instinctively knew—Moldovan’s next target was Cecilia. Without a doubt, he had approached her to covet her wealth and seduce her.
The one million gold Ains had given Cecilia as alimony—
Even for him, it had been a burdensome amount to pay all at once. For parasites who lived off women, it was an unimaginable fortune.
Fearing that Cecilia might lose all her wealth to Moldovan, Ains had meddled in something he normally wouldn’t. That had led to the current situation.
At the ball, he had returned Moldovan’s coat and warned him not to do anything pointless. Yet only a few days later, he saw Cecilia and the viscount walking together in the city.
They had been smiling warmly at each other.
Why did it irritate him so much to see Cecilia smiling so innocently, unaware she was being deceived?
Ains still couldn’t define it clearly.
No—he had roughly defined it.
It was irritation at the thought that the fortune Cecilia had received as alimony might end up in the hands of a complete stranger—especially a notorious wastrel.
On top of that, Cecilia had once been his wife. If rumors spread that she had been scammed and lost everything to such a man, it would inevitably damage his reputation as well.
That was why he had wanted to tell her the truth and separate her from Moldovan.
But strangely, when he stood before the two of them, he couldn’t speak rationally.
It felt as though his brain had frozen.
Perhaps it was because he had witnessed Cecilia calling Moldovan by his name—and him doing the same.
Just a few days. And they were already on a first-name basis.
Cecilia Marves, of all people?
The Cecilia Marves he remembered was not someone who opened her heart easily.
Even as a child, she had only shown him a smile after seeing him several times and growing accustomed to his face.
And yet now—
Only a week since the Emperor’s birthday, and she was calling Moldovan by his name, as if they had known each other for years.
And then they declared themselves friends.
Cecilia Marves and Kadiya Moldovan.
A woman who had once been the most noble lady as the Duchess of Graham… and a thug who preyed on noblewomen, becoming friends?
It was unthinkable.
And it should never happen.
Even if—hypothetically—Moldovan had changed his ways and sincerely wanted to be her friend.
Though, of course, that would never happen.
Ains let out a hollow laugh as he stared at the now-empty space where the two had disappeared.
“Jackson.”
Suddenly, Ains called his aide.
Jackson, who had been waiting nearby, approached and bowed.
“Investigate Kadiya Moldovan thoroughly and bring me a report.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“And her associates as well.”
“Yes, Duke.”
After confirming Jackson’s immediate response, Ains slowly turned around.
“Miss, a pamphlet from the auction house has arrived.”
Rivet received the document from another maid, checked its contents, and respectfully handed it to me.
It was a pamphlet from the Replin Auction House, which I had visited not long ago.
Rivet must have brought this to me because mana stones had been listed.
At the moment, I was using one high-grade mana stone per week.
I currently had seven high-grade stones and four top-grade ones left.
Since I didn’t know how many more I would need or when they would next appear on the market, I had to acquire as many as possible whenever I could.
With that in mind, I began to carefully go through the pamphlet.
“…What is this?”
But among the listings was something completely unexpected.
“Miss, it says a Tiria Flower will be up for auction this time at Replin.”
As I stared blankly at the page, unable to believe what I was seeing, Rivet smiled brightly and confirmed it.
Even as I listened to her, it felt unreal, like a dream, as I stared at the illustration in the pamphlet.
A Tiria Flower… at auction?
“When is it?”
I quickly checked the cover.
May 23rd.
“This Friday.”
According to Rivet, the auction would be held this Friday.
One week from now.
A surge of hope filled me, and I stood up.
I couldn’t just sit still. Even though there were a few days left before the auction, I had to win the Tiria Flower.
The average winning bid for a Tiria Flower was 300,000 gold.
I currently had about 1,130,000 gold.
Since I hadn’t spent much after the divorce, my funds were largely intact.
Even if the price broke records, it had never exceeded 400,000 gold.
It was well within my reach.
“I need to see Doctor Watt.”
Doctor Watt was the most renowned physician in the capital and had been my personal doctor since my time at the Graham estate.
It might be a bit early, but I needed to visit him and ask him to prepare to make a cure for Trintz Disease.
With Rivet’s help, I quickly prepared and left the residence.
After calling for a hired carriage, I headed toward Doctor Watt’s clinic.
Even the rattling of the carriage felt pleasant today.
“Miss, we’ve arrived.”
After a while, I stepped out of the carriage and saw the clinic in front of me.
I immediately went inside.
The door opened with a clear chime.
“Oh my, milady!”
Doctor Watt, who had been inside, recognized me and jumped to his feet.
“Why didn’t you call for me instead of coming all the way here yourself, milady?”
“Have you been well?”
“Thanks to your concern, I’ve been doing well. Please, come inside. I’ll prepare some healthy tea for you.”
“Thank you.”
Following his guidance, I went further inside and sat on the sofa.
He placed a kettle over the fire.
“Is something urgent? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?”
Adjusting his glasses, he looked at me with concern.
I shook my head.
“No, quite the opposite. I came because I have good news.”
“Good news…?”
“I think I’ll be able to obtain a Tiria Flower this week.”
“A Tiria Flower?”
Doctor Watt looked at me in shock.
“That’s wonderful! I was worried we might never be able to get one.”
“Thank you. That’s why I came—to commission the medicine for Trintz Disease.”
“Then I’ll need to start procuring the other ingredients right away.”
As he chuckled, the water in the kettle began to boil. Soon, he poured tea and set it on the table.
“I’ll send the flower as soon as the auction ends on Friday. How long will it take to complete the medicine?”
“If I begin gathering the other materials now, it should be ready by next week.”
“That’s a relief.”
“It truly is. However, milady, as you know, while medicine made with the Tiria Flower can treat Trintz Disease, it will leave significant aftereffects.”
“…I know.”
Forcing the body’s mana to activate would place a heavy burden on it.
Typical symptoms included headaches, nausea, coughing up blood, dizziness, difficulty breathing—and in some cases, uncontrolled surges of mana.
The side effects carried serious risks.
But it was still far better than letting the disease worsen until the body stiffened and died.
“I’ll inform you as soon as the medicine is ready.”
“I’ll leave it to you.”
“Of course.”
Looking at Doctor Watt’s warm smile, I took a sip of the tea.
The warmth spread through me, and for a moment, all my tension melted away.
