“I’ve been rude in many ways today.”
Ariella forced the afterimage of his firm pectoral muscles out of her mind, bowed, apologized, and hurried away.
At that moment, Calsian hastily grabbed her sleeve.
Startled, she turned around and saw a dark expression on his face.
“Is it really alright for you to leave like this?”
He hesitated, then voiced his concern again. He was afraid that Ariella might get another injury like the one on her leg if she went back like this.
“I’ll be fine. I have these with me.”
Ariella lightly lifted the gift box she was holding in both hands.
It was one of the dresses ordered from Korkos Atelier, which she had left in the townhouse in case of an emergency. If she took this back and made the excuse that she had been to the atelier, she could avoid suspicion.
Of course, no matter how plausible the excuse was, she wouldn’t be able to avoid punishment if the Duke found anything even slightly displeasing.
“Don’t worry, nothing will happen.”
There was no need to tell him all these truths. So, Ariella smiled brightly and replied calmly.
Nevertheless, Calsian’s expression showed no sign of brightening. His hand, clutching her sleeve like a child, remained as it was. It was as if he knew she was lying.
“…You said you didn’t want me to interfere with your injuries.”
He opened his mouth with a troubled expression.
“Do you have any intention of changing your mind?”
Calsian hoped to be actively involved in Ariella’s revenge. He wanted to catch and kill the bastard who had hurt her, no matter what. Even if it meant using all his power and wealth.
But Ariella shook her head firmly at him.
“Yes. I’m sorry, but I do. As I said earlier, the help I want from Calsian is of a different kind.”
The revenge she wanted was not like that.
Ariella wanted to punish the wrongdoers with her own hands. She wanted to see the hateful people suffer as they were caught in the traps she had made herself. Even if the process inflicted another wound on her, she didn’t care.
Only then would she be able to escape the nightmares that tormented her every night.
Only then would she be able to take a step towards a new life.
For that reason, Ariella rejected Calsian’s offer. Calsian had a separate role to play in her revenge. It was different from what he wanted, but it was also a very important role.
“Please believe me. I’ll definitely do it without borrowing the Ashbon name.”
Calsian was silent as he looked at Ariella, who answered firmly.
He knew that she was willing to endure any pain to achieve her goal. He knew very well that if he tried to stop her, she would see even him as an obstacle to overcome.
That fact was miserably painful, and he wanted to stop her from willingly heading towards pain, but…
“Yes, I will believe you.”
He couldn’t.
He didn’t know the details of Ariella’s situation, and he didn’t dare to stop her.
Also, the look in Ariella’s eyes, as she said she would definitely do it, had a different kind of vitality than he had seen in the past few years.
Her eyes, shining brightly with intense will, were so noble and beautiful… Calsian couldn’t bring himself to stop her.
“One thing… May I ask you a favor?”
“Yes, what is it?”
Instead, he could only beg.
“Please, don’t be hurt where I can’t see you.”
Please don’t be hurt, please don’t bear all the pain alone. He prayed very earnestly.
