CH 47

“Is there traffic?”

“With so many people invited, it could have.”

Leaving the preoccupied Herwin behind, the friends talked about Lucia. As they wondered when she would arrive, Ethan spotted someone in the distance.

“Huh? Isn’t that Lucas?”

His friends turned their heads. Sure enough, there was Lucas in the distance, chatting with others.

Next to him was a young woman.

“If he’s here, I’m sure Lucia is too.”

“I don’t see Lucia.”

“I don’t think she’s with Lucas, because he’s been with Ares Lydia the whole time. I think he came up to the Islands today, didn’t he, Arista?”

Arista snapped out of her reverie at Herwin’s question and nodded hesitantly.

“Yes, he was in the Duchy with my brother.”

“Oh, you said he was an aide to Ares?”

It dawned on his friends that Lucas was an aide to Ares.

“Still, those people over there. Aren’t they Count and Countess Agnes?”

This time Brian spotted John and Julian on the other side. The entire Agnes clan had arrived at the party, except for Lucia.

“……Yes. Lucia must have arrived, then.”

“The hall is so big, she might not be able to find us.”

The chattering friends squinted even harder, trying to find Lucia.

Herwin also scanned the ballroom for Lucia.

There were several women with Lucia’s brown hair within the walls, but he didn’t bother to look closely.

“Huh?”

A voice sounded out of nowhere.

“What’s wrong?”

“…… over there. That’s Lucia, right?”

He followed Arista’s finger and saw Lucia’s face through the crowd.

“That’s right, Lucia.”

“……But who’s next to her?”

After a moment of elation at finding Lucia, his friends were horrified at the presence of the man next to her.

* * *

Just three minutes before her friends spotted her, Lucia walked into the party with Bern.

“Do you mind if I introduce Lucia to my friends tonight?”

Bern asked, and Lucia looked at him for a moment.

“If you don’t feel comfortable, you can decline.”

Bern waited for her to answer, wanting her to feel comfortable.

Lucia thought for a moment. Bern seemed to want to introduce her as his fiancée.

She hadn’t exactly decided whether or not she wanted to get engaged yet, but from the looks of it, she would be engaged to him at some point.

She was there to announce her engagement to him anyway, so there was no reason for her to refuse.

“Yes, that’s fine, I’ll also introduce you to my friends.”

“Really? Lucia’s friends. That sounds exciting.”

Smiling back at him, Lucia spotted her friends in the distance, and even Herwin in the middle.

As soon as she saw him, her heart sank.

“There he is.”

Lucia’s voice trembled for a moment, but she managed to look back at Bern and grip his arm tightly.

Bern matched Lucia’s stride. As they neared their friends, she could see the panicked expressions on their faces.

Tension rose to the crown of her neck. Lucia felt the weight of Bern’s earrings and trained herself not to tremble.

“Guys, it’s been a while.”

“Huh? Uh-huh. It’s been a while, Lucia.”

Unlike Lucia, who was relaxed, her friends were in a tense mood. Arista, who was smiling, looked a little stiff and asked cautiously.

“Lucia, who’s next to you?”

Lucia’s friends are confused when they see her partnered with a man they don’t recognize.

Herwin’s red eyes widened in surprise as well.

He seemed to be pressuring her to say something. Lucia tried her best to avoid his gaze.

“This is the man who will be my fiancé.”

Ethan and Brian froze with their mouths agape, Christine’s eyes widened to glassy ones, and Arista covered her mouth with her hands.

The friends were stunned when Lucia’s answer was exactly what they expected, that she was cozy with a guy.

However, their gazes naturally turned to Herwin for a moment.

Herwin glared at Bern, who was sitting next to Lucia.

Lucia, who was deliberately avoiding his gaze, didn’t see his expression.

Only Bern, who received enthusiastic attention without knowing why was embarrassed.

“Aren’t you guys a little too surprised? You’re being rude to the other person.”

“Oh, I’m sorry…it was a bit unexpected.”

“I’m sorry if you were offended by us. I mean……”

“It’s Bern Casper. I’ve heard a lot about you from Lucia. You may see me around a lot.”

He looked vaguely familiar… and then the surprise returned to his friends’ faces as they realized it was Marquis Casper.

Bern held out his hand politely. But Herwin frowned and looked away from his hand with a stiff expression.

Lucia was puzzled by the look on Herwin’s face. Even if he was cold to a stranger, he wouldn’t be rude to her.

Ethan grabbed Bern’s hand before he could respond.

“Hello. I’m Ethan Belluna. I’m Lucia’s classmate at the academy and a close friend.”

One by one, they greeted each other, starting with Ethan.

“I’m Arista Lydia.”

After Arista’s introduction, it was Herwin’s turn.

When he shot a wary glance at Bern, Arista poked him in the side. Finally, Herwin spoke.

“I’m ……Herwin Phoenaeus.”

“Nice to meet you all.”

It should have been offensive, but Bern was still smiling. Lucia felt unnecessarily sorry for him.

“I was surprised to see you two together, Lucia, you should have told us.”

“Yes. It would have saved us the embarrassment.”

“I’m sorry to tell you now. It hasn’t been that long since I met Bern and…….”

Herwin’s eyebrows waggled at Lucia’s use of Bern’s name.

“How did you two come to meet if you had no contact with each other?”

Christine asked, unable to contain her curiosity.

“We got to know each other through a date. I had an emergency and was late for the appointment, and Lucia waited for me, which is a godsend because I might have missed out on such a gorgeous woman.”

It was an unabashedly flattering compliment. Lucia nudged him, telling him not to get too carried away. Bern gave a small laugh.

To anyone who saw them, they looked like lovers, and it was both strange and fitting that their friends stole glances at them.

“Date? When the hell did…….”

“We should probably get going. We have to go say hello to the others. We’ll see you later.”

Before Herwin could finish his sentence, Lucia interrupted him.

At a loss for words, Herwin tried to grab Lucia, but she had already left with Bern.

Herwin looked at the back of Lucia’s head, holding Bern’s arm with a stunned face.

“No way, I didn’t expect Lucia to meet him.”

“I thought Herwin and Lucia were getting married.”

“Does that mean they’re done?”

Brian, Ethan, and Christine whispered in low voices that Herwin couldn’t hear.

It was unthinkable. If they weren’t going to get back together, they’d expect the reason to lie with Herwin, but they hadn’t expected Lucia to be the first to strike.

Knowing how much she liked him, the shock didn’t go away.

It was the same for Herwin, who, like a disembodied spirit, could only look into the distance and see that Lucia was already gone.

Worried about him, Arista nudged him.

“Herwin, have you heard anything?”

“No …….”

“Really? I thought she might have said something to you…….”

Hearing Arista’s slurred words, Herwin suddenly remembered his last meeting with Lucia before heading north.

‘Later, we’ll meet with a smile on our faces.’

Lucia said with a strange expression as if she was crying or laughing.

‘Is this what you meant when you said to meet with a smile?’

Sure enough, Lucia was smiling, looking very happy with Bern.

Her unrequited love for him had completely disappeared.

He had hoped this day would come, but why couldn’t he smile?

If Lucia is happy with another man, he can be a true friend to her now. But for some reason, he can’t wish her happiness.

No, it was the man next to her that bothered him, and he couldn’t stand it.

He felt like there was a big hole in his heart like he was empty. Why did he feel this way?

His empty red eyes began to sparkle and become clearer. His eyes blazed, and his fists clenched.

“I’m going to have to ask her what happened.”

The friends swallowed hard at the sound of the low, eerie voice.

They wondered if this was the start of a fight between Herwin and Lucia.

* * *

Lucia clung to Bern’s arm like a dangling rope and hurried away from her friends.

‘I think my heart is going to burst.’

At the sight of Herwin’s distorted face and voice, she barely calmed her heart thumped like crazy.

It wasn’t a pounding from excitement, but from tension and fear.

She hadn’t been accused by anyone, so why was she so scared?

The more she listened to the pounding, the more her vision narrowed, and she felt like she was alone.

Lucia’s face paled, her hands trembled, and Bern put a hand on her shoulder.

“Lucia, are you okay?”

When Bern’s question didn’t bring her back to her senses, he quickly wrapped his arms around her shoulders and locked eyes with her.

“Lucia!”

“-Hmm.”

Lucia sucked in a sharp breath as if she’d stopped breathing, and Bern frowned as he realized she was in worse shape than he’d thought.

“Sorry. I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I didn’t say anything. You don’t look good, do you want to take a break?”

Staring at Bern, who was looking at her with concern, Lucia looked around.

The eyes of those nearby were focused on them.

“I’m fine, the party hasn’t even started yet.”

“But…….”

“I’m really fine, I’m just nervous.”

No matter how much Lucia smiled and said she was fine, Bern couldn’t seem to keep a straight face.

He glanced up for a moment to see where Lucia’s friends were.

There, Herwin, who was wary of Bern, was staring at this side.

He had a vague idea as to why Lucia’s mood had deteriorated.

There were many questions he wanted to ask, but he swallowed hard.

“Lucia, look at me.”

“What ……?”

Before Lucia could panic, Bern took her hands in his and forced her to look him in the eye.

“Look into my eyes and take a deep breath. Now, ssshhhh-“

Lucia nervously mimicked Bern’s deep breaths. After a couple of times, the thumping in her chest subsided.

When Lucia’s face turned red, Bern smiled sweetly. He gently brushed his fingers across her face.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Yes, I’m okay now.”

Her voice had been shaky, but now it was calm. Bern nodded, relieved.

He stood next to Lucia again and put her hand on his arm.

“If you feel nervous and out of sorts again, you can try the deep breaths I taught you. Or take my hand, and I’ll help you again.”

“Thank you, I’m so embarrassed, I feel like I’m just showing ugly sides… You were embarrassed by my friends just now, right? I guess they were very surprised because I didn’t tell anyone that I had a blind date.” 

Lucia regained her composure and told him what had just happened with her friends.

“No, that’s okay, that could be the case, and it’s the same with my friends. I didn’t tell anyone, just like Lucia.”

Bern whispered playfully in her ear. Lucia let out a small laugh, knowing he was doing it to break the tension.