CH 111

At John’s words, the mood instantly sank. Seeing the duke and duchess with stony faces, Julian panicked and slapped John’s arm.

“Hahaha… honey, what the hell are you talking about?”

“I never once said I was in favor of this marriage.”

“But…….”

Julian pouted and tried to retort incoherently, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized he was right.

When Lucia had first dropped the bombshell that she was marrying Herwin, when she’d made the appointment with the Phoenaeus family, and when she’d said she was looking forward to her daughter’s marriage, John hadn’t shown any positive reaction.

Julian’s face paled as she realized he meant it.

“Oh, Father!”

Lucia reacted late, jumping out of her seat and calling urgently for John.

John glanced at Lucia, then turned to Hail and Scarlett.

“I apologize for having to tell you now when you’ve already been seated. I have no intention of marrying Lucia to Phoenaeus.”

The fact that he said Phoenaeus and not Herwin was proof that he did not accept Herwin.

Hail, who had stiffened at the realization that his precious son had been rejected, finally spoke up when he saw the serious look on John’s face.

“May I hear the reason for your objection?”

“I know how much the House of Phoenaeus has done for us, and I know how much the Duke and Duchess adore our Lucia. When all is said and done, we could not ask for a better match.”

“Then why do you object?”

John couldn’t open his mouth. For a moment, though, his gaze sharpened and he glared at Herwin.

“I have not yet forgotten what Phoenaeus did to our Lucia.”

Herwin flinched and clenched his fists. 

“If you remember, the first time we went to the Duke’s castle, Lucia made a confession to him, and at first everyone thought it was just a child’s prank, but from that day forward, Lucia has loved him for many years.”

Lucia wanted to refute John’s words, but she couldn’t. Her father’s back seemed particularly stiff today.

“There was an unsavory incident at the Academy, and to be honest, I didn’t realize that my daughter had been in love with Herwin since she was a child, but that incident led me to know her heart, and when you know her heart, there are things that are naturally visible.”

Lucia used to be the happiest girl in the world whenever the subject of Herwin came up, but there were times when the mere mention of Herwin’s name caused her pain.

As time went by, John noticed that Lucia did not like Herwin with just a pure heart.

“Lucia may have thought she didn’t show it, but her parents could see it. If she’s been in love with Phoenaeus since childhood, she’s been suffering alone for more than a decade. I couldn’t stand by and watch my daughter suffer, the smile wiped from her face.”

Everyone was silent, listening to John’s words. It was a heavy subject, and John’s concern for his daughter was palpable.

“That’s why I suggested that she’ll have a blind date, but instead she made us an offer.”

‘Only until I confess my feelings to Herwin for the last, last time….…’

Until then, Lucia had harbored small hopes. Deep down, she hoped that she would win his love. In the end, however, it was a different story.

“When Lucia came home in tears, I cursed myself for giving her false hope. If I’d just ignored her and done what I wanted, it wouldn’t have hurt so much.”

Lucia hadn’t left her room for three days, choking back tears.

John don’t know how many times he stood in front of Lucia’s room, and even though she’d gotten cleaner since then, to John she looked lifeless and dying.

“I can still see her crying in front of me. They say they’re on the same page now, but who knows when his heart will change?”

John had never trusted Herwin in the first place. 

He thought it perverse that he hadn’t accepted Lucia for more than a decade, only to change his mind when she told him she was getting engaged.

A heavy silence fell over the room, and no one spoke, only John. 

Honestly, he thought he was going to get a lot of flack for this, even if he did interact with them often, but after all, Phoenaeus is a duke and Agnes is an earl.

The Phoenaeus family might even impose sanctions on Agnes’ activities, but John was determined to bear all the consequences.

“I apologize for the delay, I should have told you sooner. Let’s just pretend this never happened.”

John rose from his seat and grabbed Lucia’s hand, pulling her to her feet.

Lucia stiffened and panicked.

“Oh, Dad…….”

“Let’s go.”

Herwin scrambled to his feet. His eyes locked with John’s for a moment, and he pursed his lips.

Part of him wanted to bring Lucia with him, but he knew that would destroy any chance of changing John’s mind.

When Herwin finally dropped his gaze, John looked away.

“Wait a minute.”

Hail opened his mouth. John tensed inwardly and turned away.

He stood up and slowly approached.

“I think we need to talk about this in more detail. Why don’t you talk to me alone?”

Hail remained calm, even though he rejected his son in front of him. After a moment’s hesitation, John glanced around.

Everyone was looking at him nervously.

“Okay, ……, let’s do that.”

Luckily, John didn’t storm out. The rest of them breathed a sigh of relief as John and Hail left the room.

Especially Herwin, who slumped in his seat and let out a surprised gasp.

“Herwin.”

Lucia hurried to him, her hands trembling as she pulled him to his feet.

“Lucia… I’m sorry…….”

“You have nothing to be sorry about. I’m sorry you had to hear that. I never thought my father would feel that way.”

Lucia hugged Herwin tightly and patted him on the back. Herwin hugged Lucia back, his face bloodshot.

John’s words made sense. 

It pained him to realize that Lucia had suffered more than he had realized.

He felt ashamed of himself for being so happy when she accepted him.

As Henry and Lucas watched, they swallowed the sigh that threatened to escape their lips.

They didn’t know what to say or how to comfort them.

When they had calmed down, Julian hurried over to Scarlett and began to explain, not wanting to hurt her feelings.

“It’s just that he hasn’t accepted Herwin yet. Don’t worry, I’m sure I can convince him.”

“It’s okay, it’s not like I don’t understand the Count’s feelings.”

Thankfully, Scarlett seemed to be okay. However, John’s words had given her a lot to think about, and she couldn’t smile as easily as she had earlier.

“So this is what you were talking about before?”

“……….”

Julian clamped her mouth shut. Just over a month ago, Julian had felt the same way as John now.

His words about not wanting to make things harder for his daughter echoed in Scarlett’s head.

“Julian, do you believe in Herwin as much as the Count does?”

“What? No. That’s not possible.”

“I just want to know what you think. Tell me without hiding.”

Julian’s hasty denial was interrupted by Scarlett’s serious look.

While she was now in favor of Lucia and Herwin’s marriage, it wasn’t that she didn’t understand John’s feelings, but-

“I just want my daughter to be the happiest she can be, and if she’s going to be happy by marrying Herwin, what’s to stop me?”

Everyone in the room turned to look at her.

Julian smiled weakly and looked at Herwin and Lucia, who stood side by side. She could see them as children when they were younger.

“I know that Herwin will make my Lucia happy, no matter what his past is. Right?”

Herwin felt a sudden surge of indescribable emotion. The tip of his nose reddened, but he regained control and answered earnestly.

“Of course. I won’t do anything to hurt Lucia anymore.”

Julian nodded as if she didn’t need to be told.

Now that the atmosphere was more relaxed, they decided to wait until John and Hail had finished talking.

Julian and Scarlett went their separate ways, and the other four gathered in the room to discuss the situation.

“This is a headache. When my father sets his mind to something, he usually sees it through. You’re going to have some work to do.”

“Brother, is that what you’re saying?”

“Lucia, it’s times like these that you need to be realistic. You know our father’s personality.”

“That’s…….”

Lucas was right. Once John made up his mind, he didn’t often change it.

“You’re right, sis, it’s not just another job, it’s a marriage, and we can’t just gloss over it. Even if he finally agrees, if you’re not in the earl’s good graces, there will be problems later.”

Lucia clamped her mouth shut when even Henry spoke up. 

As much as she appreciated John’s concern for her, she couldn’t bring herself to object so close to the wedding.

Herwin, who had been deep in thought, spoke up.

“I suppose there’s only one way to do it.”

“What, you have an idea?”

At Lucas’ question, Herwin smiled bitterly and shook his head.

“Honestly, he’s right, I understand the Count, and if I were him, I wouldn’t want the man who broke my daughter’s heart to be my son-in-law.”

It was a harsh, objective assessment. Lucia tried to protest, but Herwin’s face was too serious.

“So I’ll have to show him that I didn’t decide to marry her out of conviction.”

“I’ll help!”

Herwin was so grateful, Lucia wanted to be his strength.

“You can’t.”

“No, Lucia.”

But Lucas and Herwin both said no at the same time.

“It’ll backfire. You’ll just sit back and watch him do it.”

“You’re right, if you take the initiative, he’ll think I’m cowardly hiding behind you to make this marriage work.”

“Ha, but…….”

Herwin squeezed Lucia’s flustered hand and locked eyes with her affectionately.

“Just trust me, I’ll make sure we get married.”

There were so many things he wanted to say, but he couldn’t bring himself to say them. Her lips pursed, and Lucia finally nodded.

Herwin put his arm around Lucia’s shoulders and patted her on the back.

“I guess it’s done.”

At that, Henry’s ears perked up and his gaze shifted to the doorway. There was a slight commotion outside the door before he could finish his sentence.

Everyone rose from their seats and stepped outside.

“Lucas, come and help your father.”

The scene before them was baffling. Both John and Hail were unable to control themselves as if they had been drinking in the intervening moments.

Lucas hurried to help Julian, who struggled to support John. Henry followed suit, taking Scarlett’s place.

“No, what did he do to get so drunk?”

Scarlett clicked her tongue and stared at Hail as he staggered away. Hail smirked, his face stern.

“I can’t talk like this. Scarlett, we have to go. We’ll talk again later.”

“Okay, go. Jesus, get a grip.”

As the two ladies gathered their respective husbands and walked away, Hail spoke up.

“Count, please think about it. It’s not such a bad offer!”

“That’s for me to decide!”

Both men parroted each other’s words, albeit calmly for a drunk.

Herwin left Hail in Henry’s care and followed Lucia, opening the carriage door for John to climb in.

As John climbed into the carriage with Lucas’ help, he stopped when he saw Herwin.

His half-lidded eyes grew sharper and sharper until he was glaring at Herwin.

“I will never give you my daughter!”

With that, John was shoved into the wagon. Julian slapped John on the back and smiled sheepishly.

“I’m sorry, Herwin. Forget about today, and I’ll see you later. Okay?”

“Okay, Herwin. I think we can forget about this one.”

After a moment’s pause, Herwin shook his head, his will burning with determination.

“No. I’m going to have to work hard to change the Count’s mind, so have a good night.”

“Herwin…….”

Finally, Herwin, carrying Lucia, closed the carriage door and waved.

As the carriage carrying the Agneses drove away, Herwin stood in place, his fists clenched tightly.

There was much work to be done.