CH 16.2

He had traveled to the Tenebris Company today. It was to buy pottery from the Duchy of Charlesworth, one of his deals with the Emperor.

But the shopkeeper turned him away, saying that each branch sold different things. Bewildered and offended, Heinrich went to the second branch, but the reaction was the same.

As much as he resented the Duke’s disrespect for himself, he killed his feelings for Charlotte.

There was no hard evidence at the time, but there were witnesses and the circumstances were absolutely against her. So he made a proposal to the Emperor.

The emperor wanted to export the magic crystals to another country. Not to a place close by, but to a place far away, where it could be monetized.

He had asked the Fredericks who controlled the sea routes many times, but his stepmother, the Duchess of Frederick, had refused.

But for Charlotte’s sake, Heinrich bargained with the Emperor on his own accord. Normally, this would never have happened, but on this day, Heinrich could think of nothing else.

Fearful that the woman he loved would be taken away from him, he made sure to fulfill all of the Emperor’s terms, and the greedy Emperor even wanted the porcelain from the Duchy of Charlesworth as a final bonus.

He knew it was all to the Emperor’s liking, but he couldn’t bear to give up Charlotte.

His dream was to be loved by the woman he loved. Raised as an illegitimate child, he had never known the love of a mother.

There had been a brief moment of vague longing and hope, but he was too young to remember it now.

Charlotte, the woman he has since met, is the only one who received his love, and the only one who can return it.

It must be so, but the moment Heinrich laid eyes on Lila, he felt a sense of uncontrollable chaos.

Everyone was staring off into the distance, all at the same reaction. What did they see, he wondered, and he was curious.

Normally, he would have ignored it.

Heinrich had subtle feelings about Lila, who was now face-to-face with him. She had mauve hair and dark blue eyes that sparkled.

He had heard rumors about her early on, but he hadn’t expected her to be so different.

An unfamiliar tension rose in Heinrich, as if he had never seen her before, and he found Lucas standing by her side, smiling.

Even through the window, she could see how much he loved her. His mint-colored eyes, which were so desperately affectionate, contained only her.

He walked into the shop, mesmerized, wondering what kind of woman this Lucas, the man who had always craved love, the man who had treated everyone with such indifference, could be into.

He wondered if he could live happily ever after with Charlotte, just like they did.

Filled with dizzying confusion, he couldn’t help but ask. What the hell are they doing in a place where there are only commoners, and do they know they’re nobles?

Lila stared wide-eyed into his violet eyes as they darted back and forth in confusion.

“Hmm, you.”

Lucas jumped to his feet. The people have finally gathered, and if he say the word ‘noble’ the wrong way, they would all disappear.

He couldn’t let him get in the way of what Lila was trying to do. Lucas took Heinrich’s arm, who was staring blankly at Lila, and they left the shop.

He didn’t forget to make eye contact with Joshua on the way out. Joshua understood his gesture to wash Lila’s hands and jumped to his feet.

He exclaimed.

“Pretty Ugly! We are selling beauty cream from now on. We are launching an event first, so those who are interested please line up. Uh huh, can we start forming a line already?”

The mood that had cheaply subsided quickly rose, and Joshua made an orderly change of places.

Gale and Karin stood up, too, and said to the people.

“Look at this. I just got my makeup done, too. Isn’t it amazing that they have this stuff!”

“For today only, we’re giving away a special gift of something we’ll be selling in the future. First, in the order you’re standing right now…”

Lila looked at the beauty cream she had brought and whispered to Karin in a low voice.

“Ugh, big sister. I’m sorry, I think that’s it for today, I only brought a small amount.”

Seeing the dessert shop in such a frenzy, Lila looked at the owner with concern, but she still couldn’t take her eyes off her own face.

Lila decided to deal with the customer first, and scrutinized the face of the woman in the front row.

She smiled as she checked for the right eyeshadow to match her hollow-lidded eyes.

The fuss was rather welcome.

Once outside the shop, Lucas backed Heinrich into a corner and let go of his arm.

“Lucas?”

“If you’re in the Commoner’s District, you should keep your mouth shut. Why are you pretending to know?”

“…I didn’t think about it because I was so pleased to see you. I’m sorry.”

“Pleased to meet me? That’s the most novel nonsense I’ve heard in a while.”

Lucas said, snorting.

“If only you hadn’t made a deal with the Emperor, things wouldn’t be so complicated. I’m trying to catch the woman who slandered my wife, but there are too many humans in the way, and I don’t have to tell you who one of them is.”

“… I apologize for that, but I had no choice but to protect my woman.”

Heinrich rubbed his aching arm where Lucas had gripped it and looked at him curiously.

His grip must have been light, but he was dragged out of the room helplessly.

He looked at Lucas in disgust, but could only think of nothing but wonder.

“I’m telling you, there will be no next time, and if she ever thinks of fooling around with my wife again, I want you to keep an eye on the woman you claim as your own.”

His voice was sullen, his tone murderous. Heinrich was quite surprised at the uncharacteristically low tone.

“I’m surprised. You’ve never been one to care about other people’s business. Are you that fond of Lady Este?”

During their time together at the academy, Heinrich had seen Lucas every day, and not once had he ever seen him look on anyone.

He’d certainly never stood up for Owen, whom he knew well.

Heinrich wondered.

“Does she love you?”

Lucas, who had turned away, thinking that this was all he had to say, turned his head in disbelief.

But when he met his violet eyes, his expression turned serious.

There was no hint of mischief in his eyes, but rather a pleading look that reminded Lucas of Heinrich from his days at the Academy.

Heinrich’s rumors, which were always full of melancholy was only one word: bastard.

It wasn’t that he was ugly like Lucas, or that he had dirt on his face, or that he was more hideous than he looked, but that he was a bastard.

Still, no one was willing to talk about Heinrich in public, because he wasn’t as ugly as Lucas himself.

He may have been illegitimate, but he was the only heir to the Duke of Frederick, and he was known for his beautiful violet eyes and silver hair.

The mint-colored eyes, sunken and cold, looked directly into the violet ones.

“Of course I love her more than enough. But that doesn’t mean I crave for her love. I just have to love her because I love her. It’s a ridiculous idea that you have to be loved back just because you love someone.”

After he finished, Lucas lowered his eyes for a moment. It wasn’t his place to say this, but for a moment, his eyes seemed to be filled with a compassion he didn’t recognize.

“For her to love me is already a miracle. And I’m not going to answer these questions anymore. You and I don’t have a very good relationship, do we?”

As soon as Lucas finished speaking, he turned and walked out into the main street.

Heinrich watched him go with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

Shocked and unable to move, he sighed and muttered.

“I want to be loved… I envy you, Lucas. I can see how much you’re loved by her.”

He hadn’t paid attention to anyone but Charlotte, but he knew about Lila. She was a famous woman, in a bad way.

No matter where she went, there was always someone commenting on the weird dress she wore or the way she wore her hair.

It didn’t look good to be so disparaging and ridiculing of one person, but it didn’t stop them either.

That changed in an instant. If the rumors were to be believed, she had donned the freaky makeup to find someone who would love her for who she really was.

The strange feeling confused Heinrich. What interested and envied him more than her newfound beauty was her affection.

Their own atmosphere shows that they love each other at a glance.

Heinrich envied that most of all.