CH 23

When he came to a halt, Serdel turned her head.

“How come you aren’t doing anything?”

He gave her a cold look when he made eye contact with her. The low-pitched voice had a chill to it.

“Are you playing with me? That is not something you should do. Lady.”

The butler, who was walking in front of Blenn, was puzzled by his statements and hardened his expression. Serdel raised her hand to tell him not to come forward. 

“I understand your desperation, but I hope you don’t get the wrong idea. Before the promised deadline, we still have a long way to go. Please don’t rush me.”

Blenn’s shoulders trembled at the cold words, despite his smiling face. Before he could speak, Serdel moved.

“…..”

He wanted to stop her once more, but he couldn’t because to the eyes he’d just seen. That was a clear warning. Don’t climb recklessly. He clenched his fist. He turned his eyes to her back. He hated the fact that she never turned around in the middle of this long corridor. Leaving him alone. 

Blenn’s eyes, which had nowhere to go, sank darkly.

‘What do you mean, playing with it?’

She thought he’d do it again and again since he was desperate to find his sister. But that was something she hadn’t expected to hear. She wasn’t surprised, but she couldn’t help but feel bitter.

Serdel took a look around the dining room as she entered with a sigh. 

There was no one but Cartal at the table. Addis and Redan are busy outside. 

‘Well, since when did they come home often?’

Lately, they’ve seen each other face to face. In the past, they only avoided each other because they were uncomfortable with each other. 

“Good morning, Father.” 

She was the first to greet him. Cartal did nothing except nod his head. She sat in a chair that her butler had taken out, embarrassed for no reason. Soup and bread with finely mashed veggies appeared as soon as the glass was filled with water. Without chewing, it went smoothly. The tingling sensation on the tip of the tongue became appealing as well.

“I was told that you remove all the invitations.”

Cartal suddenly inquired as he bit into the jam-filled bread. Because she had food in her mouth, she responded by nodding.

“Are there any other families who might be able to help?”

“—Hmm. It’s not like it wasn’t there, but I thought it wasn’t necessary. Would you like to get more help?”

“Well.”

“With the Marquis of Spendar already chosen, attracting other families would do more harm than good. At least that’s my judgment. People’s greed is endless, so there might be a difficult fight in the future because of each other’s understanding.” 

“Yeah, I see.” 

He raised the glass and asked a question as he tried to drink water. 

“From what you say, I guess the things in the forest are greater than I and everyone would have expected.” 

“…..”

“To discuss until later means that we will be able to conquer the forest safely. Thanks to that, my anxiety has gone down a bit.” 

“…..”

‘Is this elicitation, or what?’

He didn’t want to ask her what she saw in her precognitive dream or if she hasn’t dreamed since, so he avoided asking her the question.

She was aware of the situation, but she felt bad for no reason.

‘It all started this morning— Ha.’

“When it comes to invitations, I’ll trust and abide by your judgment.” 

“….”

The pleasant taste has vanished. Serdel’s face was expressionless. Cartal cast a careful glance at her, who was mumbling away. His spoon-holding hand had been pushed to remain calm in the face of rising agitation.

“This afternoon, Marquis Spendar is coming, so you should attend.” 

The timing is amazing. It was last night that she ordered the butler to look into it.

“Yes, I will.” 

At the end of that, Cartal said nothing more. Serdel also quietly focused on eating.

******

It was already early afternoon when I finished an uncomfortable meal and drank a cup of tea. Serdel rushed out after receiving word from her butler that Marquis Spendar’s carriage had arrived.

Damon approached Serdel with a bright smile as he stepped from the carriage just in time. Around him, the flowered background appeared to flutter.

It’s not even like a silly cartoon. 

What kind of cheesy expression is this?

“Even after a few days, it feels like we haven’t seen each other in a long time. It’s nice to see you again. Young Lady.”

Serdel’s hand was naturally raised, and he gently kissed her. His expression and actions were natural, as expected. The butler’s, vice butler’s, and maid’s shoulders flinched. But, unlike before, he did not light the candle.

They just dropped their hands like crazy.

“He’s not going to seduce our Lady right?”

“No, probably not. It must not be. Dame Addis said that. If a character is too good, he will pay for it. Look at that dazzling beauty today. I feel like I’m going blind already. My heart fluttered for a moment.” 

“Oh my! If you don’t want to be trained by the Dame, be alert. Butler.”

“—Are you cursing me, Maid? If you have any complaints, just say it comfortably. Don’t make my spine shudder for nothing.”

What are you whispering about?

It was so quiet that she couldn’t even hear it. She lowered her eyes and stopped looking, clicking her tongue inside. The maid’s apron’s convex pockets.

‘—It doesn’t have a fork in it, does it?’

No way. It’s not another fork disease right? 

“You’re still having fun. I think the atmosphere of servants thinking about Young Lady is very pleasant.” 

“—You think everything is fun.”

He shrugged his shoulders. His deep voice had a lovely tone to it. It was also lovely to hear the nice laugh. He felt nervous, as evidenced by a strange echo. Probably because of a middle-aged man who just got off the carriage. 

Serdel, who pulled her hand out of Damon, approached him and greeted him first. 

“It is an honor to meet Marquis Spendar. My name is Serdel Robbesta.” 

“It’s been a long time since I saw you at the debutante. Young Lady.”

Serdel swallowed a bitter smile. She was Serdel before she was possessed. She doesn’t know why, but according to the memory left in her body, she wasn’t in very good condition at the time.

As a result, the moment that should have shone brightly has vanished, leaving no good image behind.

“You’ve gotten a lot brighter. I was very worried.” 

He looks so young. With a smile on his face, he gave off a much more attractive feeling than Damon’s.

‘There are many women who are boiling inside.’ 

She guessed it wasn’t a false rumor. 

‘It’s my first time seeing you this close.’

It was a dangerous beauty in many ways. 

“I heard from Damon. Young Lady chose our family.” 

Serdel grabbed the hand he reached out first. 

“I look forward to your kind cooperation from now on.”

“I look forward to it and thank you.”

He didn’t say anything, instead thanking her and holding her hand; he didn’t spout such clichéd and ceremonial words. She was confident enough to pay attention to her facial expression and tone so she didn’t come across as arrogant.

Then, the Marquis’ eyes lit up.

“I will guide you to my father.” 

Serdel, who turned around with the butler, took the two men to Cartal’s office. 

“Welcome.”

“It’s especially nice to see you today. It’s an honor to be able to give a hand to Count Robbesta’s estate business.” 

“I am rather honored to be able to share with Marquis Spendar’s mine development knowledge.”

“Haha. It was a worthless mine. The amount of mining was also very low, and it was very disappointing that it turned into an ordinary cave soon after. I don’t know if my shallow and short knowledge can be of much help to the Count’s business.”

“It’ll help.”

“Thank you for saying that. I’ll do my best to help you, as everyone is in this big game.”

In a friendly atmosphere, the two shook hands. It feels very—.

“Damon, you’ve got to go.” 

It— wasn’t good. 

The air in the Office suddenly became chilly. Damon’s fingertips trembled once. He was still smiling to avoid losing his composure, but that made it even more breathtaking. 

“Sir Damon will also sit together.”

Marquis Spendar’s gaze on Damon returned to Cartal. 

“We’ve already shared a lot of opinions about the forest. I would be in trouble if he wasn’t here.”

“Count, I have not only Damon, but my other children who are more capable in this way—”

“I chose the Marquis as my partner after seeing Damon. Please don’t drag the family’s internal problems into my business.” 

The corners of Marquis Spendar’s eyes hardened with a smile at the warning that he wouldn’t let them sit and watch him if he ever wanted to involve his two sons other than Damon.