There was something my parents often said to me.
‘You’re too sensitive, and you have absolutely no luck when it comes to people.’
I never denied it.
I was sensitive, and it was true that I had terrible luck with people.
But what happened today wasn’t because I was too sensitive or unlucky.
No, if I hadn’t been sensitive, I wouldn’t have noticed anything wrong in the first place.
And if this man hadn’t helped me realize it…
I looked at Rashak through the bars.
He wore an expression that suggested he found the process of helping me gradually uncover the truth quite fascinating.
“Looks like your younger sister is determined to make you handle that food preparation after all.”
I spoke with a bitter expression.
“…My parents must have been in on it, too. They probably want me to persuade Count Brent so that Renoa and Allen can get married as soon as possible.”
They wanted me to fall into debt, forcing me to contact my parents and return to living under their control because I had no other choice.
Why were they so desperate to make me come home?
When I asked them before, they said it was because they were worried about me being so careless and incapable of looking after myself.
But when Renoa stole Allen away from me, their concern hadn’t been directed at me.
Instead, they worried even more about Renoa and took care of her with the utmost devotion.
So… Now I understand.
My parents weren’t worried about me.
They simply needed me to obey them without question.
Under their control, how I felt and what I thought had never mattered to them in the first place.
Meanwhile, Renoa could do whatever she pleased, and they never even raised their voices at her…
“Are you okay?”
I spoke in a trembling voice.
“…I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine.”
“Yes, well, I’m actually not.”
I understood it in my head. I had come to terms with it and accepted it.
But my heart was another matter.
Did they really have to go this far?
Why did my own family have to be so cruel to me? Those thoughts made it hard to breathe.
And just as I stood frozen, unable even to sigh—
“Wait a moment. I’ll get you out.”
I blinked rapidly as I watched Rashak stand up.
“What? But the 100 million…”
“You don’t need to compensate anyone. There’s no way someone would spend 100 million on a vase they intended to smash. It was probably a lie from the start.”
Oh, right.
“But… we can’t prove my theory.”
“Why prove it? We can just tell them to let you out.”
“Is that… really possible?”
Rashak answered casually.
“It is for me.”
And a little while later, I was able to walk out of the holding cell completely unharmed.
I could hardly believe it, so I kept glancing nervously at the knights. But the knights themselves were watching Rashak warily.
Well, they must have known who Rashak was. He was the boss of the Barsen organization, after all.
It was probably easier for them to release me without getting on his bad side.
Besides, I hadn’t committed any serious crime.
“What are you dawdling for? Have you already grown attached to your cell?”
His teasing remark brought me back to my senses, and I hurried over to his side.
When we stepped outside the police station, Mr. Fidel was waiting with the carriage.
After glancing nervously at Rashak again, I spoke.
“Thank you for helping me. I wouldn’t have gotten out if it weren’t for you, sir.”
Rashak, who had been heading toward the carriage, stopped and turned to look at me.
This time, I didn’t avoid his gaze. I meant every word, and I wanted him to know that.
After studying me for a long moment, Rashak spoke.
“Well? Feeling a little more motivated to work for me now?”
“A little…”
“A little?”
“Actually, a lot.”
He chuckled. I smiled, too.
The fact that I was standing here smiling face-to-face with the boss of a criminal organization seemed so surreal that the corners of my mouth lifted even higher.
“Give me your final answer tomorrow. For now, get in the carriage. I’ll have you escorted home.”
I nodded and followed him. But then—
“Hiel.”
At the sudden voice, I stopped walking.
It had come from quite a distance away, but the voice was so familiar that I couldn’t possibly mistake it.
So I turned around…
“…Allen?”
The moment I called his name, Allen really did emerge from the darkness.
Bright golden hair and clear blue eyes, like the sky on a sunny day.
He looked a little thinner than before, but… there was no mistaking him. It was Allen.
The man I had once loved so dearly.
The man who was now engaged to my younger sister, Renoa.
My shoulders stiffened instinctively. Even more so because Renoa was following close beside him.
“Allen! Could you slow down a little…?”
Renoa stopped short when she spotted Rashak. Apparently, she remembered their previous encounter.
This was uncomfortable and utterly unpleasant.
The two of them standing side by side like that.
…But today, I didn’t want to simply avoid them.
“Sir, you can go ahead without me. Thank you so much for everything today.”
When I bowed politely, Rashak seemed to consider it for a moment before turning around.
I noticed Mr. Fidel’s gaze linger on me briefly, but I bowed to him as well.
Then, as soon as the carriage departed, I turned back to the two of them.
“I have something to say. Let’s go somewhere else.”
The place Allen led me to was an extremely luxurious café.
Most of the customers were noble young ladies, and the prices on the menu I glimpsed were enough to make my eyes pop out.
Allen strode confidently into one of the private rooms, as though he were accustomed to visiting this particular café.
Renoa stayed right by his side.
…I guess the two of them come here often.
The Allen I knew hated desserts and would have detested a place like this.
But now wasn’t the time to feel bitter about something like that.
The moment I sat down, I spoke.
“What happened today. That was your doing, wasn’t it, Renoa?”
Renoa, who had been carefully taking her seat, froze. She shot me a sharp look.
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“I had a little accident while walking down the street today. Thanks to that, I was detained at the police station until just now.”
“Did you get yourself into trouble again? Typical of you, sis.”
“I didn’t cause the accident. Someone deliberately bumped into me.”
“And you’re saying I arranged that?”
Renoa let out a cold laugh, looking utterly incredulous.
“Why would I do something like that?”
“Because I turned down your proposal, and you wanted to make things difficult for me. It was also a convenient way to force me back home.”
“I’m so glad I don’t live with you anymore, sis.”
“If you’re so glad, why did you come looking for me last time and ask me to help you?”
“Help? You’ve got to be kidding me. I was informing you of a responsibility you’d neglected! It was a notification, not a request! Please, could you stop blaming me for every misfortune that befalls you?”
“This time, you were the cause of it.”
“Let me make one thing clear. I had absolutely nothing to do with that vase…”
“But I never said anything about a vase.”
At that, her fingertips trembled violently for a moment.
“So you really did it.”
Her lips, which had been moving nonstop, fell silent.
“…Hiel is right. This was Renoa’s doing.”
Allen, who had been quietly listening, sided with me. Renoa’s expression twisted in a way I’d never seen before.
“I only found out a little while ago, too. …I’m sorry.”
“……”
“I should have realized sooner and gotten you out of there.”
I knew Allen just as well as Renoa did.
The regret on his face was genuine.
So… he must have heard what Renoa had done and come to get me out right away. That’s why we ran into each other.
After letting out a quiet sigh, I shook my head.
“It’s fine. I’m already out, anyway. I just hope nothing like this happens again.”
“…All right. I’ll make sure Renoa understands.”
His tone sounded as though he were dealing with a troublesome little sister, and Renoa’s face flushed an even deeper red.
But unlike before, she didn’t raise her voice. It seemed that even Renoa, who had spent her entire life doing whatever she pleased, still cared about what Allen thought of her.
“Fine. I’ll leave that to you.”
That was all I had to say.
There was no reason to keep looking at those two any longer. I was just getting up to leave when—
“…However, I agree that you should return home.”
In his words, the Brent family townhouse in the noble residential district immediately came to mind.
It was where Allen, Renoa, and my mother were staying. It was also the place I had left four months ago.
I clenched my fists and turned to face him.
“Go back? Me? To that place?”
“Mother is very worried about you. Running the shop… you went through a lot of hardship.”
That meant my parents and Allen had heard all the rumors about me.
I’d always known it would be difficult to keep everything hidden forever, especially when people were talking. But hearing it stated so plainly to my face made it hard to hold my head up.
It felt as though the little pride I had left was being crushed to pieces.
“I know it wasn’t your fault. There must have been another misunderstanding. Things like this have always seemed to follow you around.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine.”
“…I believe I’ll be fine eventually. I’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen.”
I spoke with my gaze lowered.
I didn’t want him to see how anxious I really was.
But when I said I’d work hard to get better, I meant it. No matter what it took…
“Then how are you going to get better?”
His unexpected question made me look up at him.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings. But I’m talking about a very practical problem. You’re worried about how you’ll pay your living expenses right now, aren’t you?”
“……”
“If you come home, I can take care of everything. As for your future employment, the count’s household can…”
What?
“The count’s household?”
I repeated the words, eyes widening. The count’s household?
“You mean the family where you and Renoa will marry and live as husband and wife… You’re telling me to work under the two of you?”
“It won’t be easy, I know. But it’s the best path for you. Wherever you go, trouble always seems to follow. Even when you don’t intend for it to happen, misfortune always…”
That was the moment my patience finally ran out.
Without hesitation, I picked up the glass of water in front of me and threw it at him.
Splash!
It was as though… time had stopped inside the room.
Both Allen and Renoa were so shocked that they froze in place.
I was the only one who moved.
“You’re doing this for my sake? Shut up, Allen Brent.”
“……”
“Don’t ever come looking for me again.”
I slammed the door shut with a loud BANG!
It was the first time in my life I’d ever slammed a door that hard, but my anger showed no sign of subsiding.
I turned around, marched back down the corridor, opened the door again, and shouted,
“And I already have a place to work, you know?!”
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