Gasparo hummed lightly as he walked leisurely.

“Long time no see… or not, I suppose. We saw each other at the party a few days ago.”

Theodoro’s eyebrow twitched as if he wasn’t pleased with his appearance, but his voice remained utterly monotone.
“I didn’t think we were on good terms to see each other even a day apart. I’m honored you’d personally come all the way to this humble place.”

“Haha, no need to be so cold. You were never one for affection, back then and now. You haven’t changed a bit, even with age.”

“If you’re looking for affection, my brother would be better suited than I. He’s the warm one.”

Watching the two exchange pointed words without backing down, Liliana’s face grew pale.

Their words carried such sharp barbs that it seemed excessive, yet the parties involved remained completely unfazed, utterly indifferent.

By now, Gasparo had walked up to them and glanced around.

“Actually, I came to see Don Benedetti, but it seems he’s not here.”

You came to see Luciano? Well, I guess there’s no need to hide it anymore? He’s just going to show up openly now…?

As that thought crossed her mind, Gasparo’s gaze drifted toward Liliana. 

 

A glint passed through his eyes, and then he looked her over appraisingly, muttering.

“Ahh… So this young lady is that young lady.”

Liliana’s body froze stiff. It sounded exactly like the words of someone who had heard a lot about her from somewhere.

“What… do you mean?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. Pay it no mind.”

 

“Don’t worry about it.” 

 

He was smiling meaningfully; it couldn’t be anything.

At that moment, Liliana was forced back several steps by an arm thrust out in front of her. The rough push made her stagger, and suddenly Theodoro’s broad back was blocking her way, solid as a wall.

From behind the back of his head, a cold voice flowed.

“If you have something to say, say it to me. Don’t make veiled threats to an innocent person.”

And Gasparo met the chilling eyes staring at him and let out a soft scoff.

How could Theodoro possibly know the thoughts running through his mind? 

 

Theodoro’s eyes gleamed with an even colder light, but Gasparo felt like clicking his tongue in disdain.

‘Poor bastard.’

He didn’t know if he’d ended up as fish food or dog food by now… 

 

Jimmy McKenna, who had once been quite helpful to him. 

 

A few days before he disappeared from the face of the earth, he had said something to Gasparo.

“That… by any chance, do you know a blonde woman? The pale, delicate-looking one who’s always hanging around Theodoro.”

“I don’t know. Am I supposed to keep track of every woman that guy parades around?”

“Ah… no. It’s just… I thought she might be an FBI informant.”

“What?”

“You know… that blonde man who used to tail us every time we met in secret. You said you thought he was an FBI investigator, right? I saw her secretly dating that man on Christmas Eve.”

That woman must be the one Theodoro is shielding now.

Gasparo suddenly found him utterly pathetic and pitiful, rushing to protect her like that.

‘Even his own brother isn’t on his side. And now even some cheap woman isn’t on his side, tsk.’

 

Of course, she might not be an informant. She might just be a friend or lover to that FBI rat. 

 

But whatever the case, for Theodoro, who considered the federal investigative agency his enemy, it was a blood-chilling matter.

 

So he thought he might as well drop a hint to this poor man, as if doing him a good deed.

After all, even if he had joined hands with Luciano, it wasn’t because he liked him so much or hated Theodoro so intensely.

 

‘I intended to keep this to myself… How pitiful, really.’

 

Gasparo approached Theodoro with a faint smile on his lips.

“It seems no one is looking for me, so I’ll take my leave for today.”

 

Then, subtly drawing close, he whispered into his ear.

“…Don’t trust women too much.”

 

Gasparo glanced at Liliana, who was hiding behind Theodoro, and then left after giving him a pat on the shoulder.

 

Theodoro remained rigid, staring at his retreating back until he had completely disappeared beyond the entrance door. 

 

Liliana was the first to regain her composure.

 

“What did he… say at the end?”

 

“…”

 

The answer did not come for a long time. 

 

Theodoro finally turned to face Liliana a few seconds later. His eyes were pitch black, impossible to gauge their depth or read his thoughts.

 

“…Liliana.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Are you hiding anything from me?”

 

He took a step forward, and she took a step back.

 

Whatever it was she had heard, a sudden suspicion now pressed like a blade against her throat, leaving Liliana unable to even breathe properly. 

 

A voice heavy with fear escaped her trembling lips.

 

“Wh-what… Why would I have anything to hide?”

 

Theodoro took another step closer. With the edge of the table pressing against her hips, Liliana had no room to retreat further. 

 

As she desperately gripped the table, Theodoro slowly inclined his head.

 

“I’ll ask just one more time.”

 

“…”

 

“Liliana Moretti. Are you hiding anything from me?”

 

“Huh… ungh…”

 

Liliana’s eyelids fluttered weakly shut. 

 

Though she strained to turn her head away, she couldn’t escape Theodoro, who was now close enough for his breath to touch her cheek.

 

She didn’t know why the thought came to her now, but the memory of the brief kiss from her initiation ceremony flashed through her mind.

 

Back then, she had felt his breath on her cheek just like this, and Theodoro had sealed his promise of their unbreakable mutual trust with that kiss, like a brand.

 

Now, as if repeating that day, he brought his lips close to her cheek, conveying the question—Can I really trust you?

 

Nothing had changed for her. Nothing would change in the future. 

 

Even if he were to suddenly ask the same question again someday, her answer would remain the same.

 

“There’s no way… I could possibly be hiding anything from you.”

 

“…”

 

Theodoro didn’t move a muscle. He didn’t reply.

 

Yes, he didn’t seal his belief with another kiss, nor did he press her further with more questions. He simply straightened his bent back and slowly pulled away.

 

As the subtle warmth that had hovered over her skin vanished, Liliana finally gasped for air and pushed her eyelids open.

 

“What… What is it?”

 

“Understood.”

 

“Huh?”

 

He did not repeat himself.

 

‘Understood.’ 

 

That was all Theodoro said.

 

💫

 

“So you’re that happy about seeing her later? You’ve got a smile plastered on your face that just won’t quit. I never took you for the type to get all giddy over a woman.”

 

Wayne gave an awkward smile to his colleague John, who was sipping his coffee as he spoke.

 

“I don’t think I was really smiling.”

 

“No, you’ve been smiling nonstop. Go take a look in a mirror. You look crazy.”

 

Yeah, maybe he was crazy. 

 

Liliana Moretti. Why was it that just the fact he was going to see her made his heart flutter like a teenager suffering from first love?

 

They had made plans in advance to meet on New Year’s Eve. 

 

A few days ago, she contacted him again with news that she had something scheduled that day, so it seemed they would only be able to see each other briefly, late at night. 

 

But he was happy even for that brief, permitted moment. 

 

This morning, right after waking up, he had pulled all the clothes from his wardrobe and tried them on. She was a woman he might never have known for his entire life. 

 

Their meeting was merely a coincidence, like a sudden, gentle breeze. 

 

They could have just passed each other by like that. But she had seeped into his life familiarly and steadily, as if he had known her for a long time.

 

He had never thought that his life was lacking anything, yet for some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that she had always been a natural part of it. 

 

As if now, he couldn’t bear to be parted from her.

 

However, for some reason, he also couldn’t shake another feeling. 

 

The feeling that just as she had suddenly entered his life, she might just as suddenly disappear.

 

How many times had he felt that even while with her, he was only holding onto an illusion of her?

 

“I’m going to tell her I want to meet her properly today.”

 

“Is she pretty? What does she do?”

 

“…I heard she sings at a bar.”

 

“Did she go to work today, too? Which bar? Can’t we just stop by for a quick look? I’m curious what kind of woman has you so spellbound.”

 

“…I don’t know which bar, and even if I did, I wouldn’t take you there.”

 

John frowned as if he had heard something absurd. 

 

Setting aside his dissatisfaction with Wayne’s cold reply, he pressed on a different issue.

 

“You don’t even know where she works? How can you talk about meeting her properly if you don’t know that? Is this a confession meant to get you rejected?”

 

“Of course not.”

 

Of course, Wayne knew. 

 

What he knew about her was far too fragmented, and the distance between them seemed impossible to close. 

 

It was as if an invisible wall was blocking the way.

 

But he believed in just one thing.

 

The way her eyes sparkled, lovely and affectionate enough to make his heart swell, when she looked at him.

 

Yes, he trusted those eyes, filled with love as if gazing upon something precious.

 

“I’m going to tell her. If I get rejected, it just means my intuition has hit rock bottom. Then I’ll have to quit being an investigator or something.”

 

John shook his head repeatedly upon hearing his firm resolve.

 

“I don’t get it. Let’s have a drink first. No matter how I think about it, it seems like you’ll get rejected. If we drink now, the buzz will kick in by then and you might be able to handle it.”

 

“You want me to confess while reeking of alcohol? Absolutely not. It seems like you’re just the one who wants a drink.”

 

Wayne’s prediction had been correct. 

 

The excuse that it was for John, who was feeling despondent, was just a pretext—from that point on, John began persistently pestering to drink.

 

Was he just dragged along to kill time because Wayne had a prior appointment? 

 

It was the last day of the year, wasn’t it too much to just be drinking coffee?

 

After a lengthy back-and-forth, John tried a different tactic.

 

“Ah, I’ll take you to a really fantastic, fun place. You won’t be able to refuse this one.”

 

Unlike Wayne, who focused his investigations primarily on the Corella family, John Ashley was conducting his own investigation targeting the Benedetti family.

 

The place he suggested was their supposed base of operations. He knew Wayne well, knowing he couldn’t resist anything related to an investigation.

 

“Honestly, doesn’t that pique your interest? You’re curious, aren’t you?”

 

Yes, he was curious. His interest was stirred.

 

He shouldn’t have followed him. No, perhaps going there that day was inevitable— maybe it was the will of God.

 

As soon as Wayne opened the door, he heard an unfamiliar voice singing Nat King Cole’s 『When I Fall in Love』, a voice he had heard several times, even in his dreams.

 

And there, under the bright lights, he saw her singing—a woman with an elegant, goddess-like presence.

 

— In a restless world like this is… Love is ended before it’s begun…

 

The woman he had a date with just a few hours later,

 

— And too many moonlight kisses… seem to cool in the warmth of the sun…

 

The woman he intended to ask to be in a formal relationship with.