Chapter 93
The music was gradually building toward its climax. Sensing that the dance was about to end, Herwin didn’t want to part from Lucia just yet.
He wanted to spend even a little more time with her.
To ensure they could dance again in the next song, Herwin subtly diverted Lucia’s attention elsewhere.
“By the way, I ran into Lucas earlier.”
“Your brother?”
“Yeah. He apologized to me. I was supposed to be the one getting the apology, but I didn’t expect him to come forward first.”
Lucia, initially surprised, frowned deliberately.
“Of course he should apologize first. Leaving you out all day and hurting you—if he didn’t apologize, he wouldn’t even be human.”
“…Did you fight with him?”
Lucia’s unusually intense reaction made Herwin’s lips curl into a small smile.
Lucia’s excitement quickly faded, and she muttered in a barely audible voice:
“…A little.”
“You fought with your brother? That’s unusual. Was it because of me?”
“W-Well, he was the one in the wrong! Even if it were someone else, I would have gotten angry in the same way.”
She continued her excuses, but Herwin barely heard them. All he felt was pure joy that Lucia had stood up to Lucas for his sake.
“He apologized properly, right?”
Meanwhile, unaware of Herwin’s delight, Lucia focused on Lucas’ apology.
Although it seemed unlikely, she couldn’t help but wonder if Lucas had forced an apology to Herwin just to avoid admitting he’d argued with her.
Herwin, immediately recognizing her thoughts, smiled slyly and leaned closer.
“Why? Worried he didn’t apologize sincerely?”
“No, it’s just… I was curious how it went.”
Lucia tried to deflect, and Herwin chuckled softly.
“He apologized properly. If it weren’t sincere, he wouldn’t bother apologizing while his fiancée is right next to him, would he?”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“He really did apologize. So, you don’t need to worry anymore…”
“Wait, hold on. Not that part—what did you just say?”
“What?”
“You said something about a fiancée…”
“Ah, you mean my brother’s fiancée?”
Lucia’s eyes widened, which in turn flustered Herwin.
“…You didn’t know he had a fiancée?”
“Your brother has a fiancée?!”
Lucia shouted without realizing it, drawing a few curious glances from people dancing nearby. But she didn’t care; there was no time to notice anyone else.
“Didn’t he ever tell you?”
“Not at all! He never mentioned it at home. But why wouldn’t he tell us if he got engaged? Do our parents even know?”
“Wait, Lucia, calm down a bit.”
Seeing her flail helplessly, Herwin held her firmly to steady her.
Still, Lucia’s eyes darted around. Then she spotted Lucas dancing with a woman on the opposite side.
She recognized her—Lucas’ partner, whom she had seen only once before.
“No way… could that be his fiancée?”
“Yeah. He said she’s the one he’s engaged to, just now.”
Lucia gasped in disbelief. Herwin realized anew how much she cared for her own family.
Despite being overshadowed by Lucas’ attention, Lucia also clearly cherished him.
“This is strange. If he had decided to get engaged, he would’ve told our parents or me immediately. Why didn’t he?”
“Well… now that you mention it, he did seem a bit odd.”
“How?”
Herwin paused briefly at her clear blue eyes, then cleared his throat and continued.
“Uh! It seemed like he was hesitant to bring up the engagement. Normally, a fiancée wants to announce the news as soon as possible, but he seemed the opposite.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. And, in my opinion… Lucas’ fiancée is suspicious.”
“Suspicious how?”
“It’s hard to explain. But, you know, instincts. She didn’t seem like a very good person. And I noticed she was subtly wary of Arista.”
“Why would she be wary of Arista?”
“Exactly. They probably haven’t met much, yet she seems unusually conscious of her.”
“Hmm…”
Listening to Herwin, Lucia noticed several oddities.
Lucas, by his nature, would have immediately informed the family about the engagement, yet he didn’t. And recently, when their parents teased him about marriage, he only laughed it off. She assumed he wasn’t serious about marrying his current partner—but now, he had already decided to get engaged.
‘What kind of person is she?’
Lucia became curious about Becky. So far, their only interaction had been brief greetings, so she knew nothing about her character.
But if Herwin, who was sharp at reading people, thought Becky was unpleasant…
‘She probably doesn’t have a good personality.’
Lucia wondered if that was why Lucas hadn’t mentioned the engagement to the family.
Lucia stared intently at Lucas and Becky.
Thanks to her focus, Herwin was able to dance with her several more times.
While everyone else enjoyed the party, Bern discreetly took Celine’s hand and led her out of the ballroom.
He had pulled Celine away as soon as he saw her dancing with Herwin.
Ensuring no one was around, Bern spoke:
“Are you out of your mind? What were you thinking? Lucia was merciful enough to let it slide, but if she hadn’t…”
“I know. I know how rude I was.”
“If you know, then you shouldn’t have done it!”
As Bern’s voice rose, Celine clenched her fists and looked up at him with a steely gaze.
“Are you going to just stand there and watch me drift away from you forever?”
Bern was taken aback, opening his mouth to respond.
“I know how good Agnes is, and I know how terrible I am. But what am I supposed to do when I can’t let you go?”
“…”
“Just one question. Does Agnes know about us?”
“…Yes.”
Celine’s expression hardened further when her suspicion was confirmed.
No one would simply stand by if an ex approached their fiancé, no matter how indifferent they were. Yet Lucia remained calm even as Celine confronted Bern.
Perhaps she was confident about her engagement to Bern. If not, there was only one explanation for her composure.
“Do you… like someone else?”
Bern flinched, confirming Celine’s suspicions.
Since Bern had declared he would get engaged to Lucia, Celine had been curious about what kind of woman she was.
She discovered that Lucia had long harbored feelings for Count Feneus.
Before leaving the party, they had been dancing together.
“If you both have feelings for others, why insist on continuing the engagement? This isn’t right. Agnes likes someone too, doesn’t she? I saw the way she interacted with him—it wasn’t bad. So why…”
“Yeah, both Lucia and I have feelings for someone else.”
Before Celine could finish, Bern interrupted. She realized belatedly that he still had feelings for her.
“When I first met Lucia, both of us were already exhausted. I had my situation, she had hers—neither of us could receive love in the way we wanted.”
Celine felt a lump in her throat as Bern revealed his hidden wounds.
“I didn’t get engaged to find new love. I just found someone to move forward with. It doesn’t matter if they love me. We simply understand each other’s pain and committed to a future together as companions.”
“But… this looks strange to anyone else…”
“I know it’s strange. But I’ve already spoken with Lucia. She and I have a lot in common, so we understand each other.”
Bern smiled faintly, thinking of Lucia.
He hadn’t fallen in love with her; he respected her as a person.
If it had just been simple attraction, he might have tried to exploit gaps in her defenses. But their relationship was built on trust, not love, making it strong.
It seemed Bern would truly get engaged to Lucia. Celine, panicked and fearful, wanted to hold onto something.
“Are you sure Agnes will be okay with this?”
Seeing Celine clutch his sleeve, Bern swallowed hard.
“If Agnes hears our situation, she might even break the engagement. You still like me, don’t you…?”
“Celine, I…”
“Don’t say no. No matter how cornered I am, I can read your eyes.”
Bern, about to make excuses, fell silent. Celine was right—he still had feelings for her.
“I really don’t want to drift away from you again. If it’s hard for you to say, I’ll talk to Agnes. You can consider it my personal action. But can you at least try?”
Overwhelmed, Celine shed tears she could no longer hold back.
Bern couldn’t wipe them, yet he couldn’t look away either—he just stared at her.
Before the summer festival, when they had met by chance at a café, Lucia had kindly told him to speak up if his feelings had changed.
It would be a lie to say he hadn’t been shaken by that. Honestly, since Lucia was okay, he still wanted to reunite with Celine.
But leaving with her now would mean leaving Lucia alone, which worried him.
Bern concluded his thoughts and reluctantly pushed Celine away.
“…I haven’t not considered it, but still, I can’t.”
“Why not?”
Celine, tears streaking her face, couldn’t understand. Bern finally spoke:
“If your husband hadn’t died in that accident, you wouldn’t be approaching me like this.”
Celine’s shoulders trembled.
“Then I would’ve safely gotten engaged to Lucia. But you came to me after your husband passed. We promised to overcome our wounds and face the future together—but I can’t abandon him just for my own love.”
Through Celine’s wavering gaze, she saw Bern in pain, just like her. Bern cared for Lucia enough to endure that pain.
Until Lucia’s situation was resolved, Bern wouldn’t come to her—that much Celine instinctively understood.
Biting her lips nervously, she recalled seeing Lucia dancing with Herwin.
‘What expression did she have?’
When with Bern, Lucia had tried to appear mature and composed. With Herwin, she couldn’t hide her expressions, showing vulnerability and blushing like someone in love.
And clearly—
‘The same went for the men.’
Listening to Bern, it was clear that both he and Lucia had experienced unrequited love. Today, they appeared to love each other.
Time was short, but it was certain. No, it had to be certain.
If Lucia had a place to return to after separating from Bern—
‘They would willingly break the engagement.’
A glimmer of hope filled Celine as she gripped Bern’s hand tightly.
“So, you can’t just leave Agnes alone, right?”
“…Yeah.”
“And if there’s a place for her to go? If she could pursue her own love, what would you do then?”
Bern looked shocked, as if struck.
After thinking over Celine’s words, he answered dazedly:
“Then… I would break the engagement…”
Compared to his previous refusal, this was a hopeful answer. Overcome with emotion, Celine exhaled shakily.
“I’ll talk to Agnes.”
“…”
“I won’t just demand you leave me. But if she agrees after hearing me…”
Celine’s lips trembled, and a single tear fell.
“Then marry me.”
Unable to refuse Celine as she gently clung to him, Bern bit his lower lip.
