Chapter 73
Why did their conversations always end like this?
As soon as Cedric turned sharply and began walking away, Aileen happened to meet Chester’s gaze.
Chester slowly opened his mouth, adopting a serious tone as he pretended to scold the suddenly-arriving imperial administrator.
“…This is the main estate of the Lowell family. Isn’t it terribly rude to interfere without a direct imperial order?”
“I didn’t interfere. I merely stated the facts.”
“Yes. Facts. You’re right—facts are important.”
Behind Chester’s serious expression, a glimmer of satisfaction passed through his eyes.
So he thinks he achieved at least part of what he wanted.
Aileen could almost hear the cracking sound—like the sound of something splitting—echoing faintly in her mind.
Her relationship with Cedric had taken damage again.
Chester’s true goal had been to get rid of Aileen.
That part had failed—but the Barony of Demicalon still succeeded, in a way.
At this rate, the rift between her and Cedric wouldn’t just be a crack.
It might become something permanent.
…Just this once.
Aileen stared at Cedric’s retreating back for a long moment, then made up her mind.
She turned to Cassel—the only person here she actually trusted to investigate fairly.
“Let’s start by checking Diana’s room. Whatever she ate, I’m sure it wasn’t what was left on the table.”
“Lady Aileen, you—”
“I’m not going to run away. Don’t worry.”
Cassel looked offended by the mere suggestion that he’d suspect her.
Thankfully, he didn’t seem to believe she had attempted something as ridiculous as poisoning.
“…You’re going to chase after Cedric, aren’t you?”
“Exactly. So go on.”
“…Understood.”
“Lady Casier.”
Just then, as the people around them stepped aside on their own, Kess Dorian approached and called Aileen.
He stood there completely calm—almost too calm for someone who had just witnessed a major dispute.
As if he had simply shooed everyone away so he could speak with her privately.
“You wait as well. Nothing here is urgent enough to rush.”
“I came under imperial order.”
“And does that order tell you to do anything today?”
“Well, not exactly, but…”
His unfinished sentence carried the meaning clearly:
Didn’t I just help you get out of a difficult situation?
There was also a subtle hint of impatience.
Why did it feel like every solved problem just created a new one?
Aileen inhaled. One thing at a time.
After confirming Prince Lennard was clearly unharmed and safe, she said,
“I know you’re worried about leaving His Highness alone in the capital, but half a day won’t change anything. So wait.”
Aileen had plenty to say about Kess’s decisive behavior.
Yes, he helped.
But who asked him to create sides like that?
This is my fault.
She realized it the moment she decided to use Kess.
Throwing him into the situation with zero explanation made him instinctively try to “save Aileen Casier, the victim.”
“…It seems the situation is more complicated than I thought,” he said.
“You only just noticed?”
If Kess had eyes and ears, he must have sensed something was off in her conversation with Cedric.
“I’ve always found it strange. Someone like you failing to handle this household.”
His head tilted slightly.
“So when you asked for help, I was surprised—but I cooperated.”
“This isn’t about that. Not about whether I can handle the Lowell estate. It’s between Cedric and me.”
His quiet, analytical gaze studied her.
“I’ve always thought, Lady, that you are easily swayed by emotion at decisive moments.”
“Don’t try to lecture me. Prince Lennard can get away with nagging—I won’t accept it from you.”
“I merely hope the future Duchess of Lowell will become a dependable ally to my lord.”
“How fortunate that I hold a useful position, then.”
Her sharp remark filled the air with brief silence.
“It was advice, not nagging. When expectations are high, disappointment also grows. It’s best not to expect too much from people.”
Aileen realized—he was trying to build sympathy with her.
She also knew why Kess had severed ties with his brilliant family despite having every advantage.
“And says you, the one who still expects things from that hopelessly lazy crown prince.”
“…Touché.”
Kess gave a faint smile before returning to his usual expressionless face. Then he stepped back and muttered,
“…It’s unfortunate to meet again under such circumstances. In many ways.”
It was the first thing he’d said today that held even a hint of real emotion.
“It is,” Aileen agreed quietly.
Everything here was happening because everyone had too many complicated stories of their own.
***
Cedric’s side
Cedric walked so quickly that Aileen, even following the path he took, couldn’t spot him.
“He must have gone to Diana’s room.”
Climbing the stairs, she headed straight for Diana’s side.
She was right—the door was slightly open.
“Cedric.”
The door creaked, revealing Cedric’s back.
He sat in a small chair beside Diana’s bed, completely motionless, like a statue, watching over the unconscious girl.
“Cedric.”
This time, her voice carried a hint of a sigh.
His shoulders twitched just barely.
But he didn’t turn around.
“…Should I go back out?”
“No.”
He answered immediately—almost reflexively—like the word had slipped out by accident.
He closed his mouth again quickly, as if realizing it was a mistake.
“Then will you talk to me?”
Aileen realized something on the way here.
They hadn’t had a meaningful conversation in a long time.
It was time to talk.
“You said I could do as I wanted. I have nothing more to say.”
“That’s funny. You looked like you had plenty to say.”
Aileen moved closer and sat carefully at the edge of the bed, looking down at him.
But Cedric stubbornly avoided her eyes.
“What he said earlier—he only said it to defend me. He likes stirring up trouble. It’s what he does. He’s always been like that.”
People with twisted personalities, who see the world through a slanted lens…
Aileen still didn’t understand why Kess had chosen to follow the crown prince, who was easygoing to the point of seeming careless.
“So I’ll apologize for him. I didn’t think he’d say all that. I guess I thought I was being treated unfairly.”
Even if that didn’t excuse Cedric snapping at her so sharply earlier.
“You’re close with him?”
“We’re not close. He follows Prince Lennard everywhere, so I naturally ended up knowing him.”
“And you’re close with the Crown Prince too.”
“I guess I can’t deny that.”
At that, Cedric finally turned to look directly at her.
“You never told me. About any of this.”
“There was nothing to tell.”
Who goes around listing every old friendship they’ve ever had?
Besides, she and Kess only spoke because of Lennard. Without him, they had no connection.
“You didn’t have to step in. I would’ve handled it.”
Cedric’s gaze returned to Diana.
Aileen now understood this:
whenever he said something he didn’t fully mean—or didn’t want to confront—he looked away like that.
“How was I supposed to know when you didn’t explain anything to me?”
“You do whatever you want too.”
“Let’s be honest—you acted one-sidedly first. I only responded to that.”
His one-sided approach triggered her fear.
Cedric wasn’t the only one with something to protect—Aileen wanted to protect Mary too.
“I didn’t want to be dishonorably thrown out after being falsely accused of poisoning someone.”
Cedric answered sharply, almost angrily,
“This is the Lowell family. I am the heir. No one does anything without my permission.”
“So you plan to pull rank on me too, Lord Lowell?”
“Does it even work on you?”
“It does—if you want it to.”
The meaning was clear:
If you want me to treat you as “Cedric Lowell, head of the family,” I will. But that’s not who we are to each other.
Their relationship had never been that simple.
That was why it was complicated—and why it was special.
Why it was worth fixing, even if it took effort.
“Or,” she said softly, “you could tell me what’s bothering you. I’ll listen.”
Cedric looked at her again.
She was calm—even now.
Meanwhile he was falling apart inside, burning, then frustrated, then confused, over and over.
If only…
He wanted to keep his distance once.
He had tried.
He had failed miserably.
And he realized he didn’t want that at all.
“What I want… isn’t that.”
“Then what?”
“I want you to talk about you.”
That was all Cedric ever wanted.
He poured all of himself into her.
He wanted her to focus on him like he focused on her.
He didn’t want to feel like the part of Aileen he didn’t know was growing larger and larger.
Aileen opened her mouth, then closed it again.
“You know you’re the one who hasn’t made time for me lately… right?”
“I… was busy.”
It sounded pathetically weak, even to himself.
But he couldn’t neglect training.
And he refused to fall behind on his duties as the heir.
So his time with the people around him—Aileen included—had inevitably shrunk.
He now realized that.
Why was it impossible to excel at everything at once?
“…Forget what I said earlier. It slipped out because I remembered something Diana told me.”
He felt he needed to say this.
Words said in the heat of emotion were always exaggerated.
Thrown like weapons—meant to provoke a reaction, or even hurt.
“Which part? You said a lot.”
But Aileen didn’t let him dodge it.
And strangely, he found comfort in that.
When she leaned in with her sharp honesty, it was far better than when she looked at him coldly from a distance.
“Don’t… fight… be, because of… me…”
A small voice—unexpected and weak—came from the bed.
Both of them whipped their heads around.
Diana was awake.
And she was looking right at them.
