Chapter 08
When Yuliana saw Lloyd’s face, memories with him rushed in.
“I love you, Yuliana.”
His sweet voice felt so close, like he was whispering in her ear again.
“I’m sorry, Lloyd.”
No matter how hard they tried, they could never have a child.
Her body had the fire spirit, and Lloyd’s ice spirit clashed with it. Maybe that’s why it was impossible to conceive.
That only made her feel more empty—and her longing turned toward Denian.
Even if she had conceived Lloyd’s child, her heart would still have yearned for Denian.
“Yuliana… I’ll love you twice as much, for our child too. So please, don’t think about anything else…”
In the end, even as he desperately begged, she left him and chose to be reborn in her twelfth life.
She didn’t want to die in front of him.
She had wanted to quietly end her life somewhere he wouldn’t know—but Lloyd, as if sensing it, found her.
He cried out and held her as she died.
His broken voice and pained face still haunted her.
It was something she should never have done to him.
Now, she felt so guilty that she couldn’t even look at his face.
As she quickly lowered her head, Layla looked out the window and asked curiously:
“Do you know him?”
Yuliana answered stiffly:
“No. I’ve never seen him before.”
But her voice trembled slightly.
She knew Lloyd didn’t recognize her in this life.
Still, she couldn’t look at him.
Just knowing that such a warm and kind man had lived such a life with someone like her filled her with guilt.
She hated herself for not being able to return his love.
It was all in the past now, but she remembered it vividly.
So, she silently wished:
‘Don’t forgive me. And please, in this life, find happiness with someone else.’
Like a sinner praying to a god, she begged from the depths of her heart.
“Madam, aren’t you getting off?” Layla asked, opening the carriage door.
Snapping out of it, Yuliana opened her eyes and returned to her usual cold expression.
“Let’s go.”
She stepped out of the carriage and walked forward without even glancing at Lloyd.
She felt his gaze lingering on her back for a long time—though he didn’t recognize her.
Even so, she never turned around.
Once inside the building, she briefly looked out the window—just in time to see him getting into his carriage.
She quickly turned away, aware of Layla’s curious eyes.
***
“You want to trade with our guild?”
Bas, the head of the small merchant guild, looked at her with suspicion.
“Yes.”
“Why would the lady of Valdormer be interested in a humble guild like ours…?”
She handed him a paper without a word.
It listed decorations, food supplies—everything needed for the upcoming banquet.
The quantity was shocking, fit for a powerful house like Valdormer.
Bas’s eyes lit up.
It was a volume that no small guild would normally attempt—but if successful, it promised massive profits.
Yuliana said flatly:
“Prepare all of this for 200 million gold.”
Bas’s face froze.
He was already calculating in his head.
With his skills, he could prepare the goods for 200 million—but the profit margin would be slim.
“Madam… I’m sorry, but that amount is way too low. Other merchants would charge at least 400 million for this much.”
He smiled like a typical trader, trying to negotiate.
But Yuliana smiled calmly.
“That’s why I came to you. To give you a chance.”
“Pardon?”
“If I wanted to pay full price, I’d have gone to my usual supplier.”
Bas still looked confused, so she added gently:
“You failed your deal with Silverstel, didn’t you?”
“How did you…?”
Lloyd—Silverstel’s second son—had just walked out of this building. That meant Silverstel tried to trade with this guild but failed.
Most likely, Lloyd had rejected the first few offers, as he had done in the past, to force better terms.
“If this deal goes well, Valdormer will continue to trade with you.”
That alone was a tempting offer. Trading with a major noble house like Valdormer meant instant fame and wealth.
Then she threw out one final bait:
“And as you may know, I’m from the Heister family. If this deal goes well, I might introduce you to them too.”
Of course, that was a bit of a bluff.
Heister wouldn’t care about her, a mere political bride—but even if it wasn’t likely, it wasn’t impossible either.
Bas could now imagine having contracts with two great houses. He wouldn’t pass this up.
“…Alright.”
Yuliana smiled.
“You won’t get this kind of volume for that price anywhere else, but I’ll make it work no matter what.”
The contract was quickly signed.
A lavish and magnificent banquet that should have cost $200 million now appeared to have cost $400 million.
Layla, who had watched the entire deal, was visibly stunned.
She had scoffed when Yuliana said she’d use a different merchant.
She must’ve expected her to be rejected and embarrassed.
Yuliana smiled at her.
“Since the contract’s done, let’s head back.”
They rode in silence until finally, Layla asked:
“How did you know Silverstel failed to make a deal with that guild?”
Yuliana replied coolly:
“The man who walked out of the building earlier was from Silverstel.”
Layla frowned, remembering the man.
“Didn’t you say you didn’t know him?”
“I recognized the symbol on his carriage.”
Layla didn’t buy that—but before she could press further, Yuliana looked at her and said:
“Are you interrogating me?”
Layla looked away quickly.
“Sorry. I was just curious.”
Yuliana gave her a sly smile.
“You’ve been standing there watching while I handled everything—and you have so many questions?”
She was calling her out for being useless and just watching.
Layla flushed red and looked down.
Yuliana continued:
“If Silverstel had succeeded, the merchant would’ve acted differently—he would’ve had more confidence. But I saw through that.”
Layla stared at her, surprised.
But Yuliana just looked away, back out the window.
***
Later, Layla sat in her personal office reviewing the banquet plans Yuliana had prepared.
She flipped through page after page—her expression slowly hardening.
Everything was perfect.
Originally, Layla had planned to prove that Yuliana couldn’t handle her duties.
She had hoped to jump in, take over, and report to Kallion—proving her own competence and Yuliana’s weakness.
That would’ve made Kallion distrust her even more.
But now…
Layla’s fingers trembled slightly.
Her usually calm, doll-like face was twisted with frustration.
“That Heister girl…”
She gripped the papers so hard that the edges crumpled.
Still fuming, she pulled out the most important page—the list of supplies.
And, as if in a trance, she walked to the fireplace.
Without hesitation, she threw the paper into the flames.
It burned quickly.
Layla watched the ashes with no guilt in her eyes.
