~Chapter 07~
“All of the Cassiar family’s possessions belong to us.”
“What nonsense…”
Out of nowhere, Sadina and Mia suddenly became bold, taking turns spouting absurd arguments.
“It’s not nonsense. It’s true.”
“Yeah. And what are you doing hiding this jewelry box, huh? Trying to secretly steal the Cassiar family’s property?”
Eileen let out a short laugh in disbelief.
That jewelry box was something her mother had filled with precious items and passed down to her. It was irreplaceable.
“My mother gave this to me a long time ago. It’s not something you two can just touch.”
She didn’t want to stoop to their level, but apparently she had to spell it out for them. It was ridiculous how shamelessly they acted after secretly taking something that wasn’t theirs.
“Father said that until you become an adult, you can’t claim ownership of anything.”
So that was their logic—overhearing bits of their parents’ words and repeating them clumsily.
“You owe our family everything. You’re only staying in this house because we’re kind enough to let you—”
“Then kick me out.”
Eileen’s cold voice cut off Sadina mid-sentence.
“Go ahead, kick me out. Let the rumors spread. Let everyone talk about how even the once prestigious Cassior family has fallen. It’ll be perfect for gossip if they hear you kicked out the emperor’s granddaughter.”
Sadina and Mia’s faces turned pale.
Exactly. That’s why they never took things too far—because they were scared of rumors like that.
Eileen knew they wouldn’t dare cross a certain line.
She never planned to stay in this house forever anyway. She was just waiting to receive her inheritance before leaving.
“I could destroy your reputation if I wanted to. Make sure you never get to marry any of those ‘perfect noble gentlemen’ you dream about.”
But now, things had changed.
“Don’t forget. I’m the one who holds real standing in high society. I’m the Cassiar. Not you.”
Of course, part of that was an empty threat.
Eileen knew deep down she couldn’t ruin her family’s honor like that. She would never want to tarnish the name of the Cassior family, which had been passed down through her parents and grandmother.
“Is that all you have? Just being engaged to the Duke’s son?”
“Do you really think that’ll last? Father said that in the end…!”
Just as Mia started saying something important, Eileen narrowed her eyes, ready to listen—
“Sadina. Mia.”
The voice of the Countess of Cassiar suddenly rang out. Apparently, one of the maids had run off to tell her about the commotion.
She entered the room, pretending to be the picture of elegance.
“It’s time to head to the ballroom.”
Her voice was so smooth, anyone might mistake her for a kind and gracious lady.
“If you’re all fighting over this, I’ll just take it and keep it safe. That should solve it, right?”
“What…?”
Her thick hand—adorned with a gold ring featuring a large amber stone—greedily grabbed the jewelry box.
It happened so quickly that Eileen didn’t even have time to stop her.
“That belongs to me.”
“It originally belonged to the Countess of Cassiar. So I should be the one to keep it. Look—there’s the family crest right here.”
“My mother gave that to me.”
“But as the late Countess said, family rules must be followed. Once you become an adult, you’ll be formally given your share of the inheritance.”
Eileen bit her lip and said nothing. The Countess had taken full control.
“Come now. Being pushy isn’t how a noble lady behaves. Sadina, Mia, let’s go. We need to get ready for the ball.”
Seeing Eileen step back, the Countess smoothly wrapped up the situation in her sweet voice.
Then she left with her daughters.
Eileen stood there, feeling hollow.
So that’s why I hid it so carefully… How did they even get into my room and steal it?
“Miss…”
Mary, who had followed Eileen out of Sadina’s room, looked on the verge of tears.
“I’m okay.”
Eileen quickly composed herself and quietly dusted off her dress.
“Let’s go. We need to head to the Duke’s estate. My hair isn’t messed up, is it?”
“No, just a little on this side. I’ll fix it for you.”
Eileen didn’t want to go back to her room. She couldn’t stand seeing anyone in that house anymore, so she headed outside instead.
As she was fixing Eileen’s hair, Mary suddenly gasped and looked toward the entrance.
“Miss, I think the young master sent a carriage for you!”
“No way…”
Their last meeting had ended awkwardly because Diana had shown up out of nowhere. They hadn’t built any real connection between them.
So a carriage—without even a word?
In the distance, a carriage pulled by large black horses stood just behind the Cassiar family’s own carriage.
A stag crest, symbolizing the Duke’s family, was clearly visible even from afar.
…No way. Could it really be?
Eileen stepped toward the carriage.
It was still early, but right now, she wanted to leave for the Duke’s estate as soon as possible.
“Greetings, my lady,”
The coachman took off his hat as he greeted Eileen, a smile barely hidden on his face.
“The young master told me to pass on this message: ‘I’m sending this carriage as a way of saying, don’t ruin the dress I gave you.’”
“Cedric said that?”
A short laugh escaped from Eileen — she couldn’t tell if it was from disbelief or amusement.
Honestly, Cedric really needed to understand how strange he could be, telling someone to repeat those exact words.
Still, the mood that had felt like she’d been thrown into the gutter seemed to lift a little.
“Let’s get in, Mary.”
With the coachman’s help, Eileen gladly got into the carriage. Just as she leaned back and looked out the window to enjoy the view—
“How could you go without even a single pair of earrings…?”
Mary sighed, looking at Eileen’s bare neck and ears.
“It can’t be helped. At least the dress is beautiful.”
“That’s true. The young master has great taste. Just look at this lace…”
Mary then launched into an enthusiastic stream of compliments about the dress, as if sensing Eileen didn’t want to keep talking about what had happened earlier.
***
They arrived at the Duke of Lowell’s mansion quickly. The estate looked completely different from the messy state it had been in last time — now it was neat, elegant, and full of grace.
“His taste isn’t so bad after all.”
As Eileen stepped out of the carriage, she admired the mansion bathed in the soft glow of the sunset.
At first, she thought the bright-colored bricks were too flashy for a proper home, but now she could see why that choice worked.
Soon, Cedric appeared in the distance, walking with Cassel beside him.
But as soon as he got close enough for his face to be seen, he suddenly stopped walking. That was odd.
Eileen waited for a bit, but when it became clear Cedric wasn’t going to move, she decided to approach him first.
Still, his gaze didn’t waver. He was staring at her like he was frozen in place.
“Hi, Cedric. Thanks to you, I had a comfortable journey today.”
Eileen greeted him, and only then did Cedric start moving stiffly, like a machine creaking to life.
“Don’t tell me you were planning to walk again today,” he said.
“I’m not that clueless, Cedric Lowell.”
Though she replied easily, Cedric still kept staring at her like he was seeing her for the first time.
“…Is something wrong? I didn’t wear any accessories today, if that’s what you mean.”
Wondering if she looked too plain, Eileen looked herself over.
Still, the dress seemed flawless — not a single wrinkle or sign of damage.
Thank you very much