Angie froze in place. She couldn't breathe. The moment Noah's name came out of Kyle's mouth, it felt like someone had hit her heart with a rock.
“Already... I see.”
Angie exhaled quietly. Fortunately, he believed that Noah was Bryn's child. It's not surprising. Bryn and Martin, as well as the family members who lived in the house, treated Patricia and Noah as siblings, and the workers who visited periodically assumed that the two children were actually siblings.
“Your real name is Amber Wynn. Martin Silva’s real name is Henry Beckett, your maternal cousin. Did you meet him on that day three years ago when you were rescued from the Vintergar ship and ended up staying at the Citadel? You said you were slowly regaining your memories.”
Angie nodded. She had no intention of explaining in detail everything from the dream communication from the island to how she had saved his life.
“There wasn’t a single man in that house. At least not one who could be assumed to be in a relationship with you.”
She could feel Kyle holding his breath, trying to control himself. At least there was no man around who could be her husband or lover.
“It didn’t seem like there was an external Madame M... Isn’t that right?”
“You figured that out. Did you even search the costume shop?”
“The lace you made found its way to the royal palace of Vintergar. Leticia saw it and was certain you were here. So she sent her men to find you and kill you. Among them was Michael Randle.”
“Michael is my savior. He stopped the assassin from attacking me in Revan. He told me that Leticia was behind it... He tried to help me until the very end. That is until you took Grandma Catherine away and left that letter.”
“You wouldn’t have died if Michael hadn’t been there. The coachman who took you from Revan to the car was one of my men. He slashed the assassin in the back with a poisoned dagger, faster than Michael’s dagger.”
Angie was startled. At the same time, Michael and his men were protecting her. She had no idea about that. But even if she had known, it wouldn't have made a difference.
“Leticia doesn’t want to divorce you, does she? She wants to keep her marriage to you even if it means killing me.”
Angie continued speaking coldly. She was also trying her best to keep her mind from getting weaker.
“If I’m killed by someone one day... it’ll be because of you, Kyle. The most fundamental reason my life is threatened is ultimately your foolishness.”
“Angie!”
“Unless you give up on me, Leticia will send assassins again. Even if you divorce, won’t she continue to target me for revenge?”
“I won’t make you do that. Never. Even if I do, you’ll be safest if you stay with me. That’s why you’re coming with me, Angie.”
“Kyle.”
Angie couldn't stand the frustration and took off her hat. As a result, her brown wig also came off at once. Her hair looked like a mess, but she didn't have the heart or the space to fix it.
But the tangled blonde hair was even more beautiful because it was messy. It looked like a delicate tangle of golden threads. Kyle stared at the brilliance for a moment, lost in thought before his gaze was distracted by Angie’s next words.
“Don’t you know? I’m happy the way I am now. I’ve barely managed to settle back down in my own country, where I should have been, and I’ve built a peaceful world of my own.”
“Angie. I...”
“It may seem trivial and worthless to you, but to me, it is a precious daily life that cannot be exchanged for anything. No matter how much money you give me, or how much power and fame you give me, I would not exchange it for that.”
Angie continued to speak calmly and firmly. She looked as thin and fragile as she had three years ago, but she seemed much more solid inside. She had definitely become stronger over the years.
No, she was that kind of woman from the beginning. The reason her firmness seemed more unapproachable now was because she was pushing him away more clearly. Kyle stared at the woman in front of him and suppressed his heart which was surging like waves.
You haven't changed at all...
“...”
“There are many possibilities, but once the monarchy is abolished, it will end up in one of two ways. Either it will be merged with Vintergar, which was a country centuries ago, or there will be another war between Vintergar and the country that wants Trieste. Either way, I must leave Trieste and emigrate to another country.”
The vast overseas assets, real estate, and businesses have already established strongholds all over the continent, centered around the Federal Bank of Vintergar. Unless another world war breaks out, Blackwell's name will disappear, but the wealth he has accumulated and multiplied over the years will remain intact.
This was also for Angie's sake, as part of the power to protect her, but Kyl didn't say that. Didn't she clearly say it with her own mouth? No fame or money could change her daily life, the peace that she had barely managed to achieve.
“I’m not asking you to abandon your daily life... your world and come to me, Angie. I’ll go.”
“...”
“If you accept me... won’t you let me into your world?”
Angie still didn't say anything, but her eyes were no longer on her knees.
“Then come after that.”
The eyes, filled with summer greenery, were completely wet.
“When Trieste has truly changed... and the remnants of Eternity have been completely wiped out, the Cailum Cult has been uprooted so that it will never reappear, and all those involved have left the Duke’s household... and when Leticia has been formally divorced, and when she has completely let go of you both physically and mentally. When everything is truly over, then come back.”
“...”
“Do you remember? I was going to tell you the same thing on the island. I’ll be on the island, so come back when the political marriage is over. No matter how many years it takes, I’ll wait, so when the marriage is over and you come back, we’ll be together...”
“Angie.”
“But you said you had to have the first child with Leticia. So I couldn’t say that. I believed that as long as you had the child, regardless of your will, the arranged marriage would eventually solidify into a real marriage.”
Angie's mind drifted to Noah. The boy was so much like his father. The round, strong jaw, the elegant, straight bridge of his nose, the brown hair that was gradually turning dark black, the long eyelashes that had a habit of raising one eyebrow, the large, sea-blue eyes—everything was wonderful. Even as a baby, it was so, and there was no way to guess how much more like Kyle he would become as he grew up.
“But if it’s really as you say, that there was no possibility of that happening with Leticia and there never will be until the divorce... then I’ll wait. Until it’s all over.”
“I didn’t allow even the slightest chance of having a child. I couldn’t sacrifice it to Eternity.”
Kyle's voice came out faintly. He couldn't bring himself to tell Angie, but at first, he had intended to let Leticia have his child.
So he was ready to throw it to the helpers, so they could use it as they pleased, whether it was consciousness or something else. Even though he had no interest in eternal life, he believed at the time that was the only way to buy time. But in the end, Kyle couldn't do that.
He hated the idea of even touching Leticia, and he couldn't stand by and watch the child be sacrificed once it was born. Just as his grandfather John Fitzroy had sacrificed his eldest son, Henry David, whom he had kept hidden, but not his father Edward.
He lost his beloved wife Eugenia, upon learning that John Fitzroy had sacrificed Kyle's twin brother Lloyd, and did everything he could to protect his other son, Kyle, who had been addicted to the Eternity drug since birth.
Some of them were acts that went against morality and ethics. To save his son and his own life, he had to take the blood of Remedy, which the Helpers had been steadily bringing since their ancestors.
Isn't giving birth to a life that will die anyway a sin in itself? I won't have children. Until everything ends. No, I don't need to have any for the rest of my life. As long as Angie stays by my side. As long as she can be safe and happy...!
“Already... I see.”
Angie exhaled quietly. Fortunately, he believed that Noah was Bryn's child. It's not surprising. Bryn and Martin, as well as the family members who lived in the house, treated Patricia and Noah as siblings, and the workers who visited periodically assumed that the two children were actually siblings.
“Your real name is Amber Wynn. Martin Silva’s real name is Henry Beckett, your maternal cousin. Did you meet him on that day three years ago when you were rescued from the Vintergar ship and ended up staying at the Citadel? You said you were slowly regaining your memories.”
Angie nodded. She had no intention of explaining in detail everything from the dream communication from the island to how she had saved his life.
“There wasn’t a single man in that house. At least not one who could be assumed to be in a relationship with you.”
She could feel Kyle holding his breath, trying to control himself. At least there was no man around who could be her husband or lover.
“It didn’t seem like there was an external Madame M... Isn’t that right?”
“You figured that out. Did you even search the costume shop?”
“The lace you made found its way to the royal palace of Vintergar. Leticia saw it and was certain you were here. So she sent her men to find you and kill you. Among them was Michael Randle.”
“Michael is my savior. He stopped the assassin from attacking me in Revan. He told me that Leticia was behind it... He tried to help me until the very end. That is until you took Grandma Catherine away and left that letter.”
“You wouldn’t have died if Michael hadn’t been there. The coachman who took you from Revan to the car was one of my men. He slashed the assassin in the back with a poisoned dagger, faster than Michael’s dagger.”
Angie was startled. At the same time, Michael and his men were protecting her. She had no idea about that. But even if she had known, it wouldn't have made a difference.
“Leticia doesn’t want to divorce you, does she? She wants to keep her marriage to you even if it means killing me.”
Angie continued speaking coldly. She was also trying her best to keep her mind from getting weaker.
“If I’m killed by someone one day... it’ll be because of you, Kyle. The most fundamental reason my life is threatened is ultimately your foolishness.”
“Angie!”
“Unless you give up on me, Leticia will send assassins again. Even if you divorce, won’t she continue to target me for revenge?”
“I won’t make you do that. Never. Even if I do, you’ll be safest if you stay with me. That’s why you’re coming with me, Angie.”
“Kyle.”
Angie couldn't stand the frustration and took off her hat. As a result, her brown wig also came off at once. Her hair looked like a mess, but she didn't have the heart or the space to fix it.
But the tangled blonde hair was even more beautiful because it was messy. It looked like a delicate tangle of golden threads. Kyle stared at the brilliance for a moment, lost in thought before his gaze was distracted by Angie’s next words.
“Don’t you know? I’m happy the way I am now. I’ve barely managed to settle back down in my own country, where I should have been, and I’ve built a peaceful world of my own.”
“Angie. I...”
“It may seem trivial and worthless to you, but to me, it is a precious daily life that cannot be exchanged for anything. No matter how much money you give me, or how much power and fame you give me, I would not exchange it for that.”
Angie continued to speak calmly and firmly. She looked as thin and fragile as she had three years ago, but she seemed much more solid inside. She had definitely become stronger over the years.
No, she was that kind of woman from the beginning. The reason her firmness seemed more unapproachable now was because she was pushing him away more clearly. Kyle stared at the woman in front of him and suppressed his heart which was surging like waves.
You haven't changed at all...
Angie Ridsdel, upright as a dry branch, beautiful as a flower, and stubborn as a rose thorn. My Angie. The only one who can make me live or die at any time.
“Angie. Don’t you... love me?”
In the end, only a stupid question leaked out between his lips. If he let go of the weight of his emotions even a little, tears would fall down. Kyle's throat was choked up and his eyes were hot as if he would grab her and burst into tears like a child at any moment.
“Tell me. That you don’t love me at all anymore. That you don’t have even a shred of feelings for me left. Then I’ll let you go. I’ll let you go.”
It was a blatant lie. Even if he said that he had no intention of giving up on her. He was prepared to do anything. He was determined not to give up, no matter how long it took until he could change her mind and win her heart back.
Angie said nothing. She just lowered her gaze to her knees and kept her mouth shut. A deep sense of joy began to rise in Kyle's chest. The longer her silence continued, the more joy it grew.
The silence meant only one thing. Whether Angie Ridsdel or Amber Wynn, the woman in front of him still loved him. She proved that fact more clearly than any word could by not saying a word. He waited until Angie’s lips would not open before finally breaking the silence.
“Great changes are about to take place in Trieste. I am ready to give up everything. The ducal title, the lands, all the wealth, the people in the ducal palace... I will not hesitate to give up everything in Trieste if you stay by my side.”
“Angie. Don’t you... love me?”
In the end, only a stupid question leaked out between his lips. If he let go of the weight of his emotions even a little, tears would fall down. Kyle's throat was choked up and his eyes were hot as if he would grab her and burst into tears like a child at any moment.
“Tell me. That you don’t love me at all anymore. That you don’t have even a shred of feelings for me left. Then I’ll let you go. I’ll let you go.”
It was a blatant lie. Even if he said that he had no intention of giving up on her. He was prepared to do anything. He was determined not to give up, no matter how long it took until he could change her mind and win her heart back.
Angie said nothing. She just lowered her gaze to her knees and kept her mouth shut. A deep sense of joy began to rise in Kyle's chest. The longer her silence continued, the more joy it grew.
The silence meant only one thing. Whether Angie Ridsdel or Amber Wynn, the woman in front of him still loved him. She proved that fact more clearly than any word could by not saying a word. He waited until Angie’s lips would not open before finally breaking the silence.
“Great changes are about to take place in Trieste. I am ready to give up everything. The ducal title, the lands, all the wealth, the people in the ducal palace... I will not hesitate to give up everything in Trieste if you stay by my side.”
“...”
“There are many possibilities, but once the monarchy is abolished, it will end up in one of two ways. Either it will be merged with Vintergar, which was a country centuries ago, or there will be another war between Vintergar and the country that wants Trieste. Either way, I must leave Trieste and emigrate to another country.”
The vast overseas assets, real estate, and businesses have already established strongholds all over the continent, centered around the Federal Bank of Vintergar. Unless another world war breaks out, Blackwell's name will disappear, but the wealth he has accumulated and multiplied over the years will remain intact.
This was also for Angie's sake, as part of the power to protect her, but Kyl didn't say that. Didn't she clearly say it with her own mouth? No fame or money could change her daily life, the peace that she had barely managed to achieve.
“I’m not asking you to abandon your daily life... your world and come to me, Angie. I’ll go.”
“...”
“If you accept me... won’t you let me into your world?”
Angie still didn't say anything, but her eyes were no longer on her knees.
“Then come after that.”
The eyes, filled with summer greenery, were completely wet.
“When Trieste has truly changed... and the remnants of Eternity have been completely wiped out, the Cailum Cult has been uprooted so that it will never reappear, and all those involved have left the Duke’s household... and when Leticia has been formally divorced, and when she has completely let go of you both physically and mentally. When everything is truly over, then come back.”
“...”
“Do you remember? I was going to tell you the same thing on the island. I’ll be on the island, so come back when the political marriage is over. No matter how many years it takes, I’ll wait, so when the marriage is over and you come back, we’ll be together...”
“Angie.”
“But you said you had to have the first child with Leticia. So I couldn’t say that. I believed that as long as you had the child, regardless of your will, the arranged marriage would eventually solidify into a real marriage.”
Angie's mind drifted to Noah. The boy was so much like his father. The round, strong jaw, the elegant, straight bridge of his nose, the brown hair that was gradually turning dark black, the long eyelashes that had a habit of raising one eyebrow, the large, sea-blue eyes—everything was wonderful. Even as a baby, it was so, and there was no way to guess how much more like Kyle he would become as he grew up.
“But if it’s really as you say, that there was no possibility of that happening with Leticia and there never will be until the divorce... then I’ll wait. Until it’s all over.”
“I didn’t allow even the slightest chance of having a child. I couldn’t sacrifice it to Eternity.”
Kyle's voice came out faintly. He couldn't bring himself to tell Angie, but at first, he had intended to let Leticia have his child.
So he was ready to throw it to the helpers, so they could use it as they pleased, whether it was consciousness or something else. Even though he had no interest in eternal life, he believed at the time that was the only way to buy time. But in the end, Kyle couldn't do that.
He hated the idea of even touching Leticia, and he couldn't stand by and watch the child be sacrificed once it was born. Just as his grandfather John Fitzroy had sacrificed his eldest son, Henry David, whom he had kept hidden, but not his father Edward.
He lost his beloved wife Eugenia, upon learning that John Fitzroy had sacrificed Kyle's twin brother Lloyd, and did everything he could to protect his other son, Kyle, who had been addicted to the Eternity drug since birth.
Some of them were acts that went against morality and ethics. To save his son and his own life, he had to take the blood of Remedy, which the Helpers had been steadily bringing since their ancestors.
Isn't giving birth to a life that will die anyway a sin in itself? I won't have children. Until everything ends. No, I don't need to have any for the rest of my life. As long as Angie stays by my side. As long as she can be safe and happy...!
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