Ariadne left Isabella's room without looking back.
When Ariadne unexpectedly left the room without any resistance, Isabella, who had deliberately provoked Ariadne in front of her father, was quite embarrassed.
'What's going on with her?'
Isabella knew that Ariadne would insist strongly in front of Cardinal de Mare that her rooms be searched further.
'She's not the type of person to back down so easily.'
Isabella's small head was rolling hotly, and her father's stern voice flew into her ears.
“Isabella.”
"Yes?"
She looked back at Cardinal de Mare. Cardinal de Mare frowned and spoke slowly.
“I’m watching you. Don’t do anything stupid.”
Isabella laughed off Cardinal de Mare's warning, for the cardinal's warning had been ringing in her ears for some time.
“Oh, dear, Dad. What are you saying about me?”
She brushed aside Cardinal de Mare's warning with a bright smile.
“Don’t worry. Isabella is living a truly exemplary life these days.”
And actually, she found herself laughing because she liked the situation so much.
Isabella wanted Ariadne to search her room thoroughly in front of her father because she knew she would not come out.
The missing few letters were now with Leticia de Leonati.
'The funny thing is, I just tried to show my kindness by saying that I'd watch it together, but who would have thought that it would come back to me like this?'
Isabella wiped the slap on her face with her hand. It was slightly swollen but bearable.
'I bet you even got confirmation from your father that those letters weren't mine. That's a total crime.'
She was so excited to see the results of her work shortly.
'Ariadne. Your days of being so cheerful and showy will soon be over.'
After the 'Spring Festival' ball, the talk of the capital was undoubtedly the duel between Duke Cesare and Marquis Baldassar.
“Sir Raphael, well, he threw his glove down and said, ‘Cesare de Carlo, come out!’”
“Did you see it yourself?”
“Of course! The Countess of Baljo was given a room, right? So I was invited to that room and when I went there, there was a commotion right in front of me, so I watched from the first row!”
“It would have been so cool!”
“I actually wasn’t interested in men that thin, but he really is so powerful! I saw him again!”
The lady across from her chimed in with sparkling eyes.
“But, did Duke Cesare really run away?”
“I told you so. I told you that no matter how many times the woman tried to stop him, he just ran away like a fish in water.”
“As expected... A man needs to have a serious side.”
“I guess a womanizer can’t teach his bad habits to others. He should have protected his woman there.”
“Wouldn’t giving up be the way to protect Countess de Mare? You seem like the most dangerous person in the world?”
“Hahaha, that’s true. But Countess de Mare, who seemed so strong-willed, couldn’t say a single word of displeasure to her fiancé and just took it all in? She’s just a total smart-aleck.”
“That’s true. I thought she was smart, but she's really stupid.”
It was the kind of story that mainly talked about how bad Cesare was and how stupid Ariadne was, with the occasional compliment about how cool Raphael was.
If Cesare had heard that story with his own ears, he would have had a fit, but fortunately, he was holed up in the Villa Sortone, drinking alone during the day.
“You’re not so drunk that I don’t recognize you.”
Isabella smiled brightly and sat down on the sofa opposite Cesare.
There was no invitation or anything, but she didn't care. They weren't in a position to exchange such things anyway.
Cesare still had little grasp of the situation.
“Why are you here...?”
“The Duke sent me up. Send Lady de Mare up.”
Only then did Cesare realize what had happened. He felt as if he had completely sobered up.
Ariadne had not come to see him.
Suddenly feeling extremely ill, he filled an empty glass with grappa and downed half of it in one gulp.
He wiped the poison from his lips and spat out while glaring at Isabella.
“Just keep it brief.”
If he had understood correctly, he would not have allowed her to come up in the first place.
Even Cesare, who had been momentarily excited when Ariadne came, felt ashamed, and Isabella, who was acting up in front of him, only caused him pure irritation.
He wanted to be alone. He didn't feel like dealing with such a troublemaker right now.
Isabella smiled brightly, nodding to her glass of grappa without even a hint of anger.
“Oh my, you’re not even recommending it to me?”
Cesare looked at Isabella with a puzzled expression for a moment, then took out an empty glass, poured half a drink halfway into it, placed it on the table without any sincerity, and pushed the glass towards Isabella.
Knock knock!
The liquor glass shook and overflowed, wetting the hem of Isabella's dress.
She took the glass of liquor without a single frown and took a sip.
“Ugh, bitter.”
Isabella slurped the grappa down her throat and trembled like a little bird.
It would be hard for any man not to fall for that. Isabella glanced at Cesare with a hint of anticipation.
But even in his drunken state, he was glaring at Isabella with a wary attitude.
“What do you want to say?”
Be barely managed to swallow the words that were supposed to follow, 'Hurry up and get out.'
Isabella was inwardly disappointed, but unwavering. She answered with her usual, innocent smile.
“There’s something you need to see.”
What she brought was a bundle of letters. Cesare frowned and looked at her.
“You’re asking a drunk person to read something, Young Lady, you really have bad taste.”
“I didn’t know you’d be drunk in broad daylight.”
Isabella looked down at the stack of letters, pondered for a moment, then picked one out and handed it to Cesare.
“Read it. You won’t regret it.”
He glared at Isabella without taking the paper.
“Will you go back just by reading this?”
“If after reading this you still don’t feel like talking to me, I’ll turn back without a second thought.”
Cesare reluctantly accepted the parchment.
He began to read the paper while rubbing his dull eyes, but as he read each word of the letter, his mind suddenly came to him.
It felt like all the alcohol was evaporating from his body.
His expression became serious.
"To my beloved Alfonso.
Cesare came to see me again today. It has been a long time since the Marquis Dellatore's social salon was held on a small scale, and he came as an escort as my fiancé. I had no excuse to refuse.
I thought of you as I held his hand. When will you come back?
December 15, 1123,
Your Ariadne. "
Cesare's hands were shaking. It was unclear whether it was because of the letter or because of his intoxication.
A pretty, clear voice spoke in front of him.
“Oh, my. I showed you the weakest one, and you’re already like this. Why, do you want to see one more?”
When Ariadne unexpectedly left the room without any resistance, Isabella, who had deliberately provoked Ariadne in front of her father, was quite embarrassed.
'What's going on with her?'
Isabella knew that Ariadne would insist strongly in front of Cardinal de Mare that her rooms be searched further.
'She's not the type of person to back down so easily.'
Isabella's small head was rolling hotly, and her father's stern voice flew into her ears.
“Isabella.”
"Yes?"
She looked back at Cardinal de Mare. Cardinal de Mare frowned and spoke slowly.
“I’m watching you. Don’t do anything stupid.”
Isabella laughed off Cardinal de Mare's warning, for the cardinal's warning had been ringing in her ears for some time.
“Oh, dear, Dad. What are you saying about me?”
She brushed aside Cardinal de Mare's warning with a bright smile.
“Don’t worry. Isabella is living a truly exemplary life these days.”
And actually, she found herself laughing because she liked the situation so much.
Isabella wanted Ariadne to search her room thoroughly in front of her father because she knew she would not come out.
The missing few letters were now with Leticia de Leonati.
'The funny thing is, I just tried to show my kindness by saying that I'd watch it together, but who would have thought that it would come back to me like this?'
Isabella wiped the slap on her face with her hand. It was slightly swollen but bearable.
'I bet you even got confirmation from your father that those letters weren't mine. That's a total crime.'
She was so excited to see the results of her work shortly.
'Ariadne. Your days of being so cheerful and showy will soon be over.'
***
After the 'Spring Festival' ball, the talk of the capital was undoubtedly the duel between Duke Cesare and Marquis Baldassar.
“Sir Raphael, well, he threw his glove down and said, ‘Cesare de Carlo, come out!’”
“Did you see it yourself?”
“Of course! The Countess of Baljo was given a room, right? So I was invited to that room and when I went there, there was a commotion right in front of me, so I watched from the first row!”
“It would have been so cool!”
“I actually wasn’t interested in men that thin, but he really is so powerful! I saw him again!”
The lady across from her chimed in with sparkling eyes.
“But, did Duke Cesare really run away?”
“I told you so. I told you that no matter how many times the woman tried to stop him, he just ran away like a fish in water.”
“As expected... A man needs to have a serious side.”
“I guess a womanizer can’t teach his bad habits to others. He should have protected his woman there.”
“Wouldn’t giving up be the way to protect Countess de Mare? You seem like the most dangerous person in the world?”
“Hahaha, that’s true. But Countess de Mare, who seemed so strong-willed, couldn’t say a single word of displeasure to her fiancé and just took it all in? She’s just a total smart-aleck.”
“That’s true. I thought she was smart, but she's really stupid.”
It was the kind of story that mainly talked about how bad Cesare was and how stupid Ariadne was, with the occasional compliment about how cool Raphael was.
If Cesare had heard that story with his own ears, he would have had a fit, but fortunately, he was holed up in the Villa Sortone, drinking alone during the day.
He didn't have the strength to endure it with his mindset.
“Ha, haha, hahahaha.”
He filled his glass of grappa with unsteady hands and toasted the air.
“Cheers to my lady.”
Gulp gulp gulp gulp!
He emptied his glass in one gulp and fell face down on the sofa in the bedroom.
Crawling out of bed and drinking on the sofa was the last thing on his conscience.
“Hahaha...”
Cesare felt like he was going to die. He wanted to see Ariadne like crazy. But would she really accept him?
A little pride was a secondary issue. Cesare now had no confidence that Ariadne would accept him.
If he were to be rejected, if the heavy iron gates of the de Mare mansion were to close at his doorstep, he would not be able to endure it.
He remembered the tears that welled up in those pretty eyes.
What if she broke off the engagement and told him that he was a terrible man who made her cry that she didn't want to see him again and that he should get out of her life?
How was this a fateful relationship, how was this engagement won? Cesare held his head with both hands.
I wish Ariadne were here right now.
I wish she would come to me and kiss me and say she loves me and that she's the only one for me, no, I wish she'd ask me to marry her.
An eternal bond, I want to dress her in a pure white wedding dress and swear an oath in front of the gods in the cathedral, and for her and me to become one unit that can never be separated.
The wedding ring will be the handcuffs that I put on her.
As Cesare was staring blankly at the ceiling and bringing his glass back to his lips, he heard the voice of the servant of Villa Sortone.
“Your Highness, Lady de Mare has arrived.”
Cesare rubbed his ears.
"What?"
“Lady de Mare has arrived. She is waiting in the reception room on the first floor. Shall we take her upstairs?”
Cesare was so drunk that his cognitive abilities were impaired and he could not understand what his servant was saying.
“Lady de Mare has come?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Ha, ha, hahahahahahahaha!”
Is this a dream or reality? Cesare, who realized it too late, laughed out loud.
“Yes, Miss de Mare! I must serve Miss de Mare any time!”
He laughed out loud and drank half of his remaining glass. And he realized how deceitful human nature really is.
Until just before, he had been praying that his wish would come true if he just saw her face, but when he heard that Ariadne had come, he remembered the unfair slap he received.
While the servant left the room to fetch the guest, Cesare reflected on his miserable situation.
“She slapped me in the face, made me into trash all over the place, and then disappeared while being supported by another man... How could I dare blame her!”
It was half sincere, half sarcastic. He chuckled and once again raised a toast to the empty air.
At this moment, it seemed like sparkling wine would suit him much better than grappa.
Rather than a heavy, firecracker-like spumante that crushes human reason, it is much more suitable for praising the goddess.
“A loser who risks his life for love will run to her in embarrassment when she calls him and will have to be careful not to get out when she tells him to go! Hahahahahahaha!”
As Cesare was talking to himself, a refreshing female voice rang in his ears like jade beads rolling.
“You got slapped by Ari that day?”
It wasn't a familiar voice.
Cesare, who shook his head as if he was hallucinating because he was too drunk, squinted his eyes and carefully observed the person who had entered his bedroom.
The woman smiled and nodded, her flaxen hair swaying lively.
It was a bit too informal to be called a formality, but it suited the woman who had spent her entire life ignoring rules very well.
Cesare muttered the other person's name belatedly.
“Isabella de Mare...?”
“Ha, haha, hahahaha.”
He filled his glass of grappa with unsteady hands and toasted the air.
“Cheers to my lady.”
Gulp gulp gulp gulp!
He emptied his glass in one gulp and fell face down on the sofa in the bedroom.
Crawling out of bed and drinking on the sofa was the last thing on his conscience.
“Hahaha...”
Cesare felt like he was going to die. He wanted to see Ariadne like crazy. But would she really accept him?
A little pride was a secondary issue. Cesare now had no confidence that Ariadne would accept him.
If he were to be rejected, if the heavy iron gates of the de Mare mansion were to close at his doorstep, he would not be able to endure it.
He remembered the tears that welled up in those pretty eyes.
What if she broke off the engagement and told him that he was a terrible man who made her cry that she didn't want to see him again and that he should get out of her life?
How was this a fateful relationship, how was this engagement won? Cesare held his head with both hands.
I wish Ariadne were here right now.
I wish she would come to me and kiss me and say she loves me and that she's the only one for me, no, I wish she'd ask me to marry her.
An eternal bond, I want to dress her in a pure white wedding dress and swear an oath in front of the gods in the cathedral, and for her and me to become one unit that can never be separated.
The wedding ring will be the handcuffs that I put on her.
As Cesare was staring blankly at the ceiling and bringing his glass back to his lips, he heard the voice of the servant of Villa Sortone.
“Your Highness, Lady de Mare has arrived.”
Cesare rubbed his ears.
"What?"
“Lady de Mare has arrived. She is waiting in the reception room on the first floor. Shall we take her upstairs?”
Cesare was so drunk that his cognitive abilities were impaired and he could not understand what his servant was saying.
“Lady de Mare has come?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Ha, ha, hahahahahahahaha!”
Is this a dream or reality? Cesare, who realized it too late, laughed out loud.
“Yes, Miss de Mare! I must serve Miss de Mare any time!”
He laughed out loud and drank half of his remaining glass. And he realized how deceitful human nature really is.
Until just before, he had been praying that his wish would come true if he just saw her face, but when he heard that Ariadne had come, he remembered the unfair slap he received.
While the servant left the room to fetch the guest, Cesare reflected on his miserable situation.
“She slapped me in the face, made me into trash all over the place, and then disappeared while being supported by another man... How could I dare blame her!”
It was half sincere, half sarcastic. He chuckled and once again raised a toast to the empty air.
At this moment, it seemed like sparkling wine would suit him much better than grappa.
Rather than a heavy, firecracker-like spumante that crushes human reason, it is much more suitable for praising the goddess.
“A loser who risks his life for love will run to her in embarrassment when she calls him and will have to be careful not to get out when she tells him to go! Hahahahahahaha!”
As Cesare was talking to himself, a refreshing female voice rang in his ears like jade beads rolling.
“You got slapped by Ari that day?”
It wasn't a familiar voice.
Cesare, who shook his head as if he was hallucinating because he was too drunk, squinted his eyes and carefully observed the person who had entered his bedroom.
The woman smiled and nodded, her flaxen hair swaying lively.
It was a bit too informal to be called a formality, but it suited the woman who had spent her entire life ignoring rules very well.
Cesare muttered the other person's name belatedly.
“Isabella de Mare...?”
“You’re not so drunk that I don’t recognize you.”
Isabella smiled brightly and sat down on the sofa opposite Cesare.
There was no invitation or anything, but she didn't care. They weren't in a position to exchange such things anyway.
Cesare still had little grasp of the situation.
“Why are you here...?”
“The Duke sent me up. Send Lady de Mare up.”
Only then did Cesare realize what had happened. He felt as if he had completely sobered up.
Ariadne had not come to see him.
Suddenly feeling extremely ill, he filled an empty glass with grappa and downed half of it in one gulp.
He wiped the poison from his lips and spat out while glaring at Isabella.
“Just keep it brief.”
If he had understood correctly, he would not have allowed her to come up in the first place.
Even Cesare, who had been momentarily excited when Ariadne came, felt ashamed, and Isabella, who was acting up in front of him, only caused him pure irritation.
He wanted to be alone. He didn't feel like dealing with such a troublemaker right now.
Isabella smiled brightly, nodding to her glass of grappa without even a hint of anger.
“Oh my, you’re not even recommending it to me?”
Cesare looked at Isabella with a puzzled expression for a moment, then took out an empty glass, poured half a drink halfway into it, placed it on the table without any sincerity, and pushed the glass towards Isabella.
Knock knock!
The liquor glass shook and overflowed, wetting the hem of Isabella's dress.
She took the glass of liquor without a single frown and took a sip.
“Ugh, bitter.”
Isabella slurped the grappa down her throat and trembled like a little bird.
It would be hard for any man not to fall for that. Isabella glanced at Cesare with a hint of anticipation.
But even in his drunken state, he was glaring at Isabella with a wary attitude.
“What do you want to say?”
Be barely managed to swallow the words that were supposed to follow, 'Hurry up and get out.'
Isabella was inwardly disappointed, but unwavering. She answered with her usual, innocent smile.
“There’s something you need to see.”
What she brought was a bundle of letters. Cesare frowned and looked at her.
“You’re asking a drunk person to read something, Young Lady, you really have bad taste.”
“I didn’t know you’d be drunk in broad daylight.”
Isabella looked down at the stack of letters, pondered for a moment, then picked one out and handed it to Cesare.
“Read it. You won’t regret it.”
He glared at Isabella without taking the paper.
“Will you go back just by reading this?”
“If after reading this you still don’t feel like talking to me, I’ll turn back without a second thought.”
Cesare reluctantly accepted the parchment.
He began to read the paper while rubbing his dull eyes, but as he read each word of the letter, his mind suddenly came to him.
It felt like all the alcohol was evaporating from his body.
His expression became serious.
"To my beloved Alfonso.
Cesare came to see me again today. It has been a long time since the Marquis Dellatore's social salon was held on a small scale, and he came as an escort as my fiancé. I had no excuse to refuse.
I thought of you as I held his hand. When will you come back?
December 15, 1123,
Your Ariadne. "
Cesare's hands were shaking. It was unclear whether it was because of the letter or because of his intoxication.
A pretty, clear voice spoke in front of him.
“Oh, my. I showed you the weakest one, and you’re already like this. Why, do you want to see one more?”
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