Emily barely managed to escape from her seat and took refuge in the guest study.
And while looking around the study, she couldn't hide her excitement when she discovered the novel 'Lily Dan'.
“Oh my god, this is an out-of-print novel by Lily Dan.”
She was Emily's favorite romance novelist. Emily read almost everything she'd written, but she's never been able to read her early works, as she'd been too embarrassed to read them all.
“And to think I would find it here!”
<Do you like me?>
“The title alone is exciting.”
Emily immediately took out the book and sat down by the window.
Before she knew it, raindrops began to patter against the window. The sudden downpour created a pleasant noise.
Feeling as if she were cut off from the world, Emily found herself immersed in the book without realizing it.
How much time had passed? Emily heard footsteps trudging outside.
“I can’t get caught.”
Emily hurriedly looked for a place to hide the book, but when the situation didn't allow, she just sat down.
As soon as she hid the book with good timing, she heard the sound of the doorknob turning.
“Your Excellency. Hello.”
When Emily greeted him awkwardly, Charles looked at her suspiciously.
“What are you doing here alone?”
“That’s why... I was wondering what book I should read.”
“Are you talking about there?”
Charles asked, raising an eyebrow. From where Emily was sitting by the window, the books in the bookshelf were completely invisible.
“Hmm, just in my head. Or would you like to recommend something, Your Excellency?”
Anyone who saw it would see that she was trying to just pass it over.
'I see you've been reading another suspicious book.'
Charles chuckled and slowly walked between the bookshelves, selecting a book.
Meanwhile, Emily crept towards the opposite bookshelf, unable to pick up her pace for fear of hearing the rustling of her dress.
Emily finally reached the shelf where the books were placed, looked around beyond the books, and put the book she was reading back.
“Huh? Where did you go?”
Just a moment ago, Charles was standing across from her, but she couldn't see where he was.
“Do you like it?”
Emily was startled by a sudden noise from behind and fell to the floor.
“Oh, when did you come?”
“There was a book like that in this study, too.”
Charles took out the book again with a calm, indifferent expression.
In fact, the place that is currently being used as a guest study is a place that Charles had done extensive renovations to give as a gift to Emily when he married her.
She also stocked a large collection of romance novels, catering to her tastes. If you search carefully, you'll find not only out-of-print novels by Lily Dan but also translated versions from other countries.
As Charles looked through the book, Emily sweated profusely and tried to make an excuse.
“That’s right. I was curious to see a book like this in such an old-fashioned study, so I took it out for a moment.”
Emily casually snatched the book back from Charles and asked.
“By the way, did you choose my book?”
“Ah, here.”
Charles handed her a book that looked quite heavy.
<A method of attempting to dissociate the mind while attempting to overcome the practical influences on the mind>
Even if the content is secondary, she didn't understand the title.
“Why are you recommending this book to me?”
“It’s just a book I read recently that I really enjoyed.”
“Are you interested in schizophrenia?”
"The title is misleading. It's actually closer to magical training."
Emily sighed inwardly and skimmed through the book, taking only a cursory glance. There were no pictures, and the text was small. It was perfect for insomnia therapy.
“It seems like a rather sophisticated book to me.”
And without any regrets, she returned it to Charles.
Charles returned the book with a smile. Even he didn't think it was the kind of book he'd recommend to someone who had just recently been reading a romance novel.
“Emily, how is married life?”
“Uh... just...”
It was an awkward topic to bring up with her ex-fiancé. As Emily hesitated and avoided answering, his gaze grew sharper.
“Is the Marquis a good person?”
Emily, who hadn't given that much thought to it, rolled her eyes. He made sure she had three meals a day, gave her money for shopping, and saved her when she was in danger.
Oh! And he promised to let her play card games at the club from now on.
“Yes, we do well.”
Emily answered with confidence.
But Charles didn't believe it. From what he'd observed over the past few days, they didn't seem like a particularly close couple.
Charles opened his mouth, carefully watching Emily's expression to see if she was lying to him.
“If you want a divorce, I can help you.”
"Yes?"
Emily was so startled by Charles' unexpected words that she raised her voice without realizing it.
“I will provide sufficient grounds for divorce so that you will not be harmed.”
As long as she continued her marriage with Killian, she would eventually sleep with him and have children. Could she possibly survive? Emily always felt a pang of sadness at the thought.
But with Charles's help, she doesn't want to divorce him. She doesn't want to betray Killian, who helped her, and she doesn't want to hurt the hearts of the Starr people.
“Your Excellency, I...”
Just as Emily was about to answer, the study door opened.
“Hey, honey.”
Killian appeared beyond the entrance.
Killian, who was searching for Emily's whereabouts, had been listening to their conversation from the moment Charles entered the study.
He tried his best not to disturb Emily, but he couldn't bear to hear her answer about the divorce.
If Emily said she was leaving, he didn't know what he would do.
“Madam, I would like to speak with the Duke for a moment. Could you please leave?”
Emily found it difficult to leave the place hastily, fearing that Killian might harm Charles.
And Killian, noticing her worried gaze, spoke softly and reassuringly.
“Nothing will happen, so please go out and wait.”
“Then. You have to come out quickly.”
It was a request not to make a fuss.
“Don’t worry, there’s nothing that will bother you.”
Finally, Emily forced herself to walk out of the study, her steps unsteady.
It was the first time Charles and Killian had a private meeting alone.
Killian, like everyone else, couldn't have failed to notice that Charles had organized this gathering because of Emily. Even knowing that, he came simply because Emily wanted to go.
“You make me regret respecting my wife’s choice.”
“Didn’t you go along knowingly?”
Charles asked, his expression unchanged, while meeting Killian's fierce gaze.
“Why did you marry Emily?”
“Do you think you are qualified to ask that?”
“Emily is my...”
“Ex-fiancé.”
Charles sighed and opened his mouth as Killian cut him off.
“Yes, so I wonder what the Marquis’s intention was in bringing the fallen noblewoman and marrying her.”
“Your Excellency, are you insulting my wife now?”
“What does that mean?”
The corners of his mouth rose in a sneer as Charles frowned.
“In that world, if a family falls, a person’s value is reduced to nothing.”
“Don’t interpret my words that way!”
“It doesn’t matter whether Emily is of noble or low-class origin.”
Killian took a threatening step closer to Charles.
“I’m not going to explain why I married Emily.”
“How cheeky...”
“Why should I bother with something that has no right to interfere?”
Killian's gaze at Charles was still cold and threatening.
“Don’t ever approach my wife like that again.”
Charles remained silent until Killian left the study with a final warning. Emily, who had been standing anxiously in the hallway, spotted Killian and rushed over.
“Is everything okay?”
"Yes."
Emily opened her mouth with a sigh of relief.
“Should I pack my bags to go back now?”
At those words, Killian asked cautiously.
“Is it okay if we go back?”
“Yes, the lady was so talkative that I wanted to go home quickly.”
There was no way he didn't know that Emily was saying this on purpose to put his mind at ease.
“Now that I’m here, it’s a world of people I don’t even need to know.”
With that, Emily chuckled and ran to her room to pack her bags.
Killian slowly raised his hand to his chest. He truly didn't want to lose this precious person to anyone.
Emily quickly finished preparing to return.
Hearing them leave first, Marlene shouted for Emily to take her too, but Emily lightly refused.
Emily came all the way here, listening to Marlene tell her to raise her family's reputation, but her ears are tired from the hellish mouths. Leaving Marlene behind is a small revenge on her.
“You’ll definitely regret leaving me here alone.”
Marlene kept rubbing her ears, as if her eardrums had not yet recovered from the tea time with the Grand Lady.
“We weren’t originally supposed to help each other out.”
Emily shook Marlene's hand gently to say goodbye.
“Just wait and see.”
“Yes, see you next time.”
Despite Marlene's resentment, Emily followed Killian into the carriage without hesitation.
The carriage was silent, without any conversation. The rain was still falling steadily, knocking on the window, trying to break the silence between the two.
As the sound of the rain began to die down between the plane trees, Killian spoke.
“Do you regret marrying me?”
His gaze, which asked what she was thinking, was fixed outside the window, not on Emily.
His face, darkly shaded beneath his eyelashes, looked gloomy and sensitive at the same time.
Emily couldn't open her mouth in the heavy atmosphere, so she just stared at his profile without saying anything.
He continued speaking immediately, as if he didn't expect her answer anyway.
“Even if you regret it, there is nothing you can do.”
Killian now turned his head and met Emily's eyes. He studied her intently, then slowly leaned back and spoke.
“I have no intention of letting you go.”
Why? His current appearance reminded Emily of Killian in the original novel, who had lost his wife and gone berserk.
And while looking around the study, she couldn't hide her excitement when she discovered the novel 'Lily Dan'.
“Oh my god, this is an out-of-print novel by Lily Dan.”
She was Emily's favorite romance novelist. Emily read almost everything she'd written, but she's never been able to read her early works, as she'd been too embarrassed to read them all.
“And to think I would find it here!”
<Do you like me?>
“The title alone is exciting.”
Emily immediately took out the book and sat down by the window.
Before she knew it, raindrops began to patter against the window. The sudden downpour created a pleasant noise.
Feeling as if she were cut off from the world, Emily found herself immersed in the book without realizing it.
How much time had passed? Emily heard footsteps trudging outside.
“I can’t get caught.”
Emily hurriedly looked for a place to hide the book, but when the situation didn't allow, she just sat down.
As soon as she hid the book with good timing, she heard the sound of the doorknob turning.
“Your Excellency. Hello.”
When Emily greeted him awkwardly, Charles looked at her suspiciously.
“What are you doing here alone?”
“That’s why... I was wondering what book I should read.”
“Are you talking about there?”
Charles asked, raising an eyebrow. From where Emily was sitting by the window, the books in the bookshelf were completely invisible.
“Hmm, just in my head. Or would you like to recommend something, Your Excellency?”
Anyone who saw it would see that she was trying to just pass it over.
'I see you've been reading another suspicious book.'
Charles chuckled and slowly walked between the bookshelves, selecting a book.
Meanwhile, Emily crept towards the opposite bookshelf, unable to pick up her pace for fear of hearing the rustling of her dress.
Emily finally reached the shelf where the books were placed, looked around beyond the books, and put the book she was reading back.
“Huh? Where did you go?”
Just a moment ago, Charles was standing across from her, but she couldn't see where he was.
“Do you like it?”
Emily was startled by a sudden noise from behind and fell to the floor.
“Oh, when did you come?”
“There was a book like that in this study, too.”
Charles took out the book again with a calm, indifferent expression.
In fact, the place that is currently being used as a guest study is a place that Charles had done extensive renovations to give as a gift to Emily when he married her.
She also stocked a large collection of romance novels, catering to her tastes. If you search carefully, you'll find not only out-of-print novels by Lily Dan but also translated versions from other countries.
As Charles looked through the book, Emily sweated profusely and tried to make an excuse.
“That’s right. I was curious to see a book like this in such an old-fashioned study, so I took it out for a moment.”
Emily casually snatched the book back from Charles and asked.
“By the way, did you choose my book?”
“Ah, here.”
Charles handed her a book that looked quite heavy.
<A method of attempting to dissociate the mind while attempting to overcome the practical influences on the mind>
Even if the content is secondary, she didn't understand the title.
“Why are you recommending this book to me?”
“It’s just a book I read recently that I really enjoyed.”
“Are you interested in schizophrenia?”
"The title is misleading. It's actually closer to magical training."
Emily sighed inwardly and skimmed through the book, taking only a cursory glance. There were no pictures, and the text was small. It was perfect for insomnia therapy.
“It seems like a rather sophisticated book to me.”
And without any regrets, she returned it to Charles.
Charles returned the book with a smile. Even he didn't think it was the kind of book he'd recommend to someone who had just recently been reading a romance novel.
“Emily, how is married life?”
“Uh... just...”
It was an awkward topic to bring up with her ex-fiancé. As Emily hesitated and avoided answering, his gaze grew sharper.
“Is the Marquis a good person?”
Emily, who hadn't given that much thought to it, rolled her eyes. He made sure she had three meals a day, gave her money for shopping, and saved her when she was in danger.
Oh! And he promised to let her play card games at the club from now on.
“Yes, we do well.”
Emily answered with confidence.
But Charles didn't believe it. From what he'd observed over the past few days, they didn't seem like a particularly close couple.
Charles opened his mouth, carefully watching Emily's expression to see if she was lying to him.
“If you want a divorce, I can help you.”
"Yes?"
Emily was so startled by Charles' unexpected words that she raised her voice without realizing it.
“I will provide sufficient grounds for divorce so that you will not be harmed.”
As long as she continued her marriage with Killian, she would eventually sleep with him and have children. Could she possibly survive? Emily always felt a pang of sadness at the thought.
But with Charles's help, she doesn't want to divorce him. She doesn't want to betray Killian, who helped her, and she doesn't want to hurt the hearts of the Starr people.
“Your Excellency, I...”
Just as Emily was about to answer, the study door opened.
“Hey, honey.”
Killian appeared beyond the entrance.
Killian, who was searching for Emily's whereabouts, had been listening to their conversation from the moment Charles entered the study.
He tried his best not to disturb Emily, but he couldn't bear to hear her answer about the divorce.
If Emily said she was leaving, he didn't know what he would do.
“Madam, I would like to speak with the Duke for a moment. Could you please leave?”
Emily found it difficult to leave the place hastily, fearing that Killian might harm Charles.
And Killian, noticing her worried gaze, spoke softly and reassuringly.
“Nothing will happen, so please go out and wait.”
“Then. You have to come out quickly.”
It was a request not to make a fuss.
“Don’t worry, there’s nothing that will bother you.”
Finally, Emily forced herself to walk out of the study, her steps unsteady.
It was the first time Charles and Killian had a private meeting alone.
Killian, like everyone else, couldn't have failed to notice that Charles had organized this gathering because of Emily. Even knowing that, he came simply because Emily wanted to go.
“You make me regret respecting my wife’s choice.”
“Didn’t you go along knowingly?”
Charles asked, his expression unchanged, while meeting Killian's fierce gaze.
“Why did you marry Emily?”
“Do you think you are qualified to ask that?”
“Emily is my...”
“Ex-fiancé.”
Charles sighed and opened his mouth as Killian cut him off.
“Yes, so I wonder what the Marquis’s intention was in bringing the fallen noblewoman and marrying her.”
“Your Excellency, are you insulting my wife now?”
“What does that mean?”
The corners of his mouth rose in a sneer as Charles frowned.
“In that world, if a family falls, a person’s value is reduced to nothing.”
“Don’t interpret my words that way!”
“It doesn’t matter whether Emily is of noble or low-class origin.”
Killian took a threatening step closer to Charles.
“I’m not going to explain why I married Emily.”
“How cheeky...”
“Why should I bother with something that has no right to interfere?”
Killian's gaze at Charles was still cold and threatening.
“Don’t ever approach my wife like that again.”
Charles remained silent until Killian left the study with a final warning. Emily, who had been standing anxiously in the hallway, spotted Killian and rushed over.
“Is everything okay?”
"Yes."
Emily opened her mouth with a sigh of relief.
“Should I pack my bags to go back now?”
At those words, Killian asked cautiously.
“Is it okay if we go back?”
“Yes, the lady was so talkative that I wanted to go home quickly.”
There was no way he didn't know that Emily was saying this on purpose to put his mind at ease.
“Now that I’m here, it’s a world of people I don’t even need to know.”
With that, Emily chuckled and ran to her room to pack her bags.
Killian slowly raised his hand to his chest. He truly didn't want to lose this precious person to anyone.
***
Emily quickly finished preparing to return.
Hearing them leave first, Marlene shouted for Emily to take her too, but Emily lightly refused.
“I should keep the lady company.”
“You’ll definitely regret leaving me here alone.”
Marlene kept rubbing her ears, as if her eardrums had not yet recovered from the tea time with the Grand Lady.
“We weren’t originally supposed to help each other out.”
Emily shook Marlene's hand gently to say goodbye.
“Just wait and see.”
“Yes, see you next time.”
Despite Marlene's resentment, Emily followed Killian into the carriage without hesitation.
The carriage was silent, without any conversation. The rain was still falling steadily, knocking on the window, trying to break the silence between the two.
As the sound of the rain began to die down between the plane trees, Killian spoke.
“Do you regret marrying me?”
His gaze, which asked what she was thinking, was fixed outside the window, not on Emily.
His face, darkly shaded beneath his eyelashes, looked gloomy and sensitive at the same time.
Emily couldn't open her mouth in the heavy atmosphere, so she just stared at his profile without saying anything.
He continued speaking immediately, as if he didn't expect her answer anyway.
“Even if you regret it, there is nothing you can do.”
Killian now turned his head and met Emily's eyes. He studied her intently, then slowly leaned back and spoke.
“I have no intention of letting you go.”
Why? His current appearance reminded Emily of Killian in the original novel, who had lost his wife and gone berserk.
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