Episode 149. I Can't Do It Without You
"You take the lead."
Eric spoke without a second's hesitation.
Rose had come to him first.
His excitement was greater than his curiosity.
Serun watched Eric answer without a second's hesitation, thinking,
'I thought it would be difficult since there's a funeral going on...'
It was much easier than he'd thought.
Serun led them down a back alleyway. It wasn't far from the funeral.
After walking and walking, and passing through several alleys, they finally reached the main road. There, parked, was a plain black carriage.
"It looks like Rose is riding in there."
He'd been moving quite stealthily, but it seemed Rose wanted to meet him, avoiding the attention of others.
"You can get in that carriage. I'll wait outside."
Eric headed to the carriage as soon as Serun finished speaking.
When he opened the carriage door, Rose, whom he had longed to see so desperately, was sitting there.
Rose was as beautiful today as ever.
Her elegantly braided hair was exquisitely elegant, and her gorgeous yet innocent dress accentuated her beauty.
Contrary to Eric's flushed expression, a cold wind blew across Rose's face.
Rose glanced at Eric, then turned her head coldly.
"You came looking for me first."
Despite Rose's cold demeanor, Eric's lips curled up.
"You've finally made up your mind, haven't you?"
He gazed at Rose with anticipation.
"You're coming back to me, that's what you came to tell me, right?"
Eric looked quite confident.
Countess Beliana was missing, and his mistress, Doana, was imprisoned. Therefore, no one was sitting next to him.
If Rose were to return, now would probably be the perfect time.
Rose remained silent to Eric's words, then turned her head to stare at Eric.
Sharp words flowed from between her pursed lips.
“Don’t get me wrong. It’s not like that.”
Eric’s expression hardened slightly at the firmness of her voice. Rose, oblivious to Eric’s expression, spoke her mind.
“I came because I wanted to ask you something.”
Eric didn’t answer right away, but stared intently at Rose’s face.
Even the boldness with which she spoke to him was endearing.
However, aside from her cuteness, there was something else he didn’t want to answer.
“No, don’t ask.”
Eric flatly rejected Rose’s words. For some reason, he felt he understood what Rose was trying to say.
Rose ignored Eric’s warning not to ask and continued speaking.
“Why did you lie?”
“Well, I don’t know what you’re saying.”
Eric tried to ignore Rose’s words.
Finally, he met Rose. He didn’t want to talk about the Grand Duke of Artaeum at this precious time.
“Don’t pretend to know. I’m asking why you’re framing the Grand Duke as the culprit.”
“Whew...”
Eric felt quite uneasy as soon as we met, as we brought up the topic of the Grand Duke of Artaeum.
He sighed deeply and put his hand to his head.
“...Why do you think I’m lying?”
“Because the Grand Duke didn’t kill your father.”
Rose spoke with a firm voice, without a shred of hesitation.
“He didn’t kill him, but you saw him do it? That’s really strange. Aren’t you trying to frame the Grand Duke of Artaeum as the culprit?”
Rose sighed softly and then spoke reassuringly.
“Eric, I understand you’re a rival of the Grand Duke of Artaeum. But you shouldn’t be doing this because of your father. The joy of framing a harsh person as the culprit is fleeting. Even at this very moment, the person who killed your father is walking the streets as if nothing happened. This isn’t right, even for the sake of your deceased father.”
Rose conveyed her true feelings as calmly as possible. She was saying this for the sake of the falsely accused Grand Duke of Artaeum, but she was also sincere when she said it for Cedric.
Cedric's killer was someone else.
Rose believed that if he failed to catch his father's killer out of a mere desire for revenge, he would be unfilial.
"Don't be emotional, act rationally."
Eric, who had been listening to Rose, lowered his gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
Seeing Eric attentively listening to her, a sense of anticipation welled up in Rose's heart.
A surge of anticipation that Eric might recant his testimony.
Eric, who had been pondering for a while, finally spoke up.
“No. Why should I?”
Eric answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“...Eric.”
“Who do you want? If the Grand Duke appears, you’ll stick by his side the whole time. Why should I?”
“Eric, you... Are you doing this just for me?”
Rose’s voice was laced with bewilderment.
Eric, who had been sitting across from Rose, suddenly moved to sit next to her.
When Eric suddenly approached, Rose, unconcealing her discomfort, slowly stepped back.
Eric stared blankly at Rose.
He lifted Rose’s chin with one hand.
“Just...?”
The way his words trailed off felt quite cold.
“If I can keep you by my side, this is nothing. Turning a normal person into a murderer has nothing to do with me.”
“...You, just relax. Do you think I’ll come back to you just because the Grand Duke is falsely accused and sent to prison? No, it’s actually creepy. I’m being stripped of all the affection I never had for you!”
Eric’s expression hardened at Rose’s sharp words. Finally, unable to contain his anger, he grabbed Rose’s hands as if tying them together.
“Then what do you want me to do?”
Rose grimaced at the ear-piercing shout.
“You... won’t come back. I only have you now. You’re flirting with another man, not me!”
“It hurts. Let go of this.”
“You said you’d come back to me. You promised you’d come back if I gave you the alimony. But... you’re going to just take the money and shut your mouth? You... have completely lost your fear since I last saw you.”
Eric seemed to have forgotten his promise to be kind to Rose, as he suddenly returned to his previous attitude.
“Let go of this hand when I say something nice.”
“If I don’t let go, what are you going to do? Remind me of the old days, when you couldn’t even squeak at me and just bowed down to me? Yeah?”
Rose glared at Eric with a cold gaze.
They say you can’t fix people, and trash is trash after all.
She glared at Eric with wide eyes, then threw her head back with all her might. Then, she lunged at Eric.
With a loud bang, Eric’s forehead collided with Rose’s.
“Ugh!”
Eric stumbled and clutched his forehead. Rose seized the opportunity to take off one of the shoes she was wearing. Then, she swung it at Eric without stopping.
“I told you it hurt.”
She lashed out at Eric with rage, her high heel striking him.
“It hurts.”
It must have been more painful than she’d expected, because Eric snatched Rose’s high heel away. He frowned arrogantly and gave her a warning look, as if telling her to stop.
“What? Does it hurt? Does it hurt?”
Rose's anger surged at Eric's claim of pain.
She took off her remaining high heel and swung it at him again.
"You didn't even notice when I said I was in pain."
He was quite sensitive to his own pain.
Rose's words must have hit the nail on the head, because unlike before, he didn't snatch the high heel away. He just surrendered to Rose's swing, groaning occasionally.
Rose swung her shoe with increasing force.
Eric, who had been quietly taking the beatings because of his own sins, grabbed Rose's wrist, unable to bear it any longer.
"Stop it. This is enough."
"No, it's not enough."
"How many more times do I have to beat you before you come back?"
"Do I go back to you because I'm crazy?"
"You take the lead."
Eric spoke without a second's hesitation.
Rose had come to him first.
His excitement was greater than his curiosity.
Serun watched Eric answer without a second's hesitation, thinking,
'I thought it would be difficult since there's a funeral going on...'
It was much easier than he'd thought.
Serun led them down a back alleyway. It wasn't far from the funeral.
After walking and walking, and passing through several alleys, they finally reached the main road. There, parked, was a plain black carriage.
"It looks like Rose is riding in there."
He'd been moving quite stealthily, but it seemed Rose wanted to meet him, avoiding the attention of others.
"You can get in that carriage. I'll wait outside."
Eric headed to the carriage as soon as Serun finished speaking.
When he opened the carriage door, Rose, whom he had longed to see so desperately, was sitting there.
Rose was as beautiful today as ever.
Her elegantly braided hair was exquisitely elegant, and her gorgeous yet innocent dress accentuated her beauty.
Contrary to Eric's flushed expression, a cold wind blew across Rose's face.
Rose glanced at Eric, then turned her head coldly.
"You came looking for me first."
Despite Rose's cold demeanor, Eric's lips curled up.
"You've finally made up your mind, haven't you?"
He gazed at Rose with anticipation.
"You're coming back to me, that's what you came to tell me, right?"
Eric looked quite confident.
Countess Beliana was missing, and his mistress, Doana, was imprisoned. Therefore, no one was sitting next to him.
If Rose were to return, now would probably be the perfect time.
Rose remained silent to Eric's words, then turned her head to stare at Eric.
Sharp words flowed from between her pursed lips.
“Don’t get me wrong. It’s not like that.”
Eric’s expression hardened slightly at the firmness of her voice. Rose, oblivious to Eric’s expression, spoke her mind.
“I came because I wanted to ask you something.”
Eric didn’t answer right away, but stared intently at Rose’s face.
Even the boldness with which she spoke to him was endearing.
However, aside from her cuteness, there was something else he didn’t want to answer.
“No, don’t ask.”
Eric flatly rejected Rose’s words. For some reason, he felt he understood what Rose was trying to say.
Rose ignored Eric’s warning not to ask and continued speaking.
“Why did you lie?”
“Well, I don’t know what you’re saying.”
Eric tried to ignore Rose’s words.
Finally, he met Rose. He didn’t want to talk about the Grand Duke of Artaeum at this precious time.
“Don’t pretend to know. I’m asking why you’re framing the Grand Duke as the culprit.”
“Whew...”
Eric felt quite uneasy as soon as we met, as we brought up the topic of the Grand Duke of Artaeum.
He sighed deeply and put his hand to his head.
“...Why do you think I’m lying?”
“Because the Grand Duke didn’t kill your father.”
Rose spoke with a firm voice, without a shred of hesitation.
“He didn’t kill him, but you saw him do it? That’s really strange. Aren’t you trying to frame the Grand Duke of Artaeum as the culprit?”
Rose sighed softly and then spoke reassuringly.
“Eric, I understand you’re a rival of the Grand Duke of Artaeum. But you shouldn’t be doing this because of your father. The joy of framing a harsh person as the culprit is fleeting. Even at this very moment, the person who killed your father is walking the streets as if nothing happened. This isn’t right, even for the sake of your deceased father.”
Rose conveyed her true feelings as calmly as possible. She was saying this for the sake of the falsely accused Grand Duke of Artaeum, but she was also sincere when she said it for Cedric.
Cedric's killer was someone else.
Rose believed that if he failed to catch his father's killer out of a mere desire for revenge, he would be unfilial.
"Don't be emotional, act rationally."
Eric, who had been listening to Rose, lowered his gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
Seeing Eric attentively listening to her, a sense of anticipation welled up in Rose's heart.
A surge of anticipation that Eric might recant his testimony.
Eric, who had been pondering for a while, finally spoke up.
“No. Why should I?”
Eric answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“...Eric.”
“Who do you want? If the Grand Duke appears, you’ll stick by his side the whole time. Why should I?”
“Eric, you... Are you doing this just for me?”
Rose’s voice was laced with bewilderment.
Eric, who had been sitting across from Rose, suddenly moved to sit next to her.
When Eric suddenly approached, Rose, unconcealing her discomfort, slowly stepped back.
Eric stared blankly at Rose.
He lifted Rose’s chin with one hand.
“Just...?”
The way his words trailed off felt quite cold.
“If I can keep you by my side, this is nothing. Turning a normal person into a murderer has nothing to do with me.”
“...You, just relax. Do you think I’ll come back to you just because the Grand Duke is falsely accused and sent to prison? No, it’s actually creepy. I’m being stripped of all the affection I never had for you!”
Eric’s expression hardened at Rose’s sharp words. Finally, unable to contain his anger, he grabbed Rose’s hands as if tying them together.
“Then what do you want me to do?”
Rose grimaced at the ear-piercing shout.
“You... won’t come back. I only have you now. You’re flirting with another man, not me!”
“It hurts. Let go of this.”
“You said you’d come back to me. You promised you’d come back if I gave you the alimony. But... you’re going to just take the money and shut your mouth? You... have completely lost your fear since I last saw you.”
Eric seemed to have forgotten his promise to be kind to Rose, as he suddenly returned to his previous attitude.
“Let go of this hand when I say something nice.”
“If I don’t let go, what are you going to do? Remind me of the old days, when you couldn’t even squeak at me and just bowed down to me? Yeah?”
Rose glared at Eric with a cold gaze.
They say you can’t fix people, and trash is trash after all.
She glared at Eric with wide eyes, then threw her head back with all her might. Then, she lunged at Eric.
With a loud bang, Eric’s forehead collided with Rose’s.
“Ugh!”
Eric stumbled and clutched his forehead. Rose seized the opportunity to take off one of the shoes she was wearing. Then, she swung it at Eric without stopping.
“I told you it hurt.”
She lashed out at Eric with rage, her high heel striking him.
“It hurts.”
It must have been more painful than she’d expected, because Eric snatched Rose’s high heel away. He frowned arrogantly and gave her a warning look, as if telling her to stop.
“What? Does it hurt? Does it hurt?”
Rose's anger surged at Eric's claim of pain.
She took off her remaining high heel and swung it at him again.
"You didn't even notice when I said I was in pain."
He was quite sensitive to his own pain.
Rose's words must have hit the nail on the head, because unlike before, he didn't snatch the high heel away. He just surrendered to Rose's swing, groaning occasionally.
Rose swung her shoe with increasing force.
Eric, who had been quietly taking the beatings because of his own sins, grabbed Rose's wrist, unable to bear it any longer.
"Stop it. This is enough."
"No, it's not enough."
"How many more times do I have to beat you before you come back?"
"Do I go back to you because I'm crazy?"
"...The Grand Duke of Artaeum is going to die soon."
"Don't be so unlucky. His Highness will be found innocent soon."
“No, I will make him guilty no matter what, even if it’s just to have you back.”
Rose looked at Eric with a mysterious expression on her face.
“...Eric, you are truly the scum of the earth.”
“What’s wrong with trying to win over the woman you love? As long as the Grand Duke dies, that’s enough. We were happy. Why are you treating me like trash?”
“I didn’t come to see you today to hear such trashy words.”
“...”
“I was wondering if you were mistaken in pointing out the Grand Duke as the culprit.”
Rose thought Eric was misunderstanding. That’s why she planned to comfort and appease Eric and suggest that they work together to find the real culprit who killed Cedric. After all, the easiest way to clear the Grand Duke's name was for Eric to recant his testimony.
If Eric, the deceased's son, had recanted, saying it was a mistake, not perjury, he could have avoided the death penalty for perjury. He planned to exploit Eric's fondness for him, if necessary.
'I underestimated Eric.'
Today was the day it became clear.
Eric knew the Grand Duke wasn't the culprit, yet he had framed him as such.
And all because of himself.
'The Grand Duke was framed for murder...'
It was all my... fault.
Rose's surging anger was hard to calm.
It was all his fault that the Grand Duke of Artaeum had suffered an unnecessary humiliation...
In truth, Rose had done nothing wrong.
What he didn't know was that Eric's twisted desires had caused the situation.
But even knowing this, she found it difficult to shake off the guilt.
'I... I... didn't even know that, so I arranged a meeting with Eric to negotiate.'
Negotiating with the person who had deliberately driven the Grand Duke to ruin.
“...It was all a mistake. Eric, you’re worse than an animal.”
“Careful with your words.”
“A loser who resorts to all sorts of dirty tricks because he can’t win the woman he loves.”
“...I told you to stop.”
“A coward who turned his back on his father’s death for a mere woman.”
“Rose!!”
Rose didn’t even blink at Eric’s thunderous roar.
“You’re truly the worst kind of person.”
Rose looked at Eric with blank, emotionless eyes.
Eric, who had been brimming with anger at the irritating words, suddenly met Rose’s eyes and froze.
Her eyes were eerily impassive.
Not only was there no joy, but neither was the anger or contempt he’d felt just moments before.
Eric’s head went cold at Rose’s unfamiliar appearance.
He knew instinctively. If he didn’t grab Rose now, he’d never be able to have her by his side again.
The anger that had welled up in his chin subsided like a lie.
Rather than getting angry at Rose's words, the thought of holding her back came first.
"Rose."
A soft, muffled voice echoed. Eric surreptitiously placed his hand over Rose's.
Clap!
"Don't be so unlucky. His Highness will be found innocent soon."
“No, I will make him guilty no matter what, even if it’s just to have you back.”
Rose looked at Eric with a mysterious expression on her face.
“...Eric, you are truly the scum of the earth.”
“What’s wrong with trying to win over the woman you love? As long as the Grand Duke dies, that’s enough. We were happy. Why are you treating me like trash?”
“I didn’t come to see you today to hear such trashy words.”
“...”
“I was wondering if you were mistaken in pointing out the Grand Duke as the culprit.”
Rose thought Eric was misunderstanding. That’s why she planned to comfort and appease Eric and suggest that they work together to find the real culprit who killed Cedric. After all, the easiest way to clear the Grand Duke's name was for Eric to recant his testimony.
If Eric, the deceased's son, had recanted, saying it was a mistake, not perjury, he could have avoided the death penalty for perjury. He planned to exploit Eric's fondness for him, if necessary.
'I underestimated Eric.'
Today was the day it became clear.
Eric knew the Grand Duke wasn't the culprit, yet he had framed him as such.
And all because of himself.
'The Grand Duke was framed for murder...'
It was all my... fault.
Rose's surging anger was hard to calm.
It was all his fault that the Grand Duke of Artaeum had suffered an unnecessary humiliation...
In truth, Rose had done nothing wrong.
What he didn't know was that Eric's twisted desires had caused the situation.
But even knowing this, she found it difficult to shake off the guilt.
'I... I... didn't even know that, so I arranged a meeting with Eric to negotiate.'
Negotiating with the person who had deliberately driven the Grand Duke to ruin.
“...It was all a mistake. Eric, you’re worse than an animal.”
“Careful with your words.”
“A loser who resorts to all sorts of dirty tricks because he can’t win the woman he loves.”
“...I told you to stop.”
“A coward who turned his back on his father’s death for a mere woman.”
“Rose!!”
Rose didn’t even blink at Eric’s thunderous roar.
“You’re truly the worst kind of person.”
Rose looked at Eric with blank, emotionless eyes.
Eric, who had been brimming with anger at the irritating words, suddenly met Rose’s eyes and froze.
Her eyes were eerily impassive.
Not only was there no joy, but neither was the anger or contempt he’d felt just moments before.
Eric’s head went cold at Rose’s unfamiliar appearance.
He knew instinctively. If he didn’t grab Rose now, he’d never be able to have her by his side again.
The anger that had welled up in his chin subsided like a lie.
Rather than getting angry at Rose's words, the thought of holding her back came first.
"Rose."
A soft, muffled voice echoed. Eric surreptitiously placed his hand over Rose's.
Clap!
"Don't touch me."
Rose slapped his hand away. The feeling of his body touching her was horrifying.
It was the same hand that pushed her away, but it was definitely different.
Eric couldn't hide the anxiety in his eyes, biting his lip nervously. His heart pounded irregularly. He didn't want to let Rose go like this.
"Get out of my sight right now."
The sharp words continued.
Eric, who had been silently listening to Rose, let go of all his pride and muttered in a crawling voice.
"...I did."
He mumbled so quietly that it was hard to hear what she was saying.
Perhaps knowing Rose hadn't heard him, Eric spoke again.
This time, instead of speaking with his eyes fixed on the floor, he looked straight into Rose's eyes and said,
"...I was wrong."
It was a sincere apology, different from before.
"So don't say that. I...can't live without you anymore."
Rose slapped his hand away. The feeling of his body touching her was horrifying.
It was the same hand that pushed her away, but it was definitely different.
Eric couldn't hide the anxiety in his eyes, biting his lip nervously. His heart pounded irregularly. He didn't want to let Rose go like this.
"Get out of my sight right now."
The sharp words continued.
Eric, who had been silently listening to Rose, let go of all his pride and muttered in a crawling voice.
"...I did."
He mumbled so quietly that it was hard to hear what she was saying.
Perhaps knowing Rose hadn't heard him, Eric spoke again.
This time, instead of speaking with his eyes fixed on the floor, he looked straight into Rose's eyes and said,
"...I was wrong."
It was a sincere apology, different from before.
"So don't say that. I...can't live without you anymore."
Comments
Post a Comment