Stella turned around and touched the area near her heart. It was a resonance that was neither too loud nor too quiet.
Is it because she didn't expect anything from Kendrick?
No matter what kind of relationship they had, or what they whispered behind Stella's back, it didn't hurt.
Now even her heart has hardened.
Her lips gently curved into an arc.
Yeah. This is better, actually.
She walked along a wall where there were few people, so she could get to the carriage first. People didn't pay much attention to Stella. Everyone was distracted by Skyle and Roy Andra, the main characters of the day.
"Lord Andra of the rumors. I heard he came to the banquet today as well. I heard someone saw him."
"Did he leave already? I don't see him."
"There is someone who says they saw him near the garden. I would like to meet him at least once."
At the sound of Roy Andra's name, she naturally stopped in her tracks. Stella erased Kendrick from her mind and cautiously squeezed her way through the young ladies. She desperately wanted to find him. No, she had to meet him again.
"Excuse me, could you possibly tell me more about Andra?"
"Oh my, Stella."
The young lady seemed a little surprised when Stella suddenly joined the conversation. She placed her hand on her chest to greet her and looked at Stella again.
The young ladies exchanged glances. They seemed curious as to why Stella, the Duchess, was asking about Andra.
"Um... I heard he lived in the Kingdom of Gajins for a long time. Hmm, I was curious about the culture of another country and wanted to ask, but I don't see him."
Then, the young ladies, having dismissed their suspicions, cautiously began to speak.
"Andra has blonde hair and brown eyes. I hear he likes tea, but we aren't entirely sure ourselves. However, he is a kind person, so if Stella asks, he will answer politely."
"Yes."
Stella nodded, looking as if she had heard good information. They hadn't even talked for long when she sensed someone behind her.
"Stella."
It was Kendrick.
"Are you here already?"
"I'm done talking. I'd better go now."
She instinctively knew that now that Kendrick had appeared, it would be difficult to find out more about Lord Andra. She smiled kindly and greeted the young ladies.
"Well then, I'll be going now."
And she came out of the banquet hall with Kendrick. Kendrick walked briskly, swinging his long legs.
"Are we going like this? What about Sia?"
"She'll figure it out on her own."
Kendrick took Stella's hand. Stella thought that she could understand Kendrick's feelings, yet couldn't quite grasp them.
Didn't he have feelings for Sia?
She thought they had good feelings for each other, even if they hadn't fully shared their hearts yet. Kendrick glanced at the coat in Stella's hand.
"Where did you get that coat?"
Stella considered whether to talk about Roy.
"Someone gave it to me. I guess I looked cold."
"Who?"
"He was someone I didn't know well."
She decided not to tell the details because she wasn't sure yet if the man named Roy she met in the garden was the writer, Roy Andra.
"Did you just take that?"
"...It’s hard to ignore his sincerity."
Kendrick let out a sigh, took off his suit jacket, and handed it to Stella.
"You really need to pay more attention to your attire from now on. You must have received that pity because you were dressing so lightly in the cold."
She turned her head to look out the window. It was a way of saying she didn't want to talk. Kendrick glanced at Stella's eyes and profile as she blinked her long eyelashes, but he didn't speak to her.
'Why does he keep staring?'
Stella noticed that Kendrick had something to say to her, but she deliberately looked away. It was Kendrick who, unable to bear the silence, spoke first.
"Stella. Why aren't you saying anything?"
Kendrick looked at Stella. Stella had thought nothing but about Andra and writing the whole time. She even debated whether to go to the study to read more when she got home, or to go to bed early because she was tired. She couldn't tell Kendrick the truth about this.
"Hmm... I don't really have anything to say."
As if unwilling to continue the conversation, her gaze remained fixed on the window.
"Don't come out to the terrace anymore, Stella."
She looked at Kendrick. To tell me not to come out looking for him. Ah, did he get upset because I interrupted him spending time with another woman?
"Are you angry because I interrupted your work?"
He let out a sigh and shook his head. His neatly styled black hair became disheveled. Kendrick opened his eyes wide, as if speechless.
"I said that because you followed me out to where it was cold."
Kendrick buttoned up Stella's collar.
"You could have just called a servant and had me come find you."
His affectionate and gentle voice was irritating. Kendrick was always like this. He hurt her without meaning to. He could have just explained things a little more kindly, but he always left room for misunderstanding like this. That was the reason Stella couldn't leave him in her past life, even though she hated him.
Stella let out a small chuckle and leaned away from Kendrick. Kendrick, scanning her posture, ran his hand through his hair. The more he looked at Stella, the more confused he became.
"But why did you say that?"
"Huh? What is it?"
Her purple eyes stared straight at him.
'You're with another woman, so how could you...?'
Is it because she didn't expect anything from Kendrick?
No matter what kind of relationship they had, or what they whispered behind Stella's back, it didn't hurt.
Now even her heart has hardened.
Her lips gently curved into an arc.
Yeah. This is better, actually.
She walked along a wall where there were few people, so she could get to the carriage first. People didn't pay much attention to Stella. Everyone was distracted by Skyle and Roy Andra, the main characters of the day.
"Lord Andra of the rumors. I heard he came to the banquet today as well. I heard someone saw him."
"Did he leave already? I don't see him."
"There is someone who says they saw him near the garden. I would like to meet him at least once."
At the sound of Roy Andra's name, she naturally stopped in her tracks. Stella erased Kendrick from her mind and cautiously squeezed her way through the young ladies. She desperately wanted to find him. No, she had to meet him again.
"Excuse me, could you possibly tell me more about Andra?"
"Oh my, Stella."
The young lady seemed a little surprised when Stella suddenly joined the conversation. She placed her hand on her chest to greet her and looked at Stella again.
“It can be anything—his favorite food or whatever.”
"Um... I heard he lived in the Kingdom of Gajins for a long time. Hmm, I was curious about the culture of another country and wanted to ask, but I don't see him."
Then, the young ladies, having dismissed their suspicions, cautiously began to speak.
"Andra has blonde hair and brown eyes. I hear he likes tea, but we aren't entirely sure ourselves. However, he is a kind person, so if Stella asks, he will answer politely."
"Yes."
Stella nodded, looking as if she had heard good information. They hadn't even talked for long when she sensed someone behind her.
"Stella."
It was Kendrick.
"Are you here already?"
"I'm done talking. I'd better go now."
She instinctively knew that now that Kendrick had appeared, it would be difficult to find out more about Lord Andra. She smiled kindly and greeted the young ladies.
"Well then, I'll be going now."
And she came out of the banquet hall with Kendrick. Kendrick walked briskly, swinging his long legs.
"Are we going like this? What about Sia?"
"She'll figure it out on her own."
Kendrick took Stella's hand. Stella thought that she could understand Kendrick's feelings, yet couldn't quite grasp them.
Didn't he have feelings for Sia?
She thought they had good feelings for each other, even if they hadn't fully shared their hearts yet. Kendrick glanced at the coat in Stella's hand.
"Where did you get that coat?"
Stella considered whether to talk about Roy.
"Someone gave it to me. I guess I looked cold."
"Who?"
"He was someone I didn't know well."
She decided not to tell the details because she wasn't sure yet if the man named Roy she met in the garden was the writer, Roy Andra.
"Did you just take that?"
"...It’s hard to ignore his sincerity."
Kendrick let out a sigh, took off his suit jacket, and handed it to Stella.
"You really need to pay more attention to your attire from now on. You must have received that pity because you were dressing so lightly in the cold."
She turned her head to look out the window. It was a way of saying she didn't want to talk. Kendrick glanced at Stella's eyes and profile as she blinked her long eyelashes, but he didn't speak to her.
'Why does he keep staring?'
Stella noticed that Kendrick had something to say to her, but she deliberately looked away. It was Kendrick who, unable to bear the silence, spoke first.
"Stella. Why aren't you saying anything?"
Kendrick looked at Stella. Stella had thought nothing but about Andra and writing the whole time. She even debated whether to go to the study to read more when she got home, or to go to bed early because she was tired. She couldn't tell Kendrick the truth about this.
"Hmm... I don't really have anything to say."
As if unwilling to continue the conversation, her gaze remained fixed on the window.
"Don't come out to the terrace anymore, Stella."
She looked at Kendrick. To tell me not to come out looking for him. Ah, did he get upset because I interrupted him spending time with another woman?
"Are you angry because I interrupted your work?"
He let out a sigh and shook his head. His neatly styled black hair became disheveled. Kendrick opened his eyes wide, as if speechless.
"I said that because you followed me out to where it was cold."
Kendrick buttoned up Stella's collar.
"You could have just called a servant and had me come find you."
His affectionate and gentle voice was irritating. Kendrick was always like this. He hurt her without meaning to. He could have just explained things a little more kindly, but he always left room for misunderstanding like this. That was the reason Stella couldn't leave him in her past life, even though she hated him.
Stella let out a small chuckle and leaned away from Kendrick. Kendrick, scanning her posture, ran his hand through his hair. The more he looked at Stella, the more confused he became.
"But why did you say that?"
"Huh? What is it?"
Her purple eyes stared straight at him.
'You're with another woman, so how could you...?'
Kendrick stopped speaking.
'Is it even okay to say, ‘Have a good time’?'
"It's okay."
At his words, Stella turned her gaze back. There was not a shred of hesitation. She turned her back as if she had no intention of speaking to Kendrick in the first place. Kendrick could not shake the thought that Stella had changed. It was not because of her suicide attempt or her demand for a divorce, but because of Stella's distinctly changed attitude. There was absolutely no hint in Stella's eyes or demeanor that she wanted to be loved by Kendrick.
'As if she doesn't love me anymore.'
Today was the very event that turned suspicion into certainty. Even though he was supporting Sia as if holding her, Stella was not hurt at all. On the contrary, she tried to step away from the two of them. Considering the Stella of the past, it was unbelievable.
'Did something happen in the last few days?'
Normally, she would have cried, screamed, or been hurt and in pain. But she was not like that at all. She believed Kendrick and Sia's words that it was a misunderstanding far too easily. No, she didn't seem to care whether it was a misunderstanding or the truth.
No way.
'Did she get another man?'
Come to think of it, it was strange. The sudden demand for a divorce, and the fact that she was absent for several hours at the banquet today. She might have had a secret rendezvous with another man under the pretext of going to see the Duchess Lanedict.
"Ha."
The mere thought of it made him grit his teeth and sigh. However, hasty misunderstandings were not good. Stella's expression changed strangely as she looked out the window. Kendrick turned his head, following her gaze.
"It's the Andra family."
The Andra family carriage was passing by at a similar speed. Stella looked at Kendrick.
"Is it a family you know well?"
"It is a family that focuses more on scholarship than business. Because of that, they haven't accumulated much wealth. However, I have heard that there have been many renowned scholars and artists throughout the generations, and that they possess good character."
Stella nervously fiddled with her finger joints.
"I heard there is a famous writer in the Andra family. Do you know him?"
"Roy Andra?"
Stella nodded.
"It’s not good to get close to him. When he went to study abroad in the Kingdom, rumors circulated that he hung out with wizards."
"A wizard?"
Wizards were rare, then as now. Even if they existed, they were managed secretly by the Imperial Family using the Magic Tower. Perhaps for this reason, rumors about wizards were not favorable. However, when Stella heard that Roy was close to a wizard, she wanted to get closer to him even more.
'If he were a wizard, wouldn't he know a lot about my illness?'
She smiled secretly behind Kendrick's back.
Kendrick thought it was a relief that Stella didn't seem to be in too bad a mood. She didn't know it yet, but lately, bad rumors about Stella had been spreading one by one. They claimed that she was hiding her identity to attend debauched balls and even bringing handsome young men to the mansion. No one had yet thought that the kind and elegant Stella would do such a thing. However, if the rumors didn't die down, people would come to suspect her.
"You worked hard today. I won't be attending any social events for a while."
So Kendrick wanted Stella to stay away from social circles altogether. After all, there was no benefit in hearing such rumors. However, Stella tilted her head and spoke as if to say, "What are you talking about?"
No, it was actually quite good.
'Because I met a man who might be Roy Andra.'
She clutched the jacket tightly in her hand.
"If there is a nice banquet, I plan to attend again soon."
A popular author she had liked for a long time, a doctor, and even friends with a wizard. Stella decided she should buy him a tea he’d like to help build a rapport with him. Kendrick thought it was strange. Wasn't Stella someone who had decided to end her life just a few days ago?
'You want to attend more social events?'
Stella closed her eyes and endured the nausea, completely oblivious to Kendrick's agitation. How long had it been since Kendrick had married her that he had looked at Stella's back? Usually, Stella never turned her back on Kendrick.
'Is another man partly to blame for Stella changing?'
That's not impossible.
Kendrick shook his head nervously. To his eyes, Stella didn't look like Stella. He ran his finger down her forehead. With his movement, the jacket covering Stella slipped down, revealing her shoulders. He bit his lip and covered her exposed shoulders with the jacket. When the carriage reached the Duke's mansion, she was fast asleep. Kendrick picked Stella up without waking her.
***
Stella opened her eyes half-asleep. Perhaps because she had returned home in the early evening, she thought she had been asleep for quite some time, but it was still the middle of the night.
"Kendrick?"
She sat up and looked toward the table. Kendrick was sitting there, drinking hard liquor alone.
"Are you drinking again? It'll be bad for your health."
She approached Kendrick. She vaguely recalled Kendrick having picked her up and carried her while she was asleep. As Stella approached, Kendrick pulled her into his arms. It was unusual for Kendrick to initiate physical contact so suddenly. After all, he was such a considerate person that he would ask Stella for permission first, no matter how trivial the physical touch might be.
"It smells like a man."
She was even more flustered by what followed. Man. Smell. It was not common to use these two together. She tried to carefully pull away from Kendrick, but he hugged Stella tightly.
"What does that mean?"
His low breath tickled Stella's neck.
"You smell like a man."
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