Unlike someone who had just uttered harsh words, Cassius's movements as he cut the steak were leisurely.
Watching him, a question arose in my mind.
‘Why did he agree to this luncheon? Well, I guess even if they’re estranged, they’re still married, so he must feel some obligation. Still, being able to see him like this is something, at least.’
At first, I thought it would have been better to possess a random passerby, but I decided to think more positively.
Being in a position where I could see him at all was a blessing in itself.
I didn’t expect everything to go perfectly at once, so just take it step by step, Cassius.
Like someone blocked by a wall, I pretended not to hear anything and stayed true to my act.
“I have a refined palate. I appreciate beauty. Your Highness, you possess a face that matches my high standards of elegance.”
Cassius’s incredulous gaze pierced through me.
Even I had to admit it was a bit absurd.
But there was no other way.
‘Cassius, if you were in my position, could you afford to waste even a single moment?’
Cassius gripped his knife as if it were a sword and glared at me.
Then, as our eyes met, he muttered under his breath.
“This is the first time I’ve regretted having this face.”
“I’ll work harder so you won’t regret it.”
Cassius, at a loss for words, stared at me, unable to hide his bewilderment.
“I’m genuinely curious. Why do you like me?”
It was the same question. Vivian was genuinely puzzled as to why she had been following Cassius around.
‘Does she have a thing for bad boys?’
No, perhaps she just wanted to take everything I had, and Cassius was just one of those things. That seemed like the most logical reason.
Anyway, that wasn’t what mattered right now.
“Oh my, I’m so flattered that you’re curious about that.”
“……”
“As I mentioned earlier, I fell for Your Highness at first sight.”
“……”
“In that spirit, how about we have lunch together from now on?”
Oops, that was too hasty. Thinking about it, it was a completely insane thing to say, cutting out all context.
It was the result of being consumed by the intense determination to seduce him.
‘If this were a negotiation table and Cassius were my counterpart, it would have been much easier…’
Seeing Cassius’s expression, which looked at me as if I were a ghost, made it clear. I had been too rash.
‘He’s probably going to tell me to stop talking nonsense and just eat.’
The fact that he hadn’t flipped the table and was still sitting across from me was already a feat in itself.
But then.
“Fine.”
“……?”
He agreed to have lunch with me from now on?
I was both pleased and bewildered, leaving me dazed. The awkward clinking of utensils was the only sound filling the space.
Not long after, Cassius stood up.
“I’ll take my leave now.”
All Cassius had eaten was a single piece of steak.
“Are you leaving already?”
Was my face really so repulsive that he couldn’t stand to look at me for even a moment?
‘If that’s the case, why did he agree to have lunch with me?’
Cassius simply nodded slightly, then tossed his napkin onto the table.
His steps as he walked past me seemed unusually quick.
But for some reason, as he reached the door, he turned back toward me.
The sound of the door clicking made me turn around, and our eyes met in mid-air.
His furrowed brow stirred a sense of unease.
Surely he wasn’t going to cancel the lunch promise, was he?
Just as my heart began to pound louder, he spoke.
“That perfume… I’d prefer if you didn’t wear it next time.”
“Huh?”
I had gone out of my way to wear it, and now he was telling me not to?
‘Was he upset because I copied Rachel’s scent?’
But Cassius’s next words completely defied my expectations.
“The smell is so nauseating, I can’t stand it.”
“……!”
My heart sank.
This was on a whole different level from the usual insults and humiliation.
‘It wasn’t just any perfume—it was the one you gave me. Don’t you remember?’
Even after he left, I remained seated for a long time, unable to move.
*
As soon as Cassius returned to his room, he vomited everything he had inside.
‘How did she know about the perfume Rachel used?’
Though he pretended not to know in front of Vivian, Cassius couldn’t possibly forget. It was the perfume he had given her.
‘Just how much does she know about Rachel?’
The more he learned about Vivian, the more repulsive she became.
‘And yet she has the audacity to act like she’s the victim, putting on that disgusting expression.’
If he hadn’t reminded himself of his goal, he might not have been able to endure it.
The sheer audacity of trying to seduce him by imitating Rachel was beyond belief.
And the absurd claim of having fallen in love at first sight was downright shocking.
For the first time, Cassius felt the urge to tear his own face apart.
Was it because of this face that everything had fallen apart?
Was it because of this face that Rachel had ended up the way she did?
The more he thought about it, the more he had to keep his mind focused. For the sake of the perfect ending.
Tikan was visibly anxious as he watched Cassius, who looked like he could collapse at any moment.
“Shall I call the healer?”
As Rachel had predicted, Cassius had been avoiding even basic check-ups for years since her disappearance.
“I don’t want to hear that again.”
At Cassius’s low, subdued tone, Tikan couldn’t bring himself to say more.
His lord, with a face as pale as paper, was solely focused on bringing down Snowfell.
Agreeing to the luncheon was likely part of that plan.
“What about Keifel?”
“We still haven’t secured it.”
At Tikan’s words, Cassius’s brow furrowed.
Keifel was a poisonous herb that could only be cultivated in Snowfell.
The Empire strictly prohibited the cultivation of such herbs, making it extremely rare even among high nobility to possess them.
But Snowfell secretly cultivated them.
After all, poison was the easiest way to eliminate enemies without a trace.
The nobility knew about this but were too intimidated by Snowfell’s influence to speak out.
But what if that poison had been used to assassinate a member of the royal family?
The situation would change. Even the nobles who had been wary of Snowfell wouldn’t remain silent in the face of such a clear-cut case.
Cassius planned to drink poison made from Keifel during the luncheon and frame Snowfell for it.
It would be an act of treason, and most importantly, it would be an easy way to implicate the Snowfell family.
However, to make it look like a premeditated crime by Snowfell, he needed to play along with their pace to some extent.
A sudden assassination during a single luncheon would raise suspicions.
That was the only reason Cassius had accepted Vivian’s invitation to the luncheon.
With his life already hanging by a thread, Cassius believed this was the perfect final plan.
Even as he prepared for this scheme, all he could think about was Rachel.
‘Before I die, will I be able to see you even once?’
Meanwhile, Tikan, who had grasped Cassius’s intentions, felt his vision blur.
“Your Highness, you’ll collapse at this rate.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t die before I see Snowfell’s downfall.”
“Why do you say such things?”
Ignoring Tikan’s words, Cassius changed the subject.
“Has Lord Roadgo still not found anything?”
It had already been several days since he had ordered an investigation into the traces of a mage found near Rosemary Manor.
If they could just identify the culprit, Cassius felt he could find Rachel in no time.
“Well…”
“Is there a problem?”
“They’re still analyzing it, but the magic circle is incredibly complex, so it’s proving difficult…”
“Complex?”
A conversation he had had with Rachel long ago echoed in Cassius’s mind.
“Sometimes, to erase one’s traces, they deliberately use multiple complex spells to make the magic circle difficult to decipher.”
“Is that really necessary?”
“If you’re committing a crime, you need to cover your tracks.”
“So, is that why you hide your feelings too?”
“What feelings? And that’s not the same as covering up a crime.”
“Criminals never admit their mistakes, after all.”
As Cassius lost himself in the memory, Tikan’s voice brought him back.
“Whoever did this was determined to hide their tracks. The magic circle is layered with multiple spells.”
‘A thorough attempt at concealment, and by a highly skilled mage.’
Cassius’s suspicions hardened into certainty.
‘Snowfell.’
If this was their doing once again, he wasn’t sure what he would do next.
*
A day passed, and my mind was filled with thoughts of Cassius.
Last night, he appeared in my dreams, glaring at me with contempt.
Before the marriage, I would have worried about what to do if he looked at me like that… but now that it was happening, it didn’t seem like such a big deal.
Only his final words about the Rosemary perfume being nauseating still echoed in my mind.
Still, after a day had passed, the shock had subsided somewhat.
‘Well, I am Vivian, after all.’
Lost in thought, the maids finished dressing me in the outfit I had chosen.
Wanting to look different from usual, I opted for a simpler tiara today, unlike yesterday.
The effect of changing just one accessory was beyond expectations.
The tiara, which the usual Vivian would never wear, gave off an elegant vibe, creating a completely different atmosphere.
As the dressing concluded, Marianne hesitantly asked.
“What about the perfume?”
She was asking if I wanted to wear Rosemary again.
No matter what I did, he wouldn’t like it anyway, so what difference did it make?
But after what he said yesterday, wearing that perfume felt a bit off.
“You decide.”
At my words, Marianne’s face lit up with a bright smile.
She then brought out the Lissian perfume and sprayed it.
As the dressing was nearing its end, a maid hurried in and whispered something to Marianne.
The way Marianne’s face instantly stiffened suggested it wasn’t good news.
“What’s going on?”
“Well…”
“Tell me.”
Only then did Marianne, cautiously watching my reaction, manage to speak.