Chapter 41
The realization struck him suddenly.
Now that he thought of it, she hadn’t even scavenged for scraps of affection lately. The eyes that once sparkled when seeing him now seemed tinged with something oddly resentful.
Whether it was due to his constant whispers for her to kill her heart, or the scorn she’d faced from others…
It was as if her heart had truly died.
“Ridiculous.”
“Pardon?”
At Herman’s irritable mutter and the way he swept his bangs back, not only his secretary but even the waitress carrying a tray froze, staring blankly. The sculpted beauty of his frustration was oddly vivid.
“Ah…”
The waitress let out an involuntary sigh, half-admiration. Herman finally looked at her—or rather, at the tray she held.
Steam curled from a cup placed atop it. The coffee he’d ordered earlier.
“Coffee.”
His terse command snapped her to attention, her cheeks flushing as she failed to hide her thrill at his attention.
“S-Sorry! I got distracted.”
As she stepped forward to set down the cup, her finger subtly strayed toward his forearm.
She’d heard the rumors: Viscount Herman Telloien doesn’t discriminate by class when it comes to women. Hell, he’d recently married someone far beneath him.
‘Maybe even I…’
Could have a chance?
But the daring fingertip—
“Ah!”
—was intercepted before reaching his wrist, gripped with deliberate force.
“My apologies.”
“V-Viscount…?”
“I’m spoken for.”
“It was a phrase that didn’t suit the Empire’s prodigal son in the slightest.” For a moment, the stunned secretary, upon seeing Herman’s face—his nerves visibly tightening between his brows—quickly regained his composure and spoke as if scolding an employee.
“Get out.”
“S-sorry……”
As the flustered maid hurried out under the secretary’s urging, Herman stared down at his own palm—the one that had grabbed her wrist—with a displeased expression.
“…….”
In the past, he wouldn’t have thought twice about the lustful touches of other women. But now, even the slightest contact felt unbearable. The moment he felt it, Esina’s eyes came to mind. That hunched back of hers, shrinking away. Remembering that made it impossible to focus on work.
Herman sighed, finally admitting his own defeat.
‘I should go back for now.’
Maybe he could ease Esina’s mood a little. And then, perhaps, his own mood would improve too.
‘Right. We’re a couple for the long haul, after all.’
If there was any resentment between them, it was only right to resolve it before leaving. Setting aside personal feelings.
Once he sorted out his thoughts, his irritation subsided somewhat. Just as he smoothed back his bangs and steadied his breath—
“Young Duke.”
Knock, knock. A hurried rapping sounded at the door. The moment Herman gestured lightly, the secretary opened it.
“…What brings you here?”
The one who appeared was one of the subordinates he had planted in the capital’s back alleys.
Herman kept close watch not only on the movements of noble society but also on the underbelly of the city. The vast intelligence network he had built under a hidden identity in the capital’s backstreets was one of the key reasons his ventures always succeeded.
“What about the intelligence network…?”
“Well, it’s not about that…”
“Cut to the chase.”
Just as Herman was about to press him not to waste time, the back-alley subordinate’s next words made Herman bolt upright from his seat.
“…The young madam seems to be in the back alleys.”
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