Chapter 17: I took away Yeju's first love.
I was reading a book in the study when I suddenly heard a scream and rushed outside.
As I hurriedly descended the stairs, I found all the maids standing there, holding something in their hands.
"Miss! Please wait a moment. The men have gone to fetch weapons."
"What? Why are they fetching weapons all of a sudden?"
I tried to move forward to find out what was happening, but the maids surrounded me, making it difficult.
"Lily, what exactly is going on?"
"Shh. Be quiet, Miss. That bastard is here, you know?"
There were so many bastards that I had to think for a moment about who it could be.
But there was only one person that so many people needed to be on guard against.
"It seems Sir Wilhelm has arrived."
With my words, all the servants and knights who had weapons in their hands gathered in the central hall.
I pushed the maids aside and stepped forward.
Wilhelm brushed off his pants and looked at me.
"Your welcome is a bit too much."
"Considering what you did when you barged into our house, it's not too much at all."
At my words, Wilhelm let out a deep sigh.
His expression, which showed no change despite his wrongdoing, made the atmosphere among the servants tense.
At that moment, other people appeared with a flash of light.
"Father? Mother! What are you doing there?"
Behind them stood the bewildered Duke and Duchess of Hunt.
I wondered where they had gone so early in the morning, and it seemed they had visited the Hunt family.
"Alright, everyone, step back."
Father stepped forward and pushed away the knights, servants, and maids. He then approached me and explained everything.
From their early morning visit to the duke's mansion to Wilhelm's shameless denial.
Honestly, I was quite surprised.
In the original story, Wilhelm was a symbol of a righteous knight.
Although he was the least advanced among the male leads, his popularity was solely due to his unwavering beliefs.
'To betray those beliefs just to follow Tatiana? Is that possible in such a short time?'
While I was lost in thought, the surroundings gradually settled.
In the hall, only our family and the Hunt family remained.
"Then, shall we begin? Sir Wilhelm, do you have anything to say before we start?"
Mother looked at Wilhelm intently and asked.
His face showed no change, as if he had never told a lie before.
Mother raised her right hand, and a white flower bud bloomed at her fingertips.
In an instant, the entire hall was filled with a fragrant scent.
Mother, being a spring mage, had life and flowers as her source.
The petals that fluttered like phantoms gradually increased, and the hall was filled with a gentle aroma.
The beautiful scene disappeared, leaving behind translucent images of Wilhelm and me.
The scene of his misconduct replayed vividly.
As Wilhelm easily pushed the servants aside, climbed the stairs, and roughly grabbed my wrist, Father growled and glared at him. Wilhelm kept his head bowed.
'That's, isn't that Titia's thing? Surely he didn't steal it just to imitate her?'
The scene of him accusing me of being a thief also replayed vividly.
Now, looking back, his remarks were incredibly arrogant for someone visiting another's home.
I gently held Father's hand, which was about to explode with anger.
'If you thought my feelings would change just because I followed the Grand Duchess, I'm sorry. She is the only one for me.'
When his confession of love appeared, the mansion was filled with silence.
Duke Hunt, unable to believe what he saw, trembled and bit his lip.
The duchess covered her mouth with both hands and couldn't speak.
The parents' feelings upon discovering their proud son's dirty heart were palpable.
Actually, I wasn't particularly interested in the things I had obtained.
Instead, it was more entertaining to watch Wilhelm's face turn pale.
What must it feel like to see oneself objectively?
'I wonder how my affection will change. Will it drop further? Or will it rise?'
It was a bad habit, but I couldn't help but think such thoughts. When the vision disappeared, Mother clapped her hands to draw everyone's attention.
People who had been lost in thought began to come to their senses one by one.
"Shall we continue the conversation from earlier?"
For some reason, Mother's eyes seemed to have a chilling aura.
I stood in front of a hideous building, heading to the address on the card.
The old building, whose age was unknown, looked as if it could collapse at any moment.
Its appearance was completely out of place in the symbol of wealth and luxury, Veris Street.
"Miss, do you really have to go in there? I've been to Veris Street many times, but I've never seen a shop like this."
Only then did I notice the sign, which was so worn out it was barely visible.
The last commotion had led Duke Hunt to cleanly give up on my engagement to Wilhelm.
I was able to secure a substantial amount of compensation and the sea of copies I wanted.
Now that I had everything I wanted, it was time to invest.
I hesitated as I looked at the worn-out sign.
Is this place really okay?
I took a deep breath and grabbed the doorknob.
"I'm going in. Wait outside, Lily."
"If anything happens, you must call me immediately!"
With Lily's encouragement, I opened the door and entered the building.
The interior was surprisingly clean, unlike the exterior.
The wooden floor was polished to a shine, and the walls were painted a light gray without any damage.
The display shelves, though old, were well-maintained and free of dust.
There were very few items on display.
I chose a perfume in a yellow crystal bottle.
As soon as I opened the cap, a soft floral scent filled the air.
A garden of freesias, glistening with morning dew, appeared in my mind.
The fresh scent of spring soil and the aroma of fresh flowers blended harmoniously, and I couldn't help but marvel.
I was overwhelmed by a strong desire to have her.
"Is anyone here? Is there no one?"
I slowly walked past the display shelves toward the cash register.
Her bright face darkened gradually as she saw me.
Pretending not to recognize her, I smiled as brightly as possible and spoke to her.
"Hello. Are you the owner of this shop?"
Her voice, which seemed to be tinged with irritation, indicated that her good impression of me had completely vanished.
I immediately played my trump card.
"Pleased to meet you, I'm Karina Pioneira. I'm the daughter of Freya, the great Queen of Spring, and I came here through my mother's introduction."
Emphasizing my mother's name, I saw Nivea's frown soften.
It was quite refreshing to meet someone who had a good impression of my mother.
"You're Freya's daughter. I apologize. What brings you here?"
"Um, it might take a while. Is there somewhere we can sit and talk?"
Thanks to mentioning my mother's name, her wariness decreased, but the wall still seemed high.
"Sorry, we don't have that kind of facility."
Her unexpected answer left me quite flustered.
The perfume was a high-end product, and in such a boutique, refreshments were almost essential.
This place wasn't just a perfume shop.
The more upscale the boutique, the more important communication with customers was.
To make customers feel special, they should have at least a selection of teas that matched their tastes.
But I couldn't embarrass Nivea here.
She was going to be my precious perfumer.
"Then I'll wait at the café in front of the shop. Come there when you finish your work today."
"You're going to wait from now?"
I nodded as if it were obvious.
There's a saying about visiting someone three times to show how important they are.
I wanted to show Nivea how important she was to me.
"Since business isn't good anyway, let's go and talk now."
"Are you sure that's okay?"
"Yes. It would also be rude to keep a friend's daughter waiting outside for too long."
She closed the shop and came out.
Lily, who had been waiting anxiously at the door, rushed over.
I signaled to her that everything was fine and immediately entered the café across the street.
We ordered drinks and settled at a table.
"Please tell me what you want quickly."
Nivea, who said this, seemed somewhat anxious.
She kept looking around, as if she were being chased by someone.
"I came to propose a business venture, Nivea."
"A business... venture? Sent by the Grand Duchess, I suppose."
Her face suddenly twisted into a fierce expression.
She jumped up and roughly grabbed her coat, ready to leave. I quickly grabbed her.
"I'm not sent by Tatiana. In fact, I dislike her."
"How can I believe that?"