Chapter 17.1

Chapter 17.1

“The goddess of luck seems to have favored you alone.”

Well, anyway, she had performed better than usual. Jasmine muttered in a slightly relaxed tone.

“I’m not good at reading people or playing mind games. Even when I practice, it doesn’t seem to work,” she continued.

“You probably don’t need to learn that.”

It doesnt suit you. He kept the rest of his thoughts to himself.

“Well, I think I need it.”

Jasmine gave a somewhat bitter smile and didn’t say anything more. Richard noticed her gaze shifting towards Charles, who was lurking in the distance, alert and quick. The temperature in the room dropped.

There was a brief pause in their conversation. For a while, the only sounds in the room were the shuffling of cards and hushed conversations.

“Oh, thank you.”

Richard’s words were correct. Jasmine brightened up when she won and clapped her hands. Richard merely raised the corner of his mouth.

“What about the one on your left?”

They all hit the mark. Now, Jasmine naturally followed his lead in playing the game. Their chairs were placed close together, and they were so focused on the game that they didn’t notice.

“Wow! I won!”

Jasmine suddenly exclaimed in excitement. It was almost the first time she had ever won at a card game. It was an impossible feat unless luck was one her side.

She gave a high-five, like the one she used to give to her brothers, and Richard, as if drawn to it, awkwardly raised his hand to receive it. They finally realized and awkwardly lowered their hands after laughing together.

“Um, I’ll take a break this round.”

She suddenly wanted some fresh air. Maybe it was because she was shy. She smiled faintly and quickly left. It felt like someone was watching her from behind, but she ignored it. She had to cool down her flushed cheeks.

Her heart pounded. It was ridiculous how her heart raced just because she played cards and had a comfortable chat. It was embarrassing. She tried so hard for a month to avoid him, and now she was excited to bump into him like this.

There had been no progress at all. Jasmine was angry with herself. She felt embarrassed about how excited she got when he was a little nice. She didn’t want to raise her hopes and face disappointment once more. It happened every time.

She needed to leave quickly. She wanted to go home. She was too close to him here.

“Lady.”

But her heart was already pounding just like it used to. She had thought she had forgotten all about it. It was all Richard’s fault. What did he care if she won or lost a card game? Why was he being so unnecessarily kind?

“Lady Liovanni?”

“What is it?”

Charles stood there hesitantly, calling her repeatedly. Jasmine turned around, her gaze fixed on the ground. The night breeze brushed past her platinum blonde hair, sending a chill through her.

“Charles, I’m truly sorry, but not right now…”

Honestly, she wasn’t in the mood to talk to Charles. She would instead put aside the awkward incident with him and pretend it never happened. She tried to leave, but Charles urgently grabbed her.

“It won’t take long. It’s out of my selfishness, but please, even if it’s just for a moment, just one minute, could you spare some time for me? Please.”

His desperate tone swayed Jasmine. She looked up and saw the earnestness in his eyes. For a moment, she felt like she was gazing into a mirror.

She always felt inadequate and melancholic, wondering if something was unsatisfactory about herself. She asked why he didn’t look at her. She blamed herself, felt sad, and missed the happy-go-lucky Jasmine of the past seven years.

Her feet stopped involuntarily. She looked at his anxious face. She didn’t even like this person; she didn’t show much interest in him, so why did he like her so much? What was the reason?

But she knew the answer.

Because he simply liked her. Like the way she simply liked the Duke.

Sometimes, you don’t need a big reason to love or like someone. Just like you don’t need a specific reason to hate them. It can be that person’s smile, gaze, the way they go about their day, a passing word – it’s in those fleeting moments that your heart is stolen.

How could I not understand this feeling?

And as she looked at Charles, his expression, so composed and determined, she realized what he wanted to say.

They both knew. This was the end.

“I don’t want to be remembered as just another man to you. I know I’ve been impolite, and even though it’s my selfishness, I want to be honest with you. Throughout this time, I’ve tried to present myself to you in the best possible light, but it wasn’t a genuine conversation; it felt more like one-sided advertising. What I regret the most is that I couldn’t engage in a proper conversation with you because I felt so inadequate.”

He simply wanted to establish a connection with me, and he wasn’t trying to promote himself.

Jasmine’s chest ached, and a bitter self-reproachful smile crossed her lips as she lowered her head.