Chapter 239
“Vivian! You are to behave yourself from now on.”
“What’s all this sudden talk about?”
As Vivian protested, Marquis Boviki unleashed the anger he had been holding back on his daughter.
“Be ashamed of yourself, Vivian Boviki! Lucius is leaving. He says everything that happened was a misunderstanding! How could you act in a way that would make a man treat you like that!”
“He’s leaving?”
“Until Lucius leaves, you stay in this room without a peep. If you cause any more shameful incidents, I won’t stand for it. Understand?”
After shouting this, Marquis Boviki muttered something about having a wretched child, then sighed and left. The guards began to stand watch outside her room, and Vivian had to have four guards accompany her whenever she needed to go to the garden or her mother’s room.
But these orders from her father only fueled Vivian’s rebellion.
Vivian became convinced that there must have been some misunderstanding, and she began to see Lucius’s departure as something forced upon him by her father’s command. Eventually, Vivian concluded that rebelling against her father’s oppressive actions, which prevented her happiness, was the best course of action. Within half a day of being confined, she devised and executed an escape plan.
***
The laziness of the guards, who never expected Vivian to go this far, turned out to be a great opportunity. Vivian boldly entered the lodging where Lucius was staying.
“Who’s there?”
And naturally, the most surprised by this news was Lucius himself.
The knights also relayed the news with a bewildered demeanor.
“Marquis Boviki’s daughter…”
“Sir Elliott! It’s me. I came because I think there’s been a misunderstanding. Please, listen to what I have to say.”
With Vivian’s voice trembling in distress, Lucius rubbed his throbbing temples.
His decision to go into the forest to hunt monsters was driven by his desire not to show Deidre his wavering self.
Watching Deatrice not look back at him once that day, Lucious read a certain answer in her eyes, an assurance that her coming here was not a mere impulse, that she might be shaken for a moment by his sudden appearance, but that she would not reverse the decision she had made.
Deatrice would not return to him.
Perhaps.
So, shouldn’t he quickly tidy up the situation here? Thus, he headed to the forest—of course, the fact that Deidre was staying where the seeds of monsters were alive was terrifying and contributed to his decision—and decided to leave after settling everything.
In Lucius’s mind, there was no trace left of Vivian. That day, he had briefly used her to meet Deidre, but he didn’t expect it to mean anything to Vivian.
After that brief encounter, they hadn’t seen each other for nearly twenty days. They hadn’t contacted each other separately, and even if they accidentally ran into each other, they didn’t exchange a proper glance.
So what had he done wrong to warrant this woman barging into his lodging?
Looking at the disheveled Vivian with a stern face, Lucius pondered about the countless people she must have encountered on her way here. They would probably already be spreading rumors about Vivian riding alone to Sir Elliott’s house. Perhaps in just a few hours, the news would reach where Deidre was.
“What brings you here?”
Lucius greeted Vivian with a stiff expression. Vivian, still wearing a troubled expression due to the events she had just experienced, responded.
“I know my father urged you to leave Ponto; he wouldn’t have kept me there otherwise; he said we shouldn’t meet. I know, Sir Elliot, what a disadvantage you are at; I know you think it’s too much for your position… to want me; but, Sir Elliot. What matters is our feelings for each other anyway, and I dare to confess that I… you…”
“Young Lady Vivian.”
Before Vivian could pour out her uncontrollable confession, Lucius interrupted her.
“I don’t know what actions of mine have confused you, but regardless, it’s all my fault. I apologize. So, please, let’s return to the mansion for now.”
“You don’t need to do that, Sir Elliott.”
“I’m not saying this out of necessity. Can’t you understand? I am a married man, and I have never harbored any feelings towards you.”
Vivian’s face turned pale at his words.
“You didn’t need to say that.”
With an innocent face clearly showing hurt, Vivian spoke.
“I know that you’re married. But the annulment is imminent. You can wait for that. I’ll try to persuade my father too. So, please, don’t set such a rigid stance.”
Vivian pleaded, and Lucius sighed. Despite sensing something off about Lucius’s cold attitude, Vivian couldn’t deny her own mistakes that had brought her to this point.
Vivian had no choice but to stick to her attitude. Lucius, knowing this, felt annoyed, but soon acknowledged that his own mistakes must have played a role in whatever misunderstanding the woman had. After all, he had known her feelings to some extent but hadn’t taken advantage of them.
Eventually, Lucius realized that he needed to be honest and apologize to her to clear up all the misunderstandings.
“Would you like to come inside? I have something to tell you.”
***
Holding the cup in her hand, Vivian couldn’t hide her astonishment upon hearing everything.
“So, the woman we met last time was Lady Deatrice Louisen?”
“…”
“And Lady Deatrice, ah, I’m sorry. So, she ran away to Ponto because of her father’s wrongdoing?”
Lucius couldn’t help but smile slightly, thinking the words sounded overly romantic coming from someone else’s mouth.
Blushing, Vivian, staring into space with a dazed expression, stammered, “I don’t know what I did wrong. I didn’t know anything…”
“It’s not your fault. I was the one who, blinded by my focus on marital matters, used an innocent Miss Vivian. I sincerely apologize.”
Lucius bowed his head, and Vivian muttered in a daze, “So, you suggested going to the soup kitchen at that time…”
“…”
“So, you hugged me then.”
“I’m sorry.”
Lucius apologized again. Vivian debated whether to slap Lucius across the face or to immediately get up and flee. But soon, she simply sighed and lifted her cup again, resigning herself to it all.