Chapter 4
A crackling spark went off in my head.
There would never be another answer this clear-cut.
‘He’s a con artist.’
Excessive fortune that suddenly befell me always tended to lead to a scam.
And right now, romance was not my top priority.
In the end, I awkwardly raised one corner of my mouth in a smile and turned him down indirectly.
“I’m terribly sorry, but my feelings have changed in the short time since we last met.”
“Pardon?”
“I… I’m now a woman with a daughter to take care of, and given this ill-timed situation, it seems we are not destined to be together.”
With a face devoid of any lingering attachment, I smiled brightly and conveyed my refusal.
Yet, for some reason, the Marquess of Rivandel’s expression blurred, twisted faintly—he looked both hollow and somehow regretful.
He remained silent for a long while, unable to open his mouth.
In that long, heavy silence, I felt oddly self-conscious and kept my mouth shut as well, waiting.
Still, there was one good thing about this.
‘It’s not every day you get to turn down a confession from a handsome man like that, so I should be honored—but getting involved with a con artist in this situation? Yeah, no.’
This was hardly different from turning down a confession from someone like Park Bo-gum.
How dare a villainess extra like me!
Finally, as though he had finished organizing his thoughts, the Marquess of Rivandel lifted his gaze to meet mine.
His beautiful, shimmering red eyes looked somehow sad.
“You were the first person who ever expressed liking me first, so I strongly wanted to get to know you. But now that I see you again…”
“It’s not much, is it?”
Just as I said that, Carsel spoke.
“I’ve gained a certainty I didn’t have before. So no matter how long it takes, I will wait.”
“Excuse me?!”
Why wait?
I shook my head, wanting to argue back, but the Marquess’s resolve was firm.
He took a business card from his inner pocket and held it out to me.
“If you ever need me, contact me here.”
“There’s no need to—”
“The reputation of the Delmore Earldom is not good. If you ever wish to leave, feel free to contact me at any time.”
The Marquess of Rivandel’s gaze as he said this was resolute.
“It doesn’t suit me to let another opportunity slip by, so I say this after much deliberation.”
“…Thank you.”
It seemed con artists these days were quite persistent.
‘Could he know that I’m carrying 2,000 gold coins?’
Aside from that, I couldn’t begin to guess his true purpose.
The Marquess of Rivandel—no, Lakan Duke, who hid his true identity behind the title of Marquess of Rivandel, namely Carsel… was a lifelong bachelor.
In his entire life, he had never once received a woman’s interest.
Whenever a lady came hovering near him first, he would lazily gleam his eyes and mutter:
—Do you have something to say to me?
He was simply curious. Why did they keep lingering around him without any clear business?
If they wanted to talk to him, couldn’t they just say so?
Thinking that, he would ask politely—yet strangely, the women would break into cold sweats, look uncomfortable, and flee the spot.
Carsel always thought:
‘I still have no idea what the problem is.’
It was quite unusual that the head of a ducal house remained unmarried even at the age of twenty-four.
Carsel often imagined his future—married, living harmoniously with a happy family.
He harbored a small wish: to have a family waiting for him when he returned from slaughtering monsters.
But the problem was… not a single woman would even attempt to converse with him.
Carsel Lakan guessed this was probably because he lacked charm.
‘Otherwise, there’s no way everyone would so consistently show no interest in me.’
Even when he approached first to ask for a dance or strike up a conversation, the women’s reactions were far from favorable.
Most of them looked reluctant or tried to avoid him.
Half-resigned, having given up on marriage provisionally—that was when Carsel met Asha.
Under normal circumstances, she would have shown no interest in a man like him.
But Asha cast sidelong glances at him, blushed, and let out small sighs.
At first, he thought she was signaling him to step away from her side.
But he soon realized that wasn’t the case.
Because every time their eyes met, she would bite her lip slightly and then abruptly turn her head away.
She had even confessed to him!
Unlike other women who wouldn’t even look at him, instead taking fright and running away breathlessly.
Of course, even so, Carsel hadn’t felt particularly more interested in her.
‘It was merely gratitude toward the first woman who ever liked me, someone so lacking in charm.’
Of course, the moment he learned she had a fiancé, he set even that aside.
But Asha’s husband soon died for sordid reasons. And once again, as if by fate, he encountered Asha.
Thinking it might be a sign from heaven, he had simply invited her courteously.
‘Something is different.’
It felt as though his colorless life had suddenly taken on vivid hues.
From the very first moment he saw her back, to the instant she raised her head toward him for the first time—
Everything seemed to move in slow motion.
Everything around him blurred, and only Asha’s smallest movements felt like the sole sensation within that space and time.
Her delicate face like a fawn, her refined chestnut-colored hair, and her large hazel eyes—today they were so full of life that he couldn’t tear his gaze away.
And those crimson-flushed cheeks, not even hidden by the charming little strands of hair near her ears, as if she were embarrassed.
So this is what a woman’s charm is, he thought, breaking gentlemanly decorum and admiring her—she was that coquettishly lovely.
So Carsel knew he was stiffer and more curt than usual, but he couldn’t help it.
Moreover, she stared at him as if reproaching him, her eyes moist, then lowered her gaze again.
Just that alone made Carsel’s heart begin to pound.
“I… I’m now a woman with a daughter to take care of, and given this ill-timed situation, it seems we are not destined to be together.”
Her face as she smiled and refused him was wistful.
Carsel thought:
‘Is it because she’s no longer another man’s fiancée or wife, so she no longer feels pangs of conscience?’
Yes. Carsel, the lifelong bachelor, had begun interpreting all of Asha’s attitudes from his own perspective.
‘The sense of responsibility to raise a child alone, the thoughtful consideration for others’ feelings even while having to refuse a confession, and that vibrant face!’
He had come to the firm conviction that the person he had been searching for was Asha Delmore.
In short, all the reasons he rattled off in his head were just excuses—the truth was, he had simply fallen in love at first sight.
At that moment, Asha opened her mouth.
“I, um… on my way home, I originally had a place to stop by…”
“Please, tell me.”
Even now, her voice as she spoke shyly quivered faintly.
She seemed quite embarrassed, unable to meet his eyes often.
“I was going to buy some toys or snacks before heading back.”
“For your daughter?”
“Yes.”
Carsel gazed at her for a moment.
Even though she wasn’t her biological daughter.
And she had only been living with the child for about two months, yet she still looked after her.
As expected, Asha was a kind person.
In the end, Carsel opened the window to the coachman and gave him instructions.
“Take us to a high-end shop nearby that sells toys and snacks for children.”
“Very well!”
Carsel closed the window again.
And as soon as he turned his head, his eyes met Asha’s, who for some reason had been staring straight at him.
“Uh…”
Carsel smiled at her.
He had heard that the very first thing you should do with a woman you like is always smile, so she could feel at ease by your side.
So Carsel smiled at her as kindly as he could.
Yet even inside the store, the more he did so, the more pitifully Asha lowered her lashes.
‘This time, I cannot let her slip away.’
With desperate determination, Carsel came up with a rather devious plan.
That was…
“Pack up everything from here to over there.”
A money-flaunting move.
And then he began his full-fledged “seduction.”
Though he had never dated nor even properly conversed with a woman, he wasn’t ignorant of theory.
After all, fundamentals matter.
Carsel took the advice of his self-proclaimed romance expert aide, Matt.
—You must gift her whatever she wants, no matter what. Show her that the Duke is a man who can readily spend that much for her!
—So you’re saying I should make my wealth known.
—But it must be done naturally, no matter what!
