Chapter 27

The distance between the two of them sharply narrowed. Without even realizing what she was trying to do, Herietta was already running towards the woman. The sound of her rough breathing echoed in her ear, and all other noises disappeared.

She didn’t even have time to think of Edwin, who had been begging her to take care of herself as she was about to jump into something dangerous. Her shoes that were cumbersome to run in had long since been removed.

The woman’s eyes widened in great amazement as Herrietta suddenly rushed at her. Herietta’s face was reflected in her eyes, which had the same color as a thick forest, for a moment.

As if she was about to say something, she moved her lips, but it couldn’t even wait for that. Herrietta jumped right in front of her just as the running horse approached and pushed her away without hesitation.

“Kyaaak!”

They didn’t know whose mouth the scream came from. The two women scrambled to the floor as the messenger passed by them. Perhaps it was a short-lived moment, and the wind he had created blew as he passed.

Herietta raised herself and saw the messenger running in the distance.

If she had been a little more hesitant… If she had delayed acting, what could have happened?

Just thinking about it gave her goosebumps.

“Excuse me…… are you okay?”

A soft voice asked from right next to her. Turning her head, she saw the woman she had pushed.

Like Herietta, her hair and dress were very messy after rolling on the ground, but even that couldn’t hide her beauty. As she reached out her hand to support Herietta, she looked very apologetic.

“Sorry, because of me… Are you injured anywhere?”

Even though her clothes were torn and she was bleeding in several places, she only worried about Herietta. She took a closer look at Herietta who went to stand up.

“Oh no. Your clothes are all damaged. What should I do?”

The woman murmured as she frowned.

“I hope it’s not the clothes you particularly cherish. Of course, I’ll compensate you, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to build a perfectly identical outfit.”

“It’s okay. Are you okay? You rolled over on the ground just like me.”

“Don’t worry about me. It’s all my fault.”

The woman smiled faintly.

“If it wasn’t for you, it would have been really bad. It must have never been an easy decision to jump in front of a running horse… I owe you my life. Thank you so much, I don’t know what to say.”

Whether those words were sincere or not, she bowed deeply toward Herietta. From her appearance to the way she dressed, she was undoubtedly a nobleman from a wealthy family. In a way, it was a great thing to show such respect to someone whom she didn’t even know.

Of course, Herieta’s outfit was too luxurious for a commoner, so it may be that the woman is vaguely considering her to be a fellow aristocrat.

“But it looks like you were looking for something…?”

At Herietta’s question, the woman took a deep breath and exhaled. A deep sadness hung on her face, but she was still as beautiful as a lily of the valley.

“Well. I’ve been missing it for a long time, so I guess I’ve seen something in vain. As soon as I saw it, I was startled and ran out of nowhere, but when I went to look for it, it was gone.”

“Are you looking for a person?”

“…”

Instead of answering, the woman smiled sadly. Herietta felt very sorry for her. She wondered who might have been the lucky person the beautiful woman missed so much that she even thought she saw them in broad daylight.

“Oh, we haven’t introduced ourselves yet.”

The woman seemed to suddenly remember and said. She extended her hand towards Herietta.

“My name is Vivianne. Vivianne Antoine Richconnell. But, please, just call me Vivianne.”

“Oh, I’m Herietta Mackenzie.”

Herietta said her name haphazardly. But at the same time, she tried to sift through her memory.

Richconnell? It was a name that she seemed to have heard somewhere before.

However, it seemed that Herietta was not alone in thinking that way.

“… Mackenzie?”

Vivianne’s face hardened as if she couldn’t believe her ears.

“Did you say, Mackenzie? That Mackenzie of Philioche?”

“Huh? How…?”

Herietta, who had never expected the name of her hometown to come out of Vivianne’s mouth, asked in amazement. As Vivianne was about to answer her, someone grabbed Herietta’s wrist. Suddenly, her body was pulled back by a strong force.

A warmth passed through her back, and at the same time, she smelled the familiar body scent.

“Miss Herietta.”

It was Edwin. He held Herrietta in his arms and called out her name. Maybe he had been running all the way looking for her without resting since she could feel his heart beating fast.

“When I went to the front of the store, I was worried because I couldn’t see you. However…”

Slowly taking deep breaths, he gently pulled her away from him. Then he began to carefully examine her from head to toe.

“What happened? Why are your clothes like this again?”

He frowned at her as if he already had an idea of what happened even before she could answer. His soft expression turned harsh in an instant. Herietta gulped.

“Edwin, that’s…”

“Sir Edwin?”

Vivianne, who was standing behind Herietta, quietly called Edwin. She called him in a familiar tone like he was someone she knew. Herietta looked behind her and saw that Vivianne was shaking. She looked shocked as if she couldn’t believe the scene in front of her.

When his name was called, Edwin casually raised his head to look at Vivianne. The moment he checked her face, he too, seemed very surprised. But before long, his handsome face hardened.

The tight hold he had on Herietta’s hand loosened.

“… Lady Vivian.”

He called out Vivianne’s name softly as if he was groaning. It was the name of the woman who was once his fiancee.

* * *

Vivianne Antoine Richconnell.

The only daughter of the venerable Marquisate of Richconnell, she was arguably the most beautiful woman in the kingdom.

Even Princess Leisha, who is praised for being so elegant and beautiful, could not keep up with Vivianne’s beauty, nor the young Countess of Sicilia, who was said to be so beautiful that even the king of the neighboring country had proposed to her, also could not compare even against Vivianne’s toes.

Thousands of men have come all the way to see her, and many of the men have knelt in front of her and fervently courted her.

Her suitors ranged from men who were known on the continent for their wealth to members of the royal family that people expected that she would surely lead a happy life no matter who she chose.

But even so, Vivianne did not choose anyone for a long time. When Marquis Richconnell asked what she was waiting for, she just smiled quietly.

One, two years passed. As time went by, Vivian’s beauty grew more and more, and rumors about her spread widely.

People wondered. Who will be the lucky man to be chosen by the beautiful and elegant Vivianne?

But when Vivian turned 20, a man came to the Richconnell mansion.

Although he was neatly dressed and wore no special ornaments, his appearance looked very splendid, and at the same time, he had a charm that caught people’s eyes.

Unlike his predecessors who brought precious jewels as gifts, he didn’t even bring a single flower. He looked out of the window without a word, waiting for her to come to the parlor. His back looked very straight as he turned away from the sun to face her.

‘Lady Vivianne.’

She couldn’t find any affection from the man who called her name. Even looking at her, he did not give her even a hint of a smile.

‘My name is Edwin Benedict Debuer Redford.’

It was a voice that barely showed any emotion, and was quite business-like. Calmly speaking his name, he leaned over and pretended to kiss the back of her hand.

‘I have come to propose to you.’

His hand, which looked cold, was surprisingly warm.