# 23
**Chapter Twenty-Three**
On my way back from an appointment with Harold, a smile lingered on my lips.
“Are you that happy?”
“It's fun, twice I don't spend my own money. But is it really good to shop this often?”
We already bought a lot last week.
“Even if you shop like this every day for a year, it won't make a dent in my wealth. Besides, you barely spend your pocket money on luxuries.”
“I don't need to spend it because you always buy everything for me.”
Harold crossed his arms and tilted his head slightly.
“You said you enjoy shopping with someone else's money. So have fun.”
"Good!"
I answered enthusiastically. Since I rarely used my pocket money, I thought this was a fair exchange. I felt joyful, and began to whisper unconsciously when the carriage suddenly stopped.
'Are we there already?'
But the carriage had not even passed through the palace gates yet.
“Because of them,” Harold said in a low voice.
“…oh.”
I followed his gaze out the opposite window, and saw Kayden and Ella. Neither of them was a pleasant person to meet, and my mood took a turn for the worse.
Caiden opened the carriage door from the outside without ceremony.
“So my younger brother finally decided to become a ranger?”
Harold clapped his hands slowly, wearing an elegant smile. Kaiden narrowed his eyes in annoyance.
“Don't make fun of me. I sent several messages saying I would visit, but you never answered, so I came myself.”
“Maybe because your letters weren’t worth reading? If it had been winter, I might have used them as firewood. What a waste of paper.”
Kayden clenched his jaw as Harold mocked him with his usual indifference. The air between them was charged, like frost and flame colliding.
Then Caiden turned his gaze to me.
“I came directly because there was no response to my messages.”
“…?”
I? Send me messages? I haven't received any messages at all.
I glanced at Harold, whose wry smile widened even more.
'Ah, I see.'
So Harold had intercepted it. I realized as I blinked.
“My wife doesn’t need an empty apology from Lady Ella, Kayden.”
So this is what the messages were talking about. Honestly, I didn't want to put in the effort to meet two people who would make me feel uncomfortable.
I also doubted Ella's sincerity about apologizing for what happened. Based on her actions in the novel and my experiences since my transition, trusting her seemed naive.
"Consider the apology heard. You two can leave now."
“Your Highness...”
Ella shyly peeked out from behind Kayden. She grabbed her skirt and bent down, trembling.
“I formally apologize for what happened before.”
After apologizing, she immediately hid behind Kaiden again. Kayden comes forward to protect her,
“Even as she suffered from the shock of almost being poisoned, Ms. Ella came to apologize in person. Please, accept her apology. And...”
Protecting Ella, Kayden turned to me and spoke in a low voice.
“She's not the only one who should apologize, is she?”
“Kayden?”
Ella called out to him in surprise, her expression surprised. She was such a good actress that I couldn't tell if she was really shocked.
"You're right. I should apologize too, Lady Ella."
I apologized without hesitation.
Upon hearing my apology, Caiden's expression hardened, as if this wasn't what he wanted.
'...Is this just my imagination?'
But I didn't seem to be the only one who felt that way.
“Kayden, my wife has complied with your request. Why does your expression look strange?”
For a fleeting moment, Kayden's eyes twitched.
“You are making baseless accusations, brother.”
“Hmm.”
Harold's gaze deepened as he looked at Kayden. Then he slowly stretched his lips into a crooked smile.
“Wagon driver, let’s go.”
“But...”
The driver hesitated, unable to close the carriage door because Kaiden was still holding him.
"Just start moving. If he doesn't want to fall and break something, he'll let go."
Knowing that Harold was serious, Caiden reluctantly let go of the door. The driver quickly closed the door, and the carriage resumed its smooth movement through the gates.
Even after changing into comfortable clothes in my room, Kayden remained on my mind.
'This is not the first time.'
Every time I didn't act like Diana, Kayden would give me disapproving looks. As if he was silently saying: “This is not what you are supposed to do.” The thought made me frown.
...Could it be that he wants me to hunt him down and torture Ella, like Diana used to?
'No, that can't be.'
I shook my head. The idea was too exaggerated.
Kayden hated Diana for torturing Ella. The story and Diana's memories confirmed this.
'Maybe he still doesn't trust me?'
My apology was probably too incredible for him to accept. That seemed like a reasonable explanation, and I nodded to myself.
Even after I told Kayden outright that I didn't love him anymore, he probably couldn't believe it yet. That's probably the problem here.
'How can I make it clear to him that my feelings are gone...?'
I pondered deeply, and then an idea for a specific object came to my mind. I opened a drawer to retrieve it.
Ivan entered Harold's office. After a brief greeting, he began his report.
“Young Master Vincent has been running around like crazy, borrowing money from anyone who'll lend him money, all in an attempt to get back something he recently pawned. Considering that the item in question is *that*, it's no surprise that he's so desperate.”
Ivan shook his head slightly as he spoke, almost involuntarily.
He knew Vincent was the type of person who easily got into trouble, but he didn't expect to pawn something so crucial.
"Things are going smoothly. It's time to give Count Garcia a hint."
“As you wish.”
Harold nodded, motioning for Evan to continue with the next report.
“I investigated Lady Ella's family. While the Baroness goes out lightly about once a week without causing too much trouble, the Baron is a different story. After becoming the head of the family, he became so immersed in his business ventures that his property was almost confiscated. Although he is no longer involved in the business and has recovered the property, his reputation is still tarnished.”
“Assign someone with good social skills to approach Baron Linomer. And...”
As Evan and Harold were finishing their discussion, there was a knock on the door.
“Harold, may I come in?”
"Help yourself."
Ivan opened the door for her, greeted her briefly, and left the office. Diana approached Harold.
“I hope I'm not interrupting?”
“No, we just finished talking.”
“That's reassuring.”
Diana styled her pink hair behind her ear, which had fallen over her shoulder. Harold stood from his desk and moved to the couch on the side of the desk. Diana sat across from him.
“What brings you here, Diana?”
“I have a request, Harold.”
She held out a handkerchief she was holding. It was dark blue, embroidered with the Wesen family crest—a handkerchief that was crucial to Diana's love for Caiden. She kept it even when she was expelled from the Count's estate.
She didn't know what to do with it, so she left it in a drawer and forgot about it. But when she was thinking of a way to explain her sincerity to Kayden, the handkerchief came to her mind.
“I would like you to return this to Lord Caiden. I picked it up by chance when he saved me in the Hunting Grounds and have kept it ever since. It is late, but I want it back to its original owner. Can you help me with that?”
Harold looked at the handkerchief with a complicated expression. Was it a difficult request? If he was, she decided to muster the courage to turn him in herself, even though she hated the idea.
But then Harold let out a little laugh.
“This is Kayden’s handkerchief, you say?”
“Yes? Yes.”
“Diana, who told you that Caiden was the one who saved you in the hunting grounds?”
Diana blinked in surprise.
“No one told me… I just assumed. At the after-hunting party, Lord Kaiden was the only one there, so I guessed it was him.”
Harold frowned as if he was confused, running his hand through his hair in annoyance.
“This handkerchief is mine.”
…What?