The candle had already gone out, and the silver moonlight slowly spread across the dusty surface of the desk.
A rumbling of carriage wheels sounded from the distance. Before long, the carriage halted downstairs. The snorting of the sturdy draft horses, the low shouts of the coachman, and the creak of the carriage door opening all came in quick succession. Then came those once-familiar footsteps, rapid on the stairs, and then they stopped right at the door of his room.
The door was pulled open and candlelight spilled in, shattering the silver moonlight in the room into scattered, broken fragments of light and shadow.
Miss Windsor stood at the doorway, wearing a white off-the-shoulder princess gown. She had probably altered the design herself — there was a bit too much gold-thread embroidery for his taste, and the princess dress, once a symbol of purity, had been transformed into something altogether more sensual and alluring on her. Perhaps she had been in the middle of a party when she received Lina's message and had rushed over here — she had climbed the stairs in a hurry and was still catching her breath.
It seemed they both understood: if they missed today, they might never meet again.
Lorist's voice was calm. "Could you blow out the candle? I like the silver moonlight in this room."
Miss Windsor silently extinguished the flame, set the candlestick aside, and walked quietly into the silver moonlight. She stopped and stood perfectly still, just as she had on that moonlit night so long ago.
Neither of them spoke. Lorist gazed at the lily-like girl before him, his heart a tangle of emotions. The person he had once loved most was about to leave and marry another man. When he had first received the news, he had wished he could sprout wings and fly to her side. But now that they stood face to face, the ache was still there — yet the desperate unwillingness to let go was gone.
"I suppose I should be calling you Marchioness now," Lorist said lightly, breaking the stillness in the room.
"You know?" The girl raised her head.
"Three months ago, I ran into a group of mercenaries from the Qigeda Kingdom in the Ruins Archipelago. They told me that the Marquis of the Rofi Family would be holding a grand wedding banquet in the royal capital at the end of the year to take a second wife. They'd been commissioned by the Rofi Family to travel to the Archipelago to procure some rare materials for the banquet. In the course of conversation, they were guessing which noble lady from the Kingdom the second wife might be — and I already knew it had to be you."
Lorist let out a soft laugh. "Your secrecy was well done, I'll give you that. I doubt anyone in
"I had no choice, Lock. I know you hate me — hate me for falling in love with someone else, hate me for being fickle, hate me for coveting power. But I truly had no choice. For the family's sake, I had to do this." The girl sank to the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks. "After you left, he had his family step in and force those four new lords to return the lands they had seized from the Windsor Family. But even after the territory was reclaimed, those lords kept raiding us. Sir Herd was seriously injured, and Sir Som couldn't be everywhere at once. Those lords sent men disguised as bandits to burn our fields and homes, kidnap our people and sell them into slavery — they stopped at nothing. Under those conditions, the territory simply couldn't develop."
"Then he made a proposal: if I agreed to marry him, he could legitimately send his family's armies to help the Windsor Family through the crisis. I agreed. The moment I return to the royal capital and the wedding day arrives, the Rofi Family will declare war on those four lords on the grounds of their alliance with the Windsor Family. From then on, any enemy of the Windsor Family would be an enemy of the Rofi Family. By that time, his family's forces would already be positioned around those four territories, launching a simultaneous attack to uproot the four lords entirely, giving our family's lands the breathing room they need to recover and grow."
"How could I refuse such an opportunity? For the future of the Windsor Family, even if I don't love him, I had to accept his proposal. Besides, he promised that once those four lords are eliminated, two of their territories would be reclaimed by the royal family, one would go to the Rofi Family, and one would be granted to the Windsor Family as compensation. I intend to give that land to Sir Som and confer upon him the title of Baron, in recognition of his meritorious service leading the resistance for the family."
The girl sat on the floor, words tumbling out as though she needed to say everything at once. "Lina not knowing about his proposal was his requirement too. Only Suzy and I knew — to keep it secret, so those four lords wouldn't catch wind. He said the key to the whole thing was the element of surprise. The moment the wedding begins, the Rofi Family declares war. The Qigeda nobles won't be able to react in time. Once they've occupied those four territories and created a fait accompli, the royal family steps in to officially strip those lords of their titles and reclaim the lands. By then, no one will have anything to say. And with the Rofi Family backing us, the Windsor Family would never again suffer the tragedy that befell my father."
Lorist's eyes narrowed. What a brilliant scheme. What meticulous planning. His own strategy had been for the resistance to fight on for at least another half year — until those four new lords' military strength had been sufficiently drained, leaving them unable to threaten the Windsor Family's old territories. Only then would he find someone to negotiate peace, and the family could reclaim its lands during a period of calm. All the Windsor Family had to do during that time was establish a capable garrison force, and they would no longer need to fear raids.
Without the territory, the Windsor Family had no choice but to use the resistance fighters as a garrison. And those four lords, having been forced to return their seized lands, were clearly unwilling to let the matter rest. With their military strength largely intact, and now seeing that the resistance — once impossible to track — had been forced into the open, they would stop at nothing to exact their revenge.
It was only half a year ahead of schedule, but the situation had completely flipped. The resistance had become the garrison force, and the new lords had become the ones waging resistance. The positions had been reversed. Now it was the Windsor Family bearing the brunt, unable to cope with this unexpected turn of events, left with no choice but to watch their territory be ravaged. And right on cue, the savior appeared — he proposed to Miss Windsor, offering to deploy his family's armies to help the Windsor Family deal with their enemies, using the opportunity to eliminate those four lords in one stroke. Two territories would be returned to the royal family, putting the royal family in the hot seat and drawing the ire of the entire Kingdom's nobility toward the crown. Meanwhile, he and the Windsor Family would split the remaining two territories — gaining both tangible benefits and a reputation for righteousness, all while securing the Windsor Family as a staunch, loyal ally.
Was this pulling off five accomplishments with one arrow? Or six? Lorist drew in a sharp breath. An outside observer sees things clearly. Perhaps when the resistance had first been established in the Windsor Family's old territories, every move had already been watched and calculated by an astute mind. Riding the current to create opportunity, going with the flow, fishing in troubled waters, deceiving the heavens to cross the sea, advancing secretly while openly appearing to take a different path, turning the guest into the host, creating something from nothing. An entire sequence of maneuvers, and in the end, the Rofi Family — the party that had merely been watching from the sidelines — reaped the greatest reward. That Rofi Marquis was truly no ordinary man.
Watching the girl naively enumerate the benefits of the Windsor Family's alliance with the Rofi Family, Lorist suddenly felt a wave of cold disinterest wash over him. Was this truly the girl he had once loved most? Was this the angel in his heart? Vain, ignorant, and stubborn — a chess piece being moved around the board without the slightest awareness. Poor Miss Windsor, what did you have left besides your beauty?
As though the marriage alliance between the Windsor and Rofi families required some great sacrifice on your part. Wasn't this exactly what you had wanted? Becoming a Marchioness, attending court functions and salons, socializing with queens and noblewomen, standing above the world while everyone fawned over you and gazed up at you — wasn't that the life you had always dreamed of? A naive, brainless Miss Windsor. A family's true strength was never displayed in that manner, and a family's honor was not won at banquets and gatherings. Placing the Rofi Family as your greatest pillar of support — one day the Windsor Family might be sold out and you'd help them count the money. Relying on others is never as good as relying on yourself. When would you ever understand that?
But what did any of this have to do with him? Lorist shook his head wearily. Suddenly he found it almost laughable — the way he had been heartbroken and devastated over the breakup back then. Now, having let go entirely, he felt a sense of lightness in both body and mind, as though some great burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
"What's wrong, Lock?" The girl noticed Lorist shaking his head and asked, confused.
"Nothing. I just spent over a month on a ship after leaving the Ruins Archipelago. I've only just reached land and I still feel like I'm at sea — every now and then I get waves of seasickness." Lorist casually made up an excuse. "By the way, has he been treating you well?"
"Mm, very well." The girl nodded. "Being with him feels like being cradled in someone's palm, showered with affection. He arranges everything perfectly, down to the last detail. Not like you — with you, I had to think everything through myself, figure everything out on my own. Honestly, Lock, being with you was exhausting. I was busy to the point of collapse every day while you were so relaxed. Whenever you took something on, it was resolved in a few words. I really envied you back then."
"Heh heh, that's because you're clumsy." Lorist chuckled softly. "I'm curious, though — why would his wife support his proposal to you?"
"You mean Lafina, my senior sister? She's in poor health — she once had a miscarriage from a fall off a horse, and the imperial physicians said she might never be able to conceive again. Besides, she prefers solitude and hates all those parties and social engagements. So she hoped Rofi would propose to me so I could attend those functions in her place, and she also hopes I'll produce an heir for the Rofi Family soon." The girl's cheeks flushed slightly as she spoke.
Yes, wonderful. You've been turned into a social stand-in and a breeding tool. The moment you give birth, I guarantee that the first wife will make excuses about how busy you are with social obligations and conveniently take the child to raise herself, leaving you eternally grateful. In a few years, when the child no longer recognizes you as its mother — that's when you'll understand. Lorist muttered these words to himself with malicious satisfaction.
Lorist asked, "Why did you shut down the business in Morant City? Why sell the house and the shop?"
"The family's territory was devastated. Sir Som wrote and said that there wasn't a single intact civilian home left in the entire territory. Reconstruction and restoring the people's livelihood would require enormous amounts of materials and capital — he even listed everything out. It all came to over ten thousand gold coins. On top of that, I need to prepare my dowry and such. I didn't have that kind of cash on hand. So he suggested I sell everything here and start fresh in the royal capital. It's his turf, and he'll arrange everything for me." The look on Miss Windsor's face as she spoke was one of deep satisfaction.
Lorist really wanted to applaud, to express his boundless admiration for the Rofi Marquis — a man whose cunning stretched like a flooded Yellow River, overflowing and unstoppable. Look at him: he'd won the beauty's hand, and while he was at it, he'd snatched away the golden goose in her possession. Once they reached the royal capital, the Marquis would have everything arranged — Miss Windsor would smoothly transition from boss to high-ranking employee, and the profits of her women's haute couture boutique would flow steadily into the Marquis's coffers. He could only hope the Marquis would leave her at least a sip of soup after gorging himself.
"And another thing." Lorist realized he no longer had the energy to be angry at this girl. He was certain that even if he laid everything out plainly and clearly, Miss Windsor wouldn't believe a word of it — she would only think he was jealous and trying to drive a wedge between them. Forget it. Everyone had their own destiny. He and Miss Windsor were merely two meteors that had crossed paths for a moment, leaving behind a brief but brilliant memory in each other's lives.
"So what's wrong with wanting to see you one more time? I loved you for four years, after all. Even though you've let me down, I just can't forget you. You're always like this — once you've made up your mind, you become cold and ruthless. Don't you feel even the slightest bit of attachment? Can't you say just one sentence — 'Don't leave me'? The moment I said 'let's break up,' you didn't say a word and walked away. I know you hate me, that you can't forgive me, and that I brought all of this upon myself. But I still wanted to see you one more time — even if it's just the last time…" The girl's voice rose louder. Lorist's sharp words had pushed her over the edge.
To dare to love and to dare to hate — that was the girl's redeeming quality.
"Sigh…" Lorist let out a long breath and rose to his feet. "Seeing each other is worse than holding on to the memory. Why go through the motions? Can't we just let this relationship remain the most beautiful memory we share?"
"No, I won't. I want to look at you again, hold you again, kiss you again. I know I wronged you. You did so much for me and my family, and you never once asked for anything in return. I know offering you gold coins would be an insult, so I bought these manuals for you — I hope they'll help you break through your
"Hold me one more time. Kiss me one more time. Please?" She closed her eyes and whispered.
Lorist smiled bitterly. What the girl still couldn't let go of was his Black Iron combat force. She had no idea that these high-grade combat force manuals were completely useless to him — gold coins would have been far more practical.
"Don't forget that you're the Marquis's wife now," Lorist reminded her.
"The wedding hasn't taken place yet. I'm still free." The girl answered.
Uh — could you really spin it like that?
"No. I'm not accustomed to kissing someone else's girlfriend," Lorist said.
"Lock, I want to stay with you tonight. Please…" The girl clutched tightly at Lorist's waist and refused to let go.
"Well, the Marquis waiting downstairs — can he wait until dawn? I don't mind, but he doesn't look very patient." After standing up, Lorist could see through the window the carriage parked at the main entrance below. The Marquis, for some reason, was not waiting in the lobby but was instead circling the carriage outside, occasionally glancing up at the third-floor window.
"Pfft…" The girl laughed. She rose on her tiptoes and planted a quick kiss on Lorist's lips, then released him. "There. I've seen you, held you, and kissed you. I'm satisfied now. Goodbye, Lock."
The sound of the girl's footsteps descended the stairs. Before long, the rumbling of carriage wheels rolled off into the distance, fading until it disappeared entirely.
Lorist settled back into his chair. After a long silence, he suddenly spoke. "How long were you planning to stand there, El?"