Chapter 19

Adolf snorted at the sight. The moment he grabbed the man’s hair, he ripped it out with brute force. Instantly, a bald head—shining brilliantly under the light of the chandelier—was revealed. As the man stood devastated, covering his sleek, glossy scalp with his hands, Adolf spoke in a low, chilling voice.

“To think you tried to shirk your responsibility by dumping your poorly raised daughter onto us! Truly despicable. If you were even human, you shouldn’t have started this in the first place—or at the very least, you should have told the truth from the start!”

“If I had told the truth, you never would have permitted the marriage!”

“Then would you, upon finding out your prospective daughter-in-law was a single mother, just stay silent and say it’s fine? At least say something that makes sense if you want me to listen!”

At Adolf’s words, Count Neyno fell silent. No matter how much one favors their own kin, he knew he had gone too far this time. He realized that saying anything more would only result in losing what little ground he had left.

Seeing that reaction only fueled Adolf’s rage further. Gritting his teeth with a gruesome crunch, he hauled Count Neyno up by his collar.

“It’s you or me today, you son of a bitch. From this day forward, we aren’t friends—we’re enemies.”

Right in front of Count Neyno’s eyes, Adolf tore the “hairpiece” to shreds.

***

While Adolf was busy shaking Count Neyno by the throat, Adrian hurried back to the estate. The atmosphere of the house was icy, starkly different from just a few days ago.

Sir Onyx, who had rushed to the Eclipse town house carrying a video stone containing something unknown, stood behind the frozen Adrian with his head bowed like a criminal.Just by looking at him, the servants—realizing the gravity of the fallout caused by that video stone—stayed out of the way.

“Where is Raon?”

“The Madam took him back. I am sorry, Young Duke. I never dreamed that the Young Master was ill.”

“We are deeply sorry.”

Since Coma had fainted after his ‘lower region’ was shattered, the highest-ranking person among the survivors bowed in apology. Following that, everyone in the vicinity bowed their heads.

“That apology should be given to Raon when he returns, not me. But before that… where is the dedicated servant?”

Adrian asked after scanning the area and noticing a familiar face was missing. Everyone bowed even lower as they replied.

“His head… or rather, his skull is cracked, and he’s lying in the infirmary. The Madam struck his hamstrings…”

Adrian had appointed a dedicated servant specifically to look after Raon, but it was clear that man had conspired with Aria and failed his duties. Understanding Ramona’s fury, Adrian wiped his face with his hands.

“Lady Neyno has just arrived.”

Aria, still unaware of the situation, saw Adrian and approached with a bright smile, quickening her pace.

“Have you come so early just to greet me? I’m so happy. Adrian, don’t just stand out here—how about we go to my room for a cup of tea?”

Aria, who had been desperately trying to prevent Adrian from seeing Raon first by arriving early, flashed her most beautiful smile. She extended her hand as if expecting an escort, but for a moment, Adrian felt a surge of nausea.

His son was sick, yet she was attending tea parties. Beyond that, the fact that she could smile so nonchalantly after trying to harm Raon—as seen in the video stone—sent chills down his spine.

“That hand will be taken by someone else, not me. What are you doing? Place Aria Neyno under house arrest. Ensure she has no contact with the outside world—guard her with every resource available.”

“I shall follow your command.”

Sir Onyx bowed, and after he scanned the surroundings, several knights stepped forward. They surrounded Aria, whose eyes went wide with shock.

“What is the meaning of… Adrian, you can’t do this to me…”

“That child, is he well? I’m sure he is. Was his biological father’s name William? The knight from the branch family of the Cassius Ducal House.”

Aria’s body stiffened instantly.

“That… that’s a frame-up…”

“I’m simply asking after the child you intended to adopt. What about that is a frame-up?”

“No, that’s not it…”

Once she started panicking, her words became increasingly tangled. Adrian approached her slowly with a faint smile. Instead of taking the hand she offered, he gently tucked a stray strand of her red hair behind her ear and whispered into her ear.

“The Tubren Hotel.”

She flinched.

“Since I am unable to bear children, I let you roam freely before the wedding to give you some time to yourself… and I never said a word.”

“…”

“I never imagined you already had a child with another man.”

Adrian’s voice felt like it was scraping across her skin. She had been so confident she would never be caught. Perhaps she was too confident; she never dreamed Adrian would find out.

She should have listened when the maid warned her about her frequent outings. Because he had been generous and left her be, her “long tail” had finally been stepped on.

“Unfortunately, of all people, Ms. Ramona was the one who caught you. My father knows as well, and I believe he is currently ‘disciplining’ Count Neyno.”

“…”

“Consider yourself lucky in this moment that you are a woman. If you were a man, I would have killed you before even asking for a reason.”

Though his face wore a smile, it was as cold as frost. Unable to meet Adrian’s gaze, Aria squeezed her eyes shut.

The moment Adrian was diagnosed as permanently infertile, she had sensed it was the opportunity of a lifetime and pursued him openly. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine her hard-won chance would rot away so futilely before even bearing fruit. She bit her lip.

“You should have hidden your tracks better.”

“A-Adrian, that is, well…”

“You seem too flustered to speak properly, and there’s no need for you to speak to me anymore, so I’d prefer if you kept that mouth shut. What are you doing? Take her away at once.”

At Adrian’s low command, the knights forcibly escorted the stunned, stammering Aria to her room. Without even watching her leave, Adrian turned and walked away.

“Prepare a horse immediately.”

At his word, a servant brought out a horse in no time.

“We will escort you.”

Sir Onyx and several knights followed Adrian as he galloped away.

“When you see the Madam, it would be best to apologize unconditionally. When I used that method, the Madam stopped pressing the matter.”

Adrian, barely hearing the tip Sir Onyx gave for calming Ramona’s anger, dismounted as soon as the familiar house came into view. Handing the reins to another knight, he stood before Ramona’s door.

He moved to knock, but felt he had no right to do so. Still, he couldn’t just stand there forever, so he placed his hand on the firmly closed door.

Knock, knock, knock.

Before the dull thuds even faded, the door swung open without warning. Seeing Ramona, who looked as though the vitality he always admired had been stripped away, Adrian clenched his teeth.

“Um, excuse me…”

“We don’t accept solicitors with nothing but a pretty face. Get lost.”

Ramona, full of displeasure, spoke bluntly to the disheveled Adrian—whose hair was windblown from his rush—and slammed the door. But she had to open it again. Adrian, seemingly without a shred of conscience, kept knocking.

“There is a sick child sleeping inside, so please be quiet.”

“Please, let me see the child… let me see Raon. I beg of you.”

At his solemn voice, Ramona opened the door again. Instead of letting him in, she grabbed his sleeve and dragged him away to prevent the noise from waking the sleeping Raon.

“Weren’t you the one who didn’t care about the child? Then keep doing that. Don’t act like you care just because you’re conscious of what others think.”

At Ramona’s icy voice, Adrian bit his lip hard.

“I have no excuses, even if I had ten mouths.”

“Then just keep your mouth shut. Whether your child dies of illness or ends up crippled.”

Seeing that Ramona had no intention of letting him see the boy, Adrian shut his eyes tight.

“I… I was wrong. I was negligent in caring for the child. I am truly sorry.”

Choosing to apologize cleanly like Sir Onyx rather than making excuses, he waited. After hearing the apology, Ramona crossed her arms, looked up at him, and spoke.

“Then beg. Get on your knees if you have to.”