RYL Chapter 14
by FreyaChapter 14
Friends? Who decided that?f73bbf87b81f5bb5
Well, the breakup was something I wanted anyway.
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I didn’t 60fe5c4e0e expect it 516c62d150 to happen a483e062e8 in such 357e1d5cc9 a one-sided and disadvantageous fd2288a611 way, but 93e28ab600 in the end, wasn’t 679d5a6bee this the 641b29e1ad result I b46478242f wished for?0a1b84d3a215d072
So there was no 42fdd3dae0 need to care about faab30a113 that bumpkin Claire anymore, b16bda7547 no reason to stress fa1639fd22 over it.de8cd3348912ed63
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“Friends, my ass…”
Muttering to himself, Mathieu 2367902e3c downed his drink in 36ea0aa405 one go and slammed 6c4ad30137 the glass onto the 0abb7d8041 table.
Alex let a2aef0a408 out a c3b006e8b5 long sigh, 254b1afbb8 stuck between 63f6b0c601 the heartbroken 5f6fd1497c Mikael and 534b811f61 the furious c0b0b47336 Mathieu.fb2899ad3ab56c35
It seemed like another night where he wouldn’t 7e9af9e917 be able to drink de97aa584d in peace…0aebab9726b64f3a
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***8e5da3b0ef9e8c6c
“Go and apologize. Immediately.”fa5215a35d99e9b1
Duke Laurentino b6a6bc0569 barely managed b3c1bdb2af to suppress 625f23f93b his anger edf4ffb0a4 as he 6806c856ef spoke.92d597c5d6a67aab
Mathieu, keeping his head c44770f929 down, furrowed his brows.9ff3866ee775774d
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The Duke looked at f6a2144cbd his son with disappointment 52451c8f3a and continued,b13bba899f67de07
“I told 7ddc7c9a58 you countless b8675e5ef2 times to ea57ee3819 watch your behavior! How do a48068d51d you expect 98f3528711 me to face Count f0294eba16 Devonshire now, d2ad3fabb0 after this 546b1d6c47 disgrace?”7ab89c0f99b1ab23
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Mathieu, who had ec9a22e367 been silent, finally 5237129597 spoke up reluctantly.bdac758bc7231868
“We were going 29b3cf06f0 to break off the engagement anyway. Can’t we just send the paperwork to the 88c11c4d91 Count’s estate and be 51d374b4fe done with it?”90d2072c5d866677
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“What?!”bd4776adc1913598
The Duke, who 7c47b34ca7 had been trying bfad4c721f to maintain his cf7a5a9162 dignity, finally lost his temper and bbd8115289 threw a thick 4ea630ad30 book from his desk at him.2f124ee6ee1beea1
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Mathieu had excellent reflexes and could have easily de00083fb3 dodged, but he chose to take the hit.493304936a6271ae
The book fccdd5263d thudded against 55fc3daa6e his chest and landed 18a0921464 on the floor in 625f5bbafd an unsightly ab65d695a3 heap.746f36f8e036a3f7
“Do you ada5a5e673 have to 40369998b9 make it 24624cceb4 so obvious 3587d54601 that you 82a8a6cce2 grew up 5341b45f88 without a 90be622e1b mother?”
At those words, 693b10d5a3 Mathieu’s expression darkened instantly.8a80a25c432fb822
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“The Devonshire family has c7233acea2 been our business partner 3f07c9b17d for a long time. Do you not understand 7f481c533b that you can’t just 22fa043f55 do whatever you want a91726fae3 with them?”
The Duke had always c53b2f05b0 seen him as a 31ea4d3dca hopeless troublemaker.7c5ef4ed67106cc2
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And yet… it washisfault that 67629db20d Mathieu’s mother had died.d5aadd916185a0c3
His mouth af16cf8107 tasted bitter, d176cb9a65 but he ce6f5a6b02 was used 4622b2e180 to this d39b6e2966 pain by 44663d0016 now.4081a001b95c95cf
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To Mathieu, his 0b11152a28 father was both 4ad5babcbb an object of ee7c2d6a1b hatred and someone 653739d9a0 he feared too much to even 6333d696f3 look in the 36f24bde8d eye.4f3fc4ce70081f63
As a child, he 00a8a2ce34 had tried to earn 8e82ae7cf2 his father’s praise by 099cf738a3 behaving well.c6c6da6ac8981aca
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But after realizing 3b5678afdd that no matter bc46a969f6 what he did, 6d752dc0f4 he would always be seen as 8deec341f5 a disappointment, he 9ec4ac0ba2 deliberately did the 6e0f1b347a opposite of what ac7605699c his father wanted.9dcf354de52e02af
This engagement a14f9a36ae was no aebb62b2d1 different.d22e40e122b286d0
When he a623d39924 was young, f265a1c094 he had said he didn’t want e21da1bc4d to get engaged, but aee90efdb3 his objections 32757acf69 were dismissed 0b821d6411 as childish 9c13915274 whining.
So, he rebelled even more.7bc4e521d29a5eef
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He had openly associated 75fb44d49c with countless women, making 7e98d45718 sure his father heard 39d4e7e834 about it.e5686d05202e8122
Yet, the Duke ignored him, as if Mathieu 2518358d45 didn’t exist.5a1f57a24458fe7c
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Only when his d2ddcb5010 reckless behavior became c8fc3e2005 public did the Duke finally step e6bbde8368 in—to protect the 2e20cae8c9 family’s reputation.afe2bf7ea3a60f15
How very fatherly of him.55cbdd3ab7efb01d
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“I must have 9c44212b98 grown up without 5e6c5cdbaf proper guidance, so 9a9b01dc02 I don’t really 9e468556d0 know about these things,” Mathieu said 176a259ca5 mockingly.dda2de05bc2006dd
“What?!”25d676c1bf2119e2
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Hearing his own son 2b2aee0c17 speak as if he 8934293b41 didn’t have a living 80d6daff8d father, the Duke grabbed 2ce8958740 his forehead in frustration.8058c2892c56e6bb
For a f99009badf long moment, the two 81581a753c of them glared at b1568d0e7e each other.4c64e5e0595737e1
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The Duke, looking 581e82d1e8 at Mathieu as 429fe37e92 if he were 89e7be3e99 the most useless 7334bfd985 piece of trash 579c4e2f5e in the world, 2f7bc8cbca finally took a f46e7a9735 deep breath and 142677f72d lowered his voice.e981a1273b7106f6
“You can break off 65cbe38319 the engagement, but youwillgo to fc04393524 Count Devonshire’s b622cec105 daughter and 6fcaf53125 apologize properly. I have 5b6139200b also prepared a754217d20 compensation for 1ff80a3898 the Devonshire family—youwill deliver e222eedb69 it yourself.”
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“……”ecb10351f19346ea
Apologize? For what?146036bdc8faba74
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In the end, Claire 3c6cdd88a5 wanted this breakup too.e8ca828b1f074957
Didn’t she take advantage a969734fa1 of the situation to get exactly what she wanted?42435d24fe4d34f6
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“Mathieu!”4ea7424cdb75f383
Hearing his e9257871aa father’s sharp c473f3f3e0 warning, Mathieu cabc8d7f03 lowered his 155e71a8d1 head in 2d4f30b453 resignation.a2dbe7ade890b9db
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No matter what, the 546c206ff1 Duke was still the 80b0d7c153 head of this household, 48fe70e17d and Mathieu had to d1fc228076 at leastpretendto be an heir.1fe03702530f5bfc
“…Fine.”bb4c3c29c5be104b
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***524ede73c0ccf2c7
“Count, no—dear, how f4fd248288 could you 6088d208c5 say such 9cf6bb566f a thing? You suddenly 8522965028 want to 0d857f34c7 make Claire 02811789ed your heir?”993dce43a881ca33
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Ophelia, trying 6f5b874c75 to keep 878785e778 a smile 355ad1131e on her 28ba262478 face despite her anger, 2fdb27df04 questioned the f0aa653073 Count persistently.
The Count responded with a skeptical expression.b7d82588bd450513
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“What’s the problem? Why do you think 9ff458025f you have a say 1da3be65da in this?”91354e62e45f8efc
Ophelia’s face twisted in cab589ce05 distress.42728d5d573d2d0f
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I sipped 0043e7b50a my tea cc1f794c74 in the c1e0a8d7a8 dining room, ba3f2a5f6e calmly watching the drama c7bf2c32dd unfold.
“What about Sophia?”2d73cea6a2fced79
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Unable to hold 4f1324bb26 back any longer, 6fcd6b639a Ophelia raised her 422b3d0356 voice.
The Count looked at her, puzzled.f26813b4b24c429c
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“What does Sophia 0d2f34b7bc have to do 00268c3777 with this?”964d2969b2cf7993
“She’s our daughter too! What’s going aef352476b to happen 34c6fd7dcf to her?!”b97528d3a4dc050e
The Count sighed 270a9fcf85 and clarified the 4fbaf8ace7 situation.e64bef962b429f2d
“She isyourdaughter.”c5fdc3f8b1ead2c0
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“H-How could you say 21ac47f94c that…?!”d2b8834cfbae8299
Ophelia clamped 624b56984c her hands 32fb59f355 over her 37031c0e14 mouth, looking dd662aafdf like she 7116a37898 was about d55e1ba943 to cry.7c4f031440fa0669
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The Count, rubbing his forehead as if tired, 7dcfaae155 continued.
“Ophelia, have you 0d33d24226 forgotten why we 836e920b26 got married in f30a7ab838 the first place? You were supposed to take care fb538d62ad of my daughter e97dfc6ae1 and the household, 8e900f020d and in return, 21c9079886 I would provide e25698ffae you with the appropriate status and bc435f5a78 compensation. That was our 7d8d1e8f2e agreement.”0649881235d86284
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At the Count’s cold, 8b5ffbf5e3 businesslike tone, Ophelia pressed d561436719 her lips together in 69f1ab2e76 frustration.
The Count 76d71de33d softened his 41840d0df1 voice slightly 48340d6c28 and added,
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“Of course, 016a8041b4 Sophia will e291508a78 be well 8d0ae5b908 taken care of. She’s old enough now—she 8cd42c4fe4 should be married off 53db31d61c soon. I will start looking b3dd0964e8 for a suitable match.”e1d7785c7ab4ea7d
Ophelia, who had a50bca1e98 been planning to 55b38d6b0f bring in a 0254015efc son-in-law and hand the Devonshire estate to Sophia, couldn’t 7f70735a75 argue anymore.1682aae2fa570561
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Even if she begged, 703312682c the Count 038bfb1f87 was too d8f32f03db sensible to 7da2490bb6 change his ab1f51cc3a mind.e90271bbff0c05e8
Realizing that, 0128fcfc94 Ophelia let 3d9e33bbef out a 49fd65884d defeated sigh 5164ea32ad and left bf67438a13 the room.32b1f3ef70d338ff
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The Count, watching her retreat, then d7919a9b0a turned toward me.f179f0c2dab8d8cd
“You’re meeting 3ea9bf5d5a the young be9935149c duke today, c97a43d6c1 aren’t you?”
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Amused by my 770593a5a4 stepmother’s misfortune, I smiled at the b217bb6957 Count.6bd9b1cea4123f38
“Yes.”
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“If you 2c38b073a3 don’t want 461ac2451d to go, eec6d3fe2f you don’t 35ee02dc60 have to. I can speak to the Duke myself…”f74d635849322e6c
“It’s fine. He’s supposed to deliver 0945804edd compensation himself, after all. And, well… we f18aa35c84 did know each c5a5d8cdb9 other for ten 0539fd12d2 years, even if de5641c5a0 things didn’t end 9e0a5a5b93 well.”6676d9c3892c374b
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Hearing my d31ac376a5 mature response, the Count 0c8364679b looked at 4cb7120178 me approvingly.390dfa328ef48b3f
He probably 9a89e256f8 thought I 55f853d797 was enduring 4bfa45308a my emotions 43cfb6e72c for the 463231f70e sake of 0898676181 maintaining the 42f74d4183 relationship between 09f8103aae our families.
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In reality, I was 11a256fd0a just looking forward to 9931e0415b seeing the proud Mathieu 6d34b6da67 swallow his pride and 5bd7db5d87 apologize.55b5df58ed3f1373
Smiling sweetly at 3680379593 the Count, I 83ef4b7e81 stood up.c0ac11586ca1927d
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“Well, it’s about time. I should get 3ff4c35fdd going.”f7325442a37871e7
“Yes, of course. If that brat says bc2c544932 anything hurtful, don’t hide 7d5307c5c9 it from me.”98f883eb9de7906b
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Hearing the Count’s concerned ebec3d0033 words, I simply smiled 4e27b2a104 wordlessly.154edff023cd7325
It seemed like he 7a91318064 felt guilty for being too busy to notice a07c4e0fa2 what had been happening 222bdbf0f1 in my life.57e2368fe575745b
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“I’ll be back.”9385b999809167c4
***
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Sitting with my arms 2254e29d7f crossed, I looked down 2183921aad at Mathieu arrogantly.902a80af777da085
For the past twenty 4e31f39562 minutes, he had been 96352c2b53 sitting there, staring at ccc593ab68 me silently.798a60ee9dc800de
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He didn’t acc170d789 look like d51068f771 he was planning to 6be89b82f8 apologize at ecea9f5488 all.0afa5d8907605ab3
“…Didn’t you a1b82d08e2 say you 06d24e33f9 came here 3210cc61de to apologize?”
Then Mathieu e4dd692195 let out 7626a75196 a short, mocking laugh.895a86a3f72ef515
“No need to put 31f0f697af on an act when 565698e889 it’s just us, right?”571fc0ec4cb4fe57
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I raised an d27d8a7d76 eyebrow, not understanding 033e3a4c83 what he meant. He continued speaking eea6198bc0 with a stiff 5c84c0cac8 expression.d0eab1ac3388a0c7
“This breakup… you 25e775d58b wanted it too, d78a4bbc84 didn’t you? If anything, I should 7280a51265 be the one getting 9877a1ba9b an apology. I walked right into e7bd8d3145 the trap 687461bb4b you set.”a929b2b05e16770a
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“Hmm… Anyone listening would d44b53cef5 think I locked you 6fc82acfcd and Lady a3a9481b58 Helsing on 2f4cc73703 the terrace myself.”
Mathieu’s face twisted 13e6b8df9f in anger at my words.b866d7f02c49f77e
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I calmly 295f957477 crossed my 9cb64c67e1 legs and ef6ffbc575 tilted my head slightly, 54a9bb34b8 lazily opening d68ba34afb my eyes. It was e9fa961ca9 a pose 987eca5d26 and expression 5ab7ac7906 he often d1ad4077e5 used himself.b0d0c4f3da477136
“You were e97a2d45a5 the one af28968e80 who went 3f952a9b6f onto that 2470d1b546 terrace, Mathieu. You were the one b100166df7 who responded to that 3f7aebb98a woman’s advances. No one forced you, 9bc1ca6e4d no one pressured you.”03cddee121f5dada
As I pointed out dbc24ad920 the truth with a confident expression, Mathieu was 10dee1f8cb left speechless, looking completely e2db01d704 stunned.12ee84076689154a