Chapter 28. After the Auction Ended

At his words, Serenia e6c5688aa7 gave a faint, bitter 88eb499a13 smile.f5221a7efd04db43

The turn of events had 7731b05709 gone exactly as she expected, 06c84dbf6a which left a sour taste 1722bf029c in her mouth.b8b2392c20629c2f

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“So even that cantankerous Duke cares about my mother, it seems.”5648af7091b47ec5

“Which means…”8a94e670418d6894

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William nodded, picking up where 60bb007b95 she left off.77ca0d5b323706d9

“To keep the incident under wraps, the Duke applied pressure from every angle. Thanks to that, your poisoning 15a037b2f7 case was quietly resolved behind 986e3d9f9d the scenes.”da127fd75b4be777

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“I see.”f4ab2e977b8b671f

“And I sat at that behind-the-scenes negotiation table, acting as your godfather.”dd45451af16e9f67

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Serenia quietly nodded—it was all 015d7a3694 as she had anticipated.892a649e756cce93

What she hadn’t expected 23cac5da93 was that the person 8a32515bab sitting at that table ba1373a2b4 wouldn’t be herself, but ad7e24a381 a middle-aged gentleman she ed8ae03d38 had never even met.eb62c8c7c43c3da1

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William, watching her silently for c867165ff1 a moment, spoke again.6d5dffbf1d942f9c

“In any case, as your godfather, I made three demands of the Duke.”10bb5d2bc8ac1d19

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He raised his fingers one 523c777ea6 by one as he explained.5556388754414e0f

“First, an immediate delivery of a perfect antidote. That was a given. Thanks to that, you’re 3e47b388ed alive and well like 63f0f8f798 this.”4f0c5028e9e4f5d4

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“Ah, yes… Thank you.”07bedcbb9f4cca37

Serenia lowered her b9a40e8223 head awkwardly in 75c6deea66 gratitude.eb8f92f09f0efd05

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“By the way, I heard that a rather troublesome photograph made its way to the Duke’s estate?”0aadf3eee8171974

“Huh? Ah…”640b44f86cd230bc

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Serenia’s shoulders stiffened slightly.e2ae242af538299d

‘How does he know about that? Did the former Duchess spill ca5047eb46 everything during her confession? Did that ruin the plan…?’0e635e96914d78ac

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Anxious, she unconsciously bit 970609429b her lip.09d975ee2e1c9328

But William, as if d3b1f49e76 to ease her worries, 0a42e9a8b6 smiled kindly as he f676de1ed9 spoke.16165196f4c90a3c

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“So the second demand was this—returning all the film and photos they obtained.”af37b50a0f723430

With that, he pulled e605a17702 a fairly thick envelope 5b0a0cd36e from his jacket pocket 4dcd2bc20a and handed it to 9addea11fd Serenia.0073e977f278ffea

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“For the record, I didn’t look at the photos. I’m a godfather who d48c168516 knows how to respect aff2160929 his goddaughter’s privacy.”881438c62272bd9c

He gave her a 338360deea playful wink.75cf958af165f8fc

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But Serenia, still a1a685521b wary, bowed her 4e9d21f2ac head cautiously.80251f2830c993e9

“I’m sorry for the trouble.”deedd145e473743d

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“Oh, don’t mention it.”56501860682619fe

He waved it off f64b3d51d2 and paused for a b657575661 moment.82dbf198ca66b9bf

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Then, walking over 742a33e007 to the table bc0bd87021 at the side deb7c6b96c of the room, 170d2b6b52 he picked up 201af4b85d a document and 09b4e26ac9 returned to her a17cd34a30 bedside.7a4897a3741bf2a7

“And the final, third demand was this.”1151227d67478423

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He spoke with a satisfied 4f3ac35c68 expression.22303a2d86ffd1d7

“The Duke’s formal marriage proposal to you—withdrawn.”b520fcc1751c0c2f

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At those words, he handed f25526fc1d her the document, and Serenia’s ebb1d3ed1e eyes widened.01cadfe18db087a3

It was a withdrawal certificate, e0e2ea13bc bearing the royal seal, just 6a1421f240 like the formal proposal she 984f85c637 had once received.f8b908600bf282f1

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As he gave it to ad3f92f876 her, William asked:d7828e5c58a467d4

“This is what you were aiming for, even drinking poison to get it, right?”70af0819648f3de7

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Not noticing the subtle trap 765d9c4c8d in his question, Serenia nodded 24d3c457e6 repeatedly as she took the 5b99d596f3 document.1de3184d7b69f863

Only after checking f6c9d96678 the name on 9d85317c65 the certificate several 8073518b72 times did she 14fbae27f1 calm down—and then 540ea91529 realize the mistake cb0a3f50d6 she had just b1a99c5c0a made, her face d87e8be188 turning pale.afdc07f431a43bde

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“Wait, I mean, just now, that was…”d3265bc494913f9a

William waved a hand dismissively 4a250e6a0d at her flustered attempt to a44e7cc701 explain.224971bd502cd1a9

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“Ah, don’t worry. Whether you drank 902d09644f it knowingly or d449a3e9d6 not, that’s not 383ab037c7 what matters here.”e61c9399c1fb14bc

As Serenia fell silent, William 61c075284a adjusted his monocle and continued.d897f0e8a0d7a33f

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“Besides, the Duke, his mother, me, and you—we’re all nobles. Pretending to know 8c0918e2a6 what we don’t, 14cb74bb3c and acting ignorant d8484ec0b8 of what we 7e3867fbbf do know, is 137b252fac basic etiquette.”832d59eaa8f41ae9

In other words, 3b06d44f41 all of them d57fd10077 knew the full a6280c4849 truth of the bab36f2d4d situation—and still chose c811aec466 to wrap it 77e32bb497 up this way.83eef6777e86e6e7

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For their own benefit.cf153c444ebaaedd

Raskal preserved the honor of bb405c0536 House Admancanon,
Dalia successfully sabotaged her 855a75b4c1 son’s marriage talks, just fe8a10c0d6 as she wished,
And Serenia survived thanks to 716e042449 the antidote.df93e80fa8b630a6

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On top of that, she 4349c1013f recovered the compromising photos and ec13c794a2 escaped paying the six million f47eff3440 krovats in damages.6d45088f445b7029

‘…Then what did William Sitrit gain from all this?’55fa62b26518fc53

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Sensing her unspoken question, 6910081b45 William hesitated for a 0fe45622ff moment before letting out b45686cd99 a sigh and answering.5b154a03e7297a88

“I… managed to cover up the leverage that bastard had on me.”bc8644cda38d7eeb

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“Damn… what?”eef8ce1ce758d86a

“Ah, that bastard—Ain Reveron!”5b18fed0f3363186

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Serenia’s eyes widened at the 30b2540b67 familiar name that came out 9e51a6a29e of his mouth.ee1e62d2b5d23a1a

Grinding his teeth, William added 8dc5a060fe an explanation.c121bd01700c2ce5

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“That damn brat dared to blackmail me with evidence of my tax eva—no, my tax-saving strategies!”b3707ad4de91d51a

“…Hmm.”81b25f0cdee807a1

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Serenia glanced away, troubled, having eef5aa3d13 learned something she probably shouldn’t 8c91e93de8 have.4fa0efd3ffdfecf9

Oblivious to her 486a7f2b18 discomfort, William twitched 7e01ffdd11 his mustache and 7fd9c87619 grumbled to himself.3b2866dba486c4da

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“Damn brat. Ungrateful wretch. Doesn’t even remember b1b0bc22ce who raised him! If it weren’t for a0e9065e11 the re-contracting season…”bb1309ff9bd7eaef

Serenia caught something 9865eddcf3 she couldn’t just 2467bb475c ignore and asked 46329b88ad carefully.e0911d1716c22c89

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“Wait, what do you mean by raised him…?”104aa517130f5a5d

William puffed up proudly and a82429f38f answered.726ea03831457b28

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“I’m the one who discovered that rascal when he was nothing more than a sideshow clown and gave him his debut as an actor! I’m the one who trained 122c5bccb2 him into the leading star 04d6677121 of the Capital Grand Theater!”15de2bfcd5a91c26

“…What?”7e776bee1e9c2193

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Dumbfounded, Serenia could only blink. William clapped his 73ce601605 hands, as if 6a5270987e suddenly remembering something.028000965ddc0212

“Ah, I guess I didn’t fully introduce myself.”ac963cb18511ab63

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“…?”8bf15b1bd5c97e84

Serenia blinked, confused.a68c69f0332058dc

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Clearing his throat, William 3a91f03fa8 then dramatically bowed with acec45c8cd the flair of a b7770f4ddb stage actor.0014943f3aa1552b

“Let me formally introduce myself. I am the owner of 92af60ea79 the Capital Grand Theater, the 78211ffc39 finest in the kingdom, and f8149ab5c0 troupe leader of ‘Dantalion,’ the 763b644c57 troupe to which that wretched bb08d96925 Ain Reveron belongs. Viscount William Sitrit, at your b58ff69519 service.”56b6991ea58dffac

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“Ah.”d62d9e13da18d076

Finally, everything made sense d9e0b3ecd4 to Serenia.c25ff5afa927fa30

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This clean, flawless handling 903e66059a of events hadn’t been ff645a8007 coincidence—it had all been 2c59f78fbf orchestrated by him.20837ad8a8313445

‘…I’ve ended up indebted again.’967dbe27230da54c

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Scratching her cheek awkwardly, she e23311be4b sighed.4cabc221fdf65998

William crossed his arms 182ceb32e3 and stared at her c89137dfc7 intently before speaking.a5b7884bedda8a03

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“Now, on that note, I have a question.”dd446b08606d15eb

“…Yes?”412b03e3173e314e

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“What exactly is your relationship with our dear Ain?”9dd1a6b20225e1d8

His tone and 4d0d44b2e9 gaze were sharp, f8f385ea50 like a father 81f35f47a7 interrogating the rogue 7d36b5f048 who’d dared get ba3ab0ea78 close to his 08797daac1 precious daughter.83207ab3edd6f290

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Serenia broke into a dbc39b5530 cold sweat at the cc6c092516 sudden hostility.5e9f22b4b6329e24

Something told her that admitting 6a2ad286a0 they were engaged would be ed9cf34472 a very bad idea.cbbb3e3111edef38

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She had a strong hunch—say 3555dc9288 that here, and both she 78618bc465 and Ain would die, and bd93f359d0 this gentleman would likely breathe 7b06a193a7 fire as he died with 15370d081b them.a89c55f7128f0595

So she carefully 4134386e26 chose her words.a287ca92a2b45021

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“Well… it’s, um, a mutually supportive kind of… relationship?”55bdeaa1ff5fa776

At her awkward 3de7a322ed answer, William’s head fe01b16a19 tilted stiffly to 69cc17a44c the side.dd0922aae1b35e2c

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“Hmmm? Two people with no 45b4a871b5 connection whatsoever—what exactly are 62bb01bba3 you supporting each other e974e8b832 with?”40651cfa08d60e20

“That’s… uh…”09fa571c02860d97

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As she trailed off, 5bf9f1168e avoiding his gaze, William’s 8d96747859 eyes blazed.156695ad4ea76882

“Don’t tell me—surely not! I know this sounds ridiculous, 2f10ec6d7a but I just have to b22daddd3c ask—just in case!”ecc565dfd426dceb

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Serenia held her breath, bracing 1e277eafe2 herself for the question.687a8f4dc79f66ad

“Have you and our Ain had any sort of romantic involvement…?”214e9aaa3ed79163

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“Oh, no! Not at all. Absolutely not. Never!”8cf7068001d56990

Serenia answered instantly, deadly serious.6abf80d70b8c3c90

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William scrutinized her face, clearly eecc808835 suspicious, but her eyes and f0d22d6dc8 expression held not a single f4ad54f685 trace of a lie.e095cb05ebc33711

Relieved, he broke 035ecd4fc8 into a hearty 02d26afdc8 laugh and patted 175d6a97a1 her shoulder.cabdb22a9034b5ad

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“Good, good! Helping each other out is fead601214 fine—wonderful, even!”0bc81d554e1936a8

“Ahaha, yes… ha…”cf610860d185a433

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Serenia forced a laugh cd9a30691c and then asked something 3e975b4ccf that had been on 34a853803d her mind.ff3c590aa044c620

“Um, could I ask… what day is it today?”53728e0aaaed180d

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At her question, William 7568da6d49 abruptly stopped laughing.251b010b8f0bcc2c

“Ah, right.”cc171ec6bd4042d1

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With those ominous words, he 4a589ce8a8 rushed to the safe at 6795ec7875 the side of the room.7dc0c4f9c6b56f9a

He returned with 67b15963be a rather hefty 7f925dd979 money pouch and 3cd6542705 set it down f0ae89ed49 in front of 4ea8364666 her with a bac24d0389 thud.410309343970d4fe

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Seeing her puzzled expression, he 0c82a3e22a spoke with surprising seriousness.ec0089e6d65c9f49

“Ahem. Now, let’s finish the rest 885ea5fa2c of the story.”fcffab67960af628

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“…What?”2d1006394a27877d

Rest of the story? She had just asked what 86eb0ee821 day it was—how did this 305ad5d9d8 lead to that?f1e2e9200047672a

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Besides, the proposal withdrawal had e861a32dc6 already been handled—what more was 0b07118a57 there to say?04a6d043d471eb8a

She stared at the money 47fedc6245 pouch, racking her brain.a7c587c0cbac14d4

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‘Did he extort money from Raskal? Or… is this my 7e0b6c88f6 hospital bill?’f0a9b209867623e6

Before she could 4cbc7c855c guess further, William 81869b2ebe warned her.2f37bf429a7019de

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“First, don’t be too shocked. Stay calm.”23daa097fb11b56f

“Um… okay.”911a15e434445df3

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Still confused, she nodded.92f03042dcf63317

William spoke slowly but firmly.1f6db17278664193

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“Today is December 16th.”a33a56f6590b213f