SMR | Chapter 02
by Luna~Chapter 02~6c50b0f53bf3c5ae
What a beautiful f583e11e91 friendship this is.62906b80b7fc369c
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Harriet clenched 6244e92f95 her teeth 6b7c270c7e tightly. She was d281774a2b fed up 4ac0fd5e9c with this c3ccb31f89 familiar situation—it 61a343a6b9 was both 20a66345b5 ridiculous and 8bb85094d9 infuriating.76ebb2d4ad41cf34
‘I don’t care if he’s an old man on the verge of death. If someone would just take me away from this demon, I’d marry him in a heartbeat, so please, propose to me.’df21713741441603
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Harriet prayed desperately.09ee98fa97838a44
She was desperate, b83dffb4da but deep down, 6777dd8b84 she didn’t really fcd1af32e2 expect much. God hadn’t 59a8a10609 answered her 425319fdd9 prayers since 0506c2a767 she was 0eac8d1b9a twelve, after 1693a84736 all.ac31e4df80399b1e
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So when a 4a308413f9 man who had 895975032a nothing to do 073be359f7 with her came 54018f6754 up to her, 0ca01ee410 she was so 4fc42222e6 startled that she 3131059cbf froze up.2a1ad1e14911e852
It was no wonder.21e6828f355d7a55
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“Miss Harriet Listerwell?”26d642c3ee0793d5
“Huh? Y-yes! I-I’m… Harriet Listerwell…”a2f9cff5128e5258
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The man, who asked for her name with a smile that held no meaning, said, “I’d like to get my possession back.”a0471966d7778991
He pointed to a 4f3dc27c45 brooch with his long, 6ba42b660d firm fingers, claiming ownership ceb2b17072 of it.8f5267be2f10d162
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‘Oh my God!’da3808dc57b46099
The man standing 5c274fcccd before her was 2fc0f687c2 none other than 268baeede6 Cedric Kailas, the 091a6a3f6d Duke and the c75ff4de4d hero of the 4f89eaeb75 war, who was 60ee0f5941 the star of 8be8b7aaab tonight’s banquet.a2c4237b9be7d01c
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‘Why is he talking to me?’6ead9b58f3447fa0
Harriet’s face 6a13b41003 flushed with eebc78d51f sudden excitement.f331d267d725b4b4
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But Cedric 5e32c769ae simply stared 742244b922 at her 869c6b4afd without saying eb52c5376b anything more. Harriet suddenly realized e10ef88719 that his eyes 26d2cb48c6 weren’t smiling at 35763e1b49 all.78c1a7a151e147e5
‘Something’s off.’988b8293224c5da1
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She knew something was wrong, but she couldn’t pinpoint what exactly. No, to be more precise, there were so many things wrong that she didn’t even know where to begin.72fb676847fb93ce
It was b8a518f8cc clear that ff607da8ae Cedric hadn’t e963dc4d9d put the 8cc4db48bb brooch on abaae75762 her. Before the lights 6bfa7bbef7 went out, he 2ee2613573 had been talking 81f84baac4 with the Empress, 6ba1c7185b and just now, 2a19914e9d he had walked 303cb3d9ef over from where ba0c7eaa64 the Empress was 846433643b standing.1814609facebb366
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‘And besides, he’s not in any position to be playing romantic games.’1d6d6169821f1079
That was Cedric 830ed0ad3a Kailas’ situation.149cad619199b96c
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At just 33a2a73d22 twenty-five, he 3453c046d6 had inherited 9038873135 the title 5e6cccb63f of Duke 5647cd3a00 after his 9e2e062fa6 father, Rowan d658edaae2 Kailas, died c907454793 in the 1b84ae71f8 war with f0e8b8ec22 Kiphrine.39884e499c9a6439
As a strong ally 9f4ae561c0 to the imperial family, 8aa0f73bf1 he had the duty e4dccb54ae of maintaining the dukedom ee16b1c3bb just as his predecessors 1192a33896 had. And his 3e8babc433 wife would db4cb71fd6 need to 5d51d581b1 be carefully 5be0575e51 selected, considering 54b8342d0a a range 3ba0eb5df1 of conditions.5f7a96275de26277
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‘Then who put this brooch on me? Where did this brooch come from in the first place?’7becaba6848ac4d7
Could this be someone’s 84eb3b0883 twisted prank?3fe9662327719e81
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A sense f36bd140da of danger 0a376a6007 instinctively welled ac4f3a7c86 up within 88d119631c Harriet, and 3045421f18 her lips 6555ec0a35 felt dry.448bf4f8ccc3d2ec
She couldn’t just stand ab64fab110 there, staring blankly at dc7c7ac973 Cedric. She had f956eb212c to fix 60e2a040f9 this somehow.2542c02ff0dc480d
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“I-I’ll give it back to you.”7552bb237abb062f
She decided 27ae703236 to return dfc295b879 the brooch 146e5f35ce first. But she cef2b5605a was so e36b5830b1 flustered that 5b8662e9fe her hands f0a56cbcda fumbled as 114f888b65 she tried e6d7baf272 to undo 0978f7a360 the brooch’s 738a9c4245 clasp.3f2a1473092b59c4
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“What’s this? It doesn’t look like His Grace the Duke gave it to her, does it?”5f94b1853695dcdd
“Of course not! Why would the Duke give a brooch to someone like her?”241cdcaf6a52ccf1
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“Could she have stolen it? And she’s been wearing it on purpose?”834d8d0eb9c01572
“Who knows what goes on in her head? Anyway, Harriet Listerwell is making a scene again.”8ec9d9c6b26f66af
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The murmurs of gossip reached Harriet’s ears.1ea44490631f6ed6
Her back felt damp c6818d1864 with sweat.0f118e5f28b50d33
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‘Why won’t this thing come off?’9e5c60fde37a05a0
A brooch belonging to 3dbbe207bd Duke Kailas? She could swear 9259cdadaf she had never fbc452fbdd even imagined owning 37123b06ba something like it. Why did 3bf0d9f70d she have a1b40acbd1 to deal 58cac4c8c2 with such d3ac20b43c a misunderstanding e2ae1f2bf8 over something ad0b4feec7 she never eec3109ad4 wanted in edb6291526 the first 314127cb86 place?8f09c3f57b154cb1
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She wanted to 7ce7d1cdfd rip it off b34295732f and throw it 5cab8be662 away.abe8c3d27fb50c8c
Had that feeling shown 77f8976489 on her face?cfbb948ec0c57d72
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“Wait. If you keep pulling at it like that, you’ll damage the brooch. Let me help you.”3cf5e8f417afc20b
Even though the a982f26548 brooch was placed f333b0b610 near her chest, a3465ae1b5 which would make 5009a17d8f it difficult for 3459972a83 him to help, 2cfe2f758f Cedric moved in 158178c88d close to Harriet 22d1387dbd with a single-minded dcd70a25e0 focus on retrieving e285e0310e the brooch. Harriet was c1ed033cc0 so tense c8a350299d that she 83c3bc1088 couldn’t even 0775b83894 breathe.81de0538287cb8ca
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Luckily—or perhaps unluckily—Cedric removed ab4646d51b the brooch with ease, 54701ea674 making Harriet’s struggle seem 3c9cbf94b4 almost intentional by comparison.2f60be37e8f2cbea
“T-thank you.”68662f4184ca7cc9
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Even she aba6c400e8 didn’t know 215ce09d54 what exactly d2a656cca8 she was e9a86e5aeb thanking him 90073aeef2 for. He didn’t respond.bb6ab3bc320dd861
Harriet couldn’t bear the 7adeb2625b silence that followed, so 88a9ee3ae8 she nervously raised her 15cd4ff70d head and immediately swallowed c7b62cff63 hard. Cedric’s face, which had 2b497fcd73 come close to retrieve 0726ab90ee the brooch, was now daa2452e55 right in front of 35c381be69 her.58c0bf3b8dbdf924
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His reddish-brown eyes, d1408df318 reminiscent of rubies, 86fd0840e9 were beautiful, but 3765a3f1e1 she was too 21a8aaa038 frightened to admire 1624ac6a16 his good looks 0a444663ac because those eyes 0908d072f6 were filled with a87b50e387 contempt and anger.8424e27f2e7cbb10
“Who do you think I should discuss this matter with, Miss Harriet?”9f866cc7116396a2
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“I-I’m not sure what you mean…”de4123a9d7f03954
“Who should I speak with about why my late father’s keepsake is pinned to the chest of a young lady I’ve never even met, and how we’ll handle the insult I’ve just been dealt?”04a700e7e3021917
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With every word Cedric d719324648 spoke, the temperature around bb461c0e49 them seemed to drop 24f4066537 lower and lower.9784be2a76e24424
“It’s hard to 072e88f4cc forgive this as 281de618a3 just a thoughtless 9e9b9893b1 prank by a 613531cc14 young lady because 82ac143737 of the significance eb455f0860 this brooch holds,” 7255d34e85 Cedric said.505a6476593e42b5
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Harriet stood there ad5d85c3bc with her mouth 8ee712bee4 hanging open, forgetting eecd96eb44 her manners. His words were 43dd308ccd certainly in the 7558c8ec2c imperial language, but 011fbdb0cb she couldn’t make 60a1ba325d sense of them d25017d24b at all.a06ed099a3e5162d
“Your Grace! There’s been some, 28c45c77d6 some misunderstanding…!” she 56a4e5cf16 stammered.68a81ee14c39304a
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“Why is it that f2df808c6f guilty people all love 40d9b468dc the word ‘misunderstanding’ so 7aab0b3be7 much? Do they think ab3d0f3e9f I’ll let it 4dda258243 slide just because 8a5f7bf2e6 they say that?” ad6b00f021 Cedric’s smile was 9d928f605f smooth and elegant, c5a17373d3 but seeing it 9eb053bad9 made the hair d5d7e5f5db on Harriet’s arms 7f83dab480 stand on end.f0d0a90371b4888d
“No, no! You really are misunderstanding! When the lights came 22c549171e back on, I saw 19c8110e99 that this was just 603cadd211 attached to my clothes!” 80a13cbc7e Harriet protested with all 6401fed1bd her might, but Cedric’s 0ee122100d expression didn’t change in 413104e7d1 the slightest.b442b65818fe0aa8
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Instead, people 9c46f605a1 around them cb45762797 began to eb22fbf043 whisper.50c685c0fc7fd9e7
“She probably pinned it a5927b8af1 on herself.”039da867f128eeac
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“Even if she wanted fcbf5e4fb2 attention, how could she a1e74a5746 use Duke Kailas’ brooch c29ef2572b for that?”abd6ba5c901ed349
“That’s just how 422fa4405a she is.”f93e0627543ad8a2
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There were clicks of a5ca4b81fd disapproval, contemptuous glances, and d004ad33ad furrowed brows. Harriet had seen these 2f9316909d reactions many times before, 747a592875 but today, it felt a49ecbfde7 particularly suffocating.9821f376b437d8d3
“No! I’m telling you, it’s fa7160e8c0 not true!” Harriet shouted beb8b49000 as she turned to 7bf0232e3d face the people around 7a2d505fc4 her.aca0eed73d28c713
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Just then, her uncle, 28a1611f56 Viscount John Listerwell, rushed 462c0a3514 over, out of breath.934147df58eeaf4e
“Your Grace!” John exclaimed.31a4a7e0c58183b5
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“Ah, the person 534afb04c4 responsible has arrived,” d82bdeab80 Cedric said.f31339b2e377676b
Harriet looked a873987c74 at her 23f4b453a2 uncle with fe41a31fe7 a desperate a0c4975bd1 expression. Help me! Please, help me! I really 8cc0dd37de don’t know 42dafc1b08 anything!5006cd68ab014ba4
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But the words 23f68384b5 that came out 14f9e14fb5 of John’s mouth e702d201d6 were far from 8b65de7d07 what Harriet had 5ebb2ab406 hoped for.4d447b094bc0dcc3
“I’m terribly sorry! It’s my fault 2892409dae for not keeping 2f0306ee1a my niece in ff6c60ebb2 check.”0f3b81f23fbcecac
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“That does seem ad7cc4a872 to be the 153cfece33 case,” Cedric replied, 67bba00792 his voice calm 3397912fbc and composed, though d2f35aa8ea no one doubted 65eec9ddeb that he was c641484b86 angry.8523d5cb753f7c63
When you 4d1816539f think about 3c7b536766 it, it 3311bf42f6 was understandable. The war victory party f6cb334a54 couldn’t have been joyful e1b9e664bc for someone who had fb7c546f31 lost his father in a84933764c that war. And to 17b8d08742 lose his 266b3608ba father’s keepsake 0e6e2448c4 at such 691e464d45 an event—that fed84e392d alone was df72a29cf2 terrible. But to 5f8f3e32b4 make matters 538470c838 worse, the a1088cee7a infamous troublemaker 637d5c2559 Harriet Listerwell fef6334fea was wearing 1047b8a8eb the brooch c8c4912643 as if a96594d8c9 the Duke d04f36134b had given 49da816233 it to 35fcccea62 her out f084308621 of personal 079b75b28f interest.d155e230a790f201
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John was sweating 7685680022 nervously and kept bc756186ae bowing his head 52405e45c1 repeatedly, while Bella, 6ffc5222f5 who had appeared d65fb88f5c at some point, f2a0fcfa22 stood trembling and 7162b71759 pleading for leniency.75af74c77a43729e
“Your Grace, couldn’t b1bea95d9d you find it e2de1c9252 in your heart e42a6a5f2a to show some bfb8558c1d mercy to Harriet? She probably found 41fb70a112 the brooch by 4578776928 chance and wore d2cc4f4e6c it because she eaef99ab19 wanted a bit 933b4424dd of attention. She’s never 68eebdc048 received anything f94b6f6fe1 like this c8955fd008 before…”8b0b39a16611ee87
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As Bella 9f3ce050d4 spoke, the c06aec5df1 color drained e6ccada5e1 from Harriet’s 31f097afde face.f7141359da4cd337
“Bella! You saw f6ac57412d it yourself 830fce143a earlier! I thought badc58b47b the person a46bb10f16 who pinned d8c12b9944 it made 7e66def481 a mistake…!” 2facf42fc4 Harriet tried 556462e11a to explain, 9140ad51fa believing that ed25b69557 Bella and 180e5513be her friends, 516959d8d0 who had effbb61e3c been with 49343bae4f her, would 94401b416c vouch for 489887eccf her innocence. But her attempt 726b8b4ad2 was cut short 13890dfb66 by John.234ce630aaee995f
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“Keep your 3e8bdc2527 mouth shut, 5f52e6f92b Harriet! How dare you raise db23a1c53b your voice in front 461e02fd91 of His Grace!” John 7f4ad38612 scolded her, his face efcbe5bbbd full of anger. And it was 8e2e2efbb3 no wonder; he cbf05bd221 had every reason d784ef2992 to be upset.a63dde749bf6a145
Today’s banquet e10ecbd7ca was practically a5f1ca5433 a stage 986da62db1 for the 6206ef16c6 debut of d69b624e94 his son, 2fccd4e17d Aston, into eec3368d4f high society. Now, thanks to c692ee9639 this commotion, Harriet 0af033a376 had risked putting 8c02401763 his family on 57fdbf088e bad terms with cef9c91806 the event’s guest 73527840bd of honor. It was hardly a edc777fe69 welcome disruption.7ba84f7bc035e86f
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Harriet tried 850700163d once again d081665eb3 to explain 2fcb2908e8 her side 215d4ece05 of the def8f875ff story, but 58f02706c6 tears began eb0fc5ecaa to flow e48b3790a3 before she 0de46974ef could get 83a9948521 the words 955718cb65 out, and 474b025018 her lips a2abb78846 quivered uncontrollably. She knew how d0774b219c humiliating it was 17cdcc9c15 to cry in 23ff8b9868 front of everyone, c8f0432427 but she couldn’t 96c35c247f hold back.d491da1c79b245de
“It’s really not d2000b36dd true! I, I 50a4ff3eb1 would never, d92f96252c sob, steal 9524bd0537 Your Grace’s, 2d2594c59b hic, brooch!” 9dadd82ce3 Her tearful c72ae75636 voice was 0940d4a29f pitiful, but b0267962b4 no one 4160cccb8f felt any f2442e2cc7 sympathy for 222fc04c6b her.f9c94c2fb88ab44e
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“She’s really a87e89e20e living up 00387ed9f2 to her 35056614cf reputation as 2bb42a891f a ‘scandal 76123ffdae maker.’”b2e622c7a6145f49
“She’s not even that 4c1cc57f25 good-looking, but she’s always 198d857cdc throwing herself at men, fc3aa0eef8 one after another.”a800e116a05ef858
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“Poor Viscount Listerwell. All this 5f426b6d73 shame because 253244e71c of a fe8a92e66e niece he 06556bdc44 took in a3a006f040 out of f0a0d056d8 duty to fbecae5636 his late 8e8077943d brother.”15af03f7bdc9c588
Though the ballroom b5812a2736 was crowded with 9612ea3b9a people, Harriet felt bfba070633 like she was 8ec7aa8c26 drowning in loneliness.1dc4e9f3022de9f0
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There was abff1ba489 no one 5d3870ddef on her adb42554be side. No one fd41fa4bb1 was willing c6bc297333 to listen 5d0fccceb4 to a f9ff73cecd word she a613dae825 said.2add5abae13edb62
The more she tried 7e9414677b to defend herself, the 8308d534e2 more she seemed like 1da6b0c556 a fool. She was 8b5cb45cf6 used to 100acb5596 this, but a8fe1f87fa somehow, here 3302cec923 at an 69f86f90f2 imperial banquet, 014cf7c8b6 the sense 63c8ae2cb5 of despair 1c52b8d250 was even a90904b166 stronger than 7795535a06 usual.a3a99b0629311dc8
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‘It’s so easy 0c486aeed3 to make a 5c5f0d737d fool out of 94d8f45e32 someone, isn’t it?’ 96590b047e she thought, and 2dbae61d77 a bitter laugh 07f425dcc7 escaped her lips.aa90cc8e51e2420c
Still, there was one ff479d1eaa thing she wanted to b210976bb7 say clearly to Cedric. She knew he wouldn’t 14aaab4186 believe her, but she 02b708f80f couldn’t leave without at 580e46e132 least saying it.e05c0ea669ef4421
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Swallowing her tears, 561c634ae9 Harriet turned to f21abd3d31 Cedric and spoke 12f20e2f2c slowly and clearly, 0007174f14 “I didn’t steal afc6d20fad your brooch, Your 9c787e8b2c Grace. I never even wanted 6d82f93efa it in the first c4c5d0a2e6 place.”295a4c9319fbb47b
4e55e4f43f009700
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