Chapter 1

---

Farewells come suddenly, even on a bright spring day.

Under the bright sunlight, Ridel was hanging laundry in the garden of the manor. A refreshing breeze fluttered the white shirts.

Just then, Gilbert, the next Viscount Tengus and Ridel's fiancé, arrived. Ridel waved at him with a big smile, but his expression was unusually stiff. Ibonne, his cousin, stood beside him, leaning against him. Ridel tilted her head, wondering what was going on.

With a tense look, Gilbert stopped in front of Ridel and spoke hesitantly.

"Ridel, I'm sorry. Ibonne and I are going to have a baby. Can you break up with me?"

Ridel was taken aback by the sudden news.

"Wh-What do you mean... I don't understand at all."

Is this some kind of joke? Ibonne is Ridel's cousin. How could she and Gilbert, Ridel's fiancé, have a baby together?

"I'm really sorry."

Gilbert bowed his head.

"Ridel, I'm truly sorry. It's all because we fell in love with each other."

Ibonne was sobbing beside Gilbert, and he was supporting her as if to comfort her.

"How could this happen... Why?"

Ridel had planned to marry Gilbert in three months and finally be free from this house.

After that, in a daze, Ridel went to the manor's salon and sat across from her uncle and aunt. There, she was told that her engagement to Gilbert was annulled, and Gilbert and Ibonne would be getting married instead.

"It's already been decided with Viscount Tengus."

"Then, what am I supposed to do?"

Ridel's voice trembled. She didn't know whether to be sad or angry. She was confused by the sudden turn of events and had no idea when they had become lovers.

For the past few years, she had been living an uncomfortable and constrained life under the care of her uncle and aunt. She had planned to marry her childhood friend Gilbert in three months and build a warm home like her parents had. But now...

"Ridel, for the sake of the baby, can you step aside?"

Her uncle, Michael Dromore, said. It was selfish, considering he was the one who had arranged the engagement.

"That's right. We've taken care of you, an orphan, for free. Can't you repay us? We can't let Ibonne's child grow up without a father."

Her aunt, Minerva, said matter-of-factly, defending Ibonne.

Ridel's parents had passed away five years ago. Her only supporter, her cousin Kurt, had been studying abroad for the past three years and was not present.

"...I understand."

There was no other answer if she wanted to continue living in this house. Without getting married, would she have to endure a life of being treated like a servant forever?

It was clear that Gilbert's heart was no longer with Ridel. She realized that no one would come to her aid, no matter how much she cried and pleaded.