Find the One Who Abandoned Me - Chapter 35

Fortunately, after Illan began steadily taking control of the family’s power, the situation had improved significantly.
He had married Lady Circe, daughter of Duke Dylas, someone very close to the Queen.

Of course, even with that, the King had not fully accepted House Anastas, a family that had once openly shown hostility toward him.
Though the Anastas family still seemed wealthy, their businesses were heavily restricted under the King’s watch.
They now made barely half of what they used to.
Because of that, Circe and Illan both believed they needed to prove their loyalty to the Crown.

“My engagement?” Calliope asked, her eyes widening slightly.

“Yes. Since you seem to be getting along well with the daughters of other noble families, we thought it best to find you a fiancé sooner rather than later.”

Ah.
In her past life, they had said the exact opposite — that she wasn’t getting along and therefore needed an engagement quickly.

Calliope swallowed a bitter smile and lowered her gaze quietly.
Illan, perhaps misunderstanding her silence, spoke a little faster:

“It will be good for you. It’s for your own benefit.”

Calliope had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.
That same hollow lie.
Illan’s feelings toward her were nothing more than guilt — not love.
He had transferred the guilt he felt toward the woman he once loved onto her daughter, but true affection had never followed.

“Even if I refuse, it wouldn’t change anything, would it?”

She smiled brightly, her voice laced with sarcasm.

Illan didn’t scold her for it.
He simply nodded stiffly.
Even the Marchioness, who had grown closer to her lately, wouldn’t deny it.
After all, she was just a child brought into the family out of necessity.

House Anastas wanted to shift its loyalty to the royal faction, especially after Illan and Circe’s marriage.
The best plan would have been to arrange a marriage with the thirteen-year-old Crown Prince himself.
But the King would never grant them such favor.
Instead, they set their sights on marrying into the family of Count Esteban — one of the King’s closest allies.

However, their only daughter, their precious youngest, could not be used in such a political gamble.
She was to be saved for a future marriage to the Crown Prince.

That was why they had called Calliope Anastas back into the family — to use her.

“Which family is it?”
Calliope asked lightly.
Surely, they would at least tell her the name.

She thought she was smiling naturally.
But under these circumstances, her bright smile only made her look unsettling.

After a brief pause, Illan finally spoke.
She braced herself, thinking that surely it would be the name of the man who had once betrayed her.
But instead—

“The Duke of Glayderth has proposed an engagement between you and Otis Glayderth.”

“Excuse me?”

Who?

“Of course, it’s not finalized yet,” Illan said quickly.
“They reached out with a proposal, but your opinion matters too.”

What are you talking about?
Calliope felt her mind go blank.
Her fiancé was supposed to be Isaac, not someone else.

The Glayderth family had never once shown any interest in her.
And Otis Glayderth — their only heir — would later become infamous for his coldness and indifference toward women.

She had spoken to him exactly once in her previous life.

“You’re in the way. Move aside.”

Ah, she regretted remembering it now.
That single memory — their only interaction — had been far from pleasant.
She had been crying alone in a corridor during a party when she had first, and last, heard his voice.

Pressing her fingertips lightly to her temple, Calliope struggled to keep her voice steady:

“That’s… not at all what I was expecting.”

“Neither was I,” Illan replied.

Calliope arched an eyebrow slightly.
It sounded terribly irresponsible.
But judging from Illan’s expression, he seemed genuinely caught off guard as well.

The Duke of Glayderth led the noble faction — the group that had once fiercely opposed the King.

In fact, the reason the noble faction had managed to survive the King’s heavy suppression was largely due to the Glayderth family’s wealth and power.

Among all the noble houses, House Anastas still ranked among the top three in riches.
But above them were two families:
First, the Duke of Glayderth; second, the Duke of Dylas.

Despite the King’s pressure, the Duke of Glayderth held tightly onto trade with foreign kingdoms and empires.
Even the King had preferred trying to persuade him rather than risking an open conflict.

“Does House Glayderth not want the Anastas family to join the royal faction?”
Calliope asked thoughtfully.

Illan nodded.
He didn’t seem particularly surprised that his young daughter had grasped the situation so clearly.
He probably just thought it was something she had picked up from her tutors and didn’t think much of it.

Calliope thought to herself, showing not even the slightest interest in Illan’s behavior.

It was true — the noble faction, with its shaky foundation, was desperate for even a single noble to strengthen its ranks.
Still, Calliope didn’t believe that was the real reason behind the proposal.
After all, in her past life, the Glayderth family had never once approached House Anastas with an engagement offer.

She knew her actions after her return might have altered the future slightly,
but she hadn’t done anything significant enough to change the Duke of Glayderth’s stance.

“Since they approached us first, it would be difficult to refuse outright. It would be best if you met them at least once,” Illan said, looking visibly uncomfortable.

Of course he would be.
He had barely managed to secure a connection with the royal faction, and now the leader of the noble faction was proposing an engagement.
Still, rejecting the Duke of Glayderth’s offer without consideration would be reckless.

Calliope gave a silent nod.

“I’ll take care of it myself.”

Without waiting to see how Illan’s expression changed, she hurried out of the office.
Her steps quickened the closer she got to her room.
The moment she arrived, she threw the door open and dove onto the bed.

“Aaaagh!”

Burying her head into a pillow, she screamed at the top of her lungs.
She kicked at the bed with both feet, sending the blankets flying.
Jack and Susan, who had been waiting in the room, jumped in shock, their eyes wide.

Calliope flailed wildly for a moment before lifting her messy head.

“This is insane. Why on earth did they suddenly pop up?”

“My lady, what’s wrong?” Susan asked cautiously.

“The Duke of Glayderth’s family just proposed an engagement!” Calliope yelled, still half-buried in the bed.

Susan, still fairly new to the household, tilted her head in confusion.

“Isn’t that… a good thing?”

Jack, looking equally confused, added,

“From that family? That’s troublesome.”

Susan glanced between them, silently pleading for an explanation, but Jack simply stared straight ahead, looking annoyed.

Clutching her head in both hands, Calliope tried to figure out where everything had gone wrong.
But no — there was nothing.
After all, she had never crossed paths with anyone from House Glayderth after returning to the past.

“I can never, ever marry into that family.”

But fate clearly had other plans.

Because there was someone who wanted her engagement to Glayderth to happen —
someone who, of course, was none other than Ditron Anastas.

Ditron, who somehow caught wind of the news almost immediately, wasted no time summoning Calliope to his room.
Lying in bed, his eyes gleamed fiercely.

“You must seize the young Lord Glayderth!” he declared.

Oh, of course.
Calliope forced herself to smile and nodded politely.

Who was Otis Glayderth, anyway?
He would grow up to be famous — a cold, unbreakable wall, known for treating women like stones he barely noticed.

The man who had once brushed past her in the hall, muttering that she was in his way —
the same man whose scowl was somehow still praised for being devastatingly handsome.

“Their family leads the noble faction. If we form a bond with them, it’ll be a huge advantage for us!
And to think — someone like that is showing interest in you…!” Ditron cried, his face flushed with excitement.

But Calliope had no intention of doing as he wished.

How greedy could this man get?
She continued nodding and smiling as if soothing a stubborn child, all while feeling exhausted inside.

Now, how was she supposed to untangle this mess?

Meanwhile…

“What? They actually scheduled a meeting?”

Fifteen-year-old Otis Glayderth was sitting in his office when he threw his pen down in frustration.

He had received a gifted education from a young age, and by thirteen, had already begun assisting his father with family affairs.

Everyone agreed that even if the Duke later had more children, Otis’s position as heir would never be shaken.
Because of this, he had been plagued by endless marriage proposals.

What was he — some princess locked away in a tower?

Thankfully, his mother, the Duchess, had tried to protect him.
But his father, the Duke of Glayderth, always smiled good-naturedly and shoved him toward any young lady who bore the title “Lady.”

“You were brilliant as a child, but it seems you lack a certain… social grace,”
his father would say, and then throw him into banquets full of scheming noble daughters.

He had suffered through it for years.

When he was younger, he’d greeted everyone with polite smiles out of duty.
Now, he couldn’t even be bothered to pretend.

“I’m going to have to marry for political reasons anyway.”

“Well, at least this time it’s just a meeting under the name of engagement,”
his attendant offered, trying to lighten the mood.

Thanks to his mother’s firm intervention, things had been peaceful for a while.
But a few months ago, after returning from an estate inspection, his father had suddenly mentioned arranging a marriage with some noble girl he hadn’t even met yet.

Otis had dismissed it as another ridiculous idea that his mother would block.

Yet here it was, now shoved directly into his lap.

He felt a headache coming on.

“It can’t be helped.”

“You’ll be attending, right?”

“Of course. I’m going to make an absolute mess of it,” Otis said bluntly.

“Pardon?”

“Who would ever want to marry a guy who’s handsome on the outside but a complete disaster on the inside?”

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