It's Too Late for Regrets - Chapter 3.4

The man who had been brushing only against her lips and the inside of her mouth for a while now tilted his head and entwined his tongue deeply.

It was much slower than the kisses they had exchanged breathlessly in bed. The subtle sensation, which she usually couldn’t even feel half of because she was too busy keeping up with him, wrapped around Ines.

His hands, cupping her cheeks, were hot.

The soft sounds of shallow breathing and wet noises coming from their parting lips scratched at her eardrums.

Other than their lips and cheeks, no other part of their bodies touched. But her lower stomach heated up as if he was about to push into her roughly, just like before.

The warmth of her small, stiffened tongue was clearly felt by Rayan as well. Despite all the times they had kissed, Ines was still clumsy.

But that innocence wasn’t unpleasant.

Only after kissing her thoroughly to his satisfaction did he slowly pull away.

Her flushed face and hazy eyes were entirely focused on him.

Rayan parted her damp lips slightly and whispered in a low voice.

“Do you still not like my estate?”

“No… It’s not that…”

“Then enjoy this place more. It’s not too late to leave afterward.”

“…”

“You’ll be living here anyway.”

Her blue eyes fluttered in confusion. The hesitation was clear on her face.

“Come with me to the Rhine Valley.”

“…”

“You only need to wait two seasons, right? Hmm?”

With those words, Rayan fell silent and waited patiently, just like always.

For someone like Ines, forcing something didn’t work. It was better to make her choose what he wanted on her own.

“…Okay.”

And, as always, his intention worked in the end.

Ines lowered her eyes helplessly. Rayan kissed her eyelids gently.

“It’ll be soon.”

“Yes.”

That was enough of an answer.

“Good. You made the right choice.”

Feeling satisfied, Rayan straightened his back from where he had been leaning toward her.

Just as he was about to step back, Ines reached out first.

“…?”

A small warmth brushed against his pinky finger.

After a moment’s hesitation, she entwined her fingers with his. Her grip was very weak.

It wasn’t just to hold hands—he felt the soft texture of fabric in his palm.

When he glanced down, he saw the delicately embroidered rose symbol of Eleanor.

Rayan asked a beat later, “Did you make this?”

“Yes. During the winter. I wanted to give it to you, but I never had the chance.”

“….”

“I even added a clover. Since you’re leaving on a campaign, I wanted to wish you good luck…”

It seemed to be a kind of token a wife would give her husband before he went off to war. Below the red rose and vines was a light green clover.

Though it wasn’t the most skillful work, it wasn’t bad at all.

Rayan stared at the neatly folded handkerchief, then placed it in the pocket of his uniform coat.

“Thanks.”

Ines let out a small breath of relief. Her worried expression showed she had feared he wouldn’t accept it.

Rayan deliberately stayed silent and didn’t act. He simply waited.

There was something that should come next.

Sure enough, after a moment’s pause, the expected confession followed.

“I love you.”

“….”

“Please be careful. Don’t get hurt.”

With those words, soothing the sensitive woman was complete.

Rayan gave a small smile and turned away from her.

The door closed behind him. He stood there briefly before giving an order to the guard knight assigned to Ines.

“Watch her carefully. Don’t let her wander around.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

With that, the uneasy concern about Ines completely faded.

Rayan returned to his office and pulled the white handkerchief from his coat pocket.

Plop.

It fell into a half-open drawer on his desk.

He didn’t even check where it landed before roughly pushing the drawer shut.

Rayan left the estate on the last day of that week.

What Ines felt about not seeing him for almost half a year wasn’t sadness but more of an anxiety.

She was afraid everything might return to how it was last autumn. That the staff at the estate would act as if she didn’t exist again, and that Kyra would glare at her with cold eyes.

But Rayan wasn’t someone who broke his promises. Even in his absence, nothing in her daily life changed.

The staff still took care of her, though a bit awkwardly. Ronya wasn’t bullied anymore either.

Kyra was busy overseeing Eleanor’s internal affairs and running several businesses in place of the Grand Duke. Even when they crossed paths, she only showed mild displeasure.

It was still a positive change.

“I’m glad. It looks like you’re slowly adjusting to the duchy.”

Hearing Berry’s sincere voice, Ines thought so too.

‘Right. Nothing is solved in an instant. Everything until now was just a transitional phase.’

And so, it seemed that a place was slowly forming for Ines in Eleanor as well.

Meanwhile, parcels continued to arrive from an unknown sender.

Last time it had been a collection of love poems. After that, several popular romance novels arrived. A bookmark followed later, possibly forgotten at first.

Berry examined the gold bookmark engraved with an intricate design and muttered,

“Who could it be? It doesn’t look like something you’d just find on the street…”

“Not sure…”

At first, she wondered if it was a gift from Robert in Apael, but that idea was quickly dismissed. The landscape painting that arrived three days later proved otherwise.

The day it arrived, everyone in the estate went silent in awe of the painting’s grandeur.

The painting depicted none other than one of Eleanor’s famous sights—the Rhine Valley.

The scene of a waterfall cascading between the cliffs looked as vivid as real life.

Even Kyra couldn’t hide her reaction.

“…Do you have any ties to Lezan?”

“No…”

But no one was more shocked than Ines. Lezan and Eleanor were both completely foreign to her. She was so surprised she couldn’t even speak properly.

“Could it have been sent to the Grand Duke by mistake…?”

But the recipient’s name clearly said Ines. And that place was the one she had said she most wanted to visit in the duchy.

‘How did they know…?’

Kyra frowned as she looked at the confused Ines.

That painting was far beyond the skill of an ordinary artist. The gentle gloss of the paint, the elegant yet bold strokes, the luxurious frame surrounding the canvas—

At minimum, it was the work of a royal court painter.

Very few nobles could dare to commission a royal artist. Which meant the sender was likely someone from the royal family…

A certain face passed through Kyra’s mind.

‘No way?’

But why would that person…? It made no sense. A deep crease formed on Kyra’s brow.

The painting was too large to hang in Ines’s room, so it was placed on the wall near the central staircase closest to her room.

From the day it was hung, Ines often stood in front of the staircase railing and gazed up at the painting.

“Whoever sent it must be a good friend, Your Ladyship. A painting even more beautiful than the real thing. You might not even need to visit the valley now.”

“No… Seeing it makes me want to go even more.”

Rayan had said they would go out together in the fall, but staying cooped up in the mansion still made her feel stifled. Even she found it strange how much she wanted to leave.

There was a time when she thought having a peaceful place to rest was enough. But once the immediate danger was gone, she started wanting more.

At times like this, the saying “human desire has no end” felt so true.

Ines looked up at the painting endlessly.

“A gift…”

Just the sound of that word made her heart flutter pleasantly.

Until now, her mind had been filled only with thoughts of Rayan Eleanor, but little by little, someone else began to occupy space in her thoughts.

“I want to know who the kind person that sent it is…”

That small question of Ines’s was answered in early summer, about two months after Rayan’s departure.

The Crown Prince of Lezan visited the duchy.

“It’s been a while, Your Highness. I’m truly glad you returned safely.”

“Thank you, Aunt Kyra.”

Kyra carefully studied the young man before her, who wore a composed smile.

His bright blond hair gleamed like sunlight pouring through the summer window. His eyes were a warm chocolate brown.

A gentle smile lit up the handsome young man, who had a completely different air from his cold-colored cousin.

“I was very happy to be invited. I’ve actually been meaning to visit the duchy for some time now.”

Support