It's Too Late for Regrets - Chapter 8.7

Ines was absentmindedly repeating the voice she had just heard, which felt like an illusion, when a girl who had woven anemones into a lovely bouquet held it out to her.

 

“Ah… Thank you. Take care.”

 

“Yes, miss! Be happy!”

 

Right on time, the carriage began to move again. The Countess gently praised the flowers in Ines’s arms.

 

“The flowers are so fresh and pretty. The weaving is a bit clumsy… but once we’re back, ask Clara to fix it up. She’s very good with flower arrangements.”

 

“…Yes, Mother.”

 

A sweet scent rose from the bouquet in her arms.

 

Thank you… for staying by my side all this time…

 

For some reason, she felt like crying. Ines bowed her head low so no one would see her trembling expression.

 

 

The carriage grew distant. Caesar, in Kian’s arms, quietly watched it go.

 

“…No more.”

 

Kian covered the child’s eyes with his hand.

 

He didn’t feel at ease either. Today would likely be the last time Ines’s young son could see her.

 

The only small comfort was that, from afar, Ines seemed well.

 

She looked healthy, smiled often, and her eyes were clear.

 

Erasing part of her memory had been the right decision.

 

Even though he couldn’t see anymore, Caesar didn’t turn away. After a moment of silence, he smiled softly.

 

“Mom is really pretty.”

 

“…”

 

Kian sometimes couldn’t understand what this six-year-old boy was thinking.

 

Just like when he used to live with Ines—he couldn’t fully understand her either.

 

Caesar, who knew his mother’s memories, emotions, darkness—all of it—was no different from a younger, smaller Ines.

 

Kian gently patted the boy’s small head.

 

“Was there something more you wanted to say?”

 

Controlling and charming the flower girl had been easy for Kian.

 

But he didn’t tell Caesar that Ines might’ve recalled some memory related to him.

 

“No. I’m done.”

 

Caesar hugged Kian’s neck and buried his face.

 

“Thanks for taking Mom to a good place, Kian.”

 

“…That’s not something to thank me for.”

 

Two years ago, when Caesar was even younger and couldn’t fully understand death…

 

He had given Kian his first command.

 

Mom should go to a better place.

 

It was the day when the darkness that couldn’t take human form for a long time finally returned to the earth in full.

 

That day, someone disappeared, someone went mad, and someone else became a little sick.

 

“…When is Father coming?”

 

“Soon.”

 

Rayan had visited the Imperial Palace in the morning.

 

It was a short moment of freedom he had earned by persuading the escorts and nanny to let him go out early.

 

His father knew almost everything about him—except for one thing: he didn’t know where Kian and Caesar had sent Ines.

 

He also didn’t know that it was Caesar who chose for his mother to vanish from the chapel two years ago.

 

Because he never told him.

 

Caesar lifted his head bravely. Though his green eyes were a little wet, he didn’t cry.

 

“Let’s go to Father, Kian… I’ll take you.”

 

Kian turned in the opposite direction of the carriage, carrying the child. Caesar asked curiously,

 

“You’re taking me? Where are you going?”

 

“I have to make sure Ines doesn’t notice and come this way. I’ll be right back.”

 

Kian answered easily, and Caesar nodded without question.

 

At that moment, Eleanor’s knights, who had been waiting behind the alley, stepped forward. Caesar’s face lit up when he saw the nanny.

 

“Berry!”

 

“Shall we go, little lord?”

 

Kian handed Caesar over to Berry, then quietly let go of his human form.

 

Even though the knights and Berry had been right beside him, none of them noticed he had vanished.

 

“How was the walk around the city?”

 

“It was fun! I even saw a really pretty person!”

 

As Caesar and Berry chatted brightly, their voices faded. In the next moment, Kian stood on the roof of a nearby shop.

 

His green eyes scanned the street with tension.

 

Far in the distance, the carriage carrying Ines came to a slow stop.

 

Even as she entered a restaurant with the Count, she kept glancing back.

 

Kian let out a quiet sigh.

 

“Could it be… she noticed?”

 

Of all days, today’s timing was too much of a coincidence.

 

He roughly estimated how long Rayan and Caesar would stay in the capital’s center.

 

At most, three to four hours.

 

Caesar usually got tired by afternoon.

 

So I just need to keep watch for about three hours.

 

They could spend time separately, and as long as one side returned, it would be fine.

 

Kian transformed again into a black mist and silently descended over the bustling city.

 

 

After the meal with the Count and Countess of Irope, Ines expressed a desire to stroll around the plaza with Clara.

 

The Count, though reluctant, gave permission.

 

“Yes, it’s better than staying in the mansion all day. Just don’t go into any dark alleys.”

 

“I’ll be careful.”

 

Ines watched the carriage carrying the Count and Countess disappear beyond the street.

 

Her eyes followed it, but her mind was filled with the strange feeling she had sensed hours ago.

 

I’m sure it felt very familiar…

 

During the whole meal, she hadn’t been able to focus on the conversation with the Count and Countess.

 

The voice she recalled when seeing the flower girl lingered in her mind.

 

Do you know there’s not much time left?

 

…Yes.

 

It was a voice without a clear gender. She couldn’t even tell if it was human, beast, or simply the rustle of leaves in the wind.

 

But it hadn’t been scary. It had felt warm and reassuring.

 

Its name…

 

She was sure she used to call it something. It felt like it was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn’t remember.

 

A weight like lead sat heavily on her chest. She tapped her chest a few times with her palm.

 

“…!”

 

Again, that familiar feeling pricked the back of her head.

 

Ines’s eyes widened, and she quickly turned around.

 

“Miss?”

 

“Clara, just now…”

 

Her golden eyes swept over the street, the restaurant windows, and even the dress shop across the way.

 

Nothing in her sight caught her attention, but something unseen stirred her senses sharply.

 

Her fingertips began to tremble slightly.

 

It felt like someone was watching her.

 

What she just felt had definitely been someone’s gaze.

 

“Miss? Shall we go now?”

 

When she turned, Clara quickly came to her side. She opened a parasol to shield Ines from the sun and asked,

 

“The plaza with the Eucalyptus statue, right?”

 

Today was Wednesday.

 

According to a letter Ines had received days ago, the sender said they would wait every Wednesday at the flower shop across from the Eucalyptus statue, when the sun hung over the statue.

 

When she mentioned this to Clara, Clara had immediately said it meant between 5 and 6 p.m., just before sunset.

 

Ines tilted her parasol slightly and looked up at the sky. It was 2 p.m., with the sun just slightly leaning west.

 

There was still a lot of time. No reason to hesitate.

 

A certainty, like a premonition, rose within her.

 

She had to find it.

 

Ines turned her gaze from the plaza entrance to the path ahead.

 

“…No. Let’s walk a little.”

 

“Huh? Oh, miss. That way leads toward the outskirts…”

 

“Don’t worry. I’m not going far.”

 

She willingly walked in the direction where the invisible force was pulling her.

 

 

Randeva, which she hadn’t visited in a long time, felt very different from years ago.

 

The people, once worn down by long wars and the royal family’s disgrace, now brimmed with life. The stability of the royal family and noble class had given the commoners peace of mind.

 

Carriages bearing noble family crests passed frequently.

 

The feather of Neuvan, the shield of Tayton, and the lily of Irope…

 

The last one—a white lily—caught Rayan’s attention.

 

He stepped closer to the window while holding his sleeping son.

 

The Count and Countess boarded the carriage, leaving behind a young noblewoman and her maid.

 

Soon the carriage moved away.

 

“…”

 

The woman’s hair stood out, even from afar.

 

Her neatly braided red hair sparkled like rubies under the afternoon sun.

 

That color wasn’t easy to forget.

 

Especially not for him—it reminded him of filthy memories.

 

This is my daughter. I believe we’ve exchanged letters before. Do you remember?

 

Recalling what the Count and his daughter said at Ines’s funeral made rage bubble up in him.

 

He didn’t want to see any more.

 

Just before the Lady of Irope turned her head to glance up at the window, Rayan stepped back.

 

The meal was nearly over.

 

He hadn’t touched his plate, but the feast—specially prepared by the kitchen—wasn’t for him.

 

It was for the child’s first meal in the capital.

 

But the child, with his small appetite, hadn’t eaten even half. Rayan adjusted his sleeping son in his arms.

 

“Tired, Caesar?”