My Arrogant and Insolent Shadow - Chapter 40

Time dragged on, slower than ever, like walking through a nightmare.

At last, the conversations between the two families began to wind down.

It was Lady Rike who brought it to a close.

“The night air feels so refreshing. It’s the perfect weather for a walk,” she said softly.

The ballroom was still warm from the dancing and bodies moving through it, but everyone understood what she really meant.

The Viscountess of Bilrod and Lady Catherine turned at the same time to look at their children.

While Lady Rike adjusted her dress, her expression shy and composed, Hael stood there, blankly staring at Yurisiel.

Lady Catherine, watching her son with rising frustration, forced a smile and called out to him.

“Hael, what are you doing?”

Her voice sounded polite at first, but her eyes were sharp with irritation.

Still, Hael couldn’t take his eyes off Yurisiel.

His frozen posture drew attention from everyone around him.

His expression was hard and unmoving, completely unaware of how many people were now looking his way.

Yurisiel turned her gaze elsewhere, forcing herself to ignore it.

She didn’t have the courage to meet his eyes.

“Yuri…” Hael’s voice broke the silence, her name barely rising past his lips.

But once again, Lady Catherine cut in before he could say more.

“It must be his first time at such an event. He’s probably just feeling awkward. Hael is quite shy.”

With so many arrogant young nobles indulging in scandalous behavior, a bashful suitor came across as sweet and honest.

Lady Catherine was brilliant at covering her son’s faults while highlighting his best traits.

Cassian watched the scene unfold with quiet amusement.

He thought to himself, well, even if she stole from her own family, it was still her family’s property. Could that really be called theft?

The problem wasn’t that she took it. It was that she didn’t give it to him.

And really, that wasn’t the issue either.

If someone was going to steal, they should at least be discreet and thorough.

They should make sure no one knew.

He recalled a report from a few days ago, when Lady Catherine had gone to the clinic and requested Hael’s medical records.

The smile on Cassian’s face deepened.

To think she believed that simply showing up tonight would resolve everything. Whether it was foolish or naive, he found it laughable.

And in the end, he couldn’t hold it in anymore, he chuckled out loud.

Everyone turned to look at him.

In just a moment, Cassian wiped the grin from his face and casually dabbed at the corner of his eye.

“My apologies. I completely agree with the lady’s words,” he said, unusually formal in his tone.

It was respectful, but there was something unmistakably arrogant about the way he said it.

With a crooked smile, Cassian stepped in to defend Hael, speaking as if he were on his side.

“He’s someone deeply devoted to horse training. He probably hasn’t even stepped near a young lady before.”

He said it as though Hael was a disciplined scholar, not someone interested in romance.

The Viscount and Viscountess of Bilrod smiled, clearly pleased. From their point of view, Cassian’s comment was the perfect endorsement for their daughter’s potential suitor.

Naturally, all eyes turned to Hael, waiting for his response.

Under the weight of their attention, Hael’s blue eyes trembled slightly, unsettled.

In the corner of his vision, he saw Yurisiel’s profile as she stood turned away.

Then came Lady Rike, blushing as she looked up at him, followed by her parents, their expressions warm and expectant.

His father swallowed, his lips moving as if unsure what to say, while Lady Catherine watched him with thinly veiled urgency.

Hael had only agreed to come tonight under one condition: that the matter of Britt would not be brought up again.

Part of him had told himself he was doing it for Yurisiel. A poor excuse, perhaps, but it was easier to believe than the truth.

Lady Catherine knew his weak points all too well. She told him that people were already blaming Yurisiel, claiming she had manipulated him into stealing.

But she conveniently left out the fact that she knew exactly why he had done it—that he had sold Britt to pay for medicine for Yurisiel’s mother, Lady Jane.

She feared that if she admitted the truth, he might spiral further beyond her control.

Hael had thought about confessing everything.

But he knew he couldn’t.

If he did, the people of Alphonse would dig into where the stolen money had gone, and Yurisiel would once again be painted as the villain.

Lady Catherine had promised him that if he just showed up tonight, everyone would believe he had spent the money on horse training research.

If he went along with that, the public opinion would shift.

So what he needed to say, and what he needed to do, had already been decided for him.

He just had to agree.

Then, he would escort Lady Rike outside for a walk, just as everyone expected.

It was time to repeat the same meaningless, polite phrases exchanged at every noble matchmaking event.

“I…” he began.

Just before he could finish, his eyes met Yurisiel’s in midair.

They locked for only a second.

But it was enough.

Hael’s hesitation lasted longer than anyone expected.

But in the end, the outcome didn’t change.

This play would eventually come to an end, and when it did, Yurisiel would understand how he truly felt. Even if she misunderstood him for now, he believed that she would one day see his sincerity.

With his eyes tightly shut, Hael reluctantly gave his answer.

“…Yes.”

It was a short word, but it made him appear like a shy boy trying to hide his nerves.

Feeling slightly guilty, Lady Catherine quickly stepped in to support him, brushing it off as simple bashfulness. She added a soft comment to decorate the moment.

Then, making sure Yurisiel was no longer in Hael’s line of sight, she quietly stepped back and looked at her son, who still stood frozen in place.

As the adults made their expectations even more obvious, Hael had no choice but to take Lady Rike and escort her out of the room.

Even then, he continued to look back, again and again.

Every time he turned, his eyes searched for Yurisiel.

But all he could see was her back.

She never once looked in his direction.

Her eyes, like always, were focused elsewhere.

They were on the young master, Cassian.

A strange, sharp emotion swirled in Hael’s chest, one he couldn’t quite name.

Yurisiel didn’t even wait to see Hael leave. She turned and walked away, still standing close beside the tall man next to her, like an accessory clinging to his side.

Lady Catherine watched her closely from behind.

She had originally planned to speak to Yurisiel privately after exchanging formalities with the Viscount of Bilrod and his wife.

She had been ready to humiliate the girl, to make sure she would never dare come near her son again.

Bringing Hael here today had taken everything she had. There was no guarantee she could get him to attend again.

As long as that girl remained in his path, this situation would continue repeating.

Before the Bilrod family came back with another proposal, she needed to make sure this issue was handled, once and for all.

If Yurisiel were still living on that hillside in a shack made of old wood and nails, she would have taken care of this in a much more direct way.

But now, the girl was hidden deep inside the lord’s mansion, and getting close to her wasn’t so easy anymore.

The same went for her mother, Lady Jane.

Other servants could be met with relative ease, but these two acted like they were the mistresses of the house, holed up in the mansion as if they owned it.

Over the past several days, Lady Catherine had visited multiple times, only to be turned away at the gate.

Even when she reluctantly grabbed Mary, the haughty maid, and asked where they were, the answer never changed.

Yurisiel was always with the young master. She couldn’t come out. It was the young master’s order.

When Lady Catherine heard that, she had scoffed in disbelief.

The young master? Please.

Most of the attendants assigned to the heir of House Blanchet didn’t last more than a few days.

Even if Yurisiel lasted a bit longer, she would be cast aside soon enough. She was probably just a pretty distraction, nothing more.

Things like this weren’t even shocking in noble society. It happened all the time.

That’s why, when she saw Yurisiel wearing that absurdly extravagant dress, she never imagined that the man standing beside her was truly the heir.

No, the truth was, she had known.

She had just chosen to ignore it.

Because if that girl, who had abandoned her son, was now at the side of the Blanchet heir, it would make her stomach turn.

When they were standing together earlier, she hadn’t even been able to look at them directly.

Cassian had stood tall and aloof, not saying a word, his chin lifted slightly as if acknowledging no one.

The pride he carried, the air of authority surrounding him, made it impossible to approach.

Now that she looked again from a distance, she had to admit it—he was exceptional.

His skin was pale, but it glowed, and his features were flawless. His eyes, his nose, his jawline, everything was sculpted to perfection.

Lady Catherine clenched her jaw.

So, this really was Cassian de Blanchet, the heir staying in this estate.

He was supposed to be young, but his presence far surpassed that of most adult noblemen.

She let out a cold, disbelieving laugh.

“So that little tramp actually managed to seduce the heir of Blanchet…”

Her stomach churned with fury. She felt like her insides were boiling.

The same girl who used to bow her head, begging for sympathy and charity, was now walking proudly beside one of the most powerful men in the region.

Meanwhile, her own son was left in pieces.

Lady Catherine clenched her fists, trembling.

That tremble didn’t stop until Yurisiel had completely disappeared from view.

Only then did she manage to twist her lips into a bitter smile.

Fine, she thought. If that girl has forgotten her place, someone will remind her.

That’s how things had always been run in Alphonse. That’s how order was kept.

A girl like her would be no exception.

Lady Catherine scanned the room, then began walking toward a familiar servant nearby.

Support