What Remains at the End of Regret - Chapter 36

“Feel free to look around.”

Vivian nodded slightly, with hesitation.

Right now, I’m standing in for Grandpa Ren.

I couldn’t just chase away a guest who came to visit. Thinking that, Vivian swallowed the resentful words, which were somewhat rude, that were trying to burst out.

The rustling sound of her light linen summer dress as she walked instantly swallowed the peaceful and quiet bookstore. With each sound of her low-heeled shoes hitting the floor, Vivian’s heart beat faster and faster.

I wish they would leave soon.

I wish the things that were disturbing my mind would disappear right away. Vivian hated herself for having such bad thoughts.

It’s all because of the Duke.

That devilish Duke who made me think like this.

When will he disappear completely?

Ever since the unwelcome guest called the Duke came to her peaceful world, Vivian’s tranquility had been constantly disrupted.

‘Why couldn’t he just stay quietly at his villa and had to come all the way here!’

Her sorrow turned into resentment, then into anger. Vivian clenched her fists tightly and raised her head. To not have her space, which was entirely hers, taken away.

Her confidently raised gaze and cool eyes slowly collided in the air.

At that moment, the Duke turned his head sharply, turned and approached the woman. Feeling his presence, the woman was startled and put on a bright smile.

As if ignoring her.

Vivian once again felt an indescribable amount of anger towards the Duke.

“I thought it would be a shabby bookstore, but there are quite a few good books.”

“Is that so?”

“Kaind’s Social Theory is hard to find.”

Catherine, who was holding a book and examining it slowly, turned to the pale-looking woman and asked.

“Did you bring all these books in?”

Vivian shook her head slightly and answered in a trembling voice.

“Grandpa Ren is the owner of the bookstore. Grandpa is away for a few days, so I’m just looking after the bookstore, but Grandpa picked out all the books.”

“I see.”

I thought so Catherine, who had briefly thought highly of the pale-looking woman’s taste, soon lost interest and turned her gaze away.

When a pretty woman hurriedly ran out from the inner space, Catherine felt a strangely chilling, unpleasant sensation.

The woman, who had casually tied her messy, unkempt hair into a single ponytail, had a face that was unusually pretty for the countryside. Her seemingly small height and build, and her skin as white as pale, combined with her snow-white hair to give her an indescribably fragile feeling. Something that men would probably go crazy for.

The moment she saw it, Catherine reflexively looked at the Duke’s face and realized that she was relieved by his unchanging, indifferent expression. Right, you’re not an ordinary man.

A woman in a simple dress in a shabby bookstore.

Her clothes were plain, but Catherine recognized it at a glance. Not the highest quality, but not a fabric that commoners could easily obtain. An indescribable, strange unpleasantness flashed through her mind for a fleeting moment when she saw the Duke’s eyes looking at the woman, deeply sunken.

Is there a need to find out?

Catherine glanced at the woman, who was looking down and quietly staring at her toes, and chuckled. She felt pathetic for having such a foolish thought.

There’s no way the Duke would be interested in a girl who’s stuck in this countryside.

Catherine trusted the Duke more than her gut feeling.

Edmund Lockberg, who was perfectly thorough and quite rational.

She trusted his position and authority, which were beyond her reach.

“Let’s go. It’s getting hot, so I should go back and rest.”

Catherine put the book back in its place and said quietly to Edmund. Edmund nodded silently at Catherine’s words.

Before she knew it, the stuffy heat that had warmed the interior was filling the space. Vivian just kept her mouth shut and waited for the Duke and the woman to leave. The air, which had heated up because the door wasn’t open, was suffocating.

“See you again if we have the chance.”

“Be careful going back.”

The unwelcome guests who had disturbed Vivian’s sweet sleep finally disappeared completely.

“Haa!”

She was already tired of summer.

This heat that constricted her lungs was so suffocating.

Vivian, who had been standing blankly for a while, quickly walked to the window and opened it wide. She pushed all the windows that blocked the terrace and the interior to the side so that the wind could come in and cool down the heat.

Only then did she hear the sound of the waves crashing against the sea, along with the cool breeze.

The snow-white waves crashed against the blue sea and shattered into small foams. The foams broke down even smaller, quietly, and disappeared without a trace.

Vivian, who had been staring at the waves crashing on the sea for a while, plopped down.

The foam that disappeared into bubbles was like her own appearance shrinking endlessly in front of the Duke.

I was definitely that big wave.

You turn me into a foam without a shape.

＊ ＊ ＊

“I didn’t realize it when I was only in the villa. It seems like the sunlight is even hotter in the afternoon.”

Before she knew it, she had walked all the way back, and at the end of her gaze, she saw the car parked in the shade so it wouldn’t get too hot.

Catherine put away her parasol and stepped lightly into the car that the driver had opened for her. The moment she realized that Edmund, who should have been sitting next to her, hadn’t gotten into the car, she had neatly placed the folded parasol on her lap and tidied up her appearance appropriately.

Catherine asked Edmund, who was standing upright without wavering as if he had no intention of moving, in a voice that was somewhat troubled.

“Aren’t you getting in?”

“Please return home first, Young Lady.”

“First? Aren’t you coming with me, Duke?”

“I have business at the port for company matters.”

Catherine invisibly clenched her dress with her hand. However, she decided to show excellent patience by not asking any further and smiling it off.

“I hope I haven’t taken up too much of the busy Duke’s time?”

Her voice, which contained a slight nervousness, gently penetrated her eardrums with a smooth rhythm.

Edmund listened to her slender voice and nodded silently, then approached the driver’s seat and knocked on the window. When the window was completely lowered, the driver, with a nervous expression, looked at him. He leaned on the ceiling and bent down slightly to give a calm instruction, and the driver nodded immediately.

“Take her home safely.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“30 minutes later.”

He looked at the watch on his wrist and estimated the time. Not too short, but not too long either.

“Come back.”

That was enough.

Because he wouldn’t exceed that time.

Leaving the smoothly departing car behind, Edmund moved without hesitation.

Vivian Mabel.

Towards the shabby bookstore where that woman was.

＊ ＊ ＊

The temperature in the bookstore had now completely reached the optimal level.

Thanks to the windows that were all opened, the heat that had filled the bookstore and the strong rose scent mixed in with the hot air had flowed out.

Finally, everything was back in its place.

The Duke didn’t look at her and didn’t show any interest.

‘Okay. That’s all that matters.’

That cold reaction was what Vivian had wanted so much. She wanted the Duke to not feel any interest, enjoyment, or anything else from her.

Being ignored was a thousand times better than being treated like a toy and teased.

But still, one corner of her heart was gradually stained with sadness. She couldn’t figure out the reason, so she just felt frustrated inside.

After the storm-like time had passed, Vivian took a deep breath in the middle of the quiet bookstore once again.

“It’s okay. Nothing happened.”

That’s all that matters.

She put her hand on her waist and patted it, and her heart slowly regained the composure she had forgotten. She had successfully protected the bookstore without any trouble. Just when she thought she had endured successfully enough, even a petty rebellious spirit towards the Duke, who had come here on his own, soared.

“I told you to disappear, but you’re the one who showed up in front of me!”

Ding-dong.

The moment she wondered about the regularly heard chime, the sound rang out again.

Since all the doors were open, the only reason the chime would ring was the wind. Not many people usually visited Grandpa’s bookstore. At most, it was Vivian and Hayden, and a few locals who came to ask about Ren’s well-being.

Was that why?

Vivian, who suddenly had an uneasy feeling, slowly turned around.

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