***
01. The bird has left its master
***
“Aileen, what happened?”
The next morning, my parents arrived at the mansion with a rough appearance.
As soon as they heard the news that Sebastian had left the mansion, they seemed to have come back in a hurry and were not properly dressed.
It was already the fourth year that they had taken a trip somewhere on our anniversary to spend some quality time together.
I don’t think that will happen again.
“I’ve decided to divorce Sebastian.”
I announced, sitting down in the dining room in front of the soup, and my mother looked genuinely shocked.
“Why on earth would you do that? Didn’t you two have a reasonably healthy life together? Moreover, yesterday was your wedding anniversary. Why did he leave….?”
My mother asked a lot of questions and said with a wave of her hand that she had never seen anything like this.
“Where is Sebastian? Did he really leave the house?”
“ …Yes, he left the mansion early this morning.”
“Master is gone.”
I remembered the voice of the head maid as soon as I woke up in the early morning. It was dawn. I turned my head and saw that the seat next to my bed was empty.
“The maidservant who was doing the cleaning found this on the desk in the study.”
The note that the head maid gave me was folded without an inch of error, as if to represent the man’s character.
Even without opening it, I could tell who had written it and what words were written on it.
I cut the seal and opened it.
He wrote only the dry words he needed to say. By all accounts, it was Sebastian.
When I checked, it was indeed a few pieces of clothing and a luggage case that were missing, and upon closer inspection, it appeared that he had taken only what he had brought with him when he entered the mansion.
He had truly vanished, as if he had been waiting for it.
I smiled bitterly.
Oh, Sebastian.
You’ve always hated me so much. So much so that as soon as I said goodbye to you, you left the mansion as if you were running away. But where are you going?
Is he planning to go in search of the woman he loves?
“I don’t want to talk too much about my relationship with Sebastian. I hope that our marriage will end well like this. That’s all I want to say about that.”
“Who said divorce? No way Aileen, you couldn’t have done that. Did Sebastian say that?”
That was when it happened. My father slammed the table. My mother, who had been asking me questions, turned her head to the side in surprise.
“How dare he break up the marriage like this when I let him be my son-in-law?”
My father seemed genuinely angry with Sebastian who dared to break up his marriage with the noblewoman. Just as he was angry with Sebastian for refusing to marry me five years ago.
“I picked him up from a ruined family and took him in as my son in law, but I didn’t like him from the start.”
“Father.”
I looked at my father with a disappointed smile on my face.
“It was all our doing.”
“…”
My father looked at me in surprise. As if he didn’t know I would say that.
It was the truth. It was my family’s doing that Sebastian’s family was destroyed and his beloved woman was threatened.
It was because of my greed. I lowered my gaze. I saw a pair of thin legs. Two legs that were fixed to a wheelchair and could not move.
My mind flashed back to the last five years.
***
My name is Aileen Lowell.
I was the only daughter of Duke Lowell.
At the age of eleven, I was in a carriage accident and I had to use the wheelchair for the rest of my life.
It was around that time that my brilliant destiny was turned upside down.
I hated everyone who stared at my legs. I was embarrassed by people’s pity for me. They had once looked at me with awe, but now there was only pity in their eyes for the noble Lady.
The only words that came out of their mouths were words of pity. Poor Lady Lowell, what can we do about this tragedy………
Even so, the children of the prestigious family with whom I had been in close contact periodically came to visit me and help me after my leg injury.
They laughed with me, chatted with me, and even took walks in the garden with me while pushing my wheelchair.
I was only eleven, but thanks to them, I was finally able to pull myself together.
That was, until my friend Daphne, whom I thought was the most important of them all, talked behind my back.
She said, “Do you know how hard it is for me to be her wheelchair pusher? She’s a sensitive young lady, and now she’s more sensitive because of her legs.”
It was on that day that I happened to overhear Daphne’s voice ringing on the balcony while passing through the corridor.
I stopped going to the gathering of the ladies. I also stopped attending the Academy, where all nobles attended, and hired a private tutor to take classes.
I was confined to the mansion, and they called me ‘the forgotten princess’.
Then one day, it was the first day I attended a party in a really long time.
A day when noble children who become adults must attend, where even a princess could not go against it.
The Debutante Ball.
I hated going out in public more than death, but refusing to even attend the debutante ball was the same as giving up my family’s title.
I wore a bright white dress to the Debutante. People whispered as they saw me appearing in the banquet after 7 years. I just sat in a corner in a wheelchair with a blank expression on my face.
That was when it happened. Something captivated my eyes. My gaze was directed somewhere else.
In the middle of the ballroom, a man was dancing under the light of a chandelier, wearing a white uniform.
“…”
I stared at the man.
Beautiful blond hair shining under the light of the chandelier, a strong physique that looked like it had gone through a long time training, a sharp and excellent jawline that resembled the sword he used, pumpkin-colored eyes that seemed to shine even brighter in the light…
It was as if I was looking at a beautiful golden hawk.
The sound of people whispering faded from my ears. His gestures were fluid yet light, moving gently as if riding the wind, and at the moment the music climaxed, he leapt sharply as if snatching his prey. It was like watching a hawk with its wings spread soaring into the sky.
That appearance…….
It was beautiful enough to enchant the viewers.
“……….. that man.”
“What?”
The maidservant, who had been standing quietly, answered in surprise when I opened my mouth.
“That man….What is his name?”
“Oh…I think it’s Sebastian. He is the son of Count Hughes and a member of the Imperial Guard.”
Count Hughes. I’ve heard of it. It was a suitable position, not too prominent, not too low. Sebastian was a reputable knight who grew up in an appropriately not bad family.
“It seems that the young master caught the eyes of the Princess. He is one of the most popular men at the debutante ball because of his elegant appearance.”
The maid was so happy that I had spoken that she whispered to me in a chatty tone.
“If you like him, why don’t you approach him? It might be a good match to marry…………”
I watched him as he finished his dance and left the ballroom. He looked to the side and my eyes met his.
“….”
My heart beat fast. The strength drained from my hands. The champagne glass I was formally holding dropped.
clink!
“Oh my God, Miss. Are you all right?”
The startled maid asked me. The eyes of the people around me turned to me.
“I’ll go get some napkins. Please wait here for a moment.”
“…… Yes.”
The maid excused herself to get a napkin.
This was the most embarrassing moment since my legs were injured. The moment I realized that sitting still was the only thing I could do.
My face began to warm up.