She's Not Our Daughter! Ch 63

Driven by Jealousy

[Sierra] "Are you crazy?"

[Ezel] "No."

[Sierra] "Stop talking nonsense."

She positioned herself to deliver a low, definitive statement, but he cut in first.

[Ezel] "I will buy you a delicious dessert. Just grant me thirty minutes."

Dessert? She furrowed her brow.

[Ezel] "Ten minutes."

[Sierra] "......"

[Ezel] "......Even five minutes then."

He pointed a finger at the dessert cafe right next to them.

The public carriage arrives in five minutes, so the timing matches perfectly.

She offered a brief nod.

[Sierra] "Fine, but I refuse any useless talk."

Despite her freezing attitude, Ezel offered a playful smile. Had anyone other than Sierra stood before him, they would have fallen instantly for his exceptionally handsome smile.

At the same time.

Cassius shadowed Ezel. To be precise, he shadowed Sierra, which led him right behind Ezel because they stayed together.

I want to draw near, but I can't.

Swallowing a bitter smile, he locked his gaze onto Sierra and Ezel. Despite the noisy streets, he tracked their conversation with absolute clarity. Those who reached the level of a Sword Master, like Cassius Ideos, effortlessly tracked distant voices using their refined aura. Yet this ability had never served him as usefully as it did today.

[Ezel] "I am formally asking you out on a date now."

[Sierra] "Are you crazy?"

[Ezel] "No."

[Sierra] "Stop talking nonsense."

Eavesdropping triggered a deep sense of misery. Listening to every single word, he felt an intense self-loathing because he couldn't step forward. Why?

Because she is smiling.

Sierra was smiling. Just visualizing the sweet smile touching her lips sent a sharp ache through his chest. Although Sierra obviously held zero romantic feelings for Ezel, Cassius knew her expressions. She wore that exact face whenever she felt genuinely entertained.

Cassius tracked Sierra as she walked outside the boutique with a bright laugh.

[Ezel] "It's a date invitation."

A date? Hearing that word feels a bit strange.

Cassius recalled the first time he asked her out on a date. Sierra had worn that exact expression back then—flustered, shy, yet profoundly tender.

If...... she chooses that bastard.

If she rejects him completely…….

Cassius closed his eyes and opened them. Everything ultimately rested on Sierra's choice.

Do I even possess the right to stop her?

He had boldly declared his feelings to her, displaying his raw obsession. But he fundamentally occupied the subordinate position. The reality forced him to remain hidden, unable to step before her easily.

His eyes quietly followed her movements.

Strangely, a wave of worthlessness washed over him. Cassius' gaze remained pinned to Sierra as she arrived in front of the dessert cafe.

[Sierra] "No way, they sell crepe cake like this?"

[Ezel] "I told you so...... right?"

[Sierra] "The world has become a wonderful place."

She let out a bright laugh. Her expression differed entirely from the rigid mask she wore whenever she faced Cassius. Lately, she consistently avoided him.

This looks entirely different from the way she avoids me.

Contrasting sharply with her defensive behavior inside the carriage this morning, Sierra laughed comfortably now. Her brilliant smile pierced his heart like a sharp thorn.

Did he possess the right to steal that smile? Sierra had suffered immensely because of his past mistakes, even though she hid her pain completely behind a calm exterior.

Still, she must be happy by my side. I can't give up.

But Sierra had laughed that exact way when looking at his younger self. Cassius recalled her smile before his actions inflicted deep wounds upon her. He closed his eyes silently.

[Sierra] "We finished the dessert, so let's end this today."

[Ezel] "What a shame. Wow, an iron wall."

[Sierra] "Yes, an iron wall indeed."

Sierra called herself an iron wall, but Cassius recognized that she had lowered her guard. He watched the entire interaction without blinking.

[Pedestrian A] "Oh my, what on earth? You startled me."

[Pedestrian B] "Why is he standing here like a statue?"

Pedestrians stared at him in confusion as he stood frozen on the street like a permanent fixture. Yet he remained completely silent, focusing his entire existence on Sierra. He tracked her until she boarded the public carriage and bid Ezel farewell. He tracked her carriage until it vanished completely beyond the distant street.

The entire experience felt like an eternal punishment tailored specifically for him. But he had to endure the penalty alone.

The carriage heading back to the Duke's estate arrived before Cassius.

He turned around. Although a deep agony gripped his heart, an immense amount of work still awaited his resolution. Quite an immense amount.

---

Several days passed. Ezel continued his investigation into the Icarus Murder Case. However, aside from the Great Archmage's pearl earring and the victim's bloodstains on it, zero new clues emerged.

Whether the Great Archmage remained alive or dead remained a complete mystery.

[Ezel] "No matter how I look at it, she seems dead. How can a living person vanish so flawlessly?"

Ezel entered the headquarters of the Information Guild. More importantly, strange individuals had been visiting the guild lately. These intruders targeted his life, attempted to scratch his face, or openly measured his combat capabilities.

Duke Ideos has clearly taken action already.

His brow furrowed instantly. For the past few days, a matching wave of complaints consistently rose from his guild members.

[Agent] "Guild Master, a problem has arisen."

[Ezel] "Why? Did you lose the Great Archmage's trail?"

[Agent] "No, Duke Ideos is...... disrupting our operations."

Listening to the details, the Duke's resentment ran incredibly deep. They said a man's jealousy carried terrifying weight, and this situation was becoming an absolute headache. The Duke clearly tracked everything, including Ezel's interest in Sierra.

It is a miracle he hasn't openly crushed us yet.

Facing Cassius Ideos stripped away his confidence. Yet his own interest in Sierra remained strong. His desire belonged entirely to the realm of curiosity and attraction, differing completely from the Duke's love and raw affection. Still, Ezel refused to abandon his interest.

He lightly rubbed his chin while addressing the guild member who came to complain about the Duke of Ideos once again.

[Ezel] "Are they back?"

[Agent] "Yes! So, what should we do about Duke Ideos?"

[Ezel] "Leave him alone for now."

[Agent] "But he will keep disrupting our work."

[Ezel] "You know we stand zero chance if he decides to launch an all-out assault, right?"

[Agent] "Sigh……. Still, I hope you can settle this directly, Guild Master!"

Ezel offered a brief nod. The guild member let out a visible sigh of relief.

[Agent] "As expected of our Guild Master."

Ezel chose to withhold his strong intuition that he would meet Cassius Ideos face-to-face very soon, regardless of his subordinate's request.

[Ezel] "Are you finished speaking?"

At his question, the guild member carefully fumbled through his pocket and handed over a note.

[Agent] "Ah, no! Also, a man left this note, instructing me to deliver it to you."

Receiving requests via notes occurred frequently, so it raised zero alarms. Ezel tilted his hand and unfolded the crease of the paper.

[Sope, tomorrow at 1:00 PM.]

The seal of the Ideos ducal family marked the very bottom of the note. Though brief, the message carried immense weight.

Ezel pressed a hand against his forehead, anticipating a headache. Sope was a highly famous tavern—a notorious establishment in the capital's back alleys where hooded figures from the underworld gathered. It achieved wide fame as a venue for duels.

To think a gently raised young nobleman would call me out to a tavern like Sope…….

Ezel traced his jawline and smirked. Love possessed the power to paralyze human reason.

---

While Ezel turned over thoughts regarding Cassius, Cassius faced a matching dilemma. Of course, unlike Ezel's curiosity, Cassius' thoughts carried a far fiercer, sharper edge. For instance, he contemplated how to crush him and which rapier to deploy during the duel.

Sierra will hate it if I torment him.

She had offered that bastard a smile as bright as sunshine.

Furthermore, that man has yet to inflict any wounds upon Sierra. Unlike me.

This reason alone prevented Cassius from openly destroying Ezel.

Closing his eyes, he rubbed his face. Although letting Sierra go remained completely out of the question, the memory of her happy expression before another man sent a sharp ache through his chest.

His sorrow and distress intensified. A quiet voice drifted into his ears, breaking his sigh.

[Lieutenant] "Y-Your Grace?"

[Cassius] "......"

[Lieutenant] "Since Your Grace appears exhausted, let us organize the agenda among ourselves first."

Cassius let the words slide past his ears and tilted his head. If this dilemma occurred inside his bedroom or the estate's drawing room, it would cause zero issues. But today, he presided over an official meeting with the Ideos Knights. The war had concluded, but critical matters stacked up heavily. Yet he failed to focus entirely.

[Lieutenant] "We have organized the agenda up to this point."

Everyone fixed their gaze on Cassius, awaiting his words. But he kept his eyes closed, relentlessly replaying the lingering images of Ezel and Sierra. A subtle, murderous aura radiated from his body, revealing an incredibly foul mood to anyone watching. Everyone signaled the lieutenant sitting directly to Cassius' right.

[Lieutenant] "Sigh……."

Suffering the penalty of sitting on Cassius' immediate right, the lieutenant stood up. But misfortunes always arrived in waves. The disruption originated from a rookie knight's mistake. As the lieutenant rose, a rookie knight standing behind him dropped a candlestick.

Clang!

[Lieutenant] "What is the meaning of this!"

Fortuitously, the candlestick lacked a lit flame. Otherwise, the expensive carpet would have caught fire. Coincidentally, however, the candlestick rested on a glass tray, so the glass tray naturally shattered against the floor upon impact.

[Rookie] "I-I am sorry."

[Lieutenant] "The tray shattered."

A knight let out a deep sigh.

[Knight A] "Oh dear, what should we do? A shattered tray can never be put back together!"

At that exact moment, despite the commotion, Cassius snapped his eyes open. His expression contorted strangely. He questioned them quietly.

[Cassius] "A shattered tray can never be put back together?"

The bewildered knight nodded vigorously in response.

[Knight A] "Pardon? Yes!"

The atmosphere turned freezing instantly, prompting the lieutenant to choke up in panic.

[Lieutenant] "Gah! Why are you acting so completely dense?"

[Knight A] "No, Lieutenant, what is wrong with you instead?"

The dense knight clutched his own throat defensively and scratched it. The lieutenant scowled.

This freezing winter air! This dark, gloomy presence!

The knight's words had scraped Cassius' raw nerve. Proving the reality, he fixed an icy, expressionless glare on the knight who spoke so recklessly.

---

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