101st Confession

After a sleepless night, Lucas arrived at work with a sullen face. Ares saw him and asked what was wrong.

“You’re sure you’re okay, right? What the hell happened over the weekend?”

“……I just didn’t get much sleep.”

“You look way too groggy for that.”

Lucas shooed Ares out of his way and started going through the paperwork he’d left behind.

His mind was a little dim, but it wasn’t to the point where he couldn’t work.

Even though he was so tired of thinking about Arista that he stayed up all night, Arista’s face came to his mind again like a cloud. Lucas hit his face hard to come to his senses.

To get her out of his head, Lucas threw himself into his work. Ares was pleased that he was making good progress today.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully. In ten minutes, it would be 6 pm. Ten more minutes and it’s time to go home.

He was worried that Arista would show up today, but luckily, she didn’t come by the office once.

‘Okay, I’ll just stay here until I get off work…….’

“Ares, are you here?”

Before he could get his hopes up, the door opened and Arista appeared. Lucas immediately slammed his head into the desk with a thud.

The Lydias’ head snapped in his direction.

“For some reason, I thought it was quiet today.”

Ares stuck his tongue out at Lucas’ bizarre behavior.

“My God, brother, are you okay?”

Arista stepped forward and gently took hold of Lucas’ head, examining his forehead.

Lucas’s eyes widened at the sight of Arista at such close range. The face he’d been thinking about all day was in front of him, and not just that.

‘She’s so beautiful.’

Now that he was in the right frame of mind, he could see Arista’s beautiful face, and he didn’t understand why he had thought of her as just a sister all this time.

Suddenly, Lucas’ face turned red like a bomb. Arista fidgeted, wondering if he was sick.

“No, it’s okay… I don’t feel anything…….”

“But…….”

“Don’t worry, I’m fine. Didn’t you come to see Ares about something?”

“Oh, right.”

Arista looked back and forth between Lucas and Ares, eventually moving toward Ares. This allowed Lucas to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Okay, good work. Now you’re done for a while. Get some rest.”

“Let me know if you need my help later.”

Arista’s work was done. Arista stretched, feeling freer than she had in a long time.

“By the way, our father has been talking about your engagement lately. Did you know?”

Arista stops dead in her tracks as she takes a light step toward Lucas. At the same time, both Arista and Lucas turned to stare at Ares with blank faces.

“……What does that mean?”

“I think they’ve been provoked by Lucia and Herwin getting married. Mother has been talking about finding your fiancé, thinking it would be a good idea for you to get engaged as well.”

“What the…! How long have you been engaged and they’re already talking about my engagement?!”

“I know. I thought they wouldn’t bring it for a year or so… Well, good luck with that.”

Ares patted Arista’s shoulder sympathetically. Arista was stunned by the unexpected bombshell.

But Lucas was just as shocked as she was. The realization that Arista might marry someone else was hitting him like a ton of bricks.

Meanwhile, Ares, who didn’t know what the two were thinking, suddenly approached Lucas and handed him something.

Lucas took it hesitantly.

“What is this?”

“Tickets to the theater. Are you seeing any girls lately?”

Arista’s head snapped around this time.

When Lucas didn’t say anything, Ares spoke first.

“You don’t seem to have one, what’s up with the guy who’s been seeing women nonstop?”

“Hey, what do you think I’m a playboy? When did I ever meet women non-stop……!”

“When you broke up with your lover, you met a new girl in less than two months. That’s non-stop.”

Lucas was about to retort, but he was speechless. Because he was right.

Lucas wondered if he’d been seeing that many women.

“It’s already been more than two months since you broke up, so I thought you’d have met someone by now.”

“Well, then, giving me the ticket…….”

“To get you out of your funk. But if you’re not seeing anyone, then…….”

Ares looked thoughtful for a moment, then smiled.

“Well, at least ask a girl you like out!”

Both Lucas and Arista stiffened. But the implications were different. 

Lucas was trying to figure out how to get this across to Arista, and Arista was getting all giddy at the thought of him dating another girl this time.

“It’s six o’clock! It’s time for me to go home!”

As soon as the six o’clock bell rang, Ares grabbed his coat and bag and headed out the door. He remembered how excited he was to have a date with the Empress today.

Once they were alone in his office, Arista faltered and hesitated.

The ticket in Lucas’ hand bothered her. If he had no one else to see, she could have asked him casually if he’d like to come with her, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it.

Her mind flashed back to what Herwin had said yesterday, about making the first move, but Arista finally put her hand down and turned away.

“Brother, I’ll be going now. Thank you for your hard work today…….”

Lucas grabbed Arista’s wrist in a hurry, pointing at the desk for a moment as he tried to greet her with a smile.

“Arista, are you free today?”

“……?”

“If you’re free, would you like to go to the… play with me?”

Arista’s eyes widened. Seeing her surprise, Lucas hastened to add a qualifier.

“Well, it doesn’t mean much. It’s just a little too much for me to go see by myself. I mean, it’s a play today, and it would be a shame to waste it.”

Despite his excuses, Lucas wanted to use this as an opportunity to get a little closer to Arista.

Not just as an acquaintance, but as a man and a woman.

But Arista thought his heart hadn’t yet reached out to her.

She thought he was only asking her to go with him in good faith.

Nevertheless, Arista was pleased. Even if it was in good faith, he suggested it to her before to anyone else.

The corners of Arista’s mouth slowly turned upward, and Lucas’ earlobe burned at the same time.

“Yeah, okay, let’s go.”

The corners of Lucas’ mouth slowly lifted. He let out an inward cheer and pumped his fist.

* * *

Mid-November. Fall was coming to an end and winter was just around the corner. 

Lucia stopped by a dress shop with her mother, Julian, and Scarlett, the Duchess of Phoenaeus.

Today was the day to try on the wedding dress she had ordered.

It was a bell-designed gown that flowed beautifully from the waist.

Lucia put the dress on with some help. It was a little tight in the bust, leaving room at the waist.

The designer checked her carefully.

“Is there anything else you don’t feel comfortable with?”

“No, nothing.”

“Well, if you feel uncomfortable moving around, or if there’s anything that’s bothering you, let me know.”

The designer smiled and stepped back as the staff pulled back the curtains.

Lucia looked up, and both Julian and Scarlett, who were sitting next to each other on the couch, covered their mouths in excitement.

“Oh my god……!”

“How beautiful!”

They showered her with admiration and praise. Lucia looked away, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror on the wall.

She was certainly beautiful without makeup. 

When she’d first picked out her wedding dress, she’d been upset by the big-name designers and the high prices, but Scarlett had insisted that it had to be done.

If she had been more frugal and picked a different dress, she wouldn’t have gotten the satisfaction she did.

Sigh.

Just then, she heard a snorting sound. She looked up to find Julian in tears.

“Mother, why are you crying?”

She didn’t dare go to her for fear of ruining her dress. Scarlett, on Lucia’s behalf, soothed Julian.

“It breaks my heart to think that you are leaving my arms now…….”

“Well, even if I get married, I’ll always be your daughter.”

“I know, but I still feel a little sorry for you…….”

“I know how you feel, but don’t worry too much, Julian. I’ll take care of Lucia like a daughter.”

Scarlett put her arm around Julian’s shoulders. Julian fought back tears, trying to control her emotions.

Lucia’s eyes grew moist at the sight of her mother crying. But she didn’t cry. If she cried here, she and Julian would both go blue in the face.

“Lucia, are you nervous?”

The real Julian walked up to Lucia, took her hand in his, and asked.

The wedding was on December 1, less than a week away.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, but I’m more excited, it’s something I’ve wanted since I was a little girl.”

She’s known she wanted to be his bride since she fell in love with Herwin at first sight. 

It took a lot of heartaches and trying to let her go to get to this point, but now she’s made it all happen.

No matter how it happened, it was a happy ending.

“I’m so happy, Mother!”

Lucia beamed. Seeing Lucia like that, a panorama of the daughter she had been since she first gave birth and raised her flashed through her mind. 

Julian closed her eyes tightly and smiled.

“Yes, if you’re happy, I’m happy.”

Amid the tears and warmth, in another room, Herwin was trying on suits for his wedding.

Part of him wanted to see Lucia in her wedding dress, but Scarlett prevented him from seeing it until the wedding, so he didn’t even know what she had chosen.

His limited imagination had its limits. Herwin stopped thinking and checked himself.

There were several tuxedos in navy, beige, and white, but he chose the cleanest one, a black tuxedo with a black and gold bow tie.

It wasn’t much different from a regular suit, but it was a bit out of the ordinary for a formal occasion.

“Henry, how is it?”

Henry had returned the golden weekend and followed him there to check on Herwin.
Henry, who was reading a book, exclaimed.

“Oh, you’re fine. I thought your clothes were wings. You look like a new groom.”

“Really? Is Lucia going to like it?”

“Yeah, I think she’ll like it.”

Satisfied with the answer, Herwin informed the designer that the sleeves were a little short and hurriedly changed. 

Then she plopped down next to Henry. 

Sighs.

A heavy breath came out of Herwin’s mouth.

“Are you nervous?”

Henry asked, not looking up from his book. Leaning his head back against the couch, Herwin nodded.

“My heart is about to jump out of my chest.”

“It’s not even a week until the wedding.”

“Yes, only three weeks. Ha, I can’t wait for Lucia to be my wife.”

He couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Lucia’s last name being changed to Phoenaeus. Herwin smirked and glanced at Henry when he heard the sound of a book being flipped through.

“Henry.”

“Yes?”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

Henry froze. When he turned his head, his red eyes, the same red as his, were looking at him intently.

“You said you liked Lucia.”

Herwin remembered what Henry had said to him in the middle of Lucia’s meeting with Bern when he’d gone on a rampage. Ever since he’d promised Lucia he would marry her, he’d been worried about his brother. Clearly, he had meant every word he said back then.

After a moment of silence, Henry stiffened, then smirked and punched Herwin on the shoulder.

“Did you believe it?”

“……what?”

“Of course, it’s a lie! I was just playing a little prank on you because you were getting frustrated.”

“But, you’ve liked her since you were a kid…….”

“I indeed had a crush on her when I was a kid, but that happens to everyone. I don’t like her, and if I did, wouldn’t that be a big deal? To have a crush on your brother’s wife! Forbidden love!”

When Henry raised his voice as if he were doing a play, Herwin felt uneasy. Henry stood up from his seat when he saw Herwin stiffen.

“What if I like my sister.”

When Herwin couldn’t say anything, Henry shook his head and walked to the door.

“Where are you going?”

“Toilet.”

Stepping out into the hallway, Henry stiffened as soon as the door closed behind him. Then he stroked his face.

“… It wouldn’t have been obvious.”

In truth, everything he’d said to Herwin had been a lie. He still had a little bit of Lucia in his heart, though not as much as he used to.

But he knew better: She belonged with Herwin, not him. Stiffening, Henry smiled weakly.

Then he stretched and looked at the door across the room. 

Tearing his gaze away from the door, he strode to the toilet. There was no more hesitation in his steps.