Chapter 14
'Let's think of something else. Something else...'
Juliet consciously tried to imagine pleasant things.
Sparkling, pretty, and glamorous things.
So, Juliet recalled her glass shoes again. More precisely, the dresses and jewelry she had left behind in the mansion and the Duke's castle.
She had left all the things he had given her untouched.
'I wanted to burn all those dresses or get rid of them...'
Juliet smiled bitterly.
They were clearly the property of the Carlisle family. It would be ridiculous to say that they were worth several mansions in the capital, so it was right to leave them behind.
'That necklace was pretty.'
Juliet smiled faintly.
If it were about thinking of the lover she left behind.
A kind-hearted fairytale heroine would shed tears, but all she could think about were the expensive jewels she had left in the mansion.
'I was so materialistic...'
But Juliet didn't think she was nice anyway, so she didn't care.
Juliet suddenly wondered.
When will his empty seat be filled?
Just as Juliet easily replaced his past lovers, Lennox will soon forget her. Then the Duke's new lover will take his side, which was once hers.
Only one thing.
Juliet didn't want his new lover, whom she didn't know, to use the things he had given her.
Of course, Lennox wouldn't care.
Even if he really gave Juliet's jewelry to his new lover, she had no right to it.
So Juliet made one last wish.
That the necklace would not adorn the neck of a woman she didn't know.
That was all.
'I should have left a note.'
My necklace, don't give it to anyone else, sell it instead? Juliet smiled a little.
But she really didn't have time. Time to sort things out slowly, smile calmly, and choose words to say goodbye.
So, you should have prepared in advance.
Foolish, foolish, Juliet Monad, this is the ending you wanted.
You knew this would happen from the beginning. Knowing that you would end up running away like this.
Juliet smiled bitterly.
If she had taken her time and brought up the story slowly, he might have said yes to her leaving without much emotion.
Or he might have said goodbye to her first without any regrets.
'How silly.'
In the meantime, she had lived deceiving herself for too long.
Thinking that she could stay like this a little longer.
With illusions and vain expectations.
But he was Lennox Carlisle to the end. He didn't change, and Juliet, who had vowed to herself that she wouldn't get hurt, eventually got tired first.
Maybe not him, but for the seven years she stayed by his side, she prepared for the breakup. This much yesterday. This much again today.
If this were Carlisle's territory, she wouldn't have been able to escape so easily.
But she had planned this breakup a long time ago. And finally, she succeeded.
Juliet raised her head calmly.
She glanced around the dark surroundings again, wondering if the train was coming, and suddenly realized something was wrong.
It was too quiet around.
Surely there were a few passengers waiting inside the station to catch the train besides her.
When did it get so quiet?
Something was wrong.
The moment Juliet, who had sensed that, was about to get up from her seat.
Step, step.
A familiar footstep came from the darkness, and Juliet paused.
And soon, a tall man appeared from the darkness.
Unlike usual, his clothes were disheveled, and the front of his shirt was unbuttoned as he pleased. His tie was nowhere to be seen.
As if he had ridden a horse in a hurry, black hair was scattered over his smooth forehead.
She could tell that his firm chest was rising and falling as he gasped for breath, even through his clothes.
But he smiled leisurely as if nothing was wrong.
"Should I say it's been a while?"
Clearly, it was a man she knew.
"...Lennox?"
There was only one man in the world who smiled like that, Lennox Carlisle.
"I didn't know you hated me so much that you would run away in the middle of the night."
"How did you get here...?"
Juliet stared at him with a pale face, as if she had seen a ghost, and suddenly noticed that his left hand was wrapped in bandages.
He must have been in such a hurry that red blood was seeping from his roughly bandaged hand.
Ah.
Juliet immediately realized how he had found her and was shocked.
It was something she hadn't considered, but in fact, considering the relationship between the Duke's family and the temple, it was something she hadn't deliberately considered, but there was a Sacred Relic with mysterious powers in the Grand Temple of the capital.
The Eyes of Argos.
'He used that Sacred Relic.'
Juliet was shocked.
He had cut his own hand, drawn blood, and tracked her down.
"I see."
Noticing Juliet's gaze, he tucked his left hand into his arms and hid it.
"I don't need to force you if you hate it that much."
The smile instantly disappeared from Lennox Carlisle's face as he smiled nonchalantly.
The man, who had strode up to her, asked coldly.
"But what about my child?"
"My...? What child?"
"Isn't the one in your belly my child?"
Lennox Carlisle was barely suppressing his anger.
It was unclear whether he was angry at himself or at Juliet Monad, but that didn't matter.
As soon as he saw the silhouette of the woman standing alone on the dark platform, he realized.
The meticulously dressed clothes, the startled expression when she discovered him, and the way she clutched her skirt as if she was about to run away.
There was nothing that didn't bother him. Everything about Juliet Monad fueled his anger.
"You hate this kind of thing, don't you?"
Suddenly, he remembered the woman who smiled like a summer flower as if she knew him well.
He should have cut off the affection and tenderness before it became a nuisance.
He knew.
This was not like him at all.
Juliet Monad had stayed by his side much longer than his past lovers.
Except for the fact that she had said goodbye first, Juliet Monad was not special to him.
There was no reason for him to chase after her. Nevertheless, he succumbed to that momentary impulse and emotion.
He chose to go against reason and hold onto this woman.
"I see. But what about my child?"
"...What child?"
"Isn't the one in your belly my child?"
"What are you..."
My child?
Juliet paused, about to ask back without thinking.
Could it be.
"No!"
Juliet's face flushed at once.
Only then did she realize that Lennox was under a ridiculous misunderstanding.
Good heavens. He seemed to think she had run away with a child.
How could she explain this?
Juliet was speechless in the face of the enormous misunderstanding and just stared blankly at him. Then the man's expression became even colder.
"The pharmacist brought the order. He said you ordered a drug to get rid of the child."
Ah.
Only then did Juliet know where this ridiculous misunderstanding had started.
But that wasn't true.
Since she knew she would leave someday, why would she let an unhappy child be born?
It was true that she had been steadily drinking Silphium tea as a contraceptive. However, the Mistletoe and Silphium flower she had ordered a few months ago were not for Juliet herself.
It was what Juliet had secretly purchased for the maid who had recently married and left her side.
The maid who had attended to Juliet in the Duke's castle in the north was actually a child who had been with her since the Monad Count's family.
About two months ago, the maid cried and told Juliet that she was pregnant.
"I think I'm pregnant, Miss."
The maid's fiancé was a sailor, but he had gone missing after going out to sea a while ago.
While worrying about her fiancé's safety, the maid belatedly realized that she was pregnant.
Juliet patted the maid and comforted her, saying that she would help her in any way she could with whatever decision she made.
So, she secretly ordered Silphium flower to get rid of the child and Mistletoe, which was good for pregnant women.
But fortunately, the missing fiancé returned safely, and the maid married and left Juliet's side. Now she was living well, even having a child far away.
Juliet sent her off with plenty of jewelry and even congratulated her.
'But where should I start explaining this?'
Juliet smiled helplessly at the daunting task.
However, Lennox's expression turned fierce, as if he had interpreted the smile in some way.
Forgotten Juliet
