A languid spring breeze blew.
The rich hair swayed in the gentle breeze, contrasting with the heightened atmosphere of the tennis court.
Olivia Blanchett's match point.
The woman, regaining her breath, strongly stepped on the grass with her small feet and lowered her upper body. Without hesitation, she tossed the ball up, soaring towards the sky.
A few strands of brown hair clung to her flushed cheeks and slender neck, shimmering.
As her arm stretched high, her blouse was pulled up, revealing her white skin.
Edgar, fixing his gaze on her smooth calves and slender ankles beneath the skirt that billowed with the wind, stopped walking.
Thwack!
The moment she shrieked and slammed the ball down, Edgar's mind returned, and the ball that crossed the net struck his feet and rolled away.
Olivia cheered. Clenching her fist, she let out a cry of joy.
"Gori...lla."
The idlers sitting on the bench, who had been watching the game with sweaty hands, inadvertently uttered their impressions.
Where do you see that?
Edgar, standing blankly, chuckled as he watched the woman laugh brightly. Sweatdrops sparkled in the morning sunlight above her round forehead. Edgar gazed at her for a long time.
Edgar walked towards the net. Olivia also approached him.
"You won."
Edgar smiled and extended his arm across the net.
"Yes. I won."
Olivia's voice, as she took his hand without hesitation, was filled with panting. It was impossible to tell whether the sweetness was her breath or the scent of flowers.
"Congratulations."
Edgar's Adam's apple twitched slowly. The fair cleavage rose and fell between the opened front of her blouse as she caught her breath. The wind blew. A subtle scent of rose soap wafted.
"So. What's your wish?"
His gaze, lifted with difficulty, captured the woman's beautiful face.
"I'll think about it. Is that okay?"
"As you wish."
Behind the brightly smiling woman, the water from the large fountain shot out, creating white foam. It was a defeat that couldn't help but feel rewarding.
Olivia felt a small happiness in the refreshing coolness of the cold drink she had after moving her body vigorously.
It was when Olivia, intoxicated with victory, was momentarily lost in the leisure of a carefree life, drinking coffee full of ice.
"Take responsibility for me, Miss Blanchett."
Olivia burst into laughter at the unexpected words.
The cafe on a weekday afternoon was deserted. The harmony of piano melodies and rain sounds flowing from the record was poignant like flower petals falling in the rain.
"I'm serious. Let's go to the Rose Ball together."
Elaine's expression was determined, as if she couldn't back down.
After the tennis match, Olivia went sightseeing in Litten with Elaine. The city center, densely packed with department stores, luxurious theaters, and high-end shopping streets, was bustling with tourists enjoying shopping.
The story that began when Elaine, who came out to see the head ornament to wear to the ball hosted by the Lancelot Hotel, asked about Olivia's attendance, continued even in the cafe where they had taken refuge from the sudden downpour.
"I've already expressed my intention not to attend."
Olivia said, picking up a large strawberry that sat neatly on top of the white whipped cream with a fork.
"You can enter as long as you have an invitation, so it doesn't matter."
"I don't even have a dress."
"Surely you didn't leave them all behind?"
"Yes."
"What a waste, why would you..."
Elaine muttered in a sigh, then gave strength to her eyes again and said.
"I know your situation, but Miss Blanchett. You absolutely have to go with me. Because someone made it so I have no one to go with."
Elaine spoke clearly, emphasizing the last sentence in particular. For her, this might be the last time.
She had been living a luxurious life thanks to her husband, so her decision to break up with him meant that she had to give up this kind of life.
Of course, the situation would be different if she received a huge alimony like Olivia. Perhaps there was no man in Rondo who would give more alimony than Duke Johann Leopold.
"...I'll think about it."
Olivia smiled faintly and turned her head to look out the window. From the gray-blue sky, raindrops fell like thousands of needles, crashing and shattering on the road.
A ball...
She didn't want to, but she couldn't ignore Elaine, who was being ostracized from the group because of her.
If only she had controlled her emotions a little more at that time. She shouldn't have brought up the necklace story. Olivia quietly swallowed a sigh.
The raindrops hitting the windowpane grew thicker and thicker.
It rained that day too.
The sound of rain hitting her ears brought back a nightmarish moment. It was a day she had been eagerly waiting for, but everything went wrong.
It was the day she was assigned to the violent crimes unit and went on her first mission with her senior.
It was also the day when an early monsoon started and heavy rain poured down. The tragedy struck like an unexpected shower.
'Be careful, Senior!'
At that moment, Ji-an's body leaped out amidst the streaks of rain that occasionally appeared silver in the darkness.
The sharp blade wielded by the criminal instantly pierced through Ji-an's abdominal muscles. Not even a scream came out. It seemed like she had lost consciousness for a moment.
'Han Ji-an! Han Ji-an!!!'
He shouted.
The raindrops falling on her cheeks were no longer cold. She wanted to feel the warmth of her beloved man a little more, but she couldn't feel anything.
Her hearing, at least, captured his voice until the very end. Along with the sound of sirens coming from afar.
I like you.
She moved her lips to say those words, which she had never uttered before, at the last moment.
Did it get through properly?
She was curious, but there was no way to confirm.
It became her last mission, and she died trying to protect her senior. And now, she was left alone in a world separated from that man.
Are you doing well?
Olivia looked out the window without a word.
Elaine silently stared at Olivia, who was gazing somewhere beyond the window. She felt an indescribable sadness in her apparent peace.
She was aware that the invitation to the ball was cruel to her, who had been ostracized from society.
'Please create a special ball with Miss Blanchett.'
The letter and the check enclosed with it were delivered by the hotel manager.
There was no sender on the letter, and an unknown signature was scribbled on the check, but Elaine knew instinctively.
Edgar Lancaster Lancelot.
If she hadn't witnessed his appearance at the tennis court in the morning, she wouldn't have dared to think of this man's name.
Since Elaine had been planning to go with Olivia anyway, there was no reason not to pick up a diamond that had fallen on the street.
Moreover, if she were to divorce her husband, she would be in a situation where every penny was precious.
The Marquess's intentions were suspicious, but she wasn't a very kind person anyway.
But she wasn't a villain either. Isn't it perfectly normal for a single man to be interested in a divorced, beautiful woman?
Elaine just decided to think that way.
What could possibly happen?
And Olivia Blanchett was, as she had experienced, inherently good.
"Miss Blanchett?"
"...Yes? Ah."
Olivia made an awkward expression.
"I'm sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment. What did you say?"
"It might be the last time. It'll be hard to live this kind of life if I get divorced."
Elaine poked at Olivia's guilt, making a pathetic expression. The rain was still hitting the windowpane fiercely, showing no signs of stopping.
"Do you have any worries?"
Anne asked cautiously. The young lady, who had gone out for a city outing with her first friend, had returned in low spirits.
What could be the matter?
Anne was terrified. Could something bad have happened?
"I think I have to go to the ball after all."
"Suddenly?"
Anne's surprised hand stopped moving.
"Elaine is in trouble because of me."
"But you don't have a suitable dress..."
The Rose Ball was this Friday. Today was Wednesday, so there was no time to have a dress made.
Even when leaving Greathill, she didn't touch the glamorous dresses that filled the dressing room. Thinking about it now, it was a great pity.
She even had summer dresses made...
"!"
Oh my goodness.
"Just a moment, Miss."
Anne, who was lightly patting and drying Olivia's wet hair with a towel, hurriedly went to the side table.
She took out a notebook from the top drawer. Flipping through the pages with hurried hands, she saw a note written under the date the day before yesterday.
「Gabriel Boutique. Three dresses」
Anne stared at it for a while.
It was a note marking the day when the summer dresses she had ordered a month ago would arrive.
It was one day in March when snow was falling from the steel-colored sky. It was also the day the young lady had fallen into the lake. The young lady, who had been talking to the secretary, Diane Brooke, had gotten very angry and called in the designer.
As always, the young lady got drunk before Gabriel Jeanne even arrived, and Olivia didn't remember how many dresses she had ordered.
"...I forgot."
"Huh? What?"
Anne looked at Olivia, surprised at herself. She had meant to think it to herself.
"Oh, I forgot it's my mom's birthday."
"Ah! Is that so."
Olivia smiled apologetically.
"Let's send her a gift, Anne."
"...Yes. Miss."
She couldn't bring herself to tell the truth. How would she feel if the young lady's past still flew in like an uninvited guest to her divorced husband?
Anne hoped that the young lady wouldn't think of Johann Leopold as much as possible. Because loving the Duke was destroying the young lady.
The current young lady, that is, the young lady who divorced the Duke, always had a smile on her face, as if she had always lived laughing. She was prettier when she smiled.
Like all first loves, that feeling was accidental and inevitable. But it was just a first love. Anne prayed that a more refined and mature love would come again.
At that moment, a refreshing spring breeze blew in through the wide-open window after the rain. The notebook on the table fluttered, and a page turned over.
Anne's face turned white again.
