The man was dressed in a neat charcoal gray suit, a shade darker than his eyes. He casually hooked his hands in his trouser pockets, about to step away when the manager hurriedly bowed.
“Duke Lancelot is in the private room with a lady. I apologize.”
Hearing that his father had already occupied the private room, he frowned slightly.
The manager anxiously watched the man's expression.
The man remained silent, betraying nothing.
“I told you we should have gone to Anglia.”
One of his companions exclaimed boisterously.
“Let’s go. A beautiful woman calls.”
“No need.”
The man replied indifferently, and the manager, as if waiting for the cue, quickly interjected.
“I will escort you to a window seat.”
The manager gestured politely to a table. Only when the man nodded did the manager finally relax.
This is absurd.
Olivia couldn't stand by and watch this unfair situation.
“Excuse me.”
The group, heading towards the empty table, stopped in unison and turned towards the voice.
“Oh? …Yohan’s ex-wife?”
Whether it was his natural volume or a desire for attention, the man who had been shouting about Anglia greeted her with an unnecessarily loud voice.
They weren't close enough to exchange greetings, so Olivia stared at the manager and said directly,
“I was here first.”
Edgar turned around belatedly.
The woman’s expression was solemn, as if making an important declaration.
She was a woman who sought refuge in the shadows, even under the bright chandelier lights. Not just because she was Yohan’s woman, but there was something about her that strangely stimulated his interest.
But that woman had changed.
As if conscious of the surrounding gazes, the woman stood with elegant poise from head to toe, protesting in a quiet voice.
“I thought you might have forgotten, so I’m reminding you.Even with the leeway of bestowing generosity.
Edgar tilted his head slightly, looking down at the woman. A strange heat flickered in Edgar’s bored eyes. He was curious as to what difference it made that she had arrived first.
Her meaningless claim was unfamiliar, as if she came from another world.
Even though times had changed, a class system still firmly existed in this world. All priorities followed the extremely simple and clear logic of social status. But the woman seemed unaware.
The woman’s absurd remark flustered even the experienced manager.
“Our establishment prioritizes VIP guests.”
“Oh, is that so.”
The woman placed the glass she was holding on the bar table. She lowered her eyelids slightly, as if disappointed, and said,
“I wanted to start my special day in Litten at Grand Bleu. But it seems today will be special in a different way.”
“I apologize. We will seat you as soon as another table becomes available.”
The manager politely asked for her understanding.
“There’s no need. My interest has waned.”
The woman turned around without regret, accompanied by her maid. Edgar and his group inadvertently seemed to be blocking her path. Edgar took a step closer to the woman.
“We meet again.”
He greeted her with his signature smile. The woman, her eyes filled with him, wore a bewildered expression.
“Should I say I saw that too?”
The woman’s voice was calm, but a feline wariness lurked within. Even if a cat bristled its fur, it was still cute, but the woman strained her eyes.
“Seeing is seeing.”
Edgar curved his eyes, meeting her gaze softly. The restaurant patrons glanced at the two of them.
From the moment he had entered, the conversations had ceased, and even the clinking of silverware had long disappeared. His appearance was always like this, so it was nothing out of the ordinary.
“If you wish, shall we introduce ourselves formally? I am Edgar Lancaster Lancelot.”
Edgar was the de facto head of the global corporation, Lancelot. It was no exaggeration to say that he wielded immense wealth and power, influencing most of the people gathered here.
But the woman seemed unaware, and Yohan apparently hadn’t told his wife about his existence.
Her blue eyes, flickering like piecing together a puzzle, suddenly widened.
He met the woman’s eyes as she looked up sharply. Grand Bleu. That was his impression of seeing the woman’s eyes, filled with himself, up close.
“…It’s the same name as the hotel I’m staying at.”
“Coincidence.”
“……”
Seeing the woman’s flustered expression, Edgar couldn’t help but chuckle.
‘I suspect she came to trade confidential documents with the young master. Backstabbing her ex-husband and taking a cut.’
Gerald’s guess was completely wrong.
This proved that the woman knew nothing. Or she was an excellent actress.
Her unusually bright blue eyes shone clearly beneath her long, thick eyelashes. She was far too transparent to be hiding any sinister intentions. That strangely stimulated his interest.
A meal with the woman who was Yohan’s wife…
“If you don’t mind, would you like to have lunch with me?”
It was an extremely impulsive suggestion, unlike him.
In any case, he was looking forward to his long-awaited lunch at Grand Bleu.
The woman’s neat eyebrows twitched as if she had heard something she shouldn’t have. Then, her gaze turned to the row of idle men who were lined up in a burdensome way.
“Ah. These friends were about to leave anyway, so don’t worry about them.”
“What are you talking about? Where are we going?”
“Anglia.”
Even to another man, that breathtakingly dizzying smile meant, ‘Get lost.’
You, you bastard!
Ryan mouthed curses at Edgar.
Is this really how you’re going to do this?
Ryan questioned him with a look of disbelief.
Regardless.
Edgar gestured to the manager.
“I will escort you this way.”
Ryan glared resentfully at Edgar, who was now treating them as if they didn’t exist, and signaled to his friends to leave.
“I hope we can make up for today’s disappointment at the ball. Lady.”
The man tipped his hat slightly, smiling as he bid farewell. His blatant gaze was filled with curiosity about the divorcee.
“No. I wouldn’t want to impose. Please have your meal with your companions as planned. I think I should be going now.”
Olivia said, looking at Edgar. She didn’t want to end up on a plate in front of them instead of seafood.
She was also tired of the contemptuous gazes from the noble ladies in the terrace seats far away.
That vixen again!
That was the look of contempt in their eyes.
“Let’s go, Anne.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“If it’s because of us, please don’t mind-.”
“No. I do mind.”
Olivia glanced nervously at Edgar, nodded briefly to the men who were trying to hold her back, and left the restaurant.
“Miss, how about that?”
Anne pointed to the stalls lining one corner of Bichen Park. They were selling various foods such as sandwiches, hot dogs, sodas, and coffee.
Olivia and Anne’s first meal after leaving the restaurant was eventually a sandwich and coffee.
Fortunately, eating on a park bench by the river was better than expected. So much so that she didn’t even think about Mediterranean seafood dishes.
While munching on her sandwich, Olivia thought about the ball invitation.
So, that man had sent it.
She hadn’t imagined that someone so young would be the hotel’s representative. Nor did she know that he was someone who enjoyed such low-quality pranks.
She had already decided not to go to the ball, and if he continued to bother her, she could simply move her residence. She couldn’t just stay at the hotel forever anyway.
Her heart still raced when she thought of the terrifying moment of death. She had lived her life so diligently, not knowing it would end like that.
For the time being, she didn’t want to do anything. Now that she was free from Yohan, she didn’t want to do anything. As if to be compensated for her efforts in her previous life, wouldn’t it be okay to enjoy this leisure for a while?
Quietly, peacefully.
It would be okay if she went down to a quiet, secluded countryside, away from society.
Olivia decided to relax. There was no need to rush anything.
When the wind blew, the lush leaves swayed, creating a verdant wave.
The coffee and bread she swallowed while looking at the beautiful scenery revived not only her hunger but also her vitality. She was now motivated to start sightseeing in earnest.
“Well, shall we go now?”
“Yes, Miss.”
The two stood up from the bench and began walking towards the clock tower in the distance.
Located not far away, the clock tower was the symbol of Litten, famous for the legend that wishes would be granted if you made one when the two clock hands met.
Olivia and Anne decided to cross the park. As the two walked along the promenade, they heard the clear chirping of birds above their heads.
“Do you have a wish you want to make?”
Her eyes, slightly widened with pure curiosity, looked across at Olivia as she asked. She couldn’t help but laugh. She knew that everything was superstition and commercialism.
“I don’t know. Do you, Anne?”
“Yes.”
Anne nodded and smiled shyly. Her god existed separately, and perhaps he had already granted it. Peace to everyone Anne loved.
Walking along the cozy path, Anne looked at the cross of the cathedral facing the clock tower and prayed in her heart.
Olivia quietly looked at Anne’s profile and then looked up at the sky. The sky on a perfect spring day was a clear, watery blue.
A wish…
God had been harsh to her. He had never granted her a wish.
Not when her father’s business went bankrupt. Not when her mother, who argued every day, left home. Not when her father took his own life one day. God was not there.
Her life was filled with the results of her constant efforts. That was fortunate, if anything.
Quietly, peacefully.
Now, that was the life that Olivia had to strive for.
As the path ended and they went deeper into the park, where broad-leaved trees of unknown species were lush, lovers were whispering their love in various places under the languid afternoon sun of spring.
“Oh, my goodness!”
Anne exclaimed.
“Let’s go that way, Miss.”
“Then we’ll be late.”
“The wish will still be granted at four twenty, right?”
Olivia chuckled at Anne’s flushed cheeks. The sound of kissing and birdsong were competing with each other.
For Anne, who didn’t know where to look, Olivia stepped aside. As they moved away from the land of Sodom and Gomorrah, the park soon became peaceful.
Olivia, who was walking along the flower path where Blue Bell was planted, suddenly stopped.
Under the shade of a large oak tree, she saw the woman sitting on a bench. It was the same woman who had been wearing the pink diamond necklace.
