An Old Button

“I’m fine.”

Heinley narrowed his eyebrows to the returning answer.

“…..Let’s go in first.”

Heinley first turned his back and went into the mansion, silence continued while walking through the hall.

It was difficult to keep up with his pace, Heinley’s footsteps gradually slowed down as he pursued with frequent steps.

Only then was she able to walk in line with him.

Finally, he entered the parlor at the end of the corridor.

Unlike the colorful rooms of the mansion, it was a cozy and practical space.
Heinley sat down first, followed by Lilia across from him.

Sitting with his back upright, he stared straight at Iiliya.

Lilia was a little nervous and put her hands together but Heinley suddenly asked,

“So what happened a month ago?”

Simultaneously with the question, Lilia recalled what had happened a month ago.

Her fiance lying in bed with a strange woman.
When he made a ridiculous excuse for it that finally drove her up to her limit.

It was the most terrible memory she could’ve held in her life and it was still so painful.

Lilia opened her lips after a while.

“…..There was a bad thing.”

Heinley’s eyebrows wriggled.

However, Lilia who did not see his expression, fell into deep thoughts.

She still had the same heart as before, so she wanted to be honest with everything.

She then proceeded to say Richard had an affair and that she wanted to break up.

However, if she thinked about it rationally, there were many problems when getting married right away.

No matter how great the Bloden family was, the Ishtar Empire was a class society.

The difference between the status of the Marquis and Counts existed and the nephew of the Marquis of Tersian was the Crown Princess.

There was a high possibility that they could be falsely accused of tax evasion by using the royal connections.

On top of that, the Blodden family did not get along very well with the Imperial family or high-ranking nobles.

The reason was that he acted stiff and didn’t want to give a bribe on his own.

If there was a fight, it was obvious who the imperial family or the high-ranking aristocrats would side with.

Even Heinley’s immediate supervisor, who works in the palace, was the Marquis of Tersian, Richard’s father.

This incident could have allowed Marquis of Tersian, his boss, to retaliate using his position.

That was also a headache, and financial issues were also entangled.

The two families were promoting a joint project on the occasion of the engagement between Lilia and Richard.

If she took herself out, only Richard would do good.

‘As expected, let’s not talk now.’

When she learned of what Richard had done, it was clear that his parents would dismiss nothing and destroy it immediately.

Without any countermeasures, the marquis were being played.

There was no evidence to be found of cheating other than being caught on the spot, and there was no way that Richard could simply accept the breakup.

Lilia concluded that it would be better to be honest when some concrete plans are made.

“… can I talk to you in more detail later?”

When Lilia scattered her words, his eyes narrowed.
Hainley asked confidently, as if he knew everything.

“Is it because of Richard?”

When Lilia went silent, he frowned.

“So far, I’ve held back when you said you liked him but if you’re going to defend him in the midst of all this…”

“No, I’m not.”

His misunderstanding was decisively cut off by Lilia.

Heinley nodded as if to say that he understood, thinking it would be all right, Lilia opened her mouth calmly.

“I had a fight with Richard, as I had expected would happen.”

“.
.
.
.”

“I couldn’t say anything because I couldn’t come to a clear conclusion and”

Heinley listened to Lilia in silence.

Lilia took a deep breath after checking his expression.

And said with more added tension.

“I want to stop preparing for the wedding.”

“… what? You’re going to stop the wedding?”

Heinley rarely was embarrassed.

It was because he watched how much Lilia had been looking forward to the wedding.

“Yes, I’d like to postpone the wedding.”

“Because of this fight?”

He looked at whether it was a mere whim.

“It’s the same with arguing but I’ve been feeling out of place lately.
I thought I’d be unhappy if I got married like this.”

There was a need to lay the groundwork for the breakup.
So that their families can naturally accept it later on.

“It would be easy to stop it because we were in charge of preparing for the wedding anyway.”

The Marquis was just like a golden spoon.

From the cost to the location, the costumes, and the invitations to pass on to the guests, Bloden family was in charge of everything.

So they will accept the proposal to postpone the wedding.

Of course, the marriage would never take place.

Heinley was lost in thought for a long time.

After a while, he lifted himself up slightly, putting his palm on the armrest.

“I’ll send a man to the Marquis of Tersian right now.”

“I want to say it myself.”

Heinley turned his head and stared at Lilia.

Their eyes met, and the two were silent for a moment.

The eyes that were standing over the silver-rimmed glasses slowly unraveled.

“Try to do it.”

It was a harsh way of speaking, but in the end his response became more blunt and has been stuck in her ears.

Silence sank into the atmosphere when he finished speaking.
The awkwardness was as deep as their long-lost relationship.

It seemed to take more time to communicate naturally.

Lilia plucked up her courage and resumed the conversation.

“What about the parents?”

“They are down in the South, so they’ll be back in ten days.”

“I see.
I’ll tell my parents myself, too.”

Heinley nodded slowly.

Lilia felt the touch of paper while she was touching her finger.

It was a paper bag that she took off from the carriage earlier.

“And this….
It’s not much, but it’s a gift.”

Heinley took the bag and took out a small box.

There was a small orgle in the box.

He did not show any reaction.

‘I should’ve asked.’

Lilia rose slightly, regretting her action awkwardly.

“I have something to do, can I go ahead?”

Heinley nodded slowly.
With a brief greeting, Iiliya rose from her seat.

It was not long before he heard the door shut quietly.

“.
.
.
.”

After being left alone, Hainley smoothed the orgel for a long time.

* * *

Lilia laid on the bed as soon as she got back to her room.

She didn’t talk much to Heinley, but she was already exhausted.
After taking a little rest, Lilia ordered the servant to bring a big box.

Then she started throwing things into the boxes that the employee had brought.

The things that she got with Richard, the letters she craved, the perfume that he gave her… the perfume that was not her taste.

There was no hesitation in the act, it was like throwing away garbage.

By the time it was midnight, the arrangement was almost finished.

There was little left in the room as if a typhoon had swept all of her possessions away.

“I feel better.”

She felt a little relieved from her complicated mindset like a tangled thread.

Lilia finally opened the desk drawer.

There was a jewelry box in the corner of the drawer.
She then put the jewelry box on her desk, looked at it for a while, and opened the lid.

There was an old button in the jewelry box.

It was an old button that didn’t have anything special.

But it was more important than anything to Iiliya.

Lilia began to recall the past she had buried within the jewelry box.

Before, Iliya had been to the palace.

She wandered from place to place without knowing that she missed her family’s entrance into the palace because she was excited about her first visit.

When she found a pavilion in the middle of the pond, she was unable to resist her curiosity and crossed the bridge that led to the pavilion.

But the bridge, made out of stone, was very slippery because it had rained the day before.

Lilia slipped and fell into the pond.

Unfortunately, she did not know how to swim and not a single person had passed around.

Her body sank into the water as if someone was pulling its feet.

The view began to blacken with the thought of dying as it seemed inevitable.

“ .
.
.

Lilia coughed up water.
When she came to her senses, her body was on the grass.

-“Are you all right, Young Miss?” 

She saw hair that glowed red in the sun.
It was her first meeting with Richard Tersian.

When she got home that day, she had a button placed in her hand.

She thought the button was ripped while pulling Richard’s clothes, who had run to save her.

After a time of recovery, Lilia went to the Marquis to thank him.

-“Thank you very much for saving me.”

-“I just did what I was supposed to do.”

The humble appearance of Richard made Lilia feel good.

He refused the reward several times.

He was different from others who approached her just by looking at the money she had.

Since then, whenever she heard his story, she was naturally interested in it and she often encountered it at banquets and downtown areas.

The relationship, repeated several times, soon became fate.

In the spring when magnolias are in full bloom in the backing, Lilia fell in love.

“.
.
.
.

The button in her hand on the day that Richard saved her life was not yet returned to his owner.

Lilia held the button tight and let go.

Whenever she thought of Richard, there would be a small spark in her heart.

A warm, vital, heart-warming sensation.

She used to realize that this is what it is to love someone.

But not anymore.

Only ashes were scattered on the already ruined chest.
She just stared at the fire that had been extinguished.

In fact, she once believed that he would come to see her.

She imagined him saying, “I’m sorry, I beg you to forgive me.” 

However, Richard did not even send a letter, let alone a visit.

Thanks to him, she was able to organize her mind quickly.

If he had asked for forgiveness, she might have accepted it foolishly.

Lilia stopped trying to throw the button into the trash can.

As expected, it would be better to return this in person.
Then she thought she could completely put an end to her tangled mindset.

After having some consideration, Lilia kept the button back in the drawer.

“Lady.”

A voice could be heard from outside, Lilia told them to come in.

Then the employee came in with a big box.

“What is this?”

“These are the letters that have come to you so far.”

It was a letter that accumulated for a month.

Lilia sat in a chair and quickly sorted through the letters.
Most were invitations to tea parties or birthday parties.

It was either a person related to Richard, or from people who were familiar with him.

It was obvious that he was trying to establish a shallow relationship for the sake of money.

If she had been the person she was before, she would be reluctant and her face would have lit at least once, but not now.

While pushing all of her invitations into the trash, she found a shiny envelope.

When she opened the envelope and checked, it said that a banquet was held at the palace for nobles’ love and spiritual food.

‘He must have received the same invitation.’

Richard likes banquets, so he’d definitely attend.

Lilia clasped the invitation she was holding.

It was an opportunity to check the face of her brazen fiance.

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