# 19
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Kenneth frowned slightly upon hearing the servant's confused report.
The news was supposed to arrive earlier, but she did not come out to receive it...
'Is this also part of 'coming to her senses'?'
She said that she “recovered her senses” when she gave up “Wednesday dinner.” Is her abandoning going out to greet him and ing to talk to him also “recovering her senses”?
And now, after she “recovered her senses,” she was enjoying the company of a “man,” the guest, in the garden.
When he came to this thought, his blue eyes became a muddy color like rotting leaves.
“Lead me to the park.”
“Okay, sir.”
As Kenneth headed towards the garden pavilion, a bitter cold swept over the area.
Despite the clear skies, rare in Cremisa this season, and the refreshing scent of greenery, his lips hardened as he approached and the sounds became more clearly audible.
“…By the way, I heard that Mr. Baptiste will be attending the Bayern family gathering.”
Ariana was babbling in a voice full of curiosity.
“Yes, there is a year when I offered paintings to decorate the cruise ship, and I will be holding an auction as well.”
"I didn't know. I thought the Byrne family bought everything within the empire."
“This way we can promote new painters here, and it is mutually beneficial.”
“Oh…!”
A light clap echoed from her small hands.
Her soft applause, as if she had discovered something new, was annoying to him.
When he appeared from the bushes, everyone outside enjoying tea turned to him immediately.
“Sir Duke?”
Ariana stood with round eyes.
It was distasteful how her smile disappeared from her face as soon as he saw him.
He couldn't bear to see her happy flirting with another man.
Kenneth suppressed his annoyance and extended his hand: “Ariana, come here.”
I'm the one watching you.
When he called her as if she were a maid, Ariana froze.
But that only lasted a moment, and then she slowly approached her husband.
It was a little humiliating in front of others.
But she hid even this feeling elegantly.
“You have returned, Sir Duke.”
“It looks like you were busy entertaining the guest.”
When Kenneth praised her with a slight sarcasm, Damian, who was standing with his arms crossed, interjected in an annoyed tone: “Duke Clifford, your lady just served me tea.”
“Dealing with a difficult person like you, it seems that my wife has a talent that I did not expect.”
Kenneth interrupted gently as a warning not to interfere.
He gradually increased his grip on Ariana's hand.
“Thank you for spending time with my wife, but we'll be back first.”
Ariana was dragged away with Kenneth, and even when the servants were ordered to leave, the road to the palace became like a thin sheet of ice.
“You shouldn't make me look silly in front of others.”
Kenneth scolded Ariana, who lowered her head, coldly: “Didn’t you know what the priority was even after I sent you?”
“I'm sorry, Sir Duke.”
Ariana immediately apologized in the most polite manner possible.
She received news of his return, but her stay in the garden was the reason.
'But you usually don't even care when I come out to greet you.'
She would try to talk to him, but he would always ignore her and go straight into his room.
Does Kenneth know how much he's become a laughing stock because of this?
“Oh my God, the lady always runs to greet him like this.”
“Exactly. "I've never heard of another palace lady doing this."
“And the Duke doesn't even care about her. I feel embarrassed on her behalf!”
"Honestly, doesn't that mean she's less of a mistress?"
Even when the maids were deliberately whispering for her to hear, Ariana did not dare to scold them.
How could she discipline the servants when she herf thought like this?
Ariana suppressed her feeling of injustice and tried to speak calmly: “I thought you only wanted me for room matters or to accompany you on occasions.”
“So I mistakenly assumed that receiving you was not necessary this time. I am sorry.”
Kenneth narrowed his eyes sarcastically at Ariana's confession: 'Ah, like that then.'
She was subtly making fun of his previous actions.
But instead of scolding her, Kenneth felt an ominous intuition that made his nerves tense.
He just saw her smiling brightly in the sunshine.
For a moment, he felt as if his breathing stopped.
Even on good days, he never saw her smile at him.
Not once.
He didn't expect it anymore, but he wasn't going to let another man have it.
“Ariana, if you're thinking about something else, you better stop now.”
"What?"
“If you are planning to choose another man and run away, stop now.”
Ariana's raised face turned white.
Kenneth slowly ran his thumb over her lips, which lately had always been uttering annoyingly polite words.
“Sir Duke, wait-”
“I decide when your usefulness ends.”
"Yes…!"
“You don't have the freedom to feel comfortable without my permission beforehand.”
Ariana had no way to escape his control outside the empire.
But if she disappeared, he would search for her throughout the empire and even across the continent.
He removed his fingers only after her red lips became wet.
Ariana blinked, her face flushed with embarrassment, covering her troubled lips with the back of her hand.
“...I only had a guest once, and that's too many.”
“Just make sure you stand by my side when you have to.”
Kenneth left Ariana and went straight to his office.
He felt a slight relief upon seeing Ariana's face scarred with wounds. But at the same time, he felt an annoying pain as if he was holding pieces of broken glass.
As if Ariana's feelings are controlling him.
“Sir, are you okay?”
Kenneth turned his gaze to the secretary who followed him.
His blue eyes seemed to exude a sharp light.
“Roger.”
“Yes, sir.”
“From now on, make sure to prevent Ariana from going to the place she caused chaos earlier.”
“Should I completely block access to that area?”
"Yes."
Kenneth knew that, lately, Ariana had gone for a walk early every morning and placed flowers in a corner of the garden.
It didn't bother him, so he left her, but after this incident, he felt that she needed a lesson.
“And if there is anything you put there, remove it.”
***
Even after the Duke and his wife returned to the main palace, Damian remained in the garden staring at the quiet palace.
There was something about the breeze that mixed the scent of late spring flowers and the early summer sunshine that made the heart tremble.
But Damian, suddenly, uttered an insult: [Damn]
[What's wrong...? The garden looks great!]
The servant waiting behind him looked surprised, but Damian didn't bother explaining in detail.
Even if he is a free Dobris, he does not cross the line with his host's wife. Especially with a woman from the Clifford family, an important business partner.
He didn't want to be an additional burden on a woman whose life already seemed heavy.
'But this is ridiculous.'
It was implicitly known that the Duke, after the opera house incident, avoids interacting with people.
Even old business partners knew that his refusal to shake hands was not impoliteness.
'But he holds his wife's hand well.'
How ironic...does he guard her like this even though they meet once a year?
Damian shook his head and instructed his servant:
[Enough, contact the palace immediately. Luang's order must be changed]
[…! Okay!]
If he said he was betting based on the duke's wife's words, they would consider him crazy.
But he wanted to make sure.
Was Ariana Clifford just lucky to have similar thoughts to him, or was she really his Fortuna?