Chapter 7

She would have felt alright if it had not been for the owner of this familiar and creepy voice.

Yes, she would have felt fine, indeed.

Deep inside, she rebuked herself for her carelessness. Stupid. She forgot that if it wasn't for Eve, there were only two out of the many nobles invited to the mansion today who could do this to her. Her father Duke Kling and….

"…Lord Ober. "

She could add the title 'Lord' to his name because she acted as rationally as she could at the moment. She stepped back from the jewelry box and raised her head.

Ober, who was leaning against the pillar near the window at a distance, walked up to her.

Marianne barely put up with the strong desire to turn and run right away.

However, she moved back a few steps unconsciously as she couldn't hide her hatred.

'I wish I had not been duped by Eve and Angel. I should have stopped them.'

She regretted it instinctively, but she admitted that she was already late. At the same time, she even rationalized that she could not help it at this point.

There were too many parties that Ober had held for her in her previous life, but obviously, there was not a single surprise party.

"You look more haggard than I saw you last time. Are you sick?"

Ober had already come up close to her and stopped. He even inquired after her with a worried look and wrapped her waist naturally.

She stiffened like firewood when he suddenly touched her. Then she smiled awkwardly and forcibly pulled his arms away from her waist.

"I'm alright. I didn't mean to worry you."

He frowned slightly at her reluctant attitude. She saw his gray eyes under the dark red hair sink heavily.

"You look angry at me."

She was amazed by his pretty quick judgement of the situation.

In the past, she would have been pleased with his warm considerations like that, but his sharp gaze now was like a blade to her. She didn't know what would happen tomorrow or right away if she lost favor in his eyes.

She put her brain to work quickly because she had to avoid the situation right away.

"I really can't deceive you. I just can't believe it was you who instigated Evelyn and Angelica to play this ridiculous abduction game on me? Why didn't you tip me off in advance? I was surprised."

"If I had told you in advance, I wouldn't have seen your lovely expression that you made in front of the jewelry box."

Ober skillfully responded to her complaint and looked at her eyes.

She was helplessly held by him for a moment.

Ober's eyes seemed very affectionate even though they had a color considered to be ominous.

His fine looks and strangely erotic image were enough to make a sharp but fascinating impression. Maybe her former self might have loved this kind of dangerous feeling.

But she shook her head as if she wanted to shake it off.

In no time, she realized that he was puzzled by her strange reaction, so she had to come up with an excuse quickly.

"You're wrong. I would have been happy even if I had known it in advance."

"Well, it looks like you like my gift. Is that right?"

"Absolutely. Who would not like this beautiful emerald?"

She quickly reached for the jewelry box. She touched the necklace inlaid with diamond at the interval of two fingers and elegantly lined with two emerald pendants in the center.

She handed the necklace to Ober.

"If you don't put it on my neck in person, I will be angry at you."

"What a cute threat!"

Only then did he smile lightly. He removed the existing garnet necklace. Then, he lowered his head and got close to her with the excuse of hanging the new emerald necklace on her slender neck.

"I hear that the pure green of emeralds symbolizes the everlasting spring and unchanging love."

Whispering to her like that, he let out his hot breath into her ears.

Marianne grasped the hem of her dress, pretending not to show she had goosebumps.

As soon as he put the necklace on her neck, she quickly pulled away her arms.

She hurriedly trotted towards the mirror on one side of the room. The emeralds reflected in the clean mirror looked very good, just like jewelry made for her.

However, the reality that she could not be fully pleased with its beauty complicated her mind.

"Thank you, sir. It's a special gift."

She smiled at him, pretending to please him as much as she could.

"This emerald is so precious that it's not readily available even in the imperial family. This is incomparably better than any other one. Please feel free to tell me if you want any other jewel. I can order one anytime."

He kept talking about it annoyingly without reading her complicated mind.

If she had been innocent, she would have been stupidly moved by his getting her such a precious gift. When she found out his real intention, she just took his words with a grain of salt.

What he just told her sounded like an implication that he already had the power and resources to buy as much as she wanted, which even the imperial family couldn't.

"This is a premium product that even the imperial family can't find. Can you really get me anything new?"

"Of course. Is there anything I can't get for you if you really want it?"

"Awesome! You really have great capability, sir!"

She almost mentioned 'ambition' instead of 'capability.'

She wanted to leave the place as soon as possible.

"Don't you think I have to be capable enough to win your heart?"

Ober didn't hesitate to express his affection for her and approached her in front of the mirror. Looking down at her, he slowly wrapped her shoulders with arms. This time she couldn't find any excuse to avoid his physical contact.

Stiffening, she rolled her eyes. Then she met his eyes which were looking at her in the mirror.

His eyes were friendly, which seemed to whisper to her that he would kiss her right away and love her forever.

She loved his eyes fervently until only a few days. She was thrilled when she hugged and caressed her. She promised she would love him forever, falling for his warm hands and honeyed words. She was just happy with him all the time. She naively thought love was everything because she didn't know anything.

In fact, she might wish even now that she could think so. She might hope for it just a little bit.

But Ober was a betrayer. His tenderness was his calculated favor. She was a witness who saw firsthand how his wistful eyes would change when mixed with contempt.

How could she forget his wicked eyes?

She could not forget his threatening eyes while she sank in the cold water and he said, "You are an expensive doll."

"It's about time for the party to start. Please go to the garden first. Let me change into a new dress that matches this necklace."

"Sounds good. You can come out slowly. The heroine of today's party is supposed to appear last."

He responded with a smile and then kissed her hand after raising it.

She also smiled happily. Only then did he let go of her arms and walk out of the room.

Bang!

As soon as the door was closed, she roughly rubbed her hand that his lips touched on her dress.

Indeed, she didn't want to be duped by him anymore. And she didn't want to be treated like a doll.

* * *

The party went on smoothly. The weather was clear and it was not windy. The invited aristocrats enjoyed the fresh spring garden as much as they could and waited for the heroine to appear.

Marianne appeared at the party a little before noon. Her appearance was completely different from it when she briefly stood on the balcony in the morning. She was dressed in a pure white dress like the wings of an angel, and her neatly raised hair had a mini tiara that looked like a snowflake. Green jewels were also shining brightly in her polka dot earrings and necklace pendants.

"Oh my god, you look like a spring goddess sitting on a white snowy field."

Someone among the crowds exclaimed out loud, amazed by her appearance.

The rumor that the emeralds, which closely resembled her eyes, were a special gift from Ober, the successor of Marquis Chester was spread less than an hour and became a hot topic among them.

The mansion was en fete once again in the afternoon when Duke Kling appeared at the party. Tired of being congratulated for hours, Marianne could only relax while watching the opera that her father specially prepared for the party. Though she said repeatedly it was a performance that she wanted to enjoy so much, she wasn't interested at all in the contents or songs.