Chapter 17
As always, Cassian sat calmly in his seat, flipping open his sketchbook.
This time, he tossed it down in front of me.
“Your turn to draw.”
“…”
“What are you waiting for? Sit down.”
Cassian moved his fingers like he was beckoning a dog, a cruel smile spreading across his face.
His cold stare and arrogant attitude were unmistakably Blanchet. It scraped against every nerve Yurisiel had tried so hard to keep under control.
She had convinced herself it didn’t matter whether or not Cassian had been the one to report Mr. Ritorn. That conviction collapsed without warning.
If it had been this young master who got the quack thrown out…
When had he figured it out?
No, why had he even started paying attention to that man?
Could it really have been because of her? No. Someone who looked at her like she was beneath him, who once called her vulgar, wouldn’t go so far as to take an interest in her problems.
Her reasoning tried to stop her emotions, but her tongue moved on its own.
“Do you… know Mr. Ritorn?”
Cassian’s red eyes reflected the sunlight as he stared directly at her, clearly entertained.
“Take a guess. Do you think I do or I don’t?”
His lazy tone was layered with a pure, white smile.
He was teasing her, like dangling food in front of a dog.
“Young Master…”
Yurisiel’s body started trembling. It was an instinctive reaction.
She realized that Cassian already knew everything.
He was the one behind all of this.
Did he know from the beginning?
How much had he uncovered?
He had known where she worked. He had even sent a butler there. If that was the case, someone like him could find out everything about her with little effort.
Her prediction turned out to be right.
“Criminals should be punished. Don’t you agree?”
Then he must have known about her mother needing the medicine. He must have known she came here every day for that useless treatment.
He knew that she was sitting in front of him because of it.
Had he been watching her suffer just for his own amusement?
Yurisiel was speechless. The trembling she used to hide under her maid’s uniform grew too strong to conceal.
Cassian’s cruel expression faded slightly as he looked at her pale face.
“Why are you shaking like that?”
His sharp eyes pierced right through her.
She was the one who was shocked, but it seemed like he didn’t understand why.
That composure made her breath catch in her throat again.
Cassian slowly stood and walked toward her. He stopped just a step away and leaned down.
Then he reached out and grabbed her chin.
His hand looked thin like a dry branch, but the strength in his grip was undeniable.
A fresh scent brushed past her nose, but she could barely breathe.
Her limbs felt frozen.
Then his commanding voice whispered in her ear again.
“I saved you from getting scammed. That’s not the kind of face you should be making right now.”
“…”
“In this kind of situation, you’re supposed to say thank you, Yurisiel.”
Tears pooled in her eyes, then finally spilled down her cheeks.
“You did that… because of me?”
“Then why else would I care about someone like that?”
His words from before, when he said he’d lost interest in noble things, struck her like lightning.
So it really was because of her that he got involved with the quack.
“Since when… did you know?”
“Know what?”
“That he was a fraud.”
Yurisiel’s voice shook.
He must have only found out recently.
If he’d known before, he wouldn’t have waited this long to throw the man out.
Surely even he, being human, would act like any normal person.
That’s what she told herself, but her body kept trembling.
Cassian looked at her with calm red eyes. His fingers were still holding her chin.
“Does that really matter?”
“It does.”
Cassian gave a small laugh and finally released her face.
“When do you think I found out?”
“A long time ago, of course…”
“You’re so naive. Or maybe you’re just underestimating the Blanchets.”
“What do you mean…?”
Her emerald eyes shook uncontrollably, as if denying what she heard.
But once again, they were filled with nothing but Cassian.
And he found that satisfying.
He wondered what kind of face she would make if he shattered that gaze.
“From the very beginning.”
Cracks appeared in Yurisiel’s green eyes.
Cassian watched her, a smirk playing on his lips as if mocking her.
“You didn’t seriously think I didn’t know, did you?”
“Then you already knew he was a fraud… and still, you let me…”
“You knew everything?”
So, in the end, this young master had known it all along and still chose to keep her in his grasp, just to toy with her? All for his own amusement?
How could a person be so cruel?
What had she done to him to deserve this?
Yurisiel gripped her trembling hands tightly and stared directly at the young man in front of her. Despite the fear, her gaze remained steady, and Cassian scoffed at it.
Just a moment ago, she had been crying. Now her eyes were dry. He found it amusing.
“Should I remind you why you came into the mansion in the first place?”
“…”
“To save your dying mother. What a touching little tale. Such a devoted daughter.”
“You knew all of that, and still… how could you…”
“I already told you. You’re interesting.”
So, it really was all for his amusement. He had sat in front of her this whole time, playing games with her.
While she ran around clueless, desperately trying to get that medicine, doing everything she could to please him, how much had this young master laughed at her behind her back?
And now that he had grown bored, had he kicked the fraud out just to stir up something new?
Was she crying again in front of him, just like he wanted?
This time, she refused to act the way he expected.
Yurisiel forced strength into her shaking legs and stiffened her expression.
This young master, who so casually belittled her to her face, could do that without hesitation.
She had momentarily forgotten that fact.
“So what you’re saying is, all of this was just for your amusement?”
“Does the reason really matter?”
“…”
“In the end, I saved you from that con artist. Shouldn’t that be enough?”
“Everything is just that simple for you, isn’t it?”
Today again, this girl dared to look a Blanchet in the eye without flinching.
And now, there wasn’t even a hint of fear in her gaze.
That calm, unwavering look was strangely intriguing.
And that intrigue twisted something inside Cassian.
The girl, unaware of the reaction she was causing, spoke again.
“What did I ever do to deserve this from you?”
Her sharp eyes were dry, as if she had run out of tears altogether.
Yurisiel didn’t laugh or cry. Her emotionless expression scraped against Cassian’s nerves.
He didn’t even know why.
It felt like he had become a stubborn child, throwing a tantrum.
Would he feel satisfied if he made her cry again?
A strange thirst, one he had never experienced before, rose up from deep in his throat.
He couldn’t understand why, but there was one thing he knew for certain.
Every time he was around this girl, this happened.
Every time they clashed, she twisted him up inside, yet he kept seeking her out. She was dangerously addictive.
And yet, today’s little servant had neglected his duties and done nothing to quench that thirst.
Fine. If he had to admit it, everything she said was true.
He had known it all from the start.
Her circumstances, her pitiful begging in front of him.
Watching her run around, fooled by false hope, wasn’t something that made him feel pity. It had simply entertained him.
That perverse thirst to keep watching her struggle had driven him to this point.
In truth, the noble spirit of a Blanchet should never have allowed this. But he had behaved like a madman.
And yet, so what?
All he had done was observe the lies that dared to challenge the nobility of the Blanchets. That was all.
If anything, wasn’t her deception the greater betrayal?
So then…
“You’re not in a position to say that.”
Yurisiel’s lips pressed tightly together in protest. Cassian didn’t flinch. He looked straight at her, unbothered.
“And yet, you still came here every day, even though you’re not a noble daughter from House Bilrod.”
For the first time, a flicker of emotion crossed Yurisiel’s usually calm eyes.
Her face, now draining of color, was almost impressive to watch.
“You’re a commoner who dared to pretend to be a noble and lied to me.”
Cassian’s lips curled into a sharp smile.
“And you still think you’ve done nothing wrong?”
The punishment for impersonating a noble was severe. And this wasn’t just any noble, she had deceived a member of one of the most prestigious great houses, the Blanchet’s.
Of course, it had all been a lie orchestrated by the lord of her region. But someone like Cassian was never going to care about that. Not someone this proud and unyielding.
Yurisiel’s legs began to tremble as her vision went pale.
“I was wrong. About that, I was…”
Cassian tilted his foot lazily as he watched her with quiet amusement.
Yurisiel felt more humiliated than ever, but she couldn’t let that emotion paralyze her.
If this went wrong, she might be ruined—but more importantly, her mother.
She shut her eyes tightly and began to beg, again and again. She admitted she was wrong.
She pleaded with him to forgive her, just once.
“I’ll make sure you never have to see me again.”
For a moment, a crack appeared across Cassian’s porcelain-like face.
Tiny fractures slowly deepened into visible lines. Even those sharp creases couldn’t diminish his beauty. If anything, they gave him a surreal, overwhelming presence.
Yurisiel stared up at him in a daze.
He looked angry. Or maybe completely numb. His expression was unreadable.
Just like always.
And what came out of his mouth a moment later was no different.
“Who said you could decide that?”
Tears began to fill Yurisiel’s eyes.
Like a rising lake, green-tinted moisture shimmered over them.
Just moments ago, Cassian had thought he would feel satisfied seeing tears in those eyes.
But now, staring into them, all he felt was disgust.
As she said she’d walk away from all this, something unfamiliar and bitter began to rise inside him again.
This girl, after all, was no different from that fraud. A con artist.
Maybe she hadn’t done as much harm. Or maybe she had. Who could even say?
She had tricked people like her, fellow commoners, sure, but then she had dared to deceive someone like him, a Blanchet.
Which offense was worse couldn’t even be measured.
So, her vow never to show herself again should have been a welcome one.
And yet, why did it feel so deeply frustrating?
“Try it. If you think you can.”
Yurisiel met his gaze, confused by his response.
Her eyes trembled once again as they reflected his mocking smile.
