"Wh-why are you looking at me like that?"
At the chilling gaze he was feeling for the first time, Michael found himself stammering without even realising it.
Instead of answering, Cabelenus turned his head and bit into the cookie with force.
He’d been called a monster more times than he could count, but hearing it from a child with her face made his heart drop.
"I said, what are you looking at?"
Not wanting to admit he was afraid, Michael raised his voice even louder.
Cabelenus bent his waist toward Michael, who stood bristling like a puffed-up cat, full of wariness.
At the sudden closeness, Michael instinctively swallowed a dry gulp.
Seeing him up close felt strange.
Only when he finally looked directly into those elongated, slit-pupiled eyes did he understand what Chris meant — about not even being able to meet the man’s gaze.
"When I look at each feature on its own, they’re not actually that similar."
“...”
"…Forget it. What the hell am I even doing, fussing over a kid?"
Cabelenus raked a hand roughly through his hair and straightened his back.
Staring at the child’s face wasn’t going to change anything.
What mattered was persuading Alicia, and the child was nothing more than a means to that end.
There was no point in assigning emotions to a means — no. He had to think that way, or he wouldn’t be able to contain the emotions boiling inside him.
From the start, Michael had been an unwelcome presence to Cabelenus.
‘But…’
As if trying to shake off the thoughts drifting through his head, Cabelenus ruffled his hair roughly once more.
It was foolish to be thinking this now, but he couldn’t deny it — every time he noticed how much the child resembled Alicia, a certain thought would rise unbidden.
"You, by any chance—"
“Michael! Michael! Th-this is bad, hiiiik!”
"Chris?"
Chris, who had been running from a distance, froze the moment he saw Cabelenus.
"That one; looks like your friend—"
"Mister, please go away quickly! You look scary, and Chris got frightened!"
"You little brat, you really—"
"Mister, hurry up and go home!"
Shouting at Cabelenus with all the pent-up frustration from earlier, Michael ran straight toward Chris.
Chris was already trembling, on the verge of tears.
"Are you okay, Chris? What happened?"
"W-well, it’s just that auntie and my uncle...!"
"Auntie? My mum?"
"Did something happen to Alicia—"
"Eeeek!"
Startled by Cabelenus suddenly cutting in, Chris yelped and stumbled backward, collapsing to the ground.
Michael dropped down beside Chris, letting out his frustration at Cabelenus.
"Ugh, seriously! I told you to go home! He’s totally freaked out… huh? Chris? Chris?!"
No matter how hard he shook him, there was no response.
Michael let out a dry, disbelieving laugh at the sight of the unconscious Chris and shot a glare at Cabelenus.
Cabelenus silently looked away from the piercing stare.
・・・・・
"So, who is that man?"
"He’s just someone I know."
Alicia replied, frowning as she searched for the bucket.
They had run out of water yesterday and needed to fetch more, but the bucket was already full.
And it was obvious who had done it.
‘I definitely told him not to.’
Alicia clenched the hem of her skirt tightly as she looked up at the shed roof patched with wooden boards.
Cabelenus hadn’t stayed in the village for long, yet there wasn’t a single spot in the house untouched by his hands.
Even the shed roof, which she had planned to borrow a ladder to fix since she couldn’t reach it, had been neatly repaired.
"You say he’s just someone you know, but he’s fixing your house, fixing your fence — doing everything? Be honest. What’s your relationship with that bastard?"
Peter, noticing Alicia’s mind was elsewhere, stepped into her line of sight.
Alicia scrunched her face and met Peter’s gaze.
"Calling him ‘that bastard’? Watch your words. He’s not someone you should speak of lightly."
"See? You’re getting all riled up. If you don't have a close relationship, why react like this?"
"Even if I have some kind of relationship with him, what’s that got to do with you?"
"Why do you say things so hurtfully?"
Noticing Alicia’s anger, Peter lowered his voice slightly.
"I’ve said it clearly before. Raising Michael alone is already overwhelming. I have no feelings for you, not even a shred. So please, stop this now."
"So you’re just going to raise Michael fatherless like this?"
“...”
"Honestly, the kid’s too young to understand anything right now, but how long do you think you can keep this up? Do you really think he won’t search for his dad when the time comes?"
"That’s not something you should be worrying about."
Alicia’s expression darkened further.
"How can I not care? It’s your business, after all."
"Exactly. It’s my business. Not yours, but mine."
"How long are you going to keep treating me so coldly?"
Peter swallowed hard and shifted his body closer to Alicia.
The man’s lecherous gaze was blatantly obvious, needing no further explanation.
"You need to know when to back down. If you keep this up, there’s a limit to how much kindness I can show—"
Smack—
Peter’s hand, creeping forward, was awkwardly stopped midair by Alicia’s firm refusal.
Alicia openly showed her displeasure and crossed her arms.
"You’re the one who should know your limits. There’s a limit to how much I can tolerate just because of your father’s reputation."
"You, really…."
"Don’t make me keep repeating myself. I’ve already made my position clear, and I have no intention of changing it."
There wasn’t a single crack in her cold, frozen gaze.
Peter tried hard to meet Alicia’s eyes but couldn’t hold her gaze and eventually looked away.
"Well, that feistiness of yours is part of your charm, after all."
"Hah..."
"Don’t just dismiss it as nonsense; think carefully. I’m really a good person, you know?"
"A good person doesn’t say that about themselves."
"If I don’t say it, you won’t know."
"It’s not that I don’t know; I just don’t want to. I have absolutely no intention of getting along with you."
"…Then what about that bastard? You want to get along with him?"
"Why is that person being mentioned here?"
Alicia swallowed her rising anger and frowned.
Even after more than two years living in the village, Alicia and her child were still treated like outsiders.
She didn’t want to cause trouble and preferred to let things pass quietly if she could.
She couldn’t let Michael, who was settling in and making friends his age, go back to a wandering life again.
"Right! That’s it! You were planning to get along with that bastard. That’s why you’ve been so cold to me, but allowed him to do all the house repairs you wouldn’t let me touch."
"If you keep doing this, I won’t be able to tolerate it any longer."
"So what if you can’t tolerate it?"
"..."
"How do you think you’ve managed to stay in our village all this time? It’s all thanks to my father and me looking out for you."
Peter smirked slyly and moved closer to Alicia again.
At first, he just thought she looked pretty, but the more he looked, the more captivating she became — her not being easily won over made her even more attractive.
"Honestly, just think about our situations. I’m the one taking a huge loss here. Do you know how rare it is for a man not only to marry a woman with a child but also to raise that child?"
“...”
"Don’t just cling to pride — look at reality. How long are you going to keep wearing those old, worn-out clothes? If you married me, you wouldn’t have to suffer like this."
"I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that. Please leave now."
Alicia sighed and turned away.
Even without Peter’s interference, her mind was already tangled enough.
"…Could it be you’ve already slept with that bastard?"
"What did you just say?"
"You did sleep with that bastard, right? That’s why you’re acting like this towards me."
Peter roughly grabbed Alicia’s wrist and forced her to turn.
Alicia didn’t flinch at all; she clenched her teeth and glared fiercely at him.
"Watch your words."
"That bastard is going to take you as his wife? No way. Is it really him? Could he possibly be the biological father?"
“Don’t say nonsense.”
“Since he came to fetch his concubine, does that mean his wife must be dead?”
“Please, stop it already!”
Alicia couldn’t endure it any longer and roughly pushed Peter away.
He had grabbed her so hard that red marks from his fingers were already appearing on her wrist.
“Ah, seriously! Why are you pushing me away like this? It’s not like this is the first or second time anyway!”
“Not the first or second time?”
A deep wrinkle formed between Alicia’s brows.
“That’s not what I mean. I’m saying we should try to find a way that’s good for both of us.”
Peter feigned ignorance with a smile and squeezed Alicia’s shoulder firmly.
He had planned to watch a little longer and invest effort, but the sudden appearance of a strange man made him nervous for no reason.
'I can’t let some flashy bastard like that steal her away. I’ve been courting this woman for years.'
Just thinking about Cabelenus, who had been lurking around Alicia’s cabin for the past few days, made Peter’s lips curl sourly.
He truly despised that man.
Not only did he suddenly appear and ignore the order to snatch away the woman Peter had been courting, but he also lingered around her house as if he were some kind of knight — it was pathetic to see.
“Think carefully. Even if that guy really is a noble, do you think your life will go well? You ran away all the way out here to the countryside after having his child. To that bastard, you’re just a toy — something to play with for a while.”
“What do you know?”
"Men are all the same. Especially nobles, they’re even worse."
“...”
“I’m different. Unlike the others, I truly love and care for you. Otherwise, why would I say I’d accept another man’s child?”
Peter’s hand brushed across Alicia’s cheek.
He barely received this opportunity now that Cabelenus had briefly left.
He needed to firmly win Alicia’s heart and, with her by his side, break that arrogant nobleman’s pride once and for all.
“I love you, Alicia. Marry me.”
“Do you really love me?”
“Of course. Didn’t I tell you? I’m different from other men.”
“...Different? You should know when to stop talking nonsense.”
Alicia coldly pushed Peter’s hand away.
The reason Peter, who had been coming almost every day to court her, hadn’t shown up recently was obvious.
“What? Nonsense?”
“You didn’t show your face at all before, but just when that man was away, you appeared. Am I supposed to believe that’s a coincidence?”
“O-of course it’s a coincidence! Why would I care about that bastard’s feelings?”
Peter stammered but raised his voice instead.
Alicia gave a bitter smile, as if finding him ridiculous.
“If it’s a coincidence, then prove it. Look that man straight in the eyes right now and shout that you love me.”
“Why would I do such a thing?”
“Of course you can’t. That man isn’t an easy target, but I am. You only treat me that way.”
Alicia narrowed her eyes sharply and took a determined step forward.
Raising Michael alone, she had seen all kinds of things — both good and bad.
Many men looked down on a woman raising a child alone and made unwelcome advances; their words and actions were mostly the same.
They easily said things like ‘I care about you’ or ‘I love you,’ but their actions showed no real affection.
They were just poking around lightly because she seemed like an easy target.
“You know? Your older sister is always angry at Michael and me. She's very anxious that the two of us will get close.”
“My older sister is just—”
"You think that’s all? Everyone's too busy spreading nasty rumours about me. The men try whatever they can to sleep with me, turning me into some cheap woman, and the women take out their anger at those men on me. That’s my life."
"All of that would be solved if you married me. Everyone only treats you that way because you’re alone—”
“So it’s my fault?”
Alicia sneered briefly, then continued immediately.
“No. None of that is my fault. I’ve never done anything shameful; I only ever did my best."
“...”
"Don’t ever say again that Michael needs a father. If someone who calls my best efforts a mistake is going to be his father, I’d rather bite my tongue and die."
Without taking a breath, Alicia spat out all her sharp words.
Peter clenched his jaw and swallowed dryly.
Her ashen-grey eyes had darkened, like sediment settling in layers at the bottom of still water. A chill ran down his neck, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it.
“Still, if a rich man asked you to marry him, you’d say yes in a heartbeat.”
“What?”
"Don’t act so noble. In the end, the only reason you're speaking up like this is because you’ve got a rich guy backing you."
“I’ve been refusing all along. You’re the one who ignored that.”
"When did I ever ignore you? Honestly, you’re the careless one. It’s no wonder, given your courtesan background, that you have this habit of batting your eyes at every man you see…"
"Who exactly are you calling a courtesan?"
“Who else? You. Do you think I wouldn’t know? Everyone talks about it. A pretty woman with noblemen clinging to her one after another — what else could she be? It’s obvious she’s a high-class courtesan who only deals with nobles."
“You, seriously…”
"It’s okay. I can understand everything. The past is just the past. Let’s forget all the hard feelings between us and slowly talk things over…"
Peter softened his voice again and reached out his hand to Alicia — no, he was about to.
But then, a rough, forceful hand grabbed the back of his neck.
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