CH 69
When I Stopped Being Your Shadow
After that,
The members of the delegation scattered around the banquet hall and began to enjoy the celebration. At that moment, Ines let out a little sigh. âStill, the atmosphere of the celebration seems to be quite good.â It was fortunate.
However, she did not forget to watch the banquet through the eyes of a hawk.
Food and drinks were plentiful, and the people were dancing with happy faces.
The royal couple, who chatted with each other, seemed satisfied.
Ines, who was paying close attention to peopleâs reactions, glanced around.
âAnd the Dukeâ¦â
He was having a conversation with the delegation representative.
Ines smiled softly.
âOkay, I think this is good enough.â
The delegation seemed to be satisfied with the conversation with Enoch.
Most of all, she liked that Ryan was out of sight right now.
The last thing she saw was how angry he was when he couldnât join the conversation between her and the delegation earlier, and his face was stained redâ¦
âInes.â
ââ¦â
At the voice calling her, Ines frowned.
âOh my gosh, heâs persistent.â
Ryan came as if he was conjured.
Ines clicked her tongue inwardly and looked back at him.
Ryan was looking at her with a desperate gaze.
âWhatâs up?â
âLetâs talk.â
Ryan fervently pleaded. Butâ¦
âNo.â
Ines flatly refused.
âDonât you think youâre too shameless? Itâs not like weâre in a friendly relationship to talk to each other.â
Ryan was furious at the answer.
âHow many times have I apologized for being wrong! How long are you going to be this angry?!â
Ines was just astounded.
As if his apology would of course force her to forgive, Ryan was just too sure of himself.
Rather, he started arguing with Ines as if he had become a victim.
But he was worried that the people around him would hear it, so he lowered his voice and cursed. It was ridiculous.
âItâs just filing a divorce case. But are you really getting a divorce?â
âRyan, what do you think the purpose of the divorce case is? Of course, itâs meant to be a divorce, is it not?â
âNow you say thatâ¦â¦ ⦠!â
Ryan, who had raised his voice without realizing it, wrinkled his brow and suppressed his voice again.
âYeah, weâll talk about divorce later. Then why did you suddenly withdraw all of your investment?â
âI am the head of my family, I have the right to collect and invest money as I see fit.â
Ines shrugged her shoulders.
âWhatâs the problem?â
âAre you crazy? Do you know how much damage my family has suffered?!â
Ryanâs face turned red.
âAha, so letâs get to the point.â
Facing such a Ryan, Ines smiled crookedly.
âThe Gottâs family business is faltering, so now it seems like the fire has gone out, so you came to me?â
ââ¦â¦Ines.â
At that blatant sarcasm, Ryan bit his lip hard.
He felt like he wanted to scream and threaten Ines right away. Ryan barely suppressed his anger.
âI know youâre angry, so letâs stop.â
âWhat the hell are we going to stop doing?â
âThis time, I will be a faithful husband. Iâm not going out or doing anything, so letâs stop this emotional fightâ¦â
âStopâ¦â¦â¦â
At those words of pleading, Inesâ eyebrows twitched and hardened.
She shot coldly.
âWhose way?â
Ryan felt speechless for a moment.
Ines continued.
âNow that this has come to this, I will make sure of it here.â
âMake sure of what?â
âRyan, the marriage with you was terrible.â
Ryan went blank as if he had been hit in the face.
Ines nailed the last nail.
âSo, donât ever say such nonsense again, like a reunion or something.â
âUnbelievable, weâ¦â¦ !â
âBecause the only way I can be the happiest is to live my life free from entanglement with you.â
In an instant, Ryan lost his temper.
âHow dare Ines reject me?!â
Once she looked at him with affectionate eyes, but now that person was nowhere to be found.
No matter how much he pleaded, she didnât waver in the slightest.
She drew the line coldly.
And Ryan couldnât believe it at all.
âHow could Ines not love me?â
She once vowed that her love for him was unchanging.
And now she denied it in front of his face.
It was embarrassing as his pride had been torn to pieces and trampled on. And anger surged over that shame.
âWeâll see!â
Ryan, possessed by evil, gripped Inesâs wrist tightly.
At the rushing pain, Ines let out a gasp.
âThis, let goâ¦!â
Ines tried to shake Ryanâs hand somehow, but she couldnât.
The grip of a grown man whose eyes were turned over in anger was something that a slander woman could not shake off.
And that moment.
ââ¦â¦ What the hell are you doing?â A voice as cold as a sharpened blade resounded.
âUgh!â
A suppressed moan erupted from Ryanâs mouth.
Enoch, who came closer to Ines in an instant, grabbed Ryanâs wrist with strength.
The grip was so strong that he felt like his wrist was going to break at any moment.
âUghâ¦!â
Ryan, whose eyes were turned over in pain, raised his claws and tried to remove Enochâs hand.
It was all in vain.
On the contrary, the force that tightened his wrist only became stronger.
âI think I need to hear some explanation about the current situation.â
Although his demeanor was calm, he wasnât even calm with the emotions in his voice.
Ryan shouted in a cracked voice.
âMy wristâ¦!â
But Enoch was as cold as ice.
âWhy should I let you go?â
âOh, ugh!â
Ryan, who was trying to make an excuse in a hurry, could not bear the pain and twisted his wrist.
It was because the force applied to the wrist was getting stronger and stronger.
âIs it okay for Young Master Gott to treat the Countess this rudely?â
âHa, Your Excellency!â
âIsnât it fair to return what you did to the Countess?â
It was a terribly cold tone.
âYou had once threatened the Countess at my art exhibition the other day. You never showed any respect for her.â
Enoch finished his speech.
He grabbed Ryanâs wrist and strode towards the door.
âAre you trying to kick me out?!â
Ryanâs eyes went wide.
He tried hard to shake off Enochâs hand, but to no avail.
âHa, I got an invitation too!â
Ryan clenched his teeth.
âItâs not polite to my family, the Gott Viscount, that you
drag me out like this!â
âNot polite?â
âYes! Go, the Gott family are nobles of the kingdom! Soâ¦!â
At the same time, sparks bounced off Enochâs eyes.
He didnât want to hear Ryanâs bullshit anymore.
And above all else.
âThe Countess of Brierton.â
Behind him was Ines.
Because of that, Enoch could no longer stand to watch Ryan hanging around Ines.
âWasnât you who was rude to the Countess first?â
âDuke!â
âYou have to be a guest to be treated with courtesy. Donât you agree?â
Up until now, Enoch had maintained respect with minimal courtesy.
Now, he had skipped using honorifics.
âI canât have a bastard like you by her side anymore.â
At the end of those bloody words, Enoch pulled Ryanâs wrist roughly again.
âIt hurts!â
Ryan clenched his teeth.
A sharp pain rose from the wrist held by Enoch, as if cut by a piece of glass.
It looked like the bones were broken.
âWhat the hell? Does he mean heâll even be a bodyguard for Ines?â
Ryan, who was bitter, looked at Enoch with murderous eyes.
âInesâs husband was me, and the man Ines loved was meâ¦â¦ !â
But Ryan had no choice but to curl his tail right away.
âBesides, is Viscount Gott aware of what you have done?â
Enoch shot sharply again.
âMy, what did I doâ¦â¦ !â
âAt the celebration hosted by the Queen, attended by Kaldorovâs delegation.â
It was a low-pitched voice, similar to the growl of a wild beast.
âYou were trying to intimidate the Countess, one of the staff of the exchange, and bringing shame to the nobles.â
For a moment, Ryan felt his stomach grow cold, as if he had swallowed a whole chunk of cold ice.
âOh, no. Iâ¦â¦ !â
As cold water poured over his excited head, he suddenly came to his senses.