Yerniaâs image came into his mind the instant he heard her name.
The cute and pretty girl was his fan.
However, he wasnât particularly interested in working with her because she was too far from his type.
He generally liked women who were honest with their desires.
Jennan didnât want to waste any thoughts and emotions on her since he didnât have the time to seduce an innocent young woman he wasnât acquainted with.
He was sure that Yernia liked him, but perhaps she was too shy to get into a relationship with him, and she would, instead, prefer his presence.
At first, Jennan thought she was just an innocent, single child.
The reason he accepted Yerniaâs invite for a meal was because she was a fan of his.
He planned to meet her several times and then, he would ask for payment regarding his escorting services.
Jennan had lost contact with her for a while before finding out she got married.
It was such a delight for him to steal married, aristocratic ladies so that he could watch their husbands figure out that someone like him had taken their wivesâ undivided attention.
It was a small game he played to make his boring life exciting.
âCassianâs wife isnât that bad. Sheâs a good girl, but sheâs a little twisted.â
Jennan had given up on messing with her since she and her husband seemed to be a match made in heaven.
It wasnât a typical arranged marriage he used to see among nobles.
Cassian was quite knowledgeable about his deeds, and his discernment was accurate.
There were a lot of cases in aristocratic societies where arranged couples didnât get along well with each other.
If those situations happened too often, Jennan had more to gain.
Thereâs no point in meeting that woman named Yernia anymore.
He had nothing to gain from her and would only waste his time.
âCassian? Do you mean Marquis Lecardo?â
At that moment, Jennan realized.
He heard hushed whispers of the surname âLecardoâ a few times when he had spent the night at Marquis de Belletâs castle.
âLady Yernia is Marquis Lecardoâs fate. Donât make him angry.â
Jennan heard that recently.
âYour memory is worse than I thought. Did you just find out?â
It would only take a little work.
Marquis Lecardo was the heir of the Duke, who was the next to succeed to the Emperorâs throne.
Jennan wanted to praise himself for deciding to give up on the Marquisâ wife.
After all, playing with these women was almost like making a fool of their husbands.
âI donât know why youâre living in such a shabby place, but I want you to go home. You wonât have anything to worry about.â
Despite the high status of this nobleman pared to him, Jennan refused to submit to a man who invaded his house without consent.
He wouldnât dare mand people to drag him away if he insulted them for nothing more than this.
The nobles always value their cause.
They wouldnât be baited for such a small thing.
The man tilted his head at him. âWhat do you think?â
He looked down at Jennan since he was a little shorter than him.
His intense scrutiny was overwhelming.
Still, Jennan looked up at him with pride.
âYour wife and I have a relationshipââ
âShut up. Keep her name out of your dirty, little mouth.â
Jennan suppressed a chuckle.
This man had everything at his disposal but losing someone precious had made him tremble in fear.
It was enjoyable, which made his exhaustion more bearable.
Well, it should be fun playing with her but was it enough to take a risk?
Jennan gave it a serious thought until the man opened his wallet, took out a bunch of checks without even checking how much, and threw them at Jenanâs feet.
âYou want money? I can give you as much as you want.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âYou should just sing. Donât hurt a child who hadnât done anything bad to you.â
The total amount of scattered checks was shocking, making Jennanâs fists clench.
âDonât meet Yernia in person and just show up for her on stage. Do you understand?â
Cassian was in a bad mood.
It was a spectacle to dig into the opera singerâs background when it turned out he wasnât interested in Yernia at all.
Jennan had met countless ladies and wasted his life this way.
He was infamous for seducing wealthy ladies in particular.
Why did this bastard approach Yernia in the first place?
Whatâs the point of approaching married women?
Yernia seemed to like the opera singer.
Cassian initially thought about leaving them alone, yet, he still came to visit Jennanâs house, thinking it was better to nip danger early from the bud.
He didnât want any man to steal Yerniaâs attention, but it wasnât just why he was here.
Yernia was innocent and naive, and it made him even more concerned about her attachment to this bastard.
ââ¦â¦.â
Cassian passed by Jennan, still distracted by the multiple checks stuck underneath his polished shoes.
Then, the door closed.
After standing there for a long time, Jennan knelt and picked up the crumpled checks he had been staring at.
Pride.
He had no idea that such a thing still existed inside him.
Insults were familiar to him, and he usually dismissed them as if they were nothing.
But every time he recalled that man looking down at him with such arrogance, all he felt was a shame.
Jennan made up his mind.
He wanted to know that man who had thrown money at him and laughed the instant he knelt to gather them into a pile.
***