ITAYA 58

~Chapter 58~

At that moment—

Egbert appeared on Perna Street. Perna Street was on the edge of the capital, and it was filled with all kinds of guilds.

Egbert went straight to the Information Guild.

They said if you paid enough money, they could even tell you the color of the Emperor’s underwear.

Ding-ling.

The smell of old wood stung his nose. On the first floor, people were already drinking and partying early in the morning. The second floor was quieter.

Egbert pinched his nose and sighed.

“I can’t believe I have to do this myself.”

He had no one he could trust. His secretary was a fool who drooled every time he saw Sophia. Even Janus, his best worker, had betrayed him.

So Egbert had to do important things himself.

Lately, Egbert felt like he was walking on air.

Baron Barnaby was known as a lover of the century. He would never let his wife die.

And even if the Barnaby couple didn’t help, Egbert had another plan.

“Anais will come back to me soon.”

His mansion was being cleaned. Everything was being changed back to how Anais liked it.

Sophia had ruined the mansion with her cheap taste, but lately she was acting quietly, maybe because she finally realized Egbert’s true feelings.

Egbert only realized after losing Anais that he truly loved her. He hated seeing his grandfather favor Anais so much.

Sezares had always disliked Egbert, never praising him.

“Once you lose their love, it never comes back. That’s why I was a lonely child.”

But Sezares always loved Anais like a real granddaughter. Whenever Egbert saw that, he felt so jealous. He hated himself for feeling jealous, so he decided to just hate Anais.

“How foolish I was.”

But now it was different.

Egbert was never going to let Anais go again. He would fill her empty heart with himself.

He planned to get rid of anything in his way.

That included Baldwin, Sophia, and even Chris.

Chris was his son, but just an illegitimate one. The child Anais would have in the future would matter more.

He would still support Chris, and Sophia would get a guesthouse if she behaved.

He thought Anais would accept that much.

But Baldwin…

“That bastard.”

What should he do about that annoying man?

To find an answer, Egbert had come to the Information Guild in person.

He knew Baldwin was too dangerous to attack openly.

So Egbert had to use tricks. He found the guild master.

“A little bird can’t escape its cage.”

As soon as Egbert said the secret phrase, the door opened. He wondered why they did such childish things.

The guild master’s office was underground.

Egbert frowned.

It felt damp and dirty. He wanted to leave quickly.

“I heard you wanted to see me,”

The guild master raised his scary face. His blue eyes looked sharp, but half his face was twisted with burn scars.

Egbert flinched and stepped back, then quickly straightened up.

He could hear the clock ticking.

“They say you know the most about Constantine.”

“…That’s right, sir.”

The man spoke in a rough voice. He looked like he was trying to smile, but only one side of his mouth moved.

To Egbert, who spent all his time at a desk, it was a bit too much.

He barely opened his mouth.

“Ahem! Can you tell me why?”

“Usually in cases like this, it’s hatred, isn’t it?”

Egbert’s face brightened at those words.

He had never met someone who hated Constantine as much as he did.

Even the man’s scary face started to look nice.

Egbert pulled out a chair and sat down.

“I also hate Constantine. He stole my wife! How can that be allowed?”

“I heard the story.”

“I want to buy information from you. I need secrets or weaknesses—something to bring him down!”

“That kind of information is expensive.”

“Do I look poor to you?”

The guild master smiled with his twisted mouth, and Egbert flinched again.

“I’ll give you what you pay for.”

Egbert took out all the money in his pockets.

“Here’s an advance.”

The two of them exchanged their evil intentions.

Meanwhile, Gwenndolyn was shaking as she gripped her gossip magazine. All three gossip magazines she subscribed to were saying the same thing.

[“The Duke and Duchess spotted at the bookstore—just an ordinary date.”]

That was the headline.

Gwenndolyn glared at Anais’s picture in the magazine. Her big eyes burned with fire.

“How dare you…”

Baldwin was not the kind of man to be on these gossip pages. He had never had a single scandal.

She thought Baldwin’s first and last woman should be herself.

Even appearing in a gossip magazine with someone should have been with her! Baldwin never went out with anyone like this.

And she had never seen him look at anyone with that expression.

Even in the blurry photo, you could see Baldwin was smiling.

Gwenndolyn ground her teeth.

“I can’t watch Baldwin fall apart any longer.”

She gently touched Baldwin’s face in the photo.

“I’ll get rid of that woman for you, Baldwin. Poor Baldwin, you’re being fooled.”

She spoke in a sad voice and suddenly stood up.

Her fancy frill dress swirled around her. Before seeing Anais today, she had another thing to do.

She was going to secretly visit her fiancé at the Horace Marquis’s house.

Even this meeting was just a stepping stone to get to Baldwin.

Gwenndolyn was even willing to have another man’s child just for Baldwin, but he was too cruel to her.

How could he like someone like Anais!

Baldwin had obviously forgotten all his promises to Gwenndolyn.

‘Baldwin, when we grow up, let’s get married. Let’s live together as bride and groom.’

‘…Sure, whatever.’

He replied with a bored look, but it was a yes.

Back then, Baldwin was less cynical and less cold.

His hearing and voice were fine. Gwenndolyn wouldn’t have had to use another man as a stepping stone to get pregnant.

As soon as she turned twenty, Gwenndolyn secretly picked another man as her fiancé—all for Baldwin.

“This is all your fault, Baldwin,” she thought, almost whining, as she went to the parlor.

The man waiting for her had blond hair and purple eyes, trying to look like Baldwin. He wasn’t nearly as handsome, but she could use him for what she wanted.

At least the child might look like Baldwin.

The man jumped up to greet her.

“Long time no see, Aska.”

“Long time, My Lady. How have you been?”

He spoke with a foreign accent.

“Fine. Sit down.”

He stared at her as she sat down elegantly. Gwenndolyn lifted her chin and drank tea.

Then she got to the point.

“I wanted to see you today to talk about moving our wedding date up.”

“Oh, I’d like that!”

Aska nodded eagerly. Gwenndolyn smiled at him, seeing how he acted like her puppet.

“Don’t fall in love with me. This is just a contract marriage, okay? Got it?”

“Yes, yes, I know!”

Gwenndolyn had to have a legitimate child, not an illegitimate one. Bringing a child from another family into Constantine was out of the question.

“How about the end of this month?”

“Sure! Anything is fine if it’s you, My Lady.”

She reached out her hand, and Aska kissed it. Gwenndolyn watched his lips and swallowed.

The best thing about this man was that he had money. He wasn’t as handsome, but he was a good investor and would make a decent father.

And he had another “talent,” too.

Gwenndolyn said with dreamy eyes,

“…Maybe I tied my corset too tight.”

Aska’s cheeks turned red.

“Could you help me loosen it, Aska?”

Gwenndolyn gave him a seductive smile and spoke in a sweet voice.

The parlor was soon filled with the sound of rustling and heated whispers.