A Summer With Bitter Rivals - Chapter 70

Chapter 70: The Reason for the Unease

As soon as Emeline returned home, she took a thorough bath and sat on the edge of her bed.

The sound of raindrops pelting against the window felt like a melancholic melody.

She listened quietly, recalling the events of the day—more precisely, the words Allen Trancium had uttered.

She disliked how often she found herself preoccupied with matters concerning Zenon these days. Still, she wanted to uncover the reason for this persistent unease.

Soon, a thought crossed her mind, prompting her to retrieve a certain item.

A letter so frequently read that its folded edges were now frayed.

The last letter Zenon had sent her.

Emeline pulled out the letter and unfolded it. The familiar words lay before her.

Her gaze swept across the lines until it halted at a particular sentence.

Even after reading and rereading, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact cause of her unease. But her instincts told her this was where she needed to focus.

Slowly, she read Zenon’s words aloud.

[Because our relationship was discovered, my family is casting disapproving glances at me.]

Emeline immediately realized the reason for her unease.

My family is casting disapproving glances.

That meant his family was aware of their relationship. So why, then, did his brother, Allen Trancium, seem to know nothing?

If Zenon had been beaten by his father for this very reason, it would have inevitably spread among the household members and servants alike.

Emeline narrowed her eyes, deep in thought, then suddenly froze.

‘…Wait a moment.’

She lowered her gaze and reread that particular sentence in the letter.

Because our relationship was ‘discovered.’

My family is casting disapproving glances at me.

Emeline lifted her head, her dazed gaze lingering in midair.

One of the days Zenon had returned home after being beaten by his father, he had claimed he confessed about their relationship himself.

But in this letter… he said they were discovered?

And another thing—thinking back, the timing of the letter itself was odd.

Emeline had received it long after the day Zenon had supposedly confessed to his father about their relationship.

During that time, despite the alleged disapproval from his family, he had continued meeting her as if nothing had changed. Even on their last encounter, he had whispered words of love without hesitation.

Yet, in this letter—sent well after that incident—he suddenly claimed their relationship had been exposed and that he was now under scrutiny from his family.

Emeline let out a dry laugh.

‘What the hell…?’

None of it made sense.

Was this inconsistency due to past lies in Zenon’s actions? Or was there something suspicious about the letter itself?

…Or am I just overanalyzing?

Lowering her trembling hand, she placed the letter aside.

Back then, she had been so consumed by the words break up and burden that she had failed to notice these contradictions. But now that she read it again, the letter was riddled with inconsistencies.

Something was off.

Either Zenon Trancium or this letter—one of them was lying.

***

A knock echoed through the silent office.

A man, flipping through documents with an expression of weary indifference—though not entirely inattentive—lifted his gaze toward the door.

Shortly after, his attendant and aide, Robert, entered the office. The moment he stepped inside, he grimaced and coughed.

“Ugh… Young Master, could you do something about this smoke?”

Because the windows were closed, the thick scent of cigars lingered heavily in the air.

Noticing his attendant’s discomfort, Zenon promptly extinguished the cigar by pressing its tip against the ashtray. Then, with a faint smirk, he asked, “Better?”

“Yes… Though, might I recommend cutting back on smoking? You never used to touch cigars before.”

“That’s because Emeline hated them.”

“Then how do you plan on quitting now?”

Robert opened a window while muttering his concerns, but Zenon’s smirk slowly faded.

The only time he had ever considered quitting was when Emeline was by his side. Even now, the thought of stopping only seemed plausible if she were with him again.

In other words, as long as Emeline Delzeier wasn’t around, there was no reason for him to quit.

“Do you think that day will ever come again?”

Zenon murmured, his face darkening. It was unclear whether he was directing the question at Robert or himself.

Perhaps, more than anyone, it was meant for Emeline Delzeier, who wasn’t even present.

Seeing Zenon’s rare moment of vulnerability, Robert quickly interjected.

“Don’t speak like that, Young Master. You haven’t wasted the past four years. You’ve worked tirelessly, pushing yourself beyond limits to become someone you wouldn’t be ashamed of. Look at you now.”

At that, Robert placed a thick stack of documents onto Zenon’s desk. The sheer volume of work indicated how relentlessly Zenon had been moving forward.

Since leaving for his studies abroad, Zenon Trancium had barely known a moment of rest.

To reach a position where no one could ever look down on him again.

Zenon lowered his gaze and scanned the documents before him.

There were piles of files related to his long-invested defense industry business, banking enterprises, and various other matters. To one side of his desk, there were also correspondences exchanged with high-ranking officials and the royal family.

It was a workload that seemed overwhelming for a single person to handle.

Yet, he had come this far without regard for his own well-being.

He had done it all for one reason—to bring back the one person he had always longed for.

Zenon’s preparations were nearly flawless. If he accomplished all of this, he would gain immense authority and wealth.

And yet…

“…I don’t know anymore.”

The very person at the center of it all no longer seemed to want him.

“Please, just stop. Stop ruining my life.”

“I… I hate you. I hate you so much, I could die.”

Of all the harsh criticisms he had endured in his life, nothing had shattered him as much as those words.

It had felt as if the very ground beneath him had crumbled away.

If he could never bring her back to his side, then what was the point of power and wealth? None of it meant anything to Zenon.

“Why don’t you try seeing her one more time? It’s been a while since you last visited. You’ve been far too busy with work… and dealing with Lady Fendine and the first young master has been exhausting, to say the least…”

Robert grumbled about how the family only added to the burdens of an already overwhelmed man.

Zenon let out a faint chuckle, his gaze drifting to the cigar resting in the ashtray, its ember extinguished.

“I’m usually good at shamelessly pushing forward, but this time, it’s not so easy.”

He didn’t want to ruin her life any further. He didn’t want her to despise him any more than she already did.

And yet, the thought of someone else standing by her side was unbearable.

So he kept lingering nearby.

Even though it only led to more scorn, more wounds, and deeper resentment from her.

How could he possibly go to her so easily?

But how could he possibly not go to her?

Zenon let out a deep sigh, filled with both self-mockery and frustration. His usually sharp green eyes clouded over.

It was laughable, the way he had lost all sense of direction over just one person. And the way everything had turned out so differently from what he had planned.

‘Emeline Delzeier… how am I supposed to face you?’

Was it because he had let her go for four years?

Or was it because he had now been reduced to simply watching her from afar?

Zenon scoffed at himself and reached for the extinguished cigar, biting down on it absentmindedly.

But instead of smoke, only a weary sigh escaped him.

A warm summer breeze passed over the back of his head, carrying a lingering sense of loneliness.

That summer, when he had sensed something was off in her letter—if he had just visited her one more time, would things have turned out differently…?

“…You don’t look well. Are you alright?”

“…I’m just suddenly finding Emeline Delzeier infuriating.”

Zenon, who had been silent for a long while, forced his expression to relax. His voice returned to its usual teasing, lighthearted tone.

With a mountain of work ahead, he couldn’t afford to stay lost in melancholy. He needed to lift his spirits.

“But… if it’s all my fault, then I can’t even bring myself to be mad at her.”

“…Could you make up your mind about just one thing?”

“Just one? That’s a little difficult.”

He let out a wry chuckle and picked up another file from the towering stack of documents.

He resented her, yet he didn’t.

He longed to see her, yet he was terrified of facing her.

His feelings for Emeline Delzeier had never once been simple.

“Anyway, I’m too busy dealing with the inheritance and family affairs right now. I can’t afford to visit her. I need to finish all of this first if I want to face her again without shame.”

“I see.”

Robert nodded, glancing at Zenon subtly.

In truth, Robert knew full well that taking a moment to visit her wouldn’t be difficult for Zenon.

It wasn’t lack of time that held him back—it was his own hesitation, tangled in fear, longing, and desperation.

Watching Zenon immerse himself in his work once more, Robert spoke softly, “You’ve done more than enough, Young Master. Even while studying abroad, you continued to reach out to her… and you’ve achieved so much.”

“I know. I am the one who did all that, after all.”

Zenon smirked faintly, his expression calm.

But it was meaningless if the one person he had done it all for never acknowledged it.

With that thought, he lowered his gaze and turned his attention back to the documents before him.

A breeze carried the scent of roses through the air, unbidden and unwelcome, stirring memories of a distant past.

Zenon let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head at himself.

The memories that came rushing back were both nostalgic and agonizing.