Stepmothers Are Not Always Evil

Chapter 78 “Hah.”Eric Tilburn?There is no way the Earl of Tilburn would send me a letter like this.It’s him. Sirius Winternight.“Who brought this?”“The Count’s servant was there a while ago.”“I see.”I returned Merlin and put the letter in the dressing table drawer.‘I don’t like it, but I think we should meet again.’I didn’t feel very good. ***** “Lady, over here!”Arriving at the coffee house where I had promised to meet him, I put my forehead on the man waving his hand warmly.Even if no one is there, if you shout out loudly like that… Ugh.I didn’t know what to say, so I sat quietly and covered up.“You are still pretty today.”The man smiled innocently and gave a compliment.He’s just a player.When I didn’t respond, he handed me the menu.“What would you like to drink? I didn’t pre-order today.”You think I came here for a leisurely cup of tea.In my mind, I want to shout, but today, if I act sharply like last time, I will not be able to hear what I want, so I worked hard to soften my emotions.“Coffee.”“Ah, then I-.”The man called the waiter and ordered two cups of coffee.While waiting for the coffee to come out, I watched the man closely.A nobleman seems to fit a beautiful appearance and luxurious attire.He has a handsome face that is hard to forget even if he passes by, so if there was a relationship, I wouldn’t know.“Is it okay to keep looking at you?”While looking intently at him trying to guess his identity, the man who made eye contact trembled nervously.“Actually, there are very few men like me. Isn’t it?”I don’t know if he’s doing this on purpose or if he’s really stupid.I said hard because I thought I would get caught up in the face if I showed a reaction.“Hey, what’s your real identity?”“Identity?”“I was curious, so I looked into it, but there was no Winternight family. Is that a pseudonym?”“That’s my name, Sirius Winternight. Isn’t it romantic?”“Then what is the title? What are your parents’ names?”As I questioned, the man furrowed his eyebrows.“Is that important?”“Yes. Usually people judge by looking at them, but when it’s hard to trust people, you need to know the background to make a judgment.”He laughed out loud at my words.“Excuse me.”Just then, the waiter put down two cups of coffee.I picked up my teacup and eagerly waited for his answer.“I don’t know what to say to satisfy you, but I am Sirius Winternight and my parents are not from this Empire.”“Yes?”“To be precise, only half of them are from this Empire.”“Ah….”For some reason, I thought that I had never seen such bright platinum blonde hair among Imperial people, but he was a foreigner.Then it was understandable that his last name was unfamiliar and that he attended the Empress’s birthday party.“Did that answer your question?”“A little.”But if he was a foreigner, I wouldn’t have run into him even more.I asked again the unresolved question.“When did you first meet me?”“When do you think?”The tone of answering a question with a question was annoying, but he said it without expression.“The winter of last year?”“Oh, right. Do you know the place?”“… Cave?”As if I was right, a smile creeps into his sharp eyes.“Did you even remember meeting me?”“You tell me that. How we met before.”And how do you know I have a scar on my back?As I opened my mouth with a questioning gaze, the man slowly opened his mouth.“So that’s….”“…….”“—I don’t remember very well.”“I beg your pardon?”My heat rose at his playful reply. He crinkled one eye at me.“If we meet one more time, I think I will remember it.”This bastard, that’s what he meant from the start.I immediately stomped out of my seat and stood up.“I’m done, I hope we never have to see each other again.”“Wa-wait!”A man got up from his seat in a hurry and followed me.I ignored his voice and left the coffee house and headed for the carriage.When he caught up with me after paying for the tea, he raised his voice.“Lady Evelyn.”His footsteps followed closely, and then he grabbed my wrist.“Let go!”“I’m sorry, I was joking. I will tell you everything.”“I don’t need it. I’m not curious, so please let go of this.”“Don’t be angry, just talk to me— ugh!”Thump! With a blunt sound, the man gone in an instant.“What kind of bastard dares—.”“… Helios?” ***** Why is Helios here?I looked at Helios with bewildered eyes.The bright blue eyes were looking at me with resentment.It was then that I realized how misleading this scene was.“He-Helios. Don’t get me wrong. As for how this happened…”“Tell me later.”Helios stopped me coldly, grabbed the man who had fallen and got him up.With a thud, the man’s face turned again.“What are you doing?”“Duke Anthemion, as I’ve heard, your personality… Ouch!”The man whose stomach was imprinted on Helios’s foot ducked his upper body.“Who dares you to touch her?”“Hey, It’s misunderstood…”The man stepped backwards, barely dodging the flying fist.I grabbed Helios’s arm and clung to him, realizing this was going to be bad.“Stop it, Helios!”“Let go, I’ll talk to you calmly later.”Shaking off my hand, Helios gripped the handle of his sword and approached the man.The commotion in broad daylight drew all eyes to us.I was about to jump between the two men when I realized I couldn’t let this happen.“Stop it, Duke Anthemion!”A familiar man interrupted the two of them before me.“Get out of the way, Count Tilburn.”“Calm down.”Count Tilburn stood up like a mountain and stopped Helios from losing his mind.“You must not touch this man.”Him?It was a strange nuance. So was the Count of Tilburn’s use of superlatives for men.“Who is this person?”“Sirius Winternight Grand Peterson.”The man answered with the back of his hand wiping his bloody lips.Helios’s eyebrows narrowed sharply.“… A monster hunter?” ***** “Now, let’s greet each other.”Count Tilburn, who was the only one in the midst of the chaos, took us to the academy.It was close to Kingston and the best place to avoid people’s eyes.We entered the academy, which was in full swing, and sat down in an empty office.“… I’m Sirius Winternight Grand Peterson.”The man reached out to Helios.But Helios only looked at the hand and did not accept the handshake.Count Tilburn intervened again.“Duke Anthemion, for the sake of the Emperor, do not act emotionally.”Helios let out a rough breath and reluctantly took the man’s hand.What does the Emperor have to do with this man?Count Tilburn briefly explained to me, puzzled.“He’s the Emperor’s cousin’s brother.”“… Yes?”This man from the royal family?Looking at him with puzzled eyes, the man added.“My mother is the younger sister of His Majesty the Emperor.”“Ah…”That’s why he was able to attend the Empress’s birthday party.Having resolved one big question, I glanced at Helios.I cautiously opened my mouth to see him still unable to contain his anger.“Helios, this happened…”“Is this button yours?”Helios cut off my words and pulled a button out of his pocket.Checking the button, the man nodded.“I guess it’s my family crest.”“Ha.”Helios chuckled, his hands shaking in fists.“So it was you.”“What?”The man furrowed his eyebrows in a harsh tone. But Helios didn’t care.“You kidnapped Lena at the behest of that woman.”“Hey. What are you talking about now?”“I know everything, but where did you get it?”Helios got up abruptly and grabbed the man by the neck.“Duke!”Before Count Tilburn’s shouting was finished, the man violently shook Helios’ hand away.“I didn’t realize that the Duke of Anthemion was the kind of man who would just grab someone by the scruff of the neck.”“You’re the reason Lena’s…!”“I don’t know what you are misunderstanding, but I saved this woman.”“Shut up and stop talking!”“If I hadn’t found her, this woman would have already been torn to death in that cave by a monster.”“……!”A hidden secret has been uncovered.