Guidelines for the Perfect Goodbye - Chapter 27
“Sister.”
Adam, slightly flustered, furrowed his brow but maintained his smile.
“Are you tired from the long journey?”
“Don’t even mention it. I couldn’t sleep, thinking about you.”
Guinevere, with her black hair in an elegant updo, repeatedly kissed Adam’s cheek.
“My dear little brother, how I’ve missed you!”
Although she appeared as a caring older sister, the two were not related by blood.
After Guinevere’s parents died in a ship accident, Adam’s father adopted her as his daughter.
It was unclear what talent he foresaw in her, but he was a man of great foresight. Eventually, his foster daughter endured humiliating times to become a proud marchioness.
“Sister, please come inside.”
“Yes. Ulysses, Nigel. Come and greet your uncle.”
Behind Guinevere, two teenage boys approached.
Ulysses Rosencrantz, with black hair and blue eyes like Guinevere, and Nigel Rosencrantz, with red hair and amber eyes.
The half-brothers, both eighteen, shared no resemblance. One was cold as ice, the other a flame too fierce to approach.
Ulysses was the product of an affair between Guinevere and Marquis Rosencrantz, while Nigel was the son of the Marquis’s first wife.
When Nigel was eight, his mother died suddenly. Guinevere then became the stepmother of the Rosencrantz family, the mistress turned into a legitimate wife.
Her disdain for Lilith and Cecilia stemmed from this. Guinevere loathed the two who reminded her of her shameful past.
Ironically, Lilith did not dislike Guinevere. She was Lilith’s dream.
And Cecilia thought,
‘Marquis Rosencrantz was an even bigger fool than Father.’
The aspirations of Cecilia’s mother were nothing but delusions.
After the death of Caroline and Margaret’s biological mother, Lilith had briefly hoped Adam would take her as his second wife.
But Adam remarried a young, modest noble lady from a baron’s family. Lilith couldn’t leave her room on their wedding day, her suppressed sobs echoing from the Garnet Room.
‘Yet she still hopes for sincerity from Father. Is she foolish or just pathetic…?’
Even if Bernarda died, nothing would change. Adam would never marry Lilith and would likely opt to take in another noblewoman as his third wife. He was not a fool blinded by love.
Adam Lasphilla was adept at gaining maximum profit with minimal output.
The only person who could make him lose reason and shower boundless affection was one.
“Adaaam, carry me on your back, will you?”
“Ha-ha, Sister, we’re too old for that. Besides, we’re in public.”
“Oh, I’m so tired. Shall I ask a servant? You’d have me trust a stranger to carry me?”
Adam hesitated before slowly bending down.
Caroline’s eyes widened, and Margaret covered her mouth with her hand. Bernarda, however, merely smiled at this bizarre scene.
“Oh, you two look so sweet together.”
She added insincerely.
‘That family is quite extraordinary in its own way,’ Cecilia thought.
“Step aside, you reek.”
Carried by Adam, as Guinevere passed by Cecilia, she waved her hand at her dismissively.
Cecilia pondered for a moment. Should she stand her ground or step aside…?
‘No need to make a fuss over such pettiness.’
Deciding, she ‘tripped’ and deliberately collapsed to the ground.
“Oh dear, that wasn’t intentional.”
Guinevere’s twisted smile brushed past Cecilia. Adam glanced at his daughter, urging her to stand up.
‘So be it.’
Cecilia was not hurt. She couldn’t let such petty malice derail her future plans.
She attempted to rise alone, brushing off the dirt.
Suddenly, an unexpected hand reached out to her. A large hand, rough with calluses, uncharacteristic of a teenage boy.
She slowly lifted her head, meeting a pair of icy blue eyes.
“Ulysses.”
“Take my hand.”
Cecilia’s gaze naturally shifted to the side. Caroline was watching her anxiously, focusing on both her and Ulysses, who had extended his hand to her.
‘Unnecessary kindness.’
Annoyance welled up in her at Ulysses.
Ignoring Caroline and going with the flow would make Caroline throw a tantrum in her typical jealous manner.
