The Gap Between You and Me - Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Shawn screamed at Vivianne in his mind. He had no intention of revealing his bitter feelings to her, so he left the place without looking back, saying that he would meet a good partner soon.

The pain of his broken heart did not make him grow but only ruined him even more. He wasted his time with alcohol, drugs, and women until he ran into Edwin at a social gathering that his father forced him to attend.

Unlike him, who stumbled while drunk, Edwin looked fine. There was not even the slightest disturbance in him standing upright.

[‘Congratulations. You’re going to marry a woman who is known as the most beautiful woman in the kingdom. You must be very happy.’]

The Crown Prince smiled and said. He is considered the second most noble person in the kingdom after the king and has long been known to be quite close with Edwin.

[‘So what’s the secret, Sir Edwin? What is the secret to stealing the heart of Lady Vivianne, who had been refusing all marriage proposals for years?’]

[‘There is absolutely nothing. It’s just a relationship that I started with the thought that she and I both met the conditions we wanted. It’s not because I’m being dictated by my emotions.’]

It was a dry, emotionless reply. Edwin didn’t even wiggle an eyebrow. At the unexpected answer, the Crown Prince seemed a little perplexed.

[‘Isn’t it nice to be able to have her as her wife though, that beautiful woman?’]

Edwin seemed to think for a moment and answered immediately,

[‘She is a very wise woman and she will certainly make a good Duchess. She expects nothing more from her mate, so for me, she must be the best match.’]

A wise woman? Good Duchess? Sean overheard the two of them talking next to him, and he ground his teeth as anger welled up inside him. How could someone so easily take what he had wanted for so long without even realizing how valuable it was? The world was so unfair.

Shawn suppressed his desire to run towards Edwin while he was drunk. Deciding to get out of the place before anything happened, he hurriedly moved away, stepped on his foot, and stumbled heavily. Edwin saw him as he almost fell and said from behind,

[‘Sir Shawn. You better go back to your mansion. In your current state, you will only cause trouble for the Duke Rowani and for the people around you.’]

Edwin’s eyes were expressionless and showed no emotion as he spoke. To others, it could be seen that he was just advising a fellow noble, but in Shawn’s twisted eyes, it looked different. He believed that Edwin only pretended to be noble or superior. He believed that the indifferent look in those eyes must have been because Edwin despised him.

‘How funny.’

Shawn thought.

‘You, who used to hold your head up high, became like this, while I…’

“So, do you think I was wrong too?”

“…”

“Answer me, slave.”

Edwin remained silent, and Shawn pushed him back once more. Shawn took a step closer to him and pushed Herietta aside as she stood in front of him. Herietta refused to give way, but it was not enough to stop Shawn’s strength.

“Stop.”

Edwin, who had been silent, grabbed Shawn’s wrist and stopped his actions. Edwin glared at him.

“Do not touch Miss Herietta recklessly.”

His eyes were like that of a hunting dog that suppressed his deep aggression. If he were agitated a little more, it seemed like he would bite the opponent in front of him. Seeing this, Sean grinned.

When we met at the banquet hall, he also had that fierce look in his eyes. It’s so different from the indifferent and bored expression he always showed before.

“So what if I laid my hands on her?”

Shaun provoked Edwin by shaking his hand away from his grip.

“If I laid my hands on her, so what? What are you going to do? Are you going to hit me? How dare a slave bastard like you threaten the Duke’s heir!”

“…”

“Are you still not aware of your place? Huh? Is that so?”

Riip. Shawn ripped open the front of Edwin’s shirt with one hand. Through the hem of his long torn shirt, a dark red scar engraved on his left chest appeared.

11542.

It was a number familiar to all three of them in the room.

“Look Carefully. You are now just a lowly being with a label on your body like a cow or a pig.”

Shawn smirked with a satisfied expression on his face.

Edwin immediately grabbed the hem of his torn robe as if he were trying to cover up his ugly scar that was suddenly exposed to everyone. His gaze naturally turned to Herietta, who was standing next to Shawn. Edwin secretly hoped that Herieta didn’t see it even though he did not let it show in his face. However, judging from her shocked expression, it seemed that his wish had been unheard.

Herrietta covered her mouth with her hand and suppressed the scream that was about to come out of her throat. She vaguely knew that the slave number was engraved on Edwin’s body, but today was the first time she actually saw it.

A scar left by a severe burn. It was so deeply engraved that it would never be erased from his chest for the rest of his life unless the whole skin was cut out.

“When I met you at the ballroom some time ago, I thought the masked guy was like you. But back then, I wasn’t quite sure. Because I knew you couldn’t be here. No, to be more precise, you shouldn’t be here right now.”

“That is… What do you mean he can’t be here?”

Herietta asked. Shawn turned his head and looked at her.

“Ah. It seems you don’t know.”

He had a look on his face that seemed like he found something funny.

“You know very well that the Redfords conspired to commit treason and were destroyed as a result, right? Although he was spared his life because of the Crown Prince’s mercy, he was the son of a traitor who would one day become the head of the family. No one in this world would let him free without any surveillance or restrictions.”

‘Surveillance? Restrictions?’

Herietta looked at Shawn with a blank expression on her face when she heard it. She had a bad foreboding as she looked at his unusually happy face.

“Listen. When Marquis Macnaught ceded the ownership to your father, there were three conditions that he imposed as he handed him over.”

Shawn said with three fingers spread out.

“One. Report his every move at least once a month. Two. Don’t hand him over to anyone else for at least the next thirty years. And three. Whatever happens, make sure he never leaves town.”

Shawn said, slowly folding his fingers one by one. Still, he carefully observed the changes in the emotions that surfaced on Herietta’s face.

“Unfortunately, it seems that your father recently made a false report to Marquis Macnaught that everything’s the same. It seems he didn’t realize how serious this was. Well, maybe he simply didn’t want to cause any concern for Marquis Macnaught, or maybe it was because he didn’t want to worry you, his daughter.”

“…”

“But I mean, if this reaches the ears of the Marquis and the Crown Prince… No, when it reaches the ears of His Majesty the King who still regards the existence of the last remaining Redford as a thorn in his eyes… ”

A mischievous smile spread across his face.

“What will happen then?”

No one can guarantee his safety.

Not only is Edwin in terrible danger, but even your family is at the risk of meeting a terrible fate as well.