The Male Lead’s Fake Sister - Chapter 65

The starting point of this encounter was the discovery of the suspicious earring.

-Aren’t you curious why is this in his hand? I thought you’d ask about this first.

It was strange that she never brought it up until the end of the deal.

-I found it strange that someone who is capable of rewriting the deal can turn a blind eye toward something as suspicious as that.

-….You’re right. I initially thought of asking you first.

In the first place, she planned this ‘accidental’ meeting to find out the truth. Perhaps it was true that Tidwell was Herod’s substitute whom she met at Velocio Theater.

-But there’s no point in knowing that now.

Whether Tidwell really deceived her or not, she had devised a plan to kick him out of the family, essentially deceiving him as well.

So the way she avoided talking about it might be a sign of guilt, or she was simply a fool who lacked the courage to face the truth.

But there was no other choice.

It is said that every silenced truth can turn into poison, but there are truths that can kill if not silenced.

So Ravia left the balcony without hearing about the earring.

Perhaps if she learned that, she couldn’t return to when she hadn’t heard it.

She was barely able to lean her heart on Tidwell, and if she knew about what kind of trick he used to deceive her….

Ravia couldn’t accept him anymore.

At best, her heart would be broken into pieces, and then….

‘And then I’ll be alone…..’

Then no one would understand what she felt inside. Everything will return to when Tidwell hadn’t entered the Leontine family.

A chill crept up her spine as she remembered that time, and it truly made her sick. Perhaps it’d be much easier to embrace this strange anxiety that clung to her.

So, she closed her eyes.

As always.

From Marquis Callister, from Herod, from the truth about the earring.

As if her gaze was only filled with Tidwell right now.

Ravia turned her head and slowly opened her mouth.

“….What are you going to do now?”

“Are you talking about going to Marquis Callister?”

“No, are you going to stay in this banquet hall any longer?”

Tidwell looked up while deliberately interlocking his fingers with hers.

“It’s not even midnight yet. What if the Marquis is looking for us?”

“But I think we’re done here since you did the greeting in the name of Leontine.”

“The Marquis ignored my greeting. I think he wants to be greeted by someone else.”

“So you’ll just step back?”

“Losing is not my cup of tea, so I thought I’d hold out a little….but things didn’t go as planned.”

“Why?”

“What if you returned while I was away? I was troubled because of that,” he said. Ravia couldn’t help but laugh.

Obviously, Tidwell was away even until she moved to the terrace with Herod. In the first place, Marquis Calister was a man who refused to interact with ‘people who don’t know their place.’

But Tidwell was a man who pushed through to the end no matter how difficult his opponent was. So she thought Marquis Callister’s obstinacy would be a good opportunity to tie Tidwell’s feet.

“Other than being away for a while, have you been waiting there all this time?”

“Can’t I do that?”

“It’s not that you can’t…”

She thought he’d come back with eyes burning in revenge and bombard her with questions regarding Marquis Callister like he was grabbing her by the collar.

Ravia was speechless because he looked completely unfazed, and even his eyes crinkled into a smile.

“There’s always a reward at the end of waiting. I just thought that you would praise me if I waited patiently.”

“….But Marquis Callister is someone who rarely appears in public.”

“I know.”

“If you miss this opportunity, it’d be hard to talk to him again.”

“Sister,” at last, Tidwell called her gently.

The way he kissed her hand was so polite and gentle.

As if trying to calm her troubled heart.

Or soothing her, who found it difficult to accept him.

With a persistent yet tender gaze, he asked, “Do you hate that I waited for you, Sister?”

“…No. It’s not like that.”

I was just….surprised.

Tidwell smiled lightly at Ravia as she repeated the same excuse.

“You asked me earlier if I planned to stay longer at this banquet hall.”

Tidwell leaned forward to close their distance. A distance that others wouldn’t think of as an affectionate gesture between lovers.

“Concealing your true feelings from others isn’t a good habit.”

“…Haha.”

Ravia let out a wry smile at the whisper. It was enough to subdue the mild shock she felt a moment ago.

And to sweep away the confusion upon realizing that she was secretly happy that Tidwell had waited for her.

‘Yeah, I don’t need to dwell on it.’

We’re in the endgame now. Everything will be dealt with once Duke Leontine returns.

When that happens, I just need to take a step back and observe, all the while playing the role of an innocent sister.

So there’s no need to be surprised at how airy my heart became when he said he waited for me.

How many hurdles have I overcome to get to this point?

In the first place, she was happy just by the fact that all the suffocating days were not useless at all. So how could she not be happy when her admirer was so faithful to her?

So it wasn’t strange at all.

This emotion, this impulse, everything.

“You’re right. But it’s not like you’d reveal your true feelings either.”

Ravia let go of Tidwell’s hand, walking ahead with a sheepish smile just like someone who had been witnessed stumbling.

The side door to the garden was right next to her. Tidwell naturally followed her.

Pushing the heavy door, Ravia turned around.

Letting the darkness swallow half of her frame.

Letting the wind cut through the hem of her dress.

“I can’t even say let’s run away.”

Just like the myth about a woman who was exposed to too much moonlight, Ravia laughed.

She pulled the man in front of her. The cold winter air completely enveloped the two as the light from inside the banquet hall slowly disappeared through the door crack.

And the man, who was gently pulled into the garden, whined.

“Did you forget everything you told me just now?”

Despite his nagging, she could clearly see his lips drawing a line.

“Of course I did.”

“Then why are we leaving?”

“Tidwell, isn’t this what you want, too?” Tidwell’s expression hardened.

It was clearly different in the dark.

They had to be siblings in the banquet hall, and those who knew them as family watched them closely.

There were a lot of constraints for two people who didn’t share a drop of blood nor were known to each other just because they were tied by the same surname.

All of that could be easily erased in the darkness where no eyes watched.

“I’m sure you know that my father left today.”

“….Yes, I know.”

“The servants must be sleeping right now. So it’s just you and me again.”

We don’t have to hide in the annex just to avoid people’s eyes.

Tidwell understood Ravia’s intention and leaned his body closer with narrowed eyes.

“So, what are you trying to say?”

Their gazes intertwined in the air. It wouldn’t be strange if the tips of their noses touched.

“…..In short.”

Ravia took a step back and twisted the corner of her mouth.

“Concealing true feelings to each other isn’t a good habit.”

“…Haha.” Tidwell chuckled.

He knitted his brows, but it wasn’t because he was displeased. It was like he was holding back something.

He then held Ravia’s chin lightly. His thumb swept her lips, and his other hand pulled Ravia’s waist.

“I have no patience when it comes to you, Sister .”

There was no answer.

Then, he kissed her.