Please Grant Me a Glorious Regret [Novel] Chapter 7

That was the name of the voice's owner.

The garbage desperate to marry Arte.

That was her summary of Benjamin.

"Why aren't you saying anything? It's not like you can't hear me."

Benjamin's trademark sarcastic tone grated on Arte's nerves.

It was almost a talent, how his mere presence could instantly ruin her mood.

Arte swallowed an erupting sigh and let out a quiet breath.

If she had her way, she would have turned her back without a single glance.

That was how much she detested dealing with him.

However, a venomous chain of debt bound Benjamin’s Baronial House of Pitt and Arte’s Comital House of Tian.

The Pitt family was the creditor, and the Tian family the debtor.

Baron Pitt constantly wielded the Count's debt as a weapon to manipulate the family.

Whenever something displeased him, he raised the interest rate, and he was even pushing for a marriage between Benjamin and Arte.

They were a candle flickering in the wind.

Even with most of the estate’s income pouring into repayments, the interest kept swelling.

If they couldn't sell the land and gather the funds, there was no telling what crisis would befall them.

"It's been a while, young Baron Pitt."

She desperately wanted to tell him to get lost with a string of colorful curses.

However, as long as the Pitt family held the reins of their debt, Arte couldn't afford to provoke Benjamin.

"Young Baron Pitt? Benjamin. I told you to call me Benjamin, Arte."

"…It's been a while, Benjamin."

"That white dress suits you. A wedding dress would suit you well, too."

His intentions were blatantly obvious.

Today, without fail, he was clearly going to press for marriage again.

"How long are you going to play hard to get? Who do you think is going to take in a penniless noblewoman stuck in the countryside like you? If you marry me, you can pay off all the estate's debts. Why can't you get that through your head?"

Could I really just hit him once?

Watching Benjamin spew his irritating nonsense with spit flying from his mouth, Arte felt a genuine urge to strike him.

But she had to endure it.

The best course of action was to hide her emotions, entertain him just enough, and quickly escape his sight.

"I'm simply not ready yet. More importantly, I hope you brought a good item for this year's charity auction…"

"Don't change the subject. Do I look like I'm joking?"

As if he had made up his mind, Benjamin abruptly cut her off and stepped uncomfortably close.

"Next year, the debt your family owes will double."

"That's absurd. According to the contract…"

"Look closely at it again. It was written that way from the start. Your father was that desperate for money. Rushing in like a moth to a flame just to save you."

She had promised herself over and over that she wouldn't let him rattle her.

Yet, a spark reignited in Arte's previously ashen eyes.

Arte herself was the reason the Count's family had fallen into the palm of the Baron's hand.

When Arte was left unconscious after a carriage accident, she required an experimental, modern treatment to survive.

The Count, determined to save his daughter at any cost, exhausted every available medical option.

Thanks to his efforts, his daughter was saved, but the cost was a plunge into an insurmountable swamp of medical debt.

"Do you think your father can handle it? He's on the verge of bankruptcy right now. Wake up, Arte. The only way you can save your family is by marrying me. Then I'll wipe away your debt. Don't you agree?"

Benjamin looked down at Arte with a slimy smirk.

"The debt will be paid in full, no matter what. Through entirely legitimate means."

"Ha? You? How? Ah. Are you planning to sell your body?"

"Excuse me?"

More repulsive than usual today, he finally drove Arte to raise her voice.

"I heard that Duke of Rocata or whatever is here. A flashy pile of money walked into your home, and you're trying to grab it. Are you planning to strip down and put on a show for him?"

"Young Baron Pitt!"

"It should be easy for you. You already have a role model, don't you? I mean your older sister. A poor noblewoman entering nursing school to learn a trade? Don't you really know what that means? It means she's planning to snag a decent officer and make some money by selling her body under the guise of treating him…"

His words, little more than verbal excrement, never reached their conclusion.

Arte struck his cheek with all her might.

There was a limit to her patience.

She might have endured insults directed at herself by any means necessary, but dragging Lisa into this was a different story.

"Y-You crazy bitch!"

Benjamin seethed, clutching his stinging cheek.

He seemed utterly dumbfounded, as if unable to process the fact that Arte had just slapped him.

Seeing his stupid expression brought her a modicum of satisfaction, but it wasn't nearly enough to quell her anger.

She had endured and suffered far too much, so her insides were boiling over.

But she knew that going any further might provoke a terrifying reaction from a man with his temper.

Even with just this one slap, he would surely grind his teeth, vowing revenge.

Arte suppressed the urge to strike him a few more times and turned her back on Benjamin.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Aaaah!"

Without warning, Benjamin viciously grabbed Arte by the hair.

Arte screamed, struggling frantically to break free from his grasp.

She thrashed wildly, trying to pry his hand away, but it wasn't easy to overcome the brute strength of a man.

"I won't let you get away with this. I swear, I won't let this go!"

He violently threw Arte to the ground once more.

Experiencing such violence for the first time, Arte was slammed onto the floor, disoriented.

Her vision spun, and she tasted blood from her busted lip.

A terrible pain radiated not only from her stinging cheek but from everywhere.

"Stupid bitch. You have no idea how much I've held back for you. Let's see if you still refuse to marry me after this."

Benjamin's hand reached toward Arte's chest.

Reading his trajectory, the sickening meaning behind his words finally registered.

Arte snapped back to her senses and resisted fiercely.

But his hands clung to her like leeches.

Eventually, two buttons near her collar were ripped off.

In that brief moment, a thousand thoughts flashed through her mind.

Of all places, there was no one around.

They were so isolated that despite the loud commotion, no one came running.

That meant Arte had to escape on her own.

She had to fend Benjamin off with her own strength.

"Get lost!"

"Keugh!"

Mustering every last ounce of her strength, Arte kicked Benjamin squarely between the legs.

He let out a wretched scream and collapsed backward.

"Help! Is anyone there? Help!"

While Benjamin writhed on the ground, she had to run.

Desperately calling for help, Arte bolted toward where the other people were.

How far had she run?

Just as she sensed Benjamin closing in behind her, screaming venomously, an unbelievable figure filled her vision.

"Duke?"

It was Dimion.

He was standing alone beneath the rose vines.

Please don't be an illusion.

Please don't let this be a mirage that scatters away.

She prayed desperately with every step.

"Miss Tian?"

When the distance between them closed completely, Dimion recognized Arte.

Arte instinctively reached out.

Her trembling hand brushed against his arm.

It wasn't an illusion.

The solid, powerful feel of his arm proved it.

"Please help me."

Her voice, ragged and mixed with heavy pants, pleaded for aid.

Looking slightly taken aback, Dimion quickly took in Arte's disheveled state.

As his gaze swept over her, his brow furrowed deeper and deeper.

"Ha! I knew you'd do this!"

Hearing Benjamin's voice as he finally caught up sent a chill down Arte's spine.

Simultaneously, the memory of last night's conversation superimposed itself over Dimion, who was looking down at her in silence.

Recalling the icy demeanor he had shown her filled her with dread.

The Dimion she had read about in newspapers, and the one she had briefly experienced, was a man cold and calculating enough to be called the Iron-Blooded Rocata.

A wave of fear washed over her that he might turn a blind eye, deciding to let her pay the price for the disrespect she had shown him through her mistake.

Benjamin was completely out of control.

If she didn't get help now, there was no telling what he might do to her.

She had to escape Benjamin at all costs.

She absolutely needed Dimion's help.

This was no time to hesitate.

She had to ensure he couldn't possibly ignore her.

"Pretend I am Phelia, and help me. Please."