The Heroines Who Framed Me Are Clinging to Me

Chapter 41 - Claire’s Tears

— Creak!

— Hey, you crazy woman! Watch where you’re going!

In the streets of Eastan.

A girl with bright red hair dashed across the road.

She paid no attention to the commotion around her as she ran.

Splat!

Mud splashed onto her expensive shoes, and black stains marred her dress, but she didn’t care.

‘I can see him… I’ll finally be able to see him.’

She tightly clutched the note in her hand.

It had Lee Han’s address written on it.

A smile blossomed on Claire’s face, which had withered like a fading flower.

Her once dull eyes shimmered with hope.

And so, she arrived at the Social Science Research Institute.

In front of the institute\'s door,

"Huff… huff."

She placed her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath.

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

Her heart pounded rapidly.

Even just being nearby filled her with excitement and tension.

But at the same time, her mana began to calm.

‘The doctor was right.’

As he had said, it was Lee Han who could calm her mana. In other words, it meant that Lee Han was indeed here.

Lee Han. The place where Lee Han was.

Looking back, being by his side had always been a place of solace.

Even if she had been the one to throw that solace away…

‘…’

Claire shook off the negative thoughts and placed her hand on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

Her knock was a little shaky.

But she also felt a sense of confidence.

The confidence that Lee Han wouldn’t turn her away at the door.

The confidence that she would somehow be able to have a conversation with him.

The confidence that she could clear up any misunderstandings.

These groundless confidences swirled in Claire’s mind.

Until there was no response from inside.

- ……

The surroundings were silent.

"Huh…? What?"

Did they not hear her knock?

Claire knocked again, this time a bit more forcefully.

— Knock. Knock. Knock.

Yes, they must not have heard it.

If Lee Han was really inside, he wouldn’t ignore her.

Not for any reason.

Claire swallowed dryly as she thought this.

But still, there was no response.

Unfounded confidence never lasts long.

As the silence from within continued, unease began to creep onto Claire’s face.

— Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock!

Her knocking grew more frantic.

Worried she might have come to the wrong place, she glanced down at the note again. Social Science Research Institute. This was definitely the right place.

Besides, hadn’t her mana already started to calm down?

Lee Han was definitely inside.

Claire’s lips trembled.

Bang, bang, bang.

Before she knew it, her hand had moved from knocking to nearly pounding on the door.

"Is… Is anyone there?! Excuse me!"

Claire began to shout.

Passersby turned to look at her, but she didn’t care.

Her baseless confidence had vanished, and the questions she had buried deep in her pain began to resurface.

‘Of course, he must hate me.’

Because she hadn’t done anything to stop it when that boy died. Lee Han wasn’t stupid. Of course, he must know.

Claire’s hand grew weaker and weaker.

Tap, tap.

She barely managed to scratch at the door with her hand.

‘Should I just go back?’

The urge to flee began to rise within her.

Go back. Focus on the trading company.

Surely, there would be a way…

"…"

Images of the servants’ gazes flashed through her mind.

The way they looked at her as if she were insane. The butler who had threatened her life and ended up as a pile of ashes.

"Guh."

Claire suddenly retched.

There was nowhere to go back to.

No one to lean on.

That’s why she had come to find Lee Han.

She knew.

She knew that he probably despised her.

She knew.

She knew just how badly she had wronged him.

She had simply buried those thoughts deep within her heart, unable to forgive herself for her wickedness, her foolishness, her disgusting choices—no matter how much she regretted them, she couldn’t forgive herself.

And yet.

Claire stood here.

Because she had nowhere else to go.

Because there was no one but Lee Han who could save her.

She stood here despite knowing how disgusting she was.

Once she acknowledged this, Claire realized one thing.

She had to offer something.

If she wanted to meet Lee Han, she had to offer something of her own.

Whatever it was, Claire was desperate.

"I… I’m here to make a request!"

— Creak.

At last, the door opened.

◆

At the entrance of the institute.

— Knock, knock, knock.

The sound of knocking echoed from outside.

Lloyd stood there with his arms crossed, deep in thought.

Even without opening the door, he had a good idea who was standing outside.

The familiar knock.

The glimpse of red hair through the slightly ajar door.

Claire Harold.

Lloyd stood silently for a moment, just listening to the knocking.

He thought back to the plan he had devised to take control of Eastan.

1. Thwart one of the plots being orchestrated by the real power behind Eastan.

2. Wait for a rift between the real power and their backer.

3. Recruit one side and take down the other. Then, devour them both.

The real power in Eastan was likely the Seven Kill Squad.

And their backer, he had assumed, was one of the trading companies.

He just hadn’t been certain that it was Claire’s Harold Trading Company.

Moreover,

‘I never expected Claire to come here herself.’

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!

The knocking grew increasingly intense.

And yet Lloyd remained still, lost in thought.

The plan was still on track.

The real power and the backer had been separated; now all that was left was to take down the Seven Kill Squad.

And Claire was the head of the trading company.

Securing her would be a huge boon to Lloyd’s plan.

But…

— Finally, the opportunity has come, Lloyd. Do you hear it? That desperate knocking? She’s practically begging for it.

The problem was Lloyd himself.

To be precise, it was the seed of disaster rooted deep in his heart.

— She’s begging you to strangle her. She’s standing there outside that door, desperately hoping you’ll do it. What will you do? Will you let this chance slip by? No. Revenge is sweet. I know that better than anyone.

Can he handle it?

Can he suppress the desire for revenge as he looks at Claire?

Can he avoid giving Ortega control?

— Hurry and open the door. Feel it. Feel the revenge boiling up inside you. You can’t just stand by and watch the girl who cut you down!

Grit.

Lloyd bit his lower lip.

Like I’d lose.

He had already erased his former comrades from his heart.

To him, they were no longer human.

They were nothing more than pawns, or mannequins.

Revenge…

Even revenge was too much for them to deserve. He had realized that.

Thinking this way helped him suppress his emotions.

— It’s not wise to run from your feelings. They’ll explode one day. That day, you’ll hand your body over to me…

Click.

Lloyd took out the bottle of medicine. He popped two sedatives into his mouth.

Crunch, crunch.

The unpleasant sensation of chewing the bitter powder was accompanied by Ortega’s voice fading into the distance.

The sound from outside had become plaintive.

— I have a request. Please… Please accept my request. It’s all my fault. So, just this once… I’ll give you anything… Just this once… My request…

Creak.

Without a word, Lloyd opened the door.

A few passersby were watching.

He had to lower his gaze to find the source of the voice.

"Just this once… I brought… a lot of money… huh?"

The floor, which hadn’t been cleaned in a while, wasn’t exactly spotless.

There, Claire was lying on the ground.

Her face was a mess.

Her dress was dirty.

In that state, Claire looked up at him, her lips moving soundlessly like a goldfish.

"Are you a client?"

"I… uh… well…"

Was she really in such a state that she couldn’t even answer a simple question?

Claire didn’t seem to be in a normal condition.

"If not, I’m closing the door. I’d appreciate it if you stopped making a scene. There are a lot of eyes on us."

Lloyd coldly pointed to the street.

The passersby who had been watching as if something were happening.

In the past, he might have felt some sympathy, but Lloyd’s voice was as cold as ice.

Claire’s shoulders flinched.

"I-I mean, I came to… to make a request. Is… is this…"

"Are you here to make a request, or are you looking for someone?"

"Th-that… that…!"

Claire’s eyes trembled violently.

She had no way of knowing who Lloyd had possessed. Was the boy standing before her really Lee Han? That question kept swirling around in Claire’s mind, throwing her into confusion.

His way of speaking was similar to Lee Han’s.

But the way he treated her, and his voice, were different from Lee Han’s. His voice was cold, unbearably cold.

"I-I’m here to make a request…"

Did Claire lack the courage to ask if he was Lee Han?

"Come in."

Lloyd coldly invited her in.

Bang.

The door slammed shut, scattering the attention of the passersby.

Lloyd led her to the room with the counter.

Yulia and the village chief, who had been staring blankly at the scene, tactfully excused themselves and stepped outside.

"Sit here."

"Y-yes."

Claire sat down, her eyes half-vacant.

Lloyd brewed some tea and brought it over.

He glanced at Claire.

She was sitting with her head down, fidgeting with her fingers. Then, as if making up her mind, she clenched her fists.

She raised her head, briefly meeting his eyes, only to look away before once again looking up with a voice to match.

"Um… um!"

Whatever emotion she was feeling, it didn’t reach Lloyd. Even if Claire realized that he was Lee Han, it wouldn’t change anything.

So, without waiting for her to speak, Lloyd placed the teacup on the table.

"Drink some tea."

"Oh… yes. Yes. Thank you."

Claire brought the teacup to her lips.

And a moment later,

Drip, drip, drip.

Tears fell into her teacup.

"You… you really are Lee Han."