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Cinderella and Her Three Knights のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 11 - チャプター 20

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Chapter 11: Company’s Dinner

Ella’s POVBreakfast didn’t end with a bang.It ended with chairs scraping back and people slowly peeling away from the table, like everyone had somewhere else they would rather be.Adrian stood first.He checked his watch, then his phone, then his watch again.“I’ll be late tonight,” he said, voice firm, clipped, already halfway gone.No one replied.He adjusted his cufflinks, picked up his briefcase, and walked out like the house itself bent around his schedule.The door shut softly behind him.Julian stayed a little longer.He turned another page of his book, sipped his coffee, then finally closed it like he was sealing away a thought.“Gallery meeting,” he said, standing. “There’s a piece arriving today that refuses to be easy.”Evan, slumped dramatically in his chair, groaned.“Everything refuses to be easy with you.”Julian smiled. “And yet, I manage.”His eyes found mine.“You okay?” he asked gently.I nodded. “Yes.”He studied me for a second longer, like he was checking for c

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Chapter 12: The Illegitimate Heir Revealed

Ella’s POVI stepped back into the heart of the party, the music soft and expensive, the laughter carefully measured. Nothing here was accidental. Not the lighting. Not the smiles. Not the way people stood close enough to hear secrets but far enough to deny it later.Adrian was still surrounded by men in tailored suits, his posture perfect, his laugh brief and controlled.Julian stood a little apart, deep in conversation with two collectors, his expression calm, attentive, giving nothing away.Evan was impossible to miss—grinning for photos, signing programs, leaning in close to fans like he had known them his whole life.And Lucian—Lucian was in the corner.Alone.He leaned against a marble pillar, one shoulder pressed into stone, drink in hand. He didn’t talk. Didn’t smile. Didn’t pretend. He just watched the room like it was something he had already conquered and grown bored of.I looked away first.I moved toward a table near the edge of the hall, needing air, needing space. A gr

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Chapter 13: Private Dinner and Hotel Room Key Card

Ella’s POVI hesitated for only a second before getting into the car.The door shut with a quiet, final sound that made my chest tighten. Adrian didn’t look at me as he pulled away from the curb, the city lights sliding across the windshield like streaks of gold.We drove in silence.At first, I thought nothing of it. The night had been long. My body was tired. My head even more so. But after several turns, something tugged at my awareness.“This isn’t the way back to the estate,” I said carefully.Adrian’s hands tightened slightly on the wheel. “No.”I waited.“Where are we going?” I asked.His jaw flexed. “You’ll see.”The words were calm. Controlled. Final.The city thinned as we drove, buildings giving way to wider roads, fewer streetlights. My fingers twisted together in my lap. I considered insisting. I considered asking again.Instead, I watched the road.When the car finally slowed, it was in front of a restaurant that looked like it belonged in a magazine—soft amber lights, v

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Chapter 14: Escaped Rape

Ella’s POVI slid into the back seat of the cab like I was running from something that might still grab my ankle.“Estate address,” I said quickly.The driver nodded and pulled away.My hands wouldn’t stop shaking.I pressed them together in my lap, forcing my breathing to slow—four counts in, six counts out—but my heart refused to listen. It kept racing, pounding against my ribs like it wanted out.My phone buzzed.I flinched before looking.Chairman’s Secretary.I answered on the second ring. “Hello?”Her voice was calmer now, professional, but edged with concern. “Ella, I’m sorry if I startled you earlier. I just wanted to make sure everything was alright.”“Yes,” I said too fast, then corrected myself. “Yes—everything’s fine. I’m sorry about the beeps. My phone was acting up. I didn’t mean to worry you.”A pause.“I see,” she said. “You sounded… rushed.”“I was,” I replied, choosing my words carefully. “I stepped out briefly and realized I needed to return to the estate. Nothing s

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Chapter 15: Weekend Exercise

Ella’s POVI woke up slowly, the kind of waking that feels like you are being pulled out of water instead of sleep. My eyes opened, but my body stayed still. The ceiling above me looked the same as always—white, perfect, untouched—yet I felt different inside it.It was the weekend.That thought came with no excitement. Just awareness.My body ached in places I didn’t expect. My calves were sore, my shoulders stiff, my back tight. Maybe it was from the heels the night before. Maybe it was from running too much. Or maybe it was from everything I kept carrying inside me and refusing to put down.I rolled onto my side and stared at the wall, memories lining up without permission.Adrian’s voice in the car.The way the hotel receptionist smiled like she already knew the ending of the story.The elevator doors closing.Lucian’s eyes on the balcony.Julian’s laugh over ice cream.I pressed my lips together and pushed myself upright.I was here. I was safe. The door was locked. The house was

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Chapter 16: The Quiet Lines of Power

Ella's POV After the exercise ended, everyone slowly drifted apart.There was no formal dismissal. No announcement that it was over. It just… dissolved. Like smoke after fire. People laughed, stretched one last time, wiped sweat from their faces. The staff returned to their duties, already talking about breakfast and schedules.I stayed seated on the grass for a while longer, my legs stretched out in front of me, my palms pressed behind me for support. My chest still rose and fell heavily, but the ache felt good. Honest.Julian offered me a bottle of water.“Drink,” he said. “You did great.”“Thanks,” I replied, taking it. My voice came out softer than I expected.Across the lawn, Adrian was already speaking with the chairman. Their heads bent slightly toward each other, voices low, serious. It looked natural. Familiar. Like something they had done all their lives.Lucian stood a few steps away from them.Not included.He wiped sweat from his neck with a towel, eyes distant, posture

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Chapter 17: Quiet Lessons

Ella’s POVBy the third week, I understood something important about the Blackwood house.Nothing loud mattered.It wasn’t the raised voices or the arguments that decided things here. It was the pauses. The silences. The moments when someone chose not to speak. That was where the real power lived.I learned that by watching.That morning, I sat at the far end of the breakfast table with a cup of tea slowly cooling between my hands. I wasn’t really drinking it. I was listening.Adrian spoke first, as usual. His voice was smooth, confident, like he owned the air around him.“We’ll be restructuring some internal roles,” he said, cutting into his toast. “Efficiency matters now more than ever.”Julian hummed in response, eyes still on the book he was reading. “Efficiency can mean many things.”Evan yawned loudly. “It can also mean you want more control.”Adrian’s jaw tightened for half a second. Just half. Then he smiled. “You’re free to interpret it however you want.”Lucian didn’t speak

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Chapter 18: Tensed Atmosphere in the Black wood Estate

Ella’s POVBreakfast was quieter than usual the next morning.Julian read the news on his tablet, calm as always. Evan scrolled through his phone, grinning at something only he could see. Adrian sat at the head of the table, immaculate, already dressed for work, cufflinks aligned perfectly.Lucian arrived last.He didn’t greet anyone. He didn’t sit immediately. He poured himself coffee, black, then leaned against the counter instead of taking a seat.That alone was enough.Adrian noticed.“You’re late,” Adrian said mildly.Lucian shrugged. “Didn’t know we were keeping score.”Evan snorted into his juice. Julian’s eyes flicked up briefly, then back down.Adrian’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Discipline matters. Especially in this house.”Lucian took a slow sip of coffee. “Funny. I thought results mattered more.”The air shifted.I kept my gaze on my plate, heart thudding. This wasn’t an argument. Not yet. It was a test of presence. Of dominance.Adrian stood. “I’ll be at the office al

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Chapter 19: Adrian Ex-Wife Visit

Ella’s POVI took one step toward the door.“I should go,” I said, keeping my voice low, careful. “You clearly have company.”Miranda’s eyes followed me, slow and deliberate, like I was something she’d spotted on the bottom of her shoe.“Oh,” she said lightly, stepping into my path without touching me, forcing me to stop. “You don’t need to rush. Adrian has always had a habit of… entertaining.”Her gaze dropped—not to my face, but to my clothes. The cardigan. The thin nightdress beneath it. Her mouth curved, not quite a smile.“I suppose this is what passes for discretion now,” she added, adjusting her bracelet. Gold. Heavy. Intentional. “Staff wandering into private rooms at night.”“I’m not staff,” I said, quietly but firmly.She tilted her head, studying me as if I’d just said something amusing. “No?” Her eyes flicked briefly to Adrian. “That’s interesting.”Adrian didn’t correct her.That silence landed harder than any insult.Miranda stepped aside at last, not fully clearing the

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Chapter 20: Early morning chaos

Ella’s POVThe morning after Miranda’s visit arrived too calmly, like nothing had happened at all.I woke to the soft hum of the estate coming alive—doors opening, footsteps moving with purpose, the low murmur of staff greeting one another. Sunlight filtered through my curtains, warm and ordinary, and for a brief moment I wondered if the night before had been some exaggerated dream my mind had created out of fear and exhaustion.But it hadn’t been a dream.When I stepped out of my room, the house already felt different. Not louder. Not quieter. Just…watchful.At breakfast, Adrian sat at the head of the table as usual, dressed sharply despite it being early. His expression was neutral, unreadable. If I hadn’t known better, I would have thought nothing unusual had ever occurred between us. He didn’t look at me longer than necessary. He didn’t speak to me directly. He didn’t acknowledge the summons to his room from the night before, as if it had never happened.That silence felt delibera

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