Tia was serious when she said she would visit often.
âSister, Iâm here!â
Indeed, she visited frequently.
In fact, she had visited the Grand Duchy so often that even the servants had grown tired of seeing her. But even so, being around Tia made me uneasy.
Despite her friendly demeanor and familiar face, she made me feel uneasy.
Tia was so sweet and kind to me that I felt guilty about feeling this way about her.
Even so, her kindness made me uneasy. I was already having trouble sleeping because of Grand Duke Estin, but Tia Bluea made me even more tired and nervous.
I canât, however, tell her to stop coming.
Every time she visits the Grand Duchy, Tia greets Grand Duke Estin first, who is unconscious.
By his side, she chattered like a bird, offering simple greetings and remarking on how cool the Grand Duke was even with his eyes closed. She also expressed her desire to see him again.
Itâs not easy to do that to someone who doesnât respond. I thought she was amazing.
Naturally, Tiaâs behavior in engaging in a monologue with Grand Duke Estin as soon as she arrived did not rub over well with the people of the Grand Duchy.
But at this point, it was too late to stop her. Since her first visit, Tia had behaved in this way.
When Tia first came to âplay,â she abruptly vanished, leaving me and the servants desperately searching for her.
We couldnât find her anywhere. Turns out she was in Grand Duke Estinâs bedroom. When asked why she was there, Tia blinked and said,
âThe castle was so beautiful that I got lost looking around.â
âLetâs get you back. I was worried you might have gotten lost.â
âUncle is really cool, by the way. He is known as the ice flower, am I correct?â
âYes, shall we go?â
âSure. He looks so lonelyâ¦â¦.â
Tia clapped her hands after gazing at Grand Duke Estinâs face for a while and said,
âPerhaps I can visit him occasionally and speak with him!â
It had become a firm custom.
âI really donât like it.â
Today, Theodore noticed Tia, who was quietly greeting Grand Duke Estin with a small voice from outside the door.
To his relief or dismay, Tia didnât seem to hear him at all, even though he didnât bother to lower his voice.
âIs she causing you any harm?â
I was taken aback by the sudden question and turned to face Theodore.
âWhy are you acting so surprised? There must be something.â
âNo, Iâm just shocked that you asked me that out of the blue,â
Iâm not really sure.
âI donâtâ¦â¦.â
âThink carefully. Has she ever done anything strange to you?â
âSheâs been kind to meâ¦â
Theodore questioned me in a dubious manner.
While Theodore openly displayed his animosity toward Tia, Gilbert and Aiden were friendly but kept their distance.
If she made even the slightest error, he was prepared to kick out her. Unfortunately, as Iâve already mentioned, Tia Bluea was extremely kind to me.
âSister, you really resemble a cat.â
âWhat?â
âThe way your eyelashes rise up like that.â
âAh, I seem a little intimidating, donât I?â
âNo! You look cute.â
She smiled, her eyes gleaming as she praised my appearance, but I couldnât help but feel uneasy.
I was constantly suspecting Tia Bluea was Jung Seulbi, so hearing her compliment about my cat-like eyes made me uneasy.
Thatâs because she always told me that having cat-like eyes was bad luck when I was Ha Sohee.
Are you Jung Seulbi or not?
In order to ask her directly if she was Jung Seulbi or not, I had to admit that I had memories of a previous life.
They might think Iâm strange if Tia isnât Jung Seulbi, and if she is, Tiaâs amiable demeanor toward me would change.
Jung Seulbi is a taxing foe. In this circumstance, confronting her was exhausting.
I have to be careful about how I handle this.
However, Tia Blueâs every move bothered me.
âIâve heard youâre engaged to the Second Prince, Sister.â
âOh, yes.â
âThatâs fantastic, so perhaps one day youâll rule as an empress?â
âIâm not sure about thatâ¦. Thereâs also the first prince.â
âOh, I see, but you never know.â
She seemed to know a lot about me, and I couldnât help but wonder if she was just interested in getting to know me or if she had ulterior motives.
âSomethingâs bothering you too, huh?â
âWhat?â
âThe way you say, âSheâs been nice to meâ¦â¦..'â
Theodoreâs sharp point made me to shut up again.
I turned away because Theodoreâs gaze made me feel uneasy, but his eyes twinkled as if he had just met a comrade.
âYou canât lose to someone like that.â
âI wonâtâ¦â
âDonât forget that this is your territory.â
âYes, yes.â
âYouâre surprisingly weak in strange situations.â
âIâm tough,â
âLike Duke Blueaâs home education?â
The thought made me chuckle. I tried to return to my room, but Theodore pursued me.
âI wasnât joking.â
âI also wasnât joking.â
âProve it if youâre tough; try to drive Tia Bluea out in some way, Mary Conler.â
âHow can I do that?â
âTry to find some mistakes or somethingâ¦â
âSister!â
Tia ran over and separated us as Theodore spoke to me in hushed tones.
âBrother, how are you doing today? Will you play with me today?â
Tia grabbed Theodoreâs sleeve and whined, unconcerned by his expression.
Although Tiaâs figure was quite adorable, Theodore alternated between staring at her face and her hand, which was still cold and firm.
âNo.â
He abruptly shook off her hand after that and vanished.
âOh, heâs so cute.â
ââ¦â¦What?â
Despite how bold Tia Bluea may be, she must have felt a little hurt, but she said something unexpected. Where was the cuteness in this string of events?
âIs he embarrassed because heâs never met a girl other than big sis Mary?â
âIs that so?â
âHe doesnât need to be conscious!â
I couldnât think of anything to say back, so I just stood there. Sigh.
Oh, Iâm so tired. I just wanted to go back to my room and take a nap, but I had Tia to take care of.
Recently, Gilbert and Aiden have been overly busy, and Theodore has been extremely hostile.
Tia appears to be avoiding Rex a littleâ¦â¦
Rex, it seemed, didnât care about Tia at all. He didnât like her, but he also didnât dislike her.
Do I say that itâs a relief. If Rex has an antipathy to Duke Bluea due to Tia, he might become corrupted againâ¦
Oh, by the way, what should I do with Tia today?
âSister, letâs have tea in the garden today!â
âShall we? Then Iâll tell Bonitaâ¦â¦.â
âOh, Iâve already asked them all for a favor.â
âWhatâ¦â
âRefreshments!â
Oh, this is a little uncomfortable.
âIâm so excited to spend time with my sister. Since Iâm going to eat it with you, I told them to make it deliciousâ¦â¦.â
âTia Bluea.â
âWhat?â
I stopped walking and called Tiaâs name in a low voice. She looked back at me with a puzzled expression.
âI donât think this is right.â
âHuh? Sis, do you not want tea today?â
âNo, itâs not that.â
âThen why?â
âI believe it is only right that I make arrangements for that.â
Tiaâs smiling face hardened slightly.
I caught the subtle change and hesitated a bit, but I knew I had to say what needed to be said, remembering Theodoreâs words, âRemember, this is your territory.â
âIn any case, Tia is a visitor, so I believe it is only fair that I make arrangements for her.â
âUh, I feel so comfortable here as if itâs my houseâ¦â¦.â
âItâs as comfortable as your house, but this is not your house.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âTia Bluea.â
When I pronounced Bluea with emphasis, she bit her lips firmly.
Tia, who had been thinking about something for a while, smiled brightly as she raised her head again.
âI was wrong!â
ââ¦â¦please exercise caution from now on.â
My heart was racing, despite the fact that it was only a light warning.
I canât believe I warned someone who resembled Jung Seulbi. Tia repeatedly apologized to me, but I covered her mouth and told her it was fine now.
She apologized excessively, but it didnât seem genuine.
By the time Tia and I arrived at the garden, tea was already all set.
I wondered if it was okay to drink tea so peacefully while Grand Duke Estin was lying like that.
Sighing heavily, I turned to go to the table where refreshments were waiting, but Tia interrupted me.
âActually, sis, I never thought I was a Dukeâs daughter.â
âOhâ¦.â
âSo I feel a little unfair at the times I didnât know that.â
âThatâs possible.â
âLike, all I had to do was say the word, and everything would be ready for me, and I could wear these pretty clothes and live in this nice mansion.â
Yeah, that could happen.
I suddenly realized that Tiaâs mom was a wandering dancer. Yeah, it must have been tough wandering around.
âI could have been friends with you too if I had resided in Conler Castle like Rex.â
ââ¦â¦.â
I felt uncomfortable with the sudden mention of Rex.
âItâs not fair. Rex has blonde hair, not black like the rest of us.â