CH 55

“……Tired?”

“Yeah. Think about it. Who wouldn’t get tired of the person you’re in love with pretending not to know when it’s so obvious, and not accepting you when you confess?”

Jerome’s words spilled out like a rapid-fire cannonball before Herwin had a chance to interrupt.

“So the childhood friend finally gave up on her crush and took a fiancé, and she’s not doing it just to make him jealous.”

Herwin thought of Lucia. She certainly didn’t seem to have gotten into the date for the sake of jealousy.

“That’s one thing, but what’s wrong with my friend?”

“What?”

Herwin looked up from his thoughts, and Jerome put his hands on his hips in frustration.

“Why are you bothering with that boy now?”

“That’s…….”

“He doesn’t have some garbage idea that he doesn’t want to keep it, or that it’s a waste to give his childhood friend to someone else, does he?”

Herwin, who was choked up after hearing Jerome’s words, screamed.

“That’s impossible!”

“Surprise…! Why are you shouting at me? I’m not even saying this to you.”

Jerome stepped back, and Herwin wiped a hand across his face.

“It’s not ……anyway, so don’t talk to me like that.”

“Okay, okay, then tell me where your friend is confused.”

“I mean…….”

In a groggy voice, Herwin rattled off the thoughts he’d been hearing.

He started with how he didn’t like Lucia’s fiancé, how she was avoiding him, how she hadn’t told him she’d stood up to him, and so on.

Jerome’s expression grew shaky as he continued.

“……that’s why it happened.”

“Hmm… I’m asking just in case, but your friend doesn’t like his childhood friend, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Really, you’re not lying, you’re sure?”

“Yes. Why do you keep asking me that…….”

“It seems to me that your friend has feelings for his childhood friend.”

Herwin stopped in mid-sentence, his mouth hanging open.

Jerome continued as if he didn’t know who the friend was, even though he was well aware that it was Herwin.

“Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense to care about his childhood friend now. Besides, you said he didn’t like the fiance of his childhood friend. Did he behave rudely? Or is he a person with a bad reputation?”

“No. I don’t think so…….”

“Well, then, it’s clear: your friend has feelings for his childhood friend, 100%!”

“But…….”

Jerome sighed softly as Herwin looked confused, unconvinced.

“Is it strange to like a childhood friend? Why can’t you take it like that?”

Herwin pursed his lips, then finally spoke.

“That’s because… he has a crush.”

“What? Master, do you have a crush on…! No! No, no. Your friend likes someone?”

Jerome stumbled over his words and hastily rephrased them, but Herwin was too stunned to realize his mistake.

“Uh.”

“Then that explains why he didn’t accept the childhood friend…….”

“He didn’t accept her because he has a crush on someone else.”

Herwin’s low voice didn’t sound like a lie. Jerome’s mouth dropped open in shock at this new revelation, then slowly closed.

“Then I don’t understand even more.”

Jerome’s playful, high-pitched voice dropped sharply. He wiped the smile off his face and looked at Herwin seriously.

“If he has a crush on someone else, why does he care about his childhood friend and he doesn’t like that fiance? If he doesn’t care, it’s normal to support his childhood friend when she gets engaged to someone nice.”

Herwin didn’t have an easy answer. His eyes widened as if he’d been hit in the head.

“If his childhood friend doesn’t seem to be a reason, just tell him to stay still while cheering. No matter how confused he is, he won’t be as much as his childhood friend.”

Jerome’s face loosened and he made an incredulous expression.

“But are you sure he has someone else he like? I think he likes his childhood friend.”

“……….”

Herwin didn’t open his mouth. He was deep in thought, and Jerome remained silent until he was brought back to reality.

Herwin remained unmoving in his seat for a long time.

* * *

Lucia shook off her nervousness and followed behind Viscountess Leyran, who was leading the way.

Lucia was currently at a tea party hosted by Viscountess Leyran.

Viscountess Leyran was one of the newest members of the rising nobility, and she had been asked by Bern to attend.

As she followed her into the glasshouse, colorful flowers bloomed in abundance, and there were a few people more precious than the flowers.

Among the guests at this party were not only married people who wielded great influence in social circles but also unmarried women who, like Lucia, were in the position of fiancée.

When Viscountess Leyran and Lucia appeared, everyone turned to look at them as one.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I have invited someone very special to join us today.”

At Viscountess Leyran’s introduction, Lucia lifted the hem of her skirt and bowed.

“Nice to meet you, my name is Lucia Agnes.”

There was a small round of applause, some welcoming her, some whispering and talking about her.

“Agnes. Wasn’t it time for young Agnes to join this social circle already?”

“Haven’t you heard, she’s engaged to be married to the Marquis of Casper this month?”

“My goodness, the Marquis of Casper? I seem to recall that many young ladies aspired to the marquisate. I am surprised to hear that it would be Agnes.”

“That’s because, from the sounds of it, they met through a rivalry.”

As usual, they were more focused on the fact that she was the Marquis of Casper’s fiancée than on Lucia herself.

This was to be expected, so Lucia kept her composure.

She sat down in the last empty seat, feeling the stares and comments.

“I was wondering who the victorious lady would be who would claim the Marquis of Casper, and you are Lady Agnes.”

A lady came to Lucia’s side, as charismatic as she pretended to be, and as feisty as she was, she didn’t hide her curiosity.

“Victorious lady. You’re being flattering.”

Lucia smiled awkwardly.

When Julian had told her about Bern’s reputation, she’d thought she thought highly of him, but now she realized she wasn’t lying at all.

If anything, the enthusiasm of the crowd made Lucia realize that maybe Bern was more popular than she thought.

“No. Can’t you see the other youngsters gawking at you in the distance?”

Lucia turned her head to follow the woman’s eyes and saw a group of women in their early twenties glaring at her with jealousy.

Lucia was embarrassed, and the woman next to her laughed.

“Hahaha, you really didn’t realize, you’re going to get that kind of envy and jealousy in the future.”

“……I can’t help it, it’s not my fault that my fiancé is so good, shouldn’t I just live with it as my fate?”

“Fate. Well, you’d have to be pretty determined to get a nice guy as a spouse.”

The lady laughed as if she liked Lucia’s answer.

After that, she spoke to Lucia steadily, and after a few awkward moments, Lucia soon caught on.

Apparently, the lady was one of the centerpieces of the tea party here, because as soon as she spoke to her, people came up to her and tried to join in the conversation.

And, to her credit, if someone asked a question that she didn’t like, Lucia cut them off before they could respond.

This allowed her to have an unauthorized tea party without hurting feelings.

After a while, when she was tired of dealing with people, Lucia found a good excuse and got up from her seat.

She walked for a while through the garden, away from the crowds.

“I’m getting a little tired.”

She’d been in the social scene for a while, but this was the first time she’d really taken the plunge.

No wonder she’d avoided interacting with others and kept to her close circle of friends.

Rustle.

Just then, a woman appeared from behind, accompanied by a relative. She recognized the face from the tea party gathering.

Scarlet hair and deep green eyes. And the tiny freckles on her face made her look youthful and attractive.

Lucia recognized her face, but she had never spoken to her before, so there was an awkward silence.

As she pondered whether she should make the first move, the woman suddenly strode toward her.

“You must be Lady Lucia Agnes, right?”

She was so close that Lucia took an involuntary step back.

“I am Lucia Agnes, yes… but who are you?”

Lucia stammered, and the woman, who had been fidgeting impatiently, came to her senses and bowed her head.

“Ah. I’m sorry. I didn’t tell you my name yet. I’m Celine Jay…no, Romario.”

As if on cue, Celine suddenly corrected her last name. Just when she thought it was odd, she approached again.

“Hey, I wanted to ask you something……!”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Unlike her bold approach, her mouth twitched and she didn’t speak easily. The trembling of her lips was visible.

Then Celine closed her eyes tightly and opened them, gathering her courage.

“Are you sure you are the fiancée of Marquis Casper?”

The question was so outrageous that Lucia frowned despite herself.

Most of them there know that Lucia is Bern’s fiancée.

Even if they didn’t, they would have heard the conversations at the tea party today, and they couldn’t see the point in asking about her engagement in front of the entire party.

Like the other young ladies at the beginning of the tea party, Celine seemed to be pleased that Lucia had become Bern’s fiancée, but unlike their eyes, which were filled with envy or jealousy, she was nervous.

Anxiety, nervousness, sadness, and a tiny bit of hope. Emotions she couldn’t quite comprehend at this point.

“I’m not doubting you, young lady, I’m just wondering if you’re officially engaged to the Marquis…….”

Celine stammered, realizing that even for her, it was an absurd question.

She didn’t know why she was asking, but she knew she wasn’t being vindictive.

So Lucia spoke honestly.

“Yes, that’s right. I am engaged to be married to Bern.”

Celine’s green eyes shook, her agitation showing through her skin.

“We’re not officially engaged yet, but I’m sure we’ll have a wedding someday.”

“……….”

“Is that an answer?”

Celine’s face contorted as if she were about to cry, her mouth pursed. There was something familiar about her expression, Lucia realized at once.

‘You like Bern.’

Celine was her old self. The same despair she’d felt when she’d realized Herwin liked Arista. She could feel it in Celine.

Lucia decided to stay away, for her sake and her own. This meeting wasn’t going to help anyone.

As Lucia turned away, Celine grabbed her.

Celine’s eyes were now watery, and she found it difficult to speak to Lucia despite her hold on her.

Finally, after a long moment, Lucia spoke up.

“Is there anything else you want to ask me?”

“I mean… do you think Bern will say anything about me…….”

Celine didn’t get to finish her sentence. She loosened her grip on Lucia’s arm.

“Oh, no, I’m not… please forget what I… what I said.”

Celine hung her head so low that her face was invisible.

Lucia could see a droplet of water trickling down the back of her scarlet hair, but she tried her best to ignore it.

She felt uncomfortable as if she had unintentionally hurt someone.

Moreover, it was uncomfortable to see echoes of her past self in her.

Lucia reached for Celine’s hand and paused.

Part of her wanted to offer her a little comfort, but she knew her gesture would send a different message to Celine.

Lucia eventually withdrew her hand and started walking away.

She heard a small sob behind her.