CH 58

<CHAPTER 58

“Lucia!”

Arista, who had a puzzled look on her face when she saw Bern, widened her face when she saw Lucia appear behind him.

Lucia looked nervously at Arista, who approached her, and at Herwin, who stood there.

She hadn’t expected to see them in this place.

“What are you doing here, are you…on a date?”

Arista whispered, glancing at Bern. Lucia wasn’t sure how to answer.

She’d been on a few dates with Bern, but she wasn’t sure if she could call this one a date since she’d only gone shopping with him today so he could pick out a gift for Tiana.

As Lucia hesitated to answer, Bern spoke up next to her.

“Yes, it is. Lucia helped me with something important today.”

“Oh, I see.”

Though they didn’t say it explicitly, Arista and Herwin assumed the two were dating.

Herwin, frozen, finally broke his expression and made a move.

As he approached, Lucia unconsciously grabbed Bern’s arm.

Bern sensed Lucia’s tension and glanced at her.

“So what are you two doing here? Surely you didn’t just stumble into this shop together.”

Lucia’s question caught Arista slightly off guard.

“Oh, it’s…….”

“Arista and I promised to go shopping today.”

Herwin replied on Arista’s behalf.

She was surprised to see them together, but it was exactly what Lucia expected.

However, the blow hit harder than expected, and Lucia tightened her grip on Bern.

Unlike her honest hands, Lucia’s face didn’t change a bit.

“So, what were you trying to buy then?”

“Uh, yeah.”

It was a normal conversation like any other, but somehow the atmosphere was chilly. Arista, who was sweating profusely in the stifling air, spoke with deliberate exaggeration.

“We were just getting in, too. Do you want to take a look around if you don’t mind?”

“I’m fine, but… Bern, do you mind?”

Bern looked at Lucia with a smile. Lucia looked at Arista and Herwin and whispered something only he could hear.

“If you’re uncomfortable, we can go somewhere else.”

Even if he didn’t mean to, it was clear that he was uncomfortable in the company of his prospective fiancée’s friends.

“It’s okay, I’ll take this opportunity to get to know Lucia’s friends.”

Lucia couldn’t help but feel grateful for Bern’s gentle response.

Meanwhile, Arista, who had been watching the two of them, was intrigued to see that Bern cared so much for Lucia. Herwin, however, merely wrinkled the bridge of his nose.

The four of them looked around the store in earnest.

“These are nice.”

As they looked at the items on the shelves, Arista pointed to a pair of earrings.

They weren’t fancy, but their simplicity was appealing.

“These would look good on you.”

“They’re pretty, but they’re blue topaz, so I don’t know if they’ll look good with me.”

Arista stared at the earrings for a long time, frowning.

Finally, a frustrated Herwin called an employee to retrieve the earrings. He then placed one of the earrings in Arista’s ear.

Because he was so personable, it matched Arista.

“See, it looks good.”

“Really?”

Her ears perked up, and Arista took the earring from Herwin’s hand and examined herself in the mirror.

Something still didn’t look right, so she called Lucia, who was nearby.

“Lucia, what do you think?”

Lucia, who had been watching Arista and Herwin, snapped out of her reverie. There was a glow in the otherwise empty walls.

“Huh?”

“Do I look good in this? I can’t even tell.”

Lucia studied Arista for a moment. Despite wearing a plain shirt and tattered pants, her beauty hadn’t faded.

If anything, she looked more beautiful than ever, which made her mouth bitter.

“Yes, it suits you. You’ll look good with anything.”

“Oh, lie. Don’t bother floating me.”

“I’m not lying, ah……!”

Lucia let out a short squeal as she suddenly remembered something.

“Come to think of it, Herwin. Didn’t you buy Arista a present last time?”

The last time she had been here with Herwin, he had bought her what he assumed to be women’s jewelry.

Herwin looked puzzled, unable to understand Lucia’s words.

“Why, the last time you came here with me, you bought some women’s jewelry. Weren’t you buying it for Arista?”

Finally realizing what Lucia was talking about, Herwin’s face hardened, first in surprise, then in disbelief.

It was so cold that Lucia flinched, wondering if she had made a mistake.

“You bought me a gift? I never got anything like that.”

Herwin’s mouth twitched as Arista looked on in bewilderment. Then he sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck.

“It’s not like that. I bought it, of course… but I didn’t buy it for you, Arista.”

“Well, then who did you buy it for?”

Arista’s question made Herwin look at Lucia. But she didn’t seem to know anything.

His red eyes fluttered slightly, but he clamped his mouth shut when he saw Bern approaching Lucia.

“… … Yes, something like that”

“It’s bland.”

Unlike Arista, who had quickly lost interest, Lucia clenched her fists and held them to her chest.

Her face was a picture of confusion.

‘Not Arista?’

The only people Herwin would give it to would be his mother, Scarlett, or Arista, so who was he giving it to?

No matter how much he thought about it, she couldn’t come up with an answer.

“Lucia.”

Lucia looked up at the sound of a voice calling her name. Bern, who had been elsewhere, was now approaching.

“Wait, will you come with me?”

“What?”

Lucia hesitantly took his hand and followed him.

He led her to a display of necklaces made of various precious stones.

An employee on the other side of the counter offered them a necklace. Bern took it and gently placed it around Lucia’s neck.

“Mmm, it looks good on you.”

“And this one, …….”

“Do you like it?”

When Lucia, who did not understand Bern’s behavior, was embarrassed, Bern grinned.

“I’d like to repay you for helping me today, is that okay?”

“What?”

As Lucia screamed in surprise, Arista and Herwin’s eyes were on the two.

“Oh, no, I didn’t ask for anything like this…….”

“I know, I just wanted to do it for you.”

Lucia fidgeted, glancing back and forth between Bern and the necklace in his hand.

“Still, this is too much…….”

“You didn’t like it, did you?”

At Bern’s question, Lucia examined the necklace closely. It was a neatly cut emerald on a thin gold band.

It was a design that could be worn for any occasion.

“It’s …… it’s pretty.”

“Okay, then.”

Without another word, Bern asked an employee to wrap the necklace. As Lucia shuffled her feet, Bern put his hand on her head.

“Please accept this, it will make me feel better.”

Lucia rolled her eyes but finally nodded. Bern patted her on the head as if she were a good girl and headed for the register.

Left alone, Lucia ran a cold hand through her hair. Just then, Arista and Herwin approached.

“……What was that just now?”

“Sounded like he was buying something.”

Unlike Herwin, who sank low, Arista’s voice was full of curiosity.

Lucia, still unable to take her eyes off of Bern, mumbled in a daze.

“He bought me a necklace.”

“Oh, really?”

Behind a cheering Arista, Herwin frowned.

He looked at Lucia, who was stunned at the time and put his hand on his chest.

‘What’s wrong…….?’

Obviously, he had decided that he didn’t like Lucia and that he wanted her to succeed with Marquis Casper.

Not even half a day later, he was shaken.

His heart, which he thought was unbreakable, began to clog up again. It wasn’t just a blockage, it felt like a big lump in his throat.

If he were, to be honest about what he was feeling right now,

“……it bothers me.”

“Huh? What did you just say?”

Herwin’s muttering made Lucia turn around.

Herwin’s eyes fluttered as he saw his reflection in the sky-blue walls.

He pursed his lips, then clenched his fists.

“No, nothing.”

Lucia shook her head, then realized that Bern had finished paying and hurried over to him.

When she was gone, Arista stole a glance at the one next to her.

Herwin was watching the two of them, talking softly and shyly.

Unlike Lucia, who didn’t hear him, Arista heard him clearly. And the way he was looking at her now.

Arista tore her gaze away from Herwin and looked at Lucia and Bern.

Somehow, she knew what he was feeling.

“Guys, we’re done. Did you guys buy anything?”

Lucia came over with Bern.

“No, I’m not buying.”

“I don’t have anything to buy either.”

Arista and Herwin shook their heads as they decided not to buy anything.

With all their errands completed, they left the store.

By now, the sun had begun to tilt and the sky was beginning to turn a golden color.

“I can’t believe what time it is already.”

“It’ll be 6:00 in a little while, right?”

Fifteen minutes from now, it would be 6:00. Just as he was contemplating whether or not to go home at such an ambiguous hour, Herwin spoke up.

“Since we’re meeting up, why don’t we have dinner together?”

Herwin was the first to ask Bern to dinner. Lucia and Bern’s eyes widened at the suggestion, as they had assumed he didn’t like Bern.

After a moment of trepidation, Bern regained his composure and readily accepted the offer.

“Okay, let’s do it.”

“Bern!”

Lucia called out to Bern, who smiled and patted her on the shoulder as if to say it was okay.

Watching the scene, Herwin’s smile narrowed even further.

Arista, assessing the situation, spoke up.

“Well, shall we go? It’s going to be dinner time soon, and there will be a crowd in the dining hall.”

Everyone agreed and headed for the dining hall.

Watching Arista and Herwin walk ahead, Lucia slipped behind them and spoke to Bern.

“Are you sure this is going to be okay?”

“Why not? I’ve said it before, Lucia, but this is a great opportunity to talk to your friends. Don’t tell me you don’t want me to get to know them?”

“No. It’s not that. It’s just…it seems a little too sudden.”

Even if it was just a coincidence that they ran into each other at the store, this time, it was entirely at Herwin’s suggestion.

After fumbling for an explanation, Bern whispers to Lucia, out of earshot of the two in front of them.

“Actually, I thought I’d take this opportunity to score some points with him since he doesn’t seem to like me.”

Bern pointed slyly at Herwin. He was well aware that Herwin didn’t like him either.

Bern clenched his fist, saying he would do well, but Lucia was not relieved.

She had an ominous feeling that something was going to happen.