100.

 

If I had run this coffee house with profit in mind, it would have gone bankrupt long ago.

After all, coffee houses are typically businesses that cater to nobles and wealthy commoners.

Mine was the first coffee house ever established in this village since its founding…

The concept of a coffee house was so unfamiliar to the villagers that, initially, there were hardly any customers.

But for me, opening the shop wasn’t about attracting a lot of customers.

I wasn’t too concerned about it.

‘Besides, the profits I received from the Palasso business… I could live comfortably for the rest of my life.’

At that moment, Mrs. Anna, who had been watching me, spoke kindly.

“Really, Miss Aria, your smile is so beautiful.”

“Ah…”

I blinked in surprise.

It’s moments like these that make me realize how much more I’ve been smiling compared to before.

Come to think of it, the last time I truly smiled was…

Suddenly, a vivid memory flashed before my eyes—a dazzling firework display and a man even more radiant than the fireworks beneath them.

The cool autumn breeze.

The lively festival atmosphere.

And those ruby-red eyes that were focused solely on me.

[You don’t need to feel uneasy.]

[We’ve come out to enjoy the festival together, right? So stop thinking gloomy thoughts and smile.]

That beautiful man, who playfully urged me to smile…

A memory that would forever bind my steps, like shackles.

When will I finally be free from this memory?

“…Miss.”

“…”

“Miss Aria?”

“Oh.”

Snapping back to reality, I quickly responded.

“Sorry, what did you say?”

“That person over there.”

Mrs. Anna pointed toward the back of the shop.

“He’s been calling your name for a while.”

I turned around.

A tall young man with light brown hair was looking at me shyly.

“Oh, Jerome, you’re here?”

I hurriedly stood up.

Jerome.

He was a young man from a large grocery store located on a barony an hour’s distance from this village.

From what I’ve heard, he’s the only son of the shop’s owner.

I’m not entirely unaware of the reason why someone who should be preparing to inherit the store would regularly make deliveries to this distant village.

After all…

 

“It’s been a while, Miss Aria.”

Seeing his face flush as he looked at me, it was impossible not to understand his feelings.

But.

‘Not my concern.’

I thought somewhat coldly.

“The goods are stacked in the storage room—coffee beans and flour, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Jerome, scratching the back of his head, gave me a shy smile.

“…I enjoy doing the deliveries, so it’s no trouble.”

“But the barony is quite far from this village. It must have been difficult for you to come all this way.”

“It’s alright. Most importantly…”

Jerome glanced at me nervously and quickly looked away.

“Just being able to see your face, Miss Aria, makes me happy.”

“That’s kind of you to say.”

I smiled as I gently drew a line.

“…”

“…”

A brief, awkward silence followed.

“Oh, right, I have something for you.”

“For me?”

“Yes, just a moment…”

Jerome, looking hesitant, quickly exited through the back door.

A short while later, he returned with a large bouquet of wildflowers.

Jerome thrust the bouquet toward me.

“Th-this is a gift.”

“For me?”

“Yes. I saw the flowers blooming beautifully on my way here, so I just picked them as I went…”

Jerome, fumbling over his words, closed his eyes tightly as he finished.

“I hope you’ll accept them.”

“…”

I looked down at the bouquet.

White, yellow, orange, pink… Among the various wildflowers was a pale blue bloom.

A cornflower.

For a moment, my heart sank.

I wanted to refuse outright, but…

‘Mrs. Anna is here right now.’

There was no need to be too harsh in front of others, especially in a small village where reputation matters.

I stared at the bouquet with a blank expression, then consciously forced a smile.

“Thank you.”

I accepted the bouquet and calmly added,

“But it’s alright if you don’t bring me such gifts in the future.”

“…Oh.”

Jerome’s face fell in disappointment.

I continued speaking gently.

“It must have taken you a lot of time to pick these flowers. I’d hate for your schedule to be delayed because of me.”

Looking at Jerome, whose shoulders slumped, I kindly suggested,

“Instead, since you’ve come all this way, would you like some apple pie? I just baked it today.”

“…”

Jerome glanced at me sideways, clearly disappointed that I had drawn a firm boundary.

But still, he couldn’t refuse my offer.

“Yes, thank you.”

“Please wait just a moment.”

I headed toward the kitchen.

But just then—

“Um, Miss Aria.”

“Yes?”

“Is your name really Aria? Or is it Elze?”

…What?

 

It felt as if cold ice water had been poured down my spine, sending chills through my body.

I quickly turned to Jerome.

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, I received this card on my way here.”

Jerome fumbled as he pulled an envelope out of his pocket.

The envelope was made of stiff, high-quality paper—something quite rare in this rural area.

“They asked me to deliver this card to you, Miss Aria.”

“To me?”

Was it the tension tightening around my throat? Even to my own ears, my voice sounded rather sharp.

“Are you sure they didn’t mistake me for someone else?”

“No, that couldn’t be. The person specifically said to deliver it to the owner of the coffee house.”

Jerome shook his head as he met my gaze.

“And there’s only one coffee house in this village, right?”

“…”

I bit my lip hard.

Jerome continued with a puzzled expression.

“So I told the person your name was Aria, but they kept insisting that it was Elze…”

“Why didn’t you tell them to deliver it themselves?”

I asked Jerome in a sharp tone.

“There was no need for you to give it to me.”

“Oh, right?”

Jerome looked taken aback.

“Why didn’t I think of that? I just assumed I should deliver it.”

“…”

I gritted my teeth as I turned the envelope over.

But there was no name or any information on the card that could help identify the sender.

With a frustrated hand, I pulled out the card.

And the words written on it…

“The trampled flower has the sweetest scent.”

‘This…’

A shiver ran through my entire body.

It was the title of the original story I had transmigrated into.

The very name of this world that had cast me in the role of the ‘villainess.’

I hastily lifted my head.

“The person who gave you this note—what did they look like?”

“Hmm, well…”

Jerome blinked his eyes in a daze as he tried to remember.

“Strange… I can’t recall.”

“You can’t remember?”

“No.”

I felt my mouth go dry.

“Was it a woman, or a man? Do you remember anything about their clothing?”

“I don’t remember that either…”

At that moment, a voice suddenly echoed in my mind.

“The trampled flower has the sweetest scent.”

This voice… Whose was it?

“I’m really looking forward to seeing how far your desperation will go.”

Who said these things?

I felt as if my reason was being paralyzed by fear and terror.

‘Stay calm, Elze.’

I raised my hand, trying to steady my wildly beating heart.

But…

The ominous feeling choking me showed no sign of subsiding.

* * *

I decided to close the coffee house early today.

Ever since seeing that card, I had been feeling so uneasy that I couldn’t focus on my work at all.

“I’m sorry, but something has come up, and I need to close early today.”

After sending Jerome and Mrs. Anna home early, I leaned against the door and let out a long sigh.

“Ha…”

My nerves were stretched so tight that I felt like they could snap at any moment.

All I wanted was to get home and rest.

‘I’ll clean up later.’

The dishes from serving pie and coffee to Jerome and Mrs. Anna, the pie tins, the mixing bowls, and the oven—all of it needed to be cleaned, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it today.

I first took off my apron and hung it on the wall.

Just as I was about to slip out the back door…

Ding.

A clear bell rang.

I turned toward the door and began to speak in a tired voice.

“I’m sorry, but we’re closed for the day—”

But the person ignored my words entirely and stepped into the coffee house.

Thud.

At that moment, I felt my entire body freeze as if I were a rabbit caught in front of a predator.

Half-opened, the door allowed the blood-red glow of the sunset to seep in.

And against that backdrop, a man stood.

His jet-black hair stood out even in the twilight.

His once bright red eyes, which had shone like the morning sun, were now dark and lifeless, like dried blood.

I murmured almost as a groan,

“Marquis…”

Dante.

A fierce smile spread across the face of the man who seemed to be sculpted from the most beautiful things in this world.

“Hello, darling?”