Sig stared at Britia with a blank expression on his face.
“You won’t tell me?”
“No.”
She placed her right index finger on her lips.
“I won’t tell you.”
Between her narrowed eyes, a glimpse of a green iris was revealed. The corners of her lips curled up as if she were pleased.
Sig sensed that she was teasing him, but he couldn’t ask why or question her. It was impossible.
“Duke-nim.”
Britia called, for the umpteenth time, and when Sig finally regained his senses, they were already in the reception room. They were even sitting facing each other with a table in between.
How did she manage to come from the entrance to here in the blink of an eye? Did she manipulate time with her abilities? Sig’s bewildered eyes darted around.
“Are you very angry?” Britia asked, seeing him remain silent and stiff.
“Are you asking if I’m angry?”
Her question didn’t quite register in his mind, still clouded. The word “angry” only just entered his thoughts when he tried to process it.
“I’m sorry,”
The word of apology came out of her mouth. Earlier, she had been laughing mischievously, but now her face showed signs of concern.
In the brief moment, he lost his composure, Sig was confused about what had happened.
“I’m not angry.”
“Wasn’t it because I played a prank on you and made you uncomfortable?”
Was it because she made him so hot-headed? Sig had never experienced such a thing before, so it was difficult to judge why he reacted that way or what emotions he had just felt.
“No,” he hesitated in his response, and Britia lowered her head slightly.
“I’m sorry. I was impolite. I promise I won’t do it again.”
Britia apologized, thinking that he hesitated in his answer because he was indeed angry.
“Does that mean there won’t be a next time for me?”
Britia raised her head, confirming his expression, and she looked puzzled. She had just apologized, so why did he have a sad look on his face?
“I don’t want that.”
Britia raised an eyebrow. She noticed that his drooping tail looked incredibly gloomy, and she could tell from his eyes that he was pleading for something, but it was difficult to grasp exactly what he was appealing for.
“Well, what is it that you don’t want?”
“I said I won’t do it again next time.”
“Are you hoping for me to play a prank on you? But you didn’t like it, did you? You became silent.”
When Britia cautiously asked, Sig shook his head.
“I don’t dislike it.”
“But that doesn’t mean you enjoyed it.”
“I do enjoy it.”
Sig looked straight into her eyes and spoke. Britia was momentarily taken aback, and her heart skipped a beat.
“I-I never knew Duke-nim enjoyed pranks like that.”
‘Yes, he enjoyed pranks. Calm down. It doesn’t mean he likes me.’
Britia took a deep breath to calm her startled heart.
“Now I understand why Duke-nim became friends with Crave.”
Even if it didn’t show in his demeanor, someone who enjoys pranks like Crave would be a perfect match for someone who enjoys mischief.
“I was worried that you were eagerly seeking revenge because Crave was bothering you too much.”
‘I’m glad that’s not the case’, Britia thought and smiled slightly.
“Then, can I treat you like Duke-nim treats Crave?”
Sig’s eyes shifted. What does it mean to treat him like Crave? In the first place, he spoke to Sig more and played more pranks on him than anyone else. Sig even gave him advice when he was inexperienced.
Although it was enough to startle him, Crave had been a good person to deal with.
“Yes, you can treat me like that.”
As Britia imagined herself being treated so comfortably by him, it felt quite pleasant.
“But even so, wouldn’t it be a bit strange to treat Duke-nim too much like a friend?”
“No, it would be nice if you treated me like a friend.”
There was a hopeful gleam in Sig’s eyes. Britia silently looked at him, furrowing her brow.
“Still, that seems difficult. How can I treat Duke-nim like a friend?”
“I truly don’t mind.”
Even so, Britia firmly shook her head, saying it was impossible.
“Even if Duke-nim doesn’t mind, I don’t like it.”
Sig’s eyes widened in surprise when she bluntly said she didn’t like it.
“I can’t treat Duke-nim so casually.”
“Then, are you going to treat me harshly?”
Caught off guard and unable to ask why she felt that way, whether she disliked him or not, he couldn’t even inquire about that. But suddenly, she closed her eyes and smiled.
“So you’re saying I can play pranks like this?”
“…Wasn’t it true?”
Sig let out a relieved breath.
“You always surprise me.”
“Just now, I did it because Duke-nim told me to.”
Britia detached herself from the awkwardness, claiming it wasn’t her fault, and took a sip of tea.
“You seem to have a preference.”
“Me?”
Britia tilted her head, then nodded with understanding.
“Did Crave say that?”
“How did you know?”
“Ginger tea is what you like.”
“You mean Crave said it, not you?”
Sig narrowed his eyes, showing signs of shock and confusion.
“Well, don’t you like it at all?”
“No, it’s not bad.”
“Saying it’s not bad doesn’t mean it’s good.”
His brow furrowed.
“Hmm.”
Seeing Britia’s inability to deny it, he became dejected.
“To tell you the truth, I don’t really like it. But it’s not really bad either.”
Britia argued that it tasted better than she had expected, but Sig couldn’t shake off the shock so easily.
“I thought I could finally make you happy.”
Sig murmured, feeling betrayed by Crave’s words.
“Then, what kind of tea do you like?”
“I like apple tea or, well, any fruit-based tea.”
“I’ll bring it right away.”
He stood up, asking her to wait for a moment. Surely there would be apple tea among the 45 varieties he had collected.
“You don’t have to go through the trouble. I was just starting to like ginger tea because of the tea you gave me.”
“…Please give me a chance to make up for it.”
Sig clenched his teeth and looked at Britia.
“I won’t make this mistake again next time.”
“Does that mean you will invite me again?”
“If you’re okay with it, please allow me to invite you again.”
Britia rolled her eyes for a moment, then smiled gently.
“I can’t refuse when you offer to treat me with tea I like.”
“Apple tea. I will definitely remember.”
‘Apple tea. Apple tea. Apple tea.’
Sig repeated it three times in his mind, vowing not to forget it.
“What kind of tea do you like, Duke-nim?”
“You’re asking about the tea I like?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t have any preferences.”
Britia blinked her eyes.
“Do you dislike tea?”
“I usually just drink it when it’s hot.”
“It’s not about the taste,” Sig said.
“Then, do you like hot water?”
“The north is cold, so…”
Looking at the now cold ginger tea, Sig casually spoke. It wasn’t something he would drink in the north, but here, it wasn’t so bad.
“Still, wouldn’t it feel better to drink a tasty tea?”
“I haven’t really thought about it.”
“Perhaps you haven’t found the tea that suits your taste yet?”
Britia tilted her head and said.
“There must be a tea that suits your taste, Duke-nim. You just haven’t found it yet.”
Her words didn’t resonate with Sig. The taste wasn’t particularly important to him as long as it warmed his body.
“If you’re not familiar with different types of tea, I can recommend several for you to try. Let’s find it together.”
Just a few seconds ago, he thought the taste was probably good enough. But now, Sig’s heart changed in an instant, thinking that maybe it would be good to have at least one type of tea that suited his taste.
“Then, next time, please allow me to invite you to a tea party, Duke-nim.”
“You said you would give me a chance to make up for it, but now you’re taking it away again?”
Sig asked in surprise.
“I’m not taking it away, I understand. Let’s do it this way then.”
Seeing his serious expression, Britia raised her hands.
“Please invite me, Duke-nim, and treat me with apple tea. I will prepare tea for you and invite you afterwards.”
When asked if that would work, Sig was startled, thinking that the opportunity was being taken away from him, but then he nodded with relief.
“That sounds good.”
★★★★
“I wondered what would happen if you didn’t come back, but you’ve managed to return somehow,” Crave greeted Britia with a sly smile on his face at the Lockheart Mansion.
“I’ve been thinking, how did you end up being invited to Duke Turas’ tea party before I, his friend, was?”
Suppressing his laughter, he glared at Britia with sharp eyes.
“You prepared everything according to my preferences and yet you say such things?”
When Britia chuckled, Crave burst into laughter.
“But it wasn’t bad, was it? It seemed like you had prepared really good tea leaves.”
“Why did you do that? Do you know how flustered Duke-nim was?”
“Indeed, you made it clear that you don’t like ginger tea, just as I expected.”
Britia wasn’t pleased with the fact that her brother had called her bluff.
“I didn’t make it to tease you. I couldn’t possibly lie when he asked me, believing firmly that it was something you liked.”
“I know. I purposely did it because of your troublesome personality.”
“So, why?”
She asked for the reason, but Britia already had a rough idea.
“You just wanted to make things awkward, right? Your mischievous nature can be quite a handful.”
“Oh, come on! You should call me ‘Oppa’.”
“It’s not that my personality is bad. I simply provided him with a natural topic of conversation with you.”
He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.
“What’s the use if you can easily find the answer by asking me?”
“What do you mean?”
“Duke-nim now knows what you like. Isn’t that right?”
Britia didn’t want to answer.
“See? Thanks to you, he now has the opportunity to ask you directly, and in the end, he found out.”
He stroked his moustache and closed his eyes slightly.
“Based on his personality so far, he’ll probably treat you properly again. He’s making progress!”
Crave smirked as he opened his eyes slightly. Britia didn’t like that sight, so she put on a composed expression.
“What does it matter if there’s progress between Duke-nim and me?”
“Don’t pretend you’re not interested, Tia. Do you think I wouldn’t notice the difference in your expression before and now?”
Pointing his index finger at her, Crave burst into laughter.
“It was more enjoyable than I expected, huh?”
Britia was irritated by Crave’s knowing smile as if he knew everything, but she couldn’t refute him.
