Chapter 52
｡･:*:･ﾟ★ Translated by Divine ｡･:*:･ﾟ☆
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
After a satisfactory interview, my plan to buy desserts ended in utter failure.
Every place I went to had signs saying, “Closed today due to personal reasons.”
Even if I managed to find an open store…
“…Sold out here too?”
“Not sold out, but… the owner and patissier suddenly had to meet a VIP customer suddenly.”
Everyone said that the patissiers had left for some reason.
Ha. I let out a hollow laugh. Whoever it was, they must be a big shot to call all the patissiers at once.
But I had gotten permission to go out under the pretense of getting desserts. So, I couldn’t return empty-handed.
More than that, I was quite tired from walking around the neighborhood. The interview I had just finished had also drained me.
I didn’t realize it when I was the one being interviewed, but being an interviewer was more exhausting than I imagined.
Of course, if I were truly a noble lady, I could have taken this lightly.
Unfortunately, the memories of being a slave to capitalism were still vivid in my mind.
However, I couldn’t show the agitation in my heart.
I used my wit and experience from attending interviews to handle things smoothly and finish the task.
In any case, I was mentally and physically exhausted and decided to enter a visible café to quench my thirst.
After sinking deeply into a chair, I gulped down the cold drink I had ordered.
The chill piercing all the way to my bones made me feel alive again.
Ahh. I let out a lazy sigh.
The warm sunlight poured onto the outdoor terrace.
I still wore my robe to avoid any potential trouble, but it still felt good.
‘How long has it been since I was outside at this time?’
In my past life, I was stuck at work and rarely saw the sun.
Occasionally, I went out for lunch, but even then, I hurried back with just a potion called coffee.
Maybe that was why. I liked everything about this place surrounding me.
A quiet shop, a cool breeze, a refreshing and delicious drink, and…
“I like the tea here. Do you sell it separately?”
“Yes, we can have it ready for you to take home when you leave.”
…This kind of leisure.
I sighed in admiration, though only inwardly so the staff wouldn’t hear.
That was how I idled the time away, fiddling with the pretty cup and watching the sunlight seeping through the leaves.
But it was about time to head back.
I used picking up desserts as an excuse to go out, so returning too late would be suspicious.
‘Dessert… I’ll say I ate it on the way back, or I can smoothly change the story to say I brought back better tea.’
As I stood up, thinking of the perfect answers to expected questions–
Bang!
A large, white hand landed on the fence in front of the terrace where I was sitting.
Someone with a large build, slightly hunched over, was catching their breath.
‘W-What? Who is it so suddenly…’
I was startled and instinctively shrank back, but then I realized this person wasn’t a stranger.
A black robe covering them, as if to hide their identity.
Long, white, and beautiful hands.
And the glimpse of silver hair.
‘No way…’
“…Your Highness?”
At my call, the figure straightened up.
“Hah, hah…”
Luciel’s pale face was flushed red, as if he had run non-stop.
“I thought you’d left, so I kept looking…”
“…”
“Ah, thank goodness…”
Luciel bent over, panting heavily in relief.
He could barely breathe because of how hard he ran.
‘Today isn’t a meeting day, so why is he here…?’
As I wondered, I suddenly snapped back to reality.
‘No, more importantly, how could someone who is sick run like this! What if he strains his heart!’
I hurriedly checked Luciel.
“Your Highness, no, Rose. Are you okay?”
Luciel waved his hand to say he was fine. But honestly, he didn’t look okay at all.
“Here, drink this for now.”
I handed him the cold tea in a hurry. As expected, he quickly gulped it down, clearly exhausted.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“Yes, phew…”
Luciel nodded, exhaling slowly.
Then, he suddenly looked down at the cup he was holding.
“But, Milady, this is…”
“Oh, I’m sorry. That’s the tea I was drinking.”
“…What?”
Luciel froze at my words.
“You seemed in such a hurry…”
“Then this…”
He trailed off, then closed his mouth.
His red eyes trembled slightly, and the cup in his hand seemed to shake as well.
Using a cup that someone else’s mouth had touched might be unsettling. Feeling guilty, I let out an awkward laugh and quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, did something urgent happen? You even ran all the way here.”
“Ah…”
Luciel hesitated for a moment, his lips twitching.
“I ran…”
“Uh, yes. You ran.”
“Mm, like a fool…”
“Um… I wouldn’t go as far as to say a fool…?”
I added carefully, but Luciel remained silent. His face showed a mix of embarrassment and self-deprecation.
He seemed ashamed of the fact that he had run.
As I tilted my head, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
“Rose, could it be…”
“…!”
Luciel flinched at my subtle tone.
“That’s, I mean, I…”
“Did you run out of medicine?”
“…What?”
Luciel, who was fumbling for words, paused.
There was no reason for Rose to run so urgently to come find me if it wasn’t because he ran out of medicine.
Luciel stood there with a blank expression for a moment, muttering, “Medicine…” Then, he nodded vigorously.
“Yes, t-the medicine. I’m out of medicine.”
As expected. I quickly rummaged through the pockets of my robe. I was glad I had brought it just in case.
“Good thing I carried it with me. Here you go.”
“…”
But for some reason, Luciel just stared at the bottle I held out. He seemed hesitant.
“…Thank you, Milady.”
After a moment, he accepted the medicine and smiled faintly.
“It’s me who should thank you. Thanks to Rose, I found a good employee.”
“I’m glad I could help… But, Milady.”
Lips twitching slightly, Luciel asked with a strange smile.
“I heard Milady will be away for a while.”
“Oh, how did you know about that?”
I asked back with my eyes widening. Then, I remembered Gael, who had an interview earlier today.
‘Well, Luciel was the one who introduced us, so he’d have told Luciel about the results.’
While I thought about it, Luciel continued.
“What are you going there for? The magic tool production you requested is progressing smoothly. Is there another problem…?”
“Oh, there’s no problem. It’s just…”
I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I should tell Luciel this.
‘But Luciel is my partner, and he helped me back then too.’
“You need the family seal to annul an engagement, right? I’m going to get the seal from my grandfather, Duke Peregrine. And while I’m there, I’m going to check if it’s a suitable place to set up a business.”
“Ah…”
Luciel nodded slowly, as if he finally understood.
The anxiety on his face disappeared, replaced by a beautiful smile like that of a flower.
“It seems I was worried over nothing.”
“It was too personal to mention separately.”
“No, it’s important to annul the engagement. It’s something that must, absolutely must, be done.”
Luciel oddly emphasized each word.
The Peregrine family and Luciel both seemed to be enthusiastically supporting breaking off the engagement.
I smiled gratefully at Luciel when he suddenly seemed to remember something and looked at me.
“Come to think of it, the Duke of Peregrine has been staying there for quite some time now?”
“There… Oh, Regarta.”
“Yes, there. Regarta.”
It was quite far from the capital.
Luciel added, “Have you told the Duke about the annulment yet?”
“Well, I think he probably knows…”
But he’s probably avoiding any news because he can’t stand the sight of Daphne.
I held back that thought and smiled lightly.
“Since it’s far from the capital and famous as a retreat, he’s probably not interested in matters of the capital.”
As I muttered that, a thought struck me, and I looked back at Luciel.
“Rose, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
“How should I deliver the medicine to you?”
“Deliver it… to me?”
At that moment, Luciel’s face, which had been waiting patiently with a gentle smile, seemed to stiffen slightly.
“Yes. It might take some time for me to return to the capital.”
“…”
“I think it would be better to send it regularly through a maid…”
I trailed off as Luciel’s expression seemed to darken.
Does he think I’m breaking our contract? I couldn’t afford to lose my best partner.
‘But I really need to resolve this matter too.’
As I grew anxious, Luciel smiled softly and said.
“There is a branch of our Magic Tower in Regarta. How about sending it there?”
“Would that be alright?”
“Yes. There’s a portal at the branch that connects directly to the central Magic Tower, so I can receive it immediately. It’s useful for sharing restricted magical formulas or potions.”
Indeed, sending the medicine through a portal would be better than entrusting it to someone else.
“Then I’ll send it to the branch.”
“Sorry for the trouble, Milady. Because of me…”
“No, it’s fine. I promised you, didn’t I? If there’s a better method, of course we should use it.”
I shook my head and continued.
“I thought there was only the central Magic Tower until now, but I didn’t know there were branches in other territories. This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“Oh.”
Luciel let out a small exclamation and then smiled prettily.
“It’s natural you didn’t know. The branch in Regarta was established quite recently.”
TN: Bets on if it was established today XD
