On the way back home with Armin, his face lit up with amusement upon seeing me visit the ducal estate without any prior notice.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“Did I smile?”
“Yes. You still are.”
Having spent so much time with the Duchess today, Armin’s smiling face overlapped with hers in my mind. It felt strange.
“Just because.”
Armin, giving such a half-hearted reply, then added,
“You seem to be getting more and more comfortable coming to the ducal estate.”
It didn’t feel like he was subtly hinting that I was coming over too often, but the way he spoke, his expression—it all seemed rather meaningful.
“You’re not telling me to stop coming, are you?”
“Far from it. Quite the opposite.”
Hearing that, I smirked and playfully teased him.
“Really? Well, there are plenty of rooms in that mansion. Why don’t you just prepare one for me?”
I wasn’t exactly sure when I had started speaking so casually with Armin, but I was undeniably much more at ease around him than when we first met. With him, I didn’t have to act innocent, pretend to be oblivious, or put on any kind of front—I could just be myself.
I had always thought of myself as someone who lived life rather freely, but maybe I had been under some stress, after all, maintaining those little pretenses.
Armin was different from Sasha. While Sasha was bound to me by blood, fated to be on my side no matter what, Armin was a complete outsider. Maybe that’s why this friendship felt even more special—more precious. I never imagined we’d become this close when we first met.
Lost in thought, I waited for his response, expecting him to shoot back with a joke. But when no reply came, I turned to look at him—only to find Armin blushing and covering his mouth with his hand.
“Armin?”
“Ah…”
What’s with that dumbfounded look?
“Are you feeling sick?”
Armin often blushed like this. Unlike his mother, it wasn’t out of anger—I had figured that out by now.
I was convinced that Armin had a constitution full of fiery energy. His face turning red was nothing new; it happened almost daily.
“…It’s just… that was unexpected.”
“Huh?”
Was asking for a room that surprising?
Feeling a bit embarrassed, I rubbed the back of my neck.
“I mean, I just said it as a joke… since I come over so often.”
“I’ll prepare one for you.”
“No, you don’t have to.”
Noticing my embarrassment, Armin quickly played along with the joke, but it was too late—the moment had already passed.
Still, he stubbornly shook his head.
“It’ll happen anyway.”
“What will?”
“Your room. In the ducal estate.”
“I said I was joking! Come on, I have a house too, you know. With plenty of rooms!”
Somehow, I found myself responding like a petulant child. Probably because I was feeling too flustered to handle this properly.
“Then.”
Armin’s gaze took on a strange intensity. Occasionally—no, frequently—his amethyst-colored eyes would look at me like that.
“Then let’s trade rooms.”
“What?”
I stared at him, confused.
His face was still slightly flushed, but there was no trace of playfulness in his expression.
“The ducal estate has plenty of rooms, and so does the viscount’s estate.”
In other words, he was suggesting that we each have a designated room at the other’s house.
“Can’t I just use the guest room?”
“That’s a room for guests. You and I aren’t just guests, are we?”
I wasn’t sure who counted as “just a guest” and who didn’t, but after thinking it over, I found myself nodding.
Ever since Armin and Sasha started spending more time together, Armin had been visiting our house almost every other day. Considering the difference in visit frequency, distinguishing between “just a guest” and “not just a guest” might actually make sense.
“Alright, then,” I agreed with a nod before adding, “My mother will be thrilled to hear this. Now she has to set up three rooms instead of just one.”
“Three?”
I counted on my fingers as I answered, “Armin, Lewin, and Abyss.”
Armin’s face immediately scrunched up.
“Why Lewin and Abyss?”
“Well, they visit often too.”
“They’re just guests.”
“Hold on. Now I’m really curious… What exactly is the difference between ‘just a guest’ and ‘not just a guest’?”
I had asked purely out of curiosity, but Armin’s brows furrowed even more.
“I thought the distinction was based on how often someone visits. Lewin and Abyss come over all the time, so doesn’t that make them ‘not just guests’ too?”
Armin stared at me blankly for a moment before letting out a deep sigh.
“Why are you sighing? Did I say something wrong?”
“…No, Vivi. I already know how dense you are.”
“What? I’m not dense!”
Good grief. If my brother heard that, he’d probably laugh himself to death. I wasn’t dense—I was closer to being sly.
“The fact that you don’t realize it is proof that you are.”
Armin chuckled, and though I tried to protest again, it didn’t seem like he was going to listen.
“Well, one way or another, it’ll happen naturally.”
“What will?”
“The day I have a room at the viscount’s estate, and you have a room at the ducal estate.”
With that, our conversation smoothly transitioned to another topic.
Armin, curious about my talk with the Duchess, listened as I shared thoughts I had never voiced before.
Perhaps it was because I knew he wouldn’t mock me.
Or maybe because the Duchess had already listened so attentively, I found it easier to open up this time.
“Have you ever mentioned this to Alessandro?”
“Sasha? No, I haven’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because that’s how it usually goes. When women try to do something, people tend to look at them with suspicion.”
My family would support me, of course, but standing out always attracted unwanted attention.
“If it weren’t for that card game with the Duke, I probably wouldn’t have told anyone about this either. I assumed it would require an enormous amount of money.”
At the very least, it wasn’t something I could afford with my own allowance.
“What do you think?”
Unlike the Duchess, who had supported me without hesitation, Armin looked deep in thought.
“Which newspaper are you planning to use?”
“Harold News would be best, right?”
Among the three major newspapers, Harold News had the largest market share. It was run by a quasi-noble named Harold.
“Since it reaches the most people, the impact would be the greatest.”
“It might be difficult to use Harold News.”
“What? Why?”
“They don’t need to take risks when they’re already making enough profit.”
With over 80% market share, Harold News had no reason to experiment with something new.
While we talked, the carriage arrived at my house. I assumed Armin would return to the duchy after dropping me off, but instead, he stepped out first, held my hand to help me down, and then walked toward the viscount’s residence with me.
“Huh? You’re not heading back?”
“I want to hear more details about what we were discussing.”
“Well, alright. Come in.”
By now, the servants in our household were no longer surprised to see Armin. He came by so often that they sometimes forgot he was the heir to the Grey family.
Watching him casually open the door as if this were his own home left me speechless. Yeah, that definitely wasn’t the behavior of “just a guest.”
As naturally as if he were the master of the house, Armin turned to the butler and asked him to bring Sasha.
“Why Sasha?”
“If Sasha comes, you can repeat the story you just told me. I’m sure he’ll be eager to help.”
I felt a little nervous—this was getting bigger than I had anticipated.
Before long, the parlor door opened. My brother entered, pressing the space between his brows, looking exhausted from carrying out the duke’s orders.
“Lord Armin.”
“Did I call for you while you were busy?”
“No, I just finished everything. But what’s this about?”
“Your sister told me quite an interesting story.”
Armin glanced at me and gave a small nod.
Sasha, catching our exchanged looks, let out a sigh and sat down on the sofa with an expression that said, What now?
This felt different from when I had spoken to Armin.
Sasha was someone I knew all too well. He was my twin brother, someone I had grown up with my entire life.
Talking about something so serious in front of him felt embarrassing—almost nerve-wracking.
Sensing my hesitation, Armin gently took my hand.
I flinched at the sudden touch, but it was clear that he was simply trying to reassure me, to help me gather my courage. And, just as he had intended, the warmth of his hand gave me the confidence to speak.
Though I had hesitated for so long, once I started talking, my words flowed effortlessly. The ideas formed into a clear picture, more vivid than I had imagined in my mind.
When I finally finished, Sasha didn’t say a word.
Did he think it was a ridiculous idea?
Before I met Armin, Sasha would often bring up the topic of marriage. I knew he loved me deeply, but unfortunately, this era was what it was. A woman’s greatest form of success was considered to be marrying a good husband.
So, I never resented Sasha for it. There was no reason to.
Finally, he spoke.
“Who else have you told?”
“Only the Duchess and Armin…”
“…Hah.”
A deep sigh escaped from Sasha’s lips. I flinched at his reaction, watching his expression nervously.
“You really…”
His furrowed brows twitched upward.
“Why would you tell something like this to outsiders before telling your own family?”
I hadn’t expected that reaction at all.
