CHAPTER 056
The next day.
The place Bella and I went to was a famous boutique in the capital.
When you go to such places, you often run into people you know, and today it was Lady Redmond.
"Oh my, we meet again here."
"Hello."
Lady Redmond greeted Bella's greeting.
"You two are out shopping, I see."
Lady Redmond smiled at me. It seemed she had business with me.
"I have something to ask you..."
"What is it?"
"Do you know what Marquis Bloomberg likes?"
"The Marquis?"
"Yes. I'm just curious."
"I don't have much to tell you..."
"That's okay, even a little thing is fine."
Her determination to not miss even a small story about Lewis was evident.
But did Lady Redmond always like Lewis this much?
* * *
Scarlett Redmond. In fact, she was one of the many ladies who admired Lewis.
She hadn't always liked Lewis.
He was the Tower Master who could cause great trouble if crossed. That was Lewis.
Scarlett was quite sensible in her own way.
While other ladies liked Lewis only for his looks, Scarlett didn't even budge.
Her preference was Philip anyway, and,
"No matter what, the Crown Prince is better than Marquis Bloomberg."
The calm and elegant Crown Prince had no threatening aspects!
She had shyly given Philip a handkerchief on the day of the hunting competition. All of Philip's games went to Charlotte, though.
Scarlett's taste completely changed after the hunting competition.
"The Marquis saved me?"
"Yes. Lady Elsner told us everything."
While she was unconscious, Selina had told others the whole story.
Scarlett heard it from another lady after she woke up.
Ah, Marquis Bloomberg saved me!
When Scarlett learned that, Lewis was already surrounded by people.
He had a face that looked like he wanted to tell everyone to go away.
Michael was speaking on his behalf.
Unlike Lewis, who had a frown, Michael was smiling brightly, making the contrast more evident.
She hadn't liked Lewis because of his intimidating atmosphere, but for the first time, he caught her eye.
Lewis, who easily caught that big bear, was the winner of the hunting competition.
She thought the Crown Prince would surely win this year too!
Scarlett couldn't take her eyes off Lewis, who stood on the podium.
Was her heart pounding because of the big event she experienced or because of seeing Lewis?
"Obviously, it's the latter."
Seeing Lewis, who proudly held the winner's trophy, Scarlett's heart raced even more.
At that moment, she realized.
I've fallen for him!
It turned out she was the type to fall in love quickly.
That's why she was asking Selina, who was close to Lewis. It was easier to approach Selina than Bella.
"He has a simple taste. He likes plain flavors rather than chocolate or other flavors."
"Plain flavors?"
While she was at it, she asked something else.
It was something she wasn't curious about until she became interested in Lewis.
"The Marquis has a reputation for being very scary, but that's not true, right?"
"Oh, no, he's actually quite scary."
Really? Scarlett flinched at the unexpected answer.
"But once you get to know him, he's fine, right? You get along well with him, Lady Elsner."
"I've fainted in my mind several times. Now, I'm a bit used to it."
Selina laughed as if she had reached enlightenment.
"How did you become friends with the Marquis? Because you were close to Lady Croft?"
"Um... I think we got closer after seeing some blood."
Selina recalled the time Lewis had signed the friend certificate with his blood.
"Blood, blood?"
"Scary, right?"
Seeing Scarlett surprised, Selina added with a face that understood everything.
"It's surprising but true."
The Lewis she heard about through Selina was exactly the image of the 'Tower Master Lewis' she originally thought of.
If she hadn't fallen for him, she would never have liked him.
While Bella was looking at dresses, Scarlett continued talking with Selina.
Suddenly, Selina took something out of her bag. It was a communication orb.
"Yes, Marquis."
-Where are you now?
Lewis's voice came from the communication orb.
They seemed to be close enough to contact each other like this.
The Marquis's voice! Scarlett focused her ears without realizing it.
"I'm out in the street with Bella. She wanted to look at dresses."
-I'm passing by nearby too. Can I drop by?
"Unless Bella minds."
-So, I can come.
Does that mean yes?
In any case, Selina soon ended the call.
"The Marquis is coming here?"
"Yes. He's coming here."
Scarlett's heart raced. She might get to greet Lewis and make an impression.
While she was lost in excitement, Lewis soon arrived.
He smiled at her. It was a bright smile Scarlett had never seen before.
That smile made Scarlett's heart drop.
The Marquis could smile like that? His expressionless face was handsome, but he looked even more handsome when he smiled.
Then she realized.
Lewis wasn't looking at her.
His slightly off gaze led her to see Selina smiling at Lewis.
The unusually bright smile was directed entirely at Selina.
Is it because they're close?
But it was a completely different attitude compared to how he treated Bella.
"Bella, why aren't you getting a dress, Selina?"
"I asked her to get one with me, but she refused. It would be nice to get one while we're here."
Lewis asked Bella and then turned to Selina.
"Who is she?"
"She's Lady Redmond, the Count's daughter. Don't you remember? You saved her with me during the hunting competition."
"Oh."
Lewis looked at Scarlett and nodded.
"I remember. The lady who picked up the rabbit?"
Scarlett nodded.
"Yes. You remembered me?"
"How could I forget?"
Scarlett's careful words made Lewis chuckle.
But that was it, there were no more words.
It seemed Lewis had finished talking to Scarlett and turned back to Selina.
"Since we're here, why don't you get a dress too? Is there nothing you like?"
"No. There's no party coming up anyway. I already have plenty of dresses!"
When Selina said she didn't need a dress, Lewis looked around the boutique. Then he saw Selina's simple green dress and said,
"That looks good too."
"Oh, really?"
Selina's face brightened at the small compliment.
"Yes. I don't say things I don't mean."
Lewis's gaze was filled with affection.
It was different from how he looked at Scarlett and Bella.
Having met several men, Scarlett could tell. This wasn't just friendship...
When she thought that far, Scarlett felt her feelings for Lewis quickly fading.
It seemed this was another lost cause.
When she liked Philip, she pretended not to see his affection for Charlotte.
She tried to admire Philip along with the other ladies with a blurred view!
This was another hopeless one-sided love.
What's this? Scarlett felt empty and got ready to leave.
"I'll be going now."
"Huh? Weren't you looking at dresses?"
"Next time..."
I'll go home and drink.
Scarlett trudged towards the carriage. It was a very short-lived crush.
* * *
Lady Redmond seemed strangely downcast.
Lady Redmond was always confident, so what happened suddenly?
"The Duke of Cliff sent an invitation."
Charlotte's words snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Did you both receive one?"
"Yes. I'm planning to go with Selina."
The Duke of Cliff was the Empress's family.
Philip's cousin, the Duke of Cliff's son, sent invitations for his birthday party.
"Come to think of it, isn't Lady Yaniels's birthday around this time too?"
"Oh, right."
Charlotte smiled kindly at my words.
"We're planning a small family dinner."
She seemed to be looking forward to it. It was only natural to look forward to seeing her parents after a long time, right?
Then, Bella suddenly spoke as if she remembered something.
"I saw the Crown Prince on the street recently."
"Where?"
"On 40th Street."
She saw the Crown Prince on 40th Street? That 40th Street is known for being unsafe?
"Oh, really?"
That's why Charlotte looked so surprised.
Bella said confidently,
"He seemed to be on an incognito trip. But it was definitely the Crown Prince. I wonder why he went there."
"Bella, why were you there?"
Bella turned to me without blinking at my question.
"Caught me. I wasn't going to say."
...Huh? You're the one who mentioned it?
"You went there alone?"
"I needed ingredients for a magic potion. That place has a lot of stores selling those."
Bella, who always boasted she could handle everything even without a guard, answered.
I suddenly remembered seeing Philip from a distance while I was with Lewis.
"Come to think of it, I saw the Crown Prince recently too. On the last day of the Founding Festival."
"They say he's very busy. It seems he's really busy."
But it seemed Bella had something else she wanted to say.
"But there was no sign on the store the Crown Prince came out of. I don't know what kind of store it was."
"Really?"
"Yes. Do you want to check it out? See what it is?"
Comments
Post a Comment