“Oh my, Miss!”

Gretel, who opened the door, was so delighted to see Adelaide that she immediately grabbed her hands.

“Oh, look at me! You’re not ‘Miss’ anymore, are you? You’re properly a married woman now. I should call you Mrs. Engel, shouldn’t I?”

“You can still call me Miss. It feels nice to be called that after so long—makes me feel younger. And soon it will be true again anyway.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s nothing. Were you making dinner? I’m a bit hungry.”

“Oh my, please come in! I’ll prepare it right away!”

She took the eldest Miss’s hand and promptly headed to the kitchen.

In truth, Gretel had been closest to Adelaide until Marie was born.

She was a lady’s maid whom Frederica, the Baroness of Klein, had brought from her maiden home, and she had witnessed the birth of all six siblings.

To young maid Gretel, who had only handled difficult chores, Frederica taught how to read and gifted her books.

When she heard about her mistress’s marriage, she locked herself in her room and cried her eyes out, sad at the thought of parting from her.

So when Frederica told her she would take her along as her lady’s maid, she felt as if she possessed all the happiness in the world.

She made a vow that day.

To remain by her mistress’s side for life.

When Adelaide, the first daughter in the Klein Baron family that had only sons until then, was born, Gretel was the one who rejoiced the most.

Gretel was the one who brushed Adelaide’s hair every day, braided it prettily, sang lullabies, and read fairy tales to her.

She would take her to the garden to play ball or push her on the swing, substituting for the mistress of the house whose health was poor.

Even after Vivian and Marie were born, Adelaide remained her longest relationship.

Gretel was the only one who faithfully carried out Frederica’s dying wish to take care of Marie.

Adelaide, like her brothers and sisters, felt betrayed and grew distant from Gretel as she doted on the youngest.

Yet seeing Gretel still welcome her so warmly made Adelaide feel a lump in her throat.

While the cook was also delighted to see the eldest Miss, Marie watched the heartwarming scene contentedly before heading to the study with Hans.

“Tomorrow morning, we should call our informant to investigate that person who supposedly mistreated my eldest sister.”

“We need to request an investigation into Joachim Engel’s assets too.”

“Is that really necessary? We confirmed it today. If he had money, he would have repaired the house first. I saw a rat there. As big as my forearm.”

Marie pointed to her forearm, but feeling it wasn’t adequate to convey the size, she suddenly grabbed Hans’s hand.

“No, it was definitely about the size of your forearm.”

“Don’t exaggerate.”

Startled by her casual physical contact, he frowned and pulled his arm back.

Not noticing his reaction, she indignantly grabbed his hand from below again.

The size difference was stark—her small hand completely engulfed by his.

“I’m serious! It was so bad I thought it was a dog or cat at first!”

“Fine. I believe you. Now please let go of me—”

“Hey, fine! You’re worried I didn’t wash my hands, right? But that doesn’t mean you should treat me like I’m a walking germ!”

Marie grumbled as she released Hans’s hand.

“That’s not it……!”

Forget it.

Hans sighed and shook his head at her complete lack of awareness.

His palm, where her soft, pliant hand had touched, felt hot.

The burning sensation was like disinfectant on a wound—or perhaps alcohol would be more apt.

“Anyway, we should cover the basics first.”

“You’re right. But I find that mother and son the most suspicious. Isn’t it natural to assume they committed those acts for money?”

“Money might not be the motive. For example……”

“For example?”

“A crime of passion.”

Marie nodded at Hans’s words.

When m*rder cases occur between ordinary people, police typically begin by suspecting crimes of passion before broadening their investigation.

You really can’t judge people by their faces.

The thought that Joachim, with his beautiful, kind face like an angel from a chapel mural, might be plotting crimes behind the scenes gave her chills.

Of course, there was also the possibility he wasn’t the culprit.

“And if there are debts, understanding their extent would help narrow down the suspects.”

“Wait…… Hans, come to think of it, where did the monthly insurance payments come from? That company’s basic premiums are much higher than competitors.”

“The possibility that he has money hidden from his wife has increased.”

“We should ask the informant to thoroughly investigate whether he has assets under different names.”

Marie said while diligently taking notes on what to tell the informant.

Hans watched her rapidly writing and asked:

“Why did you write down that address earlier? Both mother and son from the Engel family are prime suspects.”

“Oh, that?”

Marie looked up with a sly smile.

“I obviously wrote down a different address.”

The address she had provided was far from the law office.

It was an empty commercial building where Felix’s subordinate soldier had once held a business presentation for his full-scale financial fraud.

“How do you have that address memorized?”

“……”

“You still haven’t given up your real estate obsession, have you?”

First stocks, now real estate.

‘Koreans are all about real estate! What would you know!’

Marie desperately held back from shouting that.

Thankfully, Valdek didn’t have cryptocurrency.

Looking at Felix’s example, she should avoid gambling tendencies.

She had resolved as much, but it was impossible to completely erase her lingering attachment.

“I’ve been thinking about what to do when I receive my inheritance, and real estate investment seems the most stable. I have a definite feeling about it.”

“Marie, haven’t I told you this before?”

“Told me what?”

Hans quickly swept away the face of his friend who was looking up at him with innocently sparkling eyes.

The small head bent downward with a snap.

“When you get one of your ‘feelings,’ just let it go. It’s definitely not going to be the right one.”

“What do you know!”

“I know your hunches have never been right.”

“Hey, I’ve been right about small things! Take Vivian’s wheat field, for instance. I have foresight, I tell you!”

“Back then, there was definite information that the confectionery company would close due to wheat import issues. Investment is about information, not hunches. The moment you rely on luck is when you fail.”

“Well, well, if it isn’t the reclusive master investor! Why don’t you teach me a thing or two?”

Marie huffed and charged at Hans, who stepped back with a chuckle and bumped into the sofa.

At that moment, Marie lost her balance as she lunged toward him, and they tumbled onto the sofa in a tangled heap.

‘Why does it feel so soft?’

Having closed her eyes instinctively as she fell, she felt something strange against her lips.

She should be on top of Hans now, with both hands braced against the sofa.

One thing she had noticed while living with him:

The only soft part of his body was his golden hair.

Whether natural or from hard muscle, whenever their bodies made contact, it felt like hitting a rock.

And what about those long, straight fingers and that sharp jawline?

There was no way such a man would have any softness to him.

Many thoughts flashed through her mind in the instant before her eyes opened.

Including romance novel clichés.

Before she could draw any conclusions, her eyelids lifted.

Hans’s blue eyes were staring at her in surprise.

The distance between them was very close.

Their lips were pressed together.

‘So I’m now……?’

Having my first kiss.

And with Hans, the male lead of this world, no less.

Marie startled and lifted her head, trying to get up.

At that moment, Hans firmly gripped her waist, causing their bodies to press together again.

Before she could ask what he was doing, the door burst open from outside.

“Miss, it’s time for dinner!”

Gretel, elated by the eldest Miss’s visit, forgot to knock and entered directly.

“Huh? Where did they go? Hans! Miss!”

“What’s wrong?”

Adelaide peeked her head in curiously behind Gretel.

“I thought Hans and Miss went into the study, but they’re not here? Though the light is on.”

As she looked around the room following Gretel, she spotted the edge of Marie’s dress peeking out from behind the sofa.

Adelaide urgently grabbed Gretel’s sleeve.

“Downstairs! They must have gone to the first floor!”

“The first floor?”

“Yes. I told you earlier, didn’t I? They came here for legal consultation. They must have gone down to find some documents!”

“Oh my, then I should go down and bring them up!”

“No! Let’s not disturb their work. Besides, I’m so hungry my stomach is sticking to my back!”

“My, such harsh words…… You must be truly hungry! I did think you looked thinner than when I last saw you!”

Taking pity on the starving Miss, Gretel hurriedly led her out of the room.

Gretel would likely feed Adelaide non-stop until she was stuffed, probably thinking her mistress had arrived at food h*ll.

Having escaped the crisis thanks to her elder sister’s self-sacrifice, Marie finally let out a small sigh of relief.

Her breath scattered Hans’s bangs that had fallen to the tip of his nose.

The tip of his nose wrinkled briefly, as if tickled.

Marie finally realized her situation and scrambled off the sofa in shock.

Hans slowly sat up.

“Ah, so you pulled me close because you sensed someone outside!”

“What did you think it was?”

“That’s……”

When he asked in a languid voice, Marie was momentarily speechless.

“What if I actually start liking you?”