Cooooo…….

Messian flew unsteadily through the window that had been left open.

‘Seriously, this brother of mine!’

With a startled face, Audrey provided water before accepting what was already the twenty-third letter of the day.

[……What will you eat for lunch?

……This brother wants a scallop sandwich!]

No, correction.

It was precisely the twenty-third and twenty-fourth letters.

There was no point in having gifted the communication orb at this rate.

‘Does he not know how to use it?’

Yes, that could be it.

Audrey picked up a pink quill pen and began scratching out instructions for using the communication orb.

[Tap the communication orb three times and then say my name. Simple, right?]

She then folded it carefully and tied it to the poor carrier pigeon’s ankle.

‘Messian, please bear with it a little longer. Okay?’

Coo…….

The carrier pigeon hesitated on the windowsill for a while before reluctantly spreading its wings.

Its fluttering figure looked exhausted as it departed.

‘With this much explanation, my brother should understand.’

Audrey, who had been watching with concern, sighed and picked up a hand mirror.

It was for the sake of pretending to be pretty in all sorts of ways.

“Mr. Lucas.”

“Yes.”

“Audrey is too pretty to do this.”

“……Pardon?”

Her hand in lace gloves pushed away a document.

A haughty expression was included as a bonus.

“Will you take responsibility if Audrey’s pretty hands get damaged?”

“What’s this, all of a sudden-“

“The paper is too rough. Audrey would rather just look in the mirror.”

“……”

Turning away as she pleased, Audrey hummed while looking into her hand mirror.

‘Good, that was perfect!’

Her puffed cheeks quivered with anticipation. This much should certainly be enough to make him fall out of love.

Audrey glanced sideways to observe Duke Frith’s face.

However, his crimson eyes were glaring not at her but at the innocent aide.

As if saying, how dare you give such rough paper to Dodori.

“……!”

It was Audrey who was taken aback.

‘T-this isn’t right?’

What wrong had the aide committed, caught between the two of them without knowing what was happening?

Yet Lucas was the one who offered an apology.

“I apologize.”

“……!”

“I didn’t pay enough attention to that detail.”

Ah, could a person’s heart feel this uncomfortable?

An apology rose to the tip of her tongue immediately.

But she couldn’t let all her efforts so far go to waste either.

“H-hmph! Pretty Audrey will forgive you just this once.”

“I will certainly prepare softer paper tomorrow.”

“……Very well.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“……”

The office regained peace, at least on the surface.

However, when Audrey unconsciously looked across, she jumped as if she’d seen a ghost.

‘……Why does that flower seem to be getting closer?’

Because a crimson flower, like someone’s eyes, was slowly advancing toward her. With apparent purpose.

Duke Frith’s gaze was also quite suspicious.

He clearly seemed to want something.

Just as this strange standoff was about to continue, an exhausted carrier pigeon flew in.

Coo…….

“Messian!”

Audrey immediately rushed to the window.

Coo, coo…….

The thoroughly tired carrier pigeon abruptly raised one foot.

As if urging her to check the letter right away.

Audrey quickly unfolded the letter.

[……Wow, this is really useful!

So what are you going to eat for lunch, Dotori? Shall this brother guess? Hmm?]

“……”

Glancing at Messian, it seemed too exhausted to fly again.

‘This won’t do.’

Instead of writing a reply, Audrey took the communication orb and went outside.

Tap, tap, tap.

“Brother Arnold.”

A swirl of light began to surge inside the previously transparent orb.

However, no matter how long she waited, there was no response from the other side.

‘Hmm?’

Perplexed, Audrey called for Arnold five times in succession.

But before her brother’s face could appear through the communication orb, the office door opened first.

“Lady Kevelson. Another carrier pigeon has arrived at the office.”

“……For Audrey?”

“We couldn’t identify its affiliation. I would appreciate if you could check it once.”

Audrey entered the office with a puzzled expression.

Then, an energetic carrier pigeon flapped its wings in greeting.

Coo! Cooooo!

“Merva?”

It was another of Arnold’s carrier pigeons.

He doesn’t answer the communication orb, but he has time to send carrier pigeons?

It was truly exasperating.

“……Yes, it’s for Audrey.”

“Ah, thank you for confirming.”

Not that the letter contained anything significant.

[……Drey, Messian hasn’t returned. Is he still there?]

Audrey wrote back without delay.

Brother, where is your communication orb? Why aren’t you answering my calls? Please contact me through the communication orb when you receive this letter.

The content clearly showed that she was Arnold’s sister by blood.

Meanwhile, Duke Frith, who had been quietly observing this scene, became lost in thought.

‘Who on earth could it be?’

All morning, Dodori had been busy scribbling letters and hadn’t paid him any attention.

Moreover, the pink color of the stationery bothered him unnecessarily.

Wasn’t it the same color as the love letters he had received?

‘……Could it be.’

Naturally, an ominous thought arose.

Could it be that love letters were pouring in for his adorable, capable, charming, pretty, lively, positive, and kind Dodori?

“……!”

In that moment, his heart sank.

The thirteen anemones still on Dodori’s desk also troubled his mind.

Slide!

Growing anxious, Derek went so far as to openly push forward a flower vase.

It was his intention to somehow attract Dodori’s attention.

‘It’s amaranth. It means my pledge of unchanging love.’

However, Dodori seemed uninterested in any signals he was sending.

What could be in those letters that made her small, precious hands write replies until they were covered in ink?

‘……There are no black maple leaves in this world.’

Derek felt as if his world was crumbling.

A little while later.

Coo!

Merva returned with new letters dangling from both ankles. It was as fast as expected of a magician’s carrier pigeon.

Audrey picked up the letters as if she had been waiting for them.

She paid no mind to Duke Frith’s yearning gaze.

[……I prefer letters to communication orbs. Because I can write them secretly during work hours!

……This brother is earning money even while writing letters right now.

……If I had used the communication orb, I would have been caught immediately.

……Does Dotori want her brother to work all day long? Really? Huh?]

“……”

His attitude of openly stealing wages was truly brazen.

Though Audrey, who had been looking in the mirror all day, wasn’t one to talk.

Regardless, she couldn’t just stand by and watch Arnold’s carrier pigeons freely coming and going from the duke’s castle.

‘Doesn’t anyone at the magic tower say anything about this?’

This was clearly a workplace, after all.

Besides, she was starting to notice Duke Frith’s discomfort.

Audrey hastily wrote a reply like a herbivore being chased by a ferocious predator.

[Brother.

If it’s not urgent, please promise to send all letters to our home. If you’re not going to use the communication orb.

I’ll reply to all of them in bulk after work.]

Then she sent Messian and Merva, who had now recovered their strength, back to their original owner.

Cooooo!

Soon after, a final letter arrived from Arnold.

……If that’s what our Drey wants, then so be it! I love you, my sister.

“Huh?”

Audrey blinked in confusion.

She even examined every corner of the letter, wondering if she had missed something.

It was quite a different response from what she had expected.

‘……Is this really a reply from my brother?’

The usual Arnold wouldn’t have given up so easily.

Wasn’t he the type to use the communication orb out of regret if he couldn’t send carrier pigeons?

His unusually docile withdrawal was quite suspicious.

‘Did he find a new pen pal or something?’

But in the end, it was a good thing.

Now she could focus on making Duke Frith fall out of love with her for the rest of the time.

Audrey first picked up the ribbon that had fallen to the floor.

***

Derek felt inwardly relieved when he confirmed that Audrey was back to just looking in the mirror.

‘That’s my Dodori indeed.’

No more carrier pigeons flew in.

It was clear that his decisive Dodori had cut off those suspicious characters cleanly.

Her clear-cut way of handling things was so like his Dodori.

‘Now we can finally have time for just the two of us.’

Just as he was about to check the time with a pleased expression, his countenance darkened.

‘……Four o’clock? Already?’

Even though they hadn’t done much.

The time for the two to part was approaching.

Derek glared at the innocent clock as if he wanted to kill it.

‘Why on earth is a day so short?’

Time was truly absurd.

A day is as long as 24 hours, yet out of those, he could only see Dodori for a mere 9 hours!

He was desperate to stay with Dodori even a little longer.

‘If I say I want to be together all night… I would certainly appear vulgar.’

But he refused to be misunderstood as having impure intentions. He didn’t want to ruin his relationship with Dodori.

Then suddenly, a certain scene flashed through his mind.

‘Wait, that’s strange.’

The corridors of the duke’s castle were very busy even after the closing time of 6 PM.

Sometimes the lights remained on until 10 PM.

In particular, he saw the faces of his aide and several others almost to the point of weariness.

‘Yet I only get to see Dodori for a mere nine hours!’

It was a situation where only the wrong people stayed by his side all day.

What could be the reason?

Derek analyzed the commonalities of the ‘castle ghosts’ with a serious face.

And soon reached a conclusion.

‘……Overtime work!’