Bradley shrugged his shoulders with satisfaction.

Yuri, who had been watching Bradley with his arms crossed, turned to me and asked, “What’s all this about, Titi?”

I tilted my head in confusion and replied, “A new business idea?”

“Oh, so you’re thinking about selling enchanted flowers?” Yuri nodded as if he finally understood.

In truth, I had only tossed the idea to Bradley without any concrete business plan, so I felt a bit awkward. I fidgeted with my fingers as I explained, “But we haven’t finalized the product yet, and we haven’t discussed the compensation for the mages’ work. We just talked about the idea… Why?”

As I explained the situation, both Yuri and Bradley’s faces crumpled. Bradley asked, as if hearing something absurd, “Compensation for work? Were you actually considering that?”

“Well, of course. You don’t expect people to work for free, do you?”

“There are plenty of mages who would work tirelessly even for free. Just like you challenged me, if you ask them if they can do it, they’ll flock to take on the challenge.”

“But still…”

Isn’t that exploitation of labor?

As I stared at Bradley, bewildered, Yuri gently took my hand and kissed the back of it, whispering, “Titi, I don’t think you realize what you have. It’s adorable and endearing, though.”

Blushing at the sudden compliment, I noticed Bradley looking exasperated.

Yuri naturally helped me onto the wagon, changing the subject. “But don’t we have no time to waste? The auction is about to start.”

“Right! Bradley, let’s hurry!”

“Yes, yes.”

With a clatter, the wagon started moving. Breathing in the fresh morning air, I looked up.

The morning sun was just pushing away the deep blue clouds as it rose.

***

Before entering the auction, I made a vow to myself.

“Twenty times the cost price. I won’t sell for anything less.”

Honestly, I was prepared for it, but I thought it was a huge gamble.

However, the actual winning bid was…

After the auction, I sat dazed on a park bench near the auction house, just staring at the sky. Yuri handed me a warm bottle of tea and asked, “Titi, are you okay?”

“Huh? Oh…”

Even with the warm bottle in my hand, it didn’t feel real. Seeing me just holding the bottle, Yuri took it back and gently pressed it to my lips.

“Take a sip. It’s not that bad.”

I obediently drank the tea as Yuri held it for me. I hadn’t realized it before, but as the warm tea went down, warmth spread through my body, making me feel at ease.

“Ahh…”

A long sigh escaped as if a blocked passage had cleared. Finally, my tense fingers relaxed.

I took the bottle and drank a bit more. Yuri stayed by my side, gently brushing my hair back.

“Your body seems to have tensed up after being on edge, but now that you’re relaxed, it’s stiffened. Are you feeling better now?”

“Yeah, thank you.”

The warm tea worked like a charm. Having calmed my startled heart, I put the bottle down. Thinking about the auction, I felt excitement rise, and my cheeks flushed.

“From the middle, it felt like a dream. Didn’t it?”

Yuri smiled, his eyes crinkling with affection. “You knew the tulip prices would rise, didn’t you?”

“Still, I didn’t expect them to go up this much…”

I had deliberately held onto the tulips for a few days, watching the market situation before putting them up for auction. I thought that way, people would lose their reason in desperation and rush to buy.

I had predicted everything, but there was one thing I hadn’t anticipated: the auction itself.

The auction was far more heated than I had imagined. People raised their paddles, doubling and tripling the bids, and eventually, competition got so fierce that there were even loud arguments.

As a result…

The final bid for my tulips was 100 times the original price.

Thinking about the total sales amount made me dizzy, and I clenched my fists tightly again.

‘Oh my, how much is that?’

Thanks to buying tulips generously with money won from lotteries and betting, the profit was enormous.

‘I became a millionaire in an instant.’

The auction had been so intense that I received the payment immediately with a check.

‘I’ll need to go to the bank when the day breaks. Or should I buy a safe? Just thinking about the amount makes my heart race again.’

In my previous life, I had never handled such a large sum of money. Although I had earned a decent amount before, this time the scale was different, and it felt unreal, making me anxious.

However, that feeling didn’t last long. When my eyes met Yuri’s, who looked at me as if I were adorable, I felt embarrassed, like a child.

I replied with a pout.

“Isn’t it funny how I get excited about this even though I know the future?”

“Not at all. Titi, you have this habit of being self-deprecating.”

I just wanted to hide my embarrassment, but Yuri gently hugged me.

“I’m just glad that Titi chose to be by my side. Otherwise, I would have missed out on a lifetime of happiness without even realizing it.”

“Geez…”

Even my childish complaints were met with a response as sweet as sugar, making me feel like I might cry.

After being serious for a moment, Yuri didn’t forget to tease me playfully.

“Oh? Your face is turning red. Do you like hearing things like this?”

“No, I don’t. Stop with the nonsense.”

“Haha.”

Yuri laughed heartily at my rebuke. I glanced at him sideways and pouted my lips.

‘It’s like magic how my heart feels so at ease now.’

I realized that his playful words were all meant to show his care for me.

“…Thank you.”

Yuri smiled shyly, narrowing his eyes at my gratitude. Then he bent down to meet my gaze and asked,

“So, what do you want to do most right now?”

“Right now?”

“Yes. People usually have that kind of imagination at least once. Like, if you suddenly became rich, what’s the first thing you’d do?”

I often had such daydreams.

‘Buying a house or a building for business.’

But when Yuri asked, I found myself at a loss for words. Now I already had a house and a building.

‘And it doesn’t seem like that’s what Yuri is asking about.’

Then, after thinking for a moment, I tilted my head and said,

“Marriage?”

“What?”

Yuri’s eyes widened like marbles. I grinned mischievously and added,

“I’m a millionaire now, right? I’ll make sure you walk only on flower paths without lifting a finger! Let’s spend our lives together, Yuri.”

With family issues and Princess Sabina resolved, all I could see was the handsome pink-haired man in front of me.

Hearing my confession, Yuri covered his face with his hands and burst into laughter. Then he replied, grumbling,

“Really, I can’t beat Titi. You just said everything I wanted to say.”

He slowly pulled a small cubic box from his pocket with his large hand. Inside the box was a light blue gemstone ring that glimmered brilliantly.

Presenting it to me, Yuri confessed in a serious voice,

“Please marry me.”

When I had mentioned marriage, I didn’t feel this overwhelmed, but receiving an official proposal made my heart swell.

I stared blankly at the ring, reflecting the sunlight and scattering sparkling light, and asked in a slightly subdued voice,

“…Did you plan to give it to me today?”

Yuri shrugged lightly and replied,

“I thought Titi would only look my way once important matters were settled.”

Oh, Yuri. I hugged him around the neck and whispered, “There’s nothing more important in the world than you.”

A light chuckle tickled my ear. Yuri’s lips brushed against my cheek and then pulled away. After kissing my face a few more times, Yuri released my arms and took my left hand.

“You have to try the ring on.”

The ring fit perfectly on my ring finger, as if he knew my finger size.

I curled my fingers slightly and lifted them to examine the sparkling gemstone closely. Depending on the direction of the light, the gem changed color.

‘It’s just like Yuri’s eyes.’

Usually, wedding rings are made with clear diamonds, but he had deliberately chosen a blue stone, and his intentions were clear.

I narrowed my eyes and asked with a fox-like grin, “Did you choose a blue gemstone on purpose?”

Yuri proudly admitted, without denial or embarrassment,

“Yes, because I have a strong possessive nature. You have to wear blue gemstones for life.”

His proud expression was so adorable that it was almost troublesome.

“I thought it was aquamarine, but looking closely, it doesn’t seem like it.”

“It’s a blue diamond I took from the family vault. Since I saved the life of the head of the Esrenche family, I thought I deserved to take at least this much.”

I could easily imagine Yuri barging into the Esrenche family and demanding the ring without hesitation.