Yuri clapped his hands at my response.

“Oh, I heard that the daughter of the Morphe Duke is quite trendy. Miss Rosemary.”

“Really? She’s perfect for this.”

A duke’s daughter who was sensitive to trends was exactly the kind of person I had hoped for.

‘I should wrap it up nicely and deliver it. Maybe add a cute card…’

Could it become as popular as the blue roses? If so, that would be incredibly exciting!

As I imagined what would happen tomorrow, my heart fluttered with anticipation. I suddenly felt a warm gaze from nearby. Turning my head quickly, I saw Yuri looking at me with a gentle smile.

The tenderness in his eyes made me feel flustered. Feeling oddly shy, I pouted and asked bluntly, “Why are you smiling?”

Yuri’s eyes narrowed even more as he let out a deep laugh.

“It’s because Titi’s excited face is so pretty.”

“…!”

Even though I knew the ‘pretty’ he meant wasn’t that kind of pretty, my cheeks turned red. I covered my face with both hands and replied, “Don’t be silly. You’re saying I look like a kid, right?”

Otherwise, there was no way he would use the word ‘pretty’ so casually.

‘Who’s really the pretty one here?’

The sunlight streaming through the window softly tousled Yuri’s pink hair. His eyebrows, the same color as his hair, seemed to scatter a gentle light like golden dust.

Like a cupid from a masterpiece, the handsome young man smiled brightly and spoke, “Seeing Titi makes me feel good. You express what you want honestly and try your best…”

Yuri’s blue eyes widened slightly as he continued. Fiddling with his lips, he nodded as if he was realizing something new and added, “That’s right. I like people like Titi.”

***

The rainbow roses were a huge hit as well.

“Such a mysterious flower!”

“Isn’t it too chaotic with so many colors?”

“You sound so ignorant of art! That’s what makes it even more beautiful!”

The rainbow roses, boasting more colors than the blue roses, received mixed reviews. However, since not just anyone could buy them, the negative opinions didn’t spread widely.

“Great job today, Titi,” Yuri said cheerfully.

The gold coins I loved jingled and clinked. But amidst this dazzling success, I couldn’t feel as purely happy as I had with the blue roses.

Whenever I saw Yuri, I recalled the words he had said to me a few days ago.

“I like people like Titi.”

‘Why does he casually say things that make my heart flutter?’

What annoyed me was that the person who had said those words seemed completely unfazed by them.

Sighing, I watched as Yuri neatly organized the money.

‘I’m not such an amazing person, so why couldn’t I tell Yuri the truth?’

Lost in thought, Yuri smiled warmly and asked, “You’re out of energy because you’re hungry, right? Having breakfast early does make you peckish. Want a snack?”

Well, it was true that I felt a bit empty.

“Today…”

Just as I was about to respond to Yuri, an unwelcome figure came into view.

“Gasp!”

I ducked down beneath the stall. In the process, I accidentally bumped my elbow. Holding it, I groaned silently and sighed softly.

‘Ouch…!’

How did I end up doing something so out of character?

‘It’s all because of that guy. Just when I was starting to relax, he suddenly shows up out of nowhere.’

The reason I hid was because of a man passing by outside.

His pink hair shimmered brilliantly in the sunlight, and his posture was perfectly upright.

‘Yujin.’

The man I thought would never return after being turned away at the door was standing outside again.

‘Why is he here again?’

Thinking I might have been mistaken, I peeked out to check the street and then crouched back down.

‘It’s real! He’s really in front of our shop!’

Perhaps because I had yelled at him last time for entering despite the ‘closed’ sign, he didn’t open the door immediately but instead stood there, seemingly checking if anyone was inside.

‘Ugh, he’s making me nervous.’

Before I could even consider why I needed to hide, my body reacted instinctively.

‘It would be awkward to show myself now.’

With him staring like that, wouldn’t it be strange if I suddenly appeared?

‘It’s better that I hid. Let’s think of it as my subconscious expressing that I really don’t want to get involved with him anymore.’

If our eyes met, I felt like we would become entangled for a long time.

While I waited for him to leave, Yuri, who had somehow crouched down beside me, started to speak.

“What crime did you commit? Why are you suddenly hiding?”

With his naturally carefree and handsome demeanor, even while crouching, he looked like a mischievous kid planning a prank.

I flushed for no reason and pouted, “Who said I was hiding? It’s called a strategic retreat.”

Though if someone asked what I was retreating from, I wouldn’t have an answer.

Yuri glanced outside and shrugged.

“Are you hiding because you’re uncomfortable with Yujin?”

“Yeah, so what if I am?”

Yuri’s expression turned peculiar at my response. It was hard to tell if he was smiling or holding back laughter.

“No, it’s just that I’ve never heard anyone say they dislike Yujin Esrenche. Oh, well, I don’t like my brother either, so you’re the second one.”

This time, it was my turn to flinch at the full name of Yujin that slipped naturally from Yuri’s lips.

“…Esrenche? Are you talking about the Esrenche Count family?”

The richest family in the country?

Yuri tilted his head and replied, “Yes. Oh, did I not mention it?”

“You didn’t!”

If you had, I wouldn’t be sitting here so casually. I pointed at Yuri to confirm again.

“So, you’re Yuri Esrenche?”

“Well, it’s a last name that doesn’t matter much anymore. I left the family.”

Did he think leaving a family was as simple as waving goodbye?

‘I thought he seemed like he was raised in luxury…’

I never imagined he was from the Esrenche family.

As I opened and closed my mouth in surprise, Yuri laughed as if he found it amusing.

“That’s surprising. I thought Titi wouldn’t recognize the name. Actually, my brother and I are more famous for our pink hair.”

…So pink hair wasn’t common after all!

‘He certainly had a way of teasing me for not recognizing him.’

Even his teasing didn’t annoy me. I replied bluntly, “Well, I’m from the countryside, so it’s natural that I wouldn’t know much about the capital.”

I said that, but inwardly, I felt a bit miffed that, despite having lived as a Marchioness before, I didn’t recognize the Esrenche Count.

Then a sudden thought struck me, and I looked up quickly.

‘Wait a minute. But I really don’t remember that man’s face at all.’

I knew about the Esrenche family because their business was solid, but I had never met the Count himself—not at any major social events.

‘That’s right. I never met him in my past life.’

I also understood why Yujin Esrenche didn’t appear in social circles.

‘…By the time I became a Marchioness, he had already stopped his public activities.’

I had heard that he secluded himself due to a serious illness. Rumors spread like mist that it was terminal, which was a pity since he was so young.

‘So, that means the man outside is going to seclude himself due to illness in the near future? And it’s terminal?’

Whether you liked someone or not, their death was a completely different matter!

Knowing the future was always exciting, but this was the first time it felt so terrifying.

When my face suddenly went pale, Yuri frowned.

“What’s wrong, Titi? Are you feeling sick?”

“No, it’s not me…”

Was your brother sick by any chance?

‘I can’t ask that.’

He’d think I was strange, right? ‘But I can’t just ignore it either.’

Caught in a dilemma, I groaned.

“Ugh…”

As I continued to groan without saying anything coherent, Yuri’s expression hardened, “It’s because of Yujin, right? Should I kick him out right now?”

“No, if we leave him alone, he’ll go…”

It was then that a very stern and heavy voice rang out above my head.

“The shop owner here has an unusual way of greeting customers.”

Yujin was looking down at me from over the counter as I was in distress.

“Yujin…”

Even though he had met his older brother, Yuri didn’t seem happy at all. Instead, he crouched behind me as if he was trying to hide his large frame!

I was taken aback and poked Yuri, “Hey, didn’t you say you’d protect me?”

“Oh no, my hidden social anxiety…”

“You’re kidding!”

He smiled perfectly fine when dealing with customers, so why did he get social anxiety in front of family?

As we bickered about who should handle the situation, Yujin looked at us with a face full of disbelief, as if witnessing something absurd.

‘Ugh, seriously.’

Why did it feel like I was constantly losing face in front of this guy?