Yuri, who had been staring blankly at the pendant, quickly tucked it into his coat and turned around.

“I’m taking this.”

“What? Oh, there aren’t many left, so you need to get permission from the Tower Master! Besides, the Tower Master is the one who made it!”

“Tell my beloved master I said thanks.”

The mage, who was about to lose the most expensive artifact, turned pale and clung tightly to Yuri’s coat.

“What? You have to tell him yourself! I’m going to die!”

At the mage’s pitiful cry, Yuri tilted his head and flashed a bright smile.

“What does that have to do with me?”

His words implied that he didn’t care whether the mage lived or died. The mage’s face twisted in despair.

“Oh no, his personality…”

“My personality?”

“T-The Tower Master will be delighted.”

Of course, fearing for his life, the mage quickly gave in.

Yuri removed the mage’s hand and waved.

“Well then, take care.”

“Wait a minute! Do you even know what magic is in there before you take it? Hey, you!”

Who cares? Judging by the amount of space left for inscribing magic on the stone, it was clear that there wasn’t any significant magic in it to begin with.

‘I heard the dress Lady Morphe gave to Titi was a deep navy color.’

It would match well with that dress.

Thinking this, Yuri added a few spells to the magic stone. They were nothing special: a spell to summon Yuri when his name was called and a spell to inform him of his location.

Even after acquiring a useful accessory, his mood remained sour.

A navy dress… Titiana said it was pretty, but…

“Titi would look better in more vibrant colors, like coral.”

Recalling Titiana’s petal-like pink eyes, Yuri twisted his lips.

“No one seems to have any taste.”

I must choose the next dress myself.

Imagining her blushing yet obediently wearing whatever he picked, Yuri felt cheerful again.

***

The day of the tea party dawned.

Standing in front of the mirror in my room, I took a deep breath.

‘Even the invitation wasn’t ordinary.’

Whatever trick they used, the invitation sparkled in a rainbow of colors. The dried rainbow rose petals boldly attached seemed to flaunt the wealth of the Morphe Duchy.

‘I had attended countless tea parties in my previous life, so why was I so nervous?’

The Morphe Duchy wasn’t a family I had been close to in my past life. Maybe that was why everything felt so unfamiliar.

I sighed.

‘Don’t make any mistakes, Titiana.’

I didn’t aim to excel; I just resolved to meet the minimum expectations and steadied my mind as I slowly descended.

“Titi.”

Yuri was waiting for me on the first floor, smiling brightly.

“Navy suits you well. You look beautiful.”

Hearing the compliment felt awkward. I deliberately put on a sulky expression and replied, “Beautiful is a word that suits young ladies younger than me. You should say I’m lovely.”

“Titi is plenty young. How long has it been since your coming-of-age ceremony?”

“Oh.”

Come to think of it, I had traveled back in time twice, so I was much younger than I felt. Realizing this, I scratched my cheek.

‘That’s true. I’ve been so busy that I haven’t even felt my age.’

Instead of rejoicing in my regained youth, I was preoccupied with avoiding the misfortunes of this life.

And the reason I could stay so busy was all thanks to the person standing in front of me.

The one who consistently supported and helped me.

Yuri.

‘When I go out and come back, I should buy him a gift.’

We shared everything from meals to cleaning and laundry, but I had only thought about how grateful I was without properly expressing it.

‘Even today, I have to leave the shop to Yuri.’

Yuri had agreed to make the rainbow roses for tomorrow’s sale by himself. Since dyeing them was a meticulous task that required a lot of effort, I appreciated that he readily took it on.

But for some reason, Yuri looked down at me with a hint of regret.

“Oh, you managed to dress up all by yourself?”

“What wouldn’t I be able to wear?”

Did he think I couldn’t manage to wear a simple dress with just a petticoat? In my past life, I had worn heavy dresses with whalebone corsets just fine.

‘Come to think of it, I always wore pants while working at the flower shop.’

Maybe he thought I believed skirts didn’t exist in this world.

“And if I couldn’t, what would you do? Of course, I should dress myself.”

“I could at least button up the back for you, you know?”

“No need.”

I had never asked my father or brother for such help. And now, receiving dressing assistance from Yuri?

“No thanks, just take good care of the flower shop.”

“Sometimes I wish Titi needed my help.”

“I’m already relying on you enough, aren’t I? I’m entrusting you with the most important task today.”

I sincerely thanked Yuri.

“Sorry for asking you to do so much today, Yuri. I’m always grateful.”

Yuri smiled silently at my gratitude. His calm expression looked so peaceful that I found myself staring at his face for a moment.

When Yuri spoke my name, it sounded as sweet as a little bird chirping.

“Titi.”

He simply called my name, but strangely, it made my ears tingle. As I blushed slightly and touched my ear, Yuri handed me a small box.

“It’s a gift.”

“What’s this?”

I was supposed to be the one bringing him a gift! Feeling both apologetic and awkward, I opened the box.

“Wow…”

Inside was a round, clear stone resembling a droplet. If the surface were polished a bit more, it would shine beautifully like a crystal, but its glass-like transparency gave it a unique charm.

‘Is this a glass-made accessory?’

Then I remembered what Rosemary had mentioned during her last visit.

“When glass pieces are worn by the waves for a long time, they become beautiful stones like jewels.”

I widened my eyes. An accessory famous enough for Rosemary to mention it.

‘It’s not just glass-like; it’s a real glass piece rounded by the waves!’

It was even prettier than described and less burdensome than real jewels. I accepted it with a big smile.

“So this is what Lady Rosie was talking about.”

“Really? Did Lady Morphe know about this?”

“Yeah, she explained it during her last visit, saying it was special.”

Yuri tilted his head, murmuring as if it were strange.

“As expected of the Morphe Duchy. I thought no one knew about this.”

I didn’t think much of his words, assuming that someone as trend-savvy as Rosemary would be aware of it.

Yuri smiled warmly and said, “I thought Titi might go without any accessories today, so I got this in a hurry. Wear it.”

“Thank you.”

I rubbed the smooth surface with my finger, and it made my heart tingle for some reason.

“I feel bad always receiving help from you.”

“Then you can give me a gift later.”

“Later?”

Yuri placed his hands on his hips and boasted, “My birthday is next week.”

“Oh.”

Birthday!

I had already been thinking of getting Yuri a gift, so this worked out perfectly.

“What kind of gift do you want?”

“Hey, how can you ask the person who’s receiving it? Titi, you should pick something you think I’d like.”

“Really?”

But what if I ended up giving something that wasn’t to my taste or was useless? It seemed better to just say what he wanted.

‘If that’s what Yuri wants, then okay.’

I didn’t quite understand it, but if that was his wish, fine.

‘I should pay close attention over the next week to see what he might need.’

As I made this resolution, Yuri’s long fingers picked up the necklace from the box. The transparent stone fell like a raindrop, and I really liked how it looked.

“Lower your head a bit. Let me put it on for you.”

Since I had my hair down to match the dress today, it was hard to fasten the necklace.

“There you go.”

I obediently gathered my hair and extended my neck. As Yuri reached behind my neck to fasten the clasp, it happened.

Snap!

“Ouch!”

“Ugh.”

Once again, it felt like a needle pricked the back of my neck. Unable to bear the pain, I jerked my head up and glared at Yuri.

“Yuri, you’re banned from coming near me now.”

“What? That’s not fair!”

“But whenever you get close, I get static shocks like this. It doesn’t happen with anyone else. It’s strange.”

Meanwhile, the clasp was secured properly, and the weighty jewel hung near my collarbone. Yuri shrugged his shoulders and replied playfully, “Maybe it’s because my love for Titi is so strong.”

“Stop saying nonsense.”

Love, my foot.

I scolded him, meaning he shouldn’t throw such words around lightly, and Yuri leaned closer to me. Suddenly, his face was near, and a fresh citrus scent, like pomelo, wafted over.

“I’m not joking, you know?”