Even in the original work, Caslan didn’t express his feelings even when he had them. Because of that, Liliet wouldn’t have known Caslan’s heart at all.

‘Still.’

When Fazel looked after me, Caslan looked after Liliet. He even noticed right away when just one of Liliet’s accessories changed. The same guy who didn’t notice when I cut my hair.

Fazel and I had already noticed Caslan’s feelings, but Liliet didn’t know.

“We should avoid them when they confess to each other.”

I could just be with Fazel then.

I giggled.

“What’s so funny?”

A voice with an arrogant feel came from somewhere. I turned my head to see Fazel entering the room.

“You’re here?”

“I came a bit earlier than our appointment time and was in the drawing room, but Marlene told me to come here.”

This was my personal room. People without permission couldn’t enter.

“You’re fine, Fazel.”

I got up from the chair and gathered the letter Liliet sent.

“What’s that letter?”

“Liliet sent it.”

“Not from another young master?”

“I throw those away without even looking.”

It was something I’d dealt with tediously at the Academy. Fazel looked at me, then smiled slightly.

“Does it please you that I do that?”

I went straight at Fazel. He looked flustered, then just nodded.

“Yes.”

I like that he’s honest.

‘Hmm, could it be?’

Does Fazel see me not just as a friend or good fiancée, but as a woman?

With that possibility in mind, I approached him. Then Fazel flinched and moved closer to me.

“Let’s go have tea.”

“Okay.”

He was so close I became conscious of it. Since Fazel would come of age next year, he was tall and truly handsome.

On top of that, caring and kind.

I didn’t hide my racing heart. I firmly held his hand like we were dating.

“What tea did you prepare?”

Fazel asked in a soft voice.

“Rosaron tea.”

“The tea that just came out? I heard it’s hard to get?”

“Her Majesty the Empress sent it. She said to drink it together with you.”

The Empress hadn’t been wary of me since I gave up succession rights. It was too obvious, but I still thought it was good.

In exchange for giving up succession rights, I received the imperial family’s protection.

Fazel was dumbfounded at my words.

“When was she so wary?”

“Right?”

“I understand, but. Her intentions are too transparent.”

“Better than not being able to see inside.”

Fazel agreed with my words but still didn’t seem to like it.

Still, the tea the Empress sent was really delicious.

I drank tea and handed the letter to Fazel sitting across from me.

“Liliet says to come to the villa next week.”

“We’re finally going.”

Fazel was excited too.

“You like it that much?”

“Of course. It feels like a reward coming after studying fiercely at the Academy.”

Good if you think of it that way.

I was excited too at the thought of playing with friends.

“But Louelle, I thought about what happened to us while I was home.”

“Yeah.”

Fazel suddenly asked in a serious tone.

“Do I lack something as a fiancé or anything like that?”

I tilted my head.

“What do you mean?”

“Next year, if nothing particular happens, we agreed to formally get engaged.”

“Yes, I told Father too.”

“You’re really quick to act. So, if there’s something I lack, I want to try to improve.”

I was momentarily speechless.

He was thinking like this.

My hand stiffened, then moved slightly. My heart tickled.

“Not yet. If there’s anything uncomfortable or something I want you to fix, I’ll tell you.”

Fazel looked relieved and nodded with satisfaction.

“Do you have any discomforts?”

Fazel shook his head, then nodded like he remembered something.

“What?”

“When you’re plotting something, let me know in advance.”

“Huh?”

“Thinking about it now, I got caught up in a lot of your schemes. You’re not going to say all those things were coincidences, right?”

My heart skipped.

Is he starting to catch on?

Well, he’d know by now.

“I don’t know if it was to defeat Nertian or because you needed a capable subordinate.”

No. That’s wrong.

Because I liked you.

“Neither.”

I could tell him now, right?

Fazel likes me too, and we’re discussing a formal engagement.

“What?”

“Both are wrong. Why would I have approached you?”

I smiled slightly.

“I’m surprisingly a proud woman.”

Since Fazel had seen me reject men at the Academy, he couldn’t refute this.

“So think carefully.”

Though I don’t know if he can figure it out.

I gave him an assignment that wasn’t an assignment.

* * *

A week passed. Fazel packed his luggage and waited for Louelle. She said she’d come pick him up by carriage, so she’d arrive soon.

‘I’m a surprisingly proud woman.’

He knew what those words meant. Louelle didn’t give her heart to men who approached her. She looked at men other than himself like stones.

Even when men with excellent conditions approached, her answer was always the same. Watching her like that, he thought she was amazing.

So he felt relieved and more attracted.

Louelle, who lived consistently and tenaciously, was his ideal type. Even if he hadn’t liked her, he would have kept her in mind. Louelle was that attractive.

Distracted, he hadn’t thought about what Louelle’s feelings were like.

‘No way. It can’t be.’

Because she liked him, she targeted him as her fiancé from the start and approached? So she gave him a bouquet to make a good impression, but he threw it away, so she used that as an opportunity to propose studying together?

Assuming that and thinking about it, everything fell into place.

Yet he wanted to deny it.

Not because he disliked her feelings. He just wanted to suppress his excited heart because he’d get hurt if he hoped and was disappointed.

Sighing and waiting, someone knocked on his room.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me.”

It was Louelle.

He was thinking about Louelle and she arrived. Fazel’s face heated up and he quickly stroked his cheeks with his hands, waiting for them to cool down.

After a moment, he calmed his mind and turned the door handle. Louelle stood there with her hair cutely braided.

“What were you doing that you opened late?”

Louelle asked.

His heart was wavering right now, but she looked peaceful as usual.

It was slightly annoying.

“I was doing final organizing.”

Fazel spoke like it was nothing, but Louelle’s eyes narrowed. She saw through the lie.

“Okay.”

But Louelle didn’t bother pressing. Then she nodded like she guessed something.

“I dropped a bomb yesterday, so you can’t be comfortable. Let’s go.”

“Uh, okay.”

How did she know at once?

Fazel didn’t notice his face heating up again as soon as he saw Louelle.

* * *

I was in a good mood. Because I knew that Fazel finally realized my feelings after hearing what I said, yet couldn’t bring himself to say it.

‘Since when exactly?’

After revealing my heart to Fazel, I also mulled over Fazel’s actions.

Then I realized one thing.

That he treated me very preciously.

‘I should have said it earlier.’

I was too slow to notice.

‘Fazel is oblivious too, but so are you.’

As soon as I told Father that Fazel seemed to like me, he told me.

That the adults all already knew.

‘Were we the only ones who didn’t know about each other?’

Toward Fazel, who was certain but still couldn’t say it, I gave him a bracelet.

“Wear this.”

“What bracelet is it?”

“A bracelet worn by Count Asnel’s companion.”

“Ah, really?”

“If you marry me, you’ll become my husband. So you should wear it.”

I spoke like it was obvious. Fazel hesitated while putting the bracelet on his hand, then moved his lips.

His expression wanting to ask what it meant but unable to ask was cute.

“Wear it well.”

“Okay.”

He answers well too.

I smiled contentedly and looked at him. Fazel finally spoke like he’d made up his mind.

“Does Louelle have someone she likes?”

No, you should ask if I like you.

“I do.”

My patience until now felt like it would explode.

I held back a lot.

I held back for four years, from when Fazel came at 13 until I turned 17.

So I could talk about it now, right?

“Have things gone well with that person?”

“Yes, they went well.”

I spoke simply. Of course, I didn’t say that person was Fazel.

“Then that person! Are you engaged?”

Fazel asked, trembling with fear and clutching his chest.

“Yes.”

I answered briefly.

“I’m close and friendly with him, and we’re even engaged.”

At my words, Fazel leaned back against the backrest.

“Really. Is it real?”

“What?”

“That you plotted schemes because you liked me from the start.”

“You could say that. I liked you from the beginning.”

“Ah, what is this really?”

Fazel grabbed his head.

“I understand now why you were only friendly to me.”

Fazel stared at me.

“Wasn’t it hard?”

“It was hard, but I have a lot of patience when it comes to you. I waited. Pressing you wouldn’t suddenly make you like me. If I revealed my feelings rashly, you might reject me.”

I continued speaking gently.

“Now you like me, so even knowing this fact, you’ll just accept it, right?”

Fazel glared at me.

Even looking at me like that, I know everything.

You like me!

“Really, you know too much about me.”

“I’ve been your fiancée for four years, I should know.”

I smiled brightly.

“You’re like me too. Weak to people close to you.”

Then Fazel sighed.

“I thought I had something on you, but it’s the opposite.”

“I’m the one who caught you.”

“And my heart already left, so I can’t leave either.”

Fazel grimaced deeply. He sighed and looked at me with a serious expression.

“After all this, you talked about breaking off the engagement in the contract?”

“That way you wouldn’t feel burdened either.”

“Haa.”

Everything was meticulously calculated.

I was glad I could finally speak honestly too.

“What were you going to do if I broke off the engagement?”

“Then I agreed to work in the territory so Fazel would look at me again.”

Fazel recalled the price of breaking the engagement and laughed incredulously.

“I really thought you did everything at a loss, but turns out you were securing your own interests neatly.”

Fazel looked at the ceiling admiringly, then gave me his gaze again.

“So now it’s okay to talk about feelings.”

“Right. It’s timing when you absolutely can’t refuse and can’t run away either.”

I smiled brightly.

“I’ll treat you well for life.”

I finally said what I wanted to say honestly.

“Am I still lovely though?”

Fazel turned his head.

“I don’t know.”

Fazel had spoken his feelings honestly until now.

It felt like going back to when we first met.

“Won’t you tell me?”

When I made a disappointed expression, Fazel looked at me.

“Do you have to hear it in words?”

“I don’t know unless you say it.”

“You already know.”

“But I want to hear it.”

Fazel sighed.

“Even doing that is pretty, so it’s annoying.”

In the end, he spoke his feelings. Then he stood up and sat next to me.

“Now that you’ve gotten what you wanted, you have to take responsibility.”