Chapter 1.3

As she sat with her knees together to rest, a red garment fluttered and stopped in front of her.

“Are you alright?”

It was an androgynous voice, impossible to tell if it belonged to a man or a woman.

“Wh, who… are you?”

She struggled to lift her head to see the owner of the voice. A bright red cloak filled her vision. It was a vivid color, as if it had taken all the red from the world. It stood out even more in the dull alleyway.

She couldn’t tell if there was anyone inside the cloak. The red cloak wrapped tightly around the body down to the feet, making it impossible to see inside. The only visible part was lips of the same hue as the cloak.

“Sorry to startle you. You looked unwell, so I followed out of concern.”

“Oh, I was just sitting.”

Flustered, she pretended nothing was wrong and got up. Perhaps because she stood up suddenly, dizziness made her stagger. Just as she thought ‘Oops,’ the someone under the red cloak reached out a hand. Before it could touch her, she straightened up, and the red cloak clenched a fist and withdrew into the garment.

Standing upright, she saw the red cloak was only half a span taller than her.

“I’m fine, so you can go.”

She appreciated the offer of help but felt burdened, so she signaled for him to leave quickly.

However, the someone under the red cloak showed no intention of leaving, standing still without a word. Though she couldn’t see his eyes under the hood, she felt as if the someone under the red cloak was watching her.

She thought she’d end up playing a waiting game with the someone under the red cloak if she stayed in the alley, so she decided she should leave.

“I want to give this to you.”

The someone under the red cloak suddenly extended a hand. In the palm lay a gold bracelet. She frowned, unable to discern the someone under the red cloak’s intentions. It felt too cautious to accept something from a stranger.

“What is this? Why are you giving it to me?”

“It’s for helping with social anxiety.”

“What?”

“You’ll understand the effect once you wear it.”

Then the someone under the red cloak abruptly tossed the bracelet.

“Oh!”

Startled, she caught it reflexively. She was bewildered by the bracelet that fit snugly in her hand. As she gathered her wits to return it, the someone under the red cloak had vanished from sight.

Was it an illusion? 

She widened her eyes and quickly scanned outside the alley, but the someone under the red cloak was nowhere to be seen, as if it had flown into the sky or sunk into the ground. The bracelet in her hand was the only trace left of the someone under the red cloak.

What a strange occurrence… 

She blinked in disbelief at the bracelet. It was a plain, unevenly thick, crude gold bracelet. It didn’t look special, appearing clumsily made by a beginner.

As she examined it closely, she found an inscription.

[Felix]

It meant luck, happiness. Could it be the someone under the red cloak’s name? Strangely, it felt familiar. She brushed her fingers over the inscription and, as if entranced, tried it on her wrist. It fit perfectly.

After that, she experienced something unusual. All the way back to the mansion with the bracelet on, everyone maintained a certain distance from her as they passed. No one seemed to find it odd.

Watching people naturally avoid her, she realized this was the effect the someone under the red cloak had mentioned.

For a few days, she kept the bracelet in a drawer. She wanted to return it, but all she knew about the someone under the red cloak was the presumed name inscribed on it. She wasn’t even sure if it was a real name.

Then, it seemed a waste to let it sit unused. It felt more polite to use something given than to let it gather dust.

So, she started wearing it when going out

The bracelet indeed proved to be a helpful item. When she wore it, no one approached her at social parties, and even when she was alone, no one found it odd. It was convenient for avoiding accidental contact outside. 

At some point, she started keeping the bracelet on her at all times.

And two years later, Felix Oditolium’s magic revolution occurred.

It was then she realized the mysterious bracelet was a magical tool and that the someone under red cloak was Felix, the son and mage of the Oditolium Marquis family.

Feeling grateful for finally knowing his identity, she eagerly attended social parties to thank him but never saw him. She considered writing a letter or visiting the Oditolium family but decided against it.

The someone under the red cloak in her memory was a man with a bracelet for fear of people. She wondered if he might also have a fear of people.

So, instead of directly expressing her gratitude to Felix, she decided to frequent the Oditolium shop. Every month, she bought one or two of the most expensive and meticulously crafted items. She also enthusiastically introduced their quality to her family and employees.

And the items were genuinely good.

Initially, it was done out of gratitude, but before she knew it, she had become the head of Felix’s fan club and a VIP at the Oditolium magic shop.

She lost count of how many Felix’s items were in her room.

Felix was practically her first love. Even now, the sight of an alleyway reminded her of the someone under the red cloak.

And now, Felix was a prospective marriage partner! Could this be destiny? Surely it was destiny.

“Selly! Come out! It’s an emergency, an emergency!”

She hurriedly ran up the stairs to the second floor, calling for Selly at the top of her lungs. The maids followed behind, worriedly saying, “You might fall,” “Madam will scold you,” but she pretended not to hear. What did it matter if her mother scolded her a bit? Something much more important had come up.

Selly was found behind the stairs leading to the third floor.

“Ah!”

In a very embarrassing situation…

“Selly, I told you to keep your romantic affairs outside!”

“Oh, Miss.”

Selly and the male servant quickly separated. The servant’s face was extremely red. Whatever Selly had done to him, he bowed deeply to her, exclaimed, “I’m sorry!” and fled.

“You’re driving me crazy.”

She covered her eyes with both hands and stomped her feet until the sound of the male servant’s footsteps disappeared into the distance. Although she was now okay with seeing couples, the sight of a man and woman tightly embracing right in front of her made her heart race and feel dizzy.

Selly, buttoning up her disheveled clothes, spoke sulkily.

“Miss, I have a personal life too.”

“That personal life shouldn’t cause trouble for others.”

“Tsk.”

“Tsk? Really. Ha, you’ve changed since you started helping Diana’s business.”

“Miss, I’ve simply opened my eyes to a new world.”

Selly, who was the same age as her and had been her exclusive maid for over ten years, was the only person in the household who knew about her phobia.

In truth, she had never intended to speak about the childhood trauma to anyone. It was too frightening even to mention. However, after she began avoiding men consistently following that incident, Selly noticed something was amiss and asked, leading her to reveal the truth shortly after.

Selly was the only one who understood her.

Until she became an adult and spent about three months at Diana’s business…

What on earth had happened there? Selly, who used to inform her whenever Diana brought her lover home so she could avoid encountering them, had since started engaging in adult games with the male servants.

“Just try appearing in front of me again. You’ll be kicked out for sure.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll be careful. But what’s the emergency?”

Her response was insolent. She considered addressing it but decided to let it go as there was a more pressing matter.

“Well… I think I might be getting engaged soon.”

“What?”

Selly stopped fastening her last collar button and widened her eyes like a bull.

“With whom? Miss, were you secretly dating someone? No, wait, have you overcome your phobia?”

“No, it’s not that. A marriage proposal came in today.”

“A marriage proposal?”

“Yes, but do you know who the prospective partner is?”

“How would I know?”

“Try guessing!”

She spoke excitedly, and Selly rubbed her chin before exclaiming, “Ah!” and replying.

“The son of Count Leon?”

“…Who is that?”

“The one who spoke to you at the Galton charity party recently.”

Was there someone like that…? 

Her memory was vague.

“No, anyone else?”

“I don’t know beyond that. There need to be men approaching you for me to choose from. This is like having no options at all.”

“…Are you mocking me for being out of place in the social circle?”

“Of course not. I’m just saying it because I hope you’ll soon forget the trauma and stop wearing that magical bracelet. Honestly, if you wanted, you could aim to be the flower of the social circle. It’s such a waste! Miss, you are so much prettier than Miss Fene.”

Selly murmured regretfully, smacking her lips.

“Miss, is it enough for you to only be seen well by the mage? I wish the mage would appear in the social circle. Then you’d take off that bracelet, wear a beautiful dress, and dress up… Oh, wait.”

Selly started opening her mouth wider as she spoke. As expected, though she was a bit off, she was quick-witted.