04

Elsia could hardly believe her own eyes, even after seeing it herself.  

‘Can I really find a man who matches me so easily?’  

Elsia hurried over to Richel, who was eating dessert in a corner.  

“Look, the color changed!”  

Elsia whispered into Richel’s ear. Richel looked surprised.  

“Did you check the other person’s face? Can you find him among all these people?”  

“No. I still have to look. Help me, Richel.”  

As Elsia asked Richel again, her heartbeat grew faster and faster.  

Unfamiliar emotions swelled so much that she could barely control her excitement.  

“Do you remember any faces among the men who brushed past you?”  

“I’m not sure? There were so many people, I can’t remember.”  

At Richel’s question, Elsia tried to recall the people who had passed by her as she walked.  

But so many people had rushed by her in an instant that she couldn’t remember anyone in particular.  

The men who brushed past her were tall, and Elsia, embarrassed, kept her head down, so she hadn’t seen their faces at all.  

While Elsia and Richel talked, the gemstone had already returned to its original color.  

“Let’s walk around and check if the color changes again.”  

Richel grabbed Elsia’s hand and led her to the center, speaking as she did.  

“Okay.”  

Even as Elsia was pulled along by Richel, she was so overwhelmed by intense emotions that she couldn’t see anything else.  

She was desperate to find the man who could give her what Mars could not.  

“A lot of people will come and go here. How about searching here?”  

Once they reached the middle of the stage, Richel let go of Elsia’s hand and spoke.  

“Let’s do that.”  

Elsia lingered near the men she saw around her. Some of them spoke to her, but when she saw the necklace’s color didn’t change, Elsia simply nodded and avoided them.  

She had no time to chat with them. Finding the man who could answer her curiosity was the most important thing.  

After wandering back and forth dozens of times for several minutes, Elsia saw the necklace turn white again.  

The moment the light changed, Elsia looked up quickly to check the man’s face.  

“Ah….”  

She was so surprised that a small sound escaped her lips.  

He was a man with the same eyes she had seen in her dreams, and the same color as the gemstone Richel had given her.  

His gaze, which seemed both familiar and unfamiliar, made Elsia’s heart start pounding.  

Without realizing it, Elsia avoided his gaze and looked at his chest.  

His broad shoulders and the hard muscles visible even under his shirt caught her attention.  

Even in that brief moment, the man’s pleasant scent seemed to stimulate her.  

Elsia looked up again at the man’s face.  

‘Beautiful.’  

She hadn’t noticed at first, but he was exceptionally handsome. Elsia opened her mouth in awe at his looks.  

His deep, dark blue eyes looked as if they could pull her in, and his neatly swept, glossy silver hair sparkled like a gemstone under the light.  

His sharp nose and sleek jawline combined harmoniously, like looking at a sculpture.  

Compared to this man, Mars, whom Elsia had always thought quite decent, now seemed utterly ordinary.  

Elsia stared blankly at the man’s perfect face.  

Then, when their eyes met, Elsia suddenly felt dizzy.  

She never imagined her heart could beat so fast just by making eye contact. She felt her face growing hotter and hotter.  

‘Why am I like this?’  

A feeling she had never experienced before surged violently inside her.  

No one had ever made Elsia’s heart flutter like this. The feelings she had wanted to have for her fiancé, she now felt for a stranger she had just met.  

Clutching her chest as if it might burst, Elsia tried to calm herself.  

But her body rebelled against her will, racing wildly, as if all the blood inside her was boiling.  

Her blood bubbled and boiled like hot water, endlessly.  

‘He’s so different from Lord Mars….’  

The dizziness she felt now was different from the dizziness she’d felt when she realized Mars wasn’t compatible with her.  

Elsia felt as if the whole world was spinning while she stood still.  

Her heart swirled so violently she could barely breathe.  

Her heart responded more to this stranger she’d just met than to her fiancé, whom she’d seen so many times… She could hardly believe it herself.  

‘I’m going to make eye contact again.’  

So Elsia tried to avoid his face, fearing he might notice her feelings.  

She thought that if she didn’t look at his face, her heart would calm down.  

But even without making eye contact, just sensing his presence nearby made her lips dry and her heart beat louder and faster.  

Elsia looked up at his face again.  

The more she looked, the more her body seemed to burn with longing.  

‘Is this what it means to be drawn to someone physically?’  

Elsia felt as if she were caught by a powerful spell she couldn’t break.  

A desire she had never felt before surged the moment she met the man….  

Even she couldn’t make sense of it, but her longing was directed only at him.  

“Ah….”  

The man, apparently unaware of Elsia’s gaze, simply passed by her. Since they were strangers, his behavior was natural.  

Yet Elsia felt a sense of emptiness in his reaction.  

He had no feelings for her, while she was left excited and breathless.  

Hoping he might feel the same, Elsia glanced at him again and again.  

‘No….’  

Elsia shook her head.  

‘How can I have such impure thoughts when I have a fiancé!’  

Elsia tried to deny her feelings and calm her heart that seemed about to explode.  

She wanted to forget him and cast out the confusing emotions he brought.  

Elsia unfastened the necklace from her neck and put it in her pocket.  

She felt as if she were temporarily under a spell, so she hid the magic necklace, hoping her heart’s wild beating would leave her with the necklace.  

At that moment, as if he sensed her gaze, the man suddenly turned and looked at Elsia.  

Perhaps because she had stared at him so intently, someone near him had pointed her out.  

Surprised by his sudden gaze, Elsia dropped the glass she was holding.  

Clink.  

The sound of glass breaking rang out as the glass fell to the floor.  

But since it was such a noisy place, the sound was drowned out by the music.  

At least, no one turned to stare at her, which was a relief.  

Elsia, startled, crouched down to pick up the glass shards.  

‘Of all things, I dropped the glass right in front of him….’  

Embarrassed, Elsia couldn’t lift her head.  

“It’s dangerous, so don’t pick it up. Wait.”  

Richel, who had come close without her noticing, told Elsia to wait and went to call the manager. But Elsia, dazed, didn’t hear Richel’s words.  

Not knowing what to do, she carefully picked up the glass pieces.  

As she picked them up one by one, the man’s legs appeared right in front of her, and Elsia, startled, threw down the shards she was holding without realizing it.  

The man was standing before her.  

Flustered, Elsia tried to pick them up again, but a long, beautiful hand, visible even through gloves, appeared before her eyes.  

“Are you alright?”  

A low, deep voice resonated in Elsia’s ears.  

The soft, gentle tone was so thrilling it sent a shiver through her.  

‘Should I take his hand?’  

Elsia slowly looked up.  

Seeing his hand before her, she felt conflicted.  

He was offering his hand out of courtesy, so it was natural for her to take it and stand up.  

But Elsia felt that if she took his hand, her heart would no longer be under control.  

She hesitated for a few seconds, but ignoring his offered hand would be rude, so Elsia took his hand with trembling fingers.  

As expected, the moment she touched his hand, she felt a shiver run through her body.  

Though both wore gloves and she couldn’t feel his warmth, her hand felt as if it were burning, and sweat began to fill her glove.  

She worried that the trembling of her heart might be felt through her fingertips, so she was embarrassed.  

So, as soon as she stood up, she quickly let go of his hand.  

Just then, Richel and the manager approached them.  

“Are you alright? You’re not hurt, are you?”  

Richel checked Elsia, who was still trembling, to see if she was injured.  

But once again, Richel’s words didn’t reach Elsia.  

She kept watching the man as he moved away.  

Until he was completely out of sight, Elsia stared blankly, unable to take her eyes off him.  

“Are you alright?”  

Once the man was gone, Elsia could finally hear Richel’s voice.  

“I’m fine. I’m not hurt.”  

“Whew, thank goodness. If you’d been hurt, how could I face the Earl?”  

Richel sighed in relief and suggested they leave.  

Elsia wanted to stay and watch the man a little longer, but she couldn’t remain after her embarrassing mishap.  

Leaving her regrets behind, Elsia followed Richel out of the dazzling place.  

Her first encounter with the man ended just like that.  

Richel’s carriage stopped in front of Elsia’s mansion.  

It was on purpose, so Earl Portman would know she had been with Richel.  

But even after leaving the secret club, riding Richel’s carriage, walking alone into her room, and having Marie help her prepare for bed, Elsia’s heart was still back in that place.  

Her mind was filled only with thoughts of that man.  

The more she thought of him, the more Elsia felt she couldn’t breathe. No, the moment their eyes met, it felt as if her breath stopped.  

Elsia took a deep breath, trying to let the fresh air relax her tense body.  

Thankfully, her wildly beating heart calmed down, but her blushing cheeks remained.  

“To think I want to be held by a man I just met….”  

When the man bent down and offered his hand, Elsia wanted to take it and fall into his arms.  

“I can’t let myself do this.”  

Elsia shook her head, denying her own thoughts.