We sat down in the dining hall dressed neatly as we had been for attending the coronation ceremony.

As always, Grandfather sat at the head seat, Uncle’s family sat on his left, and Carl and I sat side by side on his right.

Servants and maids continuously brought appetizing dishes.

Among the food filling the table, there were even things that Carl liked. I wondered how they knew to be considerate without me specifically mentioning it.

Even after the elaborate table setting was finished, Grandfather didn’t pick up his utensils and cleared his throat, slowly opening his mouth.

“Ahem…… So Duke Celsior, you and Shailyn are dating?”

“Yes.”

Carl straightened his back and answered politely. It was an extremely courteous attitude.

He then said.

“Please give me your granddaughter.”

“Ha! The young man is bold!”

But Grandfather looked at Carl with a face that showed he didn’t dislike it and smiled slightly.

“What do you like about our Shailyn?”

“If I were to tell you, you’d have to stay up all night, would that be alright?”

“My goodness!”

The corners of Grandfather’s mouth drew an even clearer arc.

Actually, from when he said he would invite Carl, I could sense his determination to thoroughly investigate whether he was suitable as my lover.

But when he actually faced Carl, he immediately seemed pleased.

“Such words might feel somewhat superficially flashy, Duke.”

Then, Uncle suddenly interjected with a gently smiling face.

“Pick just a few.”

Unlike Grandfather, he hadn’t said much, but Uncle was actually the one probing more sharply.

At this, Carl moved his Adam’s apple as if nervous and spoke calmly.

“I like that she’s an affectionate person. Someone who empathizes with others’ pain and knows how to grieve together.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

“Yes, I also like that she’s a respectable person. I learned a lot from seeing her brightness that she doesn’t lose even in difficult moments and her persistence in not giving up easily.”

“Oh ho, really?”

“I also like that she’s a strong person who knows how to lean on others. She shares my pain while also knowing how to share her own pain.”

Uncle’s eyes gradually curved like a crescent moon behind his thin wire-rimmed glasses.

Soon Carl drove the point home.

“Most of all, isn’t she pretty.”

At his words added while glancing at me sideways, Grandfather and Uncle nodded satisfactorily.

“Pass.”

“I pass too.”

When the two clapped in congratulations, Deborah, having been trying to sharpen her eyes from earlier, stepped forward.

“Wait a minute, aren’t you two moving on too quickly?”

For reference, when Deborah learned of our relationship, she had been continuously nagging us not to rush into marriage.

With her purely gentle face making the most frightening expression possible, she crossed her arms and said primly.

“Ahem, I don’t hate Your Grace, but I’m not actively in favor either.”

Her round dark green eyes swept over Carl once.

“Of course, I like that you have appearance and background that don’t fall short of our sister, but I still think dating is too early. Wouldn’t it be better to have more time to get to know each other?”

“The lady’s words also make sense.”

Carl replied calmly. Soon his eyes flashed like a wolf setting a trap for a rabbit.

“I heard that you recently got promoted at the magic tower and are forming your own team and devoting yourself to magical medicine research, may I invest?”

“……I’m not someone who’s swayed by money.”

“I also have no intention of buying the lady’s favor with money. I’m just highly valuing the talent and potential I saw in the lady as a bondservant.”

At this, Deborah’s eyes wavered for a moment. Seeing her reveal her agitation, I tried hard to hold back laughter.

She’s so cute with her transparent heart.

As she said, Deborah isn’t the type to be swept away by money, but she’s weak to people who recognize her.

Carl didn’t stop there and properly knocked on Deborah’s heart.

“Come to think of it, the lady was also as determined as Shailyn. You worked hard and mastered magic in just a few days to pass the entrance exam.”

“That’s right, I did…… Thanks to Your Grace helping me then.”

Perhaps recalling how he had helped her in the past, Deborah’s eyes became much gentler.

“That wasn’t my credit but entirely Shailyn’s achievement.”

Carl shook his head in denial and added with a faint smile.

“Without Shailyn’s wit and courage, I couldn’t have done anything either.”

“Ahem ahem……”

Deborah’s posture, which had been aggressively crossed, quietly relaxed.

“Well, looking at it this way, you seem to know each other well enough.”

Deborah primly corrected herself while twirling her hair with her finger.

Dain, sitting next to her, readily raised his hand and smiled good-naturedly.

“I’ve been in favor from the start. I was the first to recognize His Grace’s true worth, you see. Hahaha!”

“Thank you, young lord.”

Carl, who had easily cleared all family members, didn’t let his guard down until the end.

“Let’s train together sometime later.”

“I’d be good with even ten times!”

He had definitely won Dain’s heart.

Since I had somewhat expected this to happen, I just laughed happily.

It was a harmonious family dinner.

***

After dinner ended, I strolled through the garden with Carl.

“You were amazing earlier.”

“In what way?”

“How you captivated our family’s hearts in one go?”

When I mentioned how he had easily won them over, he chuckled and replied.

“Sincerity always gets through.”

Carl naturally took my hand. The warmth transmitted from his large hand automatically gave me a sense of stability.

“Now there’s nothing that can come between us.”

“That’s right, it worked out well.”

Since we can be together without any worries or concerns from now on.

Carl had been quietly watching me hum cheerfully when he suddenly asked.

“Shailyn, do you truly have no regrets about not returning to your world?”

I stopped abruptly, having been admiring the garden’s elegant winter beauty.

When I stood facing him and looked up, my gaze directly intertwined with his mysteriously rippling red eyes.

“I’m so happy that you stayed here, but I wonder if I might have held you back……”

“Fool.”

I pinched his handsome face that was making unnecessary worries, not painfully.

“This is my world now.”

I spoke clearly with my hands on his shoulders.

“Of course I love you, but I didn’t stay just because of you.”

Though Carl might have played the biggest role, it didn’t mean I threw everything away looking only at him.

“I thought it through and made the decision entirely on my own. Since the things I love and cherish are here, I also had to live here.”

That’s why I exchanged with the real Shailyn. Because what each of us wanted was in our respective worlds.

I cupped Carl’s cheek and gently pulled up the corners of my mouth.

“So don’t make assumptions and feel strange guilt. I’m not such a foolish and simple person.”

“……I know, how could I not know you.”

Carl smiled faintly following me and touched our foreheads together.

“I’m just worried that if your feelings for me cool later, you’ll regret today’s decision.”

I embraced his muscular thick waist and playfully winked.

“Would I just let my feelings cool?”

“No, I’d cling to you even if I had to cry and beg. I’ll treat you well so I don’t lose your affection.”

The fingers that gently stroked up my back caressed my hair and played with my earlobes.

Was it my imagination, or did it seem strangely sticky?

I kissed his lips first and declared.

“I’ll treat you well too.”

“You’re already treating me well enough?”

“That goes for you too.”

Smooch, smooch, smooch.

Each time we finished speaking, our lips stuck together and separated.

The kisses that followed were deeper than before. We breathed into each other and felt the soft sensation.

Carl embraced me breathlessly with his whole body and whispered.

“I love you.”

“I love you.”

I gladly buried my face in his embrace and smiled happily.

We had been lonely until we met each other and finally filled our gaps to become one complete whole.

It was truly a mysterious thing.

Even though we grew up in different worlds and different environments, we became each other’s destiny.

But that fact didn’t feel strange. Every moment of the time we spent together was meaningful and valuable.

Carl became my male lead, and I also became his female lead.

It was truly a perfect happy ending.

<The End>