“What are you doing?”

“It’s starting to record. I want to begin with us at least not having a bad relationship.”

“Is it really necessary to go this far for a political marriage?”

“Not all political marriages have bad relationships.”

Well, that’s true, but this isn’t right……

Erika looked at the photographica with Ion, feeling bitter.

After circling around them several times, the photographica disappeared with a small flash of light.

It would store their images until the usage time limit ended.

Just as Erika was about to rub her furrowed brow with her finger—

Whoosh— Bang! Bang! Bang!

Fireballs shot up powerfully, exploding with loud booms and shining in brilliant colors.

They drew a large heart, then burst into smaller sparks that scattered in various colors as small and large hearts.

And from everywhere came sweet whispers.

“I love you!”

“Me too!”

As if someone had urged them to confess, couples spoke in unison, declaring their love for each other.

The illusion of love’s sparks landing on their heads seemed to make it impossible to stay still even for a moment.

Perhaps the endless shower of hearts felt like heaven’s permission that they didn’t want to miss.

Soon, lovers intoxicated with love embraced each other and kissed.

Kisses that started with cute smacking sounds gradually deepened until they became embarrassingly sensual to hear.

Among the women intensely exploring each other, only Ion and Erika awkwardly rolled their eyes.

“Ahem, ahem. This is why many couples visit this restaurant……”

Ion averted his gaze as if making an excuse, trailing off.

Erika stared at him blankly before asking, 

“If we were lovers, would we be kissing like them right now?”

His face turned bright red as if his inner thoughts had been exposed. Cutely.

Erika rose from her seat with a smirk.

Teasing him was quite enjoyable.

“Is this the end of today’s date?”

Ion ran after Erika as she strode away.

He extended his hand to fulfill his duty until the end.

Erika didn’t reject his hand and got into the carriage.

***

“Today I thought we’d ride horses and go far away.”

“Sounds good.”

Erika nodded vigorously at Ion’s suggestion.

It was a desperate measure he came up with after noticing how bored Erika seemed while visiting restaurants and dessert cafes that noble ladies typically enjoyed.

They had been following well-known date courses until now, so he thought it might be good to do something Erika enjoyed.

Clop clop clop.

The sound of galloping horses mixed with the refreshing breeze made them feel invigorated.

Erika rode her horse with a light heart for the first time in a while.

Ion, who had been checking Erika’s condition from the corner of his eye, raised the corners of his mouth and matched her pace to ride side by side.

It had been quite a while since Erika showed interest and actively participated in something.

No, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this was almost the first time.

After leaving the capital, crossing a hill, and traversing a wide plain, they reached the Wales River, known as the lifeline of the capital, Everdin.

When Erika pulled the reins to slow down, Ion also grabbed his reins.

Ion dismounted first and settled under a massive plane tree.

He took out a mat from his spatial pocket and laid it neatly on a flat spot.

“Erika, come rest here. Let’s have lunch.”

“Lunch?”

Since Erika hadn’t planned on having a meal, she looked with curious eyes at the food Ion was busily taking out.

Turkey sandwiches with tomato, apple pie, various tarts, and several kinds of fruit juice were neatly prepared.

As she always noticed, Ion was very well-prepared.

“Why did you pack so much?”

“This is the basics for a family picnic.”

“Family picnic?”

“It’s practice, you know? I made this myself, try it.”

Ion changed the subject and placed a sandwich in Erika’s hand.

Erika looked at the turkey sandwich Ion handed her with suspicious eyes.

“You made this yourself?”

The Ion that Erika knew wasn’t someone who would make something like this himself.

He was always arrogant and accustomed to reigning over others.

Besides, from what she had seen during imperial monster hunts and the succession battle, he was busier than anyone else, doing everything alone without any support.

“Well…… There was poison in my food since I was young. I couldn’t trust anyone, so I ended up cooking for myself.”

“Ah……”

How on earth did you survive……

Despite having spent a long time with Gerick, she had never once heard such stories from him.

Gerick had been affluent under his mother’s protection and could have anything he wanted.

She had expected Ion’s circumstances to be worse than Gerick’s, but to think he couldn’t even eat comfortably.

“At least I won’t get sick from eating this.”

Erika frowned at her own words.

Was she too shocked?

The words came out wrong.

Rather than offering comfort, she had said he wouldn’t get sick from eating it.

Erika thought it might be better to just keep her mouth shut.

However, Ion just brought his expectant face closer.

“How is it?”

“Well, it’s edible.”

Tsk.

Erika clicked her tongue quietly after speaking.

Edible, she said.

In a situation where she should have praised it even if it tasted bad.

Since they weren’t in love, she didn’t feel the need to say things she didn’t mean, but she still felt uncomfortable.

However, despite Erika’s indifferent response, Ion smiled broadly and began eating his own sandwich.

If it had been Gerick, he would have made a huge fuss about feeling hurt.

Well, Gerick had never prepared something like this himself anyway.

Erika took another bite of her sandwich and glanced at Ion.

He looked very happy eating his sandwich.

What made him so happy?

“Erika, smile. Otherwise, only your frowning face will be recorded.”

Ah, right, the photographica was taking pictures?

“Hmph.”

Erika gulped down the sandwich in her mouth.

She had forgotten because it was invisible, but this entire situation was being recorded.

If that was the case,

“Are you acting?”

“What do you mean?”

“You look so happy.”

“I am happy.”

“About what?”

“Being with you?”

Erika rubbed her arms as goosebumps rose.

She thought it might be better if he cursed like he used to.

She was familiar with the Ion who picked fights and challenged her, but this Ion who smiled warmly and looked delighted to be with her was creepy.

“What’s wrong with you? You and I were once enemies.”

“Not anymore, right? Right?”

“Well, I guess that’s true.”

“I told you. I really want to do well.”

“That… family-making thing?”

“Yes. So I want to become friends with you quickly if possible. Even political marriages can have good relationships, right?”

No, becoming friends doesn’t happen by artificially creating something like this.

Shouldn’t we still be somewhat distant and awkward? That would be normal.

Why are you pretending to be so close?

“What does it mean to be friends?”

“I wonder?”

Ion took out a white napkin and handed it to Erika, tapping around his mouth.

“When you can eat messily without it being a flaw.”

Then he poured juice into a cup and handed it to Erika.

Erika, whose throat was feeling dry, gladly accepted the cup and drank.

“When you know and fulfill each other’s needs without having to say anything?”

Ion smiled as he took the empty cup.

For a moment, Gerick’s clear voice from some distant past echoed in her mind.

— Erika is closest to me. Don’t come near! She’s only going with me.

While being “close” with Gerick, Erika had to keep her distance from others.

This was because Gerick wanted her to be exclusive to others as proof that he and Erika were close.

She had accepted such situations without much thought because she didn’t want to fight with the dramatic Gerick and didn’t particularly find it uncomfortable.

However, if asked whether the “close” Gerick had overlooked Erika’s flaws, that was another matter entirely.

Sadly, Gerick, who didn’t possess talents superior to Erika’s, resolved his inferiority complex by belittling her.

He hated it when Erika excelled, so she had to deliberately hide her abilities.

As a result, rather than fulfilling each other’s needs, Erika ended up unilaterally accommodating Gerick.

Crucially, Gerick disliked most of the things Erika liked.

Tomatoes were one of them.

‘Did he ever really know what I liked?’

Thinking about it, Gerick emphasized what he liked and wanted to enjoy together, but showed little interest in what Erika liked.

Having grown up without wanting for anything, Erika hadn’t noticed the difference until now.

But now that Ion had noticed what Erika liked and prepared accordingly, it felt quite nice.

It seemed a great misconception to think that she wouldn’t miss anything even if she didn’t do what she liked and only accommodated Gerick.

“……Maybe being close means knowing each other well.”

Ion nodded at Erika’s murmur with a smiling face.

As if agreeing.

Ion had certainly researched Erika in order to get closer to her.

Not only were all the things he prepared Erika’s favorites, but now he was even preparing date courses considering her preferences.

However, Erika still didn’t know much about Ion.

No. She thought she knew, but he was so different from the Ion she had known that it felt like she was meeting a complete stranger.

‘He knows me better than the guy who said he loved me. How did he do that?’

Erika suddenly thought of Gerick.

Gerick, who knew her best outside of her family.

But things rarely went the way Erika wanted.

Usually, she was led around according to Gerick’s needs and desires.

‘Can a one-way street also be called closeness?’

At first, it seemed like Gerick was crazy about following Erika around, but at some point, Erika started accommodating everything for Gerick.

They say if you’re too considerate, people start seeing it as their right.

Perhaps her relationship with Gerick had collapsed from that point.

Someone said that in male-female relationships, push and pull is important. Maybe that’s true.

Pitter-patter. Whoosh—

A sudden shower.

Erika couldn’t continue her thoughts due to the unexpected rain.

Ion took out an umbrella from his spatial pocket and put it over Erika’s head.

“Wait a moment. I’ll clean up quickly.”

Unlike Erika who was sheltered from the rain under Ion’s umbrella, Ion was getting soaked while busily moving around.

Erika found this Ion unfamiliar and strange.

Both how much he knew about her and how devoted he was.

‘Why? You weren’t this kind of person.’