“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“It’s the first time Mr. Frost has said something like that with his own mouth.”

“You mean that we’re dating?”

“Yes. What’s the occasion? It’s fascinating.”

“It’s an obvious fact, so there’s nothing wrong with stating it.”

As the emotionless machine emerged once again, Violetta’s eyes quickly transformed into horizontal dashes.

“That just now was truly like Duke Cayel Frost. How could you, right after I said it was fascinating……”

“Seeing your reaction, it seems I’ve acted like a person with no sense of atmosphere again.”

Cayel threw back the exact words Violetta had mumbled on the bed before. This must have been a day when Cayel himself vigorously kicked away any chance to gain her favor.

“Ahaha, you remember that?”

Violetta couldn’t help but laugh without resistance. Had Cayel Frost always been a machine capable of making jokes like this? Moreover, thinking that he had even kept such a trivial moment in his memory somehow made her feel touched.

“Yes, you really had no sense of atmosphere. While we’re at it, how about expressing it more clearly as a ‘fake’ relationship or a ‘contract’ relationship?”

“I don’t want to be someone that lacking in atmosphere and awareness. You wouldn’t like it.”

“Perhaps?”

Their nutritionally void conversation ended with both of them laughing lightly. Still, exchanging such bland small talk had brought them quite far, and Cayel’s awkwardness had dissolved proportionally to the distance they’d traveled. Before they knew it, they were continuing their conversation while appropriately exchanging glances.

“What kind of mask should I wear at the masquerade ball?”

“Choose whatever you like. There are some modeled after animals, and others with flower or jewel decorations.”

“Animals would be fun too! Mr. Frost, would you go as a snow leopard or a cat? I suppose they’re both felines in the broader sense.”

A small “haha” followed.

The moment he heard the word ‘cat,’ Cayel’s eyes sharpened. This was the first time in his life, born and raised as the eldest son of the Frost family, that he had received such treatment. In the Kingdom of Rwein, Violetta Phantomwood was probably the only person who could compare a duke to a cat.

You have a talent for freshly irritating people. Cayel deliberately swallowed the words that had risen to the root of his tongue.

“I will not wear a cat mask, at least.”

“Oh come on, I’m just joking.”

Violetta answered slyly. Cayel stared at her eyes curving into crescent moons, then turned his head toward the window and rested his chin on his hand. He quickly covered his entire mouth with his large hand. His lips formed an arc under his palm, but he was quite hesitant to show it to Violetta. As if it were some great secret.

“Ah, this masquerade ball is the first event you’re attending since returning to the capital, right?”

“That’s right. At first I wasn’t particularly interested, but somehow it seems like it might be fun going with you. If it passes safely without any major commotion, that is.”

“Ah……”

Cayel’s words awakened Violetta’s sense of reality. The brief word “safely” stuck in her throat like a fish bone. Suddenly realizing that a curse she hadn’t even cast was eating away at his daily life, her excitement subsided and guilt swelled.

‘He can’t help but worry about the curse. It must be especially so since this is his first event in a year. Am I throwing unnecessary worries at him? Even though the ducal family is sponsoring Edgar Cadlan, he wouldn’t have needed to attend if he wasn’t interested, but he’s attending because of me.’

Although it wouldn’t be a social gathering where they would dance or mingle much with people, it was difficult to declare there would be no variables since the event was being held in the evening. Yet Cayel had decided to stay until the end for her sake, taking unnecessary risks. And he didn’t make it sound like a big deal.

‘Like a fool, I was just excited without considering any of that. Was he perhaps lost in thought when we met today because of this?’

Her thoughts snowballed. Violetta chewed her lips nervously, trying to infer his feelings from the small actions Cayel had shown today. Her stomach churned as feelings of apology and gratitude played tug-of-war. She fell into deep contemplation about whether she should express these feelings, and if so, how.

“Violetta? Why are you suddenly quiet?”

“Ah, just……I was thinking you must be anxious. You’re attending because of me, after all.”

“Did I look anxious?”

“I asked earlier if you were in a bad mood. It was because you seemed somewhat stiffer than usual. You looked a bit dazed too. I wondered if you might be anxious as the ball approaches……”

“I was wondering what you were thinking, looking so serious by yourself.”

“I suppose I was caught on your words ‘if it passes safely.’ I think I was selfishly excited without considering your feelings.”

When Violetta answered with a slightly dejected voice, the corners of Cayel’s mouth rose subtly.

‘I wasn’t actually that worried.’

Just now, he had merely stated a fact. He had already established some countermeasures while preparing for the Frost gathering, so he wasn’t particularly concerned, but it seemed Violetta had thoroughly overinterpreted.

‘Better not to tell the truth that I was conscious of her lips. Rather……’

Seeing Violetta spreading her wings of thought freely, immersed in worry and emotion, Cayel decided to actively use this opportunity. There would be no embarrassment, and judging by her expression, he seemed to have succeeded in gaining her favor despite the prick to his conscience.

Above all, he was quite pleased by the fact that Violetta was deeply concerned about him.

“I can’t help but be anxious. If it’s a place where many people gather, there will be risk factors everywhere.”

When Cayel seized the opportunity to respond, Violetta nodded with a serious expression. This time too, he rested his chin deeply on his hand to hide his “smile of truth.” Unaware of this fact, Violetta opened her mouth again with a determined expression.

“Mr. Frost, don’t worry! I’ll be very careful to make sure nothing happens.”

“Really?”

“Of course! Please tell me if there’s anything else I should be careful about.”

“Hmm……You must not hold hands with, embrace, or kiss another woman, even by chance.”

“Fortunately, none of those are things that would happen ‘by chance.’ But why?”

“I turn into a cat.”

Violetta couldn’t believe her ears. Was Cayel Frost saying that while he returns to human form only by Violetta Phantomwood’s touch, he transforms into a cat if touched by another woman? It was truly a crazy curse.

“Uh……? Wait. You knew that, so it means… it’s actually happened before?”

“That’s right.”

Though Violetta asked with a pale face, Cayel, the person directly concerned, was far too calm.

“How can you be so nonchalant? Then that person must know about the curse too, right? You’ve had your secret—kept so thoroughly that even your family doesn’t know—discovered by someone else, and you’re not bothered at all?”

“Don’t worry. In this kingdom, only the two of us and your familiars know about the curse.”

“Then what about the person who touched you? You didn’t……eliminate them, did you?”

“You have quite a chilling imagination.”

“Then what?”

“On the third day after you fell asleep, I met Pamela Phantomwood.”

Why hadn’t she thought of that? Violetta smacked her knee. If the person who cast the curse on her had fallen into a deep sleep, Cayel would naturally have sought out Pamela, the great witch who had long-standing ties with his family.

“Thinking that Pamela Phantomwood might know a way to break the curse, I invited her to my home.”

Cayel recalled the memory of that day. He had met Pamela Phantomwood with a glimmer of hope, but the answer he received was that ‘unique magic with a mark can only be broken by the person who cast it.’ If there was any gain, it was discovering one of those “risk factors.”

“I merely shook hands as a greeting and transformed into a cat, and with Pamela Phantomwood’s help, I was barely able to escape secretly. And this happened in my own reception room.”

“Wow……It’s fortunate that the first person of the opposite s*x you met after being cursed was Lady Pamela.”

It felt like watching a particularly tense movie. If Cayel had shaken hands with a woman other than Pamela at a social gathering or event before that……It was dizzying just to imagine.

“If the magic is that sensitive to contact, how do you manage daily life?”

“Contact without intent is fine. I don’t transform into a cat just from accidentally brushing against or touching someone.”

“Simply put, it’s telling you not to cheat.”

Violetta stuck out her tongue.

While the two were discussing the curse, the carriage arrived in front of the dressmaker’s shop. The two-story establishment was much larger than other stores, likely because it served high nobility, including ducal families, and the wealthy as clients.

“Wow……”

Violetta marveled. The exterior wasn’t particularly ornate, but in terms of the world she originally came from, it exuded classical beauty. From the bricks of the exterior walls to the door frames and signboard, nothing was excessive. Thanks to the restrained beauty of the exterior, the luxurious fabrics and decorations visible through the glass windows were all the more eye-catching.

“Should I have covered my face before coming? What if we encounter other nobles inside……”

“I rented out the entire place, of course.”

Cayel casually uttered these impressive words as he opened the door himself.