Chapter 54

"Wow, you're quite popular, aren't you?"

"Couldn't you put a bit more emotion into it?"

Faced with a mountain of letters piled high on the table, Evan said this in a flat tone. It was currently the height of the social season, so invitations were arriving daily.

Even Grace, who had always done as she pleased, was still the only daughter of the Sentsberry Marquess family, so there was no shortage of people trying to curry favor with her. Grace had always been a frequent presence in social circles and seemed to have many acquaintances.

That said, she didn't seem to have any true friends, and most of her relationships were superficial.

"Evening party, evening party, ball..."

"Papi! Popopo!"

Yana was diligently sorting the letters, and although she was initially hired as a Sakura to be bullied, she had become an indispensable maid. Hanawa-chan was also working hard to help, and she was very cute.

Although Grace hadn't been out in social circles recently, it might be time for her to start showing her face as the daughter of a marquess.

"Miss, these are the invitations, and these are the letters."

"Thank you, Yana."

In the end, the only ordinary letters were from Ranheart and her father, who was in the territory. As she held the two letters and stared at them, Evan muttered from behind, "By the way."

"The Duke's letters haven't been coming, have they?"

"......"

"Isn't that good? You were always ignoring them, so he must have given up."

"......Yes."

Even though it was her own doing, Evan's words pierced her heart.

—Evan was right; no letters had come from Zain. She had indeed ignored them, but to think he would give up so easily after chasing her all the way to the mountains.

Thinking about the influence of Charlotte, her heart felt heavy again. But at the same time, she felt a sense of relief.

Actually, yesterday, while she was daydreaming, she almost got run over by a carriage.

Evan saved her immediately, but for a moment, she had a sense of "death." The thought that she might end up like the Grace in the novel made her feel scared.

"Evan, please don't ever leave my side, okay?"

"Yes, I will protect you with my life, Miss."

"For some reason, I don't feel reassured at all."

Even as she clung to Evan's hand, he returned her grip with a cheerful smile, but she couldn't feel reassured, which was troubling.

"Excuse me."

Just then, a knock came, and she looked up to see a maid delivering a new letter. It seemed urgent, and as she opened the letter, a bad feeling washed over her, and she was left speechless.

"No way..."

The opening day of the restaurant was just around the corner, yet she received a message that the main supplier had stopped doing business with her. The sudden news made her break out in a cold sweat.

"I'll go out for now. Yana, please prepare."

"Understood."

Not knowing the exact reason, she had to find another supplier immediately, so she left the mansion with the two of them.

...

"What should we do? I can't decide at all..."

"This is a problem."

"Maybe I have no choice but to ask Father for help."

A few hours later, I was slumped in a popular café in the capital with Yana and Evan. Despite our best efforts, we couldn't find any suppliers willing to do business with us.

Previously, it had been smooth sailing, but now it felt as if something was blocking our way, and every door was closed to us.

I had wanted to handle the restaurant on my own, but at that moment, I was at a loss.

"...Hey, aren't you—"

At the sound of that voice, I looked up to see the handsome man with black hair and black eyes who had given me a handkerchief in this café a few days ago.

He smiled sympathetically at me, who was slumped on the table, and narrowed his eyes softly.

"Thank you for the other day."

"No, it was nothing."

As I hurriedly sat up and thanked him, he shook his head slightly.

"You seem troubled. Is something wrong?"

"N-no..."

I shook my head, thinking I couldn't rely on a stranger, even more so than my father—however.

An hour later, I was bowing deeply in front of a store, thanking the man.

"I really appreciate it, thank you so much."

"I'm glad I could help."

After looking at the documents spread out on the table, he seemed to understand my predicament and immediately offered to introduce me to an acquaintance.

Thinking it was a stroke of luck, I decided to take his offer. He quickly introduced me, and the problem was resolved smoothly.

"Um, is there anything I can do to thank you—"

"Really, it's fine. I was able to do a favor for my acquaintance as well."

The man, whose name was Isaac, smiled and said it was no trouble. When I asked for his family name, he said, "I'm just a minor noble, so it's not worth mentioning."

On the other hand, he knew me but thought I couldn't possibly be in a popular café, so he assumed I was someone who looked like me.

Feeling that I couldn't thank him properly, I was at a loss, but Isaac continued, "But, I would like to visit your restaurant after it opens."

"Of course! But, could you keep it a secret that it's my restaurant...?"

"If that's what you want, of course."

Isaac, with his charming smile, seemed to be a genuinely good person, and I decided to give him the best service when he visited.

"By the way, I've washed the handkerchief and kept it at the mansion. I'll give it back to you the next time we meet."

As I said this, Isaac's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, but then his lips curved into a smile.

"You are a truly wonderful person."

"Huh?"

"—That's why, it's troubling."

As I was wondering what he meant by that, he touched my cheek, and his handsome face drew near. Just then, I heard Evan's voice, "Hey, it's the Duke."

I turned to Evan in surprise, and at that moment, something soft touched my cheek. Realizing it was Isaac's lips, I jumped back in panic.

"S-sorry! It's my fault, right!?"

"No, I'm the one who should apologize. I was trying to remove an eyelash from your cheek."

"S-so that's what it was, thank you."

Because I had suddenly turned away, an awkward incident had occurred.

Feeling a mix of surprise and awkwardness, I realized I had forgotten something important.

"...Lord Zain..."

I was pulled back by the arm from behind and looked up to meet Zain's gaze, gasping in shock.