Chapter 6

"Felice to meet you, Lord Felix! Lady Remia!"

"I'm glad to see you too, Julian!"

Having successfully returned to the past as promised, I immediately decided to contact Julian. It seems that the Heinberg family was in an uproar due to the sudden letter, but Julian managed to come to our Ackerson family without arousing suspicion by explaining that we had met before in the library.

"Milady Remia, to see you... to see you alive, I am so happy..."

"Lord Julian..."

Julian, who had been holding back in a place where people could see, burst into tears the moment we were alone.

"Lord Felix, it's good..."

"Yes, thank you, Julian... It's thanks to your cooperation."

We celebrated each other's safety with tears. After all, it was a gamble whether the three of us could return to the past with our memories intact. Julian noticed the strange blanks in the magic circle's five points. He deciphered the meaning of these blanks, realizing they were for identifying those who would retain their memories, just before the ritual began. Thanks to this, we were able to write our names and miraculously return to the past with our memories.

"If we hadn't noticed the blanks in the magic circle at that time, we might have foolishly lived the same life again."

"So, how is the situation?"

"Next week, there's a tea party hosted by Her Majesty the Queen. It's a children's tea party for the same generation as the Prince. You were supposed to attend, right?"

"Yes, I plan to go with my brother."

"It's said that this tea party is to evaluate potential attendants, and of course, to select a fiancée."

"That's correct, brother. I heard from Her Majesty that she was grading the manners of the attendees."

There are eighteen candidates to be graded, and among them are not only Remia but also Robiana.

"Considering this, I thought Remia should pretend to be unwell and leave early after greeting Her Majesty. Will you help me, Julian?"

"Lord Felix, I think that's a bad move."

"Why is that?"

"Most likely, Remia is the top candidate. If the evaluation doesn't proceed, there might be another opportunity set up. In the worst case, she might be the only one called to the tea party..."

"I see..."

"Wouldn't it be better to act in a way that doesn't earn a high score in the evaluation?"

Indeed, Robiana has been removed from the list of candidates because of this. This means that even the top candidate, Remia, can avoid it.

"Julian is right; it might be better than running away."

"Yes, it's annoying to mimic Robiana, but I'll make sure to act in a way that doesn't catch Her Majesty's eye."

After discussing it, we decided that it would be better to be removed from the list of candidates early. We would keep our etiquette to a minimum to avoid causing trouble for other guests. Even if it damaged the reputation of the Duke's family, it didn't matter to me and Remia.

"Well, I'll take my leave now."

"I wish you could stay longer, but it would be troublesome if Robiana came back."

"Yes, I never want to be engaged to her again."

I chose this day for Julian to come because I knew Robiana was out with her mother. Our way of repaying Julian was to prevent his engagement to Robiana. I also wanted Julian to find happiness with a wonderful woman. However, I had a faint idea of Julian's feelings. After all, the Julian I met today was staring at Remia with admiration. Even after being happy to see me again, his eyes were fixed on Remia.

"By the way, is Julian preparing for Robiana?"

"Of course. The next tea party is a challenge for me too, so I need to make sure she doesn't fall in love with me at first sight..."

Before he could finish, the sound of someone running down the corridor reached us. The sound of running feet was followed by the voices of maids trying to stop them.

"Miss Robiana! Your brothers are talking with their friend! You mustn't disturb them!"

"But Remia is there too! It's unfair!"

Before we could react, the door opened, and Robiana burst into the room. Even though she was only seven, she barged in without knocking. It was the worst possible scenario. However, Julian managed to hide his face before it was seen, just in time. He put on his thick, bottom-of-the-bottle glasses, which perfectly concealed his beauty.

"Hmm... You're my brother's friend?"

"Yes, I'm Julian Heinberg."

"Ugly glasses... I thought your friend would be cooler."

With that, Robiana left the room. We were left speechless by her terrible attitude. Her attendant maid bowed repeatedly as she left the room.

"Brother, was her manners that bad?"

"I didn't know... I've never had friends over."

While we were still in shock, Julian sighed deeply.

"She was a bit better by the time she entered the academy, but she was like that when she was younger."

"Are you serious...?"

"It's true. She only judges people by their looks and titles. Because of this, I was often told not to associate with friends of lower titles."

"I'm sorry, Julian."

"I'm sorry, Lord Julian!"

I had heard before that Julian disliked Robiana, but I never imagined it was this bad. In the past, we had little interaction with Robiana, so we only thought she was a bit lacking in intelligence. Now, I realize that we hardly ever went out together, and our conversations were mostly with the Prince. Of course, Robiana was well-behaved in front of the Prince, so we never noticed.

"If we had realized Robiana's character earlier, we could have dealt with it sooner..."

"There's nothing we could have done, brother. We were busy with our studies and had no time for Robiana."

But now that we have returned to the past, things are different. We have already completed our education as the Duke's children, so we have plenty of time. Our daily studies are a breeze, and we need to be careful not to arouse suspicion.

With this extra time, we noticed something. The educational policies for Robiana and us were clearly different. As the heir, I understand my education. However, there was a significant difference between Remia's and Robiana's education. Remia, who was not yet the Prince's fiancée, was taught noble manners and culture, which, while strict, were reasonable for a Duke's family. On the other hand, Robiana's education was at an incredibly low level. According to the butler, all her teachers had given up on her. Despite this, her parents, who were overly indulgent, did nothing and only provided the minimum education. Remia looked confused by this disparity.

"Brother... Do you think we and Robiana are not related?"

"Unfortunately, we are all our parents' children."

It's a sad story, but I thoroughly investigated this. I thought there might be a reason why our parents indulged Robiana. However, no matter how much I searched, I only found evidence of our blood relation.

"Mother probably finds Robiana, who resembles her, cute."

"But she's too indulgent..."

Robiana's level of education doesn't fit a Duke's daughter. However, neither of our parents seems to care. They genuinely believe she will improve before entering the academy.

"Well, it doesn't matter if they are troubled. Even if we tell them, they won't listen. As long as she doesn't cause trouble for others, let her do as she pleases."

However, the biggest issue was how to prevent Robiana from falling in love with Julian at first sight.

"Julian, will you wear those glasses at next week's tea party?"

"Yes, I plan to."

"Can you see properly?"

"To be honest, it's quite difficult, but I'll endure it rather than be noticed by Robiana."

Julian had also talked to his father, the Heinberg Duke. The Heinberg family did not want a marriage based on Julian's looks, so he decided to wear the glasses at official events until his engagement was decided.

"If you feel uncomfortable on the day, let me know immediately."

"Yes, for Lord Julian, I will protect him from not only Robiana but any woman."

Seeing Remia's determination, Julian smiled happily. Watching this, I had an idea.

"Why don't Remia stick to Julian on the day? Remia would be the perfect deterrent, and a lady who clings to a man will be removed from the list of the Prince's fiancée candidates."

"Oh, that's perfect! Of course, as long as Lord Julian is okay with it..."

"I couldn't ask for more!"

Julian, who agreed, had the best smile I had ever seen. Thus, we prepared to face the fateful tea party.