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Chapter 20
Frederick tilted his head and looked at me. He looked really confused.
Geez, do I really have to explain this to him? Well, he hasn’t been social since he was a kid, stays home all the time, has no friends… and he’s always alone.
Fine. I’ll be generous and teach him.
Frederick laced his fingers and crossed his legs, thinking hard, so I asked,
“Then what about linking arms?”
“No.”
“A goodbye hug?”
“No.”
“Then what can you do?”
Sigh.
I turned my upper body toward Frederick and looked him straight in the face.
“From what you’ve said so far, I don’t think real friends do any of the stuff you did with Charlier. So that makes me more like a friend than her!”
“You? A friend? You’re a paid employee.”
“….”
I had no words. I mean… he’s not wrong. I do get paid to be here.
Still, hearing it so bluntly to my face left me speechless.
“Hey, young master. I’m not trying to be your friend either, okay? I’m just saying I’m closer to being one than Charlier.”
That annoyed me.
‘He’s not wrong, but did he have to say it like that?’
I turned away from Frederick and stood up. My whole body was cold from sitting so long.
“Let’s go.”
Frederick didn’t budge from his chair.
“Hey, young master. Let’s go.”
But he just stared off into the distance like he didn’t hear me. I looked where he was looking.
‘Oh no. That carriage—!’
I recognized it immediately. It was Leo’s carriage.
The crest of the Marbo family was clearly engraved on it. Frederick instantly realized it was Leo’s.
He couldn’t take his eyes off it.
“Come on, let’s go back to the carriage. It’s cold.”
I tugged on his collar, but Frederick didn’t move.
And then, Leo’s carriage slowly came to a stop.
‘Ugh, seriously? Of all people? What bad luck. Then again, this is Leo’s favorite salon…’
It was clear he was here for Salon de Chatte. The door to the carriage slowly opened.
The first thing I saw was Leo’s long legs. He and Frederick were about the same height, but Frederick had more muscle, which made Leo look thinner.
And Leo was famous all over Shyro for his long legs and stylish looks.
“You’re not going back?”
Frederick kept glaring at Leo like he wanted to kill him. His eyes were full of rage.
‘Oh no, what’s wrong with this kid? He’s already not good with people. If he gets this worked up, something might seriously happen.’
I had a bad feeling about this. If these two met, something would happen.
I grabbed Frederick’s collar and pulled.
“Get up! Frederick! Let’s just go to the carriage. It’s freezing!”
In the process of pulling his arm, it ended up looking like we were linking arms. That finally seemed to snap Frederick out of it, and he looked down at our arms and stood up.
‘Ugh, now it looks like I’m clinging to this rude guy.’
But that wasn’t the main issue. Right now, Frederick looked like he was about to run up and punch Leo.
“….”
As Leo walked up the salon stairs, he spotted us. More precisely—he saw me, and then saw me linked with Frederick.
“Delphine.”
And then, just as I feared, it happened.
Leo gave a faint smile. It was that familiar smile of his. He always did that when something bothered him or caught him off guard.
Leo stopped walking and approached us.
‘No, no! Don’t come over! Things are already messy enough with Frederick. Don’t add to it!’
But life never goes the way I want. Leo completely ignored my silent pleas and walked right over to us.
I jumped up from my seat, determined to send him away quickly. But Frederick stood up too.
Now standing in front of us, Leo didn’t even glance at Frederick. He looked at me and said,
“Delphine, what are you doing here? It’s so cold. Come with me to the salon. I’ll get you some éclairs.”
Leo smiled softly as he spoke.
Even with just a glance, I could tell Frederick was fuming with rage.
Leo continued to ignore him and kept talking to me.
“Delphine, you hate the cold. What are you doing out here? Come inside.”
Then he took off his coat and gently draped it over my shoulders, fastening the first button. Since Leo was a head taller than me, his coat nearly touched the ground.
“No, I was just about to leave. Oh, and this is…”
I raised my hand toward Frederick, trying to introduce him politely before leaving.
“This is Fre—”
“I know.”
Leo cut me off. He turned away like he didn’t need to hear anymore.
“I know who he is. Frederick Feredi.”
Leo looked directly at Frederick—more like glared at him. Frederick didn’t flinch and met his stare head-on.
The two men locked eyes, like they wanted to kill each other.
‘Wait, are they fighting over me? Am I the main character now?’
I let myself get excited for a second, but I knew better.
I, Delphine Flerrin, am just a side character. I knew the real reason they were acting like this—it was all because of Charlier.
“I’m Leonard Marbo. From the Marbo Duke family.”
Leo held out his hand for a handshake. It looked friendly, but the words “Marbo Duke family” were obviously meant to provoke.
‘Frederick probably thinks he can’t be with Charlier because he’s just a baron’s son… That’s hitting a sore spot.’
Frederick pulled his hand from his coat.
‘Please, please don’t fight. Don’t make a scene. I’m begging you.’
I gritted my teeth and watched them carefully. Frederick looked like he could punch Leo at any moment.
“Frederick Feredi. Of the Feredi baron family.”
Thankfully, Frederick didn’t reject the handshake. He held Leo’s hand and gave it a polite shake.
“Whew.”
I sighed in relief. Okay, they greeted each other. Time to leave.
I took Leo’s coat off my shoulders and handed it back.
Leo took it and dramatically flipped it as he put it on.
‘He looks so ridiculous sometimes. Still, he’s handsome, so I’ll let it slide.’
“Thanks. But I already had some éclairs.”
“Really? In that case…”
Leo’s mouth curled into a smirk. He was probably enjoying the fact that Frederick couldn’t even enter the salon. Frederick glared at him with a face that had gone completely blank from holding in his anger.
“In that case, Delphine, if you ever want éclairs again, just let me know. They’re your favorite here, aren’t they?”
‘Wrong. It’s crème brûlée.’
I almost corrected him on the spot but decided not to. There was nothing to gain from arguing.
Instead, I just shrugged.
“Well, I’m heading out.”
I gave a quick farewell to Leo and pulled Frederick by the arm. Frederick didn’t stop glaring at Leo and looked like he might still charge at him.
“Let’s go. It’s cold. Let’s just go back to the carriage.”
I finally got Frederick to turn around and start walking when Leo’s voice called out.
“Frederick.”
‘Ugh. Leo, just let it go.’
I turned back with wide eyes, clenching my teeth. Leo clearly knew what he was doing and kept going anyway.
“Please take good care of our Delphine. Just like I took good care of Charlier.”
“…!”
This jerk. Leo, are you trying to pick a fight?
The moment Charlier’s name left his lips, I saw the last thread of Frederick’s rationality snap.
He stopped walking and clenched the plate he was holding.
‘No way. Is he really going to hit him with that plate?’
I could already see it in my head—Frederick smashing the plate over Leo’s head.
He’s totally capable of it. I need to get that plate away from him.
Sure enough, Frederick’s hand started rising with the plate.
“Oh no. He’s really gonna do it.”
“Young master, give me the plate.”
I grabbed the plate with both hands and pulled hard. But Frederick held on so tightly, it wouldn’t budge.
“Give me the plate! Come on—!”
“Delphine!”
“Wahhh!”
Huh? Why am I seeing the sky?
I forgot… the ground was completely frozen and super slippery.
As I yanked the plate, I lost my balance and slipped.
—CRASH!
The sound of the plate shattering rang out. I closed my eyes tight.
When I opened them, hoping my back hadn’t shattered too, I felt… warm?
‘What the…?’
In front of me was Frederick’s broad chest. As I came back to my senses, I realized his strong arm was around my back.
Now it made sense.
Frederick had tossed the plate and caught me before I hit the ground. I ended up in his arms.
“Hey. Be careful.”
Frederick gently helped me up and said gruffly.
“Ugh, see? I told you to give me the plate! Now it’s all broken!”
