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~Chapter 52~
When he returned to the hotel, the clock hands were already close to midnight.
After a quick shower, Dietrich stood by the window holding a glass of whiskey.
Whoosh.
The cool night wind flowed in through the half-open window, brushing against his damp hair.
‘Tonight… there are a lot of stars.’
The black night sky was dotted with countless stars.
As he looked at the sky, a certain image came to mind.
Lady Ansi.
Larit’s black hair and the pearl accessory shining on top like a star.
Her soft pink eyes looking up at him with a smile.
“If you’ll allow me, Lady Ansi, may I ask for this dance?”
When he asked her for a dance…
‘Was I a little nervous?’
Dietrich had never once felt nervous or hesitant in front of anyone.
But this time… it felt different.
Larit looked up at him quietly and gracefully placed her hand in his.
“With pleasure.”
And when she accepted the dance, the sense of relief he felt was… not like his usual self at all.
Since then, Dietrich couldn’t help but be conscious of Larit.
When he escorted her to the dance floor, when he reflexively caught her as she stumbled during the steps…
She was so light and soft.
Even now, he could still feel the sensation vividly in his hand.
“…”
He gripped his whiskey glass a little tighter.
Normally, Dietrich wouldn’t have interfered in Larit and Gregory’s personal matters.
But he deliberately followed Gregory when he saw him go after Larit.
“If anything, you’re the one who missed the opportunity, Young Lord Gusto. You already threw away your chance to be Lady Ansi’s fiancé.”
“So why are you clinging to her now?”
“…Pathetic.”
He even openly humiliated Gregory for Larit’s sake.
Why did he do that?
He reflected on his actions again.
But one thing was clear.
‘It was… unpleasant. Just seeing Gregory hang around Larit was enough to irritate me.’
Yet that unpleasant feeling completely disappeared the moment he saw her innocent face again.
“Then… would you like to look for the princess together?”
“I-I was looking for her too. If we search together, we might find her faster…”
The way she flustered herself, completely unaware that he had followed her…
Dietrich couldn’t help but find Larit surprisingly cute.
That was probably why…
“Whenever I travel for work, Eva always nags me to bring her a gift. So I bought hers… and picked up something for you as well.”
“I hope you’ll like it.”
Instead of passing the gift through Evangeline as he had planned, he handed it directly to Larit.
“Thank you so much. I’ll treasure it.”
She accepted the gift nervously and smiled brighter than the moonlight that bathed the world.
That smile stuck vividly in his mind.
‘This is… strange.’
Dietrich gave a faint smile.
Ever since he inherited the family at a young age, his thoughts had only ever been about protecting his little sister and managing the family.
But for the first time, he was thinking about someone else.
And the feeling…
It wasn’t bad at all.
The next morning, Dietrich arrived early to pick up Evangeline.
“Why are you here so early? Don’t you ever sleep in?”
Evangeline grumbled as she followed her brother.
“See you in the capital, Lady Ansi.”
“Travel safely. I’ll see you soon.”
Larit gently comforted the sulking Evangeline.
Dietrich, who had been watching his sister with a look of exasperation, gave a polite bow to Larit.
“Thank you so much for taking care of my sister.”
“You don’t have to thank me. I had fun thanks to the princess.”
But Dietrich couldn’t help but notice—Larit’s ears were bare.
No earrings.
He felt strangely disappointed.
‘What is this feeling?’
It was unfamiliar to him.
Of course, he understood.
Whether she wore the earrings or not was up to her.
But still…
“Hey! Aren’t we leaving already?”
Evangeline, already in the carriage, was getting impatient.
Dietrich followed with a complicated expression.
Finally, the carriage departed.
“Lady Ansi, don’t be too late! And make sure to write me a letter!!”
Evangeline leaned out of the carriage window, waving her arms.
“Yes, I’ll write!”
Larit waved back.
After the carriage had traveled for a while, the Ansi estate disappeared from view.
Evangeline immediately turned to her brother.
“Brother, I was surprised this time. Our strict brother actually attended the Ansi family’s party?”
Dietrich answered curtly, feeling cornered.
“You complain even when I do you a favor.”
“I mean, I appreciate it…”
Evangeline’s voice was full of mischief.
“You hate rumors and always keep your distance from women, remember?”
“That’s… because she’s your friend.”
Even Dietrich realized how weak that excuse sounded.
Evangeline gave a sly smile.
“Really? I didn’t know you were so generous for my sake.”
“…”
He knew that no matter what he said, she would twist his words.
So he decided to stay silent.
But Evangeline had a knack for breaking his silence.
“Well, now that things are like this, you should be Lady Ansi’s partner at future social events too.”
“Again?”
Dietrich asked reflexively.
“Of course! I can’t stand seeing my friend get ignored by others.”
Evangeline leaned back in her seat and asked with narrowed eyes:
“Why, do you not want to?”
“…”
Dietrich, for once, was speechless.
Evangeline was slightly surprised at his reaction.
‘My brother never does anything he doesn’t want to do…’
People thought Evangeline was the stubborn one, but that trait ran deep in the Claudius family.
Dietrich was simply better at diplomacy.
“I think that would be a bit difficult.”
Normally, he would refuse softly so as not to upset others.
But this time…
“…I never said I didn’t want to.”
He answered with a flat tone instead.
Evangeline blinked in surprise.
“Uh, really?”
“Yeah.”
An awkward silence filled the carriage.
“…”
“…”
Dietrich stared at Evangeline intently, as if he had something to say but couldn’t.
Finally, Evangeline narrowed her eyes and snapped.
“Do I have something on my face? Why are you glaring at me like that?”
Dietrich flinched.
After a pause, he asked with difficulty:
“…Could it be… Lady Ansi didn’t like the earrings?”
At that, Evangeline’s eyes gleamed like a predator spotting prey.
