TOSWB 24

Chapter : 24

The ice cream made by Chief Chef Hwangseong was heavenly. Any hatred I had toward the Empress or Asad seemed to melt away with each bite.

“Heh—”

Thinking about dessert time three days from now made my mouth water automatically.

Ice cream had always been my favorite, even in my previous life. Evelyn liked it too.
So whenever Leopold came over to our mansion, he would always bring some along. Of course, it was probably for Evelyn, but still, just being able to taste it was a delight.

Leopold would bring Evelyn’s ice cream and conveniently bring one for me as well. Every time, I would rush out barefoot to greet him. Not that I was really greeting Leopold—the ice cream was the true focus.

Even if I ate what was meant for Evelyn, he never complained. That guy could be annoying, but when it came to food, he wasn’t petty.

But this was the first time I was eating it since I had returned to this life. Thinking about it that way, having Leopold come to the mansion didn’t seem so bad.

…Hmm, no. Let me correct that.

Besides, Evelyn wasn’t at the Viscount’s mansion right now, so Leopold might ignore my request and show up empty-handed.

I added a postscript saying I would send him back if he came empty-handed. That would make sure he didn’t forget the ice cream.

After finishing the short letter, I got up.

“Nanny—! Please take this reply to Hwangseong—”

I stopped mid-motion between the chair and desk when a thought suddenly struck me.

“…Ah, right.”

I muttered to myself, standing awkwardly squeezed between the desk and the chair.

When meeting Leopold, the Empress had “requested” that Asad be there as well. Though she called it a request, it was basically an imperial order.

With the Empress’s monitors shadowing Leopold, every move of the Crown Prince was probably already being reported to her.

If she found out that I had invited Leopold but not Asad, it would complicate my relationship with her.

Although I really didn’t want to, I had no choice but to also invite Asad to the Viscount’s mansion three days later.

“Ugh.”

I sighed deeply and slumped back into my seat, picking up my pen to continue writing the letter to the Winterchester Viscount’s family.

Three days later, at the Valentine Viscount’s mansion.

In the letter I sent to Asad, I intentionally wrote the word “three days” so that he wouldn’t immediately notice it, hoping he might misread the date.

…A meaningless struggle, perhaps, but still.

Knock, knock, knock.

Someone knocked on my door.

“Miss, did you call for me?”

Turning around at the sound, I saw the nanny had quietly entered my room.

“Yes, just a moment.”
“Of course.”

I quickly placed the last letter into its envelope and sealed it, stamping it with the Viscount’s emblem.

Meanwhile, the nanny placed a cup of freshly brewed, warm black tea on my desk.

“Ah, thank you.”
“Is this letter also for Hwangseong?”

Seeing the two envelopes on the desk, the nanny looked puzzled. Normally, she was the one in charge of sending letters to Hwangseong, so the extra letter seemed to surprise her.

I shook my head.

“No. This one is for the third son of the Winterchester Viscount’s family.”

“The Winterchester family?”

The name of the family was so unexpected that the nanny blinked in surprise, as if wondering when I had ever made any connections with such a house.

The Winterchester family was one of the most secretive noble houses in the empire, often involved in clandestine operations or covert missions for the royal family.

I don’t think the nanny imagined that I could have developed such a close connection that I would be exchanging letters with someone from that family.

“Yes. It’s for their third son.”

I nodded and wrote down the recipient’s name on the envelope.

The nanny paused thoughtfully before speaking.

“The third son of the Winterchester family… He must be the one who recently won the Imperial Swordsmanship Tournament at Hwangseong. Red hair, blue eyes… His name was Asad, wasn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

Asad had gained some fame throughout the empire after defeating Leopold in the tournament.

Soon after being adopted into the Viscount’s family, he became a figure admired even by commoners. Judging by her expression, even the nanny, a commoner herself, shared the same reaction.

Thanks to adopting a commoner, the previously secretive and serious image of the Viscount’s family had brightened considerably. This increased public support for them.

Of course, the Empress’s influence had played a major role in this. It was hard to tell where calculation ended and manipulation began. The Empress was indeed a terrifying figure; I never wanted to be involved in politics.

“Phew, done. This letter goes to the Viscount’s family.”
“…Ah, yes. Understood.”

After sealing both letters carefully, I handed them to the nanny.

The nanny seemed lost in thought for a moment before accepting them, giving me a slightly distracted look.

I tilted my head.

“What’s wrong?”
“No… nothing.”

She smiled awkwardly, trailing off mid-sentence. Why?

While she hesitated, I took a sip of the tea. It had a sweet aroma lingering on my tongue. It was slightly bitter for a child, but I’d always enjoyed it, so it suited me perfectly.

Finally, the nanny spoke, her voice slightly excited.

“If it’s him, I think he will grow into an even more handsome man, and he would make a perfect match for Miss Tina—who knows, maybe the two of you might even marry one day from exchanging letters like this.”

“Gulp.”

At the nanny’s words, I accidentally spilled the tea I had just sipped all over my mouth.

“Oh, Miss!”

Reacting like a scene from a morning drama, the nanny hurriedly handed me a handkerchief to wipe my mouth.

The bitter tea stung my throat, making me cough repeatedly. I grabbed the nanny’s shoulder, staring seriously at her.

“Nanny, do you have some kind of foresight or something?”
“Huh?”

Why would my nanny have such foresight? She should have been sent to the temple immediately with such abilities.

To predict that I and Asad, who had no connection, would marry? Her insight was sharp enough to feel like divine intervention.

I grabbed the handkerchief from her and wiped my mouth.

“And I’m not getting married! I told you that already, didn’t I?”
“Yes, yes—”

Since returning to this life, I had been saying, “I’m not getting married.” Every time, the nanny would smile gently and pat my head, as if saying, “Yes, everyone thinks that at your age.”

“I mean it! I’m a staunch non-marriage advocate!”
“Yes, yes. Tina, you know big words and are so smart.”

She didn’t get it at all. She must have just latched onto the phrase “non-marriage advocate.”

Even I would find it amusing if a just-turned-thirteen child claimed to be against marriage, but I was serious.

“…Tch.”

I clicked my tongue in frustration, thinking that time would tell how things would turn out. I then drank the remaining tea in one gulp.

Time flew by, and three days later, the awaited day had arrived. Today, Leopold and Asad were visiting our Viscount’s mansion.

Had there ever been two such noble guests visiting the Viscount at the same time? In the future, the mansion might see them often enough to wear down the threshold, but in this life, this was the first.

With two guests coming, everything had to be prepared perfectly.

The mansion had been thoroughly cleaned, and the neglected garden had been tidied up.

I, too, was preparing myself to greet the guests.

“…Maybe I should thank the Empress for this.”

I thought while looking in the mirror. Who would have thought that the Empress, with whom I had no contact in my previous life, would cause such a change?

About 60% of my past-life appearance had returned.

In the mirror, I wore a rather loose dress, while the maids busily tidied up behind me.

Just a few months ago, this dress would have fit perfectly as daily wear, but now it seemed like I was wearing someone else’s clothes.

My limbs had slimmed, my jawline sharpened, and my eyes had grown about 1.5 times larger than before.

Though I still had a long way to go, my green eyes looked unreal, like the eyes of dolls that young girls once played with.

Perhaps from exercising diligently, my skin was smooth, healthy, and radiant.

My hair had grown longer, too, now falling gently past my waist.

All the rustic hair ties and accessories had been removed, giving a clean, neat look.

Gone was the country-girl Tina Valentine of a few months ago; in the mirror stood a completely transformed young beauty.