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Chapter : 35
“To think I’d see that side of my stoic friend…”
For a moment, I unconsciously moved my eyes to find the owner of the voice.
There, across from me, a man with purple eyes—the Crown Prince—was leisurely clapping, and our gazes met exactly.
He stared at me intently, and I quietly returned his gaze.
A few seconds later, the Crown Prince curved his lips into a smirk.
“Hng~.”
I responded with a smile through my eyes.
After confirming each other’s signal, we naturally broke our gaze as if nothing had happened.
It was a fleeting moment, but I understood perfectly.
“That man… he’s one of my kind.”
After the introductions, the full resort tour began.
It was fortunate that the resort road construction had finished in time.
“Thanks to that, even the large carriage can pass without trouble.”
For now, there was no better way to move around the vast resort grounds, so we used the carriage.
Before the official opening, we would need to prepare a better transportation option.
“But for now, the carriage works just fine~.”
Due to the sudden engagement ceremony, the Saint Duke couple had carefully selected only high-ranking nobles for the guest list.
Most of the high-ranking nobles associated with the Duke couple were relatively older.
“People like that always prefer the familiar over the unfamiliar.”
If we had used something like a buggy instead of a carriage, they probably wouldn’t have even paid attention to the resort.
“Still… just sightseeing won’t be enough to win over these high-ranking nobles.”
The tour proceeded with my carriage, carrying the hosts—the Saint Duke family—at the front.
The carriage with the Crown Prince couple followed in second place.
Behind them, the remaining carriages carried the rest of the guests in groups.
I tuned my hearing to catch the sounds from the other carriages.
I wanted to hear what the nobles really thought as they viewed the resort.
“The exterior of the houses is far too plain. The owner’s personality doesn’t shine through at all.”
“It looks like a rural village on our estate, the way the houses are all crammed together.”
“Even a small patch of land is decorated with lights as if it were a garden.”
“My goodness, is that what they call a ‘swimming pool’? How vulgar.”
“They’re harshly criticizing the place simply because there’s no owner in sight.”
Just then, the Duke couple in the same carriage spoke.
“The reaction won’t be good. The houses are narrow and crude. Most nobles invited here already own islands like this, so there’s nothing novel to enjoy.”
“How foolish. We should have made it luxurious like the Quinde Hotel, emphasizing the noble aspects. How many big spenders we could’ve had! We’ll lose all these valuable customers.”
Harton, standing beside them, frowned, seemingly about to speak.
I lightly patted his fist and shook my head.
“The target audience I’m aiming for is completely different from what the Duke couple thinks.”
No need to waste words explaining that.
“Besides, they’ll have no choice but to pay the investment without saying a word~.”
I smiled quietly at the Duke couple. Startled, they avoided my gaze.
In that moment, the simple resort tour came to an end.
Returning to the villa garden where the engagement ceremony had taken place, the nobles disembarked leisurely from the carriages.
“That was an interesting tour. It has a charm different from the Quinde Hotel.”
“Using a single house exclusively is unusual but fascinating.”
“I hope the Saint Duke family’s new business prospers.”
The nobles added a few more polite words and compliments.
I listened attentively and responded politely.
“Thank you.”
Of course, I didn’t genuinely accept their hollow words.
“If they were truly interested in my resort, they’d have mentioned investments along with praise, or hinted that they wanted to visit again.”
But these noble elites didn’t give even the slightest opening.
They simply offered a perfunctory, indifferent remark.
Interestingly, the more indifferent they were, the more the Duke couple’s shoulders lifted.
It was as if they were saying, “See? You were wrong, and we were right!”
Harton muttered quietly, perhaps sensing this atmosphere.
“None of them have an eye for it. This island is such a free and delightful place.”
His whisper carried both consolation for me and sympathy that these nobles failed to grasp the charm of Tadibna.
I smiled faintly at Harton.
“I guess he really enjoyed spending all this time on the island with me while preparing the engagement.”
I shifted my gaze to the staff waiting in the garden.
At the front were the restaurant staff along with the three sisters: Elin, Belin, and Celine.
They couldn’t hide their unease at the nobles’ lukewarm reaction.
“Sisters, what do we do? Their reactions are more lukewarm than expected… Are we going to fail before the resort even opens?”
“…Realistically, it’s troubling. The nobles who could be our most reliable investors don’t seem impressed with the resort.”
“Shh, don’t say that, Celine, Belin. Lord Eani surely has everything planned.”
I heard their whispers thanks to my heightened hearing.
“If this continues, it won’t be Harton who’s anxious—it’ll be these girls who quit out of worry.”
To prevent that, it was time for the real highlight.
Clap, clap!
With a light clap, the staff—including the three sisters—moved in perfect unison.
I addressed them while watching.
“We’ve prepared a special dessert, only available on Tadibna Island, for those who attended today’s engagement.”
At my words, the staff placed the desserts on round tables scattered throughout the garden.
The nobles, who had been quietly chatting among themselves, slowly moved back to their seats from the engagement ceremony.
“Just the sweet thing I was craving, perfect timing.”
“I hope the food lives up to the Saint Duke family’s reputation.”
“I’m worried… what if the dessert is as bland as this resort?”
Murmurs.
Ignoring the nobles’ sneers, I sat at a table with Harton.
The Crown Prince couple was already seated there.
“Finally, we get to properly meet and greet.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Nasel.”
Cebif Chekin Arestan, gradually taking over power to become the next emperor, and his wife, Crown Princess Shuria Chekin Arestan, who had finally conceived their first child after struggling with health issues.
I bowed lightly and smiled at them.
“It’s an honor to meet you.”
“The honor is mine, Eani Nasel.”
The Crown Prince casually smiled, resting his chin on Harton’s shoulder beside him.
“I’ve always been curious about the woman he was so obsessed with.”
“Your Highness.”
“He always refused to show your face, even begging him. I wondered if I’d have to issue an imperial decree just to see you.”
At that moment, Harton’s eyes flashed dangerously as he firmly covered the Crown Prince’s mouth with his hand, muttering through clenched teeth.
“Let’s not bring up the old stories if we can avoid it.”
Despite Harton’s fierce tone, the Crown Prince showed no fear.
Instead, he chuckled and gently pulled Harton’s hand away from his mouth.
“Wow, so manners in front of others are out the window now?”
“Eani is not ‘others’.”
“Ah, ‘not others’?”
The Crown Prince looked at me with renewed curiosity, then grinned slyly and whispered.
“So your woman is special, huh?”
I was curious about what he meant by “special.”
Still staring at me, he mumbled, observing closely.
I didn’t avoid his gaze and slowly spoke.
“Instead of the uniqueness of other women, how about paying attention to the uniqueness of your one and only partner?”
“Hm?”
I didn’t answer his question, instead politely gesturing with one hand toward Harton beside me.
Then…
Nom nom nom!
“…Shuria?”
Nom nom nom…
The Crown Princess, who had been devouring the desserts with both hands, froze.
She slowly lifted her head, cream smeared around her mouth, and looked at her husband.
“Your Highness…”
Her delicate voice quivered as tears welled up.
“What… what should I do…?”
Waang-
Even as she spoke, she stuffed the dessert into her mouth, then cried out in delight.
“This… is absolutely delicious!”
It was Tadibna’s pride and Meno’s masterpiece: a tart made with Rediv ice cream.
