🔊 TTS Settings
~Chapter 50~
“Hello, Young Lord Hutton. I’m Amelie Garnet of the Garnet family.”
Since he had already greeted me, I couldn’t just run away.
I smiled politely but avoided saying anything that might show interest.
“I already knew your name. My close friend is in the Imperial Knights, so I often visited the training grounds.”
“Ah, now that you mention it, I think I saw you there a few times.”
“Yes. But lately, you haven’t been coming, so when I saw you here at the party, I thought I was dreaming.”
Hutton blushed again as he struggled to meet my eyes.
His feelings seemed stronger than I expected.
I quietly activated my “affection meter.”
System
You can see his affection!
-
Amelie Garnet
♥ Affection: 76%
No wonder he was so nervous.
Could someone really like another this much without ever speaking to them? I’d never experienced it, so it felt strange.
“I was invited here by a close friend. As for the training grounds, I had some matters come up, so I can’t visit as often.”
“I see… In truth, I always wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t have the courage. When you stopped coming, I regretted it. That’s why I wanted to be brave today.”
His lips trembled slightly as he said the word “courage.”
I didn’t know how to handle such pure admiration.
“Please don’t exaggerate. I’m not someone worth that much courage.”
“Don’t say that. You are beautiful, kind, gentle… words aren’t enough to describe you.”
“…I’m not as great as you say, but thank you.”
Love must make people say such things so easily.
Hearing praises so close up made me curl my fingers awkwardly.
‘Ugh, and all the girls ran away, leaving me alone with him!’
The atmosphere was getting too uncomfortable.
“Am I making you uncomfortable?”
“Ah, not exactly… It’s just, this is my first party, and I wanted to spend time with girls my own age.”
“I see. I didn’t realize. I must be disturbing you…”
His shoulders dropped instantly.
I only wanted to end the talk politely, but now he looked pitiful.
‘Fine. I’ll keep this short, then refuse firmly.’
“It’s not disturbing. Just… a little distracting.”
“Even so, I shouldn’t steal your time with your friends. Instead, how about having a meal with me another day?”
Excuse me?
Didn’t he just say he never had the courage?
Even now I felt awkward to death. If I ate with him, I’d probably choke on my food.
“I’m busy these days. I don’t know if I’ll have time.”
I declined as gently as I could.
“I’ll adjust to your schedule. Just tell me when you’re free.”
…Was he ignoring my tone, or pretending not to notice? His face was full of hope.
It was no use continuing. He seemed too sincere, but he also needed to learn that one-sided love doesn’t always end happily.
Then—suddenly—people around us started murmuring.
At first, I thought they were whispering about me and Hutton. But no, their eyes were turned elsewhere.
Fine, as long as it wasn’t about me.
I focused back on Hutton to give a clear refusal.
“Young Lord Hutton, I’m sorry. I don’t think I can make time. We only just met today—sharing a meal would only feel uncomfortable.”
“If a meal is too much, then perhaps tea? Please, just reconsider once—”
“When you’re rejected, you should step back, not beg for another chance.”
That voice. I froze.
I turned quickly—
“Richard?”
Now I understood why everyone was buzzing.
He rarely appeared outside royal banquets, yet here he was.
Hutton, even more shocked than me, stammered helplessly.
“Y-Y-Your Highness, the Prince…”
“No need for greetings. There’s no point in this conversation. May I take Lady Amelie with me?”
“Eh?”
“On second thought, I don’t need your permission. Let’s go.”
Richard’s words were sharp, almost rude. Then he held out his hand to me.
Why was he acting like this?
I glanced between his face and his hand.
But there was no time. Everyone at the party was watching us.
“Oh no… I can’t believe this.”
With no other choice, I placed my hand in his.
We needed to escape the stares first.
We slipped out of the hall and headed toward a terrace.
People we passed in the corridor all quickly vanished as soon as they saw Richard.
Thanks to that, the wide corridor and terrace were left entirely to us.
“What are you even doing here?”
It was the first question that came to mind.
Richard, standing with his arms crossed, looked downright insolent.
“What about you? Since when do you attend parties?”
“I asked you first.”
“…I got an invitation, and I had time, so I came.”
“Ha! You, with free time at a party? Even a stray dog wouldn’t believe that.”
If he was going to lie, he could at least make it convincing.
Could it be… he came to spy on me?
The thought flashed through my mind.
“What about you? Why are you here?”
“I was invited too. Unlike some people, I made time to attend.”
“Made time?”
Richard’s eyebrow twitched, catching my sarcasm instantly.
Too bad. Who told him to be suspicious of me?
We were supposed to be close enough to call each other friends.
Right now, I felt betrayed.
“Who invited you, then? Lyssa isn’t here.”
“I have another friend. Not as close as Lyssa, but still.”
“Who?”
“Lady Lillian Perez. Why? You think I’d lie about that?”
He was interrogating me like a criminal, and I finally snapped.
But Richard wasn’t paying attention to my annoyance—he was stuck on the name.
“Perez? The one they call the ‘Butterfly of Society’ invited you?”
“Whatever she’s called, I don’t care.”
My words came out sharp.
If he was so curious about my invitation, why didn’t he ask at the party?
“Then the real reason you came… was it because of a man?”
“Are you insane!?”
Of all the ridiculous questions he could have asked, this one made me shout.
