Chapter 28
Jerome, trying to lighten the mood, spoke playfully.
But Rosie only felt stifled.
What exactly did they want him to “reveal”?
If he had something to hide, he might at least have had something to say.
But as it was, he felt wronged to the point of death.
Then, suddenly, he remembered something the vice-captain had casually said to him before they came into the barracks.
“Rosie. I’m rooting for you. Go and talk to him like a man. You can’t just sit still and let someone steal your lover, can you?”
At the time, Rosie had thought it was nonsense—why bring up a lover he didn’t even have? But now, he understood.
Apparently, those two had completely misunderstood his relationship with Emilina.
Why they thought so, he didn’t know, but he had a very bad feeling that if he didn’t clear up the misunderstanding quickly, it would only bring misery.
Rosie pleaded in a desperate voice.
“Vice-captain! I swear we’re nothing like that. Why would I be with Lady Emilina…!”
“Did you forget that I’m in charge of inspections today? The proof is right here. Why keep denying it?”
Jerome cut him off sharply.
His patience was wearing thin with this subordinate who couldn’t read the room.
Rosie swallowed hard at the suddenly freezing atmosphere.
He looked with troubled eyes at the so-called “proof” his superior pointed to.
What on earth could that letter say that made them so certain?
He was growing curious despite himself.
So Rosie didn’t hesitate—he read the letter.
And, of course, from the very first line, his face went stiff.
While Rosie stood frozen like stone, unable to take his eyes off the letter,
Jerome quietly leaned in toward Kirzen and spoke.
“My lord, I’ve been thinking about something.”
“No.”
“I haven’t even said it yet.”
“Whatever it is, it won’t be something I like.”
“It could be a good suggestion, though?”
“No. It’s a pointless thought.”
Kirzen flatly refused the conversation.
But Jerome had no intention of backing down.
“What if we keep Rosie by your side?”
“Not even worth listening to.”
“Don’t dismiss it, think about it seriously.”
“I refuse.”
Kirzen’s answer was firm.
Jerome looked at his lord as though he were hopeless.
“Come on. If you only ever think in such one-dimensional terms, how will you manage in the future?”
Then he added,
“Since things have come to this, isn’t it better to keep him nearby where we can keep an eye on him? That way, we’ll also hear any news about the young lady.”
“That annoying fellow? Why would I want him near me?”
Kirzen’s expression darkened, irritation flickering in his gaze.
Jerome shrugged.
“You never know, do you? If the two of them grow distant, that might give you a chance.”
“……”
“So stop being stubborn like a child and consider the advantages.”
At Jerome’s quiet push, Kirzen fell into brief thought.
Jerome seized the moment.
“Honestly, there’s no need to even think it over. His identity is certain, and it’s not like he could harbor ulterior motives. There’s nothing to lose by keeping him nearby.”
And maybe, just maybe, I can reduce my own workload a little.
Jerome swallowed those last words and looked at Kirzen expectantly, urging him to agree.
He fully intended to bring Rosie under his command.
With manpower already far too scarce, he wasn’t about to let a useful subordinate slip away.
Kirzen, unaware of Jerome’s ulterior motive, eventually gave his consent.
And just as their little secret “deal” was about to conclude—
Rosie finally snapped out of his daze and carefully spoke up.
“Um… it looks like the young lady was only playing a prank. It may seem suspicious, but it isn’t true. We’re absolutely not like that!”
Rosie was desperate.
He had to correct their misunderstanding somehow.
But Kirzen and Jerome brushed him off with ease.
For entirely different reasons, neither had any intention of listening to him.
“It really is a misunderstanding! Please, you have to believe me…!”
No matter how many times he insisted, it was useless.
They didn’t even pretend to hear him.
He even sent a letter to Emilina as a last resort—
But because she was “busy,” a proper reply didn’t arrive until two whole years later.
And so Rosie spent nearly two years toiling away under Jerome, unable to clear up the misunderstanding.
Kirzen’s constant scoldings were, of course, included in the bargain.
‘Damn it, you cursed young lady!’
Rosie’s silent cry of resentment echoed across the battlefield.
While Rosie was cursing Emilina and struggling through the war,
Emilina herself was visiting a dessert shop called Pirre Confectionery, where she had entrusted her chocolate sales.
The shop’s owner, Merlin, handed her a pouch heavy with gold coins as though he had been waiting for her.
“Here’s this month’s sales profit.”
“The pouch is heavier than before. Are sales still going up?”
“They sell out so quickly that I had to add extra. Actually, could you increase the supply? It’s not nearly enough.”
“I thought I was already giving you quite a lot.”
“No way. With how popular the chocolates are, this amount barely scratches the surface.”
Merlin waved his hand dramatically.
Emilina looked at him with a weary face.
‘Fifty bags of chocolates, twenty pieces each, and that’s still not enough…?’
Did Merlin realize that for a private individual to supply this much was already extraordinary?
He probably did.
But if he was still asking for more, it could only mean there were even more customers clamoring for chocolates.
It was good news—more sales meant more profit.
‘But only if I can keep up with production.’
She had already increased the output once; what she supplied now was her maximum capacity.
Anything beyond this was simply impossible.
“I’ll try, but don’t expect too much. There’s only one of me, and my stamina has its limits.”
“True, it is a lot for one person to handle. Then how about selling me the recipe? I’d pay handsomely, of course.”
Merlin quickly made his offer.
“I appreciate the thought, but I’m not planning to sell the recipe. It’s my livelihood, my weapon, so to speak…”
Emilina trailed off with an awkward expression.
Merlin smacked his lips in disappointment but didn’t press.
“I suppose I wouldn’t sell it either, if I were you. After all, it’s a golden dessert. Selling the recipe would only be a loss.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“On the contrary, I should thank you. After all, our shop gets to have exclusive rights to sell it.”
“Well, what if I change my mind and go to the shop across the street instead?” Emilina teased lightly.
Merlin’s face fell.
“Please don’t joke like that. Do you know how many shops are crying because of this chocolate? If I lost you, I’d have to close my store.”
Merlin clung to her with the look of a man who had lost the world.
Emilina coughed lightly.
‘It was just a joke…’
Seeing him take it so seriously made her feel guilty.
“Sorry, Merlin. I was only teasing. That won’t happen, so relax.”
At her polite apology, Merlin let out a huge sigh of relief.
“…You really had me on edge. I was already thinking about how to keep you from leaving. So, you’re certain you won’t go to Flancy?”
Flancy was the confectionery right across the street—a rival, and one of the capital’s three most popular dessert shops.
“Of course. Don’t worry. I have no intention of dealing with them.”
Not now, not ever.
Originally, Emilina hadn’t planned to entrust all her chocolate sales to just one shop.
Competition was the best way to lower commission fees.
She was confident the value of chocolate would prove itself over time.
In fact, all three shops she had visited had given positive reactions after tasting her samples.
But positive reactions didn’t equal contracts.
Aside from Pirre Confectionery, the other two had simply turned up their noses and acted arrogantly.
Especially Flancy—they had been nothing short of thuggish.
‘It still makes me angry just thinking about it.’
Back then, Emilina had stolen her father’s seal and written a letter of recommendation as though she were a household servant.
She had done it to hide her true identity and sell anonymously.
Since they didn’t check identity directly, she needed someone to vouch for her—hence the seal.
A recommendation with a noble’s seal was generally considered reliable.
But Flancy had refused, saying they had never heard of such a family.
That much was understandable.
After all, her family wasn’t particularly prestigious. If she suddenly came with a noble’s recommendation, of course they’d be suspicious.
She could accept that.
But then—
“Our Flancy conducts business on trust. With such an uncertain, possibly forged seal from some proxy, we cannot engage in trade.”
