OCOB 37

Chapter : 37

Faced with the difficult situation, Antonio began to resign himself.

The “Lady Token” the butler had mentioned.
She had to be Leila Token, the owner of Dragon Café. As far as he knew, there were only two people in the world with that surname.

One was Basha Token, and the other was Leila Token.

But he had heard that the older Token’s whereabouts were unknown…

The timing couldn’t be worse.

He was already arguing with Milena because of this.

Antonio knew which noblewomen’s circle Milena belonged to. He also knew that the ladies in that circle did not look kindly upon Leila Token.

And yet, he had invited Leila to this tea party.

It was a tea party that invited all the high-ranking nobles who dominated high society.
It was held every year in the garden attached to the baron’s estate—more specifically, the beautiful Rose Garden.

The Rose Garden, said to have been cultivated since the time of the previous Baron Viola, was immensely popular in high society.

A romantic rumor had spread that if someone confessed their love here, the couple would remain together for life, which only increased its fame.

Because of that, the once-a-year tea party held in this Rose Garden often served as a debutante stage for young noble sons and daughters.

If the party hosted by the royal family was considered the true debutante ball, then the Rose Garden tea party was more like a preview.

However, the situation had gradually changed.

After the disaster five years ago, a new wind swept not only through high society but also through the royal family of Zenon.

As a result, the parties hosted by the royal family slowly decreased. Now, they continued only in name.

Because of this, the prestige of the Rose Garden tea party grew unlike ever before.

For young noble ladies who needed to make their debut, Baron Viola’s tea party had become the only stage left.

That was also why high society acknowledged Baron Viola—despite him being “just” a baron.

The Viola family was one of the few within the closed-off aristocratic circle that still hosted parties and invited people in.

Meeting new people, forming connections, introducing new faces.

At least, Antonio Viola believed that such intentions lay behind the Rose Garden tea party.

Just as the previous Barons Viola had always brought in a new wind, he wanted to do the same.

He hoped that the currently gloomy high society would become lively again as it once was, and he wanted the tea party at the Rose Garden to shed its reputation for being dull.

So—

“Have I arrived too early?”

He brought that girl before him into the event.

Into a gathering absurdly grand in scale—deceiving her with nothing more than a request to host a simple tea party.

This was a party held on his honor. Of course he could not allow it to fail.

At first, he had felt uneasy.

But after drinking the strawberry latte she served, he was able to shake off that anxiety. It was the most delicious beverage he had ever tasted.

And she hadn’t stopped there.

Naturally escorting her guests, tending to their comfort—preparing seating so they could leisurely watch the sunset over the reed fields.

The sunset he saw that day had been too beautiful to dare describe.

And every guest at Dragon Café had been enjoying that sunset.

Everyone looked happy.

Watching that, Antonio became certain. If it was Leila Token, this tea party would not fail.

It might be a rash judgment—but for now, he chose to believe.

Besides, if the party did go wrong, he had prepared multiple ways to escape the fallout.

He had prepared so thoroughly… yet he hadn’t expected Milena’s opposition to be this strong.

Even after living together for so long, it was still difficult to understand her heart.

Antonio let out a quiet sigh and glanced between the two women. An invisible battle of nerves was unfolding between them.

“Ha…”

He pressed his fingers to his brow.

If I step in here, it’ll be a disaster.

The instinct he had developed after years of living with Milena was screaming at him.

So Antonio simply kept his mouth shut and watched.

He could only pray that it wouldn’t turn into a fight.

I smiled as sweetly as possible while reading the atmosphere.

Hmm. The lady doesn’t seem to like me.
And the baron is just… pretending not to notice.
So I have to win over Baroness Viola all by myself? If I’d known this, I would’ve dragged Millun in with me.

I regretted it, but it was already too late.

As soon as we arrived at our destination, Millun told me to take care of my business and left without hesitation.

So all I could do was keep smiling brightly.

Ha… I really hate this.

At that moment, I remembered what Millun had said before leaving. He’d mentioned that the Rose Garden here was beautiful. He claimed he hated talking to boring nobles, yet he’d given me useful information.

He does look out for me in his own way.
But what am I supposed to do now…?

I looked at the lady, who was still staring at me sharply.

Honey-blonde hair neatly tied up. A dress with lace covering her neck.

In short, the very image of a proper noblewoman. She looked a little prim, too.

Hmm…

Since we hadn’t spoken yet, I had to be careful. One sentence could define her entire impression of me. That one sentence had to land perfectly in her heart.

Should I flatter her? No, she might hate it if it’s too obvious.
Then maybe something simple and sincere?

My smile was about to twitch from strain, so I decided to speak.

“It’s an honor to meet you for the first time, my lady. I’m Leila Token—please feel free to call me Leila. I’ve heard quite a lot about you from your daughter. She said you’re very beautiful and kind.”

“…Oh? Is that so?”

“Yes. She said the lullabies you sing every night are simply wonderful. Ah, that was supposed to be a secret between Miss Ash and me… You’ll keep it too, won’t you?”

“…Very well. And I’m Milena Viola. It’s a pleasure, Leila.”

“The pleasure is all mine, my lady.”

It wasn’t something Ash had told me directly. I had simply overheard her chatter enthusiastically to Hugh.

Well, technically, I did hear it from Ash.

Thanks to that, I managed to draw a fairly positive reaction from her.

No parent dislikes hearing about their child.

Even if such parents exist, none dislike praise spoken by their child.

At least, I believed Lady Milena wouldn’t.

When I’d seen them at the café, the father and daughter had seemed quite close.

If the father-daughter relationship is good, the household atmosphere is probably good too.

If there were serious discord, Ash wouldn’t have come to my café alone, nor would she have voiced her opinions so boldly to Antonio.

…Children are always conscious of their parents’ feelings.

I had been. My younger sibling had been.

So I thought mentioning Ash would please her.

And it worked perfectly.

Watching Milena’s reaction, I continued.

“I’ve heard many stories about the Viola family’s Rose Garden, so I’m very happy to finally visit. Miss Ash invited me to come see it as well, so I was looking forward to it.”

“Is that so? If you have time, you should take a look before you leave.”

“I’d love to see it with you, my lady—if that wouldn’t be too much to ask.”

“Why would you want to see it with me?”

“Miss Ash said that you’re the one who suits the Rose Garden best. I wanted to see that for myself.”

I spoke shyly, quoting Ash to offer praise outright. This way, it wouldn’t seem like blatant flattery.

I glanced at her with a timid, hopeful expression.

Whether my acting worked or not, Milena covered her mouth and let out a soft laugh. Seeing Antonio’s expression brighten beside her, I figured I’d made good progress.

Just then—

“I’ll bring the dessert.”

A maid placed an appetizing dessert on the table and left the room. There was no drink in sight. Whether it was coming later or it was Antonio’s consideration, I didn’t know…

This is my chance to show what I can do!

I quickly turned to Milena.

“May I prepare a drink for you later, my lady? Since we have such lovely desserts in front of us!”

I have to leave the very best first impression—right now.