Chapter: 54
“What is it?”
At the same time, the young lady leaned forward, peeking toward the invitation.
Her blue eyes, filled with curiosity, scanned the name written on the invitation.
“Watkins…… a book club? Ugh.”
The young lady immediately furrowed her brow.
Well, she couldn’t really be blamed.
The young lady was normally the type to live as though she had built a wall between herself and books.
“Lady Ansi, are you planning to join a book club?”
“Yes, I think I might.”
“Why? Do you really have a reason to join a book club? When you already have me by your side……”
The young lady stared up at me with the innocent look of a cat.
But that lasted only for a moment.
“S-Surely not.”
A look of shock slowly appeared on the young lady’s face.
“I’m not enough on my own?!”
Her voice rang out, filled with betrayal.
“I-I only need Lady Ansi!”
“What?”
“So you’re saying you need another friend besides me now!”
“What?”
I could only repeat “What?” in bewilderment.
Seriously.
She wasn’t even a house cat scolding its owner for getting distracted by a stray cat……
But clearing up this misunderstanding came first.
“Of course not. I really enjoy spending time with you, Lady.”
As I gently soothed her, the young lady protested with an expression of utter injustice.
“You said you enjoy being with me, so why are you suddenly talking about some book club or whatever?”
“Well…… about that.”
After choosing my words for a moment, I carefully asked,
“Our original goal was to improve your reputation, wasn’t it?”
“Ah.”
For a moment, the young lady looked as though I had caught her off guard.
As she blinked blankly, I continued speaking softly.
“In that respect, this book club is actually a pretty good option.”
“A good option?”
“Yes. Our original goal was to improve your reputation by showing people your down-to-earth side, wasn’t it?”
I calmly explained my reasoning.
“Although this is a small gathering, and its members aren’t ladies with much influence in high society, if you look at it from the opposite perspective……”
I smiled slightly at the young lady, whose eyes were now shining with curiosity.
“It also means that their families have enough influence that they don’t have to worry about what high society thinks of them.”
Just look at Seraphina.
Wasn’t she someone who didn’t scramble desperately to attend the most prominent social gatherings?
On the other hand, the young lady……
‘Just the fact that the young lady attended Viscount Ansi’s party was enough to cause a commotion throughout high society.’
That alone showed just how tremendous the influence of the Claudius ducal family was.
I continued.
“Of course, the invitation was addressed to me, but in truth, it’s probably less that they didn’t send you an invitation and more that they simply couldn’t bring themselves to.”
The only young lady of the Claudius ducal family, which boasted the greatest prestige in the Empire.
True to that prestige, the young lady tended to attend gatherings whenever she pleased.
More precisely, she only attended a very small number of famous gatherings when she happened to feel like it.
‘The problem is that she hardly ever feels like it……’
How could such a modest little gathering possibly send an invitation to someone like her?
So, in the end, this invitation must mean that they were hoping the young lady would attend as well by inviting me.
“Hmm.”
After thinking for a moment, the young lady glanced at me.
“If it’s a book club…… we’re supposed to read books, right?”
“I suppose so.”
“Ugh, I don’t like reading books.”
The young lady pouted and grumbled, then began talking to herself loudly enough for me to hear.
“But if Lady Ansi asks me to go with her, I think I might want to go.”
“……”
“I really, really hate reading books, but if it’s a request from Lady Ansi, I suppose I could do it……”
“……”
Sigh.
I inwardly let out a deep sigh before speaking.
“This is just my personal opinion, but I think it would be good for you to attend as well, Lady.”
At once, the young lady’s face lit up as brightly as if someone had turned on a lamp.
“You’re asking me to go with you, right, Lady Ansi?”
“Of course. I’m asking you to come with me.”
“All right. Since Lady Ansi is asking me so earnestly, it would be a little difficult for me to refuse.”
The young lady proudly lifted her chin.
Well, if she was satisfied……
I looked at the young lady, who was smiling brightly, with slightly weary eyes.
Thus, the day of my first attendance at the book club arrived.
I had nearly finished getting ready to go out, but I was standing there lost in thought, repeatedly picking up and putting down a jewelry box.
‘……When should I wear these earrings?’
Inside the box were the rose quartz earrings the Duke had given me as a gift.
Of course, I knew perfectly well that the Duke had merely given me the gift because he was grateful that I had been taking good care of the young lady. There was no special meaning behind it.
Still…… since I had received them as a gift.
I wanted the Duke, who had given them to me, to be the first person to see me wearing them.
‘B-But honestly, that makes sense, doesn’t it?’
It wasn’t because I had any particular feelings for the Duke.
It was simply more proper to show a gift to the person who had given it to you first……!
‘All right. Then I’ll wear these earrings another time.’
After agonizing over it for quite some time, I eventually put on a different pair of earrings and went downstairs.
The young lady, who had taken over our living room as though it were her own bedroom and was lounging there, merely raised a hand and waved it lazily.
“You’re here, Lady Ansi?”
“Ah, yes.”
My attention was drawn to the young lady’s wrist.
A bright blue turquoise bracelet was fastened around her slender wrist.
It was the bracelet the Duke had given her as a gift during their recent visit to the south.
“I was wondering.”
As I stared absently at the bracelet, the young lady narrowed her eyes and asked me,
“When exactly are you planning to wear the earrings my brother gave you?”
“W-What?”
Caught off guard, I stiffened my shoulders.
The young lady clicked her tongue as if to make sure I heard her.
“Don’t tell me you’re keeping them in a drawer because you want to save them for later. The prettier something is, the more you should wear it. That way, it actually gets some use.”
Then she looked at me suspiciously.
“Or do you perhaps not like the earrings?”
“No, of course not!”
Startled, I hurriedly shook my head.
The young lady pressed me again.
“Then why don’t you wear them?”
“Ah, well……”
I managed to start speaking, but when it came time to answer, I had no idea what to say……
‘What am I supposed to say?’
Normally, if it were just an ordinary gift, I would happily wear it without giving it much thought.
The fact that I was even worrying about when to wear them was unusual.
‘Th-Then……’
I swallowed nervously.
‘If I’m conscious of the Duke, it might show……’
I had to answer as casually as possible.
Calming my wildly beating heart, I opened my mouth.
“Well…… this is the first time I’ve ever received a gift from a gentleman.”
“Hmm?”
The young lady slightly raised an eyebrow.
It sounded suspiciously like I was making an excuse.
Well, I was making an excuse!
‘But it’s not a lie!’
I felt my face growing hot.
“Gregory has never even given me a handkerchief, so, well, of course, the Duke probably only gave me a gift out of courtesy as well, but, I mean……”
The more I talked, the more it sounded as though I were shouting with my entire body, ‘I’m thinking about him!’
Ah, my head was spinning……
Meanwhile, the young lady stared indifferently at me as I agonized over my words for quite some time.
“I don’t think that’s the case.”
“What?”
“I don’t think he gave you those earrings merely out of courtesy.”
……What exactly did she mean by that?
I looked at the young lady, slightly bewildered.
“Sigh. You two really are hopeless.”
Shaking her head, the young lady abruptly stood up.
Then she walked ahead of me with quick little steps.
“Let’s go. We’re going to be late for the book club at this rate.”
Wait, Lady.
What on earth did you mean by that?!
