RYL Chapter 58

Chapter 58

I sent letters to Mikael and Mathieu, telling them I’d reserved a table at a café on 405 Street and asking them to meet me there.
I also sent a similar letter to Edith.
Of course, all three of them thought they were just meeting me.
I had a bad feeling that if they knew they were meeting Edith, they might not show up…

Naturally, I had no intention of actually going to the meeting.
I figured if I could force the three of them to meet like this, maybe sparks would fly.
Still, I couldn’t relax completely, so I hid behind the wall of a building across the street from the café, waiting to see if they’d show up.

I just wanted to confirm they were all there and then leave.
Soon, a familiar figure appeared in the distance.

As expected, the ever-punctual crown prince arrived first.
Not long after, Mathieu entered the café too.
I was dying to see their faces when they recognized each other, but I held back.

Now, all that was left was Edith…

That’s when someone suddenly blew air right into my ear from behind.

“Eek!”

I jumped in shock and turned around, holding my ear.
There stood Edith, smiling brightly.

“Madam, what are you doing here?”
“W-why are you coming from that way?”
I stammered in surprise, and Edith answered innocently,
“The weather was nice, so I went for a walk… and got lost.”

She must’ve come from the opposite direction. No wonder she showed up so unexpectedly.
While I was still catching my breath and calming my pounding heart, Edith tilted her head and asked,
“But why are you out here instead of waiting inside?”

Ah—right, Edith thinks she’s meeting me.

“Ah… I-I just got here too.”
“Oh! What a coincidence that we ran into each other! Let’s go in, then, Madam.”

As Edith cheerfully linked arms with me, I sighed lightly.

“Don’t call me ‘Madam’ outside.”
“Then what should I call you?”
“Just call me Claire.”
“But I couldn’t possibly call you that…”
“It’s fine. Really.”

Edith then gave me a cheeky smile and clung to my arm, whispering playfully,
“Okay, Claire~”

***

When we walked into the café, we saw Mathieu and Mikael sitting awkwardly at the table I had reserved.
Mathieu looked grumpy, while Mikael, composed as always, spotted me first and waved.

“Claire, over here.”

I awkwardly smiled and led the attached-to-my-arm Edith to the table.
Both men gave her confused looks.

“And this lady is…?”
“Oh! Did I forget to mention her in the letter? Haha… Edith is joining us too.”

Mikael and Mathieu looked puzzled, glancing between me and Edith.
Mathieu muttered, clearly annoyed,
“Already weird enough that Mikael’s here… and now there’s someone else too?”

But Mikael, ever the gentleman, stood up and smiled kindly.
“I see! Ladies, please sit here.”

He moved to sit next to Mathieu, so now it was two men and two women, sitting side by side.
Not the arrangement I’d hoped for…

While I pressed my temples in frustration, Mikael casually said,
“Too bad we couldn’t check.”

He seemed to be speaking to Mathieu, and I asked curiously,
“Check what?”
Mikael chuckled and replied,
“I was wondering… since Claire invited us both, who she’d choose to sit next to.”

Well, obviously—
Wait. Who would I have sat next to?

Probably the crown prince, if I had to choose…

Pushing that thought aside, I looked at the two men.
After a brief moment of interest in Edith, their attention returned to me.

Things didn’t go quite as planned, but it’s not too late!
If I can just show off Edith’s charm, something might spark between them!

“Ahem! This young lady is Miss Edith von Luciano.”

Mikael immediately responded,
“Oh, the siren from the performance.”

He must’ve recognized her from when her mask came off backstage yesterday.
Could this be a good sign?

“Nice to meet you, Miss Etide.”

Etide?! It’s Edith, not Etide…
Are you sure you’re the male lead? How can you not remember the heroine’s name?!

Trying not to sigh too loudly, I shook it off and continued the introductions.
Who knows, maybe Edith will charm them anyway!

“Edith, this is Lord Mathieu von Laurentino, heir of the Laurentino duchy.”
“Oh wow, a young duke?”

Nice reaction!

“And this is His Highness Crown Prince Mikael von Wilgrave.”
“Whaaat? The crown prince?!”

So even the heroine can’t resist status and wealth, huh?
But just as I thought that, Edith turned to me with a bright smile.

“But I still think Claire is the coolest. Hehe.”

…That’s not what I wanted to hear.
Were all those reactions just polite gestures?!

While I sat there frozen in disbelief, Edith leaned in, genuinely curious, and asked the two men,
“Don’t you both have super busy schedules? Is it okay for you to be out like this?”

She was smiling, but her words made it sound like the guys were obstacles in the way.
Where did this plan go wrong…?

No! I won’t give up yet!
Even if it’s just one of them, I’m going to pair Edith off with someone today!

Clenching my fist with determination, I forced a smile and said,
“How about we split into pairs while we have our tea?”

Everyone looked confused, so I laughed awkwardly and added,
“I have two opera tickets… and just two seats, that’s why.”

The three of them stared at me, clearly wondering why I had called them here.
Honestly, I didn’t expect things to turn out like this either!
Feeling awkward and desperate, I carefully asked,
“Haha, so… what do you think?”

Edith folded her arms tightly and replied,
“Sounds good! Then I’ll pair up with Claire!”

Wait… no, you picked the wrong person!
As I stood there frozen with a look close to tears, Mikael smiled gently and stepped in to help.
“It’s a bit odd for two guys to go on a date together on such a nice day…”

As expected, the crown prince is like an angel. Sniff.
“How about the ladies put their handkerchiefs on the table, and we pick?”

Edith, after thinking for a moment, smiled brightly and said,
“That sounds fun!”

Since she agreed, Mikael continued with a smile,
“Then we’ll close our eyes.”

With that, Mikael closed his eyes. Mathieu, looking like he really didn’t want to go on a date with Mikael, reluctantly did the same.
Once we confirmed they weren’t peeking, Edith and I took out our handkerchiefs and placed them on the table.

This felt like some old-school blind date game… Guess people are the same everywhere.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes,” I replied.

Mikael and Mathieu opened their eyes and looked carefully at the handkerchiefs in front of them.
Why is my heart pounding over something so small?
It’s not even like I like either of them.

I glanced at Edith, and she looked excited.
Well, I hope it goes well for her if that’s what she wants.
At least then I can get rid of one of them.

But if only one of them can end up with Edith… who should it be?
It didn’t take long to decide.
Sorry, main heroine, but getting rid of Mathieu comes first!

Maybe my wish came true—Mikael picked up my handkerchief first.
Mathieu reached for mine a little too late and had no choice but to pick Edith’s instead.

Edith sighed in disappointment.
“Aww, that’s too bad. I really wanted to go on a date with Claire…”

Please… just remember you’re the main heroine!