"Did I interrupt you two's fun time?"
Adrian and I glanced at each other in confusion at Cedric's sudden appearance. Adrian seemed especially flustered.
"Cedric?"
"Your Highness the Grand Duke."
However, Cedric maintained an extremely relaxed and languid attitude. He leaned against the window frame and looked up at me with his sculpted face.
"Yes? Rebecca."
A face as beautiful as if it had been painted. Plus, that angle, that way of speaking...
I gasped—my heart had been struck without warning.
Wow, our Grand Duke...
In the original, I thought you only used your body well, but I see you use your face well too.
If I wasn't careful and got captivated by that face, Cedric's favorability rating—which I'd barely raised to "friend" level—would plummet.
Come to your senses right now, or you'll be sent straight to the rooftop of Hell!
I scolded myself and tried to regain composure. However, at the same time, I felt a little wronged.
If I had to face this devastating face for five years starting from the first night, wouldn't I have gone crazy even if I weren't Rebecca?
I never thought I'd live to understand the feelings of Rebecca, the mad dog...
I kept chanting to myself as if reciting a spell:
He's a fox. A nine-tailed fox.
You should never be possessed.
Only after finally calming down was I able to turn my head toward Cedric again.
"Nice to see you, Cedric. But what is this carriage? I don't think it's the Twins family carriage."
The corner of Cedric's mouth curved upward at my question.
"I bought a new carriage this morning and am on my way back."
"A new carriage? Why were you in such a hurry that you bought one that doesn't even have the family emblem engraved on it yet..."
Of course, compared to the Twins family's vast fortune it would be nothing, but the price of one carriage was by no means a small amount.
I kept looking at the carriage and tilting my head in confusion.
"I suddenly remembered what you said about not wanting to be noticed around town."
"...What?"
You bought a carriage immediately after hearing just one offhand comment from me?
"Anyway, that's true. Buying this expensive thing right away..."
"What's wrong with that?"
Unlike my bewildered expression, Cedric leisurely raised the corner of his lips. It was a moment when I thought his face resembled that of a sly fox.
"Last night, it was what you wanted."
Even Cedric's eyes—which were always sharp—curved into a gentle smile.
"...It looks like you two spent last night together. I'm so glad you're doing well."
Adrian nodded, his gaze slightly lowered.
Oops, I think Adrian misunderstood something.
However, Cedric maintained a carefree attitude even after saying something that could easily be misunderstood.
"Of course. Couples often aren't what they seem."
He even added that. It seemed like Cedric was planning to faithfully carry out my request to pretend to be a show-window couple. But the problem was that even if he was being faithful, he was being too faithful.
It looks even weirder if it suddenly changes like this. Somehow there's no middle ground...?
I furrowed my brows in embarrassment and quickly turned my head toward Adrian.
"I know what Adrian is imagining, but that's not it."
"What? How do I imagine..."
"Anyway, it's not like that. I just happened to run into Cedric while taking a walk last night."
At the same time, a fine crease appeared between Cedric's brows.
"Rebecca, there's no need to make excuses for what happened between you and your husband."
At those words, I gave a silent plea with my eyes.
No, Your Highness... that's all well and good, but let's tone it down a bit, yes?
However, Cedric simply turned his head toward Adrian, as if avoiding my gaze.
"Adrian, it's been a while."
"Your Highness the Grand Duke. Have you been well?"
"Of course. I'm grateful to you for doing your best to manage the Mansion of Darkness from when it was empty until now."
"I'm just doing my duty, Your Highness."
Adrian bowed his head lightly once again.
"I heard that the Marquis de Monterre's condition is worsening day by day."
At Cedric's words, darkness appeared in Adrian's blue-violet eyes.
"You're right. But fortunately, my older brother and sister-in-law are taking good care of my father."
"That's good to hear. I thought you might return to the demon world because of that."
"Yes, of course I've thought about going back, but..."
Adrian paused for a moment, then his eyes landed on me. The corners of his lips slowly curved upward as he looked at me.
"I have another reason to stay here."
Cedric's eyes, which had been following Adrian's gaze, stopped on me. Cedric stared at me with a somewhat subtle expression.
Only then did I realize that the reason Adrian stayed here was me.
I didn't even know Adrian had such a situation—I just kept thinking about spoiling him until later.
Feeling embarrassed, I smoothed my hair for no reason.
"Adrian, I didn't know about your situation. I'm really sorry about your father."
"It's all right, Your Highness."
"While I'm out of the mansion today, why don't you go see your father for a while?"
"No, not really..."
"This is an order."
"...Yes, I will, Your Highness."
"And if the reason you remain in the Mansion of Darkness is because of me..."
"You don't have to force yourself to stay here."
Adrian shook his head politely but firmly.
"It's not like that. It's purely because of my desire to stay here."
"But Adrian..."
I felt conflicted and wanted to continue speaking when—
Knock knock.
Cedric tapped the carriage's window frame to get our attention.
"Rebecca, we'd better get going."
Adrian nodded with a smile, as if he agreed with those words.
"We've been delayed because of me."
"......"
"Please board the carriage, Your Highness. I'll hold your hand."
Click.
The carriage door suddenly opened with a low sound. Before I knew it, Cedric had stepped out of the carriage and naturally took my hand away from Adrian.
Cedric's large hand gently grasped mine. The moment I looked up at Cedric, surprised by the unfamiliar yet warm touch—
"From this moment on, Rebecca's escort is the responsibility of me, her husband."
Chilly blue eyes looked directly at Adrian.
"So I think you'd better go."
The Twins Grand Duchy castle was close to the Forest of the Demon World. Even if this was the nearest city, the distance was quite far. It took a while for the scenery of dense forest to pass by outside the carriage window.
Before I knew it, the private houses of commoners began to appear, and soon the sight of a bustling downtown area came into view.
"This is the North Central Market. Is this your first time here?"
Cedric asked me, as I was completely focused on the view outside the window.
"Yes, there was no need to come all the way out here."
That was probably the same for Rebecca in the past. The radius of action for noble wives was usually limited to family castles, places where social banquets were held, or shopping streets exclusively for nobles.
[North Central Market 1st Street]
I looked up through the window at the sign hanging on the street.
At the center of the North Central Market was the Demon World Materials Futures Exchange, and all five roads leading to the center were market streets.
While the carriage traveled down 1st Street—said to be the busiest among them—I couldn't take my eyes off the vibrant scenery outside the window.
There were formal shops lined up on both sides of the market street, and in the center of the street, stall vendors loudly solicited customers.
"Buy herring! Fresh herring brought in from the docks of Ruad this morning!"
"Parsnips like water today! What should I give you?"
"One rut for a glass of milk! I'll even add some rum if you want!"
There was even a peddler who walked the streets carrying all kinds of goods on his back.
I let out exclamations of admiration at the unfamiliar yet amazing sight.
"Let's stop here for a moment."
Cedric knocked on the window leading to the driver and gave a command. Soon the carriage slowly came to a halt.
"Why stop here? I don't think we've reached the futures exchange yet."
"You looked out the window so curiously. Wasn't it something you wanted to see?"
"Ah... of course I'd like to, but wouldn't it be too noticeable?"
"I don't think so. You and I both dressed appropriately so as not to be noticed."
As I'd told him in advance, Cedric had dressed more plainly than usual.
Moreover, in this place where only commoners gathered, few people would realize he was the master of the Twins Grand Duchy.
Of course...
Cedric, your face stands out way too much.
It was clear his appearance would attract attention wherever he went. I could hardly make a decision.
"Anyway, the futures exchange is just a short walk away. From here, let's just stroll around and look."
Cedric, noticing I was conflicted, immediately opened the carriage door and stepped out. Then he held out his hand toward me.
"Come on."
"Hurry."
I looked at Cedric and thought for a moment.
It may be a little embarrassing, but it's true that I want to walk around the market.
In the end, I grabbed Cedric's hand and got out of the carriage. At the same time, I felt eyes throughout the market turning toward Cedric and me.
However, Cedric seemed used to such attention and didn't care.
"Rebecca, is there a shop in particular you'd like to check out?"
I tried to ignore the stares around me and looked around at the nearby shops.
"Hmm... it's more of a stall selling trinkets than a regular store."
"A street stall? I thought you wouldn't like that."
"I told you. You'll soon get used to being surprised by me."
As I got out of the carriage and walked down the market road, I started to feel excited. As we approached the stall I'd been eyeing, a middle-aged man greeted us with a warm smile.
"Welcome! Are you looking for something?"
"Hairpins. Something young children will like."
"Ah, things over here are doing well these days."
The merchant pointed to the left side of the stall. There were lots of colorful and cute hairpins on display.
What color will suit Bianca? Blue would be nice too, right? Oh, I think pink would be cute too.
I was excitedly browsing the hairpins when—
"But what is the relationship between you two? You're a couple, right?"
The merchant spoke to me in a friendly manner. As expected, he didn't seem to recognize me or Cedric.
"Your husband is handsome, but you are truly beautiful! Your husband can't travel comfortably wherever he goes! Am I right?"
I couldn't help but be shocked by the merchant's grinning, joking words. No matter how much Cedric had made up his mind to pretend to be a show-window couple, there was no way he'd react well to such an unfamiliar comment.
No matter what, this is a bit over the line.
Even if Cedric couldn't stand it and got annoyed, I'd have nothing to say. As expected, Cedric's face slowly hardened.
"...You're asking useless things."
It seemed his patience had finally run out. This is unfair.
I didn't say anything, so why is all the embarrassment falling on me?
The moment I squeezed my eyes shut and bit my lip—
"Do you need an answer?"
His distinctive low tone continued indifferently once again.
"My wife is a rare beauty, so it's natural for me to be concerned about her."