---

Although the Count Kraus House is a great noble family, the breakfast menu isn’t as splendidly extravagant as a castle.

Just because you’re a noble doesn’t mean you sprinkle gold dust on your food. Of course, you could do that if you wanted, but why would you? It seems more like a wasteful extravagance, which isn’t looked upon favorably for someone in the nobility.

A servant entered with the prepared meal. Today’s breakfast consisted of a small steak seasoned with the chef’s special sauce and a nicely fried egg. In addition, there were warm soups and various other dishes, but everything was small enough to be eaten in one bite and didn’t amount to much.

Elena picked up her knife, cut the meat into small pieces, dipped it in the sauce, and put it straight into her mouth. She seemed satisfied with the flavor, her face reflecting enjoyment. Only after seeing her happy expression could I start my meal at ease.

I also took my knife and cut the meat, putting a piece in my mouth. The meat was of such high quality that the juiciness bursting from the tender flesh was a work of art. It seems my taste has refined over time, yet gourmet food never gets dull.

“Damian, do you like meat?”

“Yes?”

I was so lost in the ecstasy of flavor that I hadn’t noticed Elena, sitting directly opposite me, gazing at me in wonder as I ate the steak.

“Of course, I do. To put it more precisely, I enjoy eating delicious things rather than just meat. How about you, Elena?”

As long as the quality of meat isn’t ridiculously poor, it’s generally good when cooked well, so I think I’m right.

“It suits my taste perfectly. The chef at Kraus can really do no wrong. The level of the desserts makes me feel like I could live here forever.”

“Haha. Thank you for the compliment. After the meal, I’ll guide you around the castle. If you say the same thing then, the chef will also be pleased.”

Surely, that’s not the reason she wants to get engaged to me, right?

Watching her fold her hands in admiration, it suddenly crossed my mind that this might just be the reason for her engagement proposal. If that’s the case, I’d be fine with it. I might miss the chef’s cooking, but it’s surely better than me getting directly involved in the story.

Even while eating, Elena couldn’t stop admiring the garden visible through the glass walls that occasionally caught her eye. In my eyes, her delighted face seemed more beautiful than any flower, but to her, born on the icy land of Merohim, it must have felt refreshing to see such southern vistas.

“It’s hard to see things like this in Merohim. There’s a glass greenhouse where my father has cast a spell to control the temperature, but this is the first time I’m seeing flowers receiving sunlight like this beyond the window.”

To my knowledge, there’s an event in Merohim similar to Japan’s Sapporo Snow Festival. I’d imagine if I had gone to that festival, I would have reacted in the same manner. Growing up in a country with four seasons, I find a place that has snow all year round feels significantly more exotic.

‘More importantly…’

Isn’t her energy a bit too high?

She’s like a completely different person from yesterday. Could it really be that this is the same Elena Edelweiss I know?

Her proposal for engagement and her demeanor were increasingly drifting away from the image of Elena I recalled from the original story. Could it be that Damian completed her character when the original story began? It’s a plausible scenario.

‘But that’s none of my business.’

No matter how much her character has changed compared to the original, it has nothing to do with Damian. For her, it might even be better. If she fixes her introverted traits now, it would reduce a lot of useless struggles later, so it couldn’t negatively affect her.

So, I decided to ignore her high-tension personality.

After that, we chatted about her impressions and reasons for marveling at things she experienced in Sarham, with me responding appropriately.

Just then, the dessert I had told Ken about arrived, and the atmosphere was quite pleasant.

The problem was—

“Oh, Damian! On the way here…”

“I see. That must have been an interesting thing. Here, have some macarons. Enjoy.”

“Wow! Thank you!”

Nom!

“…Oh, Damian! Speaking of macarons…”

“I see. I had no idea that there was such a famous shop in that system; would you like to go together next time? Oh, here are some macarons. Enjoy.”

“Wow! Thank you!”

Nom!

“…Anyway, it was really amazing! It was my first time seeing something like that!!”

“I see. Here are some macarons. Enjoy.”

“Thank you!”

Nom!

Elena’s words didn’t end.

Like I was caught in an infinite loop, every time she finished one story, I handed her a macaron, and she would eat it and continue talking.

I was just being nice by giving her one because she seemed to enjoy it like a child, but I never expected it to turn out like this.

What is this? A requiem? Do I have no end to this conversation?

Elena’s mouth kept flowing like a broken faucet.

What on earth did the original Damian do to make such a talkative girl turn so quiet? When I think about it, even in the original, he wasn’t the main male character, but Elena seemed quite chatty when conversing with a same-sex friend.

That friend was one of the few who had opened Elena’s heart, and if Elena feels that comfortable with me, then it’s not a bad feeling, even if I don’t know the reason.

Even though that’s completely opposite to what I wanted.

Soon, all the macarons that were prepared were gone. Other desserts still remained, but if we used them up as well, we’re definitely not leaving this room today. Now is the perfect time to take a break and explore outside. I decided to grab the conversation’s reins again to solve my curiosity from yesterday.

“Elena, I have a question for you.”

“? Oh, oh… I’ve talked too much about myself. I’m sorry. I just got so excited…”

“No, it’s fine. Seeing you happy made me feel good too. I just wanted to ask about our engagement.”

“Engagement? Ah! Speaking of which, when will our engagement ceremony be?”

“Eh?”

What on earth is she talking about?

I was left dumbfounded by her words, but Elena seemed not to notice my expression and continued excitedly.

“Spring is definitely the best, right? No, we have to do it in spring! Having the ceremony surrounded by blooming flowers has been a dream of mine for a long time. Oh, we could do the engagement ceremony at my house in Merohim as well. The scenery here is beautiful, after all.”

“Eh? Wait. Hold on, Elena.”

I barely managed to stop her as she rambled on like a runaway train. If I had been even a moment later, she might have started planning for kids even before her coming-of-age ceremony.

This is too much of a sudden acceleration.

Even if I wanted to point it out, looking at her smiling face made it clear that she was serious, leaving me unsure of how to begin. My heart, which should have been racing, and the murky desires that always crawled out when looking at her face were overshadowed by her momentum, leaving me flustered.

After a long struggle with how to respond to her, I decided to return to the basics. Given Elena’s personality, which has clearly strayed from the original, I had no idea how she would react, but I thought it would be better to speak my mind openly.

Fears about how that smiling face would change flooded me, but I gathered my courage and began to speak.

“Elena. We haven’t clearly talked about our engagement yet. More than anything, it’s still premature for an engagement…”

“Eh?”

Cold.

Just that one word gave me a feeling far colder than the blizzard blowing from the permanently frozen tundra.

The face that had just shown me such warm sunlight shifted to a cold, moonlit expression, and meeting her gaze felt like it was freezing my very bones. The voice that had been so warm moments ago now spoke my name.

“Damian.”

“Yes, Elena.”

Though the weather was warm, her hand clasped around mine felt like ice. Elena kept caressing my hand as if searching for warmth, and I shivered from the chill creeping up my arm. I wasn’t scared of her atmosphere at all.

Gradually, her thin hand started to tighten around mine. It didn’t hurt. I merely felt left with questions about why she was acting this way.

However, like she was determined not to give me any chance to think, she spoke to me.

“You said you would respect my choice. And I chose to become engaged to you. Isn’t that enough?”

The ice that seemed like it would never melt began to drip and fall away.

Her face, which had been frozen, was now glistening with moisture, and the amethyst eyes gazing at me seemed to shimmer with droplets ready to overflow.

“Then why say such a thing?”

It felt like it could break.

Just the slightest touch might crack the fragile ice. Perhaps mesmerized by her precarious demeanor, I found myself saying something I had thought I would never utter.

“I’m sorry.”

With both hands, I held her hand that gripped mine. It still felt as if it could freeze, but I felt compelled to hold on. I had to, it seemed.

“I wasn’t trying to make you feel uneasy with that statement. It was just too sudden. I was going to say that we need time to get to know each other. That’s all.”

Pulling her closer, I wrapped my arms around her. The only action I could take was gently patting her back and waiting for her to calm down. Her breaths against my chest gradually calmed, signaling that she was finding her peace.

However, seeing her face bewitchingly adorned with a bright smile filled my heart with complex emotions I could not shake.

 

---