Roselia froze at Klaus’s unexpected question. What kind of nonsense was this, talking about ghosts and forgotten memories? Amidst her bewilderment, Roselia, with an uneasy heart, carefully asked, “Why are you asking that?”

At first, Klaus’s question was simply to ascertain Roselia’s identity as a man, wanting to meet her a few more times. However, seeing Antonio noticeably tense, he felt a strange emotion.

It was as if Klaus wished Antonio would get angry or jealous. A cursed thought.

“Because I’m interested.”

Although Klaus’s tone was indifferent, almost like instructing her to repay a debt, the content of his words intended to provoke Roselia.

She had gone through so much trouble to change the fate of Roselia, who would die being manipulated as a duke’s woman! If things continued like this, it would be a total disaster!

Flickering emergency lights in Roselia’s mind, in her urgent state, she blurted out, “No!”

Klaus’s eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement at Roselia’s firm refusal.

“Why?”

“Because… well… um…”

Klaus patiently waited for Roselia to continue.

Driven to the edge of a cliff, Roselia finally spoke with closed eyes.

“Roselia has a promised partner.”

Roselia closed her eyes tightly, chewing on her words. Regret surged in belatedly, but perhaps there was no clearer rejection than this.

In fact, the most important thing was to sever the interest from the duke, regardless of what happened, and her immediate thought was to get out of the current crisis.

However, Klaus, hearing the answer, frowned disapprovingly and stared at her intently.

“Promised partner… Right… Does she live like that with her promised partner?”

Klaus, misunderstanding that Roselia worked in a tavern, asked coldly.

Moreover, what about the house falling apart?

If Klaus were Roselia’s promised partner, he believed he would have taken her away from that house immediately.

On the other hand, facing Klaus’s suspicious gaze, Roselia tried to respond as assertively as possible.

“When she was young, there were talks about a promised partner. Now, that person lives far away. But regardless, since a promise was made for the future, that person is still the promised partner.”

It was a very plausible excuse to surround the non-existent promised partner.

Klaus, still unable to shake off his suspicious look, asked sternly, “When was this talk of a promised partner?”

“It doesn’t matter when! Roselia’s feelings are important! My sister will never think of meeting another man regarding the promised partner! No, she won’t!” declared Roselia firmly.

Looking at Roselia, who firmly rejected him, Klaus unexpectedly raised the corner of his mouth.

“If there are no guards at the castle gate, wouldn’t it be easy to break in?”

At Klaus’s unexpected analogy, Roselia made a puzzled expression. Was this something like feeling relieved without a goalkeeper at the goalpost, or what?
Roselia, with her words stuck, stared stiffly until she suddenly snapped back to her senses and raised her head.

“T-that’s definitely unauthorized intrusion!”

In response to Roselia’s protest, Klaus, with his hands in his pockets, calmly asked, “Is it unpleasant for me to show interest in Roselia?”

“Of course!”

At Roselia’s immediate response, Klaus stared at her significantly.

“Why? I am more than sufficient in appearance and background, aren’t I?”

Is he really praising himself like that? Despite talking like that, Klaus’s expression wasn’t hesitant or self-indulgent; rather, it was objective and realistic, making Roselia feel overwhelmed.

“Why would an older brother be happy about his sister being in the clutches of a loan shark?”

“Loan shark… Well, isn’t it possible for sisters to have different opinions?”

“Roselia’s opinion will be the same as mine!”

Without any hesitation, Klaus, looking intently at her, asked, “Why do you find it so repulsive?”

“I told you a little while ago. Because I’m that child’s brother…”

“Is there no other reason?”

At Klaus’s sudden question, Roselia looked at him with a puzzled expression. He was staring at her as if expecting a different answer.

“Another reason?”

Not understanding the English, Roselia continued to look at Klaus. Suddenly brushing his bangs aside, he avoided her gaze and changed the subject, saying, “No, since our business is finished, you can leave.”

Roselia, who was caught off guard by his sudden change of topic, stood there dumbfounded until Klaus, in a cold tone, said, “I said you can leave, didn’t I?”

Only then did Roselia, who had finally snapped out of it, bow her head slightly and turned to leave.

As she walked out the door, Klaus, who had been smirking until then, wiped his face in annoyance.

“Haah…”

What did he want to hear from her? No, he didn’t even know what kind of reaction and words he wished for from her. Wasn’t he attracted to Roselia? The inexplicable attraction he felt towards her was intense and undeniable. What confused him was that he reacted similarly to an existence that should never evoke such emotions.

“Damn it, get a hold of yourself.”