Mori wiped his glasses thoroughly and put them back on.

“You can tell right away when you face them. If you get annoyed just looking at them, you don’t like them. If you feel happier the more you see them, you like them.”

“What if it’s impossible to face them in person?”

“Then you can check with other people. Bring in the most handsome men possible and see if that excitement is real. If it’s not even comparable, well. There’s nothing left to deny.”

No matter how she thought about it, Jade didn’t think anyone could be more handsome than Axel, but it was still helpful advice.

“But do you really need to know such things?”

Mori’s question was quite reasonable.

However, Jade really wanted to know. If she liked him, it would be right not to meet him since he didn’t fit Mabel’s conditions. If she didn’t like him, she wanted to meet him as a friend.

After all, once she inherited the position of family head and stabilized the family, she planned to go find those kind people hiding in that forest.

Axel is a friend. I will definitely meet him again, I must.

So Jade came up with a very simple method. Let’s go somewhere with lots of decent-looking men and compare how I feel.

If not, well, I might as well pick out a potential fiancé while saving time!

She picked up an invitation to a social party. The most plausible one.

Amid the servants’ nagging—Why aren’t you wearing hair ornaments? I think I’ll get a headache, it’s too heavy. Don’t say such nonsense. At least put something on your ears!—Jade, moderately dressed up, stepped into a building with emphasized straight lines.

The host of today’s party was someone named Louise Snowden, more often called the Countess of Snowden.

Since the death of Count Snowden, she had been leading the family on behalf of her young son, and her influence on society and culture was tremendous.

If Louise wore a bell-shaped dress, it became the fashion of the year and all women wore bell-shaped dresses. If she bought and read a certain poetry book, that book’s stock would sell out.

Louise’s parties were of such high caliber. Not only did she very carefully select the people she invited to the party, but she also curated topics so that people could have various conversations with diverse individuals, rather than simply wasting food and drinks.

“Ah, Jade. Thank you for coming.”

“It’s been a while. Thank you for inviting me.”

Louise said, slightly rolling her eyes.

“You’re just like your father. Smiling brightly only when needed. I sent you five invitations before you finally came.”

“Haha…”

Just then, a fairly well-built man approached Louise to greet her. Louise quickly put on a plausible smile.

“Ah, William. Are you having a good time?”

“Yes, Countess. You’ve put in a lot of effort.”

“I’m glad you noticed. Ah, you two are meeting for the first time, right? Jade, this is William. William Seymour.”

Louise’s green eyes sparkled.

The experienced Countess knew that William Seymour had quickly walked over, targeting Jade. As the heir to the Broen family and a magician recognized by the king, Jade was quite popular in the marriage market.

Even now, gazes subtly followed, hoping for a conversation with Jade.

Louise, who enjoyed connecting young men and women, smiled with satisfaction and made a fuss.

“Oh my, a servant is looking for me! I’ll be away for a moment. Please chat comfortably.”

In this obviously arranged situation, Jade and William conversed for a while.

However, Jade, who had never attended a social gathering aimed at romance or marriage in her life, was extremely shy. Moreover, there was a problem with her counterpart as well.

“Ah… That’s really interesting…”

Jade nodded halfheartedly with half-dead eyes, but the man in front of her didn’t notice and continued boasting about his family.

“Yes. Since my father is also focusing on expanding the business, he has entrusted me with part of the assets…”

The man’s gaze, who had been bragging about himself for the time it would take to empty a teapot, was becoming somewhat sticky.

It was extremely burdensome. What on earth was he looking at with such eyes already? Surely not because I listened too well?

Jade didn’t even think of comparing how terrible this man was to Axel. If William were to be included in the comparison group, it would be nothing short of an insult to Axel.

Jade finally chose the path of escape.

“Ah, I’m going to… take a short walk. I feel stuffy from being inside for too long.”

“I’ll escort you. There are dilly flowers blooming over there, and they’re truly beautiful.”

“Ah! No…”

Jade, who almost burst out shouting, barely managed to smile.

“I have some family matters to attend to, so there’s a problem. Haha.”

“Ah, I see Asela over there. Just give me a slight glance, and I’ll come to escort you again. Don’t worry.”

I didn’t even know Asela was here? And what worry?

Anyway, opportunities should be seized immediately. With the wistful gaze of the man called William or whatever in the background, Jade quickly distanced herself from him.

Following a woman with dark brown hair neatly braided and hanging down, she turned the corner of the connected corridor and could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“Phew.”

“What brings you to a place like this?”

Asela Broen, Felix Broen’s daughter and Jade’s cousin, leaned against the wall and asked in a quiet voice. With her dark brown hair topped with pearls, she looked like a painting.

Jade glanced at her.

It had been a very long time since she had faced Asela like this, just the two of them. When she had seen her in front of the castle upon her return, Felix had been there too.

Sighing, she leaned against the wall in the same manner as Asela.

“I know, right? Doing something I’m not used to is causing trouble. I must be crazy… What kind of party is this.”

As she rested the back of her head against the wall, a cool sensation spread. She closed her eyes for a moment to cool the heat in her head.

“Do you know that William guy?”

Asela looked surprised at the sudden question.

“Huh?”

“You know, the one with reddish-brown hair slicked back with oil. What color were his eyes again? Anyway, his cravat was extremely flashy.”

Jade’s tone contained neither coldness nor contempt, but was calm. Asela, who had peeked around the corner to check the surroundings, tucked her disheveled hair behind her ear and mumbled.

“You mean the eldest son of the Seymour family?”

“Yeah, he did seem like a firstborn son. He kept talking about some alcohol. It was so boring I almost yawned.”

Jade’s grumbling reminded one of the relationship between the two in their childhood. The time when they would hold hands and run around the garden. When there was no suspicion between them.

But it was Asela herself who ruined those precious memories. She had blabbed even the things young Jade had called secrets in front of her father, Felix. Not knowing they would become weapons to stab Jade.

No, perhaps she did know. It might have been just a small jealousy of a child who was very envious of Jade blooming faster as a magician.

However, just because the motive was trivial doesn’t mean the result was trivial.

Even now, the face of the young girl standing in front of Felix as he mockingly spoke about the stories Jade held dear was vivid. Those violet eyes that looked betrayed.

Feeling a strange tightness in her nose, Asela glanced towards Jade and quickly fixed her gaze straight ahead again. Then she stammered out:

“I heard the Seymour-owned vineyard did really well this time and made a lot of money. Even considering that, he tends to brag a lot originally.”

“Really? You seem to know him well.”

As Jade looked at her, Asela lowered her head and gave a pale smile.

“You know what my father says every day. To catch a rich man and get married. William Seymour is the eldest son, and he’s quite wealthy for his age, so I’ve spoken to him a few times. That’s all. But my father doesn’t like him…”

Her eyes furrowed involuntarily. But Asela continued speaking softly.

“William doesn’t seem like someone who would match well with you. You’d be better off with—”

“Does Felix Broen still not give you the freedom to date? Grandmother told him not to do that last time.”

“Well, I can always make the excuse that I’ve fallen in love if I want to. If it’s what I want, what could Grandmother possibly say?”

A sigh escaped involuntarily. Hearing the sound, Asela shook her head.

“I’m fine. It doesn’t matter.”

“Even if you end up marrying an old pot-bellied geezer? You always had a clear ideal type when you were young. A man who writes well and has delicate hands.”

The reason I became a romantic might be because of those romance novels you read to me when we were young.

Jade said sulkily, but Asela nodded. She had a rather serious expression.

“That was when we were young. And it’s good for you too. Father might lose some of his desire for the heir position if he gains a lot of wealth. Then he might become a little more at ease.”

“I’m not interested in benefits gained through others’ misfortune. Except for your father’s misfortune, that is.”

At the firm reply, Asela smiled faintly.

“How can you say that to me? What if I run to Father again and tattle?”

“I’ve already calculated and spoken freely. Everyone knows I dislike your father, so it doesn’t matter.”

The exchange was direct, but strangely, there was an oddly comfortable feeling.

Jade found it curious too. On most days when she faced Asela, Felix Broen was also present, so negative emotions always rose first, but with just the two of them, it felt like being with a friend she hadn’t seen in a very long time.

To the point where she even felt like strolling in the garden, momentarily forgetting the purpose of coming to this party.

The conversation they just had also played a part. It seemed Felix was not stopping at efforts to ruin his niece but was also ruining his own child. Asela’s situation, which she had consciously turned a blind eye to, still didn’t seem good.

So it’s always Felix Broen who’s the problem. If only we could do something about that bastard…

Jade was deeply lost in savage thoughts.

Asela seemed to have felt this mild atmosphere just like Jade.

She let go of her hands that were always clasped as if tense and stood up straight. Then she removed the pearl pin attached to her hair.