“Water? A glass of champagne and water please.”

Hugrey slightly raised one eyebrow as if surprised by Chloe’s drink choice, then lowered it as he ordered from the staff.

“We have three types of champagne available at our establishment, which kind would you…”

Why on earth did they have three types of champagne? Chloe was regretting choosing this place even more. The staff member was very skilled, as she recited the names and characteristics of the three champagne types while keeping her gaze fixed on Hugrey’s face rather than the menu.

“Dobignon.”

Hugrey answered briefly.

“Actually, our restaurant offers an appetizer menu that pairs well with champagne, such as canapes with cream cheese biscuits topped with caviar…”

Chloe was certain her expression had cracked. When would this woman’s explanation ever end?

“Bring that too.”

Fortunately, Hugrey cut off the staff’s lengthy explanation and ordered.

“Yes, then for dessert…”

“That’s all. The order ends there.”

Hugrey finally stopped her speech.

“Yes, sir. I’ll prepare and bring it to you.”

The staff member smiled brightly, unfazed by Hugrey’s change in tone, looking at Hugrey’s face for about 2 more seconds before finally walking away reluctantly with the menu.

“Chloe? What’s wrong? Is something not to your liking? You don’t look pleased.”

As soon as the staff left, Hugrey asked Chloe. The displeasure must have been clearly visible on her face.

“It’s nothing. I just want to eat quickly and go back to the lodgings.”

Chloe could feel Hugrey examining her face intently, but she slightly turned her head away. Isn’t it too childish to say you don’t like that women only look at you?

“I’ve never seen a man who looks like that. He doesn’t seem human.”

“I know. Even the… famous Duke Ulpaz couldn’t be more handsome than that man.”

However, it seemed the truly unpleasant things were just beginning. The conversation of women sitting at other tables, which hadn’t been audible until now due to focusing on the staff, started to reach her ears. This restaurant had no male-only customers, only couples or groups of women, and they kept whispering about Hugrey. It would be better if only she could hear these sounds, but if they reached her ears, there was no way they weren’t reaching Hugrey’s ears as well.

Good heavens. Come to think of it, Hugrey must have lived his whole life hearing such whispers from people.

“Who’s that woman sitting across from that man? What kind of relationship do they have?”

Now they were even talking about Chloe sitting opposite Hugrey. Chloe’s body stiffened slightly.

“Well, she looks rather ordinary compared to the man. It doesn’t seem like they have a special relationship.”

Her face felt like it was burning with displeasure. So this is how it feels to hear others talking about you even when you don’t want to.

At last, she understood why that man always seemed indifferent to the gaze of countless people. Perhaps he had become accustomed to the gaze that followed him like a natural scenery, but more likely he had already grown numb to the sounds that came unavoidably wherever he went? To the point where he had to become insensitive and ignore them to live. After all, he was someone who attracted people’s interest and attention like a magnet.

Why did I suggest coming to such a crowded place? Thinking about it now, even when dining out in Royzen, they never ate in such an open hall. Every time, it was in a room or a partitioned area with few people. Hugrey had always insisted on such places.

She now understood why Hugrey had said it would be noisy with too many people as soon as they entered this restaurant, and at the same time, her regret for her choice was growing.

“Chloe, are you feeling unwell?”

Hugrey asked, furrowing his brow.

It’s not my body, but my heart that’s unwell.

“I’m fine, I just really want to go back to the lodgings quickly.”

“Chloe, it’s troublesome if you seduce me so blatantly. We should eat first.”

Hugrey suddenly smiled and said.

“Ah, no, that’s… Yes, let’s eat quickly and go.”

She realized Hugrey had misunderstood her intention, but she thought this was better than letting him know she was consumed by jealousy.

By the way, can’t that man hear the women’s voices now? His appearance of being completely unaware of his surroundings seemed a bit strange.

“Hugrey, I can hear people’s voices too clearly. Have you always lived hearing such sounds?”

Finally, Chloe couldn’t suppress her curiosity and asked honestly.

“Close your ears and deaden your senses. Then you won’t hear.”

“It’s not like closing your eyes, how do you close your ears? Even if I try not to listen, I can still hear.”

“If you focus only on what you want to see and hear, you can change the surrounding sounds into a buzzing hum like the sound of bees.”

“Ah…”

So did Hugrey not hear the women’s voices? It made sense that he showed no change in expression. And it made her feel better too.

Chloe decided to follow his advice and focus on Hugrey, disregarding the sounds of people.

“Wow! It really works.”

“It’s tiring to hear everything. You have to balance when to heighten your senses and when to deaden them.”

Hugrey smiled gently. Chloe resolved to always deaden her senses when going out with him. Otherwise, she felt she would always be angry.

“By the way, what did you hear earlier? You looked upset, was it because of what people were saying?”

“No, there wasn’t anything special.”

“Hmm… I see.”

Hugrey nodded slowly.

Seeing Chloe relaxed after teaching her how to deaden her senses, Hugrey instead awakened his own deadened senses. He wanted to know why Chloe had become upset.

“Did you hear that rumor? About Emperor Calcus Tacan, the reason he hasn’t married even though it’s been years since he became emperor.”

Damn it, why is Calcus being talked about here? He felt annoyed as soon as he heard it. But having already heard it, he was curious about what they were saying. Was this what Chloe had heard?

Chloe was focused only on eating. Whether she had heard such conversations before was uncertain, but now she clearly seemed to be paying no attention.

“Of course I heard. The emperor who has beauty, youth, and wealth insists on staying single for years because he can’t forget his first love, right? And that first love woman is…”

“That’s right. The rumor that it’s the Duchess Ulpaz.”

Hugrey felt like leaving this restaurant immediately.

“Hugrey, what are you doing? You’re going to cut the plate at this rate.”

Looking down at his plate at Chloe’s words, he saw the steak was already in pieces.

“Are you done eating?”

“No, not yet. The food here is really delicious.”

Chloe smiled brightly.

Ah, she was so beautiful it was infuriating. It’s because she’s such a beautiful woman that Calcus Tacan still can’t forget her. If she were just a little less pretty, that Calcus wouldn’t be moping around and becoming a topic of gossip.

“Just how beautiful is this duchess that she’s monopolized all the handsome men of the empire?”

Just like that, that’s how she looks. So pretty and cute and lovable that it drives one insanely anxious.

Because it was an area with many foreign visitors, there were many rumors but people didn’t know what Chloe Ulpaz actually looked like, so they were gossiping without realizing the woman they were talking about was right here in the same space.

“Have you ever eaten at The Dog and Cat’s Night? How’s the taste?”

Hugrey became anxious about when Chloe would hear the name ‘Calcus’ that they were mentioning.

“A few times. I ate dinner at the first floor restaurant every time I stayed there. I thought it wasn’t bad.”

“Then, shall we eat there again? I don’t like it here.”

“Hmm… Okay!”

Unlike someone who had been enjoying the delicious food, Chloe answered cheerfully as if not particularly disappointed. That was a relief.

“It’s been a while since you’ve visited.”

The innkeeper couple greeted Chloe. Chloe received their greeting with a sullen expression.

“You must be Duke Ulpaz?”

They also greeted Hugrey as if they knew him. Hugrey just nodded slightly. He had heard that they had given Chloe Enjim. In fact, among beastkin, Enjim wasn’t particularly bad. Rather, it should be said to be on the good side. But beastkin in heat never take Enjim. They don’t need to eat it when every cell is already screaming in that direction. In other words, if they had considered the possibility that Chloe was a beastkin in heat, the actions of this innkeeper couple could be considered a crime of willful negligence.

But as a result, Chloe had fallen into his arms because of Enjim, and he had imprinted on Chloe. That’s why even after learning what they had done later, he couldn’t punish them. If it weren’t for them, Chloe would never have fallen into his arms. That was an assumption that made his blood freeze just thinking about it.

That doesn’t mean he forgave them. He was just turning a blind eye because what he gained from their crime was too big and precious.

“It’s truly wonderful to see you two together like this.”

But just because he was turning a blind eye doesn’t mean they should be so brazen…

“You seem to have very low morality.”

You shouldn’t be so shameless in front of Chloe.