‘What did I just hear?’

I looked at Cedric incredulously, doubting my ears.

Expecting him to show some embarrassment at my shocked expression, Cedric, as always, looked down at me with a relaxed demeanor.

“Is something wrong?”

He even asked that question.

‘Do we really need to pretend to be a show-window couple here? Nobody here recognizes us…’

Watching Cedric, who seemed deeply immersed in method acting, I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

‘This is too much. I felt it in front of Adrian, but this is just excessive…!’

The merchant, unaware of the situation, burst into cheerful laughter.

“Ha-ha! Of course, of course! To a husband, his wife is always the most beautiful in the world!”

“No, sir, it’s not like that.”

Embarrassed by the situation, I quickly waved my hands in denial.

But the merchant gave me a knowing look, as if he understood everything.

“I know, I know it all!”

“What do you know, sir?”

“Uh! What else? That you two are a very loving couple!”

The merchant looked at Cedric and me alternately with a content smile and then let out a hearty laugh.

“Ah, the husband is so clingy! Who doesn’t have such times?”

Clingy… what?

I looked up at Cedric in disbelief.

‘Did you hear that? They say you’re clingy.’

However, Cedric just shrugged nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal.

Why was he being so passionately committed to this?

Add to that his characteristic boldness of never caring about others’ opinions, and I found it too much to handle.

‘This time, the embarrassment is all mine.’

Whether to praise Cedric for his dedication to the role of a show-window couple or to urge him to restrain himself…

I was deeply conflicted.

The distance from where the carriage stopped to the futures exchange wasn’t far.

As we walked through the market and reached a small hill, the large premises of the futures exchange appeared.

“The building is quite large, isn’t it?”

“Yes, I didn’t realize it was so well-constructed!”

The central building with a tall clock tower was the operations office.

There were two futures trading halls on each side of it, making a total of four halls.

Each hall had trading sessions at specific times of the day, with different commodities being traded.

When we arrived, the trading was in full swing.

Entering the large hall, we were instantly hit by the fervent atmosphere of investment.

The auctioneer on stage was stirring up the crowd, and investors were fervently bidding, waving their paddles and shouting.

“Here! Look here! 410 lurt!”

“Yes! 410 lurt! How about that gentleman?”

“450 lurt!”

“Here, 470 lurt!”

People in the hall, due to the heat of the trading, were unbuttoning their shirts in discomfort.

As expected, the trading in this era was conducted in an open-outcry auction style.

“How do you find it, being here in person? I worry this rough market might be too much for your investment.”

Cedric asked me, who was looking around in awe.

“Not at all? Seeing everyone so engaged makes it seem even more exciting!”

As I answered enthusiastically, Cedric smiled lightly.

“It was worth the effort to establish this futures exchange.”

“Did you establish this exchange?”

“Yes. I was the one who proposed to the emperor the introduction of the demonic commodity futures trading system in the empire, and I also constructed the buildings and operational systems in each region.”

“…”

“It was a good business venture. It also allowed me to create job opportunities for half-demon folk in the administration offices.”

“Oh?”

“There aren’t many places providing jobs for half-demons who have come to the human world yet.”
When I enthusiastically gave Cedric a thumbs-up, he seemed quite pleased, his lips curling up slightly at the corners.

“So, Cedric, as your friend and a prospective investor in this market, may I make a suggestion?”

“…A suggestion?”

I pointed to the investors who were sending their servants to fetch drinks.

“Look there. Everyone is sending their servants to buy drinks.”

“I see.”

“It’s extremely hot in the trading hall, so naturally, people will get thirsty. They’ll be constantly looking for drinks.”

“…”

“I think it would be a good idea to have a beverage kiosk inside the trading hall.”

“A beverage kiosk…”

Cedric’s eyebrows slightly raised in intrigue.

“It would meet the needs of the investors while increasing the income of the administrative office and creating more jobs for the half-demons.”

“…That’s a pretty good idea.”

“Isn’t it?”

Cedric nodded slowly, his expression somewhat surprised.

Then, he paused, showing signs of bewilderment as he touched his nape.

“I never imagined I’d be discussing business with you.”

I smiled lightly.

“You seem to adapt slowly, Your Grace. Are you still not used to being surprised by me?”

“Haha, indeed…”

Cedric, wearing a faint but pleasant smile, looked at me softly.

“I can’t seem to fathom when I’ll stop being surprised by the new you.”

When the carriage re-entered the gates of the Twins’ Castle, it was already late afternoon.