Several hours after entering the capital’s futures exchange.

I was on my way out of the trading floor after finishing futures trading.

“Your Highness, you’ve won the auction for the item you wanted so much, but you don’t seem happy?”

Adrian, who had been scrutinizing my face until then, asked carefully.

I looked up at him with dejected eyes and whimpered.

“Adrian… I think this investment is ruined…”

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

The lobby was now empty as all the competitors had left.

Standing in the middle of it, I hung my head and sighed deeply.

‘Why didn’t Anton Baker show up?’

Of course, it was common for the original content to twist a bit at the moment of possession.

But that’s usually things like the male protagonist falling for the woman he possessed, or the female protagonist suddenly turning evil…

‘Who would have thought the economic flow would change so drastically?’

Ugh! I shuddered, grabbing my hair with both hands.

Adrian rolled his eyes in another direction, as if trying not to notice me.

“Ahem… Your Highness, we should go to the office now to finalize the transaction.”

“Ah, do I have to go?”

“…You don’t have to. But you’ll receive a notice to pay the balance under Your Highness’s name anyway.”

It meant I couldn’t cancel the investment either way.

I was overcome with despair.

‘I’m ruined. Really ruined! I don’t have even a speck of extra funds left! At this rate, I won’t be able to properly run the welfare foundation, and I’ll incur the wrath of the half-demon people again…’

It was then, as I was trudging reluctantly towards the office, led by Adrian’s hand.

“Um…”

I inadvertently raised my eyes at the unfamiliar figure that suddenly appeared.

“What is it.”

As I’ve said before, Rebecca’s facial expression isn’t very pleasant for her beautiful appearance.

Moreover, with my head lowered and eyes raised, that expression must have looked several times fiercer.

“Huh… Eek!”

The stranger, no, a young man closer to a boy, suddenly had a fit.

“I-I’m sorry, Your Highness! My apologies!”

The young man kept bowing his head and apologizing like a madman.

A man with short brown hair, paper-white skin, emerald green eyes, and a timid impression like a sickly boy.

He kept pushing up his horn-rimmed glasses, which had broken frames fixed with cloth tape, while his shoulders trembled.

I stared blankly at the thick book titled “Demon Realm Futures Investment: This Is How You Succeed!” that he was clutching tightly to his chest.

‘He looks about Mina’s age… An undergraduate from the capital university? But what business does he have with me?’

It was then, as I was scanning the man with eyes full of wariness.

“I-I’m sorry to say this, but…”

The young man suddenly squeezed his eyes shut, then shouted loudly as if trying to muster courage.

“I’ve been waiting here all along, knowing Your Highness would appear!”

“For me?”

The young man nodded vigorously.

His face was flushed as if he had met his favorite star.

“Yes! Because there’s no way the investment genius I admire so much, Duchess Twins, wouldn’t recognize the true value of this item!”

It seemed he was one of the people who had come to admire my investment skills after they were extensively covered in newspaper articles recently.

‘But what should I do now. That investment genius is about to go completely broke, haha…’

I smiled at him with a face completely devoid of spirit.

“I know it’s rude, but could you leave an autograph here, Your Highness?”

He opened the first page of the book he was holding and handed me a pen.

‘Suddenly, what’s with this celebrity-like situation?’

I just blinked in confusion.

Then the man almost pleaded.

“Please, Your Highness!”

The man who had been covering his mouth for a moment took a long breath as if trying to suppress his overflowing emotions and spoke again.

“If I could get Your Highness’s autograph, it would be an unparalleled honor for my family!”

The man’s green eyes sparkled brightly.

Entranced by the intense fan-like aura emanating from him, I accepted the pen.

“Alright, I’ll do it. Just calm down first…”

Scribble― Scrawl―.

As I drew a large signature on the first page of the book, the man’s eyes began to sparkle even more.

“Could you write my name too? It would be even better if you wrote ‘To my beloved’ before the name, hehe…”

Ah, he’s asking for quite a lot. I’m already in a bad mood…

I glanced at the man and gripped the pen again.

“Alright then. What’s your name?”

“I, I am…”

The man exhaled a tense breath and continued speaking.

“My name is Anton.”

I raised my head, doubting my ears.

“…What did you say?”

Then he mumbled awkwardly with a slightly cowed expression.

He seemed to think I had asked again because of his small voice.

He smiled sheepishly, subtly avoiding my gaze, and answered again.

“Anton Baker. That’s my name, Your Highness.”

.

.

.

Inside a cafe on Delta Street.

I kept glancing at Anton while pretending to drink tea.

“So you’re… Anton, right?”

Anton nodded his head to my question with an awkward smile.

“Yes, Your Highness. You’ve been confirming my name repeatedly… Is there something suspicious about me?”

“…”

“I, I’m just an ordinary undergraduate student at the Imperial University of the Capital…”

Anton continued to speak hesitantly while observing my reaction.

“No, it’s not that I find anything particularly suspicious.”

Ahem. I cleared my throat and took another sip of tea.

‘To think that Anton Baker, who will later be called an investment genius, was such a timid young man…’

Having imagined the image of a cold-blooded investor, I couldn’t help but be surprised the more I conversed with him.

But if he was really ‘that’ Anton Baker, it would be good to establish a friendly relationship in advance.

I continued the conversation, trying to show the most amiable smile I could.

“Anton, how did you become interested in futures trading?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Although it was a question asked without much thought, at that moment, a solemn light flashed over Anton’s horn-rimmed glasses.

“It’s because of this…!”

Anton’s voice was brazen, unlike his timid demeanor from earlier.

He quickly tossed aside the investment book he had been holding and began rummaging through his bag.

Soon, dozens of picture cards, scrolls, and several thick books tumbled onto the table.

“What… are all these?”

In response to my question, Anton fanned out several picture cards in front of me.

His face was clearly filled with pride.

“Oh? This is…”

“That’s right! As expected, Your Highness recognizes them right away!”

Anton’s eyes sparkled once again.

“This is our cute Princess Bianca, and this is the Grand Duke… Ah, this is a picture card of the previous Grand Duke and Your Highness, and oh! This is also…”

Anton’s voice, boasting about his collection non-stop, resonated loudly throughout the cafe.

His timid appearance was nowhere to be seen, replaced by an extremely excited demeanor.

His collection included not only portraits of the Grand Duke’s family but also paintings depicting the scenery of Twins Castle.

The books hidden deep in his bag were all about ‘half-demon people’ as well.

“Anton, why do you collect these things?”

At my question, Anton pushed up his horn-rimmed glasses with an embarrassed expression.

“Ah, actually, I…”

Then, with reddened cheeks, he clasped his hands in front of his chest.

“I admire the half-demon people…”

“The half-demon people?”

“Yes, because of my timid personality and sickly appearance, I was often bullied when I was young. For someone like me, the half-demon people are…”

Whew. Anton took a deep breath with a flushed face.

“Their strength, magical power, and innate talents! I can confidently say that half-demon people are the only living beings that can be called superior to humans!”

As if not satisfied with just showering praises, Anton blushed and murmured, ‘Ah… They’re really amazing, amazing…’

“Ah, so Anton is a huge demon realm fan… No, no. You really like the demon realm, right?”

Anton nodded vigorously at my question.

“Yes! Naturally, I became interested in futures trading of demon realm goods… Hehe, you have no idea how much I envy Your Highness. Being the only human surrounded by half-demon people…”

Having said that, Anton glanced at me, checking my reaction.

“Um, Your Highness… So, that’s why I was wondering…”

All the way to the townhouse, I couldn’t suppress the rising elation.

Anton Baker, the man who will later be called an investment genius.

Such a person declared himself a fanatic of the half-demon people and the Twins family, and came rolling in like a vine.

‘Your Highness, it’s my lifelong wish! Could you not take me in?’
‘If I could just stay at Twins Grand Duke’s castle even for a moment, I’d do anything! Even a trivial errand boy position!’

Of course, you can! Absolutely!

In the future, people would line up to spend millions of Ruts just to have a ten-minute conversation with him.

‘But I’ll be the first to get good information for free through my connection with him?’

Oh my goodness, oh my demon-ness, how grateful can this be!

Moreover, the fact that Anton appeared there meant that the futures I invested in today would soon hit the jackpot.

It was then, as I couldn’t hide the laughter that was leaking out.

“Are you that happy about meeting that young man earlier?”

Belatedly embarrassed by Adrian’s question, I fiddled with the hem of my skirt for no reason.

“I didn’t expect you to be so satisfied that you even exchanged addresses to correspond.”

“Huh? Ah… It’s cute, isn’t it? That a young friend followed me around wanting to meet me.”

I smiled contentedly.

Adrian, who had been staring at me from the side, slowly parted his lips.

“Somehow, I feel jealous.”

“Huh?”

“Not only the Grand Duke, but even a young man you’ve just met…”

A bitter smile crept onto his lips.

“…It seems my feelings, only looking at Your Highness, are not even in your consideration, so I feel a bit hurt.”

At those words, I suddenly stopped walking.

Adrian, who stopped with me, brought the parasol closer to me and looked at me directly.

Jealousy.

It was surprisingly unlike him, who always stood one step back, to make such a statement.

“It’s not that I didn’t want to be considerate, but Anton earlier was…”

As I was rolling my eyes awkwardly at that moment.

“Are you sorry to me?”

Adrian’s eyes curved gently.

When I remained silent, he asked again as if urging.

“Well? Even a little bit.”

After a brief pause, I nodded, and he stared at me for a moment before taking a step closer.

“Then will you grant my wish too, like you did for that young man earlier?”

“…You’re acting weak.”

“That’s right, despite appearances, I’m quite a weak person. And narrow-minded too.”

He laughed softly, then slowly lowered the parasol to cover both our faces.

“So please, grant my wish.”

For a brief moment, his lips gently touched my cheek.