“No, why are you throwing away the book!”

Veronica was bewildered as she looked at her book tossed on the floor.

“Is this what you usually read?”

“What do you mean ‘this’? It’s quite informative.”

“No wonder your head is like that, reading such things.”

“What do you mean ‘such things’, and what about my head?”

Veronica grumbled as she took back the book retrieved by the maid. Fortunately, it wasn’t crumpled or damaged.

After confirming the book was unharmed, she turned to see Cassian standing with one hand covering his face.

He was muttering something again, clearly cursing this time with words like “Right, she was always this kind of woman…”

After a long silence, Cassian suddenly held out something.

It was one of the antiques bought at the store earlier, a wooden piece about the size of a finger. But.

“…What is this?”

“I bought it because it resembles you.”

Resembles her? This strange wooden piece of indeterminate shape?

“How exactly does this resemble me?”

“Its unrecognizable form resembles you.”

Is this a new way of insulting?

“You’re really too much. I dressed up so prettily today, but you didn’t compliment me once, and now you’re mocking me saying I resemble this weird sculpture. Am I allowed to get angry now?”

“What’s wrong with saying something resembles you when it does?”

“Anyone would get angry if told they resemble something like this.”

“Why? It does resemble you. Its unidentifiable shape makes you want to keep looking at it.”

“…”

What’s with this man, suddenly coming in strong like that? Veronica was a bit flustered.

His expression remained impassive as usual, as if he had spoken without any particular meaning. She cleared her throat unnecessarily.

“Ahem, I’m still disappointed. I would have preferred a beautiful gift like jewelry instead of something like this.”

“I’ll consider it.”

But the way he turned away made it clear it was just lip service.

Veronica glared at his cold back, imagining throwing the wooden piece on the floor like he had done with her book.

In reality, she just gripped it tightly as if about to break it.

To receive such a strange foreign sculpture as her first gift. Veronica sighed as she fiddled with the bizarre piece.

She couldn’t bring herself to throw it away, so she put it in her bag. It was still disappointing to think about. It would be hard to show off anywhere.

“Aren’t you coming?”

“Yes, I’m coming. Of course I am.”

Veronica trudged over to him.

Cassian held out his hand to her again. Surely he wasn’t going to take back what he had given?

“Ah, I wasn’t able to buy a separate gift for Your Highness. If it’s alright, we could go somewhere else-”

“That’s fine. More importantly.”

He wiggled the fingers of his outstretched hand. She looked down at it, wondering what he meant.

“Don’t tell me you’re offering to hold my hand?”

She had said it jokingly, but he didn’t deny it. Veronica was shocked. There were a lot of surprises today.

Has he suddenly changed so much? Giving gifts, offering to hold hands.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“If you don’t want to, that’s fine.”

“No, no! I don’t dislike it.”

Veronica carefully reached out and interlaced her fingers with his. Their joined hands were quite warm.

Asher’s hands were cold, but Cassian’s were the opposite. Despite his usual prickly and cold demeanor, he had quite a high body temperature.

“I didn’t expect you to offer to hold hands again.”

“Didn’t I say it was the easiest among the things you requested? In exchange, be satisfied with this.”

“So you’re saying not to ask for anything else.”

He had preemptively blocked other requests in exchange for holding hands.

Of course. Though she felt a bit grumpy, she couldn’t help but smile.

“I thought you would have forgotten about it quickly.”

“I have a good memory.”

“…”

“What are you thinking?”

“I feel like you’ll get angry if I tell you.”

“Let’s hear it and see if I get angry.”

So he’s determined to get angry no matter what. Veronica smiled as she opened her mouth.

“You’re surprisingly thoughtful?”

“…”

“Are you angry?”

“I’m contemplating. The ‘surprisingly’ makes me wonder how you usually see me, but it doesn’t seem to be ill-intentioned.”

That’s enough. Hoping he would reflect on his usual attitude, Veronica laughed silently.

Meanwhile, he was still avoiding her gaze and looking straight ahead. It would be nice if he at least met her eyes affectionately, the jerk.

As she was secretly glaring at his stiff face, she casually glanced to the side and saw a familiar figure entering an alley.

Oh, that person is… She unconsciously turned her body in that direction.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think I saw someone I know.”

When she pointed to the alley where the person had disappeared, Cassian frowned.

“A man?”

“Yes.”

Ah, should I not have said it was a man?

Belatedly realizing her mistake, she looked at him carefully, but Cassian was just standing still, looking in the direction she had pointed.

Thankfully, he didn’t look upset.

“Is he an important person?”

“Just someone I know a little.”

“Then it’s better to pretend you didn’t see him.”

“Why?”

“Because there’s only one reason to go that way.”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t you know?”

I don’t, that’s why I’m asking. Veronica blinked her round eyes.

Cassian, who had been staring down at her, suddenly made an awkward expression.

“The reason for going to the slums is obvious, isn’t it?”

An ordinary person going to the slums. In other words, it meant they were going to the brothels in the slums.

Is the devoted husband Lord Thomson cheating on his wife?

“That’s nonsense.”

Veronica laughed. It was so absurd she couldn’t help but laugh even at her own thought.

How could that man be seeing other women when he had a wife he loved? The Thomson couple loved only each other until the very end.

At least, that’s how they appeared to Veronica.

There must be some other circumstance. Didn’t he say he was writing about events happening in the capital?

He might have gone there for that reason. Thinking about it that way, it wasn’t such a strange action after all.

Veronica quickly erased the memory of that day from her mind. And forgot about it. She thought it was nothing important.

When she mentioned it casually during the next lesson with Lady Arin, it was with a light heart.

“Come to think of it, I happened to see Lord Thomson on the street the other day.”

“Where?!”

But the response was intense.

Lady Arin suddenly slammed the table and stood up. Veronica’s eyes widened.

The brief silence was filled with the noise of a teacup that had bounced once and was now spinning on the table.

Belatedly realizing Veronica’s reaction, Lady Arin regained her composure and sat down. Her embarrassed face cleared her throat unnecessarily.

“I just saw him briefly walking on a street in the outskirts.”

“…”

“…Something must really be going on.”

She had tried not to pry, thinking it might be too personal. Veronica narrowed her eyes. Lady Arin was at a loss for words.

Fortunately, Magnolia was absent today due to some circumstances. Veronica casually voiced the thought she had briefly had that day.

“An affair?”

“D-did you see him with another woman?”

The lady’s face crumpled. Veronica smiled and shook her head.

“Don’t worry, my lady. Your husband was alone.”

“I-I see.”

The lady showed signs of relief. Then she became flustered again.

She had revealed what she was thinking through her reaction. It wasn’t something she should have said to anyone.

Recognizing her embarrassment, Veronica calmly asked.

“Are you suspecting Lord Thomson of having an affair?”

“It’s not like that. But…”

After hesitating for a while, Lady Arin soon let out a long sigh.

It carried the same meaning as the sighs she had let out multiple times before.

Veronica calmly waited for her to speak. Soon, the lady’s heavy lips moved.

“Actually, my husband has been coming home late these days. When I ask why he’s late, he says work has increased, that he stays at the office until late at night.”

“Is that what worries you? That it might harm his health?”

“That too, and…”

And? As she waited for the rest of the sentence, the silence stretched long.

Veronica’s eyes widened as she realized the meaning of that silence. She really was suspecting her husband of having an affair.

“My lady, you’re overthinking.”

“I know. That it could be that. That he’s not that kind of person, I know that best… But you can’t help having those thoughts, you know? He keeps coming home late, he always goes straight to wash up as soon as he gets home, and there’s even the smell of perfume he doesn’t usually wear…”

The muttered story was quite plausible. It was certainly a situation that warranted suspicion, but Veronica thought of Lord Thomson.

That overly gentle man seeing other women? Of course, she had had such thoughts herself, but it really was just a fleeting thought.

Lady Arin’s face grew rapidly gloomy as she stopped speaking. Veronica looked at her pitifully. She understood her feelings.

Once you start harboring suspicions, thoughts can spiral out of control. At times like this, there was only one thing Veronica could say.

“Don’t worry too much. Your husband isn’t that kind of person, is he?”

Veronica didn’t know Lord Thomson in detail, but there was a feeling. That man truly loved Lady Arin.

She didn’t think the behavior he had shown last time was false.

He didn’t seem like the type to separate his heart and body either.

Of course, it’s not appropriate to judge a person solely on appearances, and there’s always a possibility of exceptions, but still.

“You think so too, right?”

“Yes. He’s probably coming home late because he really has a lot of work. He writes various articles, doesn’t he? That might be why he needs to wash up often, and the perfume smell could have rubbed off from somewhere.”

“That must be it, right? I must have misunderstood too much?”

“Yes, my lady.”

Her face finally relaxed when given a definitive answer.

Perhaps the lady had just wanted to hear someone say these words.

“You’re still as in love as newlyweds. And Lord Thomson truly loves you too, Lady Arin. It’s been… how long since you got married?”

How long has it been? Veronica tried to recall when they got married. Ah.

“Why? Was there really something after all?!”

“No. I just thought there’s really nothing to worry about. You’re still so lovey-dovey.”

After calming her down as she was about to get excited again, Veronica forced a smile. Lady Arin also looked relieved.

“I guess I was just overthinking.”

Saying it was a ridiculous thought, Lady Arin burst into an embarrassed laugh.

Veronica smiled back as if understanding her feelings.

Then, as if following a familiar routine, the lady started praising her husband.

Her face soon bloomed with smiles, seemingly in a good mood just thinking about her husband.

She thought that was the end of the matter.