“Then there won’t be any wandering servants, I’ll just take a stroll around. Thanks to Walter, I finally have some rest time.”

Vivian led Edith to a shabby warehouse and then withdrew. Edith went towards the warehouse after taking care of Madeleine for her.

Creak―

Just as she was about to knock, the door inside opened first.

“I didn’t expect you to come this early.”

Edith, holding a wrapped Madeleine, looked up. Standing close, Walter’s height felt noticeably taller than the others.

His face was somewhat arrogant yet radiant today. Only then did Edith understand her friend’s words about visiting the bar to look at handsome men when feeling down.

Her complex and gloomy feelings quickly gave way to his refreshingly open eyes and deep green pupils.

As Walter habitually twitched his eyebrow, Edith let out a faint smile.

“Sorry, I came a bit early.”

“To think you would look up to someone like me, ma’am.”

“If I look straight, I can only see your chest.”

“But if you take your eyes off so quickly, I won’t feel the reward of exercising.”

“…….”

Walter was jesting as he always did, and the emotions she had been suppressing squirmed.

Why did her tension ease just by exchanging a few words with him?

Edith’s lips and chin trembled very briefly. Walter didn’t miss the subtle change.

“I hear Madeleine is quite a good snack.”

He pulled out a small bottle of liquor.

Originally, he planned to drink it alone while waiting for Edith, but he was more than willing to share.

At the mansion, the feast would be in full swing, and the fourth lady, unable to join, had appeared much earlier than expected with a snack instead of dinner.

Edith, being pushed by Sophia and unable to have a proper meal, had come looking for him.

As he slightly extended the bottle, Edith shook her head.

“No, if I drink, Sophia will…….”

But the formerly demure Edith suddenly scowled and reached for the bottle.

“What do I care.”

Walter was slightly taken aback. Edith was ready to gulp down all the liquor in the bottle.

He couldn’t take his eyes off her whenever she acted unexpectedly, just like when she asked a favor for the third lady.

He grabbed the bottle back and spoke slyly.

“It’s not cold outside, so shall we go out first, ma’am?”

“It would be warmer if we drank first.”

“It seems you are on an empty stomach.”

“…….”

Edith took Madeleine and followed him. Walter, having spent a long time in the mansion, didn’t lose his way even in the dim light.

He took Edith to the grapevines behind the warehouse.

“During Portrion’s heyday, this place was part of the garden. Now, as you can see, it’s just a hobby for the servants.”

He washed a bunch of grapes for Edith and spoke. The fruit was so ripe that its sweet aroma and heft were extraordinary.

“You don’t look like someone who has stolen grapes once or twice.”

Edith smiled and thanked him, then put a grape in her mouth. The sweetness and freshness quickly lifted her sunken mood.

When she had filled her stomach somewhat with grapes and Madeleine, Walter again offered the bottle of liquor.

“This is…….”

Edith took the bottle with a surprised face. Something new was hanging around the neck of the bottle.

It was a necklace, one she recognized.

“My necklace? Where did you find it? Did you go to the carriage?”

She carefully held the necklace. Walter had polished it so well that it gleamed even more than before losing it.

Thinking she had recovered the cherished item, pure joy colored her face.

“Thank you so much, Walter.”

Edith folded her eyes and smiled brightly. Just then, a breeze blew, fluttering her hair and releasing a pleasant fragrance.
Something heavy and unseen seemed to strike at his heart, and Walter stealthily avoided her gaze.

“You must have been upset to go hungry until dinner on a day like this.”

Edith, who had been fondling her necklace, looked at Walter’s face. He was speaking as if he knew what day it was today.

“A day like this?”

“Birthday. I think I heard you say it’s a necklace you received as a Thanksgiving gift and a birthday present.”

“Ah, back then…….”

You remembered that casually spoken word.

Edith grasped the necklace, feeling touched. She had been in a bad mood for not getting a meal on her birthday and being driven to her room.

Having someone in this mansion remember that it was her birthday was a greater comfort than she thought.

“And, a ruffian wouldn’t do something like this.”

Edith burst into laughter at the words he playfully added. She hadn’t expected him to remember what she said last time.

“That was just, um…… because you’re tall and your body’s line is thick, I thought you’d be good at fighting, and that was cool.”

“…….”

Walter, who had raised his eyebrows as if he knew about being evaluated as good at fighting, froze for about 3 seconds at being called cool.

Edith noticed the corner of his mouth lifting slightly as he looked away. She was always the one to get flustered, but she had flustered him.