The cause of the strangeness didn’t need to be sought from afar.

The reason was Odette’s husband, Valtter, who was sleeping with her in his arms.

Odette looked silently at the sleeping Valtter, keeping her breath quiet so as not to wake him.

While observing him up close as he slept, she noticed something: Valtter’s eyelashes were longer than she had thought.

Perhaps because of that, Valtter, with his eyes closed in sleep, looked much gentler than when he was awake.

“Or… maybe it’s because he doesn’t furrow his brow.”

Most of the images Odette remembered of Valtter were of him slightly narrowing his forehead.

At first, she wondered if he was in a bad mood, but upon closer inspection, it didn’t seem to be the case.

“Valtter tends to be easily misunderstood in his speech, so it was hard to distinguish at first.”

No, I can’t be certain that I still distinguish well.

However, it wasn’t until Russell, unable to wait any longer, grabbed Valtter by the collar and saw him grabbing Russell back that Odette realized one thing.

“Valtter has never been angry with me.”

Even though he often wrinkled his brow at her and said many harsh words, it was a very pleasant feeling.

Well… he was angry.

It might be a little unfortunate for Russell, but thanks to him grabbing Russell by the collar, Odette gained insight.

And she became a little puzzled.

“Why does Valtter always furrow his brow?”

It’s not like he feels bad or dislikes Odette; that’s for sure.

It wasn’t uncomfortable either, as Valtter, without fail, hugged Odette every morning after their marriage.

It was as if Odette would melt away when she opened her eyes in the morning, like a snowman about to disappear.

Thanks to that, there were more than a few instances where, in the morning unfamiliar with being cuddled, she tried to slip away and got caught.

Even though she wasn’t doing anything wrong, her heart would pound when she heard Valtter’s voice from behind, saying, “Odette.”

After that, she inevitably had to return to Valtter’s embrace.

“It’s not like he would do that to someone he dislikes.”

And Odette, too, didn’t particularly dislike it.

The fact that someone’s warmth was beside her every time she opened her eyes in the morning somehow tickled her toes, making the corners of her mouth rise subtly.

Occasionally, when she didn’t have a lover, she heard stories about a playboy who fell into severe loneliness and became accustomed to sleeping in someone’s arms.

She had thought it strange then.

“Now I think I know why.”

The words that came out of her mouth were about such a naughty topic, but Valtter’s embrace was really warm.

It wasn’t just about talking while lying in bed.

Whenever Valtter came back from going out, he always came to Odette and engaged in light expressions of affection.

Light hugs, kissing on the forehead, nose, and the like.

And then, he would always ask like this.

“What were you doing while I was away?”
Odette heard that question and nodded in admiration internally.

“Valtter is really good at acting.”

If a newlywed couple gets along well, they often ask about each other’s well-being whenever they meet again.

In that sense, Valtter was a wonderful actor who took care of even the smallest details.

Odette reflected on her own carelessness.

And, as someone assigned the role of a happily married couple, she diligently shared her daily life, trying to fulfill her part.

After repeating that a few times, she came to know one thing.

Valtter pays more attention to Odette’s stories than she thought.

There was one incident like this.

“Today, I arranged flowers. I heard that a new rose variety was released in the market, so I asked Philippe to get it for me. But it was a bit disappointing because it was so popular that I could only get one or two. It seems like Monchâteau made quite a bit of money.”

“…Did you say Monchâteau’s roses?”

“Yes. Is there a problem?”

Valtter shook his head as if it was nothing.

And the next day, a bunch of Monchâteau’s boasted roses poured in front of Odette.

Even the housekeeper of Ertman, who could only get one or two flowers, was surprised by the abundance of roses.

Odette was also taken aback and couldn’t close her mouth.

“W-Where did you get all of this?”

“Don’t worry; I obtained them through legal channels. If you need more, just let me know.”

“And where exactly are these legal channels?”

“Monchâteau said they couldn’t provide roses, so I just went to the place that grows roses.”

Valtter picked up a rose from the accumulated ones, a beautiful marbling created by a suitable mix of pink and white, and pointed to the leaf side.

To say it was a rose leaf was strange because the leaf had a sharp shape.

“Here, isn’t this familiar? It’s the leaf in the coat of arms of the Draciga(家) family.”

“That’s true, but… Draciga’s rose variety doesn’t look like this.”

“That’s right. I created a new variety by crossbreeding with different roses, including that variety.”