“What are you doing−!”

“Just a moment, please.”

She stared expressionlessly at him who had rudely grabbed her arm and pulled her out.

His expression was so cold that Kellen gripped her hand tighter in confusion, but Alicia surprisingly resisted strongly. She was neither intimidated nor frightened.

“Do you know how long I’ve been waiting? So just a moment to talk−.”

“Let go of this.”

Earlier she had at least tried to maintain politeness, but now that she had shown her refusal, he seemed to have hurt his pride and became unreasonable.

“If you don’t let go now, you’ll regret it.”

“Just a moment will do. It will be troublesome for you too if you act too expensive. Still, I’m a member of the marquis family−.”

“I don’t want to interfere in other people’s business, but.”

At the sudden voice, they turned their heads.

Eric, who had been leaning against the wall waiting for William to come out, continued speaking indifferently.

“Do you really have to do that?”

He had planned to stay quiet and leave quietly, but it seems conflict was inevitable one way or another.

Contrary to expectations, it appears he’s the one picking a fight first.

“It looks so disgusting, how should I put it, even as another man it’s embarrassing to see.”

“What’s what? Who are you?”

“I’ll refrain from answering. I don’t particularly want to become acquainted.”

“What?”

“First, let go of that hand.”

Eric pointed at the grabbed hand, urging him to release it.

“Mind your own business and get lost. Do you know who I am?”

“Don’t ask me that. I said I don’t want to become acquainted, is your memory bad too?”

As Eric approached grumbling as if it couldn’t be helped, he flinched at the intimidation and released his grip on Alicia’s arm.

“You should leave now.”

He was annoyed at the thought that the lady might ask for his name to thank him, or that he might get entangled with her again later.

“Thank you. Then I’ll leave the rest to you.”

Eric smirked, quite intrigued, as Alicia left a thank you and hurried off without any lingering attachment, which was a bit bewildering.

Then he turned to Kellen.

“Now then.”

“What’s with you, who are you?”

As Kellen floundered, still clinging to his pride, Eric looked down at him contemplating what to do when Prince William cheerfully emerged holding a bottle of brandy.

“Eric, sorry. Did you wait long?”

“You had backup? You cowards. And who are you?”

“Me?”

William looked back and forth between Eric and Kellen, then grinned as if he roughly understood the situation.

“I’m William.”

“Who asked for your name? I asked what you do?”

“Oh, occupation? If I had to say, I’m a prince.”

“…Pardon?”

“What? You really didn’t know and were asking? Eric, looks like he doesn’t know me.”

“Surely not every citizen would know, right?”

“But shouldn’t nobles know the basics? Oh, is he not a noble?”

“Hmm. Come to think of it, his behavior wasn’t particularly dignified.”

“Ah, so he’s not a noble. Then he might not know. If he were a noble, it might be better to never know.”

Kellen’s face turned pale blue.

Today’s fortune was truly the worst when it came to bad luck.

Not only was he annoyed at being rejected without even getting to properly speak, but now a prince had appeared.

Moreover, that annoying man who was casually talking with the prince, his identity seemed to be on the tip of his tongue.

‘Did they say Eric earlier? If it’s an Eric who personally accompanies the prince, could it be that Eric Russell, the Count?’

Thinking that fleeing at this point would be the way to preserve his life, he instinctively bowed deeply.

“I-I apologize for my rudeness.”

And then he immediately ran backwards.

As the retreating figure completely disappeared from view, William finally asked Eric.

“What was that about?”

“It was nothing. He was hitting on some lady, so I said a few words.”

“He really was a nobody. Couldn’t even recognize a prince. The future of this country is bleak, seriously.”

William grinned and held up the wine bottle.

“In that sense, how about another drink to console the prince who will be responsible for the bleak future?”

“…Haven’t you had enough already?”

“I barely drank anything. You kept rushing me.”

“Then you should have just stayed in the palace and drunk comfortably. We just wasted time coming and going for nothing.”

“No way. If we had just stayed in the palace, an innocent lady might have been in big trouble. We got to go out, drink delicious alcohol, and save a lady. Killing three birds with one stone.”

“I don’t know why I have to clean up after all those three birds, though.”

Seeing Eric respond with an expression of utter annoyance, William put on a serious face.

“Hey now, watch your expression. In the end, I’m the one who resolved the conflict, right? Be grateful.”

“Just hurry up and get in.”

As Eric spoke as if giving up, William excitedly climbed into the carriage.

“By the way, who was that woman?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then did she ask who you were?”

“She didn’t ask.”

“Huh? Isn’t it normal in these cases to ask who you are, express gratitude, and that becomes a connection that leads to… you know, something like that?”

“Is this a novel? Isn’t that too common a pattern to even use as material?”

“…Am I the weird one, or are you?”

“What does it matter? Isn’t it weirder to try to force a connection like that?”

Eric looked at William with furrowed brows.

“Fine, fine. It’s my mistake for asking you about women, my mistake.”

William quickly gave up and shook his head.

Rather than that, it was more important to properly wrap up this golden day where he could leisurely enjoy himself for the first time in months.

***

In the carriage, Alicia straightened her sleeve that had been wrinkled from being grabbed.

She had to start working at the dressmaker’s from tomorrow, so trying to finish quickly even if it was late today had backfired, leading to this unfortunate incident.

‘But who was that? A security staff?’

She knew most of the salon staff, but since Alicia usually only went to the salon during the day, the security guards who had to deal with drunk customers at night might not know her.

“Ah, come to think of it, earlier in the back corridor.”

Although she had only seen his back, recalling his attire, it was clearly that employee she had almost bumped into at the door.

“He was so harsh with a noble, I wonder if he’ll be okay. What if he faces retaliation.”

Still, it was good that he didn’t reveal his name, as if he had thought of an escape route. If Kellen were to complain to the salon later, he could face measures like dismissal.

With a worried heart, she thought she should at least explain the situation to the madam in a letter and thank him in person if possible.

***

Unlike her son who was going about as if nothing had happened, the Duchess of Gloucester had been secluded in the duke’s residence for a while.

Feeling too stifled, she briefly went out and coincidentally ran into the lady who had arranged the recent match at the salon.

She couldn’t even lift her head and fled back, feeling as if the lady’s eyes were saying, “Hey, you wench, there’s a limit to how much you can humiliate someone, what are you doing wandering around here after ruining things like that? You can’t even keep your son in check, I really can’t face that family’s people!”

Of course, no one could actually speak that way to the mistress of House Gloucester, an imperial meritorious family.

“Oh, my fate.”

The head maid attending to the groaning duchess silently prepared some warm tea.

“Why did I ever smile so happily after giving birth to that thing.”

How overjoyed she had been with a son born late when she had given up hope. How preciously and dearly she had cherished him.

They say children don’t always turn out as parents wish, but she never imagined she would personally experience it to this extent in her later years.

As the Duchess of Gloucester let out a long sigh, the head maid silently poured more tea into the cup.

If she said one wrong word here, the duchess would start pouring out tears by the bucket and lamenting again, and then any hope of leaving work on time would be gone.

“Why don’t you visit the dressmaker’s?”

“Thanks to that son, I won’t have occasions to go out wearing new clothes.”

“Still, madam. You’ll get depressed at this rate. You need to get some fresh air.”

“That’s true, but.”

The duchess, who was normally very active and enjoyed meeting people, had been cooped up in the duke’s residence for over 10 days now. So it was understandable that she felt stifled, which is why the head maid carefully suggested it.

After pondering for a moment, the duchess slowly got up from the sofa as if reluctantly giving in.

***

“Oh my, it’s been a while since you’ve come out?”

The madam of the dressmaker’s greeted the Duchess of Gloucester enthusiastically, making a fuss.

“Yes, it has been a while since I’ve been out.”

“What would you like to see today?”

“Just some outerwear, I was thinking of getting a few pieces made. Though I’m not sure if I’ll have occasions to wear them.”

The last part was muttered so it wasn’t heard clearly, but the madam who had already heard rumors from the ladies frequenting the dressmaker’s didn’t ask further.

“Then, we have some new fabrics that came in, would you like to see them?”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

While the madam gave some instructions to the staff, the duchess leaned back comfortably on the sofa.

Everywhere she went, she felt like she was sitting on pins and needles because of her damned son, but feeling welcomed for the first time in a while improved her mood.

Soon, a staff member began setting up several fabrics on the table.

“Oh my, the colors are so lovely. What kind of design would suit them?”

“I’ll show you the design book. Just a moment please.”

As the madam stood up, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.”

“Madam. I’ve finished.”

The door opened and a lady who seemed like a staff member but didn’t quite look like one entered.

It was Alicia.

“Oh my, really? Thank you so much.”

“It’s nothing.”

The duchess looked curiously at her as she smiled sweetly. She seemed too elegant and graceful to be a staff member of this salon.

“Then, is next week at this time alright?”

“Yes, of course. I’ll come next week.”

Her eyes met Alicia’s as she was about to turn around.

When the duchess smiled awkwardly, Alicia also smiled kindly.

Her smiling face was so pretty it could make even those who didn’t like her grow fond of her.

“I’m sorry for interrupting your conversation.”

Her graceful and elegant manner as she politely greeted and turned away was perfect even to the duchess who had considerable experience in high society.

“Oh my, look at me. I need to bring the design book.”

“Madam. Never mind the design book for now. Who was that young lady? A staff member?”

“Oh my, a staff member? She’s the young lady of the Lancaster Count family. She’s so clever, we receive a lot of help from her.”

“Was there such a young lady in the Lancaster Count family? I’ve never seen her in high society.”

“I heard it’s because the countess has poor health so they hardly do any outside activities. Moreover, the count is currently abroad for an extended period.”

“Oh, I see.”

The duchess’s mouth automatically opened wide at the thought that she might not have properly heard the rumors about Eric.

“She seems like such a fine young lady. Surely someone like her would already have a match.”

“A match? She has no interest because she’s so busy working.”

“Oh, is that so.”

“I can’t even count how many times I’ve received requests. But she rejects them so firmly, it’s an impenetrable wall like no other.”

But the duchess was no longer listening to the madam’s words. No, she couldn’t even hear them.

‘No wonder I felt like going out so badly today. Indeed, you never know where fate will lead you. Now then−.’

As a plan began to flash through her mind, her eyes started to sparkle brightly.

“There’s no point in dragging this out. Shall we put it into action right away?”