“Lize Unni!”

As soon as the door opened, a girl rushed out and entered my arms.

With her white short hair, Yune’s eye color had become darker, and her lips had gained a bit more flesh. She looked almost like a grown-up, her petite tee almost completely peeled off.

“Hello, Yune. Have you been well?”

“I missed you! I always felt frustrated because your replies to my letters were so slow!”

“Sorry about that. Even if I write back immediately, the school sometimes collects the letters belatedly.”

Although Yune understood my situation, she didn’t erase her pouting expression.

“Oh, isn’t it Lize?”

Just as I came out of the room, Lady Penton and the Duke looked at me.

“How have you been? Duke, Lady.”

“It’s really Lize! Come on in.”

“Thank you, Duke.”

“Hey. Lize seems to have become more beautiful and a bit taller than when she came last time.”

“A bit taller indeed, Lady.”

The Duke and the Lady hugged me once and patted my back. In their warm embrace, it felt like I had finally returned home.

“I wanted to greet you as soon as I arrived in Hosha Village, but you weren’t at the mansion.”

“Shouldn’t you have contacted me in advance? I went on a trip to the northern continent. Just got back today.”

I realized with a start at Lady’s words. Come to think of it, Yune’s letter before my graduation mentioned that her parents were going on a trip to the northern continent.

“But you came early, didn’t you? It takes about a week to travel to the northern continent.”

“We originally planned for a month, but Yurik suddenly contacted us before departure.”

The Duke explained.

“Isn’t Yurik in college now?”

“Yes. But he’s coming back today. So we stayed here this week and just returned today.”

Yurik is coming! If I had known, I would have put on some lipstick or something.

“Oh, brother says he’s quitting college and coming back.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Probably, he’ll stay here from now on. Yune, be happy! Both brother and sister will be in Hosha Village!”

Although I tried to ask for the reason, it seemed the Duke and the Lady didn’t know why Yurik had quit college either.

“First, make yourself comfortable, Lize. If possible, I’d like you to have dinner and then leave.”

“Of course, Lady.”

The reason for traveling to the northern continent was Yune. She, who was always interested in archaeology, wanted to see ruins and artifacts.

“I enjoyed it, but my mother and father struggled because they didn’t like the food in the northern continent.”

After the long story ended, Yune’s gaze turned to me.

I revealed what I had been doing for the past three days in Hoshha Village. Most of it was organizing things and dealing with remaining tasks, but those things didn’t go smoothly.

“There was a conflict due to the entrance hall work with Stepmother. If Lady sees the entrance of the Marsen Mansion, she will be extremely surprised. It’s really amazing.”

“Why is Lady insisting on the entrance like that? I can’t understand.”

“Maybe she’s trying to have another son. Since Deymick isn’t interested in his gender.”

Lady’s face became serious. Even though I was playing chess with the Duke, he gave up moving the pieces and focused on the conversation.

“Even if a child is born, what if it’s not a son?”

“I’m worried about that too. Repeating the mistakes she made with Deymick…”

“Even if that fortune-teller really has abilities, the claim that they can change the gender of a child in the womb is a lie. Those artificial actions are just a strong way to establish their credibility through extreme methods. Originally, Deymick was a boy even when he was in the womb.”

I sympathized with Yune’s words.

The problem was that Stiana, the one who should believe this story, didn’t believe it.

“I want to be independent soon. Father will never agree, though. The only way for me to leave the mansion is to get married. I’ve received more than twenty portraits of potential suitors in these three days.”
All the portraits were handled secretly without my father knowing. Whether my father knew this fact or not, this morning he handed me an envelope containing a portrait along with words urging me to marry.

The envelope was heavier than the one I received the day before. My father sincerely intended to marry me off this year, not for my sake but for his own marriage.

“……Huh?”

While having a serious conversation, we heard footsteps outside the mansion. Yune, quick in her actions, noticed it first and looked out the window.

“He’s here, Oppa!”

“Really?”

Everyone got up and gathered around Yune. Beyond the window, we saw Yurik walking towards the entrance. His long legs, harmonious physique, three-dimensional face, and sharpened gaze were captivating even in the evening twilight.

Even in the dusk, Yurik walking towards us had a radiance.

“Ah, our eyes met.”

As Yune said, Yurik noticed us and smiled lightly. When he looked at me intently while I stared at his charming smile, his steps that were already leisurely became faster. The lady ordered the maids to prepare for the evening.

“Oppa!”