We arrived at the village of Roscoff after about an hour’s carriage ride. As befitting an artists’ village, it was a place where various artists coexisted.

In the village blooming with vibrant purple flowers, there was a small river, and painters and minstrels wandered about everywhere.

The wheels that had been continuously moving stopped, indicating we had reached our destination. The massive mansion with an impressive purple roof was equipped with a small lake and even tables for tea.

“I will guide you inside. Please entrust your hats and parasols to me.”

As soon as we got off the carriage, maids and manservants welcomed us. It seemed they had put a lot of effort into Isabel’s visit.

‘Is this a place I should be coming to?’

Thinking about it, the dress I was currently wearing and the jeweled accessories. Each and every one of them was overwhelming for me.

Because of that, there had been endless voices of discontent since the morning. The reason was the jealousy the twin brothers felt seeing me all dressed up.

“Oh my, you’re here? Isabel.”

A woman appeared from among the maids.

The slightly plump woman with short black hair greeted Isabel and me with a kind smile.

“Sillie.”

The two seemed to be quite close, affectionately calling each other by their first names rather than their surnames.

Surprised that Isabel had a close friend, I quietly observed them, but then I sensed a presence in front of me. Turning my head, I saw a boy with black hair and purple eyes looking at me.

That must be the boy around my age that Isabel mentioned.

He grabbed his mother’s skirt as if wary of me.

“You must be Lize? I’ve heard a lot about you. This here is my son, Roger. Lize, he’s the same age as you.”

As soon as Madame Sillie finished speaking, Roger dropped his sharp gaze.

He moved his head slightly in greeting. It was completely different from how he had just glared at me.

I observed him closely. Unlike the angelically beautiful Yurik, Roger was a handsome boy with sharp and distinct features.

“Hello, I’m Lize.”

I greeted him first, as it didn’t seem like Roger would speak first. At that, Roger glared at me again and hid behind his mother.

“Roger. What are you doing?”

“……”

“I’m sorry. He’s a bit shy. Roger, hurry and greet Lize.”

Madame Sillie forcibly pushed Roger’s back. Now standing in front of me due to that touch, Roger still remained silent.

“Oh my, why is Roger acting like this today? He’s shy, but he’s not a child of few words. Maybe he’s just happy that Lize is here.”

Madame Sillie tried to ease the awkward atmosphere between us.

“That’s an honor.”

Isabel answered on my behalf.

“Let’s not do this here and go inside to talk. Isabel.”

“All right. Then please excuse us.”

Madame Sillie and Roger led the way first. As I obediently followed them, Isabel bent her head slightly and approached my ear.

“How about becoming friends with Roger? He’s good-looking, and it seems he likes you too.”

Where did she get that idea?

“It would be nice to become friends.”

“No, I don’t mean friends. How about as a fiancé?”

My mouth fell open.

I was only ten years old. A fiancé for a girl who hasn’t even gone through her second growth spurt…Even though people of this era marry early, isn’t an engagement at ten too soon?

Moreover, Isabel was not a true mother to the point of introducing an honest noble boy to me, her illegitimate child.

‘What’s this about?’

I couldn’t even grasp what Isabel was thinking. Seeing as she purposely brought me here and even brought up the topic of engagement, it was clear she had ulterior motives.

‘Suspicious.’

With doubts in mind, I entered the mansion and saw an interior as luxurious and spacious as the exterior.

What caught my eye were the statues and paintings. There were works by famous artists that were said to be difficult to obtain even with a lot of money.

I suspected they might be imitations, but the artists’ signatures were clearly engraved underneath. In addition to the artwork, various frames with written passages decorated the walls.

“You seem to have a great interest in art.”

“Are these genuine?”

“Of course. We obtained them through auctions or as gifts.”

“How did you acquire them?”

“Our Bakus family has produced many artists. So we have connections with several artists.”

I was slightly agape at Madame Sillie’s words.

I had only known this place to be a marquis’ house, but I didn’t know what family or what kind of people they were.

But the Bakus family. Among the famous poets I knew, there was someone with the Bakus surname. Could it be…?

“Is the poet Rogaine Bakus also from this family?”

“Oh? That’s right. It seems Isabel hasn’t told you much about our family. Rogaine is famous, but Roger is a child with exceptional talent even within the Bakus family.”

He’s not just a timid, handsome boy.

“How about taking a look at Roger’s room until lunch is ready? There’s a lot to see in his room.”

“I don’t mind, but…”

I was fine with it, but would Roger be okay with it? I was worried he might feel burdened being alone with someone he hasn’t even exchanged a word with.

However, Roger gestured to me without hesitation, guiding me to his room.

I followed him while glancing at Roger.

“Where is your room?”

“……”

“Do you have siblings? Or are you an only child?”

“……”

Even when I asked questions, Roger didn’t answer. Having given up on talking to him, I quietly followed his lead.

Roger’s room was in the middle of the third floor.

“Is this your room?”

When I asked, he nodded. The room was quite quiet like its owner’s personality, but surprisingly, there were many interesting objects.

They were mainly musical instruments, including string instruments and ones I had never seen before.

It seemed he was also interested in art besides music, as there was a painting in the middle of the room. It was a painting Roger had drawn himself. Although the unfinished painting had a lot of blank space, the detailed and precise portrait was as vivid as looking at a real person.

“Wow. This is amazing!”

I couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration. I wanted to take a closer look at the painting, but Roger blocked my view.

“Why? I want to see it more. I’ve never seen someone draw so well.”

“…This is a failed piece.”

Roger’s voice was lower than I expected.

“A failed piece? It’s so magnificent, though.”

“…It really is a failure. Look here, the color of the eyes is murky.”

He pointed to the man’s eyes.

“Hmm, I can’t really tell.”

“If you can’t tell, then forget it.”

Roger didn’t explain further and took the painting away from me. Fearing he might dislike it if I kept bringing up the painting, I looked around the room again.

“You have a really amazing room. It’s full of intriguing objects.”

Madame Sillie was right. Roger’s room was filled with many things to see and interesting objects. While I was taking interest in those objects, Roger sat on the bed, quietly observing me.

“……”

I was the same. Having finished looking around without moving, I turned my gaze to Roger sitting on the bed. Roger’s brow furrowed.

“Why aren’t you touching anything?”

“…Huh?”

“You said it was intriguing. Why aren’t you going closer or touching anything? Everyone who comes here usually looks at and touches this and that. Are you just saying it’s intriguing but not really interested?”

“No, I am curious. Very much so.”

“But why?”

He asked innocently.

“Art pieces are sensitive. Especially musical instruments, if you touch them wrong, the sound might get ruined. What if you accidentally mix the paint colors even a little? Do you like people freely touching your instruments or art pieces?”

This time, I asked. Roger got up from the bed and shook his head.

“No. I really hate that.”

He approached me.

“Do you know how much one of those instruments costs?”

He pointed to a violin hanging on the wall.

“I don’t know.”

“It’s worth five gold bars. It’s also very sensitive, so the sound changes with just a slight touch.”

“But is it okay to hang it on the wall like that instead of storing it separately?”

“That one is already ruined. The kids who come here kept touching it. Now it’s used for decoration.”

He stared at me intently, then took down the violin he had pointed out and held it out to me.

“Do you know how to play?”

“I’m sorry, but I know very little about art. Even if you teach me, I probably won’t understand.”

“But how did you know that instruments are sensitive?”

“I read it in a book. Also, even if it’s not an instrument, I don’t casually touch or handle other people’s belongings without permission.”

“Hmm…”

Roger closed his mouth.

Seeing him speak firmly, it seemed he wasn’t as timid as I thought, nor was he the type to be shy. Perhaps the reason he didn’t speak at first was simply because he found it bothersome.

“Can I look at your books?”

While looking around, I pointed to the bookshelf on the wall.

“They’re all art-related books, so they’ll be boring.”

“Really? Still, I have nothing to do.”

“You don’t want to play with me?”

“Do you want to play with me?”

When I asked, Roger immediately shook his head. I expected as much.

“Then just give me one book. I’ll be quiet. You can do your own thing.”

“Is that okay?”

“What could be wrong with it? But let’s keep it a secret from our parents. We’ll lie to them that we had a lot of fun together.”

Roger hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“You’re fine with any book, right?”

“Yeah.”

He went to the bookshelf and handed me a thick book. It was titled “Theoretical Treatise on Aesthetics”. It seemed like a tedious book, but with nothing else to do, I immediately sat on a chair and opened the pages.

I thought I could quietly read the book now, but Roger hovered in front of me. At first, I ignored him. I thought Roger would do his own thing given time.

“……”

But that wasn’t the case.

“…What are you doing?”

Unable to stand it any longer, I asked, and he flinched.

“I was wondering if you were really reading the book.”

“Then am I pretending to read it?”

“No.”

What’s with that uninspired response? I tried to read the book again, but Roger stared at me intently.

“What? If you have something to say, say it.”

“…I’m not good at lying.”

“What?”

“I said I’m not good at lying. So I can’t say we had a lot of fun.”

“Then what do we do?”

“Let’s play. And have lots of fun.”

He said simply.