Chapter 20
That night was the one scheduled for the couple to share the same bedroom.
While Richard changed his clothes behind the screen, Aileen sat on the edge of the bed, quietly fiddling with the amethyst necklace he had given her.
When Richard came out, he caught sight of her doing that. Her thoughtful expression made something stir uneasily in his chest.
“Aileen.”
She quickly turned toward him.
“Oh, you’re done changing?”
Startled, Aileen hurriedly tucked the necklace back into its case. Richard’s eyes followed the movement until the box disappeared into the drawer. Then he climbed onto the bed.
“Are you going to make more magic stones tonight?”
“Of course.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to rest a little more? You’ve been pushing yourself lately.”
“I’m fine now. I slept well for two days — I feel completely recovered.”
She reached out her hand to him. Richard sighed lightly but still took it.
Ever since she’d gained confidence that she could repay her debt, Aileen had stopped overworking herself. Richard was satisfied with that — though he also felt oddly uneasy.
His gaze drifted once more toward her drawer — the one containing the amethyst necklace. For some reason, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
“One, two, three, four… okay, I’ve divided them perfectly. Twenty-three each. Now we can just— Richard?”
“…It’s nothing.”
He quickly looked away and packed his share of the stones into a small box. Aileen, meanwhile, was smiling happily as she checked the stones in hers.
Richard pressed his lips together before saying,
“It’s late. You should rest now.”
“Ah, right.”
She closed the case, came to bed, and lay down. Richard watched her for a moment before turning off the bedside lamp.
“Good night, Aileen.”
“You too, Richard. Sleep well.”
Her gentle voice sounded sweet, but Richard couldn’t fall asleep easily.
He stared at the ceiling for a long time, blinking, before finally turning his head toward her.
Aileen’s eyes were closed, her breathing steady — she looked ready to drift off at any moment.
After hesitating briefly, Richard spoke softly.
“Aileen.”
“Yes?”
“Did you… not like my gift?”
Her eyes flew open. She turned sharply toward him, surprised.
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“When I gave it to you, you didn’t look very happy,” he said seriously. “It bothered me, so I wanted to ask.”
Aileen looked into his golden eyes, her lips pressed together. He didn’t look away either.
After a quiet moment, she asked, just as softly,
“…Then what about you, Richard?”
“Me?”
“Yes. I gave you a gift too, didn’t I?”
“You mean the black pearl cufflinks— Wait.”
Richard suddenly sat up and looked directly at her.
“Is that why you were upset? Because you thought I didn’t like them?”
Aileen hid half her face under the blanket, saying nothing. Richard understood immediately and gave a short, amused laugh.
“If it bothered you, you could have asked.”
“How could I just say something like that?”
“I just did.”
“That’s because you’re strange!”
Her flustered tone made Richard chuckle.
“Why did you think I didn’t like them?”
“Well… you wore different cufflinks this morning, and when you opened my gift, you had this odd expression. Anyone would think you didn’t like it.”
“As you know, I met with Marquis Payne today,” Richard explained. “He gave me those cufflinks last time. I wore them out of courtesy. And as for my expression…”
He trailed off, glancing toward the drawer where her cufflinks were kept.
Aileen watched him curiously. After a brief silence, he rubbed the back of his neck — the tips of his ears faintly red.
“…It was just because it was the first time.”
“The first time?”
“The first time anyone’s given me a gift out of kindness. It felt strange, that’s all. It wasn’t that I disliked it.”
Aileen blinked, staring at him in surprise. Richard looked away, embarrassed.
“As you know, I’m a prince of the empire. Every gift I’ve received before was really just a bribe — a way to earn my favor. A genuine gift… was unfamiliar to me.”
“I see…”
A soft silence filled the room. Aileen looked a little flustered but soon smiled gently.
“…I’m glad,” she murmured in relief.
Richard turned toward her — and was quietly taken aback.
Her smile was radiant, warm, and tender. She looked beautiful.
Aileen met his gaze and laughed lightly.
“I completely misunderstood. I thought you didn’t like it.”
“If it’ll reassure you, I’ll wear your cufflinks next time I go out.”
“You don’t have to. But if you do, I’ll be happy,” she said with a soft laugh.
Then she gasped slightly as if remembering something.
“Oh, and for the record — I really did love the necklace you gave me. I just couldn’t show it properly because of the misunderstanding.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“It’s so beautiful. How did you think of buying something like that?”
Richard froze for a moment. He definitely couldn’t admit that Claude had picked it from a list.
After a pause, he began to improvise.
“Well, I just—”
“Oh, right,” Aileen interrupted cheerfully. “You must know women’s tastes pretty well. I bet you were popular with ladies.”
“…What?”
Richard blinked, unsure if he’d heard right.
She smiled brightly.
“Honestly, Richard, you’re handsome, stylish, and even your personality is gentle. I’m sure you had a lot of admirers.”
“Well, I… uh…”
Her words weren’t wrong, but hearing them from Aileen made him strangely shy.
Unable to answer, he looked away. Aileen giggled softly.
“Look at us, joking like this. I think we’re getting closer.”
“…Perhaps we are,” he admitted quietly.
“Did you know? My first impression of you wasn’t that good.”
“Is that so?”
“Mm-hmm. But to be fair, the circumstances weren’t great back then.”
She stifled a long yawn, covering her mouth with one hand.
Seeing the sleepiness in her eyes, Richard said,
“If you’re tired, you should sleep.”
“I will.”
She pulled the blanket up and curled beneath it.
“Good night, Richard…”
“Good night, Aileen.”
Hearing his voice, Aileen smiled faintly, her eyelids growing heavy.
“…Feels like we’re a real couple,” she murmured sleepily.
Richard froze. When he turned his head, she was already fast asleep.
“…A couple, huh.”
He whispered it to himself, then slowly closed his eyes.
If this kind of relationship could be called marriage…
“Well, it’s not so bad,” he murmured, smiling faintly in the dark.
❧ ❧ ❧
The next morning, Aileen prepared to go out. She was heading to the newspaper office to submit the job advertisement for Adrian’s tutor.
“I’ll be back soon,” she said.
Before boarding the carriage, she turned back to see Richard and Adrian standing side by side, politely seeing her off.
“Have a safe trip, Aileen.”
“Come back soon, Sister!”
They were both smiling — but Aileen couldn’t help feeling a little uneasy. She knew the two of them didn’t exactly get along.
Well, Adrian was the only one who really disliked Richard, but still.
She briefly considered taking him with her, then shook her head.
Nothing bad will happen in such a short time… right?
With a reassuring smile, she waved at them and climbed into the carriage.
As it rolled away and passed through the mansion gates, Adrian’s smile vanished instantly.
Richard watched as the boy turned without a word and started walking back inside.
“You’re leaving without even saying goodbye?” he asked.
Adrian stopped, turning to glare at him. Richard maintained a calm smile.
“We’re not close enough for that,” the boy muttered.
“Even so, greeting someone is basic courtesy.”
Adrian pouted, but he seemed to understand. With obvious reluctance, he bowed his head.
“Then… I’ll be going, Your Grace.”
Before Richard could answer, he marched off inside.
Watching his back, Richard sighed lightly.
“They’re alike in some ways — and completely different in others.”
“Are you talking about the Duchess and the young Count?” came Claude’s voice. He had just arrived at the mansion.
Richard glanced over.
“You’re late, Claude.”
“My apologies, Your Grace. I was finishing up the reports.”
“I see. Let’s discuss them in the office.”
“Yes, but before that…”
Claude hesitated, fidgeting. Richard looked at him questioningly.
“I’d like to apologize,” Claude said suddenly.
“…For what?”
“I seem to have mishandled something. Whatever punishment you see fit, I’ll accept it.”
Of course, he was referring to the gift incident from last night — the one where Aileen hadn’t reacted well.
Claude still remembered her awkward expression… and the icy glare Richard had shot him afterward.
All of that had been his fault for meddling.
As he waited nervously, Richard said something unexpected.
“If you’re apologizing like that, it must’ve been serious.”
“…Pardon?”
Claude blinked. Did he really not remember?
Before Claude could explain, Richard continued.
“I don’t know what it was, but since you admit fault, I’ll have to punish you.”
“Wait, Your Grace, that’s not—”
“I was planning to grant you a short vacation soon,” Richard said smoothly, “but I’ll cancel it as your punishment.”
“…”
Claude stood frozen.
And that day, he learned an important lesson once again —
In noble society, surviving is all about reading the room.
