Chapter 44
“A man with red hair and golden eyes? That can only be him, right? He didn’t even bother to hide who he was,” Mei said.
She was right. That fiery red hair, the same shade as Empress Rosaria’s—“the Rose of the Empire”—was rare enough. Paired with golden eyes, there was only one possible person.
“Of all places, I had to bump into him there,” I muttered.
Ever since my clash with Princess Nanael, it felt like nothing had gone smoothly.
“Well… he was pretty handsome, though. And his personality wasn’t that bad—”
“Mei.” I cut her off sharply. “Normally I’d agree with your assessments, but absolutely not with Prince Cesare.”
“Normally you don’t agree with me at all, though?”
“Cough. Anyway! Don’t let that flashy face and cheesy pick-up lines fool you. He’s nothing but a pretty piece of trash.”
Yes, the imperial family as a whole was suspicious at best.
Especially the Emperor. Ever since marrying Rosaria, he’d been blatantly biased and capricious. He was a perfect example of how love could make a man act like a fool.
In fact, in the original story, the Emperor had been one of the most unsettling figures. At first, he was portrayed as a brilliant politician, but toward the end, his behavior became more and more questionable.
‘Anyway, the bottom line is: getting involved with royals is always trouble.’
I shoved the memory of Cesare’s oily lines out of my head.
***
When I arrived at the Mage Tower…
“Oh my, Lady Rodelia! Welcome!”
The woman at the front desk greeted me warmly.
A far cry from the time she’d treated me like a stalker. Now her expression was nothing but friendly curiosity.
She ushered me toward the elevator with a twinkle in her eye.
“I must apologize for my rudeness last time. I had no idea you were in a secret relationship!”
Cough!
Why was the rumor mill at the Tower this fast?
Just like that, I’d been recast as the girl who had gone from “secret romance” to a “publicly announced relationship.”
Flustered, I shoved the shopping bags Mei was carrying into her arms.
“Here, please share these with everyone!”
“Oh, thank you so much! I was craving something sweet during my shift.”
As expected, food solved everything. The receptionist’s smile grew even brighter.
Ding—
When the elevator reached the top floor, Ethan was already waiting.
“Welcome, ma’am!”
“M-Ma’am?”
The sudden honorific almost made me drop the coffee.
“The Tower Master is waiting for you inside.”
Whether or not I was embarrassed, Ethan was grinning ear to ear as he led me onward.
“And the maid may wait here.”
He blocked Mei, who had tried to follow naturally.
“But I’m her guard!” Mei protested.
“Who could possibly protect her better than the one inside?”
When Ethan gave her a come on, you know better look, Mei puffed her cheeks out.
“Fine! I’ll tell the young master about this.”
Still grumbling, she let herself be dragged away, leaving me to enter the study alone.
Inside, Alperen stood by the window, flipping through documents. He looked up as soon as I stepped in.
“Deli.”
Wearing silver-rimmed glasses, he smiled warmly and rose to his feet.
The setting sun bathed his hair in soft, golden light.
“Did you… come to pick me up?”
His voice, unguarded and pleased, tickled my ears.
I set down the coffee and couldn’t help staring at him—those glasses made his intellectual charm almost overwhelming.
Then, without warning, he took my hand, lifted it to his lips, and smiled softly.
“You must’ve missed me.”
His touch was so natural, his voice so sweet it was practically dipped in sugar.
“I just finished earlier than expected, that’s all.”
My face heated instantly, and I fanned myself while pulling my hand away.
“Don’t push yourself too hard, Deli.”
He looked genuinely worried—probably because it was his own family’s affairs I’d been helping with.
“I’m not. Honestly, it’s kind of fun. I think I’ve got a knack for managing things. It feels good to see the household improving little by little.”
The servants had been cooperative too, so it hadn’t been difficult.
“I guess I’m starting to understand why my mother threw herself so passionately into supporting my father.”
“Hearing you say ‘support’ makes me happier than you know,” Alperen murmured.
“Well, I am quite the catch, aren’t I?”
I puffed up proudly, but then his expression suddenly hardened.
“Deli. What’s this?”
In his hand was the handkerchief Cesare had given me.
I’d stuffed it in my bag earlier without thinking, and now he’d found it.
“Oh—that—earlier I bumped into some guy and—”
Whoosh—!
Before I could even finish, the luxurious handkerchief went up in flames, disintegrating into ash.
It happened so fast I couldn’t even stop him.
“Ren oppa?”
Why was he suddenly burning it like that?
I had been planning to throw it away myself, but still!
Dusting off his hands, Alperen said lightly,
“It was dirty.”
“…”
“You can’t just accept things from random men, Deli. Don’t do it again.”
For a fleeting moment, his blue eyes gleamed ice-cold, sharp as if he’d just spotted a stain on something that belonged to him.
It felt like he might drive a blade straight into an enemy’s chest without hesitation.
I’d never seen him look like that before.
But before I could react, his warmth returned as though nothing had happened.
“You understand, don’t you?”
His gentle tone was laced with possessiveness, sticky and unmistakable.
‘Wait… wasn’t that line exactly the kind of thing an obsessive male lead would say?’
I blinked hard, wondering if I’d imagined it—but he was back to his usual, calm self, waiting patiently for my answer.
“I was going to throw it away anyway.”
“I see.”
He smiled softly and entwined his fingers with mine.
“So… what did this man look like?”
The moment our eyes met, alarm bells went off in my head.
It sounded like an innocent question, but between lovers, it was dangerous.
Describe him in too much detail, and it might be taken the wrong way.
And the longer I hesitated, the more suspicious it would seem.
“His features were so vague I can’t even remember! Honestly, the only thing I remember is that thanks to him, I only got one bite of gelato before it was ruined.”
“I see. That must’ve been upsetting.”
He reached out to pat my head kindly.
“Shall we go get gelato together, then?”
Just like that, his suspicion melted away, replaced by a dazzling smile.
With those glasses, his beauty was almost blinding.
“…Sure,” I agreed, almost dazed.
And so, we shared gelato, then had a wonderful dinner at a fine restaurant, and even finished with a moonlit walk by the lakeside.
By the time I returned home, washed up, and flopped onto bed, my body was pleasantly tired.
“That was… a real date, wasn’t it?”
Somehow, I’d let myself get swept along by Alperen into a perfect, romantic evening.
And we’d been holding hands the entire time—the sensation still lingered vividly.
I stretched my hand toward the ceiling, remembering his touch.
For something that was supposed to be a fake relationship, it all felt far too real.
Especially Alperen’s reaction to Cesare’s handkerchief—he’d looked jealous.
‘No way. Alperen, jealous?’
The thought was so ridiculous, I laughed out loud.
“…But wait. Why did I feel the need to explain myself so quickly?”
Remembering how I’d rushed to justify everything made me uneasy.
Had I been pulled too deeply into this fake romance?
At this rate, when the act ended… I might actually feel lonely.
* * *
When Rodelia had entered the Tower earlier, Alperen had immediately caught the scent of another man’s cologne.
Tracing the source, he’d found it: a high-quality men’s handkerchief.
While Rodelia wasn’t looking, he’d noticed the embroidered initials.
C.B.
And beneath them, the imperial crest—a spear of judgment.
There was only one prince with a name starting with C.
Cesare Barnard, the Second Prince.
