Chapter 37
It was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. Tall, handsome, and wearing a bright smile, he asked,
“What are you doing here at this hour? Did you come looking for me?”
“Lord Mathias! I thought I’d come just in case, and I’m so glad to see you like this,” Sophia replied.
“What, really? Haha! I’m glad you’re happy, Sophia—it makes me happy too,” Mathias said, lightly patting Sophia’s shoulder with a smile.
Blushing, Sophia’s eyes sparkled as she asked,
“If you’re free, would you like to have lunch with me?”
“Lunch? …Hmm, I don’t know. Isn’t it a bit early? It’s almost time for me to head to work. Gotta make money, you know.”
“Oh, right…?”
Although she was happy to meet him, the thought that this might be all was a bit disappointing. Sophia’s spirits sank slightly.
Noticing, Mathias gently brushed her arm and comforted her.
“I really want to be with you, Sophia, but you know… my family’s sick, so I need to earn a lot. Sorry.”
Nodding as if understanding it couldn’t be helped, Sophia suddenly remembered something and took out a money pouch from her pocket.
“I actually came to give you this. I hope it can help you even a little, Lord Mathias.”
“Really?!”
Mathias’s eyes lit up as he eagerly took the jingling pouch.
It was quite heavy. Curious, he opened it to see dozens of gold coins gleaming brightly.
Mathias’s eyes went wide.
“S-Sophia, where did you get all this? Why are there so many?”
“I got a job. A kind young lady hired me.”
“A young lady? Could it be… you’ve joined a noble household again?”
“Yes! She’s really nice. She even bought me these beautiful new clothes to wear while working.”
Sophia proudly showed off her new outfit, holding the hem of her skirt, not caring that Mathias hadn’t noticed sooner.
Finally, Mathias noticed her stylish clothes and blinked.
“Really? Actually, I wasn’t sure it was you today because you looked so pretty. Sophia, you got a really good job, huh.”
Blushing again, Sophia nodded, and Mathias laughed, calling her cute.
He took her hand.
“Shall we have lunch? Since we finally met, I want to talk a little more.”
“Really? Is work okay for you?”
“I’m a little worried, but it would be too sad to just let you go. We don’t meet every day, maybe once a month, so I think everyone will understand.”
Would it really be okay?
Though worried, Sophia felt it would be too regrettable to turn back now. Feeling selfish but unable to resist, she tightly held Mathias’s hand.
“For lunch, it might be a bit much, but how about steak? Lamb steak. You said you liked it before.”
“You remembered…! I’m so happy,” Mathias said, placing their joined hands over his chest. Sophia could feel his heart pounding with joy.
“Do you know how I feel right now?”
Sophia, her face and even her neck flushed red by Mathias’s soft voice, nodded.
Every time Mathias expressed his feelings so honestly, it made Sophia’s heart flutter as if it might stop.
Watching her, Mathias smiled gently.
“Shall we go? Talking about delicious food made me hungry. I’m happy to be eating with you, Sophia.”
Hand in hand, Sophia and Mathias walked toward a high-end restaurant. Sophia was so happy she wished this moment could last forever.
Suddenly, Mathias stopped, wearing an awkward smile.
“Ah, actually… never mind. Let’s eat something else. I love lamb steak, but I’m still short on medicine money.”
“I’ll pay. It’s fine.”
“Really? I always feel bad that you’re the one paying…”
“No, you have to take care of your family. I want to pay because I want to, so don’t feel pressured.”
“Sophia…”
Touched by her thoughtfulness, Mathias gently hugged her, and Sophia hugged him back.
“By the way, are you really getting paid enough to give me this much money?”
“Yes, that’s right. The young lady is really kind.”
“I see…? That’s really good, Sophia.”
He had set aside money for lunch just in case, and it was a relief not to end up in an embarrassing situation.
Hoping she could continue to be helpful to Mathias, Sophia buried her face in his chest.
After a rare enjoyable time with Mathias, Sophia returned home to find Daisy furiously running toward her.
“Where have you been?! I missed lunch because of you!”
“Oh, sorry. I went on an errand. I had prepared food, but I see you didn’t eat it. I’ll serve it right away.”
“No! I’m not hungry!”
Stamping her feet, Daisy disappeared into her room.
Curious if she should take it to her room, Sophia checked the kitchen and found the prepared lunch completely gone.
‘She ate it…?’
Then why was she angry?
Confused, Sophia remembered Serena’s words:
“Our family finds fault and gets angry at even breathing, so you don’t need to accept everything. The more they get angry, the more they think it’s okay to get mad, and they’ll just keep going.”
Ah, that must be it. Having just met Mathias, Sophia wasn’t particularly upset.
“Maybe she didn’t like serving herself,” Sophia thought, considering that being a noble, it was possible.
Resigned, she went to Serena’s room.
“Miss, I found out what you asked. The next match is tomorrow at 3 PM. The one after that is three days later, also at 3 PM.”
She continued, explaining that races were held every other day at 3 PM if there were no special circumstances.
Participation was simple. They just had to prove they were over 16 with an ID and could freely bet inside.
Children under 16 could enter with a guardian, and anything inside was free.
In reality, there were no strict rules or laws, and no one really cared.
Since ordinary children wouldn’t bet at a racetrack, it seemed they allowed an escape for young nobles to enjoy it too.
For Serena, this worked out well.
“Good work. Then let’s go tomorrow. By the way, Sophia, did something good happen?”
“Oh, that…”
Excited to tell her about meeting Mathias, Sophia suddenly shut her mouth.
She realized that the job she had obtained was actually under false pretenses.
Though she had been happy to be employed, reality quickly brought fear.
‘What should I do…?’
Her eyes trembled. Serena, noticing her sudden change in mood, blinked.
“Is it a secret? Then you don’t have to say anything. I just wanted to tell you it’s good because you looked happy.”
Serena, not having revealed everything herself, assumed Sophia had her reasons. There was no need to pry.
Hearing that, Sophia bowed deeply.
“…I’m sorry.”
“Huh? There’s nothing to be sorry for. If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to.”
Even though told it was fine, Sophia didn’t feel any better.
She seemed to need some alone time, so Serena suggested she leave. Sophia bowed deeply and left the room.
“What’s wrong with her?”
Had something bad happened? Did she meet her sick brother?
‘Her condition shouldn’t have worsened…?’
Although she said she wouldn’t ask, seeing Sophia’s dark expression made her think it might be better to check on her a little.
