Chapter 24
It still wasn’t the worst-case scenario.
People had recognized her, but Elion hadn’t, after all.
Even if a news article appeared, it would be about Rubiana and some handsome man—not anything dangerous.
“Please… I hope no one recognizes Elion until the very end…!”
Seeing Rubiana’s face turn pale, worry washed over Elion like an incoming tide.
“Damn… I misjudged this. Walking through the busy streets in broad daylight would attract so much attention. This is dangerous. It won’t do her any good to be seen with me.”
Most people didn’t recognize him.
But if even one person did, the fact that he and Rubiana had walked through the bustling streets together would quickly reach the ears of the royal family.
That couldn’t happen. Not under any circumstances.
He couldn’t allow Rubiana and her family to become targets of the Empress’s scrutiny because of him.
Even if offering a meal as thanks for saving her life might be excusable, walking through the shopping district alone together could spark all sorts of misunderstandings.
Elion spoke with a heavy voice.
“Honestly, it’s no good, my lady. I’m sorry, but it’s better if we just go back.”
“Eh? Why… why is that?”
“I don’t like being noticed by people. It tends to cause troublesome situations.”
He frowned.
“I’ll go back to the Grand Duke’s residence. I’ll make sure to arrive on time for dinner.”
“Ah…”
“How about you return first and then come back out with the maid?”
Rubiana hesitated.
She couldn’t let him go—not yet.
There was a place she absolutely had to go with him.
Even though the stares around them were distracting and she feared tomorrow’s gossip columns, she couldn’t give up.
“I’m not the perfect heroine yet, but… I have to do what I can as the heroine. I have to protect the capital.”
Rubiana grabbed Elion’s hand.
The sudden contact made his eyes widen slightly.
“Could you… stay with me? Actually… there’s somewhere I want to go with Your Highness.”
“What? Somewhere you want to go with me? Not the Count’s residence, I suppose?”
Elion tilted his head, clearly confused.
Rubiana looked up at him and moved her lips.
“That… the circus.”
“What?”
Had she spoken too softly? Elion asked again, as if he hadn’t heard.
Summoning her courage, Rubiana raised her voice this time.
“The circus.”
“The circus? Just like that?”
Elion looked like he had a lot of questions.
She had mentioned wanting to visit a bookstore or a dessert shop—alone—but never a circus.
“That’s…”
Rubiana couldn’t bring herself to explain.
She couldn’t say, “We need to go to the Greer District from here.”
In the middle of such a crowded area, she couldn’t use any “cling-to-the-pants” tactics.
All she could do was appeal to his sympathy with a tearful act.
Rubiana looked up at Elion, her eyes already glistening.
Despite the stares around them, she decided to ignore them—for now.
Focus.
Her top priority was to use the circus as an excuse to head to the Greer District with Elion.
“I’ve been feeling a bit down lately.”
“…”
Elion’s eyes flickered.
Just creating some agitation in him felt like a partial success.
“Thanks to Your Highness’s mercy, my life was saved, but I haven’t fully recovered yet. It’s natural to feel down when you don’t know if you’ll survive.”
“…”
Her quiet, sunken voice made Elion’s chest tighten.
He wanted to say something comforting, but didn’t know what to say.
“But I thought… watching a circus performance… seeing such lively performances… might make me feel a bit better.”
“I see…”
Elion slowly nodded, acknowledging her words.
“I wanted to go to the circus with someone, not alone. Someone who could understand my gloomy mood.”
That someone… was him.
Having said her piece, Rubiana fell silent, waiting for Elion’s response.
She prayed that her quarter-hearted act would touch his sympathy.
“…Very well.”
Finally, he gave permission.
Rubiana felt both joy and surprise at his answer.
“Could it be that the enigmatic Grand Duke… is indecisive when refusing requests? Or is he bold against the strong and gentle with the weak, a sort of ‘strong-weak’ dynamic?”
The blue eyes gazing down at her flickered with kind sympathy.
Rubiana, her voice no longer sunken, spoke almost excitedly:
“Then let’s go to the costume shop first.”
“Let go of my hand first.”
“Ah… yes.”
Startled by Elion’s remark, Rubiana quickly released his hand, blaming herself for not realizing she had been holding it.
The two of them entered the Cornis Costume Shop.
“The men’s section is on the third floor.”
“Alright. Let’s go up.”
As they began climbing the stairs, Elion’s communication stone glowed.
It was black.
“Fred, if my lady goes up first, I’ll follow shortly.”
“Yes, sir.”
A perceptive shop assistant guided Elion to a private room.
Rubiana started up the stairs alone.
When she reached the second floor, she ran into the trio of ribbon-haired young ladies she had seen earlier.
“Ugh… perfect timing. I stepped on a landmine.”
She sighed inwardly and clenched her teeth.
They seemed to be finishing up their dress orders and were about to leave.
Although slightly surprised, Rubiana planned to ignore them and continue walking.
She didn’t want to waste precious time and energy on inconsequential people.
Especially if they were hostile.
There were far more important and enjoyable things in life.
“Oh my, Rubiana, we meet again.”
“I saw you leaving with the Countess. Back again?”
“What did you come to buy?”
Yet to them, Rubiana must have seemed like an interesting target.
They called to her with soft, playful voices.
Rubiana didn’t respond. She glanced over the trio one by one and continued walking, as if she didn’t know them.
Someone you know greets you, and you pass by without acknowledgment?
In her previous life, in her first round of life, she would never have done this.
But now, it was different.
She had to distinguish between people important to her life and those who weren’t.
These three were not only unimportant but also harmful.
Turning her gaze away from them, Rubiana continued walking.
“It shouldn’t look like I’m running away! It is running away, but it can’t look like it! It has to look like I’m ignoring them—coldly, like I’m indifferent!”
She repeated this mantra in her mind, concentrating.
But the trio proved unexpectedly persistent.
Soon, harsh voices pierced her eardrums.
“Hah! What’s this? Rubiana, are you ignoring us?”
“How rude! We were happy to see you again, so we greeted you.”
“Did something bad happen? Are you taking it out on us?”
Rubiana smirked slightly, one corner of her mouth upturned.
They understood well. Yes, she was ignoring them.
Happy to see them again? After all the rumors they spread behind her back!
She felt bad being upset? But she had no intention of retaliating.
She had no time or energy for unworthy people.
Though she had many things to say, she knew it would be futile.
Rubiana had no intention of speaking to them.
She smiled coldly, then spoke slowly:
“I’m a bit busy. I’ll be going now.”
Just as she moved to leave, a blonde young lady tapped her shoulder sharply.
“Hey, who do you think you are? Ignoring our greeting?”
“Seriously. You’re really something. Born into a spiritist family but can’t even become a spiritist. Who do you think you are to ignore us?”
“Even if you ignore us, we should be the ones ignoring you. Why are you ignoring us?”
As the tension grew, the shop staff began to panic.
They probably wanted to avoid a confrontation in the store.
Then, from somewhere, a low, ominous voice rang out:
“What’s all this commotion in the way?”
