Chapter 20
Ah, yes.
Before I knew it, the corners of my mouth had crookedly lifted.
The people there were Edin and Laila.
It was clear they had deliberately chosen a teahouse that wasn’t crowded so they could talk.
Since no official marriage discussions had taken place, they must have met here to avoid being seen.
I thought their effort was admirable—maybe I should even applaud them.
They were seated by the window.
But even if I moved closer and peeked, there was no way I could hear their conversation.
Still, the tense atmosphere and the stiff expressions on their faces made it obvious that this wasn’t a pleasant meeting.
Was I overreacting? Well, maybe.
I clenched my fists and observed them.
While Laila sipped her tea gracefully, Edin kept tilting his head slightly and checking the time.
If he’s going to look that uninterested, wouldn’t it be better for him to leave quickly?
Laila had spoken as if she wanted to marry Edin immediately when she was with me—so why is she acting like this now?
Not knowing the context and unable to hear anything made it frustrating.
I focused on their lips.
I wanted to at least guess what they were saying.
But they didn’t have a long conversation after that.
From what I could guess, they were probably just saying things like, “It’s cold,” “It’s already this late,” “Yes,” and that’s about it.
“Ah! What are you two really up to!”
I pounded my chest in frustration.
At that moment, Edin, who had been talking to Laila, turned his head toward where I was.
I quickly hid beside a wall.
“I really just happened to pass by, so I might look like a weirdo.”
I always hated getting involved in troublesome situations.
I decided that if Edin seemed to focus back on the conversation, I would dart past.
“Alright. He’ll handle things well on his own.”
“What are you talking about?”
A familiar voice came from beside me.
I covered my mouth and turned toward the voice.
“Gasp, Guild Master.”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“Why are you here, Guild Master? Do you need to follow me to get information about Jane?”
“That can’t be it. And I’m not the Guild Master—I’m Jake.”
He hadn’t told me his name before.
It was ridiculous, but I kept my manners.
“Ah, thank you for telling me your name. But, Jake, why are you following me?”
I took a step back from him.
Being followed is honestly a little scary.
When I showed no sign of lowering my guard, Jake shrugged and put his hands in his pockets.
“Lady, you should take a good look inside your clutch right now.”
“Huh?”
Did I leave something at the guild office?
I hastily opened my clutch.
There were my usual belongings: a pouch of coins, handkerchief, lipstick, everything I normally carry.
“Maybe he just thought I lost something someone else left behind and followed me by mistake.”
I was grateful for his kindness, but if he wanted to return an item to its owner, I had to send him away quickly.
“I haven’t lost anything. If you’re following me to return something, you should give it back to its owner right away…”
“That’s not it.”
“Then what is the reason?”
“I came to thank you. Your kindness to my older brother.”
“Uh… me? Who did I show kindness to?”
“To Doren. He owns that tailor shop—he’s my brother.”
I covered my mouth.
I hadn’t expected that at all.
Jake looked like a boy who couldn’t be involved in anything rough.
But Doren was large and had a fierce appearance.
I doubted there were many people in the empire who could immediately accept that these two were brothers.
“So it’s a business partnership kind of thing.”
The older brother sews clothes on the first floor, while the younger brother runs the guild on the second.
Now it made sense why the guild had been operating smoothly so far.
“That’s surprising… no one would guess just by looking at the two of you.”
“Right? At first, my colleague asked if I’d put my brother as the Guild Master. How could he handle such tough work?”
Jake chuckled.
Though teasing his older brother, I could sense his affection.
“Oh, so both brothers… clothes… got it.”
The clothes sold at Doren’s shop were uniformly unattractive.
Neither of them seemed to have any aesthetic sense.
It was a clear example of how fearsome genetics could be.
Jake looked at me, bewildered, and asked,
“Clothes? Why?”
“They’re stylish.”
“I know how badly my brother makes clothes. Don’t lie.”
“No, why am I confessing like this? Honestly, Jake, look at that shirt of yours! The sleeves are all shiny from wear.”
“I’m like this because of work. Even if I dressed properly, I wouldn’t compare to my brother.”
“Then dress properly!”
“All right! I’ll show you properly tomorrow.”
We went back and forth in this childish argument.
I knew how petty and ridiculous I sounded, but…
“I won’t lose!”
I wanted to win because I was saying the right thing.
We bickered for a long time, “Your clothes are awful,” “You shouldn’t speak such truths,” and so on.
Eventually, Jake was the first to make peace.
“All right. My clothes are odd.”
“Yes. Huh… get a new shirt. If you ask Doren, just make it simple. No decorations, just ask him to make it plain.”
“I’ll try. Ah… Lady.”
“What is it?”
“I haven’t properly thanked you yet.”
Ah, right.
He had come to thank me.
I calmed my excitement and straightened my back.
Suppressing my heightened emotions brought back the rationality to converse properly.
“I heard you gave advice after seeing the shoes my brother made.”
“Ah… yes, I did.”
I recalled the white shoes Doren had made.
Overly decorated, far from fitting the image of an elegant bride.
If they hadn’t been made from white silk, they could be mistaken for ballroom shoes.
He bowed politely.
Then, taking a knightly posture, he greeted me.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, my brother seems motivated to work on things again. Lately, shop sales had been dropping, which worried him.”
‘I just gave a professional opinion.’
I hadn’t purchased anything as a token of thanks like other customers.
I hadn’t given any particularly useful advice either.
So his earnest expression felt a little overwhelming.
“Um… that wasn’t necessary. I just spoke what I felt.”
“Your advice was very helpful to my brother, who is often discouraged. He’s… surprisingly delicate and needs care.”
“…Then. As long as what I did wasn’t a nuisance, it’s fine. I hope the shop thrives.”
“Considering my brother’s aesthetic sense, that might be a bit…”
“Excuse me? Is that something a brother who cares about his sibling should say?”
“Still, it’s a bit of a lie. As long as it doesn’t fail, that’s enough.”
It was a funny exchange.
In this way, we seemed to match quite well.
I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“I envy you. My younger sibling is at the academy, so I don’t see them often.”
“Oh, your younger sibling. Are you close?”
He asked, curious.
“Well, good or bad, I’m somewhat responsible for them. They’re still academy age.”
“Your sibling attends the academy, I see.”
“Yes. I left for personal reasons. If I don’t marry, they’ll inherit our family. I want to teach them things in preparation for that.”
“…I’ve never seen a noble lady say such a thing.”
“To be a better older sister, I should want to pass the family on, but honestly, I’m more practical than them. The family should go to the wiser person. It’s harsh, but true.”
He seemed pleased with my answer and leaned against the wall with a ‘hmm.’
I also leaned against the wall, thinking of my sibling, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time.
A gentle child, half the struggle is over as long as they do well at the academy.
“I don’t know how a wise and good older sister affects her younger sibling, but probably positively.”
“They should be. I’m the one sending them to the academy, after all.”
I joked with Jake, unaware of the dark shadow approaching us.
