HRNGDS 50

~Chapter 50~

Delphina thought to herself,

‘It wasn’t like this in the past.’

When she had been engaged to Kassen, she hadn’t gone around proudly telling everyone.

‘I already knew…’

That Kassen didn’t truly love her. Showing off a partner who didn’t love her would only make her feel miserable.

But then why did she feel so proud now, even though her relationship with Elcayan was just a contract?

Before she could finish her thought, the first dance began.

Elcayan’s hand settled on her waist. They were only dancing normally at the banquet, yet this moment felt more thrilling than ever.

“Delphina, you’re a good dancer.”

Elcayan smiled sweetly at her.

“I practiced a lot since I was young.”

Delphina spoke softly about her dream.

“I always wanted to dance one day with someone I love.”

Her cheeks turned red.

‘That probably sounded strange to Elcayan…’

After all, the one she was dancing with now was Elcayan.

He asked with a satisfied smile,

“Has that dream come true?”

“Not yet.”

Her firm reply made Elcayan’s face stiffen slightly.

“I’d like it to come true someday, though. That day will come, right?”

Elcayan hesitated before answering.

“That ‘someday’ might be sooner than you think.”

“Hmm, but we don’t know when this contract will end.”

“…”

“And I’ll probably marry an ordinary man someday, so I won’t be attending banquets like this. That’s why I feel like my dream might never happen.”

“An ordinary man?”

“Yes. Like I said before, my type now is a man who’s plain and ordinary, with no special traits.”

Elcayan’s expression hardened.

“Someday I’ll get married too. Once I gain my freedom. But it won’t be at a place like this.”

“…Then where will you dance?”

“I don’t know yet.”

Delphina imagined it—the moment when everything was over, and she was dancing with the man she loved.

But because Elcayan was in front of her now, she couldn’t picture the man’s face clearly.

‘It’s hard to imagine the face of some “ordinary man.”’

She shook her head.

Elcayan’s black hair swayed softly in front of her eyes.

Suddenly, a faint white light flashed.

‘Did I imagine that?’

She blinked.

In an instant, the light faded, and old memories she hadn’t recalled in a long time surfaced.

‘Ah, there was that peasant boy I met as a child… He always ate my food so well.’

She remembered the boy she had met a few times, the one with black hair, who had eaten the food she tested out with enthusiasm.

‘I think I felt happy then. It was the first time someone had eaten my food so eagerly.’

The food must have been terrible, yet the boy always finished every bite.

At that moment, Delphina realized her type.

‘I like people who eat well.’

Elcayan was a picky eater, so he didn’t qualify.

‘My future husband should be a black-haired man who eats well.’

As Delphina was deep in thought, Elcayan leaned closer.

“What are you thinking about so hard? I’m right in front of you. You’re not thinking about someone else, are you?”

She avoided his eyes, feeling guilty.

‘Well… I kind of was.’

Even if they were in a contract relationship, thinking about her future husband in front of her current partner didn’t feel right.

“Delphina?”

Startled, she looked up. His voice was so close.

She accidentally blurted out,

“I was thinking about my ideal type.”

Elcayan paused and asked,

“And what kind of person is your ideal type?”

“Someone who eats well.”

“…Why is that?”

Delphina hesitated. Should she tell him about the boy from her memory? It was a little embarrassing, but it wasn’t a secret.

“When I was young, my cooking was terrible.”

“…”

“My parents loved me, but they couldn’t eat my food. They tried, but they never finished it. I understood though—before I met my teacher, my cooking really was awful.”

Elcayan nodded with a strange expression.

“But there was a boy who ate everything, down to the bottom of the bowl. Seeing that made me happy. Since then, my ideal type became someone who eats well.”

He asked carefully,

“That boy… was he handsome?”

“In my memory, he looked pretty average.”

“…I see.”

Elcayan’s face stiffened.

‘There was someone else besides me who ate her food like that…’

He remembered staying briefly at the Rikaion estate as a child and meeting Delphina then. He had eaten her food a few times—it hadn’t exactly been good, but he had always cleaned the plate, knowing how much effort her tiny hands had put into making it.

But he didn’t realize Delphina’s memory had been embellished over time.

‘Who was that boy?’

“So I think I like ordinary men who eat well,” Delphina said, her cheeks slightly flushed.

A pang of jealousy and regret hit Elcayan.

‘Why didn’t I eat her food with more enthusiasm back then?’

‘Who was that boy, anyway?’

He decided he would investigate the other boy who had often visited the Rikaion estate.

‘What would I even do after finding him?’

For some reason, violent thoughts boiled up. But he knew he couldn’t harm someone Delphina might love.

He calmed his petty emotions and asked casually,

“Do you remember that we met as children?”

“What? We met before? That can’t be…”

“Yes. My father was close with the former Duke Rikaion.”

Delphina frowned, unable to recall.

‘Why didn’t Elcayan tell me we had met before?’

Her lips tightened. As a child, she had been wild and mischievous.

‘Meeting me back then probably wasn’t a good memory for him.’

“Did I ever act rude to you?”

“No, you didn’t do anything rude.”

“Really? That’s a relief…”

She had grown up in the duke’s household, loved and spoiled, and had caused plenty of trouble.

‘I do remember forcing people to try my strange cooking experiments…’

Maybe Elcayan had been one of her victims too.

‘No way… Could Elcayan be that boy?’

She wanted to erase all memories of her childhood from his head.

“You cooked for me often,” he added.

“I-I did?”

“You probably don’t remember. You didn’t even know I was from the Northern Duke’s family.”

“Hmm…”

Delphina couldn’t bring herself to admit she didn’t remember. Her conscience pricked her.

Elcayan gave a small smile.

“I thought you wouldn’t remember.”

“N-no, it’s not like that.”

“…?”

“I just remembered… making you food. Back then I was… very experimental with cooking.”

Elcayan burst into laughter.

It was the first time she’d seen him laugh so openly, and it startled her.

“So you do remember?”

“I had completely forgotten. I didn’t realize there might be someone else besides that boy…”

Elcayan’s lips tightened again.

“I wonder who that boy was.”

“Yeah… Who could he have been?”