Episode 6
How much time had passed since then?
I was still doing just fine.
Well, except for the absurdly fast rise in his affection score.
{Noah Iosif, Affection: 75}
To be honest, it was kind of scary.
At this rate, never mind three years—he’d easily hit 100 within a year.
“Should we bring this too?”
Noah pointed with his chin at a sky-blue lace parasol shoved into a corner.
I immediately shook my head.
Sure, the sun was out, but it was still early winter.
Besides, today we were heading to a weapons shop to buy self-defense gear in case of an assassination attempt.
In a place like that…
‘A lace parasol?’
That would only draw attention.
Instead, I pulled on the light green lace bonnet Sophie had prepared for me.
The wind was supposed to be pretty chilly today.
“I’ll get the carriage ready.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
If anything had changed from before, it was that he now called me “Master” instead of a formal title like “Guardian.”
‘Wait, now that I think about it, that’s even weirder!’
I’d corrected him multiple times, asking him to just call me “Guardian,” but my request had ultimately been ignored.
Thanks to Sophie’s intense, drill-sergeant-style training.
As I stood hesitating in front of the mirror for a while, I heard Noah’s voice from beyond the door.
“Master. Will it be much longer?”
“……Just a moment.”
No matter how many times I heard him call me that, it always felt strange.
Technically, he wasn’t wrong—I had brought Noah here—but it still made me feel like some kind of villain.
Once I finished putting on the black lace gloves laid out on the vanity, I cleared my throat.
It was finally D-day.
{system: Heroine event D-day.}
‘…Even though I haven’t done anything!?’
I let out a dry laugh as I tugged at my hair in front of the mirror.
There’s no way I’m going to die… right?
Lately, that annoying choice window hadn’t been popping up as often either.
Thanks to that, my infamous reputation had started to calm down a bit!
I had gone from a self-absorbed villainess to just a slightly annoying young lady.
Sure, my ears would itch sometimes like someone was talking behind my back—
‘But hey, that just means I’ll live longer.’
Knock knock knock.
“Oh-ho-ho.”
Just as I was doing a classic villainess laugh behind my fan, Noah suddenly entered the room, startling me. I stubbed my toe on the vanity.
“Ahh!”
“……Master?”
Thud.
To make matters worse, I turned around too quickly in panic, and a button on the back of my dress popped off with a crack.
Standing there with my mouth agape, I saw Noah staring at me with a stunned expression.
“I’m sorry. You weren’t coming out, so I thought something had happened.”
‘Well, something has happened now…’
As Noah bowed his head, a bright yellow notification window appeared above him.
His shoulders trembled slightly, like he was holding back laughter.
{system: Affection with ‘Noah Iosif’ has increased by +1.}
After observing over time, I realized something:
The color of the affection window changes depending on the emotion the person feels.
Red = love, Orange = friendship, Yellow = amusement, Green = respect, Blue = awe.
Purple… I wasn’t sure yet.
‘It’s like a rainbow.’
But the most important one was pink.
Because that represented…
Primitive human desire.
“Noah.”
“Yes?”
I crooked a finger at him, pointing to the undone buttons on the back of my dress.
“Can you see this? I can’t reach… would you mind?”
I really was a genius.
Turning a crisis into an opportunity like this.
“Could you fasten them for me?”
I subtly hid my rising smile behind the fan.
I couldn’t believe I had to resort to such shamelessness for an affection boost.
‘But I love it.’
“Master, please lean in a little closer…”
He gently swept my hair aside so it wouldn’t get caught in the buttons, then bent down to match my height and began fastening them one by one.
I could’ve sworn I felt warm breath grazing my back.
Gulp.
Must’ve been my imagination.
Oh no.
Am I going to get a nosebleed or something?
‘Maybe I should’ve picked a dress with more buttons.’
I was absently touching around my nose to check when our eyes met in the mirror, and I quickly stood up.
“Ah. Not done yet.”
“I’ll just ask Sophie to finish the rest.”
Right after that, I heard the familiar “brrring” sound and saw him nod slightly, cheeks flushed.
Thankfully, I don’t think he noticed.
{system: Affection with ‘Noah Iosif’ has increased by +1. Current affection: 77.}
When I checked the window again, just as expected, it was a lovely shade of pink.
“We’ve arrived.”
With a rattle, the carriage came to a stop, and the door opened.
I peeked my head out and saw rows of red brick rooftops laid out in neat rows.
“…Wow.”
I let out a quiet exclamation in awe.
Noah stepped out first and offered his hand.
Taking his escort gladly, I hopped down from the carriage.
People dressed in all kinds of colorful clothes.
Stalls lining the streets in every shade.
Narrow alleyways packed shoulder-to-shoulder with crowds.
It was exactly the bustling market scene I had always dreamed of.
So different from that cold mansion filled with nothing but gold and jewels.
This place was full of life and the scent of humanity!
As I stood there, eyes gleaming, Noah gently tapped my shoulder like he was trying to snap me out of it.
“This isn’t your first time here.”
“…Well, yeah.”
‘No, actually, it is my first time…’
I had only skimmed through it in the game.
But if I said I’d never been to the market in my whole life, they’d think I was weird, so this little white lie was necessary.
“Shall we go to the place you wanted to visit first?”
The place I wanted to visit?
“The weapons shop?”
He shook his head.
“No. I meant the new tea shop.”
Tea shop?
Did I ever say I wanted to go there?
Since when did I develop such a refined taste?
“You mean Café Mont Blanc?”
“Oh.”
A soft exclamation escaped me.
Café Mont Blanc was where the heroine, after leaving her rural home in Kenis, visited for the first time upon arriving in the capital city of Serkalana.
She had been humiliated by a rude server while ordering dessert, and then Kyle, who happened to be there, stepped in to help her—marking the beginning of their relationship.
But did I really mention that I wanted to go?
Oh well.
It was 2 PM.
If I rushed, I might still catch that fated encounter.
Whhhsshhh…
A dry leaf fluttered down onto my head.
This sign in front of me—please don’t let it be a hallucination.
I waved my hands at it and blinked rapidly.
But no matter what I did, it didn’t change.
‘Closed.’
“I’m sorry. We’ve sold out of all our desserts today.”
The server bowed repeatedly in apology.
I asked with a bitter tone.
“Then, did a brown-haired, brown-eyed woman come by? Oh, and with a tall, rude-looking guy wearing black gloves?”
“Brown hair and eyes are too common… and no such man came in today.”
The server looked pale.
Dun dun dun…
What was going on?
I squatted down in front of the store with a groan.
If not here, where would they meet?
Maybe I should’ve gotten here faster?
‘No, wait.’
They never came in the first place.
“Haa…”
‘Where did it all go wrong?’
The only person I’ve wooed so far is Noah—so why is the plot already going off the rails?
As I sat there looking deflated like wilted spinach, Noah crouched beside me and began smoothing out the wrinkles in my skirt.
“This place must be popular.”
“…Yeah, it’s a hidden gem.”
I smiled sadly.
“Hidden gem?”
Noah tilted his head at the unfamiliar word.
“It means a place that’s better than the others.”
Of course, the real treat was the male lead’s face.
Kyle, with his jet-black hair and sapphire-blue eyes, was the classic cold nobleman from a northern duchy.
If Noah was a delicate, pretty boy, Kyle was the icy, untouchable male lead of romance novels.
He even had a character trait where he hated being touched by women.
The black glove on his left hand—worn to hide a scar from a childhood accident—was his signature charm.
He was one of the most popular characters in the original game.
‘He was easier to conquer than Shuwaden, I think…’
Not that it mattered since I was targeting Noah anyway.
While I was deep in thought, Noah tapped my shoulder and suddenly handed me something.
A small, heart-shaped pink cookie.
I looked up at him with sparkling eyes.
“A cookie?”
“It was cute, so I bought it.”
It was cute.
A heart-shaped cookie topped with rainbow sprinkles.
As I stared at it, I played with the shiny silver wrapper and asked,
“Where’d you get it?”
“From that stall earlier.”
I followed his gaze to see a cute pink cart.
‘Marie Claire.’
<Give your love to someone special.>
The large antique-style sign stood out.
And of course, the entire line was made up of women.
Just imagining Noah lining up in that crowd to buy this cookie made my lips twitch into a smile.
“Thanks.”
“…It’s nothing.”
“You and Sophie are the only ones who take care of me.”
Despite it being an empty compliment, his face turned bright red.
‘Yup, definitely weak to compliments.’
I tore open the wrapping and took a big bite.
Mmm.
The sweet taste of chocolate filled my mouth!
It had been so long since I’d had proper dessert.
The mansion’s fancy treats, made from the highest-quality ingredients, were so sweet and greasy they never suited my taste.
As I savored the cookie, I felt someone staring at me.
Did I eat it too enthusiastically?
“Want a bite?”
I held out the half-eaten cookie toward Noah.
“It’s really good.”
He looked between the cookie with bite marks and my lips, then turned his head sharply away.
His ears were burning red.
‘Is it the cold?’
It was unusually chilly for early winter.
He said half-elves don’t get cold easily though.
‘Was he just pretending to be tough?’
Crumbs from the cookie fell onto my chest.
Maybe I shouldn’t have worn such a low-cut dress today.
If I moved a little more, they’d probably slip right down inside.
“Do you have a handkerchief?”
I turned to ask him, and sure enough, the crumbs slid right into my cleavage.
‘Damn it. I should’ve just stayed still.’
Who was it that said doing nothing gets you halfway there?
“…I’ll go buy one as quickly as possible.”
He stood abruptly, speaking stiffly like a machine.
‘It’s really not that urgent…’
“Wait, take some money—”
But he was already long gone.
I reached my hand out toward his retreating figure, blinking blankly.
Ding!
A familiar sound rang out, and another affection window popped up.
{system: Affection with ‘Noah Iosif’ has increased by +1.}
“…Huh?”
And the color was a clear, unmistakable pink.
