The voices of the two n rang out simultaneously, but it was clear they were heading in completely different directions with their responses. Both of them were well aware of that, no doubt.
Well, neither of them were wrong. They both gave suitably polite answers…
“No, if there’s a situation where I need soone’s advice to finish, I’ll gladly watch.”
“Ah, then I’ll enjoy watching after it’s finished…”
What are you two doing?
The two n exchanged glances. It seed like they were both sending the sa look of confusion to each other, thinking, What? Why did you change your answer?
Yes, yes. I hope you two reach a decent consensus.
But, for so reason, both of their gazes shifted 90 degrees and landed on , as if they were asking what I had to say.
Why?
Of course, I don’t want your answers, and I only have one thing to say.
“The review can be heard from Maria. You two should listen directly on the day of the performance.”
Rick answered first.
“Bit disappointing. I could’ve been a really harsh critic for your sake.”
“Please bear with it, Mr. Rick. What amateurs need is warm encouragent, and it seems you two don’t have that kind of talent.”
“…Why are you subtly criticizing too?”
“You’ve already demonstrated outstanding talent. So, of course, there must be so things lacking.”
“….”
The words, which could have been either an insult or a complint, made Tristan fall silent for a mont before he asked another question.
“So, will you continue practicing with Maria today?”
“Yes. I think Maria will be mine for the ti being.”
“I never asked you to share Maria’s ti with .”
“…I know.”
The sharp remark slipped out, a little too quickly, in response to the obvious underlying tension.
Let’s not make this worse and shift to another topic.
I can’t think of anything to say now… damn it, nothing is coming to mind! Even the Baron yer family’s tea tastes so bad that I can’t even co up with a polite comnt like, “This tea is delicious.”
Luckily, while I was thinking, Maria found another topic.
“It seems that charity concerts are a big event among the ladies. Are there any events with a more male-oriented focus around the sa ti?”
“Ah. The hunting competition is classified as a male event, so we don’t usually gather separately for that. So participate in rowing competitions, but…”
I nodded appropriately.
After a while, as we exchanged small talk about topics I had no interest in, a servant entered and inford us that the training grounds had been prepared. Naturally, Rick was called and stood up.
After briefly greeting Maria, Tristan turned to .
“I’m looking forward to your performance.”
“I hope I can live up to your expectations.”
“No need to even hope. It will surely… exceed your expectations.”
“…”
Even after the greeting, his gaze lingered on my face for quite a while before finally looking away.
It would’ve been better if he had just rudely nodded and left.
It’s exhausting trying to figure out the aning of every action of his, and honestly, I dislike myself for even paying attention to it.
Naturally, my practice performances took place only in front of Maria. Her complints were sincere, and even her advice was soft, so I left the Baron’s estate feeling in good spirits.
However, the mont I stepped out of the estate…
Is Tristan still working?
…I found myself instinctively searching for the royal carriage, which just annoyed further.
What is this feeling?
When I first got reincarnated here, I thought I could just wait until that jerk apologizes and grovels. I thought I could ignore the romance stuff and just enjoy the food…
…Ah.
“I haven’t had anything sweet for a while.”
They say that cutting out flour and sugar makes you more irritable—looks like it’s true.
“And I want to sohow get rid of these mixed-up feelings.”
In the end, I chose one place to go for a break.
The Sacred Salon.
“Welco, my lady. Is everything all right? You look like you’ve been pushing yourself too hard. We need to give you a nutrient-packed rest.”
The employees at the Sacred Salon, though masked, seed to have gauged my condition and guided to a plush sofa.
Beside the drink I had ordered, there were cookies I hadn’t asked for. The buttery cookies tasted so delicious, they reminded of the ones only served to distinguished guests at the Redfield estate.
It was sumr. The biggest event, the hunting competition, had ended, and the horse races were held only occasionally at night to prevent horses from collapsing due to heat stroke. The atmosphere in the salon was more about relaxation than the heat of competition.
The music is nice too…
I felt like I could just waste ti here and it would be fine.
But just as I finished the cookies, a familiar guest arrived.
It was Rick Ray, wearing a skull mask.
“It’s been a while. May I join you for a mont?”
“What’s the matter?”
“I wanted to apologize. I didn’t behave very well at the salon last ti.”
“…Ah.”
That guy had gotten drunk and made a scene after seeing Maria and Arthur getting closer at the hunting competition, and ended up falling asleep in front of .
“You rember, huh?”
“I’m really sorry!”
Rick covered his face—well, his mask—with both hands. His face was probably bright red underneath.
“I’m really sorry. I was personally going through so confusion at that ti, and I couldn’t think clearly.”
“Hm. Can I ask what was going on?”
“…No.”
“Did you co here to apologize or not?”
“Tch…”
“You’re really not going to share anything? I won’t laugh or spread it outside.”
Of course, I wasn’t actually curious about his romantic problems now.
But that day…
That guy, who got practically rejected by Maria and was drunk off his mind, asked about Doris Redfield.
I need to know why.
If he’d decided to give up on love after being rejected by Maria and wanted to get revenge on the Redfields and the royal family, and if I was his first target…
I didn’t want to think about it.
At least it’s a relief that I don’t rember how gross those sticky cookies without packaging left a bad taste in my mouth.
Rick hesitated a bit before sitting down in front of and starting his story.
“I have a childhood friend. She started as a friend, but at so point, I started to have feelings for her. But, before things could develop further, we were separated because of family circumstances.”
“Is that so?”
“Several years later, we reunited this year in the capital. At that ti, she was already close to one of the commoners. They were like childhood friends, almost siblings… or maybe even more than that.”
“….”
Hey, is this your story, or are you talking about Maria?
Seems like he’s mixing in a little lie to avoid revealing his true intentions.
Well, it’s more natural than saying, “It’s my friend’s story!”
Rick, taking his ti switching perspectives, continued, taking deep breaths in between.
“Over several months, I managed to get close to her again. But on the day of the hunting competition, I realized too late that she had already fallen for the commoner…”
“….”
“The sweet look they exchanged in the dark… I couldn’t forget it. So, after the competition, I ca to the salon.”
“Really.”
It’s just a hopeful wish disguised as a defense chanism.
But I didn’t laugh. The person most hurt by his own taphor would be Rick Ray himself.
“If it were , I probably would have collapsed right there, but you held it together.”
“Holding it together? In the end, I caused trouble for you at the salon.”
“You ca to apologize, didn’t you? That’s not trouble, that’s you working through your own process of refining your life.”
“….”
“If I could be there for an important change like that, I’d actually be happy.”
He ca to apologize, so what’s the harm?
Rick then tilted his head.
“Lady. Are you the lady in the red mask? Sohow, you seem so kind.”
“…Do you want to say sothing like ‘You, who don’t know how to confess and miss out on love, only to get drunk and make a scene at the wrong ti, really have a long tongue’?”
“I’m sorry!”
“Ah, really. You act like this even when I give you a little grace.”
Now you’re making feel like playing the role!
I leaned back on the couch like Natalie and brought up the main issue.
“So, why did you bring up Doris Redfield that day? You suddenly asked if she was noble. Did she interfere with your love life?”
“…Huh?”
I could clearly see his eyes widening behind the mask.
“Did I ask you about Doris Redfield that day?”
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