Theon bit his lower lip as if he were sad for his lover who was trying so hard to pretend to be fine.

Soon after, he pulled Ayla, who was facing him without saying a word, into his arms.

Maybe it was Theon himself who wanted comfort.

Theon, who was rubbing his face on her small, delicate shoulder, slowly raised his head.

His reddish lips lingered briefly over Ayla’s, making a kissing sound.

“Did you make a good impression?”

His pleasant voice flowed into Ayla’s ear, who kept her eyes closed naturally.

“There’s no point in talking about it. I did a great job. With my eyes, bam! I overpowered him. But I felt sorry for him, so I had a hard time.”

“It will be fine.”

Theon smiled as if Ayla’s appearance, talking loudly as if asking for something obvious, was cute.

He grinned, fiddling with her soft cheeks.

It was as if he was handling a child, and although Ayla wrinkled the tip of her nose to show her displeasure, she didn’t seem to want him to stop.

“But… Will this really work? After all, he is just a boutique employee.”

“Many people gather in that boutique. There is a reason why Orhan did everything he could and made an appointment there.”

“?”

“The boutique where Pierre works at handles clothes that are more expensive than you can imagine. Everyone who claims to have a position in the Stellen Kingdom will gather there.”

“But will Pierre do what we want?”

“He must have been quite offended because he is a man with strong self-esteem.”

Ayla, who was quietly pondering Theon’s words, slightly nodded her head in affirmation.

Whatever happened, it was important to secretly spread rumors about the community for now.

It was a time when the road had to be opened so that important people could visit it without being exposed.

Under those circumstances, Pierre, the boutique employee, played a very central role in this job.

It was all planned, even deliberately hurting his self-esteem.

Since she did a hit-and-run at the right time, all she had to do was leave the rest to Orhan.

Click.

The two people, who were silently exchanging glances, looked at Orhan who had entered through the open door.

The two swallowed dry at Orhan’s expression, not knowing what he was thinking.

***

A heavy silence fell between the three people sitting opposite each other.

Elin, who brewed the tea, slowly scanned the three of them with her eyes.

“What about Pierre?”

With a firm expression on his face, Theon broke the silence with his low voice.

Orhan’s expression changed slightly as he held the teacup and quenched his thirst.

They didn’t express it, but everyone was waiting for Orhan’s next words.

Even Elin, who was not familiar with the situation, had her eyes fixed on Orhan.

“I think it will proceed as expected. He seemed to be pretty offended.”

“A woman, and a very young one, is the leader; there is no way he can endure that with his patriarchal personality.”

As if expecting Orhan’s answer, Theon answered in a dry voice.

Orhan nodded at his words and then continued.

“He didn’t make it obvious since he is a merchant by nature… But I think things will start moving soon.”

“Are they related to the Libro community?”

“There is word that they provide expensive items that go into clothing. Although I expect it to move towards Libro as well if things go well… this part is still unclear.”

Hearing this for the first time, Ayla opened her eyes wide and looked at Theon.

After he told her about Count Serdian, Ayla became depressed whenever she heard anything related to the Libro community.

He didn’t want to confuse her in advance.

As if saying sorry for not telling her in advance, Theon gently brushed Ayla’s hair downwards.

Orhan and Elin frowned slightly as they watched their display of affection.

When the two of them were present.

***

“Elin. Could you bring me another cup of tea?”

“Yes. I’ll prepare it right away.”

Ayla, who had been reviewing documents the whole day, spoke in a low voice.

While calling for Elin, the gaze fixed on the bunch of papers showed no sign of moving.

How many cups was it already? The number of empty teacups piled up next to her was quite big.

Contrary to everyone’s expectations, no one came to the mansion even though they were fully alert.

Thanks to that, she had more free time, but it wasn’t something pleasant.

“Take it easy.”

Orhan, who suddenly approached her, said bluntly to Ayla.

“I took it easy for the past few days, so there are a lot of things to check.”

“The Princess must rest so we can rest too.”

“Ah… Sorry. I didn’t realize that.”

Embarrassed, Ayla covered the papers she was looking at.

Orhan let out a small sigh as he saw Ayla scratching her face and looking around.

Even though she seemed smart, she was no different than an idiot at times like this.