HFMD - Side Story 1 < A certain romance (3) >




Swish swish swish.

“...”

Swish swish swish.

“...”

Swish swish swish...

“Oh, seriously, stop it! It’s because of you that the tea is spilling, you rascal!”

The woman, who was furious when the tea spilled while putting the teacup down on the table, screamed.

Hearing her scream, Millea flinched and stopped shaking her legs.

“S-sorry. Erica. Should I give you a handkerchief?”

“A handkerchief, please! If you’re going to bother people like this while being anxious, just go ask them! Ask them!”

“Ah, Erica! No, Sister! Don’t hit me! Don’t hit me!”

How many times has that apology been? She comforted and worried enough.

In the end, Erica exploded, picked up the cushions on the sofa, and started hitting Millea.

Millea raised both arms and covered the cushions, groaning.

It was quite a commotion for noble ladies in their prime, but the servants of this mansion had become accustomed to their antics, so they did not react at all and went about their own business.

How much time had passed?

Erica and Millea collapsed on the sofa, panting together.

Millea, leaning her face against the armrest of the sofa, muttered in a gloomy voice.

“I’m sorry... I’m sorry that I’ve been living at your house for half a year already, but I’m too...”

“Oh. I told you not to say you’re indebted to me. You can’t even say sorry.”

Erica, who was leaning against the armrest on the other side of the sofa, reached out and slapped Millea on the thigh.

Millea simply smiled, knowing full well that it was her consideration.

Baroness Erica Leasing was Millea’s cousin, and she was currently living with her husband in a small mansion in the capital.

Like Millea’s family, the Baron Leasing family was actually more of an ordinary family than an aristocrat, and Erica and her husband were not the type to show off their aristocracy.

That’s why they didn’t bother to show their faces in society.

The Baron Leasing couple readily welcomed Millea when she came to the capital for her debutante, and Millea stayed at the Baron’s residence for about half a year.

Originally, she should have gotten married last year and left. But Millea wanted to make the most of her one-time marriage, and no matter how beautiful she was, the capital’s social circle was a place where it was difficult for a daughter of a poor noble family from the provinces to survive.

Half a year had passed.

Now that she had finally settled down in the capital’s social circle, she thought she would be able to find a decent marriage partner...

“Oh, I still get mad when I think about it! That old piece of trash, that pervert!”

“What’s wrong with being trash? Think again with a more creative curse.”

Millea sat up from the sofa and became indignant.

This time, Erica applauded without stopping.

Empowered by the applause and cheers, Millea, who had been cursing for a while, leaned back against the sofa again.

She buried her face in the cushion and muttered gloomily.

“You’re all wrong... How did I last half a year? Of course, if I could go back in time, I would have punched that bastard in the jaw again, but my reputation, my image... Sob.”

Erica let out a deep sigh at the lament that had begun again.

She said with an arrogant expression.

“The Marquis wouldn’t go around bragging about getting beaten up by you.”

“Of course. A guy like that would never say that he got beaten up by a woman much smaller than him and passed out. Because he’d think that was embarrassing.”

“Then what’s the problem, anyway! If a person with common sense saw that scene, they would have cursed the Marquis together, not you?”

“A normal, sensible person would do that! But the other person is Albus Florette!”

Millea finally burst into tears.

Erica clicked her tongue and said, “Again, again. Again.” and focused on looking at the ledger again without even thinking about stopping her.

“I was so rude, and there’s no way he still has feelings for me...”

If Albus Florette and Millea Bogens had been on friendly terms, where they could just pass each other and ask each other how he was doing, she wouldn’t have been so troubled.

However, Millea embarrassed Albus Florette because of her own discomfort.

She could have politely declined, but she didn’t.

Why? Because she didn’t like Albus Floret.

All she had was her beauty that would fade with time, and Albus Florette was the kind of person who would take even that away.

She didn’t even think about hiding those feelings, so there was no way Albus Florette still had feelings for her.

Rather, what if they take the opportunity to witness such a sight and distort the facts to spread rumors?

'...Still, I guess I should go out.'

If only I had my way, I didn't want to stay in bed and do nothing.

Millea just wanted to pretend to be dead and sleep for three days.

However, Millea had a duty to take care of her family.

She eventually sighed and straightened up.

The party Albus Florette was attending was tomorrow.

***

"Hello, Young Lady Bogens."

"Yes? Oh, yes..."

The next day.

Millea had to face Albus, who greeted her calmly with a smile as soon as their eyes met at the party.

'What, what is it?'

Her face was convulsing from embarrassment, but she desperately held on to a smile and held out her hand.

Albus, who politely pressed his lips to the back of her hand and then pulled away, smiled brightly.

"Then I will be leaving now. Have a good night."

"...Your Excellency, too."

Millea stammered her answer.

In the meantime, Albus, who had bowed his head without any regrets, turned away and walked away.

Her pale beige eyes blinked in confusion. A reasonable suspicion settled in her mind.

'Are you trying to hint at me? I know your weakness, so be careful... something like that?'

As Millea had expected, the Marquis of Tresid had completely withdrawn into the mansion after being beaten by her and had not attended any parties.

Millea was delighted to hear that his son had also followed his father into the mansion. They would not have to blush if they ran into each other.

However, she had definitely not expected Albus's reaction.

She had thought that he would at least say something about what he had seen back then.

'If you want something, just say it! Say it!'

When Albus did not say a word about the Marquis of Tresid, she became anxious instead.

She glared at the back of Albus' head with a resentful look, but he simply smiled at the others with a kind face.

And so, one day...

"Oh, it's nice to see you again."

Two days...

"I hope you have a good time. Then."

Three days...

‘Say it out loud!’

Every time Milleia attended a party, she would go crazy wondering if Albus would slyly mention to others, ‘Baroness Bogens used to hit people with her heels’.

As a result, she couldn’t help but look at Albus often after attending the party, and she ended up paying full attention to him. It wasn’t long before she realized that this could be annoying to some people, but it was at the Marquis Malen’s party that she attended.

“Baroness Bogens.”

“Ah, Marquis Malen.”

Milleia was glancing at the back of Albus Florette’s head as usual, and when someone spoke to her, she quickly turned her gaze away from him.

The one who spoke to her was Marquis Melen, who was practically the host of today’s party.

Milleia quickly put on the perfect, beautiful smile she had made countless times and politely bowed.

“Thank you for inviting me. You are beautiful today as well.”

“I never thought I would hear such words from Young Lady of Baron Bogens. You are known as the most beautiful woman in the current society.”

“I am just grateful that everyone thinks so well of me.”

It was an answer that neither overly belittled her nor seemed arrogant.

However, the Young Lady of Marquis Melen frowned as if she was uncomfortable after hearing Millea’s answer. It was a subtle difference that others might not have noticed, but Millea could sense it.

‘What?’

Millea quickly searched her memory to see if she had done anything rude, but there was nothing in particular.

Unfortunately, her doubts were soon resolved.

“Young Lady Bogens.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“People who share the same mind tend to recognize each other easily. Isn’t that right?”

“...Yes?”

Millea’s eyebrows narrowed at the unexpected question.

Just as she was thinking, ‘What on earth are you talking about?’

Young Lady of Marquis Melen spread out her fan and covered her mouth.

Above the fan beautifully decorated with jewels and lace, her smiling eyes were fierce.

“Young Lady’s gaze has not left Count Florette lately...”

The moment she heard those words, her heart sank as if she had been caught committing a crime.

“Does Young Lady also have feelings for the Count?”

Millea was momentarily speechless.

Young Lady of Marquis Melen seemed to have interpreted Millea’s glances at Albus as affection for him.

It was a complete truth, so it was just a misunderstanding, and it could have ended with just a nod of her head.

But why?

For a split second, she couldn’t say anything as if she had been hit with the nail on the head.

That embarrassed her.

Millea’s frozen mouth barely moved because it was the behavior she had forcibly ingrained into her body while rolling around in high society.

“No, Young Lady.”

Her body moved before her mind could think.

“You misunderstand. I don’t like Count Florette. Rather...”

Millea’s lips, which had been forcibly curled up, answered without thinking.

“It’s closer to disliking.”

“...”

One of Young Lady of Marquis Melen's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise.

However, what Millea’s eyes caught was someone else’s face.

“...!”

Over Young Lady of Marquis Melen’s shoulder, Albus Florette’s face was looking at her with his eyes slightly wide open.

‘Ah.’

The moment she saw that expression, this time she couldn’t bear it anymore.

Millea hurriedly bowed her head to Young Lady of Marquis Malen.

“Then I’ll... I’m not feeling well.”

“... Yes.”

She nodded with a more relaxed expression than before, perhaps satisfied with Millea’s answer.

Millea ran away from the party as soon as she heard the answer.

She went into a corner terrace, drew the curtains, and sat down, holding onto the railing.

A blank muttering leaked out through her teeth.

“I...”

Why did she run away?

‘Did he hear it?’

Judging from that expression, he must have heard it. There was no way he didn’t hear it. He was so close.

‘Then I’m afraid that he’ll tell people about my true personality this time, saying that I’m annoying... so I ran away?’

No, no.

That doesn’t seem to be the case...

Millea was confused at that moment.

Light shone on the terrace that had been shrouded in darkness, then disappeared again.

Someone had pulled back the curtains and entered the terrace.

Even in her confusion, Millea instinctively frowned and turned her head.

It would be rude to enter a terrace with curtains drawn without permission, but what kind of person would that be...

“...Huh?”

At that moment, Millea’s eyes widened as she confirmed the appearance of the intruder.

‘Count Florette?’

The intruder was Albus Florette.

That alone was surprising enough, but what was even more surprising was...

“Are you... crying?”

Albus Florette was shedding tears.

Millea’s jaw dropped open.

‘Why is it that he’s so... pretty when he’s crying?’

Even in her confusion, she couldn’t help but think that. The handsome man with fine lines had red eyes and was shedding tears, but his appearance was not ugly at all, and rather pitiful.

And that sight caused a heavy ripple in Millea’s heart, which had been silent until then.

“Your Excellency..."

At that moment, Albus’s lips trembled.

He stared at Millea with sad eyes and spoke.

“Why on earth do you... hate me so much?”

“...Yes?”

“I knew that Young Lady didn’t like me... I know that.”

“...”

“But, why...”

Millea’s eyes, which had been wide open, slowly returned to their original size.

She stared at Albus, who was unable to continue speaking due to his tears, and then blurted out an answer.

“Because you’re pretty.”

“...Yes?”

Albus was so surprised that he momentarily forgot to cry.

When he stopped wiping his tears with his sleeve and froze, Millea let out a deep sigh.

Seeing the person he had been wary of crying like a child, she felt a sense of resignation, or something close to emptiness, so she added obediently.

“You are pretty, and at such a young age you have already inherited a title and are the head of a family. Besides that, you have so much more.”

“...”

“But as for me, all I have is... this one face that will rot away when I die.”

As she continued talking, Millia bit her lip, feeling a pang of emotion forming.

Her eyes stung.

“You even took that away from me.”

“...”

“That’s why I... hated you.”

“...”

“Because you took the only thing I had away from me.”

When Millea finished speaking and closed her mouth, silence fell.

The party hall was so noisy, with the thin curtains and doors between them, but here alone, she felt isolated from the rest of the world.

'In the end, it's my inferiority complex.'

Millea smiled bitterly at the belated sense of inferiority. She regretted it, but at the same time, she felt relieved.

It was at that moment that Albus suddenly spoke, still with tearful eyes.

"Why is that all you have?"

"...Yes?"

Millea asked in surprise.

Albus tried to hold back his tears and continued to rambling.

"It must not have been easy for you to settle down in the capital without any connections, but didn't you get to where you are now on your own?"

"..."

"You're confident wherever you go, and... You don't give in to injustice and stand up to it..."

Oh, wait.

Are you talking about the Marquis of Tresid...?

'I did stand up to him...'

The problem is that I stood up too much...

Millea felt a little daunted.

In the meantime, Albus was constantly listing her many virtues, enough to tickle her face.

It was very... strange to hear from someone else about a side of her that she did not know.

Albus muttered self-deprecatingly at the end of his long story.

“I’m just a coward who pretends to be easygoing.”

“...”

“Young Lady Bogen seems... much more wonderful than me.”

“...”

“At least that’s how I feel.”

He finished his words and smiled brightly with a tearful face.

So it was truly inevitable that Millea had kissed Albus Florette that day.

***

Millea, who had started dating Albus Florette, became more beautiful day by day.

Not just her appearance, but the confidence that came out of his small words and actions was enough to make her shine.

And...

“Ah, finally!”

“Wow...”

Millea finally succeeded in stealing the title of Flower of Society from Albus Florette.

It was exactly one year after she arrived in the capital.


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