DED 41

Chapter 41

Lucy’s escort knight gave his statement to the guards.

Only after everything was settled did Lucy manage to leave the area together with Bartholomew.

“Did you know this was going to happen?” Bartholomew asked Lucy.

“Know what?” she replied.

“It felt as though you were looking for the blacksmith because you already knew something like this would happen.”

Lucy flinched.

She couldn’t exactly say that she knew because she had played the game and was aware of the incident in advance.

“Of course not.”

She exaggeratedly frowned, as if the idea were ridiculous.

“I’m participating in the hunting competition, after all. I just wanted to have at least one proper weapon prepared. That’s why I headed there.”

Bartholomew didn’t seem to fully believe her explanation.

It felt suspicious, but unless Lucy could foresee the future, there was no way she could have known about the situation beforehand.

“Still, it was reckless.”

“Me?”

“What if you had gotten caught up in it along with that girl?”

Bartholomew asked seriously.

His tone was slightly reproachful, so Lucy responded as if offering an excuse.

“The situation already looked serious, so I had signaled my escort knight beforehand. And then a young girl tried to step in, so I just stopped her.”

“That girl’s name is Lena Wolffield.”

Bartholomew came to an abrupt stop and looked at Lucy.

Lucy stopped as well and faced him.

“Did you help her knowing she was connected to Logan Wolffield?”

Lucy swallowed dryly.

She didn’t know why Bartholomew was pressing her like this, but every word he spoke was sharp.

“Of course I didn’t know! The world really is small.”

Lucy shook her head.

“Whether I knew or not, what does it matter? No matter who that girl was, if she tried to get involved in something that dangerous, I would have stopped her.”

Bartholomew turned his gaze away from Lucy and started walking again.

“Well, I suppose that does sound like something Princess Lucy would do.”

Lucy quickly caught up to him and asked,

“Is that a compliment? It kind of sounds sarcastic.”

“It is sarcastic.”

“……Young Master Bartholomew, are you angry?”

Bartholomew suddenly turned his head and looked at her.

“Of course I am. You could have been in danger.”

“……”

“Even if it hadn’t been you, I would have stepped in.”

His brow furrowed.

“Why do you insist on putting yourself in danger?”

Listening to his sharp words, Lucy’s eyes gradually widened.

“Young Master Bartholomew, were you worried about me?”

Bartholomew was momentarily left speechless.

He himself hadn’t understood why he was so angry.

But Lucy was right—he realized that it was because he was worried about her that his emotions wouldn’t easily settle.

When Bartholomew fell silent, Lucy smiled shyly.

“Thank you for worrying about me.”

“……”

“I’ll make sure not to step into situations like that again.”

“……”

“So please calm down now.”

Lucy leaned slightly toward him as she spoke.

Bartholomew, who had been stiffly holding his expression, let out a small sigh, as if admitting defeat.

“You promised.”

“Of course.”

After confirming that Bartholomew had calmed down, Lucy smiled.

She hadn’t expected him to get angry out of concern for her.

It showed just how much Bartholomew cared about her.

Just as she thought—she and Bartholomew really were friends.

“It’d be a shame to head back now. Let’s look around the shopping district a bit more.”

Bartholomew nodded.

“Shall we go somewhere that sells martial arts equipment?”

Lucy shook her head.

“Let’s go to a café. Let’s have some tea.”

At the sudden suggestion, Bartholomew raised an eyebrow.

“Come to think of it, I don’t know your dessert preferences at all, Young Master Bartholomew.”

“I don’t really have any preferences.”

“Oh, come on. Once you try it, you might think differently.”

Thinking of the skewered food she had eaten at the night market, Lucy led Bartholomew to a nearby elegant café.

She suddenly remembered the café she had once visited with Alexander.

Would Alexander be there if they went now?

If they went there, wouldn’t Alexander and Bartholomew run into each other?

How would the two of them react if they met?

Could she figure out what kind of relationship they had from that reaction?

Lucy soon shook her head.

She didn’t want to use the time she had decided to spend alone with Bartholomew as if she were playing the game.

Once they were seated at the café, Bartholomew looked rather awkward.

It was a café frequented mostly by young noble ladies, so men were rare to begin with.

And with the appearance of a handsome man like Bartholomew, all eyes naturally turned toward him.

Lucy hadn’t intended to make him uncomfortable, and she grew flustered.

“Shall we go somewhere else?”

Bartholomew shook his head.

“We’ve already taken a seat. Why bother?”

He was momentarily flustered by the cute interior decorations, but the gazes of others didn’t seem to bother him.

“Then shall we order a standard tea set?”

“That sounds fine.”

Lucy called over the server and placed the order.

Before long, a teapot for two arrived along with a three-tiered tray filled with an assortment of desserts.

Lucy’s eyes sparkled as she looked at the beautifully arranged treats.

Desserts were served at the annex too, but compared to these, they had been rather plain.

After all, this café was famous for its adorable desserts.

Lucy and Bartholomew had entered without knowing that, but Lucy felt as though she had struck gold.

“Wow. This muffin is so cute. Doesn’t it look like Cerberus?”

Lucy pointed to a muffin topped with white cream.

The white cream was shaped like a puppy, with chocolate chips pressed in for eyes and a nose.

“It does resemble him.”

“How am I supposed to eat something this cute?”

Murmuring that, Lucy did the opposite of what she said and decisively split the muffin with her fork.

Bartholomew, who had been thinking of Cerberus while looking at the muffin, was slightly taken aback when he saw it mercilessly cut in half.

“Wow, it’s so good!”

Lucy’s eyes shone as she spoke, having already taken a bite.

“Hurry and try it!”

Bartholomew felt awkward about sharing a dessert with Lucy.

Was this really acceptable?

If one followed proper etiquette, wasn’t this inappropriate?

But such thoughts were meaningless in front of Lucy.

When the Imperial Princess told him to do something, that was the law.

Thinking that, Bartholomew lifted some muffin and cream with his fork and put it in his mouth.

It was soft and sweet.

He was happy to be experiencing desserts for the first time with Lucy, but he also realized that he didn’t particularly like sweet flavors.

As if rinsing away the sweetness in his mouth, he took a sip of the bitter tea.

“Young Master Bartholomew, try this one too!”

Lucy planned to share every dessert on the three-tiered tray with him.

Bartholomew couldn’t bring himself to refuse.

Lucy looked far too excited, and it was clear she wanted to share this enjoyment with him.

So Bartholomew continued eating the desserts she offered, one after another, each sweet enough to make his tongue ache.

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

Seeing this, Lucy mistakenly thought that he liked desserts.

In truth, Bartholomew was simply smiling because he was looking at Lucy.

Lucy, who enjoyed herself like a child.

Her face widening in surprise every time she took a bite.

Her bright smile as she urged him to hurry and try it.

To Bartholomew, that sight felt sweeter than any dessert.

Why was that?

He didn’t know the reason.

Lucy just had that kind of power.

Just seeing her smile made him want to smile along with her.

Bartholomew had no resistance when it came to her smile.

The pain that tightened his chest had eventually become familiar, but Lucy’s smile felt new no matter how many times he saw it.

Bartholomew cut the dessert in front of him into small pieces and ate slowly.

He resented how quickly the desserts disappeared.

He had felt this same emotion before.

Back when he had watched the fireworks at the night market.

He had felt good, yet at the same time, an overwhelming sense of fleeting emptiness.

He was plagued by that same feeling now.

That was why he savored the dessert, hoping this moment wouldn’t end too soon.