An all too sudden ambush of a question.
Khhff.
Casey, about to sip her tea before the meal, ended up spurting it out without meaning to.
Marias gently scolded her.
“My, my. How clumsy of you. That part of you hasn’t changed at all.”
“Kehlok, kehlok. Th-that’s because you suddenly throw out a question like that...!”
“I hardly think it was something I shouldn’t have asked. Or is there something you’re guilty about?”
Her innocent expression insisted she had no reason to react so violently.
Ludger realized it then.
‘She did it on purpose.’
From his view, Marias had deliberately flung such a question just to tease Casey.
Timed exactly as she lifted her teacup.
She even mentioned marriage while Casey had only spoken of a fiancé, which meant she was already suspicious of the relationship.
‘Since I agreed to go along with this, I can’t ruin it here.’
Ludger smoothly pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and held it to Casey’s face.
“Wipe.”
“Uh, huh?”
“No. I should do it myself.”
Before Casey could say anything, Ludger gently dabbed away the spilled tea from her lips.
His touch was as delicate and soft as if treating a lover.
Casey felt good without realizing it.
When she did realize, her face flushed bright red.
‘W-what are you doing!’
Casey whispered low so only Ludger could hear.
‘What do you mean?’
‘Th-this! Wiping my mouth with your handkerchief! It—it looks like we’re real fiancés!’
‘Isn’t that the act we’re supposed to keep up? And it’d be best to tone down your reaction. Your sister will be watching suspiciously.’
Only then did Casey understand, coughed awkwardly, and allowed Ludger’s hand.
Marias covered her lips with her hand and laughed.
“Oh my, you two are really close. I feel embarrassed myself.”
“Sh-shut up.”
Casey, her face scarlet, snapped at her sister.
She flicked her hand and evaporated all the spilled tea from the floor.
Marias, still smiling, only stirred her teacup with a small spoon.
“So then, how long have you two known each other?”
She dropped sugar cubes into her tea.
Not one or two, but enough that the liquid nearly spilled over.
Even Ludger shivered at the sheer flood of sweetness.
And it wasn’t for show—she drank it all.
She really drank that?
Enough to trigger acute diabetes.
Even Ludger, resistant to most poisons, was aghast inside at Marias’s eccentricity.
Perhaps sensing his stare, Marias said,
“I do a lot of brain work, so I need frequent sugar replenishment. Please understand.”
“...Ah, yes.”
Ludger nodded reluctantly.
Now he understood a little why Casey called her sister insane.
“So what I’m curious about is—where did you two first meet? You know, that commemorative first encounter.”
“At the start of this year. I went to Rederbelk and met him there. Since he’s a Seorn teacher, we happened to cross paths.”
Noticing Ludger’s gaze, Casey’s choice of words shifted oddly as she pointed to him.
Since she came out that way, Ludger nodded along.
“Oh, really? But Casey, haven’t you been so busy lately? You wouldn’t have had time to meet anyone.”
“Hmph. What do you mean none? Wherever I go, people stick to me, I meet enough to be sick of it.”
“Lies.”
Marias cut her off flatly.
The firmness made Casey’s shoulders twitch.
It was like her sister had eyes on her every move.
“It’s true.”
Ludger spoke up to help.
“In fact, I first met her at the Kunst Auction House. When I was caught up in an incident there, she helped me. That was the start.”
The Kunst Auction House incident.
Ludger deliberately brought it up.
“...”
Marias stared at him, judging if it was truth or lie.
Her eyes were narrowed to slits, but he could feel her intent.
‘Of course she’d know. That such an incident occurred, and that Casey and I were both there.’
But the exact details of what happened between them there—no one could have confirmed.
At the time, all eyes had been drawn to the monster of Jévaudan.
So if he claimed that was the encounter that led to this relationship, Marias couldn’t refute it.
Because it wasn’t a lie.
‘I and Casey Selmore were at the Kunst Auction House. A terrible incident happened there, many died or were injured. Just that is enough of a premise.’
They had indeed run into each other there, so it wasn’t entirely false.
Marias’s intel would not contradict what Ludger said, so she had to accept it for now.
“Mr. Ludger, you certainly speak well.”
Those words carried heavy meaning.
But Ludger took it as simple praise.
“I am a teacher. Teaching students well requires at least that much.”
“Oh my. Then your students must truly enjoy your classes.”
“That I can’t say for sure.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll receive the highest score in the faculty evaluation.”
“How would you know? The results aren’t out yet.”
“I heard rumors.”
“Rumors, you say.”
Absurd. Such internal evaluations wouldn’t leak.
This was both display and threat.
Marias was subtly saying, I know everything. You’re not lying, are you?
‘Truly, like sister, like sister.’
Neither sibling was ordinary, and Ludger found them troublesome to deal with.
But it had been a long time since he conversed with someone while wearing a mask like this.
He felt a faint thrill from the nostalgia.
He sipped his tea lightly.
The food was cooling, but he had no appetite in this atmosphere.
‘She doesn’t entirely doubt me—she’s more concerned about what kind of man has gotten involved with her sister.’
So the worry for her sister was real.
Since she even received reports of her sister’s every move, that love must be quite heavy.
‘Even Princess Aileen wasn’t like this.’
The Princess gave autonomy while appearing domineering.
Marias appeared to grant autonomy while binding tightly.
Same purpose, opposite means.
The commonality: inside, both were far darker than they seemed.
‘Whether that’s insult or praise, who knows.’
Then Marias smiled brightly.
“But what I really wonder is, how did you come to be engaged? Outwardly you look suited, yes, but the important thing is compatibility of personalities.”
“I told you. We met at the Kunst Auction. After that we ran into each other a few more times and continued the connection.”
“Who confessed first?”
A casual question.
They answered simultaneously.
“Of course it was him.”
“She did.”
Both turned to glare at each other.
“You confessed.”
“Wasn’t it you first?”
“What?”
Casey’s eyes flared.
Ludger didn’t back down.
He would play the fiancé, but not yield on this.
Marias, who had asked without thought, was startled.
“S-so who was it?”
“It was him.”
“She did.”
“...Ha. Really?”
“I don’t know what you mean. Who was it that clung first, again?”
“When did I ever—”
Casey was about to shout but remembered she had done something similar.
She quickly counterattacked.
“You’re the one who threw the first advances. Sneaking up to me with ulterior motives.”
She alluded to the Delica Kingdom incident.
“You were the one who sidled up first and asked sly questions.”
“No. I was simply curious, that’s all.”
“Oh, so that’s how you’ll play it?”
Ludger shrugged at Marias.
“Your sister says so. Perhaps from shyness she doesn’t want to admit it.”
“Look who’s talking.”
Their attitude could have endangered the ruse.
But ironically, in their genuine quarrel, Marias saw traces of the playful squabbles real couples had.
“You two are very close, aren’t you?”
At first, when her sister said she was bringing a fiancé, Marias had scoffed.
A fiancé? You? I’d sooner believe an elf dating a dwarf.
She knew Casey.
Her sister was an arrogant bundle of confidence, praised as a great detective, never corrected by anyone.
Her natural talent had helped too.
Casey had always soared upward, never tasting defeat, never maturing.
Even after the Delica Kingdom incident made her grow somewhat, to Marias she was still a child.
A child who had once declared she’d rather grow old alone than bother with men.
And now suddenly she brought a fiancé?
And so soon after Marias had sent a letter?
Clearly she just dragged in some stand-in to play the part.
So she kept probing Ludger.
But he deftly brushed aside her questions and provocations.
She thought he was just playing along.
Yet looking now, it didn’t seem so simple.
Because she could tell as her sister.
Casey’s tone with Ludger might sound like she was quarreling, but she never spoke so familiarly unless with someone truly close.
Whether fiancé or lover, she definitely has feelings for him.
Her rowdy little sister had finally met someone. Should she congratulate her?
Or should she warn Ludger Cherish to find a better woman?
She also wondered: what about Ludger himself?
If Casey felt this way but his feelings weren’t mutual, it would end poorly.
As her sister, she needed to know.
Especially the way he wiped her lips—far too practiced. Clearly not the first time.
Was he a master with women?
Marias watched him more seriously.
Brr.
Ludger shivered without meaning to.
‘What? A sudden chill?’
He looked—the source was Marias.
‘She suspects?’
Perhaps they had bickered too much.
Under the table, Ludger tapped Casey’s arm.
She caught on, held her tongue, and straightened her posture.
“...”
“...”
“...”
An odd silence hovered.
Casey forced a laugh.
“Shall we eat?”
And so the meal began, whether going down throat or nose.
* * *
Afterwards, Marias said the two must be tired from the journey and assigned them rooms to rest.
Ludger ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) and Casey accepted gladly—they both needed time to think.
But a problem arose.
“Why are you here?”
“What do you mean? This is my room.”
“It’s the room I was given.”
“What?”
Casey frowned.
Ludger was equally perplexed.
Frederick had just assigned him this room.
There was no chance of mistake.
Yet Casey was here.
“...Ha. Damn sister.”
Casey realized it was Marias’s doing and shook her head.
“So what now? Since it’s your home, can’t you just go back to your old room?”
“I was going to.”
Casey opened the door to leave.
And right there stood Marias Selmore.
“Do you like the room?”