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nShe admired it for a long time, but it was not a gift that Noel prepared.

nHe was going to confess all the facts.

n“Hey . . .”

n“Ah?”

nHowever, Rieta’s sudden words cut off the sentence he meant to say.

n“Noel.”

nShe looked back at the paper the brooch was nestled in and smiled.

n“. . . Yeah?”

nCould it be that Hugh McLean’s name was written on the envelope?

nHis words trembled slightly because of his guilt.

n“I was surprised by the gift, but you even wrote me a card.”

n“Ca, card . . . !”

nNoel’s face turned blue in an instant.

nIf Rieta pulled out the card, it would all be revealed that Noel had told a hideous lie.

nHe hurriedly snatched the envelope from Rieta’s hand.

nWhen he looked inside, there indeed rested acard.

n“Why are you taking the gift back?”

nRieta reached out her hand, but he quickly crumpled the envelope and hid it behind his back.

n“What gift? It’s just a card.”

n“The card is a gift too.”

nAs Rieta came closer, he furrowed his brows his face and shouted.

n“There’s not much written! It just says happy birthday.”

n“But why are you taking it?”

nOh, that’s . . .

nNoel rolled his eyes for no reason.

n“No, I’m just trying to put it into words! That’s why!”

n“. . . ?”

n“Happy Birthday! You must be excited to receive a lot of presents!”

nHe hurriedly left Rieta’s room.

nAs he ran to the room, his heart trembled with anxiety.

nWhat should I do? I lied.

nHe really had no intention of doing that.

nAs his dizziness continued, the image of Rieta, who liked small brooches, kept coming to mind.

nIt’s really bad.

nThere’s no way Noel would have chosen such a gift.

nIf she was a close friend, wouldn’t she be able to notice that much?

nAs soon as he returned to his room, he slipped into bed without changing his clothes.

nHe felt like the whole world was calling him a liar, so he covered his head with a thick blanket.

nHe seemed to have heard that spring is coming.

nYet, even if he hid in the blanket, it was so, so cold.

n* * *

nAt the dawning of the next day, Noel felt much better.

nThe day had yet to begin, and Rieta and Noel will spend all that time together.

nMaybe, in the meantime, Noel would be able to utter an apology and the truth.

nBut when he actually met Rieta at breakfast, it was a little awkward.

nOn a day like this, the Duke went to work at dawn, and Darrel skipped breakfast to go to the academy.

nMealtime alone was something strange.

nStill, Noel tried to be brave.

nHe just came up with a good excuse.

n“You . . .”

n“Huh?”

n“Wha, what kind of flower do you like?”

nBut when he asked the question, he was somewhat embarrassed.

n“It’s not something I’m going to give you as a present! Because I’m close to you, people keep coming to ask me . . .”

nHis words were too fast.

nNoel consciously slowed down in case Rieta would not understand what he was saying.

n“People have been asking me.”

n“My favorite flower?”

n“Yes.”

n“Well . . . ”

nRieta scooped up her soup, and she thought about what her favorite flower was.

nThere was no flower that she didn’t like.

n“Oh, yes. The flower Noel gave me. It was very pretty.”

n“Did I . . . give you?”

n“Don’t you remember? I mean when I was sick. Noel sent flowers.”

n“Ah.”

nIt seems to be referring to something pulled from the family room and brought to her.

n“I liked the wide open shape because it was beautiful.”

n“Really?”

nThe flower I gave was the best!

nNoel immediately felt better.

nHe also surged in confidence that he would be able to apologize today.

n“I still don’t know the scent.”

n“Well, you can find the flower again and smell it. As long as you like the scent, right?”

n“Huh. It’s so pretty, I really wish it had a good scent. By the way, what flower was that?”

n“I . . .”

nNoel stopped breaking the bread.

nAfter all, he didn’t even know what kind of flower it was.

nHe didn’t buy it himself, it was just a decoration in the house.

nNoel cried on the inside.

nToday was ‘honest Noel’, so he decided not to pretend to know.

n“What to do, I don’t know the name of the flower.”

n“Who cares?”

nRieta shoved the leftover bread into her mouth and smiled.

n“We can look for it. There’s a flower picture book.”

n“A flower picture book?”

nThat was a great idea.

nBut Noel recalled one blind spot.

nThe point was that the name of the flower was listed in the Botanical Encyclopedia, but it did not tell the scent of the flower.

n“Or would you like to go to a flower shop?”

n“The flower shop?”

n“You said you had to buy a card anyway.”

n“Is it okay if we go out alone?”

nRieta asked worriedly.

nUntil now, when they went out, the Duke or Darrel would accompany them.

n“Even if we go out, won’t someone follow us for the purpose of being an escort anyway?”

nTo Noel’s answer, the butler replied politely, “Of course. You know well, young master.”.

n“Then get ready to go out. I will buy a card with the Princess and stop by the flower shop.”

n“I will prepare thoroughly. Shall I reserve a place for the two of you to have a snack in between?”

nNoel asked “Are you going to eat?”

nOf course, Rieta nodded her head enthusiastically.

nNoel is kind today, she thought.

n* * *

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