Chapter 168.

“Miss, it’s time to go.”

Emily came to pick me up shortly after the Duke went out.

“Yeah.”

I nodded and slowly stood up. Following Emily down the hall was more stuffy than expected.

The venue for the coming-of-age ceremony was not the ballroom inside the villa, not the front courtyard, but the backyard decorated. It was the Duke’s idea. It was a place where I often spent my time, and it was so pointless. I suppressed the lurching once more, then stepped out splendidly through the open back door. Bright sunlight illuminated. The place that I couldn’t enter or leave for two days because of the preparation of the dining room changed into something different.

. beautifully decorated tables with white draperies trimmed with magnificent gold veils, flowers, and various jewels and countless tables . The huge fountain, which had not been there a few days before, took possession of the center and spouted water. Like the great beauty that adorned all these things, a rare rain of sparkling flesh-colored flowers poured slowly from the sky.

“It’s not fantasy, it’s materialization magic, miss.” Emily whispered happily.

“For today, the Duke hired wizards in large numbers.” Hearing that, it seemed like a bit of a clue as to why the Duke said he couldn’t forcefully cancel it either. This one was simply the ultimate in money-smashing extravagance.

“It’s so beautiful, isn’t it, Miss ……”

Emily murmured with dreamy eyes looking up at the sky. I reached out my hand. Just in time, a falling petal stuck to my palm. At that moment, I couldn’t stop my waltzing face from becoming a blur.

The true face of the lovely flesh-colored petal was Leonard. To avoid Leonard’s right and wrong, it was pointless to say pretty in front of the Duke. Silently, I looked at it. Suddenly, someone grabbed my hand that was reaching into mid-air.

“What are you standing here stupidly for?”

Snapping my head up, I saw familiar pink hair.

I asked with a frown.” What.”

“No male companion even helps protect you from a bar mitzvah, right? Hey, what would you really do without me?”

“No need, just go alone. I said no talking for now.” I said pointedly, then snapped and shook off the grabbing hand.

“Hey, hey!” Leonard hurriedly grabbed my hand again.

“Let go, you hear me?”

“What will happen to Eckhardt’s prestige if you go off alone like that? With two brothers, will you be accused of escorting none of them to Minto?”

“What do you know.”

Twisting his arm unconcernedly, Leonard cried out sharply.

“Dad! Dad told me to look after you and make you think! Hey. Daddy made me do it, didn’t he? Uh?”

He glared at Emily. A frightened Emily nodded carelessly.” Well, well, well, well, Miss! I’ve heard that too! The young master is to be escorted to the auditorium …….”

“You see, she’s heard it too!”

It was an anxious lie to anyone who looked. I sighed involuntarily and applied force to my arm. I didn’t want to get involved with this Leonard guy either, but continuing to flirt like this seemed to draw everyone’s attention.

As if there wasn’t an arm, silently moving his feet, the guy rushed to follow. Look at the smiling face

Bugger, fixing the sight only on the front side.

There’s a distance to the terminal over to the center fountain. Like a gentleman, walking down the red carpet with Leonard who supported my waist and hands, I heard a familiar voice.

“The rumor that it’s not the child that was launched, but the duke’s beloved daughter is really true.”

“So far, despite fighting that kind of losing battle …….”

“The second duke personally escorted all …… of them. But what is the necklace decoration? Geez, it looks expensive.”

That instant. Suddenly the eyes opened up.

< System >Reputation reached +100 due to the improvement of the relationship with the people around me.(Total:460)

I watched with rapt attention the news of increased fame that rose on the last day of Hardcore Mode. Hands raised higher as the NPC’s gibbering sounded good. After weeks and weeks, I finally reached my spot for the day. Leonard completed the task, but didn’t leave my side.

Continuing to bother, I was the only one stressed, so I got a free tour of the water-spewing fountain. But the tiresome horrible mouth didn’t leave me alone.

“Is …… still mad about that?”

“No.” I answered immediately before he could finish his sentence.

“Huh.” A gust of empty wind made Leonard feel exasperated.

“Pretend to listen and then answer, huh?”

“I’m listening.”

“Twist it tight.”

Though he tried to ignore it, the hateful words squirmed beneath his eyes.

“What makes you think I’d be angry? I’m anything but.”

“Talking right before you screamed strangely?”

“I’m sorry it didn’t live up to expectations, but it’s a shame about the timing of pouring that kind of emotion into you.”

“Yo, our boy. Twisted.”

He said as he gently pinched my cheek. I snapped to only hand and yelped in shock.

“Are you crazy?”

“Ugh. Now just guess right.”

“Ha ……”

I sighed deeply and fixed my eyes in the fountain again. The ceremony hadn’t even started, and it already felt like the day was over. The moment that I resolved to completely ignore from now on for the sake of my mental health.

“…Sorry for the misunderstanding.” Came a low voice. I looked back at him again like someone who heard an unfamiliar voice. That time Leonard didn’t face me this time.

“I didn’t do it on purpose. You know that too. I babble like a wimp sometimes.” It was surprising that he knew about it personally.

“When you’re not trying, you want to be with me, so you’ll hug me, I guess.”

“That’s what it is, seeing Oraby as water.”

When he glanced at me without moving, he frowned and mumbled.

“In fact, if I thought about it at the time, I don’t know why it was like that ……. Is it because of the confusing location of the dream?”

“…… Dreams? What dream?”

“I had the same dream as that situation the night before. So I thought you were really her. What’s that, Derrick had that one.”

Leonard cocked his head and jumped in front of me in a flash.

“So be good normally, huh? Do you even dream of losing if you’re wrong?” Suddenly, the tip of the head stood up. I had a vague idea of where that had come from.

Apparently, Iben had tried brainwashing on the Duke and Leonard as well. I clasped my trembling hands backward and opened my mouth.

“Don’t you feel pity?”

“What?”

“Because my bar mitzvah is probably something your real sister is going to continue to hide.” At my words, Leonard shrugged in reply.

“Well? It’s not confirmed yet. It’s true, so if dad confirms it, just go pity her then.”

Freed from the effects of brainwashing, Leonard also seemed indifferent on his sister’s debut. I kind of froze. Iben appeared, putting up all sorts of alarms and nerves as if I was the only one. Ha, the Dukes have dealt with countless other crooks aiming for gratuities so far. If it’s true here, this side is more natural though …….

“Eh.” The succession of thoughts ended due to Leonard’s strange behavior. The guy who suddenly bent down, rolled up the cloth hanging down below and took something out of it.

“Here, take it.” What he gave me was a rather large wooden box.

“What?” I froze inexplicably. So he blankly opened the crate.

A quick confirmation of the contents of the crate and my eyes slowly widened. On the straw that was spread out all over, four cotton balls the size of a palm were huddled together, huffing and puffing.

“It’s …… a bunny.” White, gray, black, and finally rust-colored spots in a sky-blue background.” What kind of bunnies are ……?”

“The rabbits you’re releasing are beating the chicks to a drum near the practice field. These are already three years old.”

“Ah.” Forgetting all about it. At the end of the hunt, the guy who doggedly asked if there was any prey he wanted answered “rabbits.” There was a stupid sound.

Leonard frowned viciously.” You didn’t peek, did you?”

Not only did he not see, he didn’t even know that he took care of the rabbit. Panicked, he shifted his eyes back to the box and Leonard pointed to one of the cubs.

“This is my gift.”

It was the unique rabbit with green polka dots on a sky blue background. Staring blankly at it, Leonard chanted silently.

“It cost a lot of money, and a southern rabbit, paired with a sky blue one, a cub with the same color of your eyes.”

“Is it a pigment? Does it darken the color?”

“That’s nothing a brother can’t say. Am I a fool? Uh?”

Breathlessly rhetorical, Leonard shouted. But probably being hit squarely in the face, his face turned red.

“Just look at the way he jumped, it’s called Chad Green! Is that right?!” Struggling for a moment he burst into a rage. Afraid of waking the rabbit, he immediately looked into the box and carefully closed the lid.

“Take care of yourself. Because now you’re the mother.”

“Where’s the mother? None?”

“Children who were abandoned or whose parents died because they were weak. Just left to die of starvation.” There was a bit of respect for that statement. I called to Emily, who was standing beside me, and held out the box. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible to abide by Leonard’s words to take care of him. But like the true pink rare bird Derrick wanted to give him as a gift, it couldn’t be ruthlessly refused.

Newborn, soft-hearted. Responsible, too, but feeling that Leonard had gone to so much trouble to raise him that he couldn’t bear to ignore it.

I’ll whisper it later.” …… Thank you for the gift, brother.”

My words make Leonard smile with his teeth showing.” Happy birthday, Penelope.”

The light pink goodwill gauge bar on his head shimmered. Looking at it strangely, the back-up party became noisy. Leonard, who suddenly turned his head to confirm the reason, frowned and said.

“Hey, Haya Fan is here. It seems like it’s about to start nagging.”

This was the patriarch of the Eckhardt family, who had come to perform the bar mitzvah benediction. Although he didn’t appear in the game, he was known by the butler beforehand.

“I’ll bring dad, so you can stay alone for a while.” Like a member of the legitimate family, he was busy carrying out the activities.

“But where the hell is brother when he’s busy? Is it something to do, why should I.”

About to turn his head away from him. Suddenly my cheeks heat up. Unintentionally moving my eyes I came face to face with someone.

The purple favorability gauge bar flashed in the middle of the cold table where the seats were still occupied. It was Winter.

It’s been a while, and his unmasked face haunts my coolness. The wary military blue pupils seemed to go back to the early days, when they infiltrated his secret space.

“What, just fine?” I silently endured his icy stare.

Good information dealer, he should already know. Iben returned to the Duke’s house, somewhere in the mansion.

Winter had been supposed to bring his mistress on the day of the Bar Mitzvah, and had poured his heart into her role. Seeing me who was forced to entrust me after all the mistakes he made against me in Tratan were revealed, what is he thinking now.

At the time. Pinned to me, his icy vision clattered down. He stared at the side of the dress instead of my face.

“Ah, fuck.”

Following the gaze, I realized what he was looking at and briefly chanted curses. Having forgotten to take off my necklace because of my conversation with Duke, I did as I was told and here I am. The perfectly grown up costume was a very mismatched accessory. What to do.

“Should I take it off now too?” Of course it would be fine. The bottle was forgotten in the room.

It was the moment of overlooking the oily white beads and conflicting what to do. Suddenly the vision darkened.

“Male female.”