By Zephyria 
Even so, he was far from being a Casanova. In his teens and early twenties, he’d had maybe three girlfriends in total.
Of course, Cassian, who had always lived the life of a diligent model student, did have the experience of a one-night stand exactly once, during a period when he dreamed of a rebellion in his life. However, the result of that sole act of debauchery returned the next day in the form of a fierce pummeling from a peanut who knew nothing of the world.
Right, that damn brat. Those tiny fists were so stinging.
Grind. The moment he gnashed his teeth, the memory of Bliss—who had woken up and struck his alter ego—came rushing back in an instant.
“…Gasp.”
As the buried, terrible memory surfaced vividly, he felt a chill run down his spine. Cassian took a sharp breath and hurriedly looked down. Fortunately, that area was safe. Which was obvious, of course.
“Sigh.”
Letting out a complex sigh, he looked out the window again with a serious expression. What did he do with his girlfriend back then? It wasn’t easy to dig up memories from over ten years ago. Moreover, a date to appease that raw peanut crumb. He couldn’t even imagine what he was supposed to do.
Should he just ask Penelope to come up with a plan?
He no longer cared about things like dignity. He had to do whatever it took to escape the crisis facing him. All while trying to ignore the miserable reality that he had to cater to a mere peanut.
Before he could give up on everything due to self-loathing, Cassian quickly called Penelope.
—Yes, Count. This is Penelope. Shall I send Bliss out now?
The butler’s voice, answering immediately after only two rings, sounded practically ecstatic. As if she had absolutely no interest in the fact that not even an hour had passed since Cassian left the castle.
“No, Penelope. That’s not it.”
Barely swallowing a groan bubbling up from deep in his throat, he answered in a voice he forced to be nonchalant.
“I don’t know what the… no, Bliss’s tastes are, so find out what would be good to do. It wouldn’t be bad if you came up with some ideas yourself.”
—Oh my, just do what you usually do, as usual.
So what exactly is ‘as usual’?
The butler chuckled and teased him, but Cassian’s mind didn’t change.
“Call me back within an hour. I’m hanging up now.”
Before the butler could grate on his nerves any further, he hung up first. Now, let’s wait for Penelope’s answer. Taking a deep breath and leaning deep into his seat, something entered Cassian’s field of vision.
…Come to think of it.
Staring blankly at a flock of birds flying away in a group, he vaguely remembered. When was the last time he observed birds?
It felt as distant as his last date. The birds had already disappeared from sight, but Cassian remained lost in thought, his gaze still fixed on the empty air.
After ending the call, Penelope looked down at her phone with wide eyes. She was stunned, unable to believe what her master had just said.
The Count is asking me for advice?
It made no sense. As a long-time enthusiast of romance novels, Penelope had a clear understanding of all the ‘successful’ men in London society. Among them, Cassian Strickland, the current Count Herringer, was literally like a swan among geese.
An elegant posture, tall height, cool beauty, and on top of that, immense wealth and fame. Since he was literally a ‘man who had everything,’ the Count surely must have had countless romantic experiences.
Of course, in recent years—well, ‘recent’ might be a stretch, but regardless. Since he had accumulated experience over time, seducing Bliss should be easier than sitting still and breathing.
And yet, the Count is asking me for advice?
“I wonder what’s going on?”
Penelope muttered aloud, pacing back and forth in the same spot. There was no way the Count knew absolutely nothing about dating…
“Oh, that’s it!”
Suddenly realizing, Penelope clapped her hands with a loud snap. Even a seasoned man is bound to be at a loss and make mistakes when it comes to the person he feels love for for the first time. Yes, the Count has entered that stage. He might have won over others’ hearts effortlessly until now, but when it comes to someone he’s become ‘sincere’ about, it’s different, so it’s only natural for his mind to go blank.
If that’s the case.
“Don’t worry, Count! Just trust this Penelope!”
She stood facing the direction where Cassian likely was and declared confidently. Now, next.
“Bli—no, Blair. Blair!”
Calling out for Bliss, who must be somewhere in the vast castle, Penelope ran down the hallway with steps as light as if she were flying.
“Ugh, ugh.”
Rubbing away old dust stuck to the window frame, Bliss frowned as much as he could. Why won’t this come off? Is this just a pattern?
“What’s wrong, Blair? Is there a problem?”
Dorothy, who was wiping the adjacent window, asked Bliss as he squinted and checked the window frame here and there. Bliss answered while still staring at the frame with a serious face.
“No matter how much I rub, this won’t come off, so I was wondering if it was originally like this.”
“Let me see. Ah, this.”
Approaching readily to check the spot Bliss had been wiping, she chuckled and took out one of the detergents placed on the floor and sprayed it there.
“Now, just leave it for about five minutes and then wipe it.”
“Wow, I see.”
He wondered why there were so many types of detergents, and it turns out they all had specific purposes.
As Bliss nodded in fascination, the employee put the detergent back in the container and said,
“It’s really nothing. Americans might not know.”
She curled the corners of her mouth into a painted smile and slanted her eyebrows. At the kind voice, Bliss laughed and replied,
“I’ve never done this before. Thanks for teaching me.”
For a moment, Dorothy’s face stiffened. However, she soon returned to a nonchalant expression and pointed to the other side.
“Now wipe over there. You can do it, right?”
“Yes, I can!”
Answering excitedly, Bliss hummed a tune and sprayed detergent on the window frame. Okay, five minutes from now. Thinking that, he tried to put the detergent back in the container, but Dorothy, who had been watching him, gave a strange smile and picked up a bottle next to the one Bliss had used.
“It’s this one.”
“Ah.”
Spraying the detergent ostentatiously, she added with a smirk,
“It’s not as easy as you thought, right? I understand. I’ve heard Americans just talk loudly but aren’t very bright, but at least Bliss isn’t loud, so that’s a relief.”
When Bliss paused and turned his head, Dorothy gave him a wide smile. Facing the purely smiling face, he likewise smiled back and answered,
“I’m originally a bit quiet.”
“Are you?”
As Dorothy chuckled and turned her head away, Bliss added one more thing.
“I heard British people are all ill-tempered and only talk behind people’s backs, but Dorothy is kind, so I like it!”
Dorothy’s face froze instantly. At the gaze directed toward her, Bliss once again curled the corners of his mouth into a bright smile. A compliment for a compliment. Because I am a polite person. Just as he puffed out his chest with confidence, a ringtone sounded from his pants pocket.
Tilting his head, Bliss checked the caller and knit his brows, staring at the screen for a moment. Then, with a deep breath, he answered the phone, and a familiar voice was heard immediately.
—Bliss? Is this Bliss?
“Yes, Penelope. Yes. Yes. …Right now?”
After giving the same answer a few times, he looked surprised and then let out a small sigh.
“Alright, yes.”
After hanging up, Bliss looked toward the employee, who asked in a heavily sarcastic tone,
“I assume Penelope is calling you?”
“Yes, she told me to come right now.”
To Bliss, who answered honestly, she threw the rag into the water bucket with a loud thud for all to see and sneered with a twisted lip.
“Then you should go. Don’t mind us. This is the kind of work people like us do. Blair is different from us, isn’t he?”
Though she spoke with maximum sarcasm, Bliss’s reaction was completely different from what she expected.
“Right, then.”
Similarly throwing the rag he was holding into the water bucket with a clunk, Bliss smiled brightly at Dorothy, who had her eyes wide open.
“I’ll be going now. Oh, there’s a huge stain over there. Don’t miss that one either. Well then, bye, Dorothy. See you later. Bye!”
“Wait—”
Dorothy was flustered and tried to stop him, but Bliss immediately turned around and ran away. Staring blankly at the trace of him that had vanished, the employee finally screamed with a face flushed red.
“Crazy, what the hell is wrong with that guy?!”