Chapter 20 – ​20

The ​morning ​before ​the ​wedding ​dawned. ​The mansion was ​somewhat ​hectic, ​and ​the ​servants moved about more ​busily ​than usual. Until ​now, Raymond had ​been ​the ​one ​to ​wake ​Euro every morning, ​but ​today, ​other servants woke ​him.

After a simple breakfast ​in his ​room and ​finishing his ​preparations to ​go ​out, ​Euro went down ​to the ​first floor alone to ​look for Raymond.

“Were you ​looking for me?”

Raymond approached ​Euro shortly ​after. ​As always, he looked neat and ​tidy, but fatigue was ​evident ​on ​his ​face.

“You’re ​very busy, aren’t ​you? Is ​there ​anything I can ​help ​with?”

“Ah… no. Thank you for ​the offer. ​The ​preparations for tomorrow’s ​ceremony ​are ​nearly ​complete, ​and Madam ​Diena ​is scheduled ​to visit this afternoon with the finished ​wedding attire. However, ​may I ask ​what brings you here?”

“Ah, ​yeah. I’m ​planning to go ​out ​for a bit. ​I called you ​to tell ​you ​that you ​don’t ​need to ​prepare ​lunch for ​me.”

“You’re ​going ​out?”

Raymond looked puzzled. ​Not ​only did ​Euro ​have ​no ​acquaintances in Silon, but if there was something he needed, he could have simply asked for it to be procured; the idea of him insisting on going out himself was strange.

“I’d like to use a carriage visit our siteto get to the shopping district. I’ll [stolen content]call a hired carriage on my way back, so it’s fine.”

“No, no. I will wait until you have finished your business, so please do not worry about that. May I ask the purpose of your outing? If there is an item you require, I can bring it to you quickly.”

“There’s something I want to see and buy myself. You’re busy, so don’t worry about it. I’d just appreciate it if you could let me use a carriage.”

“…Ah, yes. I will prepare it immediately. Since the shopping district is near the central plaza, I will instruct them to guide you that way.”

“Yeah. Please do.”

Raymond then called a servant and ordered the carriage to be prepared. He then asked Euro with a somewhat worried expression.

“Will you be alright going alone? The city center is quite crowded, and you might get lost. How about taking a servant with you? If you require an escort as well…”

“What do I need an escort for? I’m just a man walking alone. It’s fine. But I would like a servant. If possible, I’d prefer someone young; there’s something I want to ask.”

“Yes, I shall do so.”

A carriage was waiting in front of the mansion entrance. Following the servant’s guidance, Euro stepped outside and blinked, half-dazed by the sight of the magnificent carriage.

Even the carriage Norden had provided wasn’t this extravagant. The white carriage with gold wheels looked like something a fairy-tale princess would ride; it was almost embarrassing to step inside.

“Um, is there another carriage?”

“Pardon? Ah… shall I bring out a larger one?”

“Is there a carriage larger than this?”

Euro was appalled. A carriage larger than this would be practically like carrying a whole house around. That would be animal cruelty. What sin had the horses committed to deserve that?

“No, no. It’s too big. Is there a smaller carriage? I feel like people will stare too much if I go out in something like this.”

“Ah. No, sir. This is quite ordinary.”

Ordinary, my foot. That was clearly by the standards of a Dukedom. Does having too much money not only destroy one’s sense of finance but also make one indifferent to public attention?

If this carriage was considered ordinary, there was certainly no more modest carriage than this. Left with no choice, Euro climbed inside.

A short while later, the carriage door opened, and a young girl bowed her head in greeting.

“Hello, Your Highness. I am Courtney, and I will be attending to you today.”

“Nice to meet you, Courtney. Hurry and get in.”

Euro said this and reached out his hand to Courtney. Startled, Courtney shook her head.

“No! I can get in by myself!”

“I know. It’s fine, so just take it.”

Looking at her youthful face, he wondered if she was fifteen or sixteen. Courtney hesitated, her face flushing red, but since Euro showed no sign of withdrawing his hand, she had no choice but to take it and climb into the carriage.

Even after boarding, Courtney could not look Euro in the eye; she kept her head down, clutching the hem of her skirt tightly with both hands.

Seeing her like that reminded Euro of the younger children he had lived with at the orphanage. He could vividly remember how they used to praise him as a celebrity, even though he had only appeared on a survival program a few times and hadn’t even made a proper debut.

‘It would have been nice if I’d succeeded a bit sooner, so I could have gone to the kids’ graduation or entrance ceremonies.’

They would have loved it. They could have bragged that their big brother was a celebrity.

Children living in orphanages were often bullied at school. It would be great if they were adopted early, but those who weren’t were always disheartened.

Having lived in the facility until adulthood without being adopted himself, he knew that feeling well. That was why, if he ever succeeded, he desperately wanted to be a source of strength for the younger ones.

He hoped they could make many friends and enjoy school life, even if it meant using his name and face to do so.

Euro spoke to the hesitant Courtney in a gentle voice.

“This actually worked out well. I was hoping a girl would come.”

“P-pardon?”

“Well… I have an older sister in Norden, and she was very worried about me when she sent me to Silon. So, I wanted to send her a gift to let her know I arrived safely and that she shouldn’t worry, but I’m not very good at picking gifts. Courtney, you’d know what’s trendy in Silon better than I would.”

“Ah, I see. I don’t know if I can pick a gift suitable for a princess, but I will do my best.”

Courtney snapped her head up and answered energetically. Euro nodded, thanking her.

…Actually, it was a total lie. Having spent almost all his travel funds getting here, he had no money to buy a gift for Clope.

The real reason he was heading into the city was to obtain medicine to use on the first night after tomorrow’s wedding.

He couldn’t spend his remaining money on anything other than that medicine, and the gift for Clope was merely an excuse for a natural outing.

Anyway, once he returned to the mansion, it was obvious that either Melione or Raymond would grill Courtney about what Euro did while he was out.

In that case, it would be enough for Courtney to simply say that she helped Euro pick out a gift for Clope, just as he had told her.

Of course, using Clope as an [stolen content]excuse weighed slightly on his mind. Melione suspected that he adored visit our siteClope and had come to marry in her stead.

If the guy—who had been shouting that he fell in love at first sight—was found to be going out to buy a gift for Clope the day before the wedding, the elaborate persona he had built might collapse.

But it couldn’t be helped. If Euro Leches went out to buy a gift for someone, the only person it could possibly be for was Clope Leches.

‘It would be best to pretend I’m buying a gift for Melione, but I have no money.’

He planned to return after pretending to pick a few things, saying the money wasn’t enough. He figured that if he acted that way throughout the process of picking a gift, he might even look pitiful.

‘I’ll just pick a few things and then say I’ll replace it with a letter, and just buy some stationery. I don’t know if they sell that, though.’

Euro muttered while staring out the window. The city center, which he hadn’t been able to see properly because he had been walking in a state of total exhaustion after the carriage broke down, seemed incredibly vibrant, perhaps because it was daytime.

“Your Highness, we have arrived, please step out. The carriage will be waiting here.”

Courtney, who hopped out of the carriage first, reached out her hand, as if imitating Euro’s behavior at the mansion. Euro burst into laughter, took her hand to step down, and then placed a hand over his heart and bowed politely.

“Thank you for the escort.”

“I-it was nothing…”

As Courtney turned her head away, her face flushing red, Euro spoke with a smile on his lips.

“Um, Courtney.”

“Yes?”

“I heard in Norden that there’s a delicious ice cream shop here called Vero Vero.”

“Oh, how do you know that?”

Surprised by the familiar name, Courtney blinked at him.

“I heard it from someone who came from Silon a long time ago. I really want to try it; could you possibly buy some for me? I’ll wait here. Buy something for yourself too.”

As Euro said this, he reached for a pouch in his clothes. Courtney waved her hand and pulled a velvet pouch from her own pocket. She then took out a single coin.

“The head butler gave me separate money. He told me to pay for anything with this. This is plenty for ice cream, so I’ll go and get some.”

“He gave you money?”

“Yes. I’ll be right back. No, it might take a little while… there are usually a lot of customers there.”

“Alright, take your time. I’ll be waiting in the carriage.”

After handing the velvet pouch to Euro, Courtney dashed off toward the ice cream shop. Watching Courtney’s receding figure, Euro suddenly looked at the coachman as if he had forgotten something and spoke.

“Oh dear, I forgot to tell her what flavor I wanted. I should just go with her. Wait here.”

“Yes, understood.”

The coachman answered without suspicion, and Euro naturally started walking in the direction Courtney had gone, only to immediately turn a corner, avoiding the coachman’s gaze, and hurry toward the central plaza.

‘Good, that was natural.’