When Pride Fell At My Toes - Chapter 34



Only Noblemtl

#34. Secret Promise
2024.02.03.

“What aspect do you think would fit well?”

“I think your free side is similar. I thought it would be a very good relationship where we can pursue what we want without being restricted by each other.”

“Free side… … . That would suit my nephew better? Oh, unless it’s a casual relationship, I guess having a fiancée won’t work.”

Alessandro’s mouth trembled slightly. He was smiling, but it felt like he was holding something back.

“Haha, you still have no talent for jokes.”

“I don’t joke around.”

Enrico muttered absentmindedly, releasing the hand he was holding and wrapping his arm around her shoulder again. Rather than the uncomfortable position he had just been in, Emilia glanced at Enrico and then looked straight ahead.

Alessandro’s light purple eyes looked cloudy for some reason. Was it because of the shadow of his mask? Emilia tilted her head as she saw Alessandro, who looked a little different from the affectionate appearance she had seen him in the past.

Are they not on good terms? They were polite to each other and called each other “uncle” and “nephew,” but the atmosphere didn’t seem all that great. It wasn’t something she had to think deeply about, but since it was happening right in front of her, she began to look at the two.

“The wine is too sweet. By the way, why are you the princess of the Kingdom of Carent?”

Enrico ordered his servant to give him a non-alcoholic beverage and picked up a wine glass on the tray. Enrico, who had been slowly sipping the white wine, frowned as if he didn’t like it and opened his mouth.

“… … I think these days, countries need to unite in order to move forward.”

“Aha, unity. That’s a good name.”

The servant quickly brought a glass filled with a new drink and held it out in front of Enrico. Enrico let out a soulless exclamation as he handed the glass to Emilia.

“But wasn’t the Kingdom of Carent where trains were first developed?”

“Yes.”

“They say the environment for manufacturing parts is well-equipped, so it must be quite helpful for the development of automobiles. That must be a good thing for you, Count.”

Alessandro frowned at the unexpected change of subject. Suddenly Count Vallemont, who caught Enrico’s gaze, opened his eyes wide and showed his wariness.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know why you’re suddenly mentioning me.”

“Why are you pretending not to know now? The Count’s love of automobiles has been rumored everywhere, so you must have had no intention of hiding it, right?”

“That’s… … . When you do business, rumors can’t be helped. But I’m curious as to why you thought of combining automobiles and trains.”

Count Vallemont wiped his dry lips with his tongue and laughed awkwardly. Enrico laughed briefly at him.

“Automobiles also have parts. I thought at least one of the materials used in trains would go into it, so I asked.”

Looking at Enrico, who said that he had shamelessly poked at him, Count Vallemont forced a smile with a speechless face.

“Ah… … . I poked at him- haha.”

“And it wasn’t leaked. Count, didn’t you intentionally leak it to monopolize the automobile investment?”

“T-That’s not true.”

“There’s no need to hide it. I’m not particularly interested. I was thinking of investing in it before, but I backed out a long time ago because there was already an investor. But that investor must have a pretty big stake, so did you receive a bond transfer?”

Enrico asked with a really indifferent expression. Count Vallemont hesitated for a moment, looking at him, who seemed to be just curious about the process, as if he had no interest in anything, and

then opened his mouth. “It’s going to happen soon.”

“Soon? Then you haven’t received it yet. If you don’t, it’ll be a big deal.”

“Oh, you can definitely receive it. I helped you so much.”

As the conversation progressed, Count Vallemont’s stiff face relaxed a bit, perhaps because his guard was letting down. Emilia listened to their conversation quietly, barely able to sort out her confused thoughts.

‘So you’re talking about the car investment transfer right now? Didn’t my parents say that they had the largest share? Didn’t that share go to someone else?’

She felt she had to find out who on earth had agreed to give it to her. The dirty greed that he couldn’t hide was clearly visible in Count Vallemont’s eyes. Seeing Count Vallemont’s appearance of revealing his true feelings whenever he was careful, now seemed like the best time to ask him something.

“You must have done me a great favor. The car would cost quite a lot of money, you know.”

“Oh, without exaggerating, you can say that I changed your life. So you wouldn’t feel bad about giving me anything. Haha.”

Vallemont smiled proudly in response to Emilia’s natural question.

Who on earth changed your life? Was there no choice but to ask Enrico to investigate Vallemont’s activities up until now? On the outside, he nodded, but on the inside, he only became more wary of Count Vallemont.

I wanted to ask him who he was, but I wondered if he would tell everything to someone who didn’t even reveal his identity, and I kept my mouth shut because I thought he might be suspected. I was disappointed that he didn’t seem to be able to find out anything directly, even though he had followed me around.

Of course, it was good to hear this story in person. If I hadn’t heard it in person, I would have had to wait for Enrico to tell me the story,

which would have dragged on for a long time. A strange atmosphere flowed for a moment, and the first one to break it was Alessandro. He was smiling softly, his dark atmosphere from before nowhere.

“The greeting has gone on too long. I hope you have a good time.”

Emilia bowed her head politely as Alessandro bowed his head politely, and then she quickly disappeared with a sinister smile at the woman in the corner.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

While she couldn’t take her eyes off Alessandro’s back, a scarf got caught on Alessandro’s arm as he passed by. Emilia felt the thin cloth wrapped around her back and arms slipping down, and as she bent down slightly to grab it, she stopped when she heard a voice whispering softly.

“I have something to tell you. I’ll contact you on Sunday, Emilia.”

Alessandro, who had been casually picking up the scarf and passing by, called her name. As if he had known who it was all along.

Fortunately, Alessandro returned the scarf, saying it hadn’t fallen on the floor, and left. It had happened so quickly that she was flustered. How did he recognize me? Was the mask crooked? She groped and carefully touched the mask.

‘It’s the same… … . How on earth did he recognize me?’

Emilia lowered her hand and blankly stared at the spot where Alessandro had been standing a moment ago.

Enrico, who had been quietly watching Emilia, who seemed slightly agitated, heard the music change and took his hand off her shoulder. Then he grabbed her left hand and led her to the center of the ballroom.

She was being led by his hand, and she realized that she had entered the middle of the dancers and tried to get away, but it was too late. A subtle smile settled on Enrico’s lips.

“Smile. So that others can see it.”

There was no trace of laughter in his narrowed eyes. Emilia just sighed inwardly at his attitude, which seemed to have calmed down for some reason. She wondered if he had suddenly become capricious again.

‘What can I do? I have to do as he says.’ She

was the one who was disappointed.

Emilia’s pink lips reluctantly curled. His large hand immediately wrapped around her slender waist, and her delicate hand touched her broad shoulder.

However, as she got closer to him, she finally felt the gazes of those around her. Even in the heated atmosphere where the intense sound of the performance continuously filled the ballroom and the laughter of people in pleasure mixed together, he was still catching people’s attention.

Even though he was covered with a mask, it was only around his eyes, so that alone was not enough to hide his identity. After all, his high nose bridge and sharp jawline seemed unusual. Furthermore, it was true that his suit-wearing clothes looked better than others.

‘Ah, this is difficult… … .’

His gaze that constantly glanced at him was also mixed with curiosity about himself. He was clearly Duke Michele, but he could hear the woman he came with asking who she was.

Emilia brought her face closer to his chest. Even with the mask, she couldn’t help feeling uneasy. Since it wasn’t a place where all nobles were invited, no one would recognize her, who was considered a lower-class person, doing ballet.

“… … Can we go now?”

Emilia whispered very quietly so that the people dancing around her wouldn’t hear. However, whether it was because of the music or intentionally, Enrico lowered his head and brought his face closer. He even slightly twisted his head, so that if he looked from afar, he could be mistaken for kissing her.

“No, why are you so close!”

Emilia whispered, pulling her head back again.

“I can’t hear you.”

He twisted his lips into a smile. Looking at that smile, I was sure he had heard me and was doing it on purpose.