Chapter 8

His response was different from the past.

I felt a little disappointed when I realized I would’ve received this warm welcome had I not punched him in my previous life. 

Even so, I wasn’t only lamenting. I knew my past mistakes more than anyone else, and I was confident not to repeat them. 

I would change things so that despite what he would go through in the future, he would have his eyes on me just like how he was smiling at me now.

Lost in my thoughts, I forgot to greet him back. I quickly cleared my head and responded to him.

“…Nice to meet you, Lord Kraus. I’m Elena Edelweiss, the eldest daughter of House Edelweiss.”

Aghhhhhh!! So formal!!!

Although I was smiling, I was worried that it looked too unnatural. Perhaps it was because I was nervous, but my words sounded stiff like a rock.

Maybe he’ll think I didn’t like talking to him. What if he immediately calls off the engagement? 

All my worries exploded at once. Thankfully, in spite of my concerns, he didn’t seem particularly displeased.

He believed I was nervous due to the people around me, so he talked to his butler and sent both him and Hailey out. As Hailey made her way out the door, she winked at me, cheering me on, and left with a teasing smile.

When the door closed, silence filled the room. Now the only people left in this room were me and him.

Just the two of us.

Huh?

When I realized that, my brain began to sizzle again.

Strange thoughts were not leaving my head today, which made me wonder if I had always been such an indecent person. 

I knew in my head that he didn’t have that kind of personality or was that kind of person to do anything to me. Desire, however, was consuming my thoughts.

A man and a woman in their prime were sitting in a room together. The attendants had already left and were informing the others they were together. 

With my transcendental sense which exceeded a regular human’s, even if someone approached the room, I could simply sense them.

What mattered was that no one would know what went down inside this room if something did happen.

Honestly speaking, a woman like me is worth the touch, no?

I knew how beautiful my appearance was after living a total of three lives. Regardless of his honor or status, there was not a single man who did not glance my way, be it the Swordmaster, the Great Magician, or the Emperor himself.

Even the goddess of beauty, who the priests worshiped, paled in comparison. I wondered if I was cursed by the goddess because of my appearance. 

Of course, I retaliated immediately. After bringing the deity down, I kicked their ass until their butt was burning red.

There were some transcendentalists who were charmed by my beauty and couldn’t resist their desires. They jumped at me which left them in for a lot of pain. 

He had not been among one of them. 

But right now, he had no lover or any animosity towards me.

Then, doesn’t that mean there’s a possibility?

If I had been rational, I would have known that such a thing would not occur, but rationality was beyond me right now.

While I was lost in my delusions, Damian moved first. That small movement made my body flinch. I thought my delusion was finally becoming a reality…but as expected, it never happened.

He merely took two cups out of the tea set beside him and poured the drinks, one for me and one for himself. After he handed me the cup of fragrant tea, he took a sip from his teacup with the same calm expression as when I first saw him.

It was only then that I realized I was imagining nonsensical things.

If the foreign deities and other divine spirits who perished by my hands saw that the Great Magician, who had surpassed God, was swayed by desire and had lost her reason, they would be left speechless.

Moreover, if he were such a man who would have given into his desires in the first place, I wouldn’t have fallen for him like this. I was embarrassed I forgot that and to expect something to happen.

Be that as it may, I was still frustrated that he didn’t find me attractive enough to lose control. And so, I felt glum again. While I fiddled with the teacup, he spoke up first.

“We’re to be engaged, however, this is the first time we’re meeting in person, is it not, Lady Edelweiss?”

“Yes…”

The conversation stopped here.

He thought I was still nervous, meanwhile it didn’t occur to me to converse with him since my head was full with shameful delusions. 

As the room stilled again, I smelled something sweet. When I turned my head to search for the source of the smell, I saw it was coming from a plate next to the tea set he had prepared. There was a food cover over it, which was why I hadn’t noticed it before.

The desserts on the plate were on the same level as those made by the famous Chocolatier in Jeju Island. Now that I think about it, I remember Count Kraus having a chef who worked as one of the Chocolatiers in Jeju island. 

He appeared as though he knew how I would react to the desserts. He looked relieved as he spoke.

“I usually enjoy eating sweets. It’s embarrassing, but I prepared some in advance to have them with you. Do you perhaps enjoy sweets too, Lady Edelweiss?”

“Ah, yes. Yes, I do enjoy them.”

Liar. You can’t eat anything sweet…

The fact that he could not enjoy sweets was one proof that he was not Damian. Damian liked eating sweets more than I did.

The reason why he prepared this was probably because of me and to calm my nerves.

When I heard him mention dessert, I suddenly recalled what I had done to him in my previous life.

It had been in this room, but the mood was much more intense.

Although the desserts were in the same spot, I ruined them by making them fall all over the floor.

We worked so hard to prepare this, now it’s a mess.

He said as stared at the unrecognizable desserts. Unlike now, his gaze had been sharp as a knife.

I see that there is no need for us to talk… Um, I guess we don’t need honorifics either. Elena Edelweiss. You look like you want to cancel this engagement. I’ll do as you please.

That was the end. There was no further conversation and I left the Count’s manor with Hailey without looking back.

Hence my past self and him started off on the wrong foot from the very beginning and we had a hopeless relationship. 

I knew things were different now, but perhaps it’s because of my lingering feelings, I kept blaming myself and brooding about the past. The more I looked at the present, the more I recalled how different things were from my past.

He started placing desserts on the plate with great care. After choosing a variety of sweets, he finally handed them to me with a smile.

If I hadn’t acted in such a way in my previous life, he would have acted in this same exact manner. 

As I stared at the fine refreshments, it reminded me of what I had squashed.

I had squashed his goodwill.

I felt bad and grateful to him at the same time. I had already trampled on his goodwill once. It would never happen again.

I picked a slice of cake among the desserts he gave me, cut it into small pieces with a fork, and took a bite.

“Nyam~”

As expected of a capable chef, the cake tasted fantastic. It was made with the finest chocolate and whipped cream. On top of that, the sponginess and moistness of the dough was perfect.

While I slowly savored the cake, I prayed that I could keep experiencing this sweetness in the future.