Viviana stepped out of the bookstore with a smile lighting up her face. She felt so happy that, even though she hadn’t eaten anything, it was as if her stomach were full.
‘Ah, that was a satisfying shopping trip.’
The bookstore had offered to deliver the books to the Fortuna estate, but she refused even that. She wanted to rush home immediately and start reading. She had bought quite a few books on a whim, and once she looked through them, she realised just how varied the material really was.
'I never realised there were so many fascinating novels in the world. There are as many different romance novels as there are people, just like grains of sand.'
Among them, many novels featured a male lead who was an emperor or a duke. When Viviana asked Leta why, she replied, “A male lead’s status is part of his specs. Like height!”
Viviana could barely understand half of what Leta said. Still, she thought that one day, she’d like to be able to show off her own knowledge of romance novels like that.
In the end, Viviana bought a novel in which the male protagonist was a duke.
‘I hope the new one is good… of course, it should be very steamy too.’
Feeling her face flush, her cheeks growing red from her own thoughts, a deep voice spoke from across from her.
"Did you enjoy it?"
“Alto.”
He continued to gaze at Viviana with calm, steady eyes. Startled like a rabbit, Viviana covered her warm cheeks with both hands.
‘What kind of expression was I making? Surely I wasn’t drooling or making some lewd face, was I?’
Blushing, Viviana soon realised who she had to thank for discovering the joy of romance novels and for being able to choose books at the bookstore. It was Alto — because he had actually listened to her.
‘I honestly thought I wouldn’t be able to communicate with Alto at all.’
That was why she had insisted on calling off the engagement without discussing it. Yet, in reality, Alto was considerate of her and listened to what she had to say.
‘I need to respond to his change as well.’
With a mix of apology and gratitude, Viviana smiled.
“Thank you for taking me to the bookstore today. It was the happiest day, all thanks to you.”
At Viviana’s words, Alto’s shoulders twitched. He fidgeted with his fingers, then lightly bowed his head.
“I’m sorry the play had that kind of content."
“Not at all. I actually enjoyed it. Of course, I couldn’t keep my eyes open during the intimate scenes, though.”
Viviana laughed aloud. Alto stared at her, eyes wide, as if hearing the song of some mysterious bird.
“Thank you so much, Alto.”
Once they had warmed up to each other, the conversation flowed easily. The two spoke with gentle affection. The topics were trivial, but unlike before, it was neither awkward nor dull.
Meanwhile, the carriage arrived at the mansion. Viviana was a little surprised at how quickly time had passed, especially since the moments she had spent with Alto before had always seemed to crawl by like a snail.
‘Even though it’s time spent with the same person, the flow of it can feel so different.’
For some reason, parting ways with Alto like this felt regrettable, so the two of them took a walk together in the mansion’s garden. Even though she had seen the garden every day for three years, in the fading light, it felt like an entirely different place.
After finishing their walk, Alto escorted Viviana back to her room. Standing in front of the door, Viviana gave an awkward smile.
“I suppose I should head into my room now?”
Spending time with Alto was certainly enjoyable, but now it was time to wrap up the day and have some time alone.
‘Looks like Leta did a good job organising the books too.’
Buying so many books was one thing, but she still hadn’t finished the one she had started yesterday. Viviana realised how much she genuinely enjoyed sharing her thoughts on romance novels with Leta, and she wanted to finish reading quickly so they could talk about them.
But an unexpected answer came.
"I was on my way here."
“Huh? But this is my room.”
‘Shouldn’t you be returning to your room?’ She indirectly hinted that. However, Alto’s answer didn’t change.
“Didn’t we make a promise? To try to close the distance between us. This is part of that effort.”
“That’s why we went to see the play, right? After such a long outing, you should rest too…”
‘I… I need to read the romance novel I bought today. Please leave me alone now.’
“That was something I wanted to do. Now it’s your turn to do what you want.”
The man, who had spent the whole day moving with remarkable intuition as if he could read Viviana’s mind, suddenly acted as if he didn’t understand her words at all and abruptly stepped into Viviana’s room.
The place he strode toward was none other than the bedside table. The moment Alto picked up the book she had placed there, Viviana let out a scream.
“Ah! Please put that book down!”
But before she could stop Alto, he had already picked up the book. Alto lightly shook the book and spoke.
"Viviana, you want to do the kind of things that happen in these novels with me, don’t you? You said we weren’t compatible because you thought I wouldn’t be able to."
“It-it’s true, isn’t it? You believe that when it comes to men and women, you should always keep your distance.”
“Yes. That’s right. I agree with the view that I’m not someone who can be that open-minded.”
Alto nodded heavily. Just as Viviana’s face twisted at his words, which seemed to completely crush her opinion, Alto added in a slow, hesitant tone.
“…But I enjoyed today. Is it wrong for us to understand and support each other in a bond that isn’t based on physical intimacy?”
Alto and hesitation — those words simply didn’t belong together. Ever since Viviana had come to know the man named Alto Fortuna, she had never seen him waver in a decision. He was always a man of clear black-and-white thinking.
And yet, here he was offering a compromise. The intense relationship she longed for might be impossible, but he suggested spending time together like today: going on dates, sharing the things they enjoyed…
It was true that Viviana had been happy and enjoyed herself today. If she agreed to his suggestion, her life would be calm and uneventful. The elderly Duke Fortuna would soon pass away, leaving her unoppressed, and her family would surely swell with pride, boasting that their daughter had become a duchess.
Even so, Viviana couldn’t bring herself to nod at his proposal. She spoke firmly.
“No. I don’t want to have lonely and painful sex anymore.”
Alto’s shoulders twitched at Viviana’s refusal. The man, who had been hesitating for a moment, spoke in a heavy voice.
"...It sounds as if you’ve already done it."
Ah, ever since her regression, she had been stumbling over her words every time the topic of marital relations came up. Flustered, Viviana waved her hands and hurriedly corrected herself.
“No! I mean I’m scared that it might actually happen. I-I got so flustered that my words came out all wrong.”
Alto stared intently at her face. Feeling a pang of guilt for no reason, Viviana quietly averted her gaze.
Interpreting the awkward silence differently, Alto flipped through the book he was holding. With the bookmark conveniently placed on the section about relationships, he didn’t even need to look for it.
“Ah! P-Please don’t read that!”
Viviana tried to protest, her face flushed bright red, but she didn’t act as boldly as her sharp voice might have implied.
Pressing his lips together, his normally cold and composed expression quickly skimmed over the pages of the book.
Flip, flip.
As the pages of the book turned rapidly, Viviana’s face grew redder and redder, as if she were being boiled alive. To think that Alto had discovered this kind of hobby of hers… She couldn’t excuse it by saying that everyone read such things, since Alto was far too ascetic.
‘I don’t know. This really might be the end of our relationship.’
Viviana was the one who had first asked to break off the engagement, but the thought that Alto might actually consider parting with her made her heart sink.
Just as Viviana felt confused by how much her mindset had changed in such a short time...
Tuk, the book snapped shut. Alto set it back in its place, brushed his bangs aside, and spoke.
“If that’s what you want, we can do it.”
The words were so unexpected that her brain refused to process them. Frozen for a moment, Viviana asked back in a dazed tone a beat too late.
“…Huh? Do what?”
“I mean the actions described in this book. You read it aloud, and I’ll follow exactly what it says.”
“Ehhh?”
It seemed that Alto had no intention of ending their relationship like this.
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