Yeu-ju took away my first love, Chapter 77
"Miss, Lady Helen has come to see you."
After the hunting festival, we became quite close, but we weren't close enough for her to drop by so suddenly.
'Something urgent must have happened.'
Come to think of it, she mentioned she was attending Tatiana's tea party today.
While I didn't know much about Filia, inviting Helen, who had almost no influence in society, was clearly intentional.
They didn't like that I was getting along well with her.
'Why do they dislike me so much?'
Even though it's more natural for me to harbor resentment towards her.
"Please have her wait a moment."
I put on my coat and went down to the reception room, where Helen was already drinking the tea that had been prepared.
"Thank you for receiving me so warmly, even without an appointment, Miss."
We often had unexpected guests, but she seemed unaware of this.
"It's only natural when a friend visits. I hope the tea suits your taste."
Helen's cheeks seemed to turn red.
I pretended not to notice and offered her a few more baked treats.
"By the way, may I ask why you came so urgently?"
"Oh, it's about what happened at today's tea party."
She then told me about the strange feeling she had and Filia's condition.
"Could you wait a moment?"
After saying this to Helen, I went upstairs and woke up Pio, who was sleeping on a soft cushion with his belly exposed.
"There's something I need you to check."
I grabbed Pio by the neck and quickly went downstairs.
Helen, who was about to compliment Pio, closed her mouth.
He looked more fierce and wild than a dog.
Moreover, as a knight, Helen might have noticed that this wasn't an ordinary dog.
Pio, who was in my arms, quietly observed Helen and then barked at the air.
To others, it would sound like a dog barking, but I heard it clearly.
I put Pio down and asked Helen to continue her story.
"Did Lady Gwen also fall ill? Did she suddenly become sick in front of the duchess?"
"She chased after me and we were talking when it happened."
I recalled Alison, who had shown similar symptoms.
I wondered if Tatiana could see the affection levels of the extras and even influence their choices.
'Maybe my imagination is too vivid.'
Regardless, it was clear that her bracelet had more special abilities than mine.
'If only I could verify it.'
For now, only Pio could detect the distorted magic.
"I should visit Lady Gwen soon to see how she's doing."
"I'm sure she'll get better soon. I only felt that way for a moment."
I nodded at Helen's words.
"By the way, did you come here just to tell me this story?"
Helen scratched her cheek and blushed.
"Just that, we haven't had many opportunities to meet since the hunting festival."
Her words made me open my eyes wide.
I knew Helen wanted to get closer to me.
"I'm not used to such intimate relationships and don't know how to approach people…"
"I'm the same. I don't know how to either."
I actually preferred it when someone was honest about wanting to get closer.
Due to being betrayed by Tatiana and my ex-fiancés, I didn't trust people easily.
Helen, being a knight, was straightforward about what she wanted.
I liked how she expressed her feelings openly.
"Stay a while longer. I enjoy talking with you, Lady Helen."
"Of course. You were the first to openly dislike the duchess in front of me."
At first, I thought she disliked me, but that wasn't the case.
She was just unsure how to approach me.
Seeing her efforts to become friends made me trust her a little more.
'It's time to trust someone again.'
Although Aster and Helen had rejected my proposal, they were good people.
They had come to my aid when my life was in danger.
I decided to trust someone again.
"So, if you want, feel free to visit anytime. We are friends, after all."
Helen's face brightened at my words.
It was nice to see her emotions so clearly.
As it was getting close to dinner time, I invited Helen to stay for a meal, but she said she had to leave due to some business.
Her gaze fell on Pio, who was pretending to be a puppy on the floor.
"By the way… where did you find that monster?"
As expected, Helen knew Pio's true identity.
Pointing at him and calling him a monster, his small tail drooped slightly, showing his unease.
"Well, I found him in the Golden Forest. He seemed to have lost his mother. I thought he was a dog… but he's a monster, isn't he?"
I decided to pretend I didn't know and insist he was a dog.
Monsters weren't identified by their appearance.
"That… is interesting. But since you found him in the Golden Forest, it might be wise to take precautions."
Helen, looking skeptical, narrowed her eyes at Pio.
Pio, stretching and rolling over to pretend he was sleeping, looked desperately pathetic.
"I can have someone make a device to suppress his magic use. It would be useful in case of an emergency."
Pio's mouth dropped open in shock at her words.
I laughed awkwardly and nodded.
"Thank you for your concern, Lady Helen."
She bowed slightly, as if an idea had come to her.
"Actually, you can call me by my first name."
Her suggestion made me chuckle.
"Sure, Helen. Then you can call me by my first name too."
A few days after Helen's visit.
I went to Nivea's boutique with Pio and met Filia, who had reserved a VIP service there.
"Oh, what a cute dog. What's his name?"
"His name is Pio. Isn't he adorable?"
I smiled slightly and lifted Pio.
Filia, as if waiting for this, reached out to pat Pio's fluffy back.
He even lay on his back to show off his cuteness.
He looked like a perfect dog.
I was momentarily speechless at Pio's words.
After drinking tea with Filia and returning, I discussed our next steps with Pio.
"First, we need to properly confirm Tatiana's abilities."
I assumed that distorted magic flowed whenever the bracelet's power was used.
If so, the same magic might be felt from other male leads.
And the most recent person to use that power was one person.
Wilhelm wasn't someone who would come when called.
Meeting him alone was difficult.
Since Tatiana resumed her public activities, he had been sticking to her side like a shadow.
As the head of the Silver Dragon Knights, a distinguished knight order, he was acting as if he were her official partner.
If another noblewoman had done the same, there would have been a lot of gossip.
But the rumors about Tatiana and Wilhelm died down quickly.
In any case, I needed a moment alone with him.
Who was running the shop in front of her store?
While Tatiana was the sponsor, Wilhelm was the one actually running the shop.
If I let Pio loose in front of it, I might at least get a glimpse of him.
Lily's voice made me look up.
Lily, entering the bedroom, picked up Pio, who was pretending to sleep on the bed, and put him in the doghouse in the corner.
"I investigated Professor Foreman's surroundings as you requested."
The Foreman family didn't have much influence in politics, so I didn't think there would be any major issues.
That's why I hadn't looked into it.
"Professor Foreman has a sister, and her husband, his brother-in-law, was a victim of fraud."
"Yes. People still remember it, even though it happened a long time ago. A diligent man was bewitched and invested all his wealth, even putting his wife on the line."
Human trafficking was illegal in the empire.
Only the emperor had the right to enslave commoners.
The previous emperor had even cracked down on illegal black markets for buying and selling slaves.
'But that was a chaotic time.'
The sudden appearance of the duke and the unstable early reign of Aster.
In response to my question, Lily continued her story.
"However, Professor Foreman paid off the debt almost instantly."