‘Well, he was always a lonely kid.’

Calix lost his father a year after he was born. Soon after his birth, his mother also died.

Calix’s parents, the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess, were both friends of the crown prince.

The Grand Duke died defending the Crown Prince on the battlefield.

So the crown prince offered to take care of his friend’s orphaned son, as his adopted son.

If it was any other noble family, there would have been a backlash. But the Grand Duke’s family had already split off from the Imperial Family generations earlier, so it didn’t matter.

After all, even if they have already broken off from the imperial family, it was still a family that could inherit the throne.

However, Two years after Calix’s adoption, the crown prince fell ill and died.

So he grew up being raised in the pampered hands of the Emperor, who was also the father of his adoptive father.

He was 13 when Erin first went to the palace. He’d been following her around ever since, constantly pestering her about her family.

As a newcomer, she was only able to put up with it because he wasn’t swarming or grumpy.

He always had a big smile on his face and would follow Erin around all day asking,

‘Sister-in-Law, what are you doing?’

‘Sister-in-Law, where are you going?’

‘Sister-in-Law, come play with me?’

‘Sister-in-Law, do you want to eat cake?’

Even if she said no and asked him to leave. He didn’t get upset or pout, he just kept smiling and following her.

Honestly, it was very annoying, but he was so bright and cute that it didn’t bother her that much.

‘Still, if it had been like that for the whole nine years, I wouldn’t have been able to live without you…’

She thought.

Luckily, the Emperor stopped him. So he didn’t chase after Erin for several months afterward.

He didn’t just stop following her to see what she was up to, he stopped coming to the palace altogether.

‘He disappeared so suddenly that it was a little disconcerting.’

Soon after, he left the palace to learn how to rule his own estate.

“Why don’t you go play somewhere else, where the nobles play,”

Erin said quietly, to which he replied grumpily, with a small teaspoon in his mouth,

“I’m sure you’re the only person in the empire who would say that.”

“It’s no fun to go somewhere else, the capital is so boring.”

Nobles preferred the capital, with its lavish social scene, to their boring country estates. Living in the capital cost many times more than living in the countryside, but most nobles never left the capital all year-round.

Calix, of course, was an exception. He always stayed on his estate.

He frowned.

“The capital is boring, with its daily soírees and parties and balls… My estate is a hundred times more fun, and there’s no one to bother me.”

“That’s true.” Erin agreed easily. In fact, the young archduke was almost like an emperor in his own little domain.

The Archduchy of Royten was so far outside the Emperor’s authority that it could be considered an independent state.

The fact that no sanctions were imposed on him showed the extent of the Emperor’s affection for his adorable grandson, which had led to rumors that the heir might change hands, but they were ridiculous.

“I’ll take it to the shop.” Erin said, quickly gathering the finished desserts onto a tray before she went out.

“If you want something else, there are some cookies on the cupboard that I’ve made in reserve, and you can have some of those.”

“Where are you going?”

Calix looked like he was going to say something, but Erin didn’t think she’d get any work done if she stayed here any longer, so she quickly closed the door and walked out.

Today was a holiday at the shop. It was a day off, but she had to make sure she had a few things ready to go so she could keep the business going.

‘I have to make the sachertorte that was ordered today,’ Erin thought, ‘And tomorrow is the day I have to deliver the cake.’

Erin went to buy the ingredients for the cake before it got dark, because her rule was always that all orders had to be finished the night before or on the morning of the order.

Melly was sitting with a mountain of ingredients inside the store.

“Hey, Erin.”

“Hey, Melly, how’s it going?”

Melly was sitting down with a bunch of craft materials, including cotton balls, plaster, clay, and paints, to make a model of a dessert to display in the shop window.

She shaped and colored them with plaster or clay, and finally painted them with clear nail polish to give them a shiny, syrupy texture. It seemed like a daunting task, but the finished macaron model looked quite convincing.

“You did a good job. It looks real. You sure have a good hand for this.”

Brewing tea and hand-dripping coffee requires a dexterous and meticulous personality, and Erin had assumed that since Melly was so good at making drinks, she would also be good with her crafts.

“Hehe. Actually, the macarons were the easiest, I just had to shape them and color them.”

Erin put the crème brûlée in a glass jar and grabbed her robe.

Melly, who was making a pie out of plaster, saw her and asked,

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to Bay Yard Street to get the ingredients for the cake that lady Caterina ordered.”

Erin closed the door and disappeared. Melly was still in the shop, wrestling with the plaster to make a model, and Calix who was left inside the kitchen of her house, was looking out the small window at the afternoon garden.

The vegetables looked so green against the royal blue sky.

The house was small and cozy, with a modest shop and utilities.

‘Ah. It’s a peaceful place.’

He came here just to look around yesterday, but as soon as he arrived, he saw a strange sight.

It was the sight of Erin getting angry and sarcastic in front of a rowdy man.

He had never seen her so angry before.

Erin always seemed quiet and lonely when she was in the Palace.

He didn’t see her very often, but each time he did, she looked even more depressed every time.

Calix sat down and waited for Erin to return.

He hadn’t touched the cookies Erin had mentioned. But no matter how long he waited, Erin showed no sign of returning.

After waiting for a while, Calix got up from his seat, walked through the garden, opened the door, and entered the shop.

“Where is my sister-in-law?”

The maid, who was busy making something, jumped up and answered,

“Erin has gone to the market to buy some ingredients.”

“At this hour?”

“Yes, because the cake must be sent by tomorrow.”

Calix stared at the dark sky beyond the glass window, then opened the shop door and stepped outside.

⚘

Raymond looked out the window of the carriage. The afternoon sun was setting in the sky.

The setting sun was turning the tranquil landscape of the capital city red. The streets were deserted in the evening.

He stared out the window and furrowed his brow. It had been a week since he had been ordered to bring Erin back in person.

In the meantime, the Emperor hadn’t met with him, and he’d refused repeated requests for business.

It was clear that he would not listen to him unless he followed his order to bring Erin back himself.

“What does he expect me to do? Why do I even have to bring her back?”

Raymond muttered irritably.

“Your Highness, you must not disobey the emperor’s orders.”

Jed, who was sitting across from him, advised worriedly.

Raymond looked out the carriage window and replied irritably.

“I didn’t say that I would disobey him.”

It was so obvious what the Emperor was thinking. He wants Raymond to reconcile with her.

He wants to take Erin back, but since he can’t put pressure on her side, he’ll bring Raymond into it.

Raymond thought back to when they’d first met. The last time he met with Erin she said that she wanted to run a dessert cafe and never see him again, and he’s pretty sure that’s what she said.

‘A dessert Café.’

He thought that she was just being angry, but she had indeed opened a cafe and was doing business, and there were even unbelievable rumors that she baked her own pastries.

“No way. Of course not.”

Raymond sighed and turned to Jed.

“Where did she say her shop was?”

“On Viltrout Street.”

Raymond thought for a moment, then ordered.

“Go there.”