“If you don’t come with me now, you will regret it for the rest of your life.”

Rosemary whispered softly, poking Antes’s side as if begging him to listen.

There was no way heaven would fall, so when Antes tried to push Rosemary’s hand away, she quickly gestured to Luna, hinting at her intentions through a glance.

“…Do you think I’m doing this because I like it? I’m telling you, you’ll really regret it.”

Antes frowned at that. He might ignore other matters, but he couldn’t easily dismiss anything involving Luna.

Moreover, it was clear that Rosemary didn’t want to have this ‘conversation’, but given her insistence, Antes began to suspect there was something unusual with Luna today.

“It seems there’s an issue with the family. Excuse me for a moment. Don’t mind me and continue eating.”

Feeling cornered, Antes quickly made an excuse and got up from his seat.

“Oh…! Yes! I’ll do that.”

Fortunately or unfortunately, Luna, who had seemed off from earlier, didn’t notice the strange atmosphere between the two and simply nodded.

Seeing this, Antes, feeling the need to really talk to Rosemary, exited the dining hall with a serious expression.

“Ugh, I can’t believe you’re eating leisurely without even understanding the current situation.”

Following him immediately, Rosemary scolded him, starting to mock Antes as if he was the most pitiable person in the world.

“If that’s the main point, I’m leaving. You’re wasting my time.”

Antes, now extremely irritated, turned away. Of course, he didn’t really mean to leave. He was telling her to quickly state the facts.

Though it was a good opportunity to scold him a few more times, considering the matter at hand, Rosemary composed herself and confided the past events.

“So, now is not the time to be like this! Luna seems to be attracted to someone else! I can’t say for sure if it’s because she’s concerned about you, but she seemed interested!”

Perhaps the person Luna is interested in is of much higher status compared to Antes, Rosemary added as an aside.

She speculated that the person might be the Crown Prince, given that Callion has shown consistent interest in Luna and they were even doing business together.

Of course, it was a foolish relationship because it was created to make fun of Antes.

“…Did she send a letter to test his feelings?”

“I don’t know if she sent one, but we had a conversation about it being a good idea. I visited early out of curiosity. And you, not knowing any of this, were leisurely eating, so I had to call you out.”

Recalling the letter he received with a request, asking him to cook a ridiculous amount of food, Antes wondered if that was the letter Rosemary was talking about.

“If she’s not interested, why test the feelings? Surely Lady Luna must also have feelings. She sent that letter to check whether it was real or not!”

Although Rosemary had mistaken the person, she came to a very logical conclusion and clenched her fists in anger.

Even though the matter was very serious, Antes had no other response. It was natural since he was the one who received the letter.

‘So she sent that letter because she cared and wanted to confirm?’

He pondered, is that why she showed such a strange attitude after realizing that he liked her after giving him such an excessive request?

‘She even blushed, dropped her fork, stuttered, and avoided eye contact…’

Antes swallowed hard thinking to that extent. He had never expected such a reaction from Luna, who had always treated him as a mere hometown friend, and felt like he had been struck by lightning.

Misunderstanding Antes’s shock as him realizing he might be losing Luna, Rosemary vented her frustration.

“What have you been doing all this time? It hasn’t been long since you two started dating, and it’s already come to this? When an opportunity arises, you should hold onto it for life! From the beginning-“

Rosemary continued to vent her accumulated grievances at Antes without catching her breath.

Naturally, Antes was unaffected. After being momentarily frozen in shock, he turned quickly toward the dining room as if he wanted to check this immediately.

“Oh, brother?! We haven’t finished talking yet! Where are you going?”

A surprised Rosemary hurriedly followed Antes.

“You’re not thinking of confronting her, are you?”

Did I say too much? Maybe I should’ve explained the situation later! He won’t resort to violence, right?!

Recalling the once-violent Antes, Rosemary turned pale and held onto the hem of his clothes.

As she expected, Antes would naturally shake her off. But instead, he looked down at her hand holding his clothes and said something surprising. 

“Sometimes your nosiness can be helpful. Anyway, I should start by saying thank you.”

“…What?”

What does that mean? Rosmary, who never expected to hear such words from Antes and, in fact, didn’t want to hear it, widened her eyes and let go of Antes’ clothes.

As if not wanting to waste any more time, Antes quickly walked into the dining room.

“I’m sorry for making you wait.”

Then, with a smile as bright as it could be, he found his seat.

“Ah, no. Did your conversation go well?”

“Yes, it was one of the most fruitful conversations I’ve had,” Antes replied with a smile as refreshing as a fully bloomed cherry blossom.

It was different from the usual beauty. Luna inadvertently avoided his sincere smile.

If it had been the old days, she would have admired it for a while and then moved on. But the fact she was avoiding his gaze meant Luna was truly concerned about him.

“If you don’t like the food, would you like something else? How about panne? I can make it better than the last time.”

So Antes, looking as if he owned the world, smiled even brighter and spoke again.

It wasn’t intentional, the smile just came naturally.

He felt as if Luna asked, he would jump into a pit of fire for her.

“Ah, it’s okay. You must be busy, you should get back to your work…”

“No, I’m fine. Serving you is my priority. If there’s anything lacking, I can even clear my schedule for tomorrow. Just tell me.”

And since he confirmed Luna had interest in him, there was no need to be cautious.

Luna’s nature of being calculating yet somewhat loose meant that beating around the bush wouldn’t work.

“Ah, no, really, it’s okay.”

“I’m not okay. Since you’ve made a special request, I can’t leave the mansion until I’ve served all the dishes. I don’t want to disappoint you.”

Therefore, Antes decided to be straightforward without hesitation, expressing his fondness without reserve.

“No, it was just…”

It was a test to see if his feelings were genuine or not… but since it wasn’t a good move, Luna couldn’t tell the truth and stammered.

Moreover, facing Antes, who was brightly smiling like the sun and expressing his sincere intention, she was flustered and didn’t know how to respond.

“Then, let’s have panne for lunch.”

As she just stood there with her mouth open, Antes confidently decided on the lunch menu, taking advantage of Luna’s easy-going nature.

Rosmary, who had been mulling over what Antes had said in the hallway, finally came to her senses and hurried into the dining room.

Worried that Antes might have teased Luna, she entered with clenched fists, but surprisingly, the atmosphere inside the dining room felt incredibly warm and welcoming.

“Antes seems extraordinarily affectionate today.”

“Indeed. How can he look so delightful?”

Laura and Emma seemed to have witnessed a heartwarming scene, blushing on both cheeks.

What, what’s going on? What happened?

Rosmary, looking puzzled, shifted her gaze between Luna, whose eyes looked shocked, and Antes, who seemed as radiant as a full-blown flower.