Ania, who arrived in the commercial city of Brandesk near the Radner Estate, pressed her hood down and looked out the window.

“It’s crowded here.”
“Yes. Because it’s a commercial city.”

Brandesk was bustling.

Ania looked at the merchants piled up with goods, mercenaries, and knights bustling outside the car window as if they were fascinating.

“Miss, we have arrived.”

The car stopped in the bustling downtown, and Ania got out slowly.

The bustling air blew in an instant.

“Thank you. And you don’t have to call me Miss.”
“Then what should I…”
“I already told you, just Ania is fine.”
“How could I…”
“Please do so.”
“Understood. Miss… Ania.”

Ania smiled brightly at the servant and nodded.

“More importantly… Ania, you must keep wearing the hood. Never take it off!”
“I’ll remember.”

Ania slowly walked along the city’s main street.

The cool spring breeze and the fragrant scent of food wafted over her.
Ania’s steps were as light as a feather.

Although the servant followed behind from a distance, Ania didn’t feel bad about walking alone.

When she lived as a noble lady of the Bronte family, people crowded around her, so she always felt a little suffocated.
But now, she was truly free.

However, while humming and walking down the street, Ania suddenly stopped when she saw a wanted poster attached to the wall.

「Wanted: Ania Bronte」

Wanted posters with her picture were posted everywhere.

Furthermore, an additional line stated:
「If safely brought back to the Bronte family, a substantial reward will be given.」

Seeing that, Ania felt like she had become a commodity.

Treatment in the Bronte family was always like that for her.
Her father would listen to whatever she said but always demanded noble dignity.

Wherever she went, she had to be a lady of the Bronte family; therefore, she couldn’t afford to show any wrongdoings.

“I will never go back.” (TN: I got flashbacks from the last series I translated.)

She had accepted that life was natural.
To Ania, the Bronte family was her world and everything.

But that all changed after marrying Edward.
He was the one she found after giving up everything.

To Ania, Edward was love and freedom.
He was a presence that liberated her from her constraints.
He was a very precious person who let her know she could be loved.

Ania entered an alley lined with shops.
She bought a beautiful pink flower from a corner shop and entered the alley.

While strolling through, Ania’s gaze stopped at one place.

A white bust behind a glass display case.
It was a silver brooch resembling a rose pinned to the chest of the bust.

Seeing it, Edward’s face came to her mind for some reason.

If such a beautiful brooch were on Edward’s chest, who always wore dull black suits, he would look even more stylish.

Thinking so, Ania entered the shop.

***

The schedule, expected to take a week, unexpectedly ended a day earlier.

It was because the manager of the Oveliona branch in the southeast admitted his mistake obediently.

‘From now on, I will make sure such incidents never happen again!’

It wasn’t that big of a problem.

During the expansion of the production line, the branch manager had a needless dispute with the construction company, which resulted in a physical altercation.

When news of this reached my ears, I only intended to go and question him since he kept his mouth shut about it.

Fortunately, while attending a business meeting in the south, the branch manager called and apologized profusely, so I let it slide.

Of course, the Oveliona branch manager’s salary would definitely be reduced.

Frankly speaking, there was no better system of reward and punishment. After all, employees live and die by their monthly wages and salaries.

The real issue lay elsewhere.

“Just a single flower….”

If it had been a matter of buying and returning with a single flower, there wouldn’t have been much deliberation.

Hell, I could buy a mansion full of them.

“What’s troubling you?”
“What kind of flower should I buy….”
“A flower? Hmm…”

Lorendel muttered beside me.

Whether she didn’t notice her soliloquy or was pondering an answer, I didn’t even bother.

The real problem was figuring out what flower to buy.

‘Are you presenting such a plain flower as a gift?’

Wouldn’t Ania say something like this?

‘Such flowers are scattered all over the streets.’

Perhaps it would be more like this.

Or maybe she would…

I let out a sigh.

I didn’t want to see Ania’s disappointed expression after I gave a common flower to someone well-versed in them.

I wanted to see Ania’s smile as she enjoyed the gift, smiling happily as if she had received a gift that no one else could give her.

I didn’t want to disappoint her again.

“Lorendel.”
“Yes?”
“Tell the people in the Empire that I will reward whoever brings the most expensive, rarest, most beautiful, and noble flower to the Radner Territory immediately.”
“Huh?”

Lorendel put her hand on my forehead.

“What are you doing?”
“Have you caught a cold?”
“Remove your hand.”
“I apologize.”

Lorendel quickly withdrew her hand and then asked again after a moment of hesitation.

“By the way, why flowers?”
“Well….”
“Is it a gift?”
“Yes.”
“Miss Ania would probably like any flower.”
“Outwardly, perhaps.”

Ania Bronte is a perfect woman, so she needs a perfect flower to match her.

“Anyway, inquire about it as soon as we arrive in Brandesk.”
“Yes, well… understood.”

***

With a joyful heart, Ania bought the silver brooch and walked along the streets of Brandesk.

She had seen everything she needed to, so she could have gone back now.
However, since she had come out of the mansion for the first time in a while, she wanted to look around a little more.

Besides, Edward wouldn’t be back until the next day anyway, so she thought it would be nice to buy wrapping paper for the gift and maybe even prepare dinner herself, even if she wasn’t skilled.

Every minute and every second spent with Edward was precious to Ania.

They didn’t have much time together due to his busy schedule, which made their time together even more precious.

“How much is this?”
“Oh, my, what a beautiful lady. 15 leon, please.”
“Thank you.”

Ania wandered the streets, her arms full of groceries.

She was looking forward to the meal they would share tomorrow.

“Will he like it?”

A subtle anxiety swirled in her mind.

Unlike in the past, he was now the CEO of a company and the head of the Radner family.

He was a figure of great wealth and power, capable of obtaining anything he desired and indulging in all sorts of luxury foods.

Would he… be satisfied with her humble cooking and a single brooch?

‘It’s still worth 500 leon… but for someone like Edward…’

“No, it’s okay.”

When one can have everything in the world, they may not feel any excitement no matter what gift they receive.

Ania thought she would prefer that instead.

A composed expression would be better than a disappointed one.

Yet, she still wanted to see him smile.

No… she hoped he wouldn’t be disappointed.

Maybe a nonchalant reaction would be better.

“Yeah. Let’s just go with that.”

Expectations often lead to disappointment. That’s why Ania tried not to rely on anything.

That’s how she lived.

But when it came to matters related to Edward, she couldn’t help but entertain some expectations.

At first, such behavior might have seemed amusing, but upon reflection, it wasn’t strange at all.

After all, isn’t it because of love that she wanted to be with Edward, even at the cost of giving up everything?

Ania took the brooch from its bag and looked at it, shimmering in the sunlight.

It was exquisite and elegant.

Perfect enough to match Edward.

“I hope he likes it….”

As she said that, the brooch in Ania’s hand disappeared suddenly.

As if it flew away into thin air.

“Huh…?”

Ania blinked her eyes. It was there just a moment ago.

Did she accidentally drop it due to her hand losing strength?

But it wasn’t on the floor either.

Then suddenly, a gust of wind brushed past Ania.

She slowly turned her head.

That’s when she realized that two hooded little boys had just passed by her.

“Oh….”

Ania sighed without knowing what had happened.

Ania Bronte, a noble lady of the Bronte family who grew up in a greenhouse, didn’t know what pickpocketing was.

She only knew one thing.

That someone had stolen her brooch.

Author’s Note (Postscript)

I want to stop tormenting Ania, but the reactions are so fun that I want to keep tormenting her.

Translator’s Corner

I hope you enjoyed the chapter. The author talks about themselves a bit in their postnotes, so should I include any of the personal stuff, or only the ones related to the novel?

-Ruminas