<Episode 3>
"Now, Herwin. These are Lucas Agnes and Lucia Agnes of the Agnes Family. Lucia is the same age as you, so I hope you get along well while you're here."
Herwin quietly looked at his mother before turning his gaze to the Agnes siblings in front of him.
"Hello, I'm Lucas Agnes. I look forward to getting to know you."
"I am Herwin Peneus. I look forward to working with you."
After greeting Lucas, Herwin turned his head towards Lucia.
Herwin's eyes widened in surprise as he looked at Lucia. However, he quickly returned to normal and approached her.
"Hello?"
"........"
"Lucia, what are you doing? You should shake hands."
Lucia, who had been standing still, feeling awkward, heard her brother's words from the side and hurriedly took Herwin's hand gently.
"Ah, hello..."
Unlike when she had met his gaze a moment ago, Lucia couldn't properly look at Herwin as he approached.
When she glanced at him sideways, Herwin noticed her gaze and raised his expressionless lips upwards.
For a moment, Herwin was so beautiful that Lucia thought an angel had descended.
"So pretty..."
The corners of Herwin's lips, which had been raised, dropped downwards in an instant. Seeing Herwin's hardened face, Lucia flinched.
"Don't say I'm pretty."
"Huh...?"
"I'm not pretty, I'm handsome."
Lucia was taken aback by Herwin's sudden anger.
She had said he was pretty because he was as beautiful as an angel, but was that something to get so angry about?
Lucia hesitated and looked at Herwin before opening her mouth.
"But... I said you were pretty because you were like an angel..."
"Ugh, I said don't say I'm pretty!"
Herwin roughly shook off Lucia's hand that he was holding.
"Hey, why are you suddenly getting angry!"
Lucas, who had been watching the bizarre situation unfold from the side, shielded Lucia.
Herwin stepped back as Lucas, who was much taller than him, defended Lucia.
Tears welled up in Lucia's eyes as she stood there blankly, stunned by the sudden situation.
"Waa, waaa... The, the angel hates me..."
Lucia, the precious daughter of the Agnes Family, had grown up receiving unconditional love. It was the first time in her life that she had been rejected.
Moreover, the person she liked had gotten angry and shook off her hand, so she couldn't overcome the surge of sadness.
Waaaaah.
In the end, Lucia burst into tears, and the adults, who had been chatting happily, were startled and approached.
"Lucia, why are you suddenly like this?"
"That's a good girl, our daughter. Stop crying now."
Julian and Johann began to soothe Lucia.
The more people around her tried to comfort her, the more upset she became, and she couldn't stop crying.
Lucia's wails grew louder.
The adults, who had no idea why this situation had occurred, asked Lucas and Herwin about the details of the incident.
"He made Lucia cry!"
Lucas pointed at Herwin, panting. Herwin flinched at the sudden flood of gazes.
"Did the young master?"
Johann and Julian looked at Herwin with puzzled faces, while Hyle and Scarlet were bewildered because they knew very well that Herwin was not the type to make a child he had just met cry.
"Son, did you really make the Agnes young lady cry?"
"I, I..."
Scarlet asked gently. Nevertheless, Herwin was afraid of her words.
He felt wronged by the gazes pouring in from around him and the eyes that seemed to be scolding him.
In the end, Herwin couldn't give a proper explanation and began to sob.
"He, he started it first...!"
Waaaaah.
After that, Herwin said something, but it was mixed with sobs, so no one could understand what he was saying.
Hyle simply hugged his sobbing son to comfort him.
Lucia's and Herwin's cries created a cacophony.
Hyle and Johann, who were holding their children in their arms, made eye contact.
The two men smiled awkwardly and stroked their children's backs.
It took quite a long time for the two children to stop crying.
* * *
"Ah, so that's what happened."
"I was wondering what it was. It was nothing."
"But, I'm not pretty."
After everything had calmed down, the two families, who had entered the mansion, were finally able to hear the whole story of the incident.
In conclusion, the reason was that Lucia had said Herwin was pretty.
"Lucia, Herwin doesn't like being called pretty. I think that's why he got angry. It's not because he doesn't like you."
Scarlet kindly explained to Lucia, who was being held in Julian's arms.
Lucia, who had been hanging her head in her mother's arms, slightly revealed her face.
"The angel doesn't hate me...?"
Scarlet, who was flustered by the word "angel," realized that it referred to Herwin and cleared her throat.
"Angel? Ahem, yes. He doesn't hate you. Right? Herwin."
"Hmph, I don't know. I don't want to be friends with her."
Herwin had already finished evaluating Lucia.
A child who made him feel bad.
He had resolved not to become friends with Lucia.
Lucia began to sob again after being rejected once more.
"Waa... You do hate me..."
Scarlet glared at Herwin with a fierce look, and Herwin pretended not to notice her gaze and avoided it.
"Lucia, you shouldn't call a man pretty. You should say he's handsome."
Before Lucia could burst into tears again, Lucas spoke to her.
"Huh?"
"I also like being called handsome more than being called pretty. He's a man. So you should say he's handsome instead of pretty."
"Is that how it is...?"
"Yeah. Well, I don't cry when I'm called pretty, though."
Just as Herwin had defined Lucia, Lucas had also finished evaluating Herwin.
A petty guy who made his sister cry.
To a sister-obsessed brother, Herwin was a person of interest to be wary of.
Herwin felt a surge of anger at the words that were targeting him.
"Who said I cried!"
"You were just crying with tears and snot all over your face. How can you be so petty about something like that when you're a man?"
"Pet, petty?"
"Yeah. You're totally petty."
Herwin trembled with anger. Lucas made a sly face, typical of children, as if to provoke him even more.
"Lucas! You shouldn't do that as an older brother!"
When Johann warned him, Lucas pouted and stopped teasing Herwin.
"I'm sorry, young master, because of my children..."
"There's no need for the Count to apologize. Children grow up fighting."
"That's right, don't worry too much about it. Herwin was also at fault."
"Mom! I..."
"Hush, the adults are talking."
Herwin felt hurt by Scarlet, who was ignoring his feelings.
Herwin, who had been glaring at his parents, turned his gaze and met the eyes of the Agnes siblings.
Lucia couldn't hide her curiosity about Herwin and kept glancing at him, while Lucas frowned as if he was displeased.
"They'll get along better with each other in the remaining time."
But after hearing the adults' words, Herwin thought.
'Absolutely, absolutely! I won't become friends with her!'
The beginning of Herwin and Lucia's long, long relationship was not good.
* * *
"Th, there..."
"........"
"Herwin..."
Tap, tap-
Lucia called him several times with unclear pronunciation, but Herwin showed no reaction.
This situation, where they were left alone in a huge playroom, was not what Herwin and Lucia had wanted.
Herwin wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible.
However, no matter how much conflict there was between Herwin and the Agnes siblings, the Peneus Family had already decided to stay at the Agnes County estate.
They couldn't find a new accommodation now, and they couldn't continue to be on bad terms while staying here, so the adults hoped that the children would reconcile as soon as possible.
In the end, the three children were kicked out to the playroom because they couldn't stand the adults' nagging, and soon after, Lucas left to attend a lesson with his tutor.
Only Herwin and Lucia were left in the playroom.
If it weren't so cold that they had to be in front of the fireplace, Herwin wouldn't have gone near Lucia.
Lucia's plump cheeks drooped as Herwin remained adamant and didn't answer no matter how many times she called him.
She sat down, clutching a pair of dolls in her hands.
The playroom was quiet except for the sound of firewood burning in the fireplace and the noise coming from the hallway.
Herwin, who still hadn't resolved his feelings about Lucia, hugged his knees tightly.
'I should have just not come.'
He had been looking forward to coming to the capital from the north for the first time in his life.
He had also imagined what kind of friends he would meet, as he was told that he could make friends of his age.
But as soon as he saw her, she called him pretty.
Adults say that being called pretty is a compliment, but that word didn't resonate with Herwin.
'I'm a man. Why do they always say I'm pretty? There's also the word handsome.'
It felt like the words 'like a girl' always followed after being called pretty.
'Oh my, he's a boy? He's quite delicate for that. If he were a girl, he would grow up to be a great beauty.'
'Hey, you're a boy? Don't lie! You look like a girl, why are you lying about being a boy?'
'You would look better in a dress than in pants. Try wearing a dress once.'
The words he had heard so many times echoed in his ears and continued to torment Herwin.
If Lucia hadn't said he was pretty, they might have become close friends.
Herwin pouted for no reason.
When he first met the Agnes family after getting off the carriage, Herwin was secretly surprised when he saw Lucia.
'Like a fairy.'
Short brown hair that fell to her plump cheeks, blue eyes that felt clearer than the blue sky, and a pink dress reminiscent of roses.
As soon as Herwin saw Lucia, he thought of a fairy.
The large ribbon on the back of her dress looked like a fairy's wings, making her quite cute.
His first impression was quite good, but everything was ruined by the one word she uttered.
Sniffle-
While he was grumbling inwardly, he heard a sniffling sound.
Herwin paused and glanced back.
Lucia, who had been circling around him, trying to talk to him somehow, was now sitting with her back turned. For some reason, her small shoulders looked drooped.
Sniffle- Sniffle-
He kept hearing the sound of her sniffing.
Herwin thought it was none of his business and returned to his spot. But after a few minutes, the sound didn't stop, so he jumped up from his seat.
"Really, are you crying again? You're such a crybaby...!"
He thought he had made her cry, so he tried to approach her-
"Sniffle, sniff! Huh...?"
Lucia wasn't crying. She was just sniffling because her nose was running. Herwin froze in place, unable to finish his sentence.
"Hehe, are you not angry anymore?"
Lucia smiled brightly, not knowing how Herwin felt.
Herwin's face flushed for a moment at Lucia's cute face, and he turned his head away.
"Wh, who said I'm not angry anymore!"
"But, you came to me."
"That's because I thought you were crying... No, never mind."
Herwin didn't feel it was worth dealing with her anymore.
Just as he was about to turn his back like before, Lucia, who had been standing there blankly, grabbed the hem of Herwin's clothes.
"...Why?"
"I'm sorry."
Herwin's pouting lips softened a little.
He didn't expect her to apologize so easily. He thought that even if she did apologize, she would only do it because she was pushed by others...
Herwin slightly opened his closed eyes and looked down.
He felt like his own reflection was being mirrored in her blue eyes, and Herwin unknowingly swallowed hard.
