‘No matter how I think about it, I messed up the plan…’
Throb.
The more I thought about it, the worse my headache became.
How could I have made such a critical mistake?
I felt utterly disappointed in my past self.
‘Yuri likes Mr. Black right now. So, even if I confess to her as Aslan Vermont, she’ll reject me because she’s waiting for Mr. Black.’
Yuri could meet Mr. Black at the earliest in two years—after she graduates.
However, according to my grand and meticulous roadmap, our engagement was planned to take place after the coming-of-age ceremony.
In other words, this year.
The problem was that since Yuri liked Mr. Black, she would obviously reject my proposal until she could meet him.
That meant a two-year gap had suddenly emerged in my plan.
Of course, an engagement was just an engagement.
The actual marriage would only happen three years later, when Yuri officially became an adult.
If I removed the engagement from the roadmap, this gap wouldn’t be an issue…
But giving up on the engagement?
That would not be easy.
It’s like putting my mark on a piece of bread.
Sure, everyone—including me, the bread, and the entire world—knows that this bread is mine and that I’m the one who’s going to eat it.
But waiting two years without putting my mark on it? That would be far too unsettling.
‘I can’t just reveal my identity myself…’
If I outright admitted that I was Mr. Black, it would be the worst move possible, ruining all the prestige and dignity I had built so far.
I had promised to meet her after graduation, but if I revealed my identity now, it would make me look like a pathetic man who couldn’t even keep his own self-imposed vow just because I was too eager to get engaged to the girl I had been sponsoring.
That, above all else, was something I absolutely wanted to avoid.
So the best course of action would be…
‘I should let Yuri find out my identity by accident, as if she uncovered it on her own.’
Yes. The best scenario was for Yuri to figure out Mr. Black’s identity on her own.
I didn’t want to be discovered, but if my accumulated clues and a moment of carelessness made her suspect and deduce the truth… that would be ideal.
That way, I wouldn’t have to wait until her graduation.
I could propose right away.
‘Now, how should I get caught? I need to think about this…’
How should I orchestrate my exposure so that people would say it was a clever accident?
What kind of clue should I leave behind to make it look like I had no intention of revealing myself but simply slipped up?
I closed my eyes and pondered deeply.
Just then—
“Ah, Aslan…”
“What is it?”
“A problem came up… yeah.”
“…?”
Creak.
The door slowly opened, revealing Julia’s worried face.
A problem?
I gestured for her to come in, and she quickly ran over and perched herself on my lap.
“Look at this. It’s a letter from Yuri. She’s asking if a pink envelope arrived at the estate…”
“…”
Julia’s gaze shifted toward my desk.
There, right in plain sight, was a pink envelope.
For a moment, we exchanged glances in silence.
It was a letter from Yuri.
“This… this is a letter Yuri sent to Mr. Black.”
“Gasp!? It’s a good thing I told you first! If I had replied saying I’d seen it, then Yuri would’ve realized Aslan and Mr. Black are the same person!”
“…Am I being suspected?”
A chill ran down my spine.
So that’s why she suddenly used a pink envelope.
It was a scheme—one designed to verify my identity through Julia.
Thanks to Julia’s quick thinking, we avoided falling for the trap.
Whew. With this, I wouldn’t get caught.
…Wait. Hold on.
“Phew. Then I’ll just reply that I haven’t seen—”
“No. In your reply, tell her that you saw the pink envelope.”
“Huh? Why? If I do that, won’t she find out that Aslan is Mr. Black? Yeah?”
“Just do as I say. I have a plan.”
“Oh, okay! Yeah!”
Good. Now Yuri would finally discover my identity.
As I patted Julia’s head, a natural smile formed on my lips.
.
.
.
“She… she saw it? Really!?”
Yuri jumped in shock as she read Julia’s reply.
A pink envelope.
It wasn’t sold anywhere, nor was it commonly used.
Even the postal service didn’t handle pink envelopes since they were considered non-standard.
So if someone wanted to send a letter in a pink envelope, they would have to paint it themselves and use a private courier.
The pink envelope I had sent to Mr. Black this time was also one I had made myself.
And since I always used a private courier to prevent tracking of the recipient, using pink didn’t pose a problem.
But now, Julia had said she had seen a pink envelope at the Vermont estate.
The chance that it wasn’t her letter? Extremely low.
Who else in the world would go through the trouble of making a pink envelope and sending it through a private courier?
That could only mean…
‘Aslan Vermont is Mr. Black…’
Yuri immediately set off for the Vermont estate, deep in thought.
At first, her suspicion had been vague—an uncertain doubt without any real basis.
But now that her hunch had turned out to be true, she was beyond bewildered.
Aslan Vermont and Mr. Black.
They were like night and day, polar opposites.
Logically speaking, the idea that they were the same person was absurd.
And yet… intuition was a powerful thing.
‘But now… what exactly am I going to do?’
Unconsciously, Yuri had climbed into the carriage heading toward the Vermont estate.
But as she sat there, she realized something—why was she even going there in the first place?
Was it to thank Aslan Vermont now that she knew he was Mr. Black?
Or was it to demand an explanation—why had he hidden his identity for so long?
Why had he acted so clingy and affectionate toward her as Aslan Vermont, yet kept such an impenetrable distance as Mr. Black?
She wasn’t sure.
She didn’t even know what to ask first.
Maybe she should just pretend she didn’t know.
Act like she hadn’t figured it out.
Mr. Black had said he would only meet her after she graduated.
What if realizing the truth too soon made him suddenly cut off his support and disappear from her life?
‘N-No way…’
That couldn’t be it… right?
Yuri clenched her trembling hands into fists and let out a deep sigh.
It was shocking to learn that Aslan Vermont was Mr. Black, but…
That didn’t change her feelings for him.
He was still someone precious to her.
Her first love, the person she had fallen for.
And that person turned out to be the same fool who had constantly showered her with affection, to the point of being overbearing?
That meant… they had been on the same page all along.
If anything, it was something to be happy about.
Her fists relaxed, and a small smile spread across her lips.
‘Should I just confess…?’
She imagined storming into the estate, marching straight up to Aslan Vermont, revealing that she had uncovered his identity, and demanding that they get engaged during this year’s coming-of-age ceremony.
Of course, Aslan’s top priorities were undoubtedly Charlotte and Julia.
But those two were still just kids, with a long way to go before their coming-of-age ceremonies.
So… that meant she could get engaged first, right?
Lost in the happy thought, Yuri suddenly realized she had already arrived at the Vermont estate.
“Huuh… Alright, let’s do this…”
She took a deep breath, forcing her stiff legs to move.
Just as she stepped forward to knock on the front gate—
“…Huh?”
At that moment, her eyes landed on something.
Her eyes widened in shock.
A look of bewilderment spread across her face.
.
.
.
“Yuri is coming…”
“…”
Through the window, I spotted a familiar figure approaching the front gate.
I immediately stood up, watching as Yuri made her way toward the entrance.
Her sudden, unannounced visit? The reason was obvious.
Thanks to Julia’s reply, she must have figured out that I was Mr. Black.
I had walked right into her trap.
“Hah. Looks like I’ve been caught. What should I do? I really didn’t want this to happen. I planned to reveal my identity only after she graduated…”
“My Lord, the more you keep talking, the more pathetic you sound. Please be quiet.”
“…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ fervently nods in agreement with our knight’s words.]
As I smirked, a bucket of cold water was effectively dumped over my head.
Annoyed, I turned my attention back toward the front gate.
“…Huh?”
I had expected Yuri to knock on the door.
But instead, she froze, staring at the mailbox.
For a moment, she remained motionless.
Then, all of a sudden, she turned around.
Climbing back into the carriage, she sped away without hesitation.
…What?
What did she see that made her turn back?
Confused, I immediately walked toward the front gate and checked the mailbox.
“Oh.”
There, sticking out of the mailbox, was a pink envelope.
Startled, I pulled it out and opened it.
It was… a love letter disguised as an investment report from Irene Vermont.
Wait. Hold on.
So there was actually someone else besides Yuri who went out of their way to use a private courier just to send pink envelopes?
Did that mean Yuri saw this and assumed this was the pink envelope Julia had mentioned?
“No way, I was definitely supposed to get caught!!!”
Tears welled up in my eyes.
