Chapter 9: My best friend, Rein.

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Translated and Edited by: luccayn.
Double-whammy!

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“She stirred the wrath of the Marquise of Andrea, and that's reason enough.”

Rein downed the rest of his drink in one go and said as if to admonish me. Indeed, having the marquis' eyes set on you would be frightening, to say the least; it would affect not only your reputation but also your territory and house. In that light, the decision to cut Lulu Camell from her family, enacted by the Count of Camell, was a wise one.

Regardless of his feelings about abandoning his daughter, he had the important duty of keeping his house safe from all harm, as well as of protecting his domain and his people.

“I'll say it again: it's not your fault, Rou. This happened because of that thing's inexcusable trysts, which were terribly cruel to you. No matter how much I said my dad likes you, if she hadn't been so awfully disrespecting in your engagement, I don't think my dad would be so angry.”

He continued, “It's self-inflicted; a rust gaggled from her own body. In fact, I think she got the better end of the stick, having only gotten life imprisonment at home, given just how much she insulted my father—the marquise, so much. If I were him, I wouldn't be satisfied with just that!”

“Rein…”

“That's because I'll never forgive that wench for hurting you, my best friend.”

“…I… I'm not hurt.”

“Bullsh*t. I can see right through you…” He sighed. “It's not just that thing; her grandparents, who spoiled her rotten, were equally guilty. There's no way they'll allow her to be caged in an estate by the north. Well, Lyla and my future in-laws were the ones who admonished the minx first, but the way she treated you paired with her grandparents' actions almost made me dislike the Camell family as a whole.”

“Is… Is that because I consulted with you about my relationship with her?”

Rein had other friends, but he claimed I was his best one—and so did I. Lyla and Rein were the only ones I could call my precious friends. Thus, I often consulted with him about personal matters.

He taught me how to be a good suitor for Lulu Camell, how to ask her out on dates, and even how to write a love poem. Unfortunately, none of those things bore fruit, but he was always enthusiastic about helping and went through each of these issues with me without complaining.

That's why he knew things weren't doing so well between me and countess Lulu.

“I told you it's not your fault, Rou! Forget my status, I was happy to be consulted and relied upon! In fact, I was also anxious with you, and always prayed for your advances to succeed. And yet… you were always treated like trash for it…”

“I see… Thank you for always helping me whenever I needed advice. You've always been very helpful,” I tried to smile. “I'd asked Lyla about her sister's gift preferences, but I couldn't really get dating help from her.”

Every time I would report to him the results of my attempted flirting, he would be more depressed than I.

Sometimes he would almost cry, apologizing for his uselessness over and over again. In turn, I would always console him while asking for more help, all in hopes of a better result. Secretly, I thought it was the other way around sometimes.

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