I Got My Engagement Annulled… Even Though We Were Never Engaged - Chapter 15

Father, acting like an excited child, had already gathered so many medicinal herbs before we even reached the forest that one of his leather bags was stuffed to bursting.

Even after arriving in the forest, he kept wandering around here and there, collecting large quantities of things that weren’t our target materials.

“Father, at this rate all your leather bags will be full before we even get the mandrake and moon-song grass!”

“That’s terrible! …But we came all this way. Hey, Adeline!”

Father’s voice took on a coaxing, wheedling tone.

I let out a sigh.

“When we take a break, please empty all your bags. I’ll teleport the contents to the mansion’s entrance.”

My spatial attribute aptitude isn’t particularly strong, but I can teleport things over this distance as long as they’re not too large.

Father’s face lit up brightly.

“Thank you, Adeline!”

Truthfully, I hadn’t wanted to offer teleportation because it would make Father even more unrestrained, but it was better than him suggesting we return to the mansion and come back to the forest again. The way Father was now, he’d likely do exactly that.

“Adeline, you can use spatial magic too?”

“Just a little. I have aptitude for many attributes.”

“That’s amazing. With that much magical ability, you could have applied for a government-funded study abroad program. Why didn’t you apply?”

“…I didn’t want to attend a school full of strangers.”

For someone as unsociable as me, studying abroad in another country would have been impossible. My older sister could make friends immediately, but I can say with certainty that I wouldn’t have made a single friend for the entire duration of the program.

In Belcour, school attendance isn’t compulsory, so I learned all the necessary studies from private tutors. Magic from Mother. I made my social debut at the very last moment at sixteen, and even when I go to parties I’m just a wallflower, so the number of people I can call friends is extremely small.

If this is how I am within my own country, there’s no way I could make friends abroad.

Fevan probably understood this now.

Someone as completely unsocial as me could never manage being a marchioness. Hosting tea parties and gatherings would be impossible, and even when invited, I couldn’t provide a single interesting topic of conversation.

“Are you shy, Adeline? But you’re talking with me normally like this, and you’re quick-witted too. I think it’s just a matter of getting used to it. If you get accustomed to being around more people, you’ll naturally learn how to conduct yourself. It’s not that you dislike people, right?”

“Well, that’s…”

“Then don’t worry about it—, you’ll get used to it eventually.”

“…You’re not telling me to try harder?”

I’d fully expected him to say that since there’s no choice but to get used to it. My older sister often tells me that.

“You’re already perfectly capable of talking with people, so there’s no need for you to try any harder at anything. If you couldn’t hold a conversation at all, then yes, practice would be necessary, but that’s not the case with you, Adeline. So after that, it’s up to your heart. Things like that shouldn’t be forced—it’s better to wait until you naturally get used to it.”

“Is that how it works?”

“That’s how it works. Well, if you locked yourself in the house and stopped interacting with anyone, that would be different, but in your case, even though you find it difficult, you still attend parties at minimum, right? Like you did at my house. So, you have plenty of opportunities to get accustomed.”

Fevan, who had been listening while nodding as if understanding, reached out and smoothly stroked my cheek.

Warmth flooded my cheeks in a rush.

“You see, Adeline, you’re serious. Too serious, even. That’s probably why you overthink things. When it comes to social interactions, if you’re too tense, you’ll fail. Just take it easy.”

Fevan’s light blue eyes grew sweet and melting.

Just as I felt myself being drawn into those eyes, ahem—a deliberate cough came from a short distance away.

“Ahem, you two. It’s nice that you’re getting along, but if you don’t hurry up, I’m going to leave you behind.”

At Father’s exasperated voice, I nearly let out a scream.