She hesitated at first, wondering if she would say something.
"You didn't look so happy since earlier."
Half of the answer was a lie, and half was true.
Indeed, he had been with her since earlier and kept looking around with a strange wary look. It felt like she was a dog next to her owner. Eun-woo asked carefully.
"Are you bored with banquets…? Is it not fun to be with me?"
His eyes grew a little bigger with absurdity. As if she was wrong, he took a step closer and protested desperately.
"No way. How did I act earlier for you to come up with that conclusion?"
Eun-woo looked sulky and frowned around her eyes.
"Like this, you kept looking around with a serious expression while frowning. When I was with Young ladies earlier, you didn't really focus on what I was saying.…."
Eun-woo realized that he was quite embarrassed by her whining as he saw a shock coming to his face.
"Wait, Eleanor…"
He narrowed his forehead as if thinking about how to explain the situation to her, and then replied with a sigh.
"Ha… I was quiet previously around the Young Ladies, because… I don't really like people. Especially the noisy and angry women… I was just trying to set the mood because the women seemed to have something to say to you."
She didn't think he was doing much, but Eun-woo decided not to be in deep, and moved on. He frowned and continued to say.
"And the reason why I couldn't focus on what you were saying…"
"You kept frowning."
"… I kept composing that impression."
He hesitated and avoided answering. Eun-woo intercepted his words, thinking that she knew the answer for some reason.
Eun-woo realized that her guess was right from his expression.
In fact, these weird eyes, which can only be explained as strange, have been irritating her back since earlier.
Because of this unknown gaze that could not be define where it came from, Eun-woo had no choice but to stand on her nerves throughout the banquet.
Tashian agreed with a scary expression with no other way but to express that he was uncomfortable.
"If I catch that bastard, I'll destroy him. He was a clever guy. He keeps moving around, changing places."
"At first, I thought he was looking at the Duke like everyone else, but he wasn't."
"You're right. He was looking at you. He's been eyeing you since earlier."
At first, she, who attended as a partner of the Duke of Verk, thought she was one of the other banquet attendees who looked at him because they were amazed. Contrary to her expectations, however, the gaze continued for a long time. Later, the enthusiasm of his gaze was so hot that she felt burdened.
Eun-woo replied with a slightly shy voice.
"… But it wasn't that malicious stare."
"It's not important whether he has a bad intention or not. The important thing is that he keeps an eye on you. Throughout the entire banquet."
Tashian frowned harshly and spat out as if chewing. Eun-woo really realized that if he found the source of his gaze, he would turn that person into a silent bowl. She blushed with embarrassment.
"I… Tashian. Let's go over there."
"What's going on?"
"Come on, come on!"
She pushed his back toward the scene, where five clowns were dancing in a row to distract him. He eventually wrapped his arms around her shoulders tightly and led her to the place.
'It may be the gaze of admiring Eleanor.'
Eun-woo thought as she moved while leaning against his wide arm.
As she knows, Elena Miller was also a formidable beautiful lady as Tashian was a very attractive man. There must have been an unmarried noble man who secretly admired her.
'This person must have been the only suitor.'
In fact, the gaze she felt from before was not just one person's. The men around her were glancing closely at her. Eleanor, who dressed up in a violet dress, was beautiful enough to catch one's eyes at a glance.
Of course, Tashian was aware of all of this early on and had been taking a defensive posture no less than a guard dog. It was a familiar thing to draw attention to her, and there was no history of paying attention to her until now, but it was a completely different story to focus his attention on her.
However, regardless of whether he looked at her and lived toward the surrounding area like a double-minded person, Eun-woo was spending her time thinking completely differently from him.
'Is there any good guy…?'
She had been eagerly searching for Eleanor's groom since earlier. However, her project was rarely making progress.
'Eish, I have to know who's who. If I carry around a name tag with my ID on it, where would it go?'
Marquis Young Miss Eleanor Miller, could not marry anyone. At least more than a count, his status must be strong, and must have a beautiful face, so she thought a handsome man would be good.
She wondered if there was anyone near her who was bright in socializing and had wide connections. There was a person who immediately came to mind, but he was currently having a heated discussion with old ministers in a corner of the banquet hall with golden eyes.
She shook her head inside, recalling Ikshid's face.
'I can't make the crown prince act as my Matchmaker for me.'
Eun-woo looked around, wondering if there was anyone else. She glanced up at Tashian just in case, but when she saw his rugged expression, she immediately gave up on her expectations. Rather than being familiar with society, it was a tough momentum to chase away those who came.
She let out a small sigh as she stood next to him, and continued to give a cold look toward her surroundings.
'If I stay with this person for a long time, I won't be able to get a girlfriend, let alone a man.'
She grumbled and thought. It was time for Eun-woo and Tashian to walk slowly through the banquet hall with perfect frostbite dreams.
"Oh."
Eun-woo, who found something, made a short sound.
'It's red hair…!'
Her face rose with anticipation. Finally, she found her target at this banquet.
Red-haired. It was Selena, the heroine of this novel.
Obviously, Selena's hair color was as bright red as the sun, which was described as unusual in the novel. Eun-woo, who recognized it, hurriedly touched Tashian's arm and said in a command tone.
"Duke! Duke! Over there, there! Go over there!"
"What's wrong with you?"
Conscious of his surroundings, he politely asked, but Eun-woo couldn't afford to care about it now.
She hurriedly pointed to a group of people with red hair that she had found and brushed off the Duke.
"Hurry up and go over there…! I'm in a hurry!"
At Eun-woo's urging, Tashian silently led her steps in the direction she pointed. However, when they arrived, there was already no red hair left.
People greeted each other, puzzled by the sudden appearance of the Duke and Marquis Young Miss.
Eun-woo chased Selena's footsteps with a sideways glance, signing Tashian to ignore them.
'She was definitely here just now…'
Selena was definitely dressed in a sky-colored dress with her sun-like red hair tied together in the first scene. She was also a very outstanding beauty, so she couldn't help but to stand out.
"Is there anyone you're looking for?"
Tashian looked down at her with suspicious eyes. Eun-woo muttered, shaking her head hard.
"It wasn't a big deal."
Mumbling roughly, she muttered inaudibly.
Where in the world did she disappear into?
Eun-woo inflated the ball and used her eyes hard to find Selena.
Selena was the eldest daughter of a poor baron family that was collapsing. Like other noble girls, she was invited to a banquet to commemorate the succession hosted by the Imperial Palace, and she didn't even have a dress to wear, so she had to mend the outing clothes worn by the maids herself.
"It's definitely not a noticeable outfit but… That red hair was definitely Selena.'
Twilight hair that the male lead fell in love with at a glance when Ikshid saw it. If the two meet at this victory-celebrating banquet, they will surely fall in love. Their love would eventually lead to catastrophe, causing opposition from the senate and successor, and even breaking the deep friendship with the Duke Tashian at the end.
And the ending was just terrible.
Not only Eun-Woo, but also Anit, who serves her, Yuri, Jenette, Hannah, and her brother Diego, whom she has never seen his face, and Johannes, the butler… And Tashian will die, too.
Then an indescribable pain felt like stabbing her heart.
Eun-woo shook her head small to regain her senses, opened her eyes wide, and carefully looked around.
'I need to find Selena faster than Ikshid!'
Tashian's eyes looked down at her meaningfully.
"Are you sure you're okay? What have you been looking for?"
"Duke. I'm really fine. Shall we go over there this time?"
Since then, Eun-woo has been dragging Tashian by swinging him around the banquet hall. She dug through people, and even if a single red hair caught her eye, she would move from one end of the hall to the other.
Ikshid, who was chatting with the ministers about the last meeting, was also able to see the scene.
"Ha… Isn't it a waste of their eyes to search what they were looking for?"
Instead of standing next to him, Hana opened her mouth as if sympathizing with him.
"Lord. What the Lord is looking at is definitely the Duke of Verk."
"Then can you explain why Duke Verk is walking around the Banquet like a local dog, dragging a small woman who doesn't even come close to his heart?"
"Congratulations."
"Do you remember hearing that the Duke hurt his head in this war?"
"In the ears of this lowly god, I haven't heard of such a thing."
"Then, how will you explain what she and the Duke are looking for?"
"In God's eyes, Lady Miller is using the Duke as a private wagon."
"The same goes for the eyes for the other party."
A moment of silence settled between them. Ikshid decided to pretend not to see such a trick completely.
As if when they had a strange conversation earlier, they changed the subject to the affairs of state affairs where bitter conversations come and go as usual.
Meanwhile, Tashian was persuading Eun-woo, who was eager to find Selena, saying obvious things that would not work.
"Eleanor. As the Crown Prince mentioned earlier, considering the dance to be held later, don't tire yourself now…"
"Oh? Red hair! Duke, go over there!"
"…"
He silently turned toward the direction she pointed. But this time, it was also a failure. Eun-woo grumbled, greatly inflating her grumpy cheeks.
No, what kind of woman knows what kind Hong Gil-dong* she is. Shining from east to west, her hair was so conspicuous, her feet were so quick, and by the time they arrived, Selena had always disappeared without showing a single hair.
(TN: Hong Gildong jeon (Hangul: 홍길동전; hanja: 洪吉童傳) is a Korean novel, often translated as The Biography of Hong Gildong, written during the Joseon Dynasty. Hong Gildong, an illegitimate son of a nobleman and his lowborn concubine, is the main character of the story. Gifted with supreme intelligence and supernatural abilities, he steals from rich and corrupt aristocrats, which has drawn him comparisons to famous bandits like the English folk hero Robin Hood and Australia's Ned Kelly. Historical sources point to the existence of a bandit named Hong Gildong who was arrested in 1500,[1] but the historical inspiration for the character was the Korean bandit and folk hero Im Kkeokjeong, who lived in the early 16th century.
From: Wikipedia)
"Eleanor, how's your leg? If you need a break, feel free to let me know."
Tashian did not make a boring expression and did not forget to follow her obedient steps, took her to the chair so that she could rest in time, and led her properly to a table with cakes and snacks.