The wicked woman is roasting coffee beans again today.

Chapter 9 – Part 1

Seeing Casper, who packaged Lynet so nicely, Edgar shook his head incredulously.

“By the way, didn’t you say Lynet was getting married soon, and I was going to be there for it……. Did her running away have anything to do with it?”

“Oh, that was called off, and I’m not in a position to say why, so you’ll have to ask Lynet.”

Casper clenched his fists at Edgar’s words. It was clear something was bothering him.

“And did you just stand by when that guy was around Lynet? You should have just confronted him directly. Because you’re acting behind the scenes, Lynet might misunderstand and blame only you.”

Whenever Lynet was bullied by other kids when she was young, Edgar never helped her in front of them. If he rushed over after hearing that Lynet had been bullied, Casper would see Edgar beating him and end up fighting Edgar, who had just pushed him away.

“You can’t be violent in front of a child, it’s bad for her education, you should send her back and kill those bastards.”

“You should do it in front of her. If you do it behind her back, she won’t know anything about it and you’ll be the only one she’ll blame.”

“What’s there to brag about? Stop involving kids in your mess!”

Edgar, who is not without a bit of an air of superiority, hands Casper the paper Kenneth gave him yesterday.

“What’s this?”

“Lynet has moved out of the house and set up shop. Here’s the address. Don’t tell her I gave it to you, but go with your uncle. Go in a few days. Tomorrow I’ll go…… hey, Casper!”

Edgar was talking straight ahead, and when he looked to the side, Casper’s figure was already a dot.

With a bitter smile, Edgar moved on and went to the training grounds for his late punishment. Meanwhile, Casper arrived at Viscountess Florence’s estate.

“Father!”

Casper called out to his father even before reaching the study.

“Don’t rush! What on earth is going on?”

Conrad Florence, who was dealing with basic matters related to the estate, stood up abruptly when he saw his son.

“Father, Lynet has left home and opened a shop.”

As Casper quietly relayed what he had heard from Edgar, Conrad stood up abruptly.

“We must go see Lynet immediately! How can this world be so harsh? A child so cute, small, and adorable that she seems to wear out just by looking at her, is out alone.”

Casper’s mouth broke out in laughter as he spoke as if anyone who saw Lynet would pick her up in his pocket and kidnap her.

“Father, before you go, you must open the gates you have sealed.”

“Ah! Of course I will. Why not, if only to see our Lynet, and it’s about time we stretch our legs.”

After thirteen years of closure, the Countess of Florence opened the gates because she needed to see her niece who had run away from home.

***

Lynet, who had been catching flies for days, stretched herself.

“Yawn!”

Clank, clank…

As she yawned lazily, she suddenly perked up upon hearing footsteps.

“Welcome… Why are you here?”

Lynet’s face instantly fell upon seeing who it was.

“Hey, a customer came, but look at your face. Tsk tsk, how can you run a business with that attitude?”

“Even if it fails, it’s my failure, so don’t worry about it. Just focus on your own work, big brother.”

Edgar smirked at Lynet’s grimace. Then, following her instructions, he casually asked:

“Coffee? Sure? Don’t you usually serve tea?”

“This one’s even stronger. It might give you an energy boost, but it might be too much of a challenge for you.”

“Huh? Aren’t you underestimating me? I’m a royal knight, after all.”

“I can’t believe you’re a royal knight. Clearly, the person who chose you has cataracts.”

Watching the usual banter between the siblings, Katrine smiled. She had been worried that Esther’s accident might strain the relationship between Edgar and Lynet, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“Oh! What nonsense! Their vision must be very clear. Anyway, enough of that. Just give me the coffee.”

Although it was supposed to be prepaid, Lynet didn’t ask Edgar for money because she didn’t want to accept money from him. After brewing a strong espresso, Lynet handed it to Edgar as if she didn’t know anything. It was the first time Edgar had seen such a dark-colored tea, but he couldn’t complain in front of Lynet.

After taking a sip of the espresso, Edgar grimaced but soon relaxed his expression.

“Well, it’s delicious.”

“Just tell the truth. It’s disgustingly bitter.”

“To be honest, it’s so bitter I can’t drink it. But do people actually pay for this?”

As Edgar drank the water Katrine offered, he shook his head.

“People who like coffee drink it like this.”

She took Edgar’s espresso and poured water and syrup into it. Edgar realized that Lynet had played a prank on him, but he didn’t scold her.

“This doesn’t taste like the last one.”

It was still bitter, but not as intense as before. It had a sweet taste from the syrup and, most importantly, a rich aroma that Edgar liked. With a roaring laugh, Edgar drank the hot coffee.

“What’s this? And this?”

“This is coffee with milk, and this is foamed milk with cinnamon sprinkled on top…”

As Edgar became more curious about coffee, Lynet explained various things, frowning slightly.

“If I drink all of this…”

“Just drinking this might keep you awake all night, you know? It might have awakening effects and keep you from sleeping.”

He couldn’t afford to lose sleep tonight as he had to go to the palace tomorrow. So, Edgar nodded as he savored the coffee Lynet gave him.

Sit over there and drink it. I don’t want to see my ugly brother’s face for too long.”

“If my face looks ugly to you, it means your face is ugly too. Just remember that, little sister.”

“Dum spiro spero”