I'm Done Being Your Best Friend

Chapter 51

Afterward, while having dinner, I heard of something astounding.

As Lady Cruz tore the bread, she asked Heidi.

“I heard you’re looking for an engagement partner, lady Coventry, is that true?”

Heidi? Heidi had Percy though?

I wondered what that meant, so I turned to look at Heidi with eyes slightly rounded.

Heidi was stammering with a perplexed face.

“Ah…It was my father’s unilateral decision…regardless of my will…”

Heidi’s face darkened considerably. If the prospective fiancé was Percy, she wouldn’t have reacted like that.

Heidi’s engagement partner, which Baron Coventry had in mind, was certainly not Percy.

“I’m going to talk to my father again. I’m not mentally ready yet … “

It was ridiculous. She was basically saying they were already in the process of getting engaged, regardless.

I knew how affectionate Heidi and Percy were toward each other. And yet, she was getting engaged to someone else over him!

A while later, I secretly called Heidi out of the banquet hall. I asked Heidi, who followed me.

“Doesn’t lady Coventry have a lover already?”

“Pardon?”

Heidi looked at me, stunned. Her purple eyes fluttered slightly in confusion.

“How do you…”

“I found out by chance. I’ve been pretending not to know…..But what on earth happened?”

Heidi lowered her head, face darkened. I asked her carefully.

“Why are you two meeting secretly even though there is talk of marriage going on?”

I couldn’t understand. If they were to keep their relationship a secret, wouldn’t they be creating an opportunity for lady Conventry’s marriage to be pushed ahead?

Judging by the look on Heidi’s face, she didn’t seem to want it. Then why was she so tight-lipped?

“About that….”

Heidi hesitated. At that, I took Heidi out to the back of the mansion. Since there was no one there, we could talk comfortably.

She seemingly thought so too, since as soon as we arrived there, she opened her mouth with a heavy heart.

“It’s because I think people will be against it if we meet in public.”

Only then did I understand why Heidi hesitated.

It was because of the difference in status. Percy was the heir to the duchy, whilst Heidi was a baron’s daughter.

I thought she was only enjoying happiness until now… Turned out, Heidi was facing another hardship.

The number of nobles in the Kingdom of Beland was not significant. As anyone could see from the fact that there were only two dukes, the proportion of nobles was close to a very small number.

On that account, they formed a bond through arranged marriages. Just like me in my previous life.

Occasionally, there would be outstanding and desirable individuals like Daisy, but that was extremely rare.

Most of them only consider one’s family background, not the heart of the person who married them. How wealthy one was, how powerful the said person was politically, etc.

Eventually, the standard of marriage within the nobility society changed.

Because Chloe was also born into a duke’s family, she became the Crown Prince’s fiancée.

So far, I had never known of a marriage of people from two families as different as a duchy and a baron.

Again, Heidi spoke with a trembling voice.

“Because our family is a baron, no matter how good my relationship with the young lord of Grint is, it’s difficult. Even my sisters are married into a baron or a viscounty.”

Heidi, following her sisters’ precedent, seemed determined to keep her relationship with Percy a secret. If their family knew, it was obvious that this meeting would be viewed badly.

Heidi said it had already been four years since they started dating secretly.

At that, I asked in surprise.

“I didn’t know it had been that long. Hasn’t lady Grint once doubted it?”

“It is because lady Grint is not interested in what lord Grint does.”

It’s not that the siblings weren’t on good terms, but it’s just Chloe wasn’t a delicate sister enough to ask about it. Moreover, unlike me, Heidi didn’t have any strange rumours circulating about her, so Chloe didn’t seem to be deeply interested in her love life either.

Come to think of it, rumours spread after a month I’d met with Logan. Heidi was amazing! How could she have had a secret love affair for such a long time?

Then, it took me less than a minute to realise the answer. I met him too openly. Oh right…

Heidi spoke to me in a hesitant voice.

“Percy-, no, lord Grint and I have been talking. We still don’t know how to deal with this situation yet…”

This marriage case should be resolved. The fact that Daisy was the Duchess of Grint before my return was also worrisome, but more than anything, I didn’t want to see Heidi and Percy get heartbroken.

And here I thought she would be happy with the person she loves in this life…I looked at the gloomy Heidi with a mixture of sadness and pity.

“It’ll be all right. Don’t be so depressed, lady Coventry.”

Then, as a sign of comfort, I hugged Heidi. Heidi also quietly embraced me.

Sometimes, silence was the greatest comfort.

I stood by Heidi’s side for a while as she let out a long sigh.

When we returned to the banquet hall, the atmosphere was quite different. Before, everyone sat at the same table chatting and eating with each other, now it’s a little more lively and noisy.

Chloe, who had just handed a maid an empty plate, looked at us and spoke.

“Where have you two been?”

“We just came back here after a little walk in the garden.”

“Why a walk on such a cold day? If there’s something you need to talk about, you should do it here.”

I casually said yes and leaned back against the back of my chair.

Come to think of it, I couldn’t talk to Logan today. I turned my gaze to where Logan was supposed to be, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Where is he? When I turned my head to the right, I saw him standing on one side and being greeted by the nobles.

He was surrounded by all kinds of aristocrats, such as nobles who brought along a young lady (probably to introduce to him), young gentlemen, and so on.

I stared at his figure. I thought I could understand why the nobles were so unwilling to let him go. He didn’t usually come to social gatherings like this after all.

Previously, when I went to Count Beth’s ball, he only danced with me once and then disappeared, so their effort of getting his attention got even more intense.

What on earth are they talking about? Is he trying to answer all the questions they ask? Logan’s expression seemed to be getting worse and worse.

At that moment, I heard the voice of lady Roberts calling me.

“Lady Nelson? What are you-…”

“Let’s leave lady Nelson alone and we can have a chat for a moment.”

Chloe quickly intercepted lady Roberts’ words.

What was that all about? I gave them a puzzled look and then turned my gaze back to Logan.

At that moment our eyes met. I greeted him with a smile.

Logan looked at me and nodded slightly.

In response, I smiled and pointed outside with my finger. Before long, I got up to go out first.

“I will be back after a while.”

“You’re going out again?”

I smiled at lady Cruz’s question and exit the banquet hall.