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When Eun-bi noticed him, she recognised him right away. It was hard not to, especially with an unforgettable face like his.

Cold, expressionless eyes.

Inhumanly flawless features.

An unrivalled beauty that would put even the most popular courtesan in the capital to shame.

Eun-bi was acutely aware of how his hands were wrapped around her waist and it took her a moment to regain her bearings. Once she got over the surprise, she started doing one of the things that she was good at.

Which was to scream like a girl–

Oh wait, she was one.

Don't get her wrong, she was called as her father's son far too many times that she couldn't count it off her fingers and it got stuck in her head. Honestly, people should be making better use of their time, like getting their eyes checked by a physician instead.

Right, going back to the main task on hand.

When Eun-bi started screaming, the nobleman released his hold on her and she toppled to the ground. Everything was happening just like the first time when they met.

Why was she always getting thrown off her horse and kissing the floor like they were the best of friends?

"Hey!" She yelped and glared at the stony-hearted nobleman, rubbing her sore rears. "That's not the way to treat a woman!"

Without any change in his expression, he simply folded his hands behind his back and looked away. Acting all high and mighty again.

And it was getting on her nerves.

Eun-bi dropped her head suddenly, trying to act like a frail noblewoman. "It hurts," she sniffed. "I–I think I sprained my ankle."

It worked. There was only so much the arrogant attitude of his would last, for all noblemen were instilled to treat women with respect and dignity.

The sound of footsteps approached her slowly and hesitantly. Through her curtain of hair, she saw his shadow fall over her. When she finally glanced up, she saw his hand outreached to offer her his aid.

However, he did not bother to look at her once.

Eun-bi pursed her lips in dissatisfaction, but decided to accept his help. When she took his hand and he tried to lift her up, he was totally unprepared at what she was going to do.

She tugged on his hand hard.

The arrogant nobleman tumbled onto the floor right beside her. Throughout the entire moment, she scrutinised his face for any change in his expression or yelps of surprise.

To her sheer disappointment, there was none. His face remained as infuriatingly frigid as ever.

Was he born from a rock?

Before he could stand, Eun-bi rolled to her feet and leapt onto Bo-mi, tugging on the horse reins quickly. They fled into the night, leaving the nobleman behind.

Until next time, Lord of Arrogance.

***

It was two nights later when Eun-bi saw the owner of the jade charm again.

A performance by a famous circus troupe was going to happen that night at one of the largest inns in town. It was the topic that everyone was talking about all day and Eun-bi was most certainly not going to miss a good show.

Once she was finished with dinner, she brought Da-hee along with her. She was so excited about the performance that she was skipping down the path.

Da-hee chuckled. "My lady, you need to calm down. You're starting to look like our household dog when she gets all excited playing in the grass."

Eun-bi whipped her head around with bright eyes. "Really? So, you're saying I'm also as adorable as a fluffy cloud?"

It was true, their husky was a beautiful dog with a thick white coat and cute paws.

Da-hee frowned. "I did not say that with my mouth."

"But you implied it! You're such a sweet friend, Da-hee!" Eun-bi grinned. She grabbed two sticks of candy from a seller passing by and threw him a few coins. "Here," she turned back to her maid. "This is your reward for being so honest!"

With a small shrug, Da-hee accepted the stick of candy and popped it into her mouth. "Whatever that makes you happy, so long as I get my free food."

"Smart girl."

When they reached the inn, it was swarming full of people. A huge crowd was lining up at the entrance and waiting for their turn to go in. There were even people who came from the outskirts of the town just to watch the exquisite performance by the circus troupe.

Eun-bi wondered out loud. "What is the performance going to be like?"

"Acrobatics, trained animals, musicians..." Da-hee listed a couple of things that she could remember the other servants were talking about earlier today. "If we're lucky, we might spot some young, muscular guys!"

"Acrobatics!" Eun-bi squealed in sheer delight, oblivious to the way her maid frowned at her for focusing on the wrong point. "What are we waiting for? Come on, let's get into the line!"

She was about to run ahead in excitement when her maid grasped her arm.

"My lady, be patient! I can't afford to lose you in this crowd."

Embarrassed, Eun-bi murmured a quick apology for being impulsive. They interlocked their arms and joined the queue. Once they were allowed to enter, people were scrambling to get the best seats so that they could catch a great view of the performance later. After the circus troupe climbed onto the stage, music and squeals of excitement filled the air. The atmosphere was lively and the girls joined in on the loud cheers for the circus performers as they performed their stunts.

All too soon, the circus act eventually came to an end. The crowd slowly thinned as people exited the inn, but the air was still buzzing with excitement as people around them kept praising the performance.

Da-hee smiled. "It was really fun, wasn't it?"

"It was the best!" Eun-bi grinned widely at her. "It was the most excitement thing to happen here in a while–oof!"

She collided into a wall – one which she didn't see coming – and fell backwards, landing her buttocks on the ground first. Wincing at the pain, she cursed herself inwardly for her lack of awareness before glaring up at the wretched wall–

–only to find herself locking eyes with the cold, handsome nobleman from before, who was wearing the same impassive look on his face.

Clearly, he had come once again for his jade charm.

Of course, Eun-bi wasn't going to let him retrieve it this easily. She took a deep breath and started screaming so loud that poor Da-hee who stood next to her flinched and pulled away.

"PERVERT!"

Her screams garnered attention from the people around them and a crowd formed quickly. As they watched on, she crossed her arms over her chest and pretended to sniff loudly.

"He touched me!"

Gasps and murmurs rose among the crowd as everyone stared at the nobleman in disgust and contempt.

"Filthy nobleman!"

"Someone gets some salt!"

As people spat unpleasant words at him, he remained unfazed. With his head kept low and his face hidden underneath his gat (a traditional hat), he continued watching Eun-bi through his long lashes. When he eventually spoke, he only uttered a few words to her.

"My jade charm?"

Seriously? Even after being insulted, all he cared about was his expensive jade charm. There was no expression on his face; not even anger or annoyance. Did he not feel anything when she was framing him with her ridiculous lies?

This challenge was proving to be a lot more difficult than she had thought.