I burst out laughing. I wondered how the hell the Duke of Spencer had taught his nineteen-year-old heir to be so naive about sex. Besides, he was a member of the Milua Royal Knights. I knew he wasn’t a mercenary, but I also knew there was not a huge difference between the two.
According to Margarita, who taught me fencing, knights were more commonly found in brothels than mercenaries (Maggie was a courtesan from the brothels, and once she had taken up her position as Marquis Ziegler’s mistress, she had made it her business to pass on her honed skills to the noble ladies). It’s understandable. Mercenaries lived and died with gold coins, so the value of gold coins to them was nothing more than just something to support their desires.
“Jaden, no matter how inexperienced you are, there’s something you should know. Most girls like to talk about sex.”
I hadn’t met all the girls on the continent, but at least the ones I had met were like that. Jaden Spencer covered his blushing face with his large hand in response to my serious declaration. His reaction was particularly cute, and something was endearing about it.
“You know, just out of curiosity, have you ever had a girlfriend?”
“No.”
He replied bluntly. I was taken aback and abandoned my original goal of making Louisa and Jaden friends and sat down with him on the kennel fence.
“Why?”
“What why?”
“Well, you’re the ‘Hero of Milua.’ You’re not only Duke Spencer’s heir but also the Viscount of Hilland. Girls would not have left you alone, no matter how cold you acted. My cousin Jodi even already had a third child with you from her imagination because you picked up her hair ornament.”
“That… .”
He frowned and continued.
“That… is not love.”
“Love?”
Of course, I too had my share of romance.
It’s been a long time since I stopped hoping that a knight on a white horse would rescue me from being imprisoned in a tower or that the bandit boss who plundered my carriage turned out to be the king’s illegitimate child. I dreamed of an affectionate relationship with someone I liked. Sometimes it was cute, sometimes there were tears, and sometimes it was embarrassing. That kind of love.
But instead, I failed miserably at my first love and was haunted by the ghosts of my first relationship. They had turned me into a romantically apathetic person. I would have condemned Maverick, but when faced with a situation like Elizabeth McCarthy’s, Ariel Dalton would never have resorted to sacrificing her second-semester tuition.
Therefore, if my name were ‘Spencer,’ rather than waiting for vague romance, it would be more convenient to embrace the desires that abound in social gatherings.
When I said that, Jaden replied with dissatisfaction.
“Ah… well, I can’t stand people who boast about their children as if they were well-groomed pets.”
“I can’t say there is no such category.”
I lifted my white flag impatiently. As a young noblewoman and the daughter of a viscount, I rarely received invitations to social gatherings or salons in high society. Even if I happened to attend, it was difficult to interact with families higher than a viscount.
So I came to know that some children’s reason for living is to climb the social ladder, and that it was their parents’ influence that made them do so. The love parents have for their children is so blindly devoted that sometimes they don’t even realize whether the path they provide is filled with opportunities or challenges.
Jaden Spencer was the epitome of purity among all. If the love I had encountered had turned me into a cynic of romance, the love that Jaden had not experienced made him a worshipper of romance. I instantly understood his innocence.
“So, what kind of love do you want?”
I asked, barely resisting the urge to tease him further. My expression must have looked more solemn than ever because it made him serious, thanks to that.
“My father…”
He thought for a moment, then answered.
“When he broke up with my mother, he cried while listening to ‘Ham’s Song.”
“Duke Spencer?”
‘Ham’s Song’ was a children’s song based on a fairy tale. The lyrics contain the story of a baby pig born in a slaughterhouse trying to defy the tragic fate of becoming a ham.
In my memory, the Duke and Duchess Spencer had no circumstances to relate to the poor little pig. Also, I had only seen the Duke once, at my debutante ball, but I doubted that a nursery rhyme could stir his tear ducts.
“I’m not sure either. I don’t know which part of that song resonated with my father. Anyway, what I want to say is—”
“You want to love someone who can make you cry with ‘Ham’s song.’”
“It’s a bit different, but… kind of similar to that.”
He was serious. I replied quickly, trying not to imagine Jaden Spencer blushing at the cheerful tones of the bagpipes.
“But Jaden, that’s too hard.”
“Is it?”
“Well… my mom says that if you smile when you look at someone, that’s love, so why not go with that?”
I jabbed my index finger from both hands against my lips and raised them as high as possible. Then, he suddenly burst into laughter.
“But Ariel, that’s too easy!”
What should I say? Jaden Spencer’s laugh was destructive, and it’s not just because it’s so rare.
When Jaden laughed, his mouth would spread wide, and his nose would wrinkle. His dark green irises completely disappear between his cute aegyo-sal and eyelashes. His eyebrows lower noticeably, and his lips form a refreshing smile that makes one feel the desire to smile as well.
“Jaden Anton Spencer-Hillland!”
Even though it was only momentarily, his laugh left an afterimage in my eyelids. I got so excited that I recited Jaden’s name, causing him to flinch slightly. Of course, his enormous size and strong body did not make it look like he was particularly intimidated by flinching.
Because I was standing and he was sitting, Jaden had to raise his head to make eye contact with me, and I suddenly realized that it’s not every day that I get to look down on the dragon knight as massive as the bear in Hillesheim Forest.
I felt a little smug. When I return to Dalton for vacation, I will surely tell of the unbelievable things I have witnessed. At least to that annoying Jodi!
“My God, Jayden, you have a really pretty smile!”
“What?”
“No matter who you fancy and chase after, it does not matter. Anyone who sees your smile will helplessly fall for you!”
Jaden blinked in disbelief, then laughed softly, saying, ‘That’s not true.’ This time his smile was more shy than before.
***
With the Love Month banquet just around the corner, I was very busy. I had to do assignments during the time I was not taking classes, and I had to take supplementary classes after the assignments were over. After listening to supplements, I had to write an apology about the “fainting game”. This was not a painful punishment, as I had already been tutored by Keran Illestia, an expert in writing reflective essays in the world of Florence Belle.
From what I have heard, Kyle was once again relegated to cleaning toilets on behalf of the magic dolls. In my opinion, Kyle Villard must have belonged to an organization aimed at advancing the interests of magic dolls.
I never got to talk to Kyle because he spent almost all of his time in the men’s bathroom. And that fueled a legitimate suspicion I had. The suspicion that my damn childhood friend might be avoiding me!
So as I walked down the winding road with Edgar Ramos, I kept a gloomy expression. Edgar must have thought I was grumpy about climbing uphill, which continued beyond the ten minutes he had promised, so when I suddenly kicked him on the back when he offered to carry me, he finally asked what was wrong.
For a moment, I debated whether I could mention Kyle to Edgar, but I felt strange for even thinking about it, so I just spoke up.
”How would I know?” Edgar grumbled as he pulled open the wooden door adorned with coffee beans. “And why do you have to think about that right now? Did you come all the way here just for that?” He sounded so pissed off that even the person following behind us looked perplexed. I must have kicked him too hard.
Now it was Edgar Ramos who had a gloomy expression. I appeased him by complimenting the modest and intellectual atmosphere of the coffee shop until my mouth went dry. Right behind the table where we were seated, an academy student, probably from Illestia, and a dwarven scholar dressed in loose clothing were having a heated discussion.
“How can you tell the difference between a chair and a table, for example? A chair is made to sit on, but you can also sit on a table. If so, can a chair and a table be considered different objects?”
“No, I don’t think you realize that a chair has certain properties that make it a chair, and that’s why we recognize it as a ‘chair.’ Like a backrest. Humans, elves, and dwarves have their characteristics. Elves have pointed ears. Dwarves have tough skin. Humans have neither. The same applies to ‘divinity.’ It’s because it’s a human characteristic that humans possess ‘divinity,’ even though I do not use that word. It’s not because your gods pitied humans and bestowed blessings through their apostles.”
The denial of the concept of ‘Benevolent Stia’ by the scholar caused a stir in the surroundings. The student debated with a flushed face.
“But the more devout the faith, the stronger the divinity becomes! That’s the evidence that Stia is constantly watching overus,s and that divinity is Her blessing!”
“I see it as another form of mana. It shines with a bright yellow light and has healing properties. Fundamentally, it can be considered mental power, so it’s natural for it to become stronger.”
“How interesting,” Edgar suddenly said. It seemed he, too, had been listening intently to their conversation, just like me.
“I didn’t know the dwarves also held such views.”
“Dwarves ‘also’? Does that mean you agree with her?”
“Most Nadonians think of ‘Stia’ as an illusion created by the Illestia family. I do too.”
You can now sponsor an extra chapter by buying me a Kofi! 2 Kofis = 1 extra chapter.
