Falling To Paradise

“It’s about time to harvest the corn.”

 

At Aiden’s words, Anje picked up a basket with a pounding heart.

 

While the other processes were also fun, the day they picked the crops and filled the baskets heavily was the most thrilling moment working in the field.

 

“Should I pick all the corn here?”

 

Looking at Anje, who was full of enthusiasm, Aiden gave a slight smile.

 

“Some of them are still unripe, so let’s pick the ones with dark silks first.”

 

“Sure, that’s a piece of cake.”

 

Anje enthusiastically rushed towards the cornstalks swaying with green leaves. Corn, which grew well even in barren conditions, proudly displayed its plump kernels within the green husks despite their minimal effort.

 

“If you twist it sideways like this, it comes off easily.”

 

Seeing her struggling to pull the corn straight down, he came over and demonstrated.

 

“Oh, I see.”

 

Following his instructions, she twisted the corn, and it snapped off cleanly as the husk tore from the bottom.

 

The corn snapped off with a satisfying sound, and each one was large and heavy. Anje proudly showed a particularly big one to Aiden.

 

“Look, Aiden. This one is huge, isn’t it?”

 

Not to be outdone, he showed her the corn in his basket.

 

“Mine’s bigger.”

 

“No way, this one’s bigger. Let’s compare.”

 

Although the difference was just a single kernel, Aiden’s corn was indeed slightly larger. As he exaggerated his joy, Anje, looking a bit disgruntled, suggested first,

 

“How about a competition? Let’s see who can pick the bigger corn in an hour.”

 

“A competition…”

 

Reaching for the next corn, he paused and added a condition.

 

“How about we place a bet on the outcome?”

 

“What kind of bet?”

 

“The loser…”

 

Snap! A corn stalk broke as he applied too much force on it. Aiden casually tossed the broken stalk on the ground and finished his sentence.

 

“…grants the winner’s wish.”

 

Anje readily nodded.

 

“Okay. But it has to be a wish that can be granted immediately.”

 

Anje and Aiden took the competition quite seriously. Aiden, in particular, seemed even more enthusiastic than before.

 

“Wait a minute, being tall is a huge advantage here.”

 

Anje was the first to notice the disadvantage of this competition. The tall corn stalks were much higher than her, and Aiden could easily spot and pick the ones she missed.

 

A sly smile appeared on his lips.

 

“Even if you realize it now, it’s too late to back out.”

 

“Tch, you knew this would be to your advantage and kept quiet?”

 

“The world of competition is inherently ruthless.”

 

Confident that he wouldn’t lose to Anje in farming, Aiden was sure of his victory. However, just before the competition ended, the heavens betrayed him and took Anje’s side.

 

“Wow, look at this!”

 

A low corn stalk that Aiden had overlooked because it hadn’t grown much bore a massive ear of corn, as thick and large as both of Anje’s forearms combined.

 

Anje’s victorious shout and Aiden’s disappointed sigh crossed paths as she held up the enormous corn ear.

 

“This is it, This is a win without even needing to measure!”

 

To cool her flushed face, she fanned herself with her wide-brimmed hat.

 

He pulled out a handkerchief soaked in cold water and placed it on the back of her neck, graciously accepting his defeat.

 

“I’ll admit my defeat gracefully.”

 

“That’s a good attitude.”

 

Even though they had left some of the corn that wasn’t fully ripe, the two of them, driven by their competitive spirits, had managed to fill both baskets to the brim. It was now time to wrap up the competition and move on to the next task.

 

They moved to the kitchen table and began to peel the light green corn husks and remove the fine silks.

 

“What should we make with these?”

 

“We could boil them with some salt or sugar… or butter and grill them, make soup, or bake them with cheese.”

 

As Aiden mentioned, there were countless dishes they could make with corn. It was also valuable because it could be processed into oil or flour and used as animal feed, making it an indispensable crop for common people.

 

Anje added one more idea.

 

“We could fry them too!”

 

The thought of hot, freshly popped popcorn with a sprinkle of salt made her hungry, even though they had just eaten.

 

The clean corn was passed from Anje’s hands to Aiden’s, who neatly placed them in a box. Even though they hadn’t discussed it beforehand, their coordination was perfect.

 

“What are you going to ask for as your reward for winning the bet?”

 

“Oh right, the wish. We need to talk about that.”

 

She had been so focused on the task that she almost forgot.

 

“There’s something I want to learn from you…”

 

Her voice trailed off as she wiped her dirty hands.

 

“Something you want to learn?”

 

“You probably won’t like it, but since it was a bet, you have to grant it, okay?”

 

Curious what on earth she wanted to learn that made her hesitate so much, Aiden pressed her for an answer. Anje, hesitantly, replied.

 

“I want to learn how to handle a gun-”

 

His expression hardened, and he interrupted her.

 

“That’s not happening.”

 

“But we made a bet.”

 

“Didn’t you say that it had to be a wish that could be granted immediately?”

 

“It can be granted immediately, can’t it? There’s a gun hanging on the wall in the living room, and another one in your room. My hands and eyes are perfectly fine. All you need to do is agree.”

 

“That’s true, but…”

 

He frowned deeply, lost in thought.

 

He already knew she was interested in guns. She often watched with curious eyes as he cleaned and checked the guns around the house to make sure they fired well. But he always made her sit far away to prevent any accidents, never letting her touch the guns or the bullets.

 

While he readily taught her anything else she asked about the farm, he was conservative when it came to guns.

 

He had often seen how easily these ‘small toys’ could ruin many lives.

 

But having agreed to grant her wish, he couldn’t just say no without a reason.

 

“Why do you suddenly want to learn how to handle a gun?”

 

“You told me about your bear hunting story.”

 

Anje clenched her fist with enthusiasm.

 

“Until then, I wasn’t really interested in hunting. But hearing your story made me want to try it at least once.”

 

In the capital, hunting competitions were exclusively for men. Women would give handkerchiefs to their fiancés or family members and wait in tents for their return.

 

Once the winner was decided, they would clap, praise him as a role model, and go home.

 

The skills of the participants were less important than that of their servants, making it all quite laughable.

 

‘Even the winner was always predetermined.’

 

No one dared to surpass the crown prince, who was fiercely competitive and quick-tempered. To Anje, hunting competitions were just boring social events.

 

“And if there’s a beast targeting our Pa-Pi-Pu, I could protect them with a gun.”

 

Here in Leslie, hunting was not such a luxurious and glamorous event. It was sometimes a means of protecting one’s property and life, or a way to sustain oneself and obtain food. Even Aunt Meg had her own handgun.

 

Aiden looked at Anje’s determined face and sighed. Perhaps he had made his hunting stories too vivid for her.

 

‘After finding bear tracks in the snow, what happened next?’

 

‘I hid my presence as much as possible and approached from the side. Then, aiming just behind its shoulder blade…and in one shot, BANG!’

 

‘One shot? No way, how could you kill a big bear with one shot?’

 

‘Because it’s a big bear, it had to be done in one shot. If it got wounded and attacked a person, it would be a disaster.’

 

He hadn’t intended for her to become so interested in hunting; he just wanted to subtly, very subtly, show off his hunting skills.

 

Especially to emphasize that he was a much better marksman than that bastard Philip, who had gloated to everyone in the palace about grazing a single wolf.

 

“Think about it, Aiden. What if a bear shows up in the field while you’re briefly in the woods and I’m alone? I should at least know how to handle a gun, right?”

 

“A bear coming this close to the house has only happened once in the past 20 years… And if it does happen, running away quickly is the best strategy.”

 

“Oh, come on, don’t be so difficult.”

 

No matter how resolute he was, Aiden couldn’t resist Anje’s pleading eyes. With a bitter smile, he stood up.

 

“But you must follow my instructions exactly. Handling a gun is dangerous.”

 

“Of course!”

 

Anje stood up and lowered her voice as she followed him.

 

“I will follow Sir Aiden’s orders to the letter. So, you must teach me everything about guns. Understood?”

 

Aiden raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

 

“Are you… mimicking me?”

 

“Did you catch me? Don’t I sound just like you?”

 

Anje, satisfied with her imitation of him, stuck out her tongue. She still hadn’t finished getting back at him for his sneaky competition tactics earlier.

 

“I do not speak like that… I mean, I don’t speak like that at all…”

 

“But you did? It’s totally soldier-like tone?”

 

TL/N: FOR REFERENCE: AIDEN IN THE FIRST SENTENCE TALKED IN A SOLDIER-LIKE TONE THEN QUICKLY CORRECTED HIMSELF XD

 

Having listened to Aiden’s speech over the past few months, Anje was confident in her impersonation of him.

 

“If you put it that way, I have my own impression. ‘I am the princess of the Glasster family—'”

 

“Oh, come on, that’s childish!”

 

Aiden, mimicking Anje from when she first arrived at the farm, finally stopped teasing her only after she threw corn husks at him, covering his head completely.

 

TL/N: HMM, GOING THRU THEIR HONEYMOON PHASE, I SEE…

 

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