He thought that even if she cried, even if she was sorry, he would not forgive her. But the moment he saw Lawrence’s face, pity and sorrow filled his heart. Her rain-soaked figure, and those eyes. Like someone deeply hurt by something in her, Lawrence’s eyes were revealing a lot of emotion. So he couldn’t get angry and just hugged her. Lawrence, who didn’t care about her own safety… His heart fluttered at the sight of her risking her own life to gamble. She wanted to be there to watch over every little thing, like a parent leaving her child at the water’s edge. In the end, his greed forced him to call her because he wanted to be with her. He could have sent an important document to check on, but ignored it, just because he wanted to be with her.
It was fun to sit in the same room and share the same air. But that alone soon became insufficient. How could he make her look at him? He continued to glance at her. Lawrence was also beautiful to watch while working. Her beautiful emerald eyes, reminiscent of the grasslands, moved in motion, quickly dragging and organizing the papers and summarizing the contents. She was so restless that he wondered if her thin wrists were breaking from overexertion. On the first day, he thought he was rather lucky when Lawrence came in her suit as she disappeared with her sullen face. He was able to come to his senses. He didn’t know he was so timid until he met her. He was wary of glancing at her. He couldn’t help but stare frantically at his papers whenever Lawrence seemed to be looking at him.
He didn’t want to appear to be playing. He also wondered if she seemed to be working hard, something in him might not like her either. Rather than playing, he thought that showing hard work was something she would like, as her butler had said. Sometimes she kept her eyes fixed on him and didn’t move. He was sweating profusely and his whole body stiffened with tension. He eventually lifted his head to meet Lawrence’s pale green eyes looking at him, and he forced a smile. She asked if he wanted to say something, he didn’t, and she looked at him blankly. What was he imagining with her cute hair?
“Is there a scar on my forehead?”
A wound? Did she have a scar on her forehead? Why did she ask that? Ian lifted his head, which covered her forehead. He didn’t usually show his forehead. Because the camp life was long. If dust flew in and stuck to his bangs, he could just shake it off, but if it stuck to his skin, he couldn’t wash it off with insufficient water, so he had to leave it alone. Because of such a life, it was not a habit to raise her hair, so it was only lowered. But was that a god? Was it good to raise his head? Ian gently ruffled his hair. Ian glanced at Lawrence. She stared blankly at him, then her face blushed. She then declared.
“Do not touch!”
It was absurd to think about it again. Now, as if she didn’t like every single word he said, he just stared devastatingly at her back as she finally pouted her lips and left the room. What did he do wrong? He sat in his chair with self-reflection. He sighed as the door opened and the butler came in and said to him with a slightly pitiful expression.
“Did you work again?”
Again? Ian pouted his lips, just as Lawrence had done.
“I was just faithful to my duty”
“Tsk”
The old butler clicked his tongue so blatantly and looked at him pitifully. As Ian frowned and glared at him, he sighed this time and said,
“You don’t know a woman’s heart too much, Grand Duke.”
“You look familiar with it, Butler?”
When Ian was slightly sarcastic, Buther Noh nodded his head.
“I’ve only received 32 confessions while working here. I’ve received it recently.”
“Haha, is there anyone who confesses to grandpa?”
“Lady Lawrence said she likes me.”
Ian’s expression darkened. Butler Noh bought a Madeleine from the store in the imperial capital, which she said she liked very much, and gave it to him because he couldn’t use her young daughter. Laurencia tasted a bite and it melted into her mouth. Of course, the target would be Madeleine, not the butler, but what about it? The butler thought that what Ian needed right now was stimulation.
“Do you know why Lady Lawrence left in anger?”
“…You said you were going to come?”
“Did you say duck?”
There was a hole through which her words would come out, but she couldn’t open her mouth. Even after Ian said it, he recognized that he was wrong and covered his eyes. The butler sighed and looked at him pitifully.
“Women are inherently weak at compliments. To tease her that she’s a duck… you can’t compliment her… I don’t think you’ll ever see her again.”
“…Would Lawrence do the same?”
“I don’t know. However, I hope you apologize when the lady comes back. Also, praise her often and show interest. To be honest, calling the lady over is your job. If it were me, I’d quit and run away.”
Ian’s plan, which he thought Lawrence would like if he showed her how to handle her work in a good way, was shattered. He completely covered his face.
“I endured it for four days because the young lady was kind.”
“…Okay. Enough.”
It was as if the truths that were so painful became bamboo spears and pierced his heart.
“Always think from the young lady’s point of view. Then, wouldn’t you be able to see some answers?”
He had no answer. The butler bowed his head and left the room. In his room alone, Ian covered his face and let out a scream mixed with shame.
* * *
Even thinking about it again, she couldn’t understand the human mental world. What kind of man in the world would express interest in a woman, bring her in, lock her up in a room like his office, and leave her to work? Did he mean that he was interested in work ability? If so, I was sorry but I could not accept the interest. I was too busy with my work, but who was doing it? It was an unbelievable story.
Laurencia sat in her room with her sullen face, sipping tea her maid, Patricia, had made, and calming her mind. Patricia looked at her blankly to see if she was wondering if I was coming back from work to sip her tea, but she didn’t really ask.
When I looked at her, thinking that she was a well-educated maid, she turned to see if she felt my gaze on Patricia as well. When our eyes met, the awkwardness flowed. Patricia slightly rolled her eyes and she looked at me again and said cautiously.
“You must have had a bad day.”
I would do my best to take care of him. I recorded that I was quick-witted even at a young age. But wasn’t the current age difference between him and me actually only 3 years old? He was legally recognized as an adult from the age of 18, so if you look closely, you are not that young.
I smiled awkwardly and opened my mouth.
“It just wasn’t a big deal.”
It’s just that I felt bad because there were constant things that were not so big. How could he take me there and make me work? I felt like I was going to fall in love with that man.
Patricia smiled softly as I pursed my lips. Did she have fun with me? I glanced at her and she erased her smile hastily. I let out a sigh and leaned back in her chair, as if I was venting my anger at the boy.
“Patricia.”
“Yes, lady.”
“How do you see me?”
“Yes?”
It’s so out of the blue. But there was no one to ask. Come to think of it, I had very few people close to me. In the past, I thought that Ersia and Beralt were my Sims, so I often fooled around and consulted them, but they are no longer there. like grandpa Still, it was embarrassing to ask my grandfather such a question. Ummm… There’s also Fibel… Thinking of his face, who would be startled by my question, made me sigh again. Patricia rolled her eyes as if she didn’t understand my question. What did he want from a fifteen-year-old girl? It would be nice to have an older lady-in-waiting who can think a little higher, but there was no one like her older sister.
“The lady is wonderful.”
“Thank you.”
Don’t they usually say pretty or beautiful? They rarely use the word cool for a woman. You mean handsome, Patricia? Even if I looked like this, I was the twin sister of Ersia. Her looks weren’t far behind. I was just being told that I was not attractive because I was too serious.
“A mere dumb maid can’t fully understand what you mean by asking, but to tell you all about what she feels, I think you’re attractive to a woman like her and a very nice and beautiful person.”
I lowered my eyesight and looked at Patricia, who was eagerly opening her mouth. I heard compliments about me, but rather than being particularly moved, the idea that she was trying hard settled first. Was I too negative? I smiled and raised my hand.
“Okay, thank you. You can stop thinking about it now.”
“But…”
The way she rolled her eyes was cute. Her hesitation raised her teacup after smiling at her maid, who lowered her head.
‘Yeah, what’s wrong? I’m living my life alone anyway, so what’s the problem if I don’t have a man? A life that has been betrayed once, what does a man matter? Living well alone…’
“Did Grand Duke Berdian treat the lady sadly?”
“…!”
A question so deadly came in and I put my tongue on the hot car. With a strange scream, I put the teacup back on the table and frowned.
“Gwa, are you okay, young lady?!”
Patricia hurriedly poured her water and handed it to me. She took a sip of cold water, put it back in her mouth, and as she murmured, she rolled her eyes anxiously at Patricia’s puzzled face. She looked at him with a sidelong glance. Her eyes narrowed. Seeing my gaze, Patricia put on a tearful expression as if she were going to cry any second. Why was I crying… I gulped down her water, ran my teeth over my tingling tongue a few times, and nodded my head.
“It’s okay. It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Ha, but…”
If a commoner hurt a noble, the punishment was at least medium. All regardless of reason, purpose, means, or willfulness. So Patricia couldn’t help but panic. If I get hurt by a single word, I lose everything in an instant. But I had no intention of blaming Patricia for just this.
“It’s fine.”
“Miss…”
She hurriedly changed her subject as she forced a smile at the crying girl who was about to burst into tears.
“By the way, can you answer my question?”
“Uh, what?”
Her tense eyes didn’t fall down. Well, she didn’t have to be so impatient, but it’s better to change the topic and make you forget than to calm it down.
“What did that mean? That Ian treated me badly?”
“Ah.”
Patricia hesitated, then spoke in a crawling voice.
“…I just told you because I thought you would. I’m sorry if I offended you.”
I lifted my head and said it again.
“Why did you think it might be?”
Patricia noticed quite a bit. Was the matter so serious that she couldn’t even bring her up? What was it?
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Translator Note:
Hello there! This is RJR. I hope you liked it <3
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