Chapter 17
“Steal?”
Edwin asked innocently, and Roman’s shoulders drooped as he watched him smile, his eyes sparkling and clear.
“Young master Edwin?”
“Yes?”
“You know what I mean.”
Edwin smiled brightly at Roman’s helpless words.
If it were any other time, Roman would have smiled along with him, but now his face was full of exhaustion.
Renee was taking Roman’s advice to heart. She used to avoid tea time with Rainan, making various excuses.
Moreover, if she happened to bump into Raynan, she would move away with a noticeably awkward movement.
As the days passed without Renee, Raynan’s mood worsened.
Somehow, I had to give Renee some new advice.
There was no need to avoid him so much, and it would be better if she appeared in front of Raynan more often than before.
But Roman also could hardly meet Renee.
How many times in his life had he felt nervous? It was an emotion Roman hadn’t experienced much.
Since I’ve barely felt it before, is it God’s will to tell me to feel it properly? It was like being told to pay off a debt he’d been putting off.
These days, Roman dreaded every moment.
If he happened to bump into Renee, she would stiffly turn her head away. She moved awkwardly and pretended not to see him.
If you call her, she will have no choice but to look. However, Renee often ran away without giving him a chance to call her.
After experiencing this a few times, Roman was ready to jump and catch her whenever he saw her.
However, a servant named Marvin or Edwin appeared from somewhere and blocked Roman’s path.
He would hesitate for a split second, and she would quickly disappear.
As this happened repeatedly, both Renee and Edwin’s skills improved, and at some point it became difficult to even see her shadow.
I was sure it wouldn’t take long or much effort to get rid of the useless advice I gave her…
Unexpectedly, a very hard road of struggle was unfolding.
“Why are you doing this to me?”
“Why is Roman bullying Renee?”
“Bullying…”
The experience of being speechless with frustration was not something Roman was used to.
As Roman’s mouth dropped open in disbelief, Edwin stood tall with his hands on his hips.
“What on earth did you do to Renee?”
“What did Renee say to you that made you do this?”
“She didn’t say anything.”
“Then why are you doing this to me?”
“Whenever she sees Roman in the distance, Renee will freak out and look away. I can’t imagine how much Roman has been bullying her…”
Edwin looked worried as he remembered Rene’s appearance. But, Edwin’s face as he looked at Roman was completely different from before.
The look in Edwin’s eyes, like he was looking at the world’s most heinous villain, made Roman’s stomach turn.
Of course, Roman hadn’t done anything to Renee, but he had offered her a few words of advice.
It was something he would have thought twice about doing if not for Edwin’s request.
But Edwin’s cute little threats to get Roman to do what he wanted…
He looked at me like I was a terrible person.
“Stop bothering Renee.”
Edwin did not forget to leave a sharp request until the end.
Roman, who was watching Edwin back disappearing with a fuss, spoke weakly in a low voice.
“There is no one on my side.”
There was no one to listen to my bitter self-talk.
How can we defeat Renee’s powerful ally? Even as he lost strength, Roman continued his thoughts fiercely.
Raynan wouldn’t end up with such a cute warning like Edwin.
*****
When I saw Roman’s figure from afar, my body moved spontaneously. Now, I felt like I could sense him before he even showed up.
Edwin, who had begun to help me avoid Roman, played a big role.
As I tried to avoid Roman, I became separated from Edwin, but since Marvin was there, I thought things would be okay for a while.
“No, what are you trying to tell me again, chasing me like you’re going to kill me?”
The day after I heard Roman’s words, which I’m not sure if they were threats or advice, I ran into him strangely often.
I didn’t want to confront him, so every time I saw him, I turned in the other direction.
For the first few days, I thought it was just a coincidence. But when I saw Roman start running as soon as he saw me, I realized it wasn’t a coincidence.
It wasn’t an illusion; he was definitely trying to catch me.
Of course, he wouldn’t do any harm, but the more I talked to him, the more confused I became.
Moreover, the sight of Roman running to catch me was quite scary, so I unconsciously ran in the opposite direction to avoid him.
So what started as an avoidance escalated with Edwin’s help.
I started avoiding him so seriously that it became even more difficult to see him.
“Renee! Renee!”
As I was wandering around in a quiet place where Roman would not pass by, I heard a voice calling me quietly.
“Here!”
Erin, hiding around the corner, was waving her hand and calling to me.
“Erin? Why do you call me so sneakily?”
“What? No, there are rumors that you are running away these days.”
Apparently, my chase with Roman was known to quite a few people.
Though, I suppose it’s weird to have one person running around openly and the other hand chasing people.
I slumped my shoulders, feeling like I was one step further from the comfortable life I wanted.
“Renee, I’m really sorry…”
“Huh?”
Erin couldn’t get the words out easily even though she was watching to see if anyone was coming.
“The story I told you before.”
“What story?”
Even though she grabbed me and started talking, Erin’s attention was focused elsewhere.
It wasn’t until I realized she was strangely wary of her surroundings that I questioned her.
“If you want to impress the duke…”
“Oh, that….”
I realized that my comfortable life had been ruined by my determination to catch the Duke’s eye.
I shouldn’t have done anything. Then I wouldn’t have had to decide which was less dangerous.
No one wants to think about harming someone they don’t even know.
I sighed deeply, and Erin looked at me, then continued.
“That’s the exact opposite of what I said…”
“What, the opposite?”
“That is… The Duke hates it when people bother him the most.”
The word ‘most’ sounded like it had a lot of power in it.
He hates being bothered the most. So what Roman said was right?
According to Erin, Roman’s words weren’t a threat, or an unknown meaning, but rather advice to help me.
Erin, Roman, and Cecil were finally in agreement.
I wanted to cry. Why is everyone doing this to me?
“What about what we talked about before? I thought you said you were sure?”
“I was wrong about that. I’m so sorry.”
“You also said that Roman got that position that way.”
“I heard there was a rumor like that. No matter what, it’s true that Roman is good at his job.”
“He’s good at his job…”
“Yes, he is. But no matter how good you look, the Duke isn’t the kind of man to let someone go so easily.”
“That’s true…”
I was arguing with Erin, but I couldn’t really hear what she was saying.
My head was foggy. Does that mean I’ve been digging my own grave by showing up in front of Raynan every chance I get?
“But before that, you know what we talked about before…”
“Huh?”
My head was still reeling from the shock, and I didn’t understand Erin’s words.
“You told me that before, that I was right about what I said.”
“Ah… What good does that do now…”
He said wasn’t bothered, not that I was going to leave him alone.
But there was no need to talk about such things to Erin, and I didn’t have the energy to do so, so I just sighed repeatedly.
Fortunately, Erin realized that I didn’t want to talk about it and didn’t ask any more questions. Instead she brought up a different story.
“I heard that the Duke is getting married soon. Do you know anything?”
“The Duke is getting married?”
Erin looked visibly disappointed when I asked the question back.
“I’m sorry. I serve young master Edwin, not the Duke.”
“Yes. But marriage isn’t normal, so I just thought you knew.”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Huh? It was a rumor, the Lady from the Krause family.”
“Really?”
I realized it was probably pretty accurate, given the way it jumped up and down to a clear target.
Raynan is getting married. For some reason, I had a hard time imagining it.
I think married life with him would be very hard, dark, and stiff.
Actually, it has nothing to do with me. But what about Edwin?
I don’t remember the original story very well, but I know that a lot has already changed. Above all, the main character, Edwin, was changing so much.
A blonde woman I had briefly encountered came to mind. She was a woman who gave off as much coldness as Raynan.
However, his marriage to Bella was a story that did not exist in the original work. Because Raynan never married.
I wondered if I had gotten the story wrong by treating Edwin well, and that’s where the marriage to Bella came in.
I became nervous that Raynan’s marriage would cause Edwin to grow up to be the way he was in the original. The child has finally become brighter…
I immediately shook my head. It was too much of a worry.
I don’t know either Raynan or Lady Krause very well, so there’s no way I can guess what effect their marriage will have on Edwin.
Then I suddenly realized that there was something that could immediately affect Edwin.
“What are you thinking like that?”
Erin’s words snapped me out of my thoughts, and the fleeting thought was replaced by a small feeling of anxiety.
“No. It’s just…”
“Just?”
If it were any other time, I would have found something to say, but now it was different.
This was because I was worried that Edwin might also have heard the rumor.
If we heard about it through rumors, it wouldn’t end with just getting married. There will be a lot of criticism about Edwin’s position in relation to Bella.
I’m not the type of person who pays much attention to rumors, but I had no idea what Edwin would be like. Even if he doesn’t want to hear it, you will hear it because it’s a rumor.
I should probably get back to work. Running into Roman would be a surprise, but Edwin came first.
“I’ll go back, then.”
“Wait, Renee!”
Catching me as I turned to leave, Erin glanced around the room again and again, then spoke up.
“If he’s really getting married, wouldn’t it be better for you to avoid being noticed by the Duke?”
“I’ve already been out of his sight, do you think that’s going to make it any better?”
“I don’t know about that, but… According to rumors, the young lady of the Krause family is very…”
Erin’s voice trailed off, and she checked her surroundings once more to make sure no one heard it. She continued in a whisper.
“She’s greedy and jealous. And if you keep hovering around the Duke, I’m afraid you’re going to get yourself in trouble….”
“I see what you mean. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Erin opened her mouth as if to ask again, but there was no time to listen to the same story twice.
I felt like I had to meet Edwin first. I quickened my pace as I stopped talking with Erin.
If the rumors are true, it looks like things will get even more difficult in the future. Isn’t there one more person to avoid?
Neither Raynan nor the future Duchess could be avoided in the same way as they were with Roman. As soon as we meet, she sprints at full speed.
What if I just run out of the Duke’s residence?
Why did you do that? I shouldn’t have done anything.
It was a regret I had already repeated several times, but I became distressed again and hit my head with both hands.
Well, it didn’t hurt, and the memories didn’t disappear, but I felt like I had to do something to relieve my feelings a little.
When I was right in front of Edwin’s bedroom, the hand that had been pounding my head stopped mid-air. Because someone held both of my hands.
Raynan was standing in front of me with both hands raised with a puzzled look on his face.
I can’t believe we met right away like this. I realized that maybe my biggest problem wasn’t because of what I was trying to do, but that my biggest problem was my lack of luck.
