I unconsciously pushed him with too much force, but he didn’t budge, leaving me slightly frustrated. Lowering my voice, I protested so that the butler waiting outside the door wouldn’t overhear.
“Please let me go!”
“Why? I think it wouldn’t be so bad to show ourselves as a sweet, loving couple like this.”
“No matter what, sticking together like this in front of others seems to go beyond common sense!”
“True. But I believe you haven’t forgotten that we at least have to make it look ‘convincing’.”
“…Fine.”
Ludger chuckled softly before finally loosening his arms. Only then could I free myself from his embrace and sit up properly.
“You may come in.”
“Pardon my intrusion.”
Butler Derrek entered with a warm smile, pushing a trolley. A fragrant cup of tea was placed in front of both Ludger and me.
“It’s so nice to see the two of you so close together.”
“Yes, we’re getting along as close as can be.”
I tried to figure out what a natural reaction would be, but nothing came to mind. Instead, I just offered a vague smile, feeling like my face was about to catch fire.
“If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to call. Have a restful evening.”
“Thank you for your efforts.”
Derrek quickly exited with a face that seemed to say, ‘I’ll make sure not to ruin your time together, so don’t worry!’ And with the sudden intrusion of an outsider (?), I was painfully reminded of just how little tolerance I had for such things.
‘It’s okay. Ludger Kassen is just another human. If I keep seeing him and making contact, eventually I’ll become indifferent,’
I told myself while sipping my tea. The flavor was impeccably rich, though my nerves made it hard to appreciate.
I quickly finished my tea and got up from my seat.
“Then, I’ll take my leave now.”
“Yeah. Since it’s late, you’re going to stay the night, right?”
Ludger’s gentle question was accompanied by a light squeeze at my hand. It was the same situation as before, so I nodded in agreement.
“We can go to work together in the morning.”
“…Isn’t that too early for you, Your Highness?”
“I have some work to do, and besides, it’s my duty to act like a kind and loving partner to you.”
“……”
There was nothing more I could say after that. Get used to it, Clara Weyburn.
“And… the way you address me is wrong, Clara.”
Before I could even acclimate to the situation, Ludger pointed out my mistake (?).
I had barely escaped his embrace earlier when the butler interrupted, and now I had another issue to address.
Avoiding looking at him, I forced out a reply.
“…I’ll correct that from now on, Ludger.”
“Good. Though I do wish you could lose that overly formal way of speaking, we’ll work on it little by little.”
Ludger kissed the back of my hand tenderly before releasing it.
“I’ll make sure to put in all my effort so that you can become natural before the engagement ceremony.”
“……I’ll do my best as well.”
“Sweet dreams, Clara.”
“You too… Ludger.”
With that, I practically fled the room, barely able to look at Ludger’s face which was breaking into a bright smile.
It was… something, something so strange that it was hard to put into words. In reality, the time spent signing the contract and practicing physical contact (?) didn’t seem that long, but in terms of how it felt, it seemed half a day had passed.
‘Until the engagement ceremony…’
I awkwardly rubbed the back of my hand where Ludger had kissed, replaying his words in my mind, when I suddenly froze.
In other words…
Wouldn’t we also need to kiss during the ceremony?
“……”
The thought sent waves of embarrassment flooding through me until I wanted to sink into the floor. Don’t think about it, just don’t think about it……
But despite my self-affirmations, I ended up struggling to push away the thoughts that kept resurfacing until I finally fell asleep.
* * *
The next morning, as soon as I finished washing up and getting ready, I boarded the carriage. Ludger, who had been waiting in the carriage ahead of me, greeted me with a smile as he helped me to my seat. The warm gazes from the servants who came to greet us were an added bonus. This, too, must be a trial I would have to endure moving forward…
I was tense, expecting the carriage ride to be as suffocating as the night before, but Ludger simply sat across from me with a light, casual demeanor. Thanks to that, I could finally breathe a little easier.
However, while having a normal conversation, I ended up calling him ‘Young Duke’ several times, or almost did, and got corrected for it each time.
“At the very least, you need to get used to it before you attend the Book Club.”
“Ah… come to think of it, there is such a thing.”
I received word that the very same Book Club hosted by Elisa was being postponed. With the commotion caused by the recent Heilbronner impersonation incident, it seemed they had no choice but to delay it.
In truth, that wasn’t the only reason, it seemed that Elisa was also refraining from public appearances because of the sharp looks she’d been getting for being a mere lady-in-waiting who got entangled in the incident and returned to the palace late.
“I wish they’d just cancel it and forget about me altogether.”
“Well, it seems that she has an excessive fondness for you, Clara. She definitely won’t forget and will invite you again.”
“…I’ll just give up.”
As we continued our light conversation, we soon arrived near the knights’ office before we knew it.
I prepared to disembark by myself, but Ludger was quicker, getting off first and holding out both arms for me.
‘Is this how it’s done…when getting off… I suppose it is…..’
I gently held onto his shoulder and leaned my weight on him, and he effortlessly lifted me up. I thought it every time, but it seemed Ludger, even being a sorcerer, never slacked off on his training. The profession of a thief likely requires physical strength as well.
As I landed on the ground, lost in such trivial thoughts.
I suddenly felt an inexplicable chill in the air and turned my head to the side.
“……!”
What came into my view was…
Sir Sein, standing across the street with his mouth wide open, staring at me, and next to him, Billy, covering his mouth with a fist but staring at me intently with sparkling eyes.
“…Clara?”
Noticing that my reaction seemed off, Ludger called my name and turned his head toward where my gaze was directed. As soon as their eyes met, Sir Sein and Billy immediately greeted him.
After returning their greetings with a light nod, Ludger whispered so only I could hear.
“Should I explain something to them?”
“…No, it might make things complicated, so Young Duke….. I mean, Ludger, please go back. I need to give them the invitation to the engagement as well….. I’ll handle the explanation myself.”
“As you wish.”
Ludger tapped my shoulder lightly, gave a quick greeting, and then got back into the carriage.
After seeing him off with my eyes, I approached my two subordinates, who were standing as still as statues, and greeted them.
“……Hello.”
“Captain! Hello! Yes! I won’t ask any more questions!”
“..….”
It would’ve been better if you had just asked, you fool.
“Let’s go inside first, Captain.”
“Yes…”
Sir Sein’s calm reaction, pretending not to know anything, was actually quite frightening. It felt like the kind of experience I had when I was called to the principal’s office back in school.
The three of us entered the knights’ office in silence and sat down in our respective places.
“……You came early today.”
“Yes, I had something I wanted to check quickly.”
“I woke up early too, so I came!”
“I see……”
Despite causing all sorts of trouble, one of Billy’s strengths is that he was never late to work.
The conversation didn’t continue any further. Billy glanced at me with eyes full of curiosity but didn’t ask any questions. He seemed quite sharp in this regard.
‘But even if I don’t want to mention it, haa…’
This moment would be the most opportune time to reveal the relationship between Ludger and me.
If I let this moment pass, it would only get more difficult later. So I suddenly stood up from my seat.
“I have something to say! To both of you!”
“You don’t have to force yourself to say anything…..”
“That’s right, Captain! There’s no one in our knights who would be that oblivious!”
“Except for you, of course.”
I instinctively threw in a remark, then shook my head and continued speaking.
“Anyway… as you must have guessed from what you just saw… I… I’ve been, uh, dating Sir Ludger Kasen…”
As I spoke, my voice gradually trailed off. But with a cheerful expression, Billy raised both hands high in the air.
“Congratulations! You make a great couple!”
“…Yeah, thanks.”
“I’ll keep it a secret from the others…”
In contrast to Billy, Sir Sein’s eyes were filled with pity as he looked at me. I must have looked terribly embarrassed.
But this wasn’t the end of the trial. I swallowed the urge to bite my tongue and pressed on to the next step.
“No… it’s not just that. I have to explain something else…..”
“Explain something else?”
My tone, which implied that I not only had to announce the relationship but also needed to explain it, seemed to confuse Sir Sein, as he tilted his head in curiosity.
“Actually, I’m going to be engaged to Sir Ludger Kasen soon. Since I need to give everyone the invitation to the engagement ceremony……”
“Wow!”
Billy clapped loudly with the hands he had raised, shouting exuberantly.
“Congratulations! Congratulations on your engagement, Captain!”
“That’s enough, it’s embarrassing…”
But before I could even stop Billy, the door to the knights’ office swung open with a loud bang.
“…Who’s getting engaged?”
It was Lionel, his face frozen in a stiff expression.
Such a chaotic group. And I love them😀