Chapter 26
I listened carefully to the voice coming from behind the gardener.
“We’re not dating, are we? Can’t we even kiss if we’re dating?”
“Well, it’s not like that, but it seems like people might see us here…”
“It’s okay, no one’s around. It’s frustrating when even when we’re alone…”
The woman was subtly refusing, and the man was passionately desiring.
“No one’s around, I’m here.”
I deliberately made the sound of stepping on the grass to let them know I was here.
“Oops! …Le-Leah?”
The woman, startled by the footsteps, turned her head sharply from the gardener. Surprisingly, behind her was Celly.
“…Celly?”
But Celly wasn’t alone, Behind Celly was a man awkwardly stroking his neck.
“That man is…”
I remembered seeing him at the training ground before, He was the one who threw rocks at Ronen when I went to the training ground to read Ronen’s memories.
The knight who openly provoked everyone by following him and playing the role of a squire in front of everyone.
There’s no way this would look good.
“What are you doing here?”
“That, um… Leah.”
The conversation I heard a little while ago.
And the situation where two adults might have done something here was evident without asking.
Celly approached with a smirk.
“I’ll explain everything later, so can you keep it a secret?”
While Celi was nervously asking me to keep the secret, the knight stood at a distance behind, as if it were someone else’s business. His attitude bothered me from the start. Having read Ronan’s memories, I knew well how cunning he had been.
When I didn’t respond, Celi tried hard to persuade me, looking flustered. At that moment, the man who had been hiding behind the woman stepped forward.
“Why are you being so hesitant?”
The knight approached me.
“Have the decency to keep the secret. It’s your friend whose reputation shouldn’t be tarnished. …I’m leaving.”
With a disrespectful remark like a threat, the knight walked away, leaving the two of us behind.
As I watched the knight leave, I turned to Celly.
Celly … We weren’t particularly close, but she was the first person to reach out to me when I arrived in the North.
Whenever I seemed troubled, she would try to help directly, even bringing me meals when I skipped them.
So, I couldn’t allow someone like that guy to be involved with Celi.
“Must it be him?”
I vehemently opposed their meeting.
“He might have a bad mouth, but he’s not a bad person deep down…”
Celly trailed off, pressing her lips tightly together.
I looked at her incredulously. Until the memories I saw earlier, there had been no recollection of her getting involved with someone like him.
“You know he’s not a good guy, right?”
Celly remained silent. Without further questions, I turned away.
Though I knew everything, I had no reason to stop her from diving into the blazing fire pit.
“Leah! You have to keep the secret.”
“You handle it yourself.”
I really didn’t need to bother. She’s not a child, and an adult should be able to take care of their own affairs.
I didn’t need to worry.
As I took a few steps away, I saw him laughing and joking with his fellow knights.
“With so many people around, it’s strange that no one’s there.”
The fellow called “newspaper” can’t even sense a thing.
I clicked my tongue in annoyance and turned my head.
…
“Celly , when is your day off? Shall we plan a date in the city together on your day off? We can eat something delicious and how about coming in the next day together?”
I tried really hard not to care.
“Oh, Celly Give it here, I’ll handle something this heavy.”
Why does it keep happening?
“Training? It’s okay. When the trouble comes, we can just leave it to the kids and step back, They need to gain experience too. Celly, were you worried about my training? Thank you.”
Why does it keep happening!
Why does that man keep appearing in front of me wherever I go?
Once I recognized it, Cedric Hilos and Celly appeared everywhere I went. Naturally, I even got to know their names.
Cedric Hilos, The heir to the Hilos family, who bought his noble lineage with money.
In the salons of the capital, he was a well-known figure.
“They said he was unsuitable, liked to gossip about others, and lacked manners, so he wasn’t popular.”
I had heard that he liked to oppress people with his power and wealth since he was a child. When the youngest son of the Hilos family died, there was no sign of sadness, and many said he couldn’t feel emotions.
Although not everyone openly criticized the Hilos family, everyone had heard that if Cedric’s hair was seen from afar, people would turn away.
“I never thought that scoundrel would be a knight in the North.”
No wonder his behavior towards Ronan was excessively rude.
He seemed to treat Celly well, but rumors couldn’t be ignored.
“Did Cedric get married?”
During the social season in the capital, rumors of Cedric’s debauchery would circulate. I tried hard to recall the days I had experienced before.
But no matter how hard I thought, I couldn’t remember Cedric getting married or any rumors of him behaving politely.
“What’s going on?”
If he was in the midst of dating Celly , rumors of his debauchery should have disappeared. But in my memory, whenever the social season started, people would always talk about Cedric.
“I said not to worry, and yet he…”
Let’s not pay attention to it.
“Even if Celly herself likes it, I have no right to stop her, Anything beyond this is meddling.”
“Your complexion doesn’t look good.”
As I turned my body to avoid Cedric Hilos, I came face to face with Laches standing behind me.
It was the first time I had encountered him since I had a runny nose.
“I greet the Duke.”
“How about taking a break from walking for a while?”
“Pardon?”
“Your complexion doesn’t look good, It could be trouble.”
“I don’t think walking would cause any trouble….”
“I personally instructed you to pay attention to your diet… but I don’t see much improvement.”
Laches scanned me slowly with a dissatisfied expression, Seeing him muttering to himself alone, I felt like I might end up cleaning the kitchen again if I returned like this.
As I was thinking about Celly, I suddenly became curious about what kind of reaction I would get if I told this man to mind his own business.
“Duke, even eating and suffering from illnesses or hardships due to eating are up to me… Why are you so concerned?”
“Put yourself in my shoes, Can you not be concerned?”
“But it’s meddling.”
“And what’s wrong with that?”
“But… um…”
“If this is meddling, then just keep meddling, Is that clear?”
Laches retorted confidently, He was so confident that I found myself at a loss for words.
“If it’s meddling, then so be it.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“This is meddling? So what?”
Laches looked straight at me and said, “Eat well Or I’ll always make sure you’ve eaten all three meals.”
“Do you have any reason to meddle?”
Laches naturally blocked the direction of the wind and approached me. Then he adjusted his pace to match mine.
“Why do you think that?”
“You’ve never mentioned meddling to me before, but suddenly you did. Plus, there seems to be concern written all over your face.”
It was so natural for us to walk side by side that neither I nor Cream, who was walking with us, seemed to notice.
“…There’s someone I’m not very close to.”
Perhaps that’s why, Unconsciously, worries flowed out of me.
“What’s that? Then what’s the relationship?”
“They’re… not really a friend.”
I realized that I almost answered ‘friend’ out of habit, but in fact, Celly and I had never explicitly called each other friends.
“But it feels like I’m meeting a really unpleasant man.”
“Are you perhaps interested in that guy?”
“Me?”
Why is the conversation turning out like this? All of a sudden?
I looked at Laches with a bewildered expression, but he seemed genuinely serious.
It was amusing to think that I had to respond seriously to this.
“Why would I suddenly like that guy? He’s nothing special, He’s not even good-looking.”
“Right, You did say external factors were important, didn’t you? Then you definitely wouldn’t like him. Keep talking.”
“Why is that person even meeting with him? He was like trash that no one bothered with. It seems like that person might be getting deceived….”
“Is that why your face looked so bad earlier?”
“Because it keeps bothering me when it’s right in front of me.”
Laches lightly rubbed his chin.
“Surely it’s not the Viscount Deberti….”
“What?”
It seemed like Laches muttered something, but I didn’t catch it as Creamy tried to run away.
“No, I didn’t say anything. Instead of worrying about that, should I just take care of it for you?”
“What?”
“If you tell me who it is, I can arrange for them to disappear from where you frequent.”
Laches tilted his head as if to say just speak the name.
It was somewhat reassuring in a way, and yet at the same time, it was utterly absurd.
“Are you really using your power for such trivial matters?”
“People strive for power to wield it as they please.”
“Please don’t.”
“Besides, they’re not even your friend, But why do you care so much?”
Laches’ casually thrown remark hit me hard.
“It’s because they’re still a person.”
“But still.”
Laches was right, If they’re neither a friend nor someone important, ignoring them should be enough.
Then why couldn’t I just do that?
“Is it bothering you?”
Laches twisted the corner of his lips into a smirk as he asked.
“What do you want to do?”
“I….”
“I can already sense your worries, Are you concerned that she might dislike you? Worried that it might strain your relationship?”
“….Yes?”
It was a question I hadn’t even considered.
Was Celly worried that I might dislike her? Worried that our relationship might strain?
“So, you’re not just trying to say pleasant things to leave me alone?”
“Well….”
I should have said no, but my lips only moved without producing any sound.
Celly wasn’t a friend, but she was the first person here in the North to take my side.
The first person who said she wanted to take care of me because she felt sorry, The person who stood up to Han Young for me, only to silently bear the consequences alone.
Still, she never hinted or said anything to me. She brought bread for me when I skipped meals, worried when I was hurt, and changed difficult situations into laughter.
I didn’t want someone like her to see me being hated and despised like Delia.
“…Yes, I think that’s what worried me.”
At last, this uneasy refuge I had found became a slowly tightening noose around my throat, threatening to suffocate me.
“If that’s what worried you, then there’s no problem.”
In response to my strained answer, Laches replied nonchalantly.
“Do whatever you want, If it eventually leads to her disliking you and straining the relationship, then I’ll just exile her from the North.”
“Exile her?”
It was truly an outlandish solution, Only Raches could come up with such a solution.
“So, you have nothing to worry about?”
“How can you say such things so easily….”
“Right, It’s as easy for me as flicking a finger. So….”
As a breeze brushed past, gently removing the strands of hair clinging to my face, he spoke easily.
“So, she should never have dared to dislike you, Never dared.”
Laches chuckled lightly as if removing a strand of hair was no big deal.
“Do as you please, The only worry you’ll have here is whether to have another spoonful of food when you’re already full. Other than that, I won’t allow anything.”
“Well….”
“Your Excellency.”
At the moment I was about to refute, the steward interrupted our conversation and approached us.
Lowering his head apologetically towards me, the steward sought forgiveness. Just a mere servant like me.
I responded to the steward by bowing my waist.
“We’ve received a reply to the letter sent last time, They said they’ll wrap up things and head straight to the north.”
“Oh, really? That’s good news, If you just let us know the departure date without any hassle, we’ll arrange for the carriage to be sent from here. So you can arrive without any interruptions.”
Laches replied to the steward’s words and glanced at me, His thin eyes seemed to be piercing through me.
“Are you perhaps asking me to step aside?”
Since it didn’t seem related to me, I nodded politely and tried to move aside, but Laches grabbed me.
“Let’s stop the walk and return now.”
“…Pardon?”
“The wind is cold, Your complexion doesn’t look good either. It’s better to rest now.”
Anyone would think I’m Laches’ lover, The steward glanced at me briefly. I quickly distanced myself from Laches and greeted him.
“I’ll take my leave now.”
And I moved away with Cream.
I suddenly don’t understand why he’s acting like this, Why is his face so gloomy?
‘Who cares if it’s out of line, Then keep poking around, so what.’
Laches’ nonchalant reply gave me strength. After finishing Cream’s walk, instead of going back to the room, I went to find Selly.
“Celly, can we talk?”
“Leah?”
Celly, who was cleaning, widened her eyes. She seemed surprised because I rarely initiated conversations first.
Celly nodded her head and obediently followed me.
I took Selly to a secluded place. Then, I looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping on our conversation.
Luckily, there was no one around.
“Leah, what’s wrong? Your face doesn’t look good, Are you in pain somewhere?”
Celly asked me with a worried look.
Since Celly had to go to work, we didn’t have much time to talk.
I had to tell her in a short time everything I knew about Cedric Helios.
More than what she knew, Cedric Helios was a bad guy.
“elly.”
After much contemplation, I spoke briefly.
“Cedric Helios is trash.”
There couldn’t be a better and more fitting expression.
