CH 2.7

CHAPTER 2: SPRING COMES TO EVERYONE (VII)

Part 024

Why… was the story like that? Why was the whole school there? We were talking together, but why couldn’t she follow the flow?

“Pardon?”

She wondered if she had heard it wrong, so she asked him, and his face became even more rigid. Duke Bigor caught his breath for a moment and then drove in the nail with a determined face.

“I will formally apply for a relationship. Please allow me to court you.”

‘Whoa, your eyes are so intense.’

She guessed… She wondered if those clumsy actions were set-up, drooled at the mildly smiling face, and was flattered by the actions that only showed her. A little romance was great, but formal dating was a little different, right? Besides, why at this time? She didn’t know what to say, so she tried to catch his gaze, but Cale, who had been standing by the window without a sound for a while, climbed the wall with crab steps and quietly moved toward the door. It seemed like the Duke was about to burst into laughter as he sneaked out, leaning his whole body against the wall behind him and bending his head endlessly, staring only at the door, but the Duke didn’t seem to have noticed.

The reddish-yellow eyes looking straight into her eyes looked quite desperate.

“Commander, first of all… Shall we sit down and talk?”

He stared into her eyes, then led her to the sofa with a startled look on his face. For the first time, they sat facing each other at a table in the middle of the office, not at their desks.

“I’m sorry, young lady. I suddenly spoke without preparing anything.”

The side asking for companionship usually prepares a gift to buy the woman’s favor. Lightly, it’s flowers, expensive jewelry, or some crazy rich man even buys a mansion and dedicates it. Rather than that, those eyes full of sincerity were enough. The problem was not the size of the gift, but the weight of the present proposal.

The Duke of Bigor, the commander of the capital, a friendly personality and a beautiful face. A man overflowing everywhere asked for companionship. It wasn’t a contract or condition, it was purely out of love. Would she ever meet a man like this again?

It’s the aristocratic society of Laurentian. It’s not an easy place to share love with each other and coolly break up and go their separate ways. If a breakup occurs during a formal relationship, her reputation would surely be ruined. It means that it may be difficult to meet another man and date beautifully.

Young lords meet new people casually and there’s nothing wrong with that, but young ladies who have been in an official relationship found it very difficult to find their next partner. It’s a fucking neighborhood where women were more hurt than men after dating together. There was no guarantee that she would definitely fall for a guy who has nothing to fall for. She didn’t know how much his heart had fallen for her, but she knew her heart well. He’s a great guy, but she still didn’t like him enough to stake her future on him. She had to do that love too. The world just turns pink, you get full even if you don’t eat, and there are things like that.

Oh, of course, if he shows up, I’ll catch that guy even if it’s reputation or something was ruined.

“Thank you very much, Commander. I want to focus on what I’m doing now.”

“Am I getting in the way?”

To have such a downcast face was against the rules.

“It wasn’t that trash, no, that madman, but that young lord mentioned what happened at the New Year’s banquet. I want to be recognized as an administrator on my own.”

A bloody aura crept across his face for a moment, then dissipated. Duke Bigor pondered something for a long time with a downcast face. He let out a couple of low sighs, and opened and closed his mouth a couple of times. When she was about to burn her throat, he opened his mouth cautiously.

“Since the young lady refuses, I understand my feelings better. I will respect the young lady’s wishes, but I don’t think my feelings will just disappear. Will it be a burden to the young lady if I bring out this heart?”

What? Was he saying he wanted to enter the fishing grounds on his own? 

‘No, Damian. Wake. Managing fish farms is not such a mean thing to do.’

“Commander’s heart, I will…”

“Adrian.”

“Pardon?”

“Call me Adrian.”

“Yes? What am I doing? This is even the Commander’s office?”

“I’m talking privately, so that’s fine.”

“I’m not okay, Commander.”

“Adrian.”

Oh my, he was surprisingly stubborn. He was a distant superior and His Excellency the Grand Duke so calling him by name… She sighed. No, weren’t they close enough to call each other by name?

“Adrian.”

“Yes, Lady Damian.”

“I think Damian will be enough for me too. Anyway, since Adrian’s heart is like that, I can’t force you but if I’m uncomfortable, I’ll say yes. If you ask too much, I’ll avoid it.”

“I will engrave it on my heart.”

There was nothing more to say to answer meekly. But did that really happen? It was the first time she received a dating request and the first time she rejected it, so could she know if it went well or not? She had nothing more to say, so she just looked at him, and then he laughed and got up from his seat.

“Would you like some tea, Damian? Rosemary tea has arrived today. Would you like some rosemary or something else?”

‘Do not pour water into the pot as if it were natural. Commander…’

“I’ll take rosemary.”

She drank it all week, and now it’s ambiguous to say anything. Adrian was very, very skillful, adding rosemary and setting cheese muffins on a plate. And she enjoyed the extended afternoon time, just like yesterday, and after being sent off by Adrian, she rode back home in the carriage he had called and paid for.

It seemed that this was not something…?

* * *

Saturday stretched all day. Adol, who dropped out of class on Sunday morning but had become a strange relationship that was neither a teacher nor a friend, came to play. They meet once or twice a month to chat, and he was a really good talker. At her request, her father wrote a nice letter of recommendation, and Adol was grateful that he had two more students.

Adol was fired from the academy because he gave Crown Prince Tirellius the lowest grade in his graduation exam. Anyway, the son who threw a 9th grade bomb at the crown prince who was supposed to graduate and did not break his stubbornness earned the hatred of the high-ranking academy. In any case, he was a diverse prince.

“I thought Duke Bigor was trying to do something interesting, my lady?”

Adol called her lady now. She liked the distance that the title contained.

“About Marquis Talus? The entire military is noisy. Even some crazy guy is running amok.”

“Yes?”

“No. The formal trial begins next week. Are you interested, sir?”

“Of course. Duke Bigor’s movement is a hot topic even among the scholars at work.”

Hot topic… it’s her fault she apologized for teaching a decent scholar strange words.

“Probably a medium sentence will be handed down. In order to recover the full amount of the embezzlement, will the removal of official posts and imprisonment be imposed? I should have eaten at least a little.”

“Do you know the embezzlement amount of Marquis Talus?”

“Only the second half of last year and the first half of this year, he only robbed big things, but it exceeded 8 million gold. If I rob it retroactively, it will continue to come out?”

“Eight million gold is enough to come out. If so, I’ll appeal to the nobles’ trial and get out. But how does the young lady know that amount?”

“I brushed it off with my own hands. Huhuhuhu.”

She proudly stretched out her right hand in front of Adol and smiled wickedly. Adol made a dumbfounded face for a moment, then grabbed his stomach and started laughing. He laughed so much that tears welled up in his eyes, and continued with a smile still on his face.

“Hahahaha. Lady, I knew you had a talent for numbers, but you did a great job from the first week of your apprenticeship. Rumors were circulating with Duke Bigor, so you fell in love while working together, right?”

What rumor?

“I don’t know what rumors you’re talking about?”

“There are rumors that Duke Bigor is infatuated with the young lady, that the two of you are already dating, or that they have only been out since the New Year’s banquet.”

“Oh, no. Teacher, I was thankful to have been offered to date, but I turned it down.”

She waved her hand and answered. She had only been in the military for a whole week, but rumors have spread far and wide. What did her and Adrian do? The one that was planted in the commander’s office, the one we had a special meal with, the one we went to work with… the commander sent her off personally… it’s okay. What a rumor! Anyway, three or four rumors were used to puff up the skirt. It would disappear like a floating cloud only after it was not officially recognized as an official relationship.

“You refused?”

“Yes.”

Adol narrowed his eyes and pulled his body towards her and sat down. For some reason, his voice lowered a bit. At the same time, she leaned toward Adol from the sofa.

Adol asked as if he was conspiring.

“Did the Duke say he would revoke his will?”

“No, he did fold his heart in a single blow. But he said he would respect my will.”

Adol clicked his tongue with his pitiful face.

“Oh, oh, oh, my lady, you’ve already been caught in the Duke’s clutches.”

“Do not say that. What a gentle person he is.”

At her answer, Adol made a genuinely surprised face and sighed as he shook his head.

“I got it, I got it. What about my lady-“

She couldn’t tell if he was sad or teasing her.

“Sir. Ad… do you know Duke Bigor?”

“Ad? Adra? Could it be that Adrian? Did you call each other by your first name?”

Adol was startled with an exaggerated gesture. She pouted in response, evidently being teased.

“Are you going to keep making fun of me?”

When she sulked, Adol giggled and corrected his posture.

“He is a scary person who graduated from a six-year academy in three years. He applied for me as an advisor even though he had never formally taken my class because he skipped a class over and over again. Thinking about it now, he was aiming for it. Unprecedented early graduation. For the sake of it, I took off my feet and made a mess.”

“A teacher? Why?”

“I received a grade 2 or higher in all subjects, and I have all the qualifications necessary for graduation, but it is a tradition that does not work, it is a school rule. I was annoyed at hearing the bullshit. Thanks to that, I was completely taken, and Adrian graduated safely.”

“It’s the first time I’ve heard the teacher call the Duke by name. The teacher’s title is a little strange. Even the 2nd prince calls Adrian as Duke Bigor.”

“Because I don’t want to be close to him. I’ll definitely graduate, so I’m ashamed of shouting out loud to trust me. He is from a specie with the goal of achieving everything that has been designed up to two or three moves in advance.”

Adol’s tone was now almost grumbling. He went back and forth between this and that, as if reminiscing about the distant past. Then he looked at her with sad eyes and talked to himself.

“Still, he’s a good guy as a man…”

She hear everything.