29. — His Intentions

“Come to think of it, where’s Noya?”

“He’s been going out every day these days. I don’t know where he’s going.”

“Really? What’s going on… Hey, Lily, are you upset?”

Lily’s voice, who was brushing my hair, somehow felt like it was loaded with emotion. Licking her lips, she opened her mouth in a sullen voice when I asked the question with a quick glance.

“Why would I be angry?”

…So, if you are not mad, are you not brushing my hair too harshly now? Lily’s hand, combing my tangled hair with all her might, made me tear up a little. As I struggled to endure the pain by biting my lip, a deep sigh was heard. My shoulder sank for no reason, even though I did not do anything wrong, 

Through the mirror, Lily’s ferocious eyes met my gaze.

“I wasn’t going to say this…”

“Yeah?”

“His Highness the Grand Duke is really bad.”

“Huh…?”

I blinked my eyes blankly at Lily’s unexpected comment. As I was trying to understand the harsh comments that came after she etched both start and ending words out of nowhere, Lily, who was heated up, added to her words straight away.

“How could he judge people into classes before he even meets them?”

“…What do you mean by classes?”

“How could he say the Young Lady is an extra? How could you be in such a class with an ex-girlfriend!”

“Aak!”

The scream I had been holding back broke out as Lily pulled the comb to match her anger. Seeing me shaking while grabbing my hair, she hurriedly apologized to me as if she had come to her senses.

“Yo-Young Lady! What should I do, it must hurt a lot…”

The comb Lily was holding had a clump of my missing hair.

No wonder… no wonder it really hurts this much—! Tears welled up in my eyes when I saw a bunch of my hair falling out. Noticing that, Lily’s voice trembled as she gazed at me with her worried eyes.

“Oh, Young Lady, are you crying now?”

Seeing her asking with a trembling voice, I wiped the tears dripping down with the hem of my sleeve. Even though we had been together for a long time, it seemed that she was quite shocked by the fact that she made her master cry. After all, should I tell her that I am okay first? Still, I am older than Lily.

“…I’m fine, Lily.”

“….”

“So, you don’t have to be so sorry.”

“No. I’m sorry, Young Lady.”

Before I knew it, Lily’s big eyes were filled with tears. I glanced up at Lily as her lips were trembling and raised the corners of my mouth as hard as I could.

“No, it’s really okay. Why’d you apologize for something like this?”

“No, it’s all my fault. So, don’t cry, okay?”

“Yes, I’m trying to do that, too, but it hurts a lot more than I thought…”

“I’m so upset! Why is the Young Lady crying, he’s nothing but a jerk!”
[ T/N: Here, Lily used the word 놈, which could either mean ‘man’ or ‘thing’ hence the incoming miscommunication haha ( ・・； ) I’ll still translate it as how it’s intended to be from Lily and Adelia’s POV! ]

Yeah, that thing is a jerk…?

“Because of the bad thing?”

At her strange words, I slowly removed my hand, which had been wiping her tears away, and turned her head.

…Lily, are you trying to tell me it was not your fault but the comb’s fault?

While I blinked my eyes quietly since I did not understand what she was saying, Lily, who had tears in her big eyes, vented out her anger and continued her remarks.

“Yes, so please don’t cry like this for such a horrible man!”

Was that not too much to say to a comb…?

“I’m always on the Young Lady’s side. I don’t care about the Grand Duke, who has a relationship with people based on class.”

“…Huh?”

“So, don’t get hurt or cry about this little thing! You got it, right?”

…No, wait a minute— Lily, you must have misunderstood something.

“All right?”

I eventually nodded my head awkwardly while I watched Lily with her eyes wide open as she was urging for an answer.

“Yes, I got it.”

After that, her swearing at Cain continued, but I decided not to bother. To be honest, this feels great for me, who had to be his audiobook for the past week.

 ﾟ· : * ✧ * :· ﾟ

“Welcome to Grand Duchy Destro, Young Lady Adelia. I’m Roan Schubert, the butler of this mansion. You can call me Roan.”

The gray-haired old man bowed his head and greeted me with a friendly smile.

I greeted him lightly as I got out of the carriage under his escort.

“Nice to meet you, Roan.”

“Did you have any inconvenience in coming here?”

At his polite question, I remembered the gossip I heard as I passed the square. Of all days, he chose noon. In addition, of all the things, there were so many paths that I had to go through the square, so people’s interests were glued attentively to the carriage of the Grand Duke Destro all the way here.

“Well, there was nothing inconvenient… Though if High Highness is looking for me next time, could you please contact me in advance?”

“What do you mean by contacting you first…?”

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