Chapter 2
“Come to think of it, there was never an opportunity.”
“Is that so…….”
“Yes. But if Annette signs these papers today and decides to help me, I might be able to do it. That thing called dating.”
A toneless voice, an emotionless expression. Seion expressed his will to date with a face that looked as if he had no interest in the world.
Does he really want to date?
Inside the red eyes that captured me with obsessive intensity, not a single emotion flickered. It was merely serene, without a hint of common expectation or curiosity.
“Annette.”
“Yes?”
Before I could even wonder, Seion called me again. It was as if he didn’t want to give me a moment to think.
After falling silent for a moment, he slowly continued his words.
“I know that the current situation is not a very welcome one for you.”
*Stab.* I laughed awkwardly to hide my inner thoughts which were perfectly seen through. I thought I did my best not to show my dislike, but it seemed I couldn’t hide it.
“But I would like you to help me.”
Seion ended with that simple sentence and did not add any more words.
He was truly strange. He spoke as if he craved dating intensely, but his voice was infinitely dry. As if it didn’t matter what choice I made, or as if he already knew the conclusion. There was no coercion within his polite manner of speaking.
Technically, it would have been enough to simply press me down with his status.
[Annette Jernias.]
Overwhelmed by Seion’s subtle pressure, I finally signed the contract.
It felt as if I were bewitched by his face, which seemed devoid of emotion—or more accurately, by his beauty.
Fortunately, the objective conditions of the contract were decent. Right. Since it has come to this, if I can’t avoid it, let’s enjoy it!
“Since the signing is finished, shall we introduce ourselves formally? I am Annette Jernias. As of a moment ago, I have become the ‘Teacher’ who will look over your Highness’s dating for two hours every day for six months.”
I put the pen down with a thud quite seriously and stood up. They say that in anything, dominating the atmosphere at the start is important.
I held out my hand to offer a handshake. I spoke while pretending to be confident, but my palm was wet with cold sweat.
Seion, who was soon to be my student, firmly grabbed my hand. His large hand was as cold as ice.
“Seion Fernandi. I am very much looking forward to the dating I will learn from Annette.”
No, please don’t look forward to it…….
Seion’s eyes, which had felt only cold, seemed to sparkle for a moment. Even if he was set up as pure evil, does this mean he is categorized as ‘pure’ for now?
“Let’s have our lessons while respecting each other.”
Specifically, please respect my well-being. I shook his hand lightly up and down with a bright smile. Just as I thought this was enough and tried to let go, he suddenly gripped my hand tighter.
“Ugh!”
My hand is being crushed! As I furrowed my brows in pain, he loosened the strength of his grip.
It’s only been three seconds since I said let’s respect each other. I shook my wrist up and down and side to side as if to shake off his hand, but Seion’s hand did not fall away.
What is the intention behind this? Perhaps because I was holding hands with another person for so long, sweat began to pool in my palm even more.
“Your Highness, I think my hand is crying…….”
“Although formal lessons will start tomorrow, may I ask one question first?”
Before I could request Seion to let go of my hand, he asked first. I stared blankly at his face at the serious tone of his voice.
“Wh-what is it?”
The eyes reflecting me did not waver in the slightest. What on earth was he curious about? Considering his keyword was ‘pure evil,’ it wouldn’t be strange no matter what kind of nonsensical question flew my way.
Fine, bring it on. I am prepared not to be flustered no matter what you say!
“When the person you have in mind tries to run away, is it not okay to break their legs?”
“Of course not?!”
You precious brat! I barely swallowed my following words and clutched the back of my neck. A dull pain rose in my neck where the knight had struck me.
“Then how do you catch a partner who is trying to leave?”
Seion’s voice contained only pure curiosity, which made me despair even more.
Yes, all of this is my karma.
* * *
The back of the Grand Ducal residence. I crouched down in front of a campfire with Seion.
*Crackle.* The novels that had been sleeping in Seion’s study burned brightly. They were the things I had found after scouring his study.
『Please Don’t Obsess Over the Fired Maid!』
A novel that hid the fact it was an angst story with a fairly cheerful title, and
『The Thing Hidden in That Baron’s Mansion』
『Greed: What Happened in That Marquis’s Bedroom…….』
……Even obsessive confinement novels with quite embarrassing titles.
“Are these novels all to your Highness’s taste?”
By any chance, is your dream to be an obsessive madman?
I narrowed my eyes and looked at Seion. He was quietly watching the burning flames.
“There are many ordinary romance novels, so I was wondering if there was a reason you chose this specific obsessive genre.”
“Rather than it being my taste, I simply chose the ones I was curious about among the bestsellers.”
It is your taste, alright.
Seion turned his head and met my eyes. As if harboring the flickering light of the campfire, his red eyes were exceptionally vivid.
“Locking a person up… was not very fun.”
“…….”
“…….”
“I, I see. Hahaha…….”
So you’ve already experienced it. I don’t know who you imprisoned, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask.
Let’s cover this issue for now!
“Anyway! From now on, don’t read novels of this genre. You should see some cliché ones, you know, the ordinary ones!”
“Ordinary ones?”
“Yes. These days, kind men are very popular. If you obsess and imprison someone, that relationship will be ruined. Because novels and reality are different.”
Seion’s face turned pouty. At first glance, it looked like the same expressionless face, but the ends of his eyebrows lowered subtly.
This is quite a problem. If I leave Seion like this and he kidnaps the female protagonist as scheduled, all my efforts until now will go down the drain.
The genre of this novel might become angst again. I shook my head at the hypothetical I didn’t even want to imagine.
“I understand well that novels and reality are different.”
“Yes. So we must pursue something more realistic…….”
“However, Annette.”
Along with the blunt voice, his hand approached my face. Reflexively, I clenched my teeth. I felt like my jawbone might shatter if I were hit even once by his large hand.
What is it, where did I step on a landmine?!
“I still don’t quite know.”
To the point that my resolution for the coming pain felt hollow, Seion’s hand did not touch me.
His large hand waved in front of my face. Then, the ash that had popped up from the campfire scattered into the air at his gesture.
Ash kept flying toward me as if it would enter my eyes at any moment. Every time that happened, Seion waved his hand to prevent the ash from reaching me.
“Honestly, I don’t understand what the difference is between the ordinary romance Annette speaks of and those things.”
His essence itself might be kinder than I thought.
But as soon as I thought that, Seion crushed my delusion.
“Anyway, since there is a heart, obsession is born, and one ends up locking the other up because they cannot endure the possessiveness toward them. In the end, the starting emotion for everything is love.”
“……Eh?”
“I don’t really know why that isn’t ordinary.”
He had a face full of pure doubt. Very despairingly so.
“I judged that the fact so many novels were published means it is a story that could likely happen in reality to some extent. Am I wrong?”
The face laying out a twisted way of thinking was extremely serene. He really didn’t understand. What the reason was for why one shouldn’t lock people up or obsess over them.
For a moment, my head felt dizzy. It felt like I should teach Seion basic common sense and consideration for others before dating.
Within six months, I will surely resolve this karma of mine for setting him up incorrectly.
I clenched my fists tight and stood up. Seion also stood up following me.
“I’ll tell you during the lesson! Why obsession is not ordinary, and why you shouldn’t lock people up. And that even if you love the other person, there are actions you must not do.”
When I made a determined expression, Seion’s eyebrows went up slightly and then down. It seemed my appearance of suddenly burning with will looked strange to him.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Unlike his words, no emotion was contained within his monotonous voice.
Seion raised his hand once again. His hand approached my face, but this time I wasn’t scared. It was because I vaguely felt that he wasn’t a person who would harm someone out of the blue.
As expected, he did not harm me. He just lightly tapped the ends of my bobbed hair and withdrew his hand. It seemed he had brushed off the ash that was stuck to my hair.
“With my relationship with Annette, I wonder what I will come to realize.”
Seion belatedly continued his words. A student looking forward to the lesson—it’s nonsense, but since he says he’s looking forward to what he’ll learn from his relationship with me, I should also work hard……. Huh?
“Relationship?!”
I took a step back to create distance from him. This person keeps saying dangerous things with that extremely harmful face!
“I don’t recall saying I was dating your Highness?”
“Didn’t you say you would teach me?”
“Exactly! I’m teaching you, so it’s a lesson! It’s not like you and I are in some sweet, lovey-dovey contract relationship or something, you know?”
Seion tilted his head to the side. He had a face that didn’t understand this statement either.
“We did sign a contract.”
That contract and a contract relationship are different genres!
I suppressed the words that were trying to burst out of my mouth. I felt that the moment I opened my mouth, a long discussion would begin as I pointed out his incorrect common sense one by one.
Seion furrowed his brows and pondered. He seemed to be displeased with something, or perhaps this situation was just difficult for him.
After a short deliberation alone, Seion asked me.
“What is the difference?”
Of course there’s a difference!
Seion Fernandi. The last precious brat whose genre I must change, somehow seems to have a very ‘innocent’ level of understanding.
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