Chapter 46
“What?”
Ben turned around in surprise and saw that Reina was really coming to the training ground.
Ben hurriedly approached and greeted.
“Madam, what brings you here?”
“I heard that Kaiden is here.”
“Ah, yes. The Duke is currently in sparring. If you wait over there, I’ll tell the Duke…….”
“I’ll go and inform him!”
Andy disappeared like an arrow to the training ground with an excited expression.
It was when he was waiting quietly in the rest area with Reina like that.
After a while, Andy came alone, tilting his head.
Ben asked.
“Why alone?”
“Ah, that…… the Duke has disappeared.”
“What?”
“He suddenly left during sparring…….”
Andy glanced at Reina. Anyone could see that Kaiden was avoiding Reina.
Seeing that he left even Ben, his aide, behind, it seemed quite urgent.
Andy made an excuse with an awkward face.
“……Ah, he must have had a stomachache. I sometimes get the signal during sparring too. Ahahaha.”
Of course, even that excuse was just lame.
“I’ll be going then.”
Rather, as the atmosphere became cold, Andy backed away and disappeared.
In the end, cleaning up was Ben’s job. Ben touched the back of his head and said.
“Sorry. He’s a guy who often says silly things originally.”
“It’s okay. More than that, if you meet Kaiden, tell him I have something to say, so let’s have lunch together? Say I’ll wait at the dining hall.”
“Understood. I’ll convey it right away.”
Ben, who bowed, quickly moved his feet to find the Duke.
* * *
Kaiden did not come to the dining hall.
Reina sat alone at the wide table, lost in deep thought.
There’s no way Ben didn’t convey her words, so he must be deliberately not coming.
‘Is he very busy?’
He was originally a busy person, but he didn’t ignore her request without a word.
She couldn’t guess the reason why he was suddenly avoiding her.
In the end, Reina, who solved lunch alone, had a disheartened face.
The clock was already pointing to 2 PM.
After that, she wandered around grasping Kaiden’s whereabouts, but the meetings fell through by a hair’s breadth.
It felt like playing hide and seek.
‘Today is the last day…….’
After today passes, she won’t be able to see Kaiden’s face anymore.
So, to not forget, she wanted to keep it long in her mind, eyes, and heart for the last time.
In the end, Reina walked gloomily with a half-given-up face.
Now she was starting to get a bit angry.
At that time, Lily complained.
“The Duke is also indifferent. He clearly knows it’s Madam’s birthday today…….”
It wasn’t only Reina who felt that he was blatantly avoiding.
While Lily grumbled irritably, Rose saved her words.
It was extremely rare for Kaiden to blatantly avoid people like this.
For him who likes straightforward methods, blatantly avoiding the opponent like this was only when there was something pricking his conscience.
At a glance, it looked similar to when he was very young, breaking the previous Duchess’s cherished vase and hiding around.
Rose carefully asked.
“By any chance, did something happen with the Duke yesterday?”
It was a question recalling the couple who entered the terrace together coming out separately.
Reina was startled when yesterday was mentioned.
“Huh? ……No, nothing happened.”
From noticeably denying to blushing cheeks and touching lips.
Anyone could see it was a face that something happened. Of course, in a good way.
Rose let out a hollow laugh.
‘It’s fleeing.’
And it seemed like the absurd flight of Kaiden who has never been in love.
‘Hmph. I guess he did something like a kiss.’
Rose snorted.
If it was before, jealousy would have surged, but strangely it was calm.
Probably because after experiencing various things, she confirmed there’s no room to intervene between the two.
Unfortunately, his escape skills were good, so the tail was hard to catch.
To find Kaiden who is determined to hide, gentle methods wouldn’t work.
Rose realized it was her turn to step in and seriously asked.
“Madam, do you absolutely have to meet the Duke today?”
Seeing her searching for him from morning, it seemed quite important.
Looking at her anxious appearance unable to say what she has to say, it was exactly that.
As expected, Reina muttered unconfidently.
“It is so, but…….”
“Then leave it to me.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll make the Duke come to Madam on his own feet.”
When Rose said confidently, Lily and Reina blankly looked at each other.
* * *
What are you going to do by running away from there.
Kaiden glared at the documents as if piercing them.
Idiot, fool, wimp.
A guy more harmful to the world than mutants.
Attaching all the curses he could think of to himself, he exuded a terrifying aura.
In the morning, unprepared in heart, he left the bedroom like fleeing.
And at the training ground, hearing Reina’s voice, when he came to his senses, he was already leaving the place.
After that, Kaiden’s insides burned dry due to his feet running away on their own.
Probably by now, Reina must have noticed that he is avoiding her.
Now, approaching shamelessly felt embarrassing and shameful.
Crunch.
With the sound of the pen nib breaking, the document was stained black with ink.
Ben sighed seeing the messed up document again.
In fact, due to him fleeing east and west, Ben was also exhausted.
“If you’re so restless, how about going to find her now?”
“What do you mean I’m restless?”
“That’s already the fifth pen.”
“…….”
“Why are you avoiding anyway?”
When Ben asked irritably, Kaiden feigned ignorance.
“Who said I’m avoiding.”
“Anyone can see you’re avoiding. Did you do something wrong to Madam?”
Wrong.
At that word, Kaiden flinched.
In the scene where anyone could see the thief’s foot going numb, Ben snatched the document and said.
“Then all the more, you should go first and apologize.”
At the word apologize, Kaiden bristled.
“You want me to beg?”
Sorry for the peck, I won’t do it again, something like that which he doesn’t mean and can’t keep?
Kaiden couldn’t spit out the rest and growled.
He felt ridiculous and foolish for being like this over just one peck.
He no longer didn’t know his own feelings.
Reina looks like a woman to him.
It didn’t mean she wasn’t a woman before.
After realizing the feelings, he couldn’t treat her casually like before.
Why on earth?
Since when? For what reason?
Of course, her eyes seem like he’d fall in just looking, the small round ears are lovely, and the lips moving munchingly also…….
Crunch.
The poor pen broke into three pieces.
It was when Ben hesitated and saved words at that terrifying aura.
With the sound of someone running hurriedly, the door burst open without knocking.
Kaiden realized the intruder was Reina’s maid and stood up abruptly from his seat.
Following, as he tried to escape through the window, Lily shouted.
“Big trouble! Madam has disappeared!”
“What do you mean?”
When Kaiden hardened his expression and urged, Lily made a tearful face.
“She said she wants to be alone……. She said she’ll stay only inside the castle, so I let her go, but she’s nowhere to be seen.”
“You let someone who isn’t familiar with the paths go alone?”
“That…….”
Lily continued, glancing at Kaiden.
“I heard a crying sound faintly, so I couldn’t refuse.”
Thud.
Kaiden’s heart stopped. He stormed out of the study without listening to what Ben and Lily were saying.
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
By Anna 💓
