Chapter 201. I Like You

"Weren't you working?"

Valdrova asked.

"It's nothing important."

"No. I just came because I was bored, so if it's inconvenient, I'll come back later..."

There was no way he could refuse.

What could possibly be more important than relieving someone's boredom?

"It's fine. You may come in."

"But it looks like you have a lot of work..."

Valdrova looked at the pile of documents stacked on Ferda's desk.

"It's truly fine."

"Is it...?"

"If necessary, I can burn all of it."

"Huh? Can you really do that?"

"I can."

His voice was so firm that it almost made her doubt him.

"N-No, you can't do that. You have to work, don't you?"

"But you'll be bored."

"Then don't worry about me. Just keep working, Mr. Ferda. I'll sit beside you."

"Beside me...?"

"Yes! I'll stay as quiet as a mouse!"

"Very well."

Valdrova carefully walked over, pulled Mori's chair beside Ferda's, and sat down next to him.

"Good luck!"

She raised both hands in an encouraging gesture.

But there was no way he could concentrate.

Even though she wore a mask, he could still feel her gaze fixed on him, making him strangely conscious of her.

She had come because she was bored. If he couldn't even ease that boredom and instead only made it worse, wouldn't that make him unfit to become her partner?

Perhaps I really should burn all of these...

Just as Ferda was about to make a bold decision, Valdrova's face drew closer.

She leaned over and read the document in his hands.

"Interim Report on Summer Budget Expenditures... What does that mean?"

Ferda answered.

"It's a document that verifies how the funds allocated for summer are being spent."

"I see. Does it look well written?"

"They're saying they'll need more funding than expected, but for now, it's still within acceptable limits."

"Hmm..."

Valdrova looked down at the numbers written below, wearing a troubled expression.

"Do you think I could do something like this?"

"You could, but there's no need."

"But originally, aren't these the kinds of things I should be doing?"

"It's only right that I handle these tedious and miscellaneous tasks. There's no need for Your Highness to learn them."

Valdrova suddenly fell silent.

The quietness made his heart turn cold.

Did I say something wrong?

Should I have told her that she could do it too? That she could learn if she focused?

"I actually didn't come here to say things like this... But I keep getting sidetracked."

Valdrova fidgeted with her fingers before finally speaking.

"I'm sorry for avoiding you these past few days. I was just... too embarrassed to face you..."

"There's no need to apologize. I can wait until Your Highness is ready."

"...There you go again."

She sounded deeply disappointed.

Ferda still had no idea what he had done wrong.

"Um..."

"Yes."

"I like you."

"...Pardon?"

Ferda was visibly shaken.

He was so startled that even Valdrova, the one who had confessed, was startled by his reaction.

"I-I mean... the name Eleanor."

"Ah, is that so?"

"Yes. It's the name you gave me... If you don't use it, it makes me sad."

"Ah."

So that's why.

Whenever she seemed unhappy, it was always when he addressed her as Your Highness.

"I understand."

"Yes."

"..."

"..."

"Then... Eleanor?"

"Yes!"

Valdrova answered brightly.

It truly seemed that was all she had wanted.

"Hehe, you can go back to work now. I was being really annoying, wasn't I?"

"Not at all. This much is perfectly fine."

"Can I be even more annoying?"

"You may."

"Then..."

Valdrova's fidgeting hand slowly slid forward along her body before carefully capturing one of Ferda's hands.

"Can I keep this?"

"Shall I cut it off and give it to you?"

"There's no need to go that far!"

"I'm joking."

It hadn't sounded like a joke at all.

Ferda smiled faintly at Valdrova. Unable to see his smile, Valdrova lowered her head and gently played with Ferda's hand.

From the wrinkles of his thumb, across the smooth surface of his fingernail, then over to his index finger.

The way she traced every part, one by one, almost felt as though she were reading everything written in his hand.

Naturally, Ferda couldn't concentrate.

"Mr. Ferda..."

"Yes."

"What do you like about me?"

It was a sudden question.

As she continued moving from one finger to the next, Valdrova spoke.

"You're handsome, and you're smart... So I feel like you'd prefer a girl who's prettier and smarter than someone like me. Like... Miss Olivia, for example...?"

Olivia Arken.

A beauty worthy of being called the Rose of the Empire.

But Ferda knew the darkness hidden beneath her beauty.

It was so deep and so dark that she reminded him of another version of himself.

No matter how beautiful she was, that truth left behind only discomfort.

"Even if Olivia and I are both intelligent, there are things that cannot be obtained through effort alone. Eleanor, you possess exactly that."

"What is it?"

It was the very question she had just asked.

"I cannot tell you."

"Why?"

"Because it is most beautiful when it remains unknown."

"What is it...?"

Valdrova pouted as though he were teasing her.

How ironic.

The fact that she herself didn't realize how precious she was made her seem all the more precious.

The heart that had been pounding with excitement gradually calmed.

A pleasant silence settled over them, and Ferda returned his attention to the documents.

Silence fell once again.

Ferda turned page after page, and every time he did, Valdrova continued absentmindedly playing with his hand.

Eventually, she began tracing something across his palm.

Following the sensation, he realized she was drawing letters.

"Are you writing words?"

"That's right. Can you feel them?"

"Yes, I can."

"Hmm... Then how about I write something, and you try to guess what it says?"

Valdrova looked genuinely excited.

There was no way Ferda could refuse.

"Very well."

"Then here's the first one."

Her finger gently used Ferda's palm as though it were a canvas.

After placing a period at the end, she asked playfully,

"What did I write?"

"An apple?"

"That's right! Apple. Then next one!"

Excitedly, Valdrova began writing again.

"Ferda. That's my name."

"Correct! Next one..."

"Eleanor. That's your name."

"Correct! You're really good at this. I think I need something harder."

Valdrova happily hummed to herself, gently swaying her head.

"For the next one... hmm..."

Her excited movements gradually became calmer.

The hand holding his grew noticeably warmer.

"...You'll guess this one too?"

"I will."

Ferda focused intently, reading the letters she traced across his palm.

After placing the final period, she asked,

"What did I write?"

"..."

"Hmm, was this one difficult?"

"No. I think I know what it says."

"Then tell me."

"It says..."

Without thinking, Ferda touched his own face.

He hesitated awkwardly.

The words she had written were words he knew very well.

Yet they were words he could never bring himself to say while fully conscious.

For someone as taciturn as himself, someone whose expressions rarely changed, they were simply too adorable, too beautiful to utter.

But Valdrova wanted to hear them.

So, very carefully, he spoke.

"I like you."

A deeply satisfied smile spread across her face.

"Me too."

Again and again, Valdrova traced those same words into his palm.

And each time, she smiled as she savored the sight of Ferda's troubled expression.

***

Inside Valdrova Castle, Luri's room.

After finishing her duties for the day, her routine was simple.

She tossed aside the clothes she had worn, rewarded herself with a piece of fruit preserved in honey from a jar, rolled the sticky sweetness around in her mouth, and threw herself onto the bed.

It was midnight.

Her work tomorrow began at four in the morning.

If she slept now, she'd get four hours.

Luri always slept that much.

It was enough.

She closed her eyes according to her usual routine.

"Mmm..."

But they refused to stay shut.

She had trained herself to fall asleep the instant she lay down.

Yet tonight, sleep would not come.

A single distracting thought relentlessly disturbed her.

That stray thought filled her mind with a vague emotion, like pale mist clouding everything.

Luri slowly turned her head.

Within her sight was a pile of books.

The very books she had seized from Ferda's office.

Books filled with indecent and obscene content.

"...Pervert."

She muttered toward Ferda.

Even she knew she didn't truly mean it.

Ferda had no idea what those books actually contained.

She was the one who knew.

She had been the one who panicked and fled.

Remembering herself back then, Luri covered her face.

I actually screamed and ran away...

She couldn't believe she had behaved like some ordinary young woman.

When had she ever been this shaken before?

Certainly, there had been many major events that had unsettled her.

But something this trivial?

Had she ever overreacted over something so insignificant?

It's all because...

Ferda's face appeared in her mind.

A man with almost no expressions.

A frail body.

Deep blue eyes.

A jawline like a wild beast's.

And an incredibly comforting scent.

His embrace had been broader than she'd expected.

"Ah..."

Luri shook her head violently, trying to erase the image.

This was driving her crazy.

Even imagining it made her feel strange.

As though she were approaching a forbidden boundary she should never cross.

She got up and popped another piece of honey-preserved fruit into her mouth.

When had this started?

Searching for the root of it all, she found herself staring at the book in her hand.

Although she couldn't read the unfamiliar Eastern script, she knew its title.

49 Ways to Tame an Arrogant Maid.

It had absolutely nothing to do with her.

She served Valdrova, the Red Dragon, not Ferda.

As Valdrova's maid, Luri Silverwind, she could reject any request Ferda made whenever she wished.

Yet the book kept forcing such impossible scenarios into her imagination.

I should burn this immediately.

Luri ignited a flame.

Yet she couldn't bring herself to move it toward the book.

A question suddenly crossed her mind.

...Come to think of it, do I really have to burn it?

She wasn't the arrogant one.

Ferda was.

He might be tall and possess an elegance beyond his years, but despite being so young, he acted like a master in front of a Dragon Spawn.

He liked getting hit, yet still insisted on acting cool.

I just hope that perverted personality doesn't rub off on Master.

Valdrova was like a blank white canvas.

She would inevitably be influenced by whoever stayed close to her.

And surely, she'd end up being influenced by Ferda.

So...

Then I have to keep my wits about me.

Luri recalled the advice she had received when she was appointed commander of the Mobile Brigade.

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated.

Steeling herself, Luri looked down at the book once more.

49 Ways to Tame an Arrogant Maid.

If I know all forty-nine methods, then I can prepare countermeasures against every one of them. 1

The thought completely changed her mindset.

All her hesitation vanished instantly.

This book must not be burned.

She absolutely had to read it.

The problem was that Luri couldn't read the obscure Eastern script.

She needed someone who could.

Who...

Penelope.

The instant the name surfaced, murderous intent leaked from Luri.

She would rather let Ferda catch her than allow that demon to discover she was reading this book.

Then who else?

Mori.

Ferda had gone looking for Mori because he wanted to read this very book.

As the master of the Library of All Things, she undoubtedly understood Eastern script.

I'll ask her.

She had practically no sense of self.

If asked to keep it secret, she probably wouldn't tell anyone.

And since it was already late at night, there couldn't be a better opportunity to ask discreetly.

Luri immediately decided to act.

She jumped to her feet and placed her hand on the doorknob.

"..."

For a brief moment, she hesitated and glanced back.

Her eyes landed on the remaining pile of forbidden books.

Come to think of it...

If she was already going to read forbidden books, what difference would taking a few more make?

Right.

It should be fine.

Luri grabbed about three more books before heading toward Mori's bedroom.