Chapter: 94
The Crown Prince, the next sun of the Empire, personally scolded the foolish members of royalty. I was just touched that he expressed what I couldn’t say myself, but honestly, nothing dramatically changed.
It’s amusing that after the Crown Prince’s welcome speech, they would just head back the very next day. If these three clowns were normal folks capable of understanding his sarcasm, they wouldn’t have come to the capital in the first place.
Those guys are the new breed of humans who can temporarily detach their brains whenever it comes to anything related to Louise. The Crown Prince’s sarcasm? It probably went in one ear and out the other! After all, the Empire couldn’t just kick them out right after showcasing its generous hospitality.
Argh, annoying bastards!
No matter how annoying it gets, royal families typically scratch each other’s backs without even realizing it. If one nation’s royalty disrespects another, then domestic nobles might start thinking, “Royalty isn’t that special, huh?” Right now, the Imperial family might be fine, but who knows what chaos it could lead to later on?
That’s why these three brats are living it up in the Empire. What a bunch of damned nobodies! Status really is everything.
*
“Master, please don’t move.”
“Ah, got it.”
After I let out a slight sigh, a youthful voice floated from behind. As I straightened my slightly bent neck, I felt a gentle hand at work in my hair.
But honestly, there was no need to fuss over my hair this much. It would mess itself up again dealing with the bureaucrats anyway.
“You can ease up.”
“Nope! If your hair turns out weird, I’ll get scolded!”
But I’m fine!
Yet from the perspective of this little one, the butler and other senior servants must seem scarier than the occasional Master.
Plus, it felt rude to dismiss a kid trying so hard. We still had some time before work began, so I couldn’t help it.
“Master, you don’t usually take care of your hair, do you?”
“Do I really need to?”
“Sorry, that was an unnecessary question.”
My response seemed to tickle her humor, and I caught a little giggle from her. Kids often crack up over the tiniest things, so whatever.
Gazing into the mirror, I noticed the maid fixing my hair had brown locks. If she had brown hair and looked that young, it could only be Yuris or Sophia. Wait, was she Sophia?
“Sophia?”
“Oh, Sophia is busy with something else, Master.”
So you’re Yuris! My bad, you two look so similar it’s hard to tell apart.
Fortunately, she didn’t seem offended and thought I was just looking for Sophia. I managed to dodge a bullet—almost turned into a bad employer declaring, “From now on, you’re Sophia!”
“But Master, what’s that over there?”
“That?”
As I kept my mouth shut, Yuris spoke up first, her gaze fixated. I followed her line of sight to see a potted plant sitting there. Ah, that.
“That’s a hawthorn. I got it as a gift.”
I brought it with me thinking it might shrivel up and die if left in the clubroom during vacation. I couldn’t just abandon it knowing Irina always stared at it when visiting.
Once she heard it was a gift, Yuris paused, glancing at the hawthorn before breaking into a warm smile.
“It’s beautiful! Who did you get it from?”
“From the blonde girl who came with me.”
“Oh, that one!”
Yuris nodded as if she understood who I meant, and stepping back, she looked all proud of herself. Seemed like she viewed her hair styling as a masterpiece.
“You can get up now!”
“Alright, thanks.”
As a thank you, I gave Yuris’s shoulder a few gentle pats. She stared up at me blankly, and when I carefully moved my hand away, she finally released a giggle.
While other servants often went tense in front of me, this girl and Sophia were all radiance, probably because of their age. They had been quite stubborn when I first saw them, yet how well they’ve grown. I just wished they would continue flourishing.
Only after I had pampered Yuris’s head for a good while could I finally pull my hand away. But when I tried to withdraw, her wide innocent eyes looked up at me—how could I ignore that?
“Ah, Master.”
“I really have to go now.”
“There’s something I want to tell you!”
I had just about headed out the door when I glanced back, surprised by the unexpected words. Generally, Yuris shouldn’t have something personal to discuss with me. Usually, the butler was in charge of passing messages.
Not knowing what she meant made me feel uneasy. Was there some troublesome matter I didn’t know about?
“Do you know the flower language of a hawthorn?”
Ah, so it wasn’t anything too urgent.
“It symbolizes tolerance and forgiveness. Since someone gifted it to you, I thought it might be good for you to know.”
“Thanks for the heads-up.”
“Anytime!”
I chuckled softly at Yuris’s polite bow. Tolerance and forgiveness, huh?
What a significant gift!
I almost unjustly destroyed her family; receiving tolerance and forgiveness was indeed a huge gift. Irina had her reasons for choosing that present.
Had it not been for Yuris’s heads-up, I would have remained forever clueless. I really owe her a gift for this! She loves sweets, so I could ask the butler to grab something nice for her. And if I could throw in something for Sophia too, I’m sure they’d both be thrilled!
But seriously, I never could’ve guessed the meaning behind the flower. I don’t even know its name; how could I have known its significance? Irina clearly overestimated my knowledge.
*
Straightening up at the sound of my Master opening the door and stepping out, it dawned on me—this was what they meant by high expectations leading to great disappointments.
I thought it was from my sister.
Initially, I had presumed that the hawthorn was a gift from Penelia unnie. I mean, given how Penelia unnie usually acted, her doing something so bold was hard to swallow. Now, she was trawling around in a maid outfit calling him Master. Perhaps there was some hope after all.
But alas, it was just my own delusion. Of course, Penelia unnie wouldn’t do something so outrageous.
Dummy.
Unnie had kept her feelings bottled up for two years. Everyone except Master probably sensed it, but she kept it under wraps. She was such a cool, wonderful sister, yet why did it have to be this way?
What’s worse—the noblewoman who had known Master for less than six months was making moves. To think she’d use flower language to express her feelings! Compared to someone meditating in silence for two years, that was fast!
My one and only love.
Suddenly, my face flushed for no apparent reason. It was less awkward than speaking the words directly, but still, any form of expression felt embarrassing.
That’s why I thought, Should I tell Master directly? I’d want to cheer for such a brave love. Surely, Master wouldn’t notice a shy and intricate confession like that—and he really didn’t.
But even so, I couldn’t shake the feeling I’d chosen to mention the other flower meaning because I was still concerned about Penelia unnie.
I’m sorry.
I inwardly muttered an apology that probably wouldn’t reach the beautiful blonde-haired, blue-eyed noblewoman. My wish was for my sister and Master to end up together.
With the daughter of the Valenti Duchess already infatuated with him, it would be quite the impossible feat for my sister to become the first wife. Well, it didn’t matter who met him first, either way, the gap in their statuses was too vast.
Even if Master were to establish a relationship with my sister before the Duchess’s daughter, knowing Master, he would want my sister to be first wife, but that situation now felt so complex. Was another noble lady really stepping in? How much further would my sister be pushed back?
I truly apologize.
That’s why not yet. If Master figures it out on his own, so be it, but I can’t be the one to increase my sister’s competition. At least my sister should achieve her goal first; then, I won’t even care if other competitors come along.
I felt a burgeoning guilt settle in my heart; it just didn’t sit right. No, hold on—it’s not my fault! Who gives a gift of such an ambiguous flower? If it only had one meaning, I wouldn’t have been able to pick what to tell him.
This mess occurred because she presented a flower with dual meanings. And for crying out loud, Master didn’t even know what the flower language meant until I told him. Yeah, it’s absolutely not my fault. It’s Master’s fault!
Trying to shove the guilt aside, I meandered down the hall. Suddenly, Sophia, who had been in the kitchen assisting the chef, appeared carrying a huge pile of snacks.
“Master said we should eat these!”
Now that I think about it, it seems it’s really not Master’s fault.
*
The Crown Prince mentioned that while I didn’t need to swing by the Prosecutor’s Office daily, I should occasionally make an appearance. Yesterday I was out and about, sightseeing and attending ceremonies, so I figured today would be best to handle some of my backlog before heading home.
If I keep putting off work, things might come back to bite me later.
“Congrats on your vacation!”
F.*
Should I just jog on out?
As soon as I opened the door to my office, the head of Division 1 stood there, holding a cake. Why is he congratulating me? We’re civil servants; we don’t get vacations.
“Your first! Vacation! Congratulations!”
I chuckled dryly as the 2nd manager emphasized specific words. With the two of them bombarding me like this, my resolve to fast-track my work wobbled in an instant.
Lifting my gaze to the cake, I noticed there were six candles, but only one was lit. What’s this nonsense? Guess it makes sense that this flimsy congratulation would feature equally ridiculous candles.
Noticing my stare, the 2nd manager started to cackle as he opened his mouth.
“Isn’t this your first vacation? We plan to light one more candle each vacation thereafter.”
What kind of nostalgic teasing is this?
“You’ll graduate once all six candles are lit!”
“Hey, the Executive Manager hasn’t even enrolled!”
Oops!
As I clenched and unclenched my fists to keep calm, I caught sight of the 3rd manager cowering in the corner, avoiding my gaze. This incident seemed wild enough for even one of the notorious trio.
The senior manager and the 5th manager weren’t around to help. The tactic of fleeing when your warnings fail must always be effective.
“3rd manager, you can leave.”
“Th-thank you…”
As the 3rd manager scurried away, I seized the cake from the hands of Division 1’s manager.
That day, I realized the cake’s white frosting matched the 1st manager’s hair, while the sponge cake resembled the 2nd manager’s blonde locks.
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