Chapter 31: Rebellious Phase
“What exactly did you do today, sir?”
Inside the estate, Armand sat a little awkwardly on his sofa. Sitting next to him was the old butler, who had spent the whole afternoon trying and failing to figure out what on earth had happened.
“……”
Armand rubbed his forehead, trying to think of a way to explain things. He was so troubled that sweat had started to form, but he still had no idea how to say it.
That girl took off her underwear and handed it to him in the carriage… Could he really say something like that?
Even though Armand didn’t seem like the shy, innocent type, he had never experienced anything like this. Even the more open-minded noble ladies would, at most, wear dresses with low necklines or high slits. But to just take off your panties and hand them over? That was something he had never seen before.
“Evelia, she…” Armand tried to speak, lifting his eyes nervously, but the words got stuck in his throat and he closed his mouth again.
…Hesitating like this wasn't even like him.
Armand sighed and leaned his forehead on his hand, while the fingers of his other hand started tapping on the table, tap tap tap, like he was trying to drill a hole into it.
Tapping his fingers like this was one of Armand’s old habits. People often have small habits when they’re thinking, and this was his. But his tapping was especially loud, which was why many nobles didn’t want him attending big meetings. No one liked a woodpecker who wouldn’t stop.
Still, sometimes, when he ran into tricky problems, Armand would use the tapping, as if he were “writing” in his head, to help build a plan.
And when he couldn’t decide between two ideas, he would tap like this as if he were debating with himself.
Other times, he just did it on purpose to annoy the nobles who kept dragging him to royal meetings for no good reason.
In the royal chamber, he would tap even harder. And if he really disliked a certain noble, he’d even tap in rhythm, turning their speech into something that sounded like a rap.
Honestly, he acted like a kid in class who didn’t want to pay attention and only wanted to cause trouble.
Tap tap tap.
But this time, he was genuinely stuck.
His fingers kept tapping out one question after another, and he would cross each one out in his mind.
Evelia stood on the opposite side of him, she was supposed to be his enemy.
So logically, he should’ve gotten rid of her.
But somehow, it didn’t happen?
He had brought Evelia safely back to the estate. According to the old butler, she had gone right back to work, carrying out her tasks in the manor just like always.
“I… In the carriage with Evelia…”
Armand started to speak, unsure of how to explain, but he didn’t notice how the old butler’s face was growing more and more dramatic.
“Wait… you and Miss Evelia… did that?!”
“……?”
Armand froze.
“And in the carriage!?”
“?”
The image of Evelia stepping out of Armand’s carriage, all wrapped up tightly in his coat, was still fresh in the old butler’s mind. Even though her face didn’t show any kind of shy or flustered expression, the way she was covered head to toe and had said, “Only Mr. Armand can see this,” really made it hard not to misunderstand.
“Oh my! Master Armand, what did you do?!”
“I didn’t do anything…!”
Armand was so anxious that he stopped tapping his fingers and slammed his fist on the table instead. You could tell how upset he was just by looking at the spilled pens and ink on the table. Thankfully, the table was strong. Otherwise, that punch might have left some serious damage.
“Alright, alright. Then why don’t you tell me what really happened?”
The old butler, surprised to see Armand so worked up, sighed and poured him a cup of tea. Then he began cleaning up the mess on the table.
“I went to the old street today, right? I happened to run into Evelia, and then… I gave her a ride back.”
After Armand said that, he fell silent, as if that was the whole story. But the old butler kept cleaning and quietly listened. When Armand didn’t continue, he looked up with a puzzled expression and asked,
“That’s it?”
“That’s it,” Armand answered, lips pressed tightly in embarrassment.
“What about what happened in between?”
“There wasn’t anything in between—”
Before he could finish, Armand felt the weight of the butler’s sharp gaze. Even though there was some distance between them, that stare felt like it could slice through him. His face even started to sting.
Ever since Armand officially joined the Crown Prince's side, the old butler, Lug, had been in charge of looking after his daily life.
This old man had been with him through thick and thin, through glory and hardship.
Armand had attracted a lot of attention, and the butler had even nearly lost his life several times because of it. But no matter what happened, he always stayed loyal.
When Armand was poisoned and on the brink of death, it was Lug who worked day and night with the royal doctors to save him. He watched Armand grow from an ordinary palace guard to the current captain of the Royal Knights.
Officially, they were master and servant. But after ten years of life-and-death moments together, their bond was more like that of father and son.
So under the pressure of this father-like stare, Armand had no choice but to open his mouth and tell the whole story in full detail, including the awkward parts.
“So… that’s about it. Do you understand now?”
“Hmm…”
The old butler went silent for a long time, deep in thought.
“So, because of some unexpected situations, Miss Evelia gave you a piece of her clothing, and you accidentally saw a lot of… ‘special scenery’?”
“That’s right…”
Even though the butler had phrased it gently, Armand still felt extremely awkward hearing it said out loud.
“And you didn’t do anything?”
“Nope.” Armand frowned and answered firmly. “I didn’t do a thing. I brought her straight home.”
“Hmm…”
The old butler looked at Armand’s face and fell into deep thought again.
“You know… you seem like a teenager going through puberty.”
“Huh?” Armand was so shocked by the comment that he raised his voice. “Puberty? At my age?”
“Or maybe you’re going through a rebellious phase.”
“Wha—” Armand was speechless. “What do you mean?! How do I look like I’m going through some rebellious phase? I didn’t do anything!”
“Exactly. You didn’t do anything. That should mean you have absolutely no special feelings toward Miss Evelia, right?”
“Of course not!” Armand’s voice got louder. “How could I possibly have feelings for Evelia, who’s from—”
“Then why have you been troubled ever since you came back?”
“......”
Armand stopped mid-sentence, unable to respond.
“Ha…”
Then, his mouth twitched. He let out a bitter laugh and rested his head on his crossed arms.
“You’re right… what have I been so worried about?”