Chapter 6: Then Let Her Stay
Evelia and Armand soon returned from the streets. Armand’s idea was that if Evelia could go out with him without problems, the old butler might start trusting her, which would make it easier to take her out again in the future.
So, for once, Armand didn’t bring back any strange or weird things. As they had agreed, he only brought back some drinks and snacks from the commoners’ district.
Evelia had planned to take the food to the kitchen to be prepared, but when she saw the look Armand gave her, she thought maybe the butler didn’t approve of what he had bought and that it needed to be hidden.
So when Armand told her, “Quick, go hide in the kitchen before the old butler catches you and starts asking questions. That old guy nags a lot,” Evelia obediently went toward the kitchen.
For her, this was also a good chance to take a look around. She actually welcomed any excuse to explore the entire estate and memorize its details.
Once Evelia was gone, Armand quietly slipped into his office with the snacks hidden under his clothes.
To be honest, it was more like a personal study room than an office.
The large room had bookshelves filled with all kinds of books. In the center, facing the door, was a wooden desk near the window. Not far from it was a black leather sofa for guests.
On his desk was a green plant, the kind that always looks alive even if it's dying, because Armand wasn’t someone who enjoyed gardening or had the patience for that kind of thing.
He didn’t do much paperwork himself, but sometimes he had to deal with documents, so even if he didn’t use the office often, he still needed to have one.
If the snacks he brought back were really meant to be hidden from the old butler, Armand would be in big trouble now. Because the butler, Lug, was already standing by his desk. He had known Armand would be back around this time and had a cup of tea ready. The tea was just the right temperature, not too hot or cold, exactly how he liked it.
“Want some?” Armand offered the most convenient cold snack, something very popular among commoners. The oily paper bag it came in looked completely out of place next to the fancy teacup with gold trim.
“You can have it yourself. Only you would think red tea goes well with peanuts.”
Lug, as if he already knew what Armand was planning, handed him a silver spoon. Armand spread out the paper and began eating the cheap snacks with a spoon that also had a gold edge.
“These two don’t clash anyway. And even if they did, my stomach can handle it.”
After all, this was a stomach that had once survived poison, what’s a little food mismatch?
Of course, if he ate too much, it would still cause pain, so even though the food wouldn’t kill him, he had no intention of torturing himself.
Long ago, some politicians who opposed the First Prince had tried to kill the young Armand with poison when he first started showing promise. The slow poison was made from a mix of countless herbs, and when it finally took effect, it nearly killed him.
If the royal family hadn’t had the resources to create an antidote in time, Armand would have died that day, on what had seemed like a bright and peaceful morning.
But the royal family didn’t let the incident go to waste. They recorded both the poison recipe and the antidote. If needed, it could be used again.
Armand had become the royal family's "test subject" for that poison, because the mixture was so unique it was almost like a new invention. Even now, royal doctors sometimes called him into the palace to check his body and observe if there were any long-term effects.
And apparently, they came to an interesting conclusion. Armand’s body was now almost immune to all poisons.
The downside was that his body was always in a slightly poisoned state. The antidote kept the pain away, but each time he went for a checkup, the doctors found new damage to his internal organs.
So while he wouldn’t die suddenly from the poison, he would probably die later from something like organ failure.
Because of this, his attitude toward life had changed. Instead of the hardworking fighter he used to be, now he lived with a “since I might die any day, I might as well enjoy life” mindset. In other words. Not many days left, better eat well now.
If there’s something interesting, he’ll try it. If there’s something tasty, he’ll eat it. If he wants to play, he’ll play.
He’ll do whatever he likes, and not care what others think of him. After all, those people’s stares and gossip won’t follow him into the grave.
Lug, his old butler, was the only person outside the royal family who knew all this.
The old man had once said to him, “Don’t always look like you’re at a funeral. Smiling is better than crying.”
And from that moment on, Armand slowly let go of the pain and started living a more carefree life. At the very least, he wanted to face death calmly when the time came.
Unfortunately, as a general who had never lost a battle, the First Prince’s faction would never let him go. Even the First Prince himself was keeping an eye on him. That just made Armand even more convinced he should live life to the fullest, because if he stayed in the knights, he might not just die from illness… he could die in battle too.
“How is she?”
Lug looked at Armand, who had been deep in thought, and finally got to the main point.
After all, Armand had taken Evelia out today as a way to test the strange new maid.
Even though Evelia was an excellent assassin, using a body she wasn’t used to would definitely lead to small mistakes.
From the first moment Armand saw her, he already sensed that something was different about her. That sharp look in her eyes, like a hunting dog, reminded him of himself when he was younger.
But he still wasn’t sure if this maid was an “assassin” or a “spy.” When they shook hands, he didn’t feel any of the usual signs of someone trained in combat. No calluses, no roughness from using weapons. And she also didn’t have the marks that experienced maids usually had from years of hard work.
“What do you think?” Armand asked while chewing on some peanuts, throwing the question back.
“There’s something wrong with her,” the old butler said calmly.
“And something very wrong,” he added.
Like a well-rehearsed team, the two of them only needed a few words to agree.
“But at least she didn’t come straight here to kill me. Otherwise, I would’ve come back with a few injuries.”
“She’s after you?”
“Seems like it. Looks like this old, sickly man still has some value.”
Armand took a sip of his black tea. He drank it all in one go like it was a beer, not caring about noble manners. The bitter taste still lingered in his mouth.
“But what does she want? I’m 26 and still not married, is that it? According to her file, she’s only 18. I’m not interested in girls nearly ten years younger than me. Could she be trying to use her looks to get close? I’d rather they just bribe me with a few bottles of good wine.”
“If she managed to get this close to you, then all her personal info was probably carefully arranged. The file I have might not be reliable anymore.”
“Hmm…”
Armand held his tea cup in one hand, asking the butler for a refill, while his other hand tapped the table out of habit.
“For her to become my personal maid, she’s likely someone close to the Second Prince. Probably tough to deal with, if not top-tier, then still elite. Not someone you can take down easily.”
Armand lowered his eyes. His clear blue gaze darkened as he stared into his tea, watching the ripples blur his reflection.
“Let’s keep her.”
He then looked up and turned his eyes toward the window behind his desk, trying to look outside. But his view was blocked by the large, expensive redwood chair placed in front of it.
“She seems like an interesting one. And, it’s better to keep her close, so I can keep an eye on her. It’s easier than guessing what the Second Prince is planning again, right?”
“No need to deal with her now?”
“No need. Even if she’s the Second Prince’s trusted follower, she knows too much. Whether his plan works or fails, she won’t survive. You know what he’s like, he always throws people away after he’s used them.”
“That’s true…”
“Keeping the enemy in plain sight is better than letting them hide in the shadows. And honestly, I’m a kind person. If her mission fails and she ends up in the Second Prince’s hands, she’ll suffer a horrible punishment. If something goes wrong, at least I can give her a quick and painless end.”
“A quick end?” The butler smirked. “I don’t think the Knight Order’s interrogation methods are any better than the Second Prince’s…”
“Cough… Well, anyway, my reputation’s already set. No one will question anything I do. Just act like everything’s normal. You’re better at lying and pretending than I am, anyway.”
“Understood. I’ll treat her like any other maid. But be careful, she’s playing the role of your personal maid, so she’ll have lots of chances to get close to you.”
“Don’t worry. Just keep running things like usual. I’ll handle the rest. She’s my maid now, so I’ll play along. Just don’t alert her.”
Armand stretched, walked around the desk and the chair, and stood near the window. No matter when, he liked to look out at the world from bright, sunny spots.
Sadly, the sky seemed so close, but all he could touch was the cold, expensive golden window frame.
“Evelia Croyelle…”
He looked outside at the pink figure walking between the knights, carrying a tray of snacks. His usual lazy smile returned as he said her name, remembering how earlier she stared at the back of his head like she was trying to see through it.
He could still feel that intense gaze. If he hadn’t turned around, he would’ve kept walking ahead of her just to see what she’d do next.
Now, Evelia suddenly felt something strange, like someone was watching her. She looked up toward the office window where that feeling came from, but by the time her eyes reached it, Armand was no longer there. She paused for a moment, then continued passing out the snacks the kitchen staff had prepared “as a reward” for the knights loyal to Armand.
This wasn’t something she needed to do, it was a task she chose for herself. After all, to truly understand someone, you had to start with the people around them. She didn’t dare approach the old butler yet, so she had to try and get some information from the knights.
Her sense of danger was growing stronger. She didn’t understand why the loud, careless Knight Order captain, who couldn’t even remember her name at first, made her feel so uneasy.
'…Looks like I really need to understand him better…'
Evelia muttered to herself in her heart, carrying her tray of snacks toward the next group of knights.