Chapter 68: Who Belongs to Whom
Because Armand had enough authority, he gave himself a paid day off today and dumped all his work on that guy Carle again. If Carle ever found out that Armand took a paid day off just to go shopping with the family’s maid, he’d probably be so mad he’d fall sick.
Armand told himself this was just a normal outing, so he didn’t go out of his way to dress up. He wore his usual shirt and jacket, just like always. The only difference was that he wasn’t wearing the Knights’ uniform today. His clothes were more casual than usual.
In fact, from how he looked, no one would be able to tell he held a high position. His clothes were simple and had no decorations, making him look just like a regular person, except that someone with a trained eye might notice that the fabric was quite high-quality.
“Mr. Armand.”
Evelia opened the door and stepped out of her room. Armand, who had been leaning against the wall by the door, quickly stood up straight and instinctively adjusted his clothes. He gave her a small smile, while Evelia, just like always, gave him a polite bow.
Today, Evelia was wearing a new white dress. Even though the weather wasn’t cold and she didn’t really need to dress that warmly, it was very windy. Yes, very windy today.
Armand still clearly remembered Evelia’s “special benefit” from last time, so this time, he had made sure she wore a shawl and a longer, sturdier dress that went past her knees. That way, they wouldn’t have to worry about the wind blowing her skirt all over the place again.
“Ready? Can we go now, Eve?”
Seeing Evelia’s modest outfit made Armand breathe a quiet sigh of relief. Maybe it was because yesterday’s semi-transparent black dress had been too shocking that today’s pure white dress looked especially innocent in contrast. It gave a completely different feeling than when she was dancing yesterday.
This reaction of Armand’s actually fit with something Anna had said a long time ago, ‘A girl who looks as pure as snow on the outside, but is willing to be dyed black for you in private, what man could ever say no to someone like that?’
“Mm, I already asked someone to inform Anna yesterday. We can just head straight there.”
Even though Armand had brought up the idea kind of late yesterday, it wasn’t too late to send someone with a message.
To avoid making Armand suspicious, and to make herself seem even more harmless, Evelia had gone to the old butler, written down the address of Anna’s shop, and asked him to find someone to pass the word along. That way, she could not only inform Anna in advance, but also put Armand’s mind at ease by showing she wasn’t up to anything shady.
Of course, she did this on purpose, because she was about to carry out an assassination mission. If the person she killed unexpectedly was discovered by the knights, and they launched an investigation, she didn’t want to be noticed for anything suspicious she had done recently.
“Alright then. The carriage is outside. Let’s go.”
“Wait, Mr. Armand.”
As Evelia glanced out the window and saw the white carriage bearing the Knights’ insignia parked at the gate, she called out to Armand, who had just stepped out.
“What is it?”
“Can we not take the carriage?”
That pure white carriage was really flashy, especially with the Knights’ symbol so clearly displayed. Only the Captain and Vice Captain of the Royal Knights had the right to use this type of carriage. It was way too attention-grabbing.
It wasn’t that Armand wanted to use such a flashy carriage. He had gone out of his way to dress plainly, after all. He probably would’ve preferred a more modest one too. But the problem was, in this whole estate, this was the only kind of carriage available. Most likely, it had been part of the standard “package” the Crown Prince had given him.
Armand didn’t like riding in carriages. But to avoid the same skirt-flipping incident as last time, he had called for one anyway. Even though he’d already made sure Evelia’s clothes wouldn’t fly up again, he still felt uneasy.
And since it was the first time he was taking her out, he also wanted to make her look a little more important. After thinking all that through, he had finally decided on the carriage.
“Not take it?”
Armand repeated the words, like he wanted to double-check.
“Yes, Mr. Armand, I don’t want to take the carriage.”
Evelia had never planned to tell Anna that the person she was bringing was the Captain of the Royal Knights. The less Anna knew, the safer she would be. That flashy carriage was basically the kind used by a high-ranking official, and Evelia didn’t want Anna to see that.
“Hmm…”
“Don’t you want to walk with me instead?”
As soon as she said that, Armand hesitated. Her words made it hard for him to say no.
Seeing the unsure look on his face, Evelia asked softly,
“Or… am I causing trouble for you…?”
“Ah—no, not at all.”
If it was just a small request like this, Armand could still say yes. And besides, walking with Evelia would make it even easier for him to keep an eye on her.
‘…Yes, that’s right. That’s what it is. I’m definitely not doing this just because I wanted to walk with Evelia.’
That’s what Armand kept telling himself. It had to be that.
To be honest, Armand still felt conflicted. He always suspected Evelia might be a spy, but every time she got close, he found it hard to push her away.
Even though he was getting softer toward her, deep down, his true belief hadn’t changed, If she ever did anything to help the Second Prince and hurt the Crown Prince, then he would not hesitate to execute her.
That was the one thing that could never change. His position must not waver. Otherwise, everything he had endured over the years, would all be for nothing.
After a quick greeting with the coachman, Armand and Evelia left the estate. A white-clad girl and a black-clothed knight still wearing a sword walked down the street together, drawing many stares.
They looked like a noble lady and her personal bodyguard. But in reality, they were the captain of the knights… and his maid.
Evelia, for her part, was very focused. Since she’d already told Anna she’d visit her clothing shop today, she wouldn’t do anything else until that was finished, unless there was extra time later.
Armand had originally planned to take her to a few other places as well, but every suggestion got flatly and emotionlessly rejected by Evelia. That made Armand too embarrassed to bring it up again.
Along the way, just like always, Armand ran into a lot of knights he knew.
After saluting, they all looked curiously at the beautiful girl walking beside their captain, trying to guess who she was. But no matter how curious they were, Armand didn’t say a single useful word.
Some of them even tried to sneak glances at Evelia’s chest, only to get a death glare from Armand, whose body just happened to be blocking their view.
Eventually, to avoid running into more curious knights, Armand led Evelia through a bunch of detours and side roads. After circling around quite a bit, thanks to Evelia’s directions, they finally arrived at Anna’s clothing shop.
Armand immediately recognized the logo on the shop sign. It was the most popular clothing brand in the commoner district. The lingerie Evelia had bought last time came in a bag with that same logo.
“Anna, are you there? I brought the person with me.”
Evelia pushed open the wooden door. A bell near the entrance jingled as they stepped inside.
The moment they entered, Armand smelled a faint, pleasant scent. Very similar to the perfume Evelia wore. She probably bought it here too.
“Ah, ah—yes! I’m coming—!”
Just as Evelia was about to head further into the shop, Anna popped out from the storage room, where she had been digging through fabric. She must’ve heard Evelia’s voice and rushed out without even looking, and ended up crashing straight into Armand, who had been quietly observing the whole shop.
“—Oof!”
Anna let out a muffled grunt as she bumped into him. When she looked up and saw exactly what part of his chest she had just face-planted into, her eyes went wide.
“Whoa, that’s huge.”
“?”
Armand took a polite half-step back, puzzled by this small girl’s strange comment.
“Miss Evelia, is this your man? He’s huge!”
It seemed like Anna was very impressed by Armand’s build.
“What?” But both Evelia and Armand were confused and let out a questioning sound at the same time.
“I mean his chest! It’s so big! And his body looks great! His face is handsome, and he’s tall too! You said he was a good-looking guy, you weren’t lying! You two look amazing together!”
“Is that so…” Evelia didn’t seem to care about such strange compliments. She just mumbled softly, “He’s not my man.”
“I thought you were joking when you said he was handsome, and that’s why you weren’t interested. But you seriously don’t want him? Come on! If even this guy can’t be yours, then what kind of man do you want, Miss Evelia?!”
“Pfft…”
Armand, who had been listening on the side, couldn’t help but chuckle.
Watching Anna get all flustered and scratch her head in frustration over Evelia’s emotionless replies… was oddly entertaining.
It seemed like anyone who spent enough time around Evelia’s personality ended up like this.
“Ah~ Sir Knight, what are you laughing at? You came here with her, but now she says you’re not ‘her person.’ Don’t you feel sad?”
Anna turned toward Armand when she heard him laugh.
Armand was handsome and Evelia was beautiful. A perfect love story between a beautiful woman and a handsome knight, who wouldn’t root for that?
Seeing Evelia refuse to claim such a good-looking knight, Anna was more anxious than either of them.
“Ah, well, she’s right, I’m not hers.”
Armand smiled again. That charming smile was so bright Anna had to squint her eyes.
She glanced at Evelia again, her eyes full of disbelief, like she was saying, ‘You don’t want this kind of man? Seriously?!’
“I really am not hers,” Armand said, watching Evelia remain expressionless even as Anna got more and more excited. He raised an eyebrow and smiled again.
“What I should say is... she’s mine.”