Chapter 167: Pillow
It had probably been a long time since he’d slept like this.
Sure, he could lie down and rest in his office, but it just wasn’t the same as actually relaxing in a proper bedroom. The difference in comfort was more than just a little.
Not to mention, in the office, the only person around was that guy Carle. Having the chance to enjoy the lap pillow of a beautiful girl like Evelia was a rare treat.
But… it was kind of hot.
Even though Armand was someone who liked warm places, this was the kind of heat that made it feel like a bear was hugging him in the middle of summer. It was getting a bit hard to handle.
“Ugh…”
Hovering between sleep and waking, Armand frowned in discomfort. He felt hot, and his arm was sore too.
But oddly, his first thought wasn’t “What happened?” Instead, it was, “If my arm hurts this much, Evelia’s legs must be completely numb by now from having me rest on them for so long.”
So he opened his eyes. Still half-asleep, his blurry vision took in the scene in front of him.
“….”
It was quiet, only the sound of breathing could be heard.
Of course, not just his own breathing, but also that of the "source of warmth" beside him.
At some point, Armand had stopped using Evelia’s lap as a pillow. Instead, Evelia was now lying on his arm. The afternoon sunlight shone softly through curtains that had been closed at some point, and Armand’s body, lying on his side, happened to block the sunlight from Evelia’s face.
She really did look like a little bear, clinging onto him tightly, one leg even draped across his waist, hugging him like he was the softest, rarest body pillow she’d ever found. She looked like she never wanted to let go.
And Armand realized that, at some point, he had started hugging her back too. One hand was resting gently on her waist.
The two of them were still just a master and his servant, or maybe even closer to enemies, yet they were clinging to each other this tightly, without fear that the other might suddenly attack.
Even though Evelia had napped near him before, this was the first time Armand had woken up to find her so close, right in front of his face.
Her beautiful face came into view, her nose just centimeters away from his.
She looked like a dream, like something out of a fantasy. In his sleepy state, this dreamlike image of Evelia seemed even more enchanting. Her soft lips looked so inviting, and her warm breath gently touched his throat, making him swallow a few times without even thinking.
…Geez…
‘Why am I thinking about this kind of stuff the moment I wake up…?’
Armand sighed silently and tried to shake those strange thoughts out of his head. But with Evelia sleeping on his arm, the only thing he could do was rub his head against her gently to ease the soreness in his neck.
But just then, he realized something strange.
He wasn’t lying on Evelia’s lap anymore. But it still felt like he was resting his head on something.
And the feeling under his head definitely didn’t match his usual pillow…
“…?!”
He suddenly noticed a pair of small feet sticking out nearby.
What he was lying on… was none other than his “daughter,” Rachel.
…Oh no.
Armand quickly lifted his head and, using his free hand, grabbed the little girl's ankle to pull her out from under him. But even then, Rachel was still sleeping like a rock, completely knocked out, as if she’d been flattened.
“…Mmm…”
But Evelia was different.
Even in her sleep, she was always a light sleeper. As soon as Armand moved a little, she woke up and opened her eyes, just in time to see Armand holding Rachel in a weird position, one arm around her tightly, the other lifting Rachel by the leg.
“Oh, Eve. You're awake.” Seeing her open her eyes, Armand gave her a sheepish smile. “Sorry, did I wake you up?”
“No, not at all.”
Evelia sat up, rubbed her eyes, and stretched her arms. She was still wearing Armand’s shirt, and as she stretched, her figure became even more noticeable.
“Mmmmmm…”
This time it was Rachel who woke up. When she heard Evelia’s voice, she opened her eyes right away.
Unlike Armand and Evelia, who were always on alert and could wake up from the slightest sound, Rachel was only cautious of one person. The only one in the mansion who could truly be a danger to her, Evelia. So the moment she heard Evelia's voice, she woke up immediately.
“Phew, looks like she’s still alive.”
Seeing that Rachel woke up just fine, Armand let out a sigh of relief. He gently placed her on the bed, then stretched his sore arm, just like Evelia had done earlier.
“What do you mean, still alive… huh… my stomach kinda hurts a little…”
Rachel had no idea that Armand had been using her as a pillow just a moment ago. Luckily, her alchemy-created body was tough, so it didn’t cause any real damage. If she had been a normal little girl, she probably would’ve suffocated already.
As Rachel rubbed her stomach, Armand swung his arm around to get the feeling back, and Evelia was lightly pounding on her own knees. It was like all three of them had ended up using each other as pillows. But thinking about it more carefully, Rachel was definitely the unluckiest one, wasn’t she supposed to be the “beloved daughter”? Yet somehow she ended up like a little punching bag instead.
Yep… living with these two really did require some serious survival skills.
Armand was supposed to be playing the “dad” role, but whether it was him or Evelia, their way of taking care of Rachel had a very casual “dad babysitting the kid” kind of vibe. It was like gluing the kid to the wall might actually be the safest option for Rachel.
“It’s already afternoon…”
Armand looked at the sun outside and yawned.
Although he had only slept from morning to just past noon, less than five hours in total, that was already a lot for someone like him who hadn’t had proper sleep in ages. No anxiety, no thinking about what to do next, and no being woken up by knight order business. This was probably the most peaceful nap he’d had in a long time.
He turned his head and saw the maid outfit on the table. He frowned slightly, wondering if some servant had seen him while he was asleep when they brought the clothes. But when Rachel saw his frown, she quickly ran over and plopped herself into his lap.
“Dad! I brought that outfit, it’s for Mom to wear!”
“Oh.” Hearing that Rachel had delivered it, Armand relaxed. “I see.”
“Then now that you’ve delivered the clothes, it’s time for you to leave, right?”
Seeing Rachel naturally sitting in Armand’s lap, Evelia’s gaze turned cold. Rachel immediately felt the pressure, but since she was in Armand’s arms, it felt like she had backup, and that gave her a boost of courage.
“I—I want to spend more time with Dad!”
Who knew how much bravery it took for her to say that to Evelia? She even regretted it the moment the words left her mouth.
“Is that so.”
Evelia’s face stayed expressionless as she stared at Rachel.
“Y-yeah…”
Rachel’s voice got smaller and smaller, and she didn’t even dare to meet Evelia’s eyes.
“Is… That… So…”
Evelia’s tone became even sharper, and it looked like she might actually act if Armand weren’t sitting right there.
“Ahhh—I, I—”
“Alright, alright.”
Seeing that Rachel was about to back down, Armand quickly stepped in to play the peacemaker. He opened his arms and pulled both of them into a hug, keeping things balanced between the two.
“You two really need to get along better, okay?”
“Hmph…”
Evelia didn’t say anything else. She just gave a small huff and leaned closer against Armand.
Watching Evelia’s cold and powerful presence get completely tamed by Armand’s hug, Rachel couldn’t help but feel a little amazed.
So even a cold, emotionless assassin can’t resist a bit of tenderness…
Thinking that, she also instinctively leaned a little closer to Armand’s side.