Chapter 284: Plans for the Future
Today, Armand’s mood was clearly different from the past few days.
The old butler looked at him and felt like flowers could bloom on his head, he seemed that cheerful.
Evelia was the same. Even though she was busy as usual in her role as Armand’s personal maid, the old butler could clearly see something different.
Even if her expression didn’t change much, it was obvious that both Master Armand and Miss Evelia had the same kind of “flower blooming” on their heads.
Although Armand had already proposed to Evelia, because of their special circumstances, especially Evelia’s identity, their relationship hadn’t been made public.
No one else at the estate had been told. Armand was still just the ordinary master of the estate, and Evelia was still just his personal maid.
But even without being told, the people working at the estate had already gotten used to the subtle, slightly romantic atmosphere between the two. Many of them quietly “shipped” the couple and were big fans of them being together.
Armand and Evelia were a perfect match, handsome and beautiful, so in everyone’s eyes, there was nothing wrong with them being close. In fact, many people thought, “It’s only natural they’re like this!”
Of course, there were some who thought differently, like,
“Miss Evelia’s true love is ketchup!”
“Isn’t Mr. Armand more suited to Luna?”
“So who’s the one being ‘NTR’ed* here, Ketchup or Luna? They must be heartbroken…”
If they also knew that the Second Prince had a bit of a connection to Evelia too…
Well, things would definitely seem even more complicated to them.
“Master Armand.”
Because Armand hadn’t publicly revealed his relationship with Evelia, some matters still had to be handled by the old butler. Even though Armand hadn’t said anything directly, the butler could already guess the truth just by looking at him.
“Ah, Lug, there you are.”
Armand smiled at him like a man surrounded by flowers and sunshine.
“Looks like you succeeded, sir.”
Lug placed some unimportant knight order documents on Armand’s desk and poured him a cup of tea.
“Yes—haha, I did!”
Hearing Lug share in his happiness, Armand’s smile grew even bigger, like a kid who just got candy.
“Evelia accepted my proposal. We’re already husband and wife now.”
He couldn’t wait to tell the butler his good news. His smile hadn’t left his face for a second.
“Hmm… but if you’re talking about being husband and wife, there are still a few official steps to go through.”
The butler pushed the tea toward Armand with a warm smile. He wasn’t trying to spoil the mood, just gently reminding him that such an important moment should be fully experienced.
In his heart, the butler believed Evelia would be Armand’s one and only wife in this lifetime. So, of course, he wanted everything to be perfect.
“Official steps? Hmm…”
Armand had never been married, but he had attended plenty of weddings before. Not to mention, his friend Carle had been married for several years, so Armand quickly understood what the butler meant.
“So that means… we should start planning an engagement ceremony first?”
“Exactly. Even though you already gave Miss Evelia the ring, officially, there should still be an engagement ceremony. But if it’s inconvenient, you could go straight to the wedding. After all, the engagement is mainly to let family and friends know about your marriage plans.”
“......”
When Armand heard the butler’s suggestion, he actually felt a bit troubled.
Friends and family?
He didn’t really have those kinds of people in his life.
He could count his friends on one hand, and as for family, there was only the old butler.
And on Evelia’s side… she probably knew even fewer people than he did. She couldn’t exactly invite people from the Nightingale family, right?
And if he invited a few of his fellow knights too, the engagement party would be quite the odd mix.
“Or,” the butler said, clearly noticing Armand’s dilemma, “you could hold a small engagement party with just your close friends, just invite them for a nice meal.”
The old butler knew that Armand was someone who treated everyone kindly but didn’t form close bonds easily.
The only people Lug could think of inviting were Carle and his family. Given Armand’s quiet personality, it was unlikely he would want a big event, so turning the engagement into a simple dinner with friends might be a better idea.
“You’re right...” Armand nodded thoughtfully. “But I still have to talk it over with Evelia first. It’s our ceremony, so I have to ask what she thinks.”
“Of course,” the butler smiled, clearly pleased. “Now that the two of you are together, it’s important that you communicate often.”
Seeing Armand say that so seriously made the butler feel a lot more at ease.
Armand had always been the type to keep things to himself. But now that Evelia was in his life, the old butler believed that she would be a great support for him.
“Also,” the butler continued, “the engagement party isn’t the most important part. The big moment comes afterward, Master Armand.”
“......”
“Ah!”
After a short pause, Armand suddenly understood.
“Oh—right! That part! I’ve been so excited these past few days, I completely forgot the main thing. I thought giving her the ring was the end of it—haha.”
Armand laughed and patted his cheeks, looking even more cheerful than before.
“There’s still the wedding, the most important moment of my life.”
Even someone like Armand couldn’t help but feel excited about that.
After all, it was something he would only experience once in his whole life. He was a bit nervous, but the excitement was much stronger.
“That’s right, Master Armand,” said the butler. “You should start thinking about the wedding now. Evelia accepting your proposal is only the beginning.”
“Yeah... I need to write a good plan. I have to give Evelia a wedding she’ll never forget for the rest of her life.”
Armand twirled his pen in his fingers, already daydreaming about what the wedding might look like. He even thought about reading some popular romance novels to get ideas for a dreamy, fairytale-like wedding that girls would love.
But then he paused.
Come to think of it, Evelia wasn’t really the “traditional girly-girl” type… Maybe that plan wouldn’t work so well.
I should talk to Evelia about it first...
Then I can ask Carle, who has experience, to help with the venue.
And maybe Evelia’s friend Anna can help with the wedding dress stuff.
Phew...
Just thinking about it made Armand feel a little relieved.
Knowing Carle and Anna really was a lucky thing after all.