Chapter 38: In a Hurry
The men’s complaining session ended with the busy First Prince needing to handle some paperwork for the royal family. Once the First Prince left the Knight Order, the room fell silent again, except for the sound of Carly flipping through papers.
Although this was Alman’s office as the Commander, it had actually become Carly’s office because the Deputy Commander Carly was responsible for handling various documents. It was quite common to see the hard-working Deputy Commander managing the internal and external affairs of the Knight Order while the Commander just daydreamed.
“If you’re tired, just take a nap,” Carly said.
After the First Prince left, Carly quickly transitioned into work mode, while Alman returned to his previous gloomy state of deep contemplation. He continued to lie on the sofa, pulling that black and white coat with gold trim over his head again.
“I’m not sleepy,” Alman mumbled indistinctly, discreetly lifting his clothes to peek at Carly, who was busy working. “How much more is there?”
“Quite a lot,” Carly shook his head. “Every knight’s details need to be finalized; this isn’t something that can be done in a day or two.”
“Ah…”
Alman climbed up from the sofa, casually throwing his medal-adorned coat onto the back of it. He plopped down at the vacant spot on the table and picked up the unfinished documents.
Alman didn’t like handling such things, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t. If he weren’t someone who took matters into his own hands, he wouldn’t have stayed up with Carly until midnight the day before, working hard before returning to the manor.
If it weren’t for Carly’s wife worrying about their daughter being too young and needing her father’s company, Carly wouldn’t have had to go back. Otherwise, the two would probably have worked through the night at the Knight Order.
“Are you going to stay here all day?” Amidst his busy work, Carly looked up at Alman.
“Yeah.”
Alman tapped the wooden table with his heels and only gave Carly a profile view, his messy side hair preventing Carly from seeing his current expression.
“Aren’t you going back to the manor?”
“Let’s talk about it tonight.”
“That’s not a good idea.”
“What, is it bad for me to work overtime with you here?”
“…”
Carly still couldn’t see Alman’s expression, but he could hear the forced neutrality in his tone.
Rustle.
Carly made a sound as he shook the papers, followed by a ‘click’ as he capped his pen. Then there was the sound of his chair moving. Even without turning around, Alman knew Carly had stood up, the sound of his footsteps trailing behind him.
“—You brat.”
“Wha—?!”
Then Carly kicked Alman off the table.
Of course, he was careful, or this surprise attack would certainly leave Alman with a sore back for a while.
“Good heavens… What are you doing?”
Yet even so, Alman was sprawled on the sofa, rubbing his back, startled by the sudden attack while his mind was elsewhere.
“You’re suffocating yourself and making your brother anxious; when did you become like a sulking little wife?”
“Huh?” Alman patted the imprint left by Carly’s kick on his back, and picked up the documents that fell to the ground, placing them back on the table. “What are you so anxious about?”
“…”
Carly didn’t say anything, merely crossed his arms and stood in front of the table. From the way he drummed his fingers on his arms, it was clear he was quite dissatisfied with Alman’s demeanor.
“Ahh…” Alman rubbed his head, distressed with one hand while placing the other on his waist. “This matter is quite complicated; it’s not as simple as you think.”
“What’s going on? Is it illegal or a forbidden romance?” Carly furrowed his brow, tapping his fingers even harder. “Do you like men?”
“How could that be?! My orientation is perfectly normal.”
“What’s so scary about that?”
“I’m not scared—I’m just—”
Alman’s words stopped halfway, at the most high-strung part, and he let out a sigh.
“Alman, is she beautiful?”
“Hmm?” Alman blinked, not understanding how Carly had shifted the topic to this, but upon hearing the question, the image of Evelia’s exquisitely beautiful face, like a delicate painting, appeared in his mind. Feeling embarrassed by his brain’s reaction, he rubbed his ears and nodded, “…Beautiful.”
“And her figure?”
“…Absolutely stunning.” Alman’s hand gradually covered half his face as the scene from the carriage that day flashed through his mind again.
“She’s of age, right?”
“Yes, she is of age.” At least that was what the documents indicated.
“So what are you hesitating for? Just go for it!”
“What are you talking about?!”
Carly’s shocking statement startled Alman, making him raise his voice too.
“I mean take the initiative; women like proactive men.”
“Ahh…” Alman wiped the sweat from his brow. “So you meant that ‘go’…”
“Huh? What were you thinking?”
“…” Alman fell silent, feeling a bit guilty as he averted his gaze.
“In any case, hunkering down here like a turtle is of no use. You two need to clarify things; it’s still the same advice, seize the opportunity to apologize.”
“But I didn’t do anything wrong—” Halfway through, Carly’s sharp gaze turned toward him again, causing Alman to immediately shut his mouth. Even though he was technically the higher-ranking Commander of the Knight Order, he felt utterly dwarfed by this Deputy Commander, who was four years older.
“Alright, go on. I’ll handle these documents; you take care of yourself.” Seeing that Alman understood what he meant, Carly returned to his workstation and resumed sorting the documents on the table as if nothing had happened.
“…”
Alman clearly wanted to say something more, but upon seeing Carly’s expression of “I’ve said my piece; go do whatever you want,” he refrained, lowering his head and turning to leave the room marked “Commander’s Office.”
Ever since that day, Alman had wanted to see Evelia and clarify matters, but for some reason, after letting his feelings settle for a day, he found he didn’t want to face it anymore.
But… since he had walked out of the office he used to hide from reality, he had to find Evelia and have a good chat…
What could he even talk about…? Facing someone like Evelia, he might say too much and make mistakes, and if he wasn’t careful, he could accidentally reveal some deadly information.
He wanted to talk to her but didn’t know how to start; the hypocrisy of the situation was already distressing enough, but the forthcoming apology might also be filled with lies and deceit.
“Damn it.”
He mumbled this to himself as he exited the Knight Order.
He had originally planned to just wait it out, letting time wash this matter away until it became a thing of the past. After some time, he intended to act as if nothing had happened, quietly handling this bothersome issue. He had also prepared himself to not let Evelia’s matters trouble him further. However, as soon as he returned to the manor, barely settling down, he heard the Old Butler, who was collecting his clothing, leisurely say:
“Sir, Miss Evelia has received some flowers.”
“Wha?!” Alman stood up as if springing off a trampoline as soon as he sat down. “When did this happen?!”
“This morning, shortly after you left.”
“What?!”
—Someone is pursuing Evelia right under my nose?!
These words instantly exploded in Alman’s mind, his heart pounding wildly, and his fists clenched tightly.
Although he thought of himself as someone with no romantic thoughts toward Evelia and only aimed to keep the Second Prince’s spy stable, still, it boiled down to one thing—
—How dare anyone pursue Evelia right under my nose?!
This was a matter of principle!
How could anyone dare touch what belongs to him?!
“Where is Evelia?” Alman took a deep breath to steady his emotions.
“She left soon after receiving the flowers.”
“Left right after she got them?!”
The emotional calm had completely shattered.
But Evelia had actually just gone out to buy wrapping paper for the flowers.
“Yes, and she dressed quite elegantly.”
“She even dressed up?!”
Now he was even more agitated.
But Evelia was only going to Anna’s clothing shop on her way; she felt that she should at least look presentable while visiting the shop.
“Hah…”
Alman had to admit that he felt a bit anxious after hearing all this.
What is this unsettling, irritating feeling…?
“Damn it, it’s just flowers.” Alman cursed under his breath, not even putting on his coat, and hurriedly left. “I have plenty of those…!”
With a bang, Alman pushed the door open and rushed outside. As he swiftly left, the Old Butler sighed, “Youth is truly wonderful…”
After leaving, Alman headed straight to his rear garden. Though it was a space where servants were allowed to come and go freely, a few couples were sneaking their dates inside, but upon seeing Alman rush in, they immediately got frightened and ran away hand in hand. Soon, the rear garden was left with just Alman alone.
He remembered that during his deployment, a country to the west had gifted him some locally unique thornless blue roses. He particularly liked these roses because their color was similar to his own eyes, and he had gone to great lengths to cultivate them into a variety suitable for his home. Although he had plenty of seeds, only one cluster had survived.
He had some selfish intentions, so he asked the First Prince to plant these flowers in a more secluded area of the manor, allowing him to enjoy them without making it obvious to others who might want to take them.
Upon hearing the Butler mention that Evelia had received flowers, Alman immediately thought of those precious blue roses he was reluctant to show anyone, and he ran over without a moment’s hesitation. However, once he reached his destination, he stood dumbfounded in front of the bare shrub.
“Huh…?”
He looked around, scanning every direction, but there wasn’t a hint of blue anywhere.
“Where are my flowers?”
