Chapter Fifty-Two: The Rose That Once Bloomed
After settling Luna down, Alman and Evelia arrived at the “crime scene.” Although Luna wanted to follow along to finish this juicy matter, seeing Alman’s complicated expression, she decided it was better not to complicate things and obediently returned to her stable to rest, as Alman suggested.
In the garden, when the servants saw Alman and Evelia appearing together, they were quite interested. They had often heard that “couples seen in the garden are usually lovebirds,” and in their minds, Evelia and Alman already had a bit of a relationship, while only the two of them hadn’t noticed any change in their atmosphere.
Though the servants were eager to gossip, seeing Alman’s not-so-good expression, they quietly left, leaving the garden to the manor master and his seemingly young but significant maid.
Like leading a suspect to identify a crime scene, Alman watched as Evelia silently walked to the patch of blue roses that were barely visible. She gently pointed at them with her finger, acknowledging her actions with her gesture.
“Haah…”
Alman sat on the stone chair across from her and sighed deeply.
“Evelia, why did you pick all my roses?”
“Because they look beautiful.”
Evelia’s response was simple and blunt.
“Just because they look beautiful?”
“Just like your eyes, they are beautiful.”
—Wow, this is quite a compliment.
Receiving such a calm compliment from Evelia made Alman feel a little happy inside.
“Evelia, you know I allow everyone to use the rear garden freely, but the premise is that it should not be damaged, right?”
In fact, Alman set this rule precisely to prevent people from casually taking the flowers he liked, to guard against those young couples who picked flowers without thought. Unexpectedly, despite all his precautions, the flowers he least wanted to be picked were taken all at once.
“Yes, I know.” Evelia lowered her head. “I’m very sorry, Mr. Alman. Those flowers were simply too beautiful, and I felt they suited you very well, so I intended to pick them, wrap them nicely, and give them to you.”
“Give them to me?”
“Yes, give them to you.”
“…Ah.”
Upon hearing this, Alman seemed to suddenly have an epiphany.
He remembered the old butler mentioning that Evelia had once received a large bouquet, but that was merely what the butler had observed—Evelia holding a bouquet without seeing the process of “giving.” Moreover, when he rushed to the garden afterward, his blue roses had already vanished.
Could it be…?
“Evelia—have you ever received flowers?”
Without confirming his thoughts, Alman tentatively asked this question, feeling nervous, afraid that he was wrong and someone actually sent flowers to Evelia.
“No, Mr. Alman.”
At this, Alman let out a big sigh of relief.
“Haah—Alright, alright…” The corners of Alman’s mouth couldn’t help but lift. Now everything made sense.
No one had ever given Evelia flowers; the old butler only saw her holding her own flowers, and those flowers were intended for him.
The thought that things had taken such a turn made Alman quite happy.
“I’m very sorry, Mr. Alman. I didn’t know these were your treasured blue roses.”
Evelia was still apologizing, but Alman’s expression had clearly changed significantly from the beginning.
“It’s alright.” Alman shook his head with a smile. “I actually planned to give them to you.”
When he heard that Evelia had received flowers, his first reaction was to take out his favorite blue roses to give to her. So in the end, these flowers were always meant to be in Evelia’s hands. Though it took a roundabout way, they still ended up where they should be.
“But aren’t they very precious?”
“No matter how precious, they need to serve a purpose to be considered so. The worth lies not in the flowers themselves, but in the meaning we give them.”
Alman rested his face on his hand, looking at the bare blue rose bush, and found it surprisingly pleasing.
“Just like fine wine deserves a hero, flowers should be matched with a girl worthy of them. Otherwise, when flowers bloom and wither, falling down, they only add to the soil’s burden.”
“…” Evelia listened to Alman’s words, silently gazing at the bare rose bushes, then nodded, saying, “It seems I’m a little more precious than the soil.”
“Haha, that’s for sure, Evelia.”
Alman looked at Evelia, watching her stand beside the tangle of branches and leaves, like a pink blossom blooming amid them.
In Evelia’s eyes, as she looked at Alman, just as when she gazed at the blue roses, she thought of his beautiful blue pupils. Now, from his eyes, she saw a bloom of blue roses.
However, those flowers had already rotted.
The vibrant blue had faded, leaving only a gray-black hue brought on by withering. The other blue roses struggling to survive on the remaining branches were also tainted by death, each one gradually succumbing.
Would Alman be the same?
What would it be like when his eyes died like those flowers?
Evelia didn’t want to think any further; such matters were irrelevant to her. She only felt that one day, she would have to face such a scene.
“Evelia?”
“I’m here, Mr. Alman.”
But for now, Alman’s pupils still reflected a glimmer of light, like when she sprinkled some water drops on the roses to make them look better, clear and bright.
“It’s nothing. I just saw you staring into space and wondered what you were thinking.”
Thinking of death.
Evelia answered in her heart.
So far, she had killed countless people and seen numerous corpses; those lives were merely a command from the Second Prince to her.
“I was thinking about those blue roses.”
Evelia shifted her answer, gently touching the bare flower branches.
“Hmm… the roses, considering the time, should be withered by now.”
Seemingly unprepared for Alman to so calmly acknowledge the withering of his favorite roses, Evelia looked up in slight surprise and saw Alman standing beside her. His tall figure was enough to cover the sunlight before her, yet he seemed to deliberately tilt his body, leaving the warm light for Evelia.
“Aren’t you sad?” Evelia lowered her head again, watching as Alman gently rubbed the green, plump branches and leaves.
“I will be; after all, they were my favorite roses.”
Alman smiled. Although he said he would be sad, there was no trace of disappointment in his tone.
“But still, they have bloomed and completed their mission and significance, haven’t they? At least when they wither in the end, they won’t feel regret.”
“…I see.”
Evelia didn’t say anything further, simply standing silently beside Alman, no longer responding.
