Chapter 4

“Ah……”

I sat down on a bench in front of the lake. It was a quieter and more relaxed place than the library.

“Does it sting?”

Lord Costance stopped moving his hand. He had been applying medicine to my arm, but now he looked at me.

“I-it’s bearable.”

“Tell me if it hurts.”

Lord Costance moved his hand again. His touch was more careful than ever as he treated my wound. Anyone watching might have thought he was handling an explosive. Seeing the serious expression on Lord Costance’s face as he concentrated made me smile without realizing it.

“Ah.”

Still, pain was pain.

After finishing applying the medicine, Lord Costance covered my wound with a pad and medical tape. He clearly wasn’t doing this for the first time. I was impressed as I looked at the neatly attached pad.

“Thank you, Lord Costance.”

“Apply the medicine regularly, and go to the hospital if it hurts. The wound is deep, so it may leave a scar.”

“Yes. I won’t forget to apply the medicine.”

I looked over the medicine Lord Costance had bought, including antiseptic with disinfecting properties, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, and so on.

“If those men come again, tell me.”

Was he talking about the protesters?

“Tell you, Lord Costance?”

“I will deal with them.”

“Isn’t that usually the police’s job?”

“The military handles it as well.”

Then what does the police do?

I wanted to say that, but I swallowed the words.

I looked out at the wide lake. Because I was always busy with work, I had never had the time to sit down and leisurely look at the lake like this.

How long had it been since I’d had such free time?

By now, the director was probably biting his nails while waiting for me at the library……

But was that really my problem?

If the director asked where I had gone, I could just tell him I had gone to the police station.

“Please. Be sure to tell me.”

At Lord Costance’s firm words, I eventually nodded.

Only then did the stiffness in his face disappear.

“I owe you one.”

“You were wonderful, Vivy.”

“……”

“I was a little pleased to see this side of you. Though I am angry about your injury.”

The conversation ended there.

How much silence passed between us?

“About what happened today…… please forget it.”

Thinking about it, there were so many embarrassing things.

I had fallen right in front of Lord Costance, and as if that weren’t enough, I had even raised my voice.

“I think I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.”

There was laughter in Lord Costance’s voice.

When I glared at him, he laughed out loud.

His laughter was clearer and more pleasant than I had expected, and the little bit of irritation I had felt disappeared.

“Vivy.”

Lord Costance was only smiling, but somehow he looked like a painting.

Once again, I found myself admiring his looks.

His neatly styled black hair and gray eyes.

Because both his hair and eyes were such dark shades, his features looked even more distinct.

His long, slender fingers were more delicate than a woman’s.

Perhaps he took good care of his body, because his shoulders were the broadest I had ever seen on a man.

It wasn’t just his shoulders.

I could also see the chest hidden beneath his clothes.

I could easily guess how impressive Lord Costance’s chest was.

His shirt could barely contain his upper body, almost as if it were struggling to do so.

“……Vivy.”

“Ah. I-I’m sorry. It’s just…… I know you probably hear this all the time, but Lord Costance, you really are handsome.”

I wondered if I had said something completely obvious.

When Lord Costance gave no response, I slowly raised my head.

I had expected him to remain calm, but strangely enough, his expression was slightly stiff.

“Um, Lord Costance?”

Something seemed wrong with him, so I leaned my face closer.

When my face came close to his, Lord Costance finally turned his head sharply to the side.

That was when I noticed his completely red earlobe.

“You, Vivy……”

Lord Costance’s lips parted slightly.

“You have always been beautiful.”

At those words, I suddenly felt heat rush through my entire body, including my face.

I was just as stiff as Lord Costance and couldn’t answer. I could only stammer.

“I’ve always thought that when I looked at you, Vivy. That you were very beautiful.”

“……”

“Your light brown hair, your blue eyes…… all of it.”

Lord Costance drove the point home.

I remembered the way he had looked at me in the library.

Could those direct gazes that had always fallen upon me have contained such thoughts?

This was…… strange.

Perhaps not as much as Lord Costance, but I had often been told that I was beautiful, usually as a matter of courtesy.

But the voice Lord Costance had just used made me feel as though I might really be the most beautiful woman in the world.

Even though I knew that wasn’t true, his voice and gaze were enough to make me completely fall for it.

Dong.

The sound of the clock tower ringing the hour could be heard.

“Sh-should we get up now?”

After gathering the medicine, I stood up.

Lord Costance followed behind me.

“Are you going back to the library too, Lord Costance?”

Lord Costance nodded.

I hesitated before opening my mouth again.

“You’ve been coming to the library quite often lately, Lord Costance. I guess you like books.”

I finally asked the question I’d wanted to ask all along.

I had phrased it indirectly, but what I really meant was, Why do you come to the library every day?

I calmly waited for Lord Costance’s answer.

“I like them.”

Lord Costance paused before answering.

It was a short but firm answer, and I held my breath for a moment.

It felt as though the temperature of my heart had been slowly rising since earlier.

As my heartbeat quickened, even breathing became difficult.

My body naturally stiffened, making it hard to walk.

I silently blamed the bright weather for no reason and forced the corners of my lips upward.

“Books, I mean.”

Lord Costance added a beat later.

“Ah, ah…… Books.”

So Lord Costance really, really, really liked books.

When I gave an awkward smile, Lord Costance grinned at me as well.

He wasn’t teasing me right now, was he?

Lord Costance smiled whenever he felt like it, but then walked with a serious expression as if nothing had happened.

“That’s not why I come to the library, though.”

“What?”

“But aren’t we running late?”

He had been teasing me.

All the tension that had filled my body suddenly drained away in disappointment.

Lord Costance looked at me and casually said,

“We should walk faster, Vivy.”

Three days later, the library was still as busy as ever.

As the youngest employee, I was responsible not only for my assigned work but also all sorts of miscellaneous tasks.

For example, making coffee for the director every morning, or, when everyone was busy during lunch, taking everyone’s orders and going out to buy sandwiches or simple pastries.

Those were relatively easy tasks, though.

The hardest part was taking those heavy books to the storage room and organizing them one by one.

“Vivy.”

No sooner had I carried a box out of the reading room than Lord Costance appeared.

Not only did Lord Costance come to the library every day, he had even figured out everything I did.

He had carried a box for me yesterday, and today, without fail, he appeared again and took my box away.

It certainly made things easier, but I was conscious of the eyes around us.

After quietly checking the hallway, I naturally followed Lord Costance toward the storage room.

“You don’t have to help me!”

I had said this yesterday, too.

I think I’d said it the day before yesterday as well.

“It’s fine.”

Lord Costance had said those exact words yesterday.

“It’s not fine!”

“This box is too heavy for you, Vivy.”

“……That may be true, but.”

I couldn’t keep relying on Lord Costance forever.

Even though he had taken the box from me, at the very least, I needed to take a few books out of it and carry them myself.

I couldn’t just stand around doing nothing like this.

“Ah!”

Lord Costance had apparently noticed my thoughts long ago and raised the box higher.

“Lord Costance.”

“Vivy.”

Neither of us was willing to give in.

My competitive spirit kicked in, so I stretched my arms as far as I could.

The more I reached, the higher Lord Costance raised the box.

As our struggle continued, our bodies gradually grew closer.

Lord Costance turned his back to me, determined not to let me take the box.

As a result, I ended up hugging his back tightly.

I came to my senses at the same time as Lord Costance, and we looked into each other’s eyes.

Anyone who saw us would have easily mistaken us for an affectionate couple having a lovers’ quarrel.

Knock, knock.

That was when it happened.

Someone knocked on the window right beside us.

Naturally, Lord Costance and I turned our gazes toward the sound.

Three unfamiliar men were grinning at us through the window.

“Oh, my!”

“Lord Costance!”

Startled, Lord Costance dropped the box he had been holding.

It hit the floor with a loud crash.

Fortunately, it seemed the sound hadn’t reached the reading room, because no one came outside to check.

“Lord Costance, are you hurt? Are you okay?”

I was startled by the unexpected appearance of the men, but I was also worried that the books scattered across the floor might have injured Lord Costance’s feet.

However, rather than looking at his feet, he was staring at the men on the other side of the window, who were excitedly waving their hands.

Were they people Lord Costance knew?

Lord Costance deeply furrowed his brows.

“……Damn it.”

It was the first time I’d ever heard Lord Costance use such harsh language.

He glared fiercely at the men as though he had just encountered a troublesome headache.