“Carl, have you changed your mind?”
“…”
“Even if we’re not in the contract, we’re nobles of Kasius Kingdom, so we’ll meet occasionally.”
At that, Carl shook his head right away. “No. Unless there is an unavoidable situation, I hope you won’t come looking for me anymore.”
“…”
“It’s a conclusion that I thought of for Lady Fanora.” He smiled, ruffling his own hair. “Not long ago, I heard that a certain noble was slandering Lady Fanora. Since… Lady is close to me, they think maybe Lady Fanora has a bad hobby too.”
“Certain noble?”
“Anyway, there is gossip like that, so I think it’s better to keep our distance now.”
“I asked which noble said that?”
Fanora was ready to punish the noble for saying such a thing. But Carl never answered her about the noble who had been gossiping about her.
I’m glad Lady Fanora doesn’t have the same ability as me. Because Carl was lying now. But it’s not entirely a lie.
There was one reason why Carl Andras suddenly tried to break the contract.
* * *
It was a few days ago, around the time of fall.
“Wow, are all these hounds the duke’s?”
“Should I give you one of these?”
“Are you sure it’s okay?”
Two men went fox hunting. The season of the kingdom was approaching winter, so this hunt was close to the end.
“So cute!”
At first, Carl Andras was displeased with the duke’s invitation to go hunting together. However, when they got together, he was the most excited one. He looked around at the short-legged hounds that Aloken had brought with him and was fascinated by their cute looks and petted them for a while. As Carl was just playing with the hounds, Aloken stopped him.
“If you procrastinate like that, you might not be able to catch a fox with your hand today.”
“Ah, I’m sorry for the delay. Let’s go!”
The place where they drove the hounds was a fox hunting ground located in Sangtepul. It was the latest trend among nobles of Kasius to unleash hunting dogs and chase foxes in privately owned forests.
“I think I prefer a bow than a gun.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s no sound? Besides, it takes a very long time to load.”
“You have a different taste from mine. I tend to use a gun because it’s fancy and fun.”
So the two armed themselves and went into the forest. The hounds took the lead, sniffing near them.
“I’ll catch the fox moderately and get out of this hunt. The horse is not in very good shape today.”
“My Walnut is healthier than usual.”
“…Is Walnut the name of the horse you brought?”
“Because it has a walnut color.”
A few steps behind them as they talked, the Jalier servants followed them.
“Looking back, I remember. When I went hunting together last year, I caught too many foxes, so they told me to stop.”
“Really?”
“I definitely said back then that I shouldn’t do it anymore.”
“Haha. How can you put up with that when foxes tempt right in front of you to catch them?”
The preparations for this hunt were very simple. Except for Aloken’s hounds, only four people were here, including all the servants. Besides, Aloken’s two servants didn’t say a word, so the surroundings were quiet.
“I think we’ve entered the middle of the forest to some extent, so I’ll slowly tie the horse here.”
“That’s a good idea!”
As soon as Carl heard his suggestion, he willingly stepped off the horse.
“As expected, Sangtepul is a good place to live. Winter is right around the corner, but it’s not that cold.”
“…”
As they entered the middle of the forest, the sunlight was hidden through the thick leaves. As the sky began to darken, Aloken smiled at Carl beside him.
“Ah, by the way, I heard that Duke also has several villas in the Sangtepul, so how many villas…”
But then.
“Andras.”
Aloken paused as if he had something to say. Carl didn’t feel bad when he cut off his words and spoke suddenly. He just blinked his eyes.
“Actually, I invited you to the fox hunting today because I have something to say.”
“I see.”
What is he going to say this time? The topic was generally set when Aloken said he had something to say. For example, asking if he could support him in society because he would pay for that. Or trying to dig up information about the Andras family.
Is he going to ask about the head of the family again? So Carl thought that a political story would be told this time too. However, the sentence the black-haired man brought out was a very personal matter.
“It’s about my fiancée.”
“…!”
“This forest is my private property, so no one will listen to us, and it’s the right time to have a conversation like this.”
If it’s Aloken’s fiancée…….
“Why brought Lady Fanora suddenly?” Carl asked back with his usual smile.
Aloken, standing in front of him, also had a smiling face. It was a perfect smile that was as charming as a painting without an inch of error. And Carl knew that smile never meant anything positive.
“Carl, since when have you been in touch with my fiancée?”
“I don’t know since when.”
“I don’t know how many years that friendship has been… These days, I’ve heard from Madam Seiji that you go together and get along well with her.”
There was a sound of iron near Aloken’s right hand. It was the sound of the muzzle of the hunting rifle he was holding hitting the ground.
“Not too long ago, my wife-to-be went to your promotion ceremony in person.”
“Because she happened to be in the capital.”
“Carl… that’s what you’re saying because you don’t know well. What day was that… Fanora skipped a very important event and went to congratulate you.”
This was the first time Carl heard it. Besides, he noticed that Aloken wasn’t lying.
“Was it an important day? Uh? What day was it?”
Fanora’s birthday was in the summer. Carl fiddled with his eyebrows, looking puzzled. Aloken, who saw that, spoke the next words in a gentle voice.
“About the last hunting festival. Was she happy to receive the black fox you gave her?”
Once again, the topic of conversation went unexpectedly. So Carl answered thoughtlessly.
“She said thank you.”
“I see.”
Somehow the corners of Aloken’s mouth gradually decreased as his answer continued. His expression turned cold.
“…Well then, Sir Carl Andras. I’d like to ask you one more question. What kind of person is Fanora Celsius to you?”
“Yes?”
“Do you cherish her?”
Carl felt himself under pressure as the conversation with him progressed. “Why are you asking these questions?” Carl asked him with innocent eyes.
The answer wasn’t difficult to say. “I thought if I said this much, you would notice on your own. You don’t know how to empathize as much as I do.”
“…?”
“I’m now saying I’m displeased that you’re around my fiancée.”
At this word, Carl froze in place. However, Aloken didn’t stop pouring out his words. His tone was generally soft, but each word had a sharp edge.
“You know me. Even if I look like this, I think chastity is important. That’s why I’m not planning on doing the dirty business of having a concubine after a formal marriage like everyone else.”
“…”
“If I don’t bring in a lover, my wife should keep her faithfulness, right? So, I hope you will slowly get away from the person who will be my wife.”
A man with red hair turned around, contrasting with his calm black hair. Soon, the two faced each other.
“What are you trying to say…?”
“Didn’t you have feelings for Fanora?”
“Yes?!”
Carl raised his hands in surprise at his words. Then, he waved his hand as if expressing that he wasn’t like that and refuted it. “No. It can’t be. Lady Fanora and I are just friends!”
“Really? You mean you really don’t like her at all?”
“I-isn’t liking her a different story? Well, Lady Fanora is a good person…”
As Carl’s expression turned to bewilderment, Aloken regained his initial pace. He smiled more and more leisurely, and as his smile deepened, Carl could sense that he was ‘not in the mood to smile.’
“Okay. Let’s say that you don’t have any feelings for her. However, even in that case, I cannot allow Sir Andras to be my wife’s friend.”
“…Duke?”
“Do you know what my lover hears these days because of you?”
“…”
“‘To be so friendly with a human-like Carl Andras, she must have bizarre tastes. Seeing that the two of them can understand each other, Lady Fanora must be a violent and undignified woman’… All of this was thanks to you.”
Aloken took a step closer to Carl. He still had a loaded rifle in his hand. “It’s nothing else, but do you want to tarnish my woman’s honor like that?”
“…”
“It’s hard to ignore it anymore, so let’s stop here. Carl Andras, I hope you won’t be seen by Fanora from next time.”
Carl was bound to be embarrassed by this situation. He couldn’t believe Fanora was being criticized because of him. In addition, Carl could not even make a plausible excuse for Aloken’s words.
“…”
It was because he himself had once met nobles whispering, ‘I wonder why Lady Fanora is close to someone like Carl Andras.’
“Other people even say such harsh words… I didn’t expect it.”
“I have no intention of blaming you for not knowing first. I already know that Sir Carl is obvious about society.”
Aloken raised the corner of his mouth in a benevolent manner. However, his expression changed at the words of the red-haired man that followed.
“But, to think of Duke suddenly telling me to cut ties with Lady Fanora like this. This is unfair.”
“What?”
“I’m already friends with her.”
Aloken smiled lightly at his words as if he were dumbfounded. “Do you want to hang around Fanora even with that excuse? Well, it doesn’t matter. She chose to be engaged to me, and it’s only natural for others to be tempted by her.”
“But I don’t think like that.”
“I can’t trust you alone.”
Aloken held the long gun in his left hand with both hands. Then, he skillfully wielded it while engaging in the conversation.
“I don’t have empathy, so it’s very difficult for me to trust others.”
“…”
“No matter how much I think about it, I can’t guarantee she won’t betray me.”
This meant he was afraid that someday Fanora would pay attention to Carl.
Carl understood what he meant and tried to argue. That she was definitely not that kind of person. However, this word couldn’t be conveyed to Aloken.
“Carl, have you changed your mind?”
“…”
“Even if we’re not in the contract, we’re nobles of Kasius Kingdom, so we’ll meet occasionally.”
At that, Carl shook his head right away. “No. Unless there is an unavoidable situation, I hope you won’t come looking for me anymore.”
“…”
“It’s a conclusion that I thought of for Lady Fanora.” He smiled, ruffling his own hair. “Not long ago, I heard that a certain noble was slandering Lady Fanora. Since… Lady is close to me, they think maybe Lady Fanora has a bad hobby too.”
“Certain noble?”
“Anyway, there is gossip like that, so I think it’s better to keep our distance now.”
“I asked which noble said that?”
Fanora was ready to punish the noble for saying such a thing. But Carl never answered her about the noble who had been gossiping about her.
I’m glad Lady Fanora doesn’t have the same ability as me. Because Carl was lying now. But it’s not entirely a lie.
There was one reason why Carl Andras suddenly tried to break the contract.
* * *
It was a few days ago, around the time of fall.
“Wow, are all these hounds the duke’s?”
“Should I give you one of these?”
“Are you sure it’s okay?”
Two men went fox hunting. The season of the kingdom was approaching winter, so this hunt was close to the end.
“So cute!”
At first, Carl Andras was displeased with the duke’s invitation to go hunting together. However, when they got together, he was the most excited one. He looked around at the short-legged hounds that Aloken had brought with him and was fascinated by their cute looks and petted them for a while. As Carl was just playing with the hounds, Aloken stopped him.
“If you procrastinate like that, you might not be able to catch a fox with your hand today.”
“Ah, I’m sorry for the delay. Let’s go!”
The place where they drove the hounds was a fox hunting ground located in Sangtepul. It was the latest trend among nobles of Kasius to unleash hunting dogs and chase foxes in privately owned forests.
“I think I prefer a bow than a gun.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s no sound? Besides, it takes a very long time to load.”
“You have a different taste from mine. I tend to use a gun because it’s fancy and fun.”
So the two armed themselves and went into the forest. The hounds took the lead, sniffing near them.
“I’ll catch the fox moderately and get out of this hunt. The horse is not in very good shape today.”
“My Walnut is healthier than usual.”
“…Is Walnut the name of the horse you brought?”
“Because it has a walnut color.”
A few steps behind them as they talked, the Jalier servants followed them.
“Looking back, I remember. When I went hunting together last year, I caught too many foxes, so they told me to stop.”
“Really?”
“I definitely said back then that I shouldn’t do it anymore.”
“Haha. How can you put up with that when foxes tempt right in front of you to catch them?”
The preparations for this hunt were very simple. Except for Aloken’s hounds, only four people were here, including all the servants. Besides, Aloken’s two servants didn’t say a word, so the surroundings were quiet.
“I think we’ve entered the middle of the forest to some extent, so I’ll slowly tie the horse here.”
“That’s a good idea!”
As soon as Carl heard his suggestion, he willingly stepped off the horse.
“As expected, Sangtepul is a good place to live. Winter is right around the corner, but it’s not that cold.”
“…”
As they entered the middle of the forest, the sunlight was hidden through the thick leaves. As the sky began to darken, Aloken smiled at Carl beside him.
“Ah, by the way, I heard that Duke also has several villas in the Sangtepul, so how many villas…”
But then.
“Andras.”
Aloken paused as if he had something to say. Carl didn’t feel bad when he cut off his words and spoke suddenly. He just blinked his eyes.
“Actually, I invited you to the fox hunting today because I have something to say.”
“I see.”
What is he going to say this time? The topic was generally set when Aloken said he had something to say. For example, asking if he could support him in society because he would pay for that. Or trying to dig up information about the Andras family.
Is he going to ask about the head of the family again? So Carl thought that a political story would be told this time too. However, the sentence the black-haired man brought out was a very personal matter.
“It’s about my fiancée.”
“…!”
“This forest is my private property, so no one will listen to us, and it’s the right time to have a conversation like this.”
If it’s Aloken’s fiancée…….
“Why brought Lady Fanora suddenly?” Carl asked back with his usual smile.
Aloken, standing in front of him, also had a smiling face. It was a perfect smile that was as charming as a painting without an inch of error. And Carl knew that smile never meant anything positive.
“Carl, since when have you been in touch with my fiancée?”
“I don’t know since when.”
“I don’t know how many years that friendship has been… These days, I’ve heard from Madam Seiji that you go together and get along well with her.”
There was a sound of iron near Aloken’s right hand. It was the sound of the muzzle of the hunting rifle he was holding hitting the ground.
“Not too long ago, my wife-to-be went to your promotion ceremony in person.”
“Because she happened to be in the capital.”
“Carl… that’s what you’re saying because you don’t know well. What day was that… Fanora skipped a very important event and went to congratulate you.”
This was the first time Carl heard it. Besides, he noticed that Aloken wasn’t lying.
“Was it an important day? Uh? What day was it?”
Fanora’s birthday was in the summer. Carl fiddled with his eyebrows, looking puzzled. Aloken, who saw that, spoke the next words in a gentle voice.
“About the last hunting festival. Was she happy to receive the black fox you gave her?”
Once again, the topic of conversation went unexpectedly. So Carl answered thoughtlessly.
“She said thank you.”
“I see.”
Somehow the corners of Aloken’s mouth gradually decreased as his answer continued. His expression turned cold.
“…Well then, Sir Carl Andras. I’d like to ask you one more question. What kind of person is Fanora Celsius to you?”
“Yes?”
“Do you cherish her?”
Carl felt himself under pressure as the conversation with him progressed. “Why are you asking these questions?” Carl asked him with innocent eyes.
The answer wasn’t difficult to say. “I thought if I said this much, you would notice on your own. You don’t know how to empathize as much as I do.”
“…?”
“I’m now saying I’m displeased that you’re around my fiancée.”
At this word, Carl froze in place. However, Aloken didn’t stop pouring out his words. His tone was generally soft, but each word had a sharp edge.
“You know me. Even if I look like this, I think chastity is important. That’s why I’m not planning on doing the dirty business of having a concubine after a formal marriage like everyone else.”
“…”
“If I don’t bring in a lover, my wife should keep her faithfulness, right? So, I hope you will slowly get away from the person who will be my wife.”
A man with red hair turned around, contrasting with his calm black hair. Soon, the two faced each other.
“What are you trying to say…?”
“Didn’t you have feelings for Fanora?”
“Yes?!”
Carl raised his hands in surprise at his words. Then, he waved his hand as if expressing that he wasn’t like that and refuted it. “No. It can’t be. Lady Fanora and I are just friends!”
“Really? You mean you really don’t like her at all?”
“I-isn’t liking her a different story? Well, Lady Fanora is a good person…”
As Carl’s expression turned to bewilderment, Aloken regained his initial pace. He smiled more and more leisurely, and as his smile deepened, Carl could sense that he was ‘not in the mood to smile.’
“Okay. Let’s say that you don’t have any feelings for her. However, even in that case, I cannot allow Sir Andras to be my wife’s friend.”
“…Duke?”
“Do you know what my lover hears these days because of you?”
“…”
“‘To be so friendly with a human-like Carl Andras, she must have bizarre tastes. Seeing that the two of them can understand each other, Lady Fanora must be a violent and undignified woman’… All of this was thanks to you.”
Aloken took a step closer to Carl. He still had a loaded rifle in his hand. “It’s nothing else, but do you want to tarnish my woman’s honor like that?”
“…”
“It’s hard to ignore it anymore, so let’s stop here. Carl Andras, I hope you won’t be seen by Fanora from next time.”
Carl was bound to be embarrassed by this situation. He couldn’t believe Fanora was being criticized because of him. In addition, Carl could not even make a plausible excuse for Aloken’s words.
“…”
It was because he himself had once met nobles whispering, ‘I wonder why Lady Fanora is close to someone like Carl Andras.’
“Other people even say such harsh words… I didn’t expect it.”
“I have no intention of blaming you for not knowing first. I already know that Sir Carl is obvious about society.”
Aloken raised the corner of his mouth in a benevolent manner. However, his expression changed at the words of the red-haired man that followed.
“But, to think of Duke suddenly telling me to cut ties with Lady Fanora like this. This is unfair.”
“What?”
“I’m already friends with her.”
Aloken smiled lightly at his words as if he were dumbfounded. “Do you want to hang around Fanora even with that excuse? Well, it doesn’t matter. She chose to be engaged to me, and it’s only natural for others to be tempted by her.”
“But I don’t think like that.”
“I can’t trust you alone.”
Aloken held the long gun in his left hand with both hands. Then, he skillfully wielded it while engaging in the conversation.
“I don’t have empathy, so it’s very difficult for me to trust others.”
“…”
“No matter how much I think about it, I can’t guarantee she won’t betray me.”
This meant he was afraid that someday Fanora would pay attention to Carl.
Carl understood what he meant and tried to argue. That she was definitely not that kind of person. However, this word couldn’t be conveyed to Aloken.
