I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess – Chapter 84

Ariel’s personal maid, Shuri, has a long-time lover.

His name is Ronan Billiard.

He is currently the gardener of the Grand Duke’s estate, has a somewhat grumpy personality, but deep down is quite gentle, often letting Shuri take care of most tasks and being considerate towards her.

He got summoned unexpectedly on a particularly sunny day.

While he was taking care of the flowers in the garden, learning from his father.

In the midst of this, spotting a white briony blossom, he thought about giving it to his lover when Shuri suddenly showed up.

For no apparent reason, she was fidgeting and seemed particularly excited today.

Initially, Ronan couldn’t leave because he had things to do, but after getting his father’s permission, he finally changed clothes and stepped outside to find her waiting in casual wear.

Seeing each other in everyday clothes was a rarity due to their many encounters at work, and he found her dressed like that effortlessly beautiful.

“What’s up?”

With his emotions always hard to read, Ronan asked in his typical gruff tone.

But Shuri, having gotten used to it, started bouncing with a big smile on her face.

“Actually, today the young lady went to Etle with the young master.”

“Etle?”

Ronan tilted his head at the familiar name.

It’s a well-known tourist spot, and they’d been there together before.

However, he wondered what the connection was between the noble lady of the Robeheim family and her lover’s trip to Etle, and their own early departure from the castle didn’t seem related at all.

“Yes! So I thought, why not follow them!”

“…….”

So that was her plan.

Ronan chided himself for underestimating Shuri as he placed his hand on his forehead.

‘I’m sorry, young lady.’

Because he hadn’t trained his childhood friend and now lover properly, she was pulling stunts like this.

He expressed his regret silently to Ariel and decided to at least find out what was going on.

“Do you know where they went?”

“Hehe, there’s always a way!”

“……?”

How would she know unless she had some tracking magic planted on them?

But knowing her nature, Ronan was curious to find out how she planned to do this.

Feeling his questioning gaze, Shuri shrugged her small shoulders, then pulled out a piece of paper.

“Places to visit in Etle…?”

Ronan tilted his head in confusion as he read the largest writing on the paper out loud.

With a smug look, she raised her nose and continued explaining as if to say she should pay attention.

If Ariel saw this, she might get annoyed and punish her.

“I wrote the same thing to the young lady as well. Hehe, they’ll probably go just like this, so we can just follow!”

“Wow, you really have some guts.”

Ronan shook his head in disbelief.

What was she thinking if they got caught?

Even if they didn’t get caught, he was puzzled by the point of this whole endeavor.

Most importantly, he wondered if she had finished her work properly.

Usually, Shuri was a bit careless, but when it came to work, she was thorough enough, so Ronan’s unease didn’t easily fade away.

“Did you get permission? What about your work?”

“The young lady told me to take it easy!”

“Ah….”

Ronan sighed at the thought that there was nothing else he could do.

If the young lady said to take a break, then that was the right thing to do.

At the very least, a regular maid might not know, but the words of a personal maid weighed more than gold.

So he figured there was some justification for this risky behavior, but they still needed another way to prevent it.

As he pondered, Ronan voiced a last-ditch effort.

“What are you going to say if the young lady finds out?”

“Well, I didn’t think that far….”

“Ugh.”

Ronan couldn’t help but wonder if this girl was really at the age for adulthood.

He sighed deeply at the wave of doubt washing over him.

She was more composed when they were younger, but now, she seemed to act recklessly more often.

Had someone influenced her?

“…No, we can’t.”

“Of course we can’t. If the young lady finds out, what will happen to both of us?”

“Maybe she won’t be that angry…?”

Ronan felt an overwhelming urge to bop her little head, but he somehow held back his desire.

‘I guess I have to take a tougher approach.’

Talking clearly didn’t seem to be working.

They needed to show some action to lessen her enthusiasm, and just as Ronan turned to head back into the castle, there was a sudden plea.

“I-I didn’t want to miss out on having fun… okay?”

“…….”

Shuri clutching his wrist with her tiny hand, her big eyes filled with a kitten-like sadness as she pleaded.

Watching this silently, Ronan finally hung his head in defeat.

Shuri took that as a declaration of victory, shouting “Yay!” before bouncing back to her cheerful self.

In the end, no matter how tightly wrapped his defenses were, a lover’s gaze had a way of toppling a man’s resolve.

* * * * * * *

Etle’s climate is relatively mild compared to other northern regions.

But that only means it’s warmer than Hespania; it’s still in the north, so it’s quite cold for folks from other regions.

However, this makes it well-known as a great tourist spot among other northern residents, and the dimensional stone connecting to other regions isn’t even a 40-minute carriage ride away, which has started to raise its fame.

When Ariel arrived in Etle, she was grinning from ear to ear right from stepping off the carriage.

The weather here felt comparable to the climate in ArdeNim, where Edgar’s family home is located.

Even though she dressed a bit lighter than usual, given that she is weak to the cold, the temperature was something she could easily bear.

“The weather is really nice, right?”

“Absolutely. Perfect weather just for you.”

Thanks to her newfound resilience to the cold, this weather felt welcoming to Ariel.

Stretching and glancing around, a huge smile decorated her face.

Edgar thought her eyes curved like crescent moons, akin to a blooming flower.

“Hmm…! Where should we go first?”

“Wasn’t it written down by Shuri?”

“Well, who knows if you have a place you want to go?”

Ariel had emphasized this while on the carriage ride.

Today wasn’t just a day to have fun for herself but a chance to repay Edgar’s kindness.

She needed to say some things she hadn’t mentioned earlier, but those could wait for later.

“Anywhere is fine. Just anywhere will do.”

Though she appreciated Edgar’s thoughtfulness, it was clear he knew nothing about Etle.

While Ariel seemed to have heard some info, Edgar was utterly clueless.

Asking someone like him where he wanted to go wouldn’t yield any useful replies.

It would make more sense to head to a verified spot Shuri had noted down.

Moreover, judging by Edgar’s demeanor, Ariel likely had a place in mind already.

With a gentle pulse.

As soon as Edgar finished speaking, Ariel moved next to him and took his hand.

She had spotted a place among the ones Shuri had listed and, with his approval, was set on going there.

“Was that your approval?”

“I said I understood.”

After confirming once more, Ariel eagerly led him by the hand.

Edgar followed her lead with a soft smile.

For now, they decided to postpone visiting Etle’s notable “Lake That Never Freezes.”

There were unique views only available after sunset, so it was a strategic delay.

“How did Shuri know this place so well?”

“Huh? She said it was a place she came to with her lover.”

“That makes sense.”

Nodding in agreement, Edgar chuckled.

If it was a place they had visited together, it would certainly be unforgettable.

Besides, he had vaguely heard that Shuri, like Helene, tended to write her journal, capturing both the good and bad memories of her time there.

So surely she must have noted down her cherished memories with Ronan.

Thanks to that, they were free to enjoy their day sightseeing.

‘Hmm?’

Suddenly, Edgar felt a sensation as if something were watching him from the side rather than behind.

It wasn’t threatening, more like a heavy gaze, but looking around, he found nothing in particular.

‘Just my imagination?’

Maybe he had become overly sensitive since the recent unsettling events.

Or perhaps there truly was someone observing them.

Edgar had no means of confirming this but decided to keep it in mind as he followed Ariel once more.

Unbeknownst to him, the gaze belonged to another pair of lovers.