The Person I Loved Hated Me - Chapter 29

The matter was dismissed as a crown prince’s bad habit. But his eyes weren’t the kind that took pleasure in toying with powerless commoners.

Clara understood that the young man who introduced himself as from the Winslet ducal house seemed acquainted with Isaac, and that this was the result of Isaac relying on him.

But she couldn’t accept it.

Was he really going to be alright? Dian had claimed to be the crown prince, but was a duke more powerful than such a person? Perhaps the claim of being crown prince was a lie. If it were a lie, then surely the duke would be of higher status, and she could feel reassured that they wouldn’t suffer like this again.

Clara decided to visit Franz, who had held his wedding reception at the shop where she’d met Dian, the same shop where she’d encountered the young man who likely knew Dian.

Dian had said he liked the stories told by that shop’s owner. Then perhaps he might be acquainted with Franz too.

Taking the afternoon off work, she broke her promise with Isaac who’d said “Don’t come unless something happens,” and visited the knight order located near the castle.

She’d heard Isaac was only at the knight barracks in the mornings and evenings. He seemed to be out at other times, so she probably wouldn’t run into him. Franz was in a different squad than Isaac. She didn’t know what kind of work he was involved in, so he might have been absent. But luckily, before she reached the reception, Franz called out to her.

“Oh, if it isn’t Clara! First time seeing you here. What’s up?”

“Great, I wanted to see you, Franz!”

“Eh, me!?”

Franz glanced around furtively. There were knights scattered about, their eyes turning toward Clara, an outsider.

“Me, and not Isaac or Captain Eivard?”

“I have something I want to ask.”

“Is that so? Well, okay. We stand out here, so come this way.”

He led her to a corner of the training grounds where, perhaps because it was lunchtime, no one was around. Clara was offered a bench and sat down next to Franz.

“So, what is it?”

“It’s about the day of your wedding. I want to know about a person I met at the shop we went to after the ceremony.”

“Eh!? Was there another knight you liked besides the captain?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Is that so? Well, that’s good then.”

Mentioning Eivard’s name threw her off balance. When Clara glanced around, she saw knights who hadn’t been there just moments before, now peeking furtively in their direction.

She knew she was being watched. Because of the incident with Dian, she couldn’t do anything about it, but she felt like she was starting to hate this face of hers.

“Don’t worry, they can’t hear us from over there.”

Urged to continue, Clara looked up at Franz and said, “Um…” She stared intently, determined not to be fooled.

“That day, do you remember a noble person coming incognito?”

“A noble person?”

“Golden hair, green eyes, the one who gave you something.”

“Ah, yeah. Got it. Do you know who that person is, Clara?”

When she nodded firmly, he asked, “Did something troublesome happen?”

“It did, but it seems resolved. But somehow it doesn’t sit right with me. Hey, is that person really the crown prince?”

“Well, that’s something we shouldn’t talk about.”

Franz put his index finger to his lips, indicating it was a secret.

“Me too, I only saw him occasionally at the shop. He was enjoying conversations with the shopkeeper, and I knew he was hiding his status, so I thought it’d be bad to bother him by talking to him. That day, I didn’t know he was such an important person until I received the button.”

“You received a button?”

“Yeah. It can also serve as a mark of his favor.”

Franz loosened the front of his uniform, reached into his chest, and showed her a small pouch attached to a string. Inside the pouch was a golden button with an emblem.

“If I did something bad and got imprisoned, just showing this would get me released.”

“No way. Getting released even after doing something wrong?”

“It’s an item with that much power. If I lost it, it’d be a big problem, so I always keep it on me just in case.”

To think this golden button had such power. Franz looked so happy about it that receiving it must be a great honor. And indeed, the person who called himself Dian was undoubtedly the crown prince.

“He said, ‘You had a good encounter, this is my thanks.’ I wondered what he meant, but it was about you, wasn’t it, Clara? You were together then. He took a liking to you, right? What do you mean by ‘seems resolved’?”

She’d been told to keep the bad habit a secret, and now that she knew he was the real crown prince, she wanted to avoid saying anything careless and ending up in serious trouble. Besides, she didn’t believe the bad habit was true in the first place. Clara evaded with a vague, “Yeah, a little.”

“Hey, Franz. Is a duke more powerful than that person?”

“Probably not, right?”

“That’s right. Absolutely not, right?”

“Ah, but. Do you know about the Winslet duke? The one serving as chancellor.”

“Then I know.”

She’d only learned about it this very morning, but she pretended she’d known all along.

“Setting aside who’s more powerful or not, if it’s the chancellor, he might be able to give opinions to that person.”

“Is that so? I wonder why?”

“It’s about the previous duke. I heard he was the one who raised that person.”

“Wow, really.”

The crown prince lost his father in childhood. It’s also famous that his mother left the castle a long time ago. Even Clara, a commoner completely unrelated to nobility, knew these royal circumstances. I see, so Dian was raised by the previous duke. That’s why he listens to the current duke Rhys’s father, she realized.

“The captain would know the details, I think. He’s from a marquis house, after all. Shall we go ask him together?”

“No, it’s fine. Not necessary.”

“Is that so? Well then, since we’re training right now, why don’t you stay and watch?”

“I can’t cause such a nuisance.”

“It’s no nuisance. Quite a few young women come to watch knight training. There are many here today too.”

She was already disliked as it was, and she didn’t want to be hated for interfering with work. But Franz said, “Don’t hold back,” and taking Clara’s hand, he started walking.

Behind the large building was another training ground. There, several knights were training, and the perimeter was bustling with young women. It was as if the training was being put on show. Was this really not a nuisance?

The group diligently training with practice swords seemed to be taking it seriously, paying no mind to the surrounding gazes. Among them, Clara spotted Eivard, and her heart beat strongly.

He was at the center of the knights, swinging his sword. When swords clashed, a loud sound rang out, and Eivard, receiving the blow, sent his opponent flying. The opponents weren’t just one; they came at him one after another, but he handled them without flinching, with ease, his sword moving as if flowing.

From the surrounding women, shrill screams of “Lord Eivard!” rose. As for Clara, not only had she lost her voice, she was rooted to the spot, even forgetting to breathe.

Every time Eivard twisted his body, his golden hair swayed and sweat scattered. The sight was so beautiful, like a celestial maiden.

How long had she been captivated? Probably not much time had passed, but Clara had even forgotten where she was now.

The knights seemed to have finished training, calling out to each other as they left the center of the training grounds. They were drenched in sweat, taking off their shirts and wiping away the dripping perspiration.

“Captain~!”

Beside her, Franz called out loudly, but it didn’t reach Clara’s ears. She was simply entranced by Eivard’s figure, unable to perceive the existence of anything or anyone else, or any sound.

Eivard, called by Franz, turned around. His golden hair was damp with sweat, clinging softly, and his emotionless blue eyes turned toward them or so she thought, before they widened greatly and then curved into an arc, and a bright voice came from his thin lips: “Clara!”

“Eh?”

Eivard, with what could be called a beaming smile, called Clara’s name and ran toward her. Usually, he wasn’t someone who showed his emotions openly; even when he seemed to be smiling, there was always a certain aloofness. Even when he looked at her with a warm, protective gaze, he sometimes furrowed his brows as if troubled.

But now, what was this?

He was smiling. And surely, from the heart.

It was the first time she’d seen Eivard like this.

“Clara, you came. I’m happy.”

“Eh?”

No, she hadn’t come to see Eivard. She had come because she needed Franz. But facing Eivard right in front of her now, such thoughts had flown away somewhere.

After all, Clara had just learned for the first time in her life that something called ‘sex appeal’ existed in this world.

His skin, slightly flushed from the exertion and sweat. The sweat trickling down. Even a single droplet sliding smoothly was bewitching. The moment Eivard stood before her, Clara, struck by his allure, turned bright crimson all over with a soft poof sound.

Since she lived with Isaac, she was used to seeing men naked. Isaac was like a papier-mâché figure with bulging, clay-like muscles plastered on. Eivard in clothes looked slender, but since he could lift Clara easily, she thought they must be similar; that was common sense to her.

But Eivard, with his shirt off and his upper body exposed, had a body completely different from Isaac’s.

First, he was considerably more slender than Isaac. Yet he had beautiful muscles.

His chest was naturally broad, but not clumsily bulky and lumpy; it was well-shaped. His shoulders were built up but not awkwardly oversized. His abdomen had clear divisions into eight sections with distinct tendinous intersections. The muscles running diagonally from the sides of his abdomen weren’t protruding; they were firmly attached, as if protecting his sides.

Overall, slender. But well-trained and different from Isaac’s muscular, daruma-like build. Above all, he had a physique that perfectly fit the description ‘beautiful.’

Clara, witnessing Eivard’s body right before her eyes, was left speechless.

After all, he was naked. Naked.

Even though she should be used to it from seeing Isaac, what was before her eyes now intensely made her aware of his masculinity.

To see a man naked…

And then, “Clara?” asked the man with beauty that could rival a goddess, from extremely close range.

“What’s wrong? Your face looks red.”

Perhaps he noticed something was off. The smile vanished from Eivard’s face, and as he peered at her with a worried expression, it was all over for her.

Clara let out a strange “Kyuuuu!” sound and fell backward. “Careful!” Eivard wrapped his arms around her from the front, catching her as she fell. Because of that, Clara was embraced against Eivard’s bare chest, and her mind went completely blank.