Duke, Please Fail! - Side Story 1 (Part 10)

Side Story 1: Part 10

The situation was absurd, to the point where it almost elicited laughter. 

Although Leonel didn’t laugh, it was enough to momentarily forget the battlefield.

Leonel tried to straighten himself up and put on the hood he wasn’t sure when he lost. At that moment, a thousand lanterns ascended into the sky.

Nelly exclaimed in awe at the beautiful and marvelous sight. However, Leonel turned pale and pressed against the wall.

The cheers and applause of the people were as loud as the battle cries during the charge. His battle-hardened hand instinctively searched his waist for the sword.

Just as he was about to pull out a short dagger, Nelly turned her head suddenly. 

“I’ve never seen anything like this before! It’s really beautiful.”

A bright smile filled Nelly’s face. Her round cheeks were tinged with the orange light of the lanterns. Facing her smile felt like waking up from a nightmare.

No one smiled like that on the battlefield; this wasn’t a battlefield. 

‘Running away and still trembling. Pathetic.’

Leonel swept his hair back with a stern expression. Nelly, sensitive to negative emotions, sensed his unease. She took a glance at the alley where people gathered, then approached Leonel.

Leonel partially drew his sword reflexively. At the same time, Nelly untied the string under her chin and removed her ear-warmers.

‘Is she going to strangle me or something?’

Nelly’s movements seemed slow and harmless. In Leonel’s confusion about her inexplicable actions, Nelly placed her ear-warmers on him.

Leonel couldn’t hide his bewilderment as he asked.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m blocking your ears.”

Leonel was left speechless by her confident response. As he stared at her, Nelly awkwardly cooled her cheeks with the back of her hand.

“I heard that you’ve banned festivals several times since your return. Was it because you dislike large crowds?” 

Although their backgrounds were different, there was no need to correct the details. Leonel remained silent, raised an eyebrow, and brushed away Nelly’s hand attempting to tie the ear-warmers.

“What does that have to do with ear-warmers?”

“It’s more bearable when you hear less noise.”

Nelly reached out to Leonel, who looked puzzled, and reluctantly tied the ear warmer under his chin.

“Also, your ears are warm. It seems like your earlobes were frozen red. When did that happen?”

Only after hearing her words did Leonel feel warmth. Nelly’s body temperature, trapped in the ear warmer, spread onto his skin. The frozen ears melted, tingling and throbbing.

Leonel was more embarrassed now than he had been when Nelly had made her sudden move. As he stood still, unsure of how to act on his first feelings, Nelly glanced at him.

As far as she could tell, he was still wearing his cold expression.

But he didn’t look as sullen or sharp as he had earlier. He looked a little dazed.

If she were to sneak away, he wouldn’t ask about the lack of beer.

“Well then, I’ll be going in!”

Nelly turned around cheerfully. Leonel unconsciously reached out, and the hem of her coat got caught in his grip.

Nelly, with a surprised expression, looked back. Leonel, equally puzzled by his actions, widened his eyes. However, before Nelly could react, he quickly grasped the reason behind his reflexive action, having controlled his expression before she turned to him.

“Is there nothing to report today?”

Leonel felt relieved with the natural reason that came out. Yes, there was something to report. It was better to hear it on the way back to the castle than to summon Nelly to the office.

So, without realizing it, he had held onto her. Satisfied, Leonel released Nelly’s clothes.

“I’ll listen while we go.”

With the festival over and no lively spirits due to the lack of alcohol, the crowd had dispersed to some extent. Leonel headed towards the castle comfortably.

On the contrary, Nelly’s face was clouded with worry. She reluctantly followed Leonel, dragging her feet. Nelly began listing everything she had done for the festival, hesitating a bit before revealing her mistake.

“Actually… I misjudged the quantity of beer I ordered, and it seems we’ve run out already. I’m sorry!”

Nelly stopped in her tracks, shoulders slumping. She looked like a squirrel that had forgotten where it buried its acorns. Leonel stopped his automatic questioning and nodded.

“Go to the nearby city tomorrow and buy some.”

Nelly stared at Leonel with bewildered eyes. She expected him to scold her for why she did that, ask about the budget she received, or lecture her to bring the brewery’s records. But his reaction wasn’t as intense as she anticipated.

So, what did Sophie, Gerald, and Tom say? Were they just teasing her? Or advising her to rest early?

As they neared the castle, Nelly became more anxious. Suddenly, a plausible assumption crossed her mind.

‘We can’t cause a scene on the street, so he must be planning to scold me in the castle!’

Nelly’s face darkened again.

Until they reached the garden at the castle, Leonel hadn’t said a word. He went straight into the castle, and Nelly followed him, trailing behind.

Leonel stopped while climbing the stairs. Nelly, stopping reflexively, looked at Leonel with curiosity. When he remained silent, she grinned playfully, tilting her head.

“Why?”

“How far are you planning to follow?”

“…to the office?”

“Is the report not finished?”

“It is finished, but…”

Nelly stopped herself before revealing more about the scolding. She blinked her big light-green eyes, and then her face lit up.

“It’s finished! It’s really finished! Well then, I’ll be going. Have a good night.”

She bowed and swiftly left, escaping from Leonel’s presence. Watching her retreating figure, Leonel found himself chuckling involuntarily.

The butler coming down the stairs observed Leonel’s demeanor with a momentarily surprised look. He stepped aside as Leonel turned, asking.

“Have you returned?”

Leonel nodded and ascended the stairs, heading to his office. Levance, who was working late, greeted Leonel, and he also nodded to Roger, exchanging a glance.

Roger returned the greeting with a friendly nod. His face was relaxed, unlike his usual tense expression.

Levance studied Leonel’s face as he opened the ink cap, then stood in front of him with the report Arette had left behind.

“You seem to be in a good mood.”

His smirk was somewhat sly. Leonel remained cold, not giving any attention to his interest.

“Nonsense.”

However, Levance’s smile persisted. In reality, he was secretly anxious, wondering if Leonel would return in the middle of the festival or be troubled. But now, Leonel seemed much more stable than usual.

His expression, the way he wore his hair—everything seemed more composed.

“Cute ear-warmers, by the way.”

Leonel, who had been twitching his left eyebrow, seemed to realize something and froze. The cold expression on his face gradually softened.

Without giving Levance a chance to be surprised by this unprecedented expression, Leonel roughly removed the ear-warmers, untying the strap beneath his chin. The fluffy ear-warmers, clenched in his fist, made a solid thud as they fell onto the desk.

Levance instinctively understood. 

‘I shouldn’t mention the ear-warmers again; he might explode.’ 

He cleared his throat a few times and set the report aside.

After Leonel ran his hand through his disheveled hair and sighed deeply, their eyes met. A smile reappeared on Levance’s face.

Leonel, about to say something, gestured lightly with his head and crossed his legs. As he placed his hands with clasped fingers on his knee, Levance, as if waiting for this cue, opened his mouth.

“A report regarding the ranch keeper, Roman.”

When Leonel heard rumors that Roman wasn’t doing his job properly, he assigned Arette to monitor him. Arette, adept at moving like a ghost, was skillful in his surveillance, and Roman hadn’t suspected he’d be under scrutiny. 

Thanks to this, the discovery of his espionage activities was so easily revealed.

Levance suggested using Roman for their purposes. 

‘It might be useful to identify the mastermind and gather evidence. In the meantime, we can spread some false information.’

Several months had passed. Since Roman hadn’t been sending accurate information, contacts with the employers had become sporadic.

“This time they ordered him to withdraw.”

“What will you do? Just let him go?”

“No. Capture him and keep him in the underground.”

“Understood.”

Leonel nodded and glanced through the report once again. 

“He had a lot of interactions with the commoners.”

“He was rumored to be knowledgeable about folk remedies. When someone was injured, they seemed to mostly visit the ranch keeper.”

“Hmm…”

If Roman disappeared like this, the commoners would be curious about his whereabouts. Curiosity and concern would lead to speculation, and speculation would turn into rumors that could disturb and unsettle people. It was only a matter of time.

Moreover, outsiders were currently in the town due to the festival. With people moving around, any rumor would quickly spread. It was better not to let anything leak.

‘A festival is enough to keep them distracted.’

After a moment of contemplation, Leonel closed the report. 

“He was expelled for harming people with folk remedies.”

“Yes.”

Levance went outside to inform Arette of the situation. Alone in the office, Leonel leaned back against the backrest after briefly examining some documents. Despite not having done much, he felt more exhausted than usual. 

Rubbing his tired eyes, he suddenly noticed the ear-warmers lying haphazardly. Reaching out, he picked them up, and the soft fur tickled his palm. 

‘I should return these.’

He thought, absentmindedly stroking the ear-warmers like one would pet a cat.

Conscientious Nelly Pepper always headed to the dining hall at the same time. If he went out at the right moment, he might be able to meet her. Leonel absentmindedly continued to stroke the ear-warmers, now warmed by his touch.

Eventually, he sat up straight and started going through the piled-up documents. Working late into the night, he unintentionally dozed off.

When he opened his eyes, it was already a bit past the usual time Nelly would pass by. Leonel got up from his chair and went downstairs. He thought he could catch her after she finished her meal and returned to the west tower.

However, after waiting for quite a while, Nelly didn’t appear. Leonel went into the west tower and approached Mary, who managed Nelly’s room.

“Where is the estate manager?”

“Miss Nelly? She left early in the morning. Should I let her know that you’re looking for her when she comes back?”

Leonel shook his head. 

Since it wasn’t time for her to finish work yet, he could just go down when he saw her out the window.