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The chatty, and loud children who had been laughing until their ears hurt became surprisingly calm at the moment they entered the annex. Their eyes twinkled with delight as they looked around the house but couldn’t dare to make jokes and fool around like before.
Leyla had to appease the frightened Monica first, so she was the last to enter the annex, and the servants welcomed the Duke’s young guest with the same servility they gave to the VIP guests.
“This way, please.”
One of the servants promptly escorted the waiting children from the guest lounge to the living room. Inside, Matthias was sitting there with his back against the window overlooking the river—he had been waiting for them to arrive.
Leyla held her breath as she walked into the place riddled with horrible, embarrassing, and humiliating memories.
“Thank you so much for your kindness in allowing us to visit Arvis, Duke.”
Mrs. Grever was effusive in her thanks, and her vivacity put Leyla at ease. She hoped her-teacher-friend would take the role as the Duke’s converser, so she could sit quietly like the room’s furniture and leave the place when the pleasantries were over.
“Rather, I should be thankful to all of you for accepting my sudden invitation.”
Matthias welcomed them as he rose from his seat. The window’s backlight cast a shadow over his face, but it amplified the sense of his presence.
“Teacher… it hurts.”
Monica’s whispers startled Leyla, who was staring blankly at his silhouette.
“My hand hurts.”
Monica moaned in pain. Leyla’s eyes widened as she realized she was gripping the child’s hand too tightly.
“Ah, sorry. I’m so sorry, Monica.”
She massaged Monica’s wrist in a panic, and at the time, the door flew open to the balcony facing the riverside.
The scent of fresh water was wafting from the opened door. Leyla swiveled to face the view. A sumptuous tea table which was set up in the sun-drenched terrace and the white tablecloth that gently swayed along with the wind, captured her eyes in a blink.
“Let’s go.”
Matthias’ gaze flew from Leyla to Mrs. Grever. The teacher accepted his escort by lightly placing her hand on his arm with her blushing cheeks.
The astonished children who had never had a tea-time of this kind, happily followed the Duke with a zealous expression on their face. Leyla walked with Monica in tow and was the last to head to the balcony.
“Woah, Teacher! I feel like I’m becoming a princess!”
As she walked onto the balcony, Monica rolled her eyes, and her innocent face glowed with adoration. Leyla couldn’t debate the child’s praises, as the vibrantly colored assortment of bites that was served on the balcony’s table looked quite appetizing. It was amazing to think about how promptly they had everything ready.
She caught sight of the bouquet of Baby breath flowers, and red asters gracing the table’s centrepiece. There were teacups and exquisite silverware on the table, much too many for the rural schoolchildren. And the scenic beauty of Schulter River beyond the railing was the perfect setting for their afternoon meals.
A beam of sunlight hit her slender glasses frame and shattered like shrapnel. Matthias’s eyes wandered throughout those shards of light…
The jewel-blue flowing river….the daughter of the sky—Bright white sun…
And….The sea of trees,  beneath a garland of scarlets and golds.
In the autumn moment of Arvis, where all the beautiful colors of nature were at their most vivid,
Their eyes met….
*.·:·.✧.·:·.*
Monica was delighted over the moon. She roistered endlessly at how pretty the annex was, of how handsome the duke was, and the tasty cake she had eaten. That child couldn’t stop herself from extolling everything.
“Woaaa!”
This time, that child was hooked on by the scoop of ice cream. Her eyes sparkled at the ice cream dish, and she hurriedly reached out her hand to Leyla sitting beside her.
Leyla gave a surprised look, and Monica whispered,
“Teacher, it tastes like clouds.”
Leyla blinked a few times before catching on to what the child was trying to say. With a smile, she took a napkin and gently wiped Monica’s lips to clean the ice cream smudge on her lips.
Monica had just started school this year. She was physically smaller than her peers, a scaredy-cat, and still a shy girl. Her introverted nature made it difficult for her to socialize with other children. She used to cry, wanting to go back home every day. And for the first few weeks, Leyla had an uphill struggle to cope with that child.
But now, she was Leyla’s best disciple among her classmates. After learning that Monica’s mother died from an illness last spring, Leyla had a deeper understanding of the child’s heart.
“Teacher, you should try it too.”
“No, Monica. Teacher is fine.”
Leyla scrupled for a moment. But she maturely refused. Albeit, there was no law prohibiting adults from eating ice cream, she didn’t want to seem childish in front of the Duke by eating the ice cream that was prepared for the children only.
Leyla took another sip of the half-cold tea as she eavesdropped on the ongoing table talk. Mrs. Grever was leading the conversation with a bubbly attitude, just as she wished.
Meanwhile, ridding her mind of its load, Leyla threw a glance at Matthias, who sat at the head chair. He was listening attentively to Mrs. Grever. His brief replies and smile presented impeccable courtesy. Strangely enough, by displaying such a perfect turn, the other people could sense his dominance and classiness in the relationship. All of his gestures were haughty but graceful at the same time.
Like a researcher, she observed Matthias intently when Monica suddenly stood up and approached her with a bowl of ice cream.
“Teacher… teacher! This ice cream is so delicious. Please try it?”
When her tiny hand was tugging her sleeve, Leyla flinched and pulled back. Monica dropped the ice cream bowl and it splattered all over her skirt. The loud fuss drew the attention of everyone seated at the table to her.
“I-I’m sorry teacher!”
Monica blanched when the bowl fell to the hardwood floor, covering her teacher’s skirt with ice cream. Tears slowly crept out of her eyes.
“Don’t cry, teacher is fine.”
Leyla smiled and quickly wiped the ice cream with the napkin to soothe the child. Meanwhile, the maids reached them quickly and rushed to wipe the wet floor.
Leyla was flustered after taking a look at her sticky hands and stained skirt. Seeing that, Matthias gestured at the maid standing close to her and she hurriedly ushered Leyla into the powder room.
Monica was about to burst into tears when Leyla left the terrace, but luckily Bill Remmer calmed her down. At the same time, Mark Evers discreetly approached.
“Duke, Count Klein wants to have a call with you.”
*.·:·.✧.·:·.*
The more she rubbed it, the larger and more stubborn the ice cream stain became on her skirt.
Leyla gave up and just washed her hands and face. By luck, she was wearing a dark-colored kilt, which helped a lot in hiding the stain.
She carefully turned off the sink’s gold faucet and checked her reflection in the mirror. Her cheeks were blushing red from a fruitless effort to remove ice cream stains off her skirt.
She tidied her droopy hair and took a breath before leaving the powder room. It wasn’t long before she tensed up again, a heavy feeling in her stomach as she saw the Duke leaning against the hallway wall leading to the living room. Matthias looked at her, smiling when she gasped.
‘Damn.’
A frown appeared on her face, and she looked around. There was no one else here, and her mind whirled, alarmed of what could happen next.
‘Don’t tell me he’s been waiting for me….’
After several minutes had passed, he remained standing there, nonchalantly staring at her. A sneer sneaked out the corner of his lips, a satirical grin that those who lauded him as a faultless aristocrat would never know. And every time he cracked a smile like that, Leyla knew something bad was going to happen to her.
Ominous hunch overwhelmed her. She gulped, her shaking hands clenched, waiting for him to get out of the way. But Leyla decided not to waste time that would cause an unnecessary misunderstanding.
Without letting go of her guard, she took a watchful stride forward. Matthias, still leaning against the wall, kept his eyes intact on her. And once she got closer, he blatantly stood in the middle of the corridor.
Seeing her flinch in fear and step back from him, Matthias’ chuckle grew louder.
After a short phone call from Count Klein, without a particular reason, he went in the opposite direction instead of going back to the balcony. He simply had the urge to wait for her since she hadn’t yet returned. Just in case something interesting happened to her. Exactly just like right now.
Leyla approached him with a straight face, as if marching to a battlefield. She intended to avoid him, but the hallway was incapacious.
As she walked right next to him, Matthias slightly stuck out his leg. Leyla reflexively backed off.
‘Dodged it!’
But her joy soon turned into shame when he just pretended to move to change his posture. She now looked like an idiot-jumping rabbit in front of the upright and elegant Duke.
Matthias snickered and took a spin around as if nothing had happened. Alone in the hall, Leyla stayed still until he entered the living room and was no longer in her sight.
A liar—She would undoubtedly be labelled as such if she told everyone about Duke Herhardt’s absurd personality.
‘No.’
Leyla tossed aside the thought and walked into the living room. Upon reaching the balcony, she saw him acting normal, like a model gentleman. He had a warm conversation with Mrs. Grever, and a smile never left his face.
“Oh, welcome back, Miss Lewellin!”
Mrs. Grever was pleased when she came back.
“Let’s go boating!”
“Boating?”
“The Duke said he’d lend our kids his yacht. Isn’t it wonderful to have a boat ride in that beautiful river?”
“Uhm… But I….”
Leyla shot her uncle a worried gaze, and Bill stepped forward.
“My apologies, Duke, but Leyla is very afraid of water. It’ll be hard for her to get on the boat.”
“Ah. I see.”
Matthias pretended to be saddened by the story, although he had seen her drowning in the same river a year ago.
“Then Ms. Lewellin, you can take a rest here.”
‘He… Why is he showing such consideration now?’
While his unexpected concern perplexed her, the children bolted off the balcony, accompanied by the Duke’s servant.
“Yes, Miss Lewellin. I’ll go, so you can stay here.”
“Yes, don’t worry Leyla. I’ll take care of those little ones.”
Bill smiled and took Monica’s hand from Leyla’s. That child was scared and wanted to weep every time she saw Bill, but she was willing to follow him out of the blue.
“Thank you, Mr. Grever and Uncle Bill too.”
Leyla felt embarrassed but thanked them for their kindness. They were nice people, unlike the enigmatic Duke. Apart from that, she also felt lucky to be able to stay away from the Duke.
However, as she waited, Matthias didn’t get up from his chair.
She gave him a confused look.
Matthias remained in his seat even after everyone had left. She then realized that the Duke canoeing with the village kids would be odder.
Realizing that she had made a grave choice, Leyla leapt from her seat. The two boats carrying the children had already departed the bottom floor’s boat hangar and headed towards the river. The servants were tirelessly rowing while Uncle Bill and Mrs. Grever kept an eye on the children in separate boats.
“Teacher! Teacher! Teacher!”
The children laughed and waved their hand at her, who was standing beyond the railing.
“Teacher, I’ll be back!”
Even the timid Monica grinned with excitement.
She could no longer catch up with the children. She was engrossed in her despair when a voice as cold as a river wind, suddenly broke the silence.
“Sit down.”
Leyla jerked back. Matthias was looking at her with his legs crossed.
“Leyla.”
He smiled, calling her name as if he was humming along to the tune.