Chapter 14

Chapter 14

If at all possible, I really didn’t want Ashley to come into contact with any of the dangerous characters. And, if he succeeded in living without meeting them, then I too was hoping not to have to take that risk.

But of course, things don’t always turn out the way you want them to. Since Ashley has finally made his first friend, I really don’t want to have to separate the two of them! And Ashley certainly won’t think well of me if I suddenly tell him that Rona is a bad guy, so I doubly don’t want to do it.

Moreover, the reason that Ashley has not managed to make any friends up until now is mostly my fault, because he has always been too busy carrying out his duties as my servant. Well that, and his aloof attitude, but that’s beside the point.

So I don’t know what to do now about there relationship!

“Good morning,” greets Ashley, breaking my train of thought.

“‘Morning, Ashley,” I reply, walking over to him.

Ashley had once again come all the way to the girls’ dormitory to escort me to school, citing that it’s his duty as my servant to do so. Though I’d honestly rather him get the extra sleep, instead of waking up extra early just to wait for me here.

And as the beautiful first year that stands sentry in front of the gate to the girls’ dormitory every day, he has quickly become something of an idol for the rest of the girls. Did you know, Ashley? That not only are your classmates smitten with you, but all of the upperclassman living in this dorm are head over heals for you as well! Their eyes all shine as they stare at you, trying to catch your attention.

“You don’t appear to have slept well last night. You have dark circles under your eyes,” he says, bridging the distance between us and grabbing my chin to get a better look at my face.

“Your face…. It’s too close….!”

“That was intentional.”

I’m going to…. not think too deeply about what that’s supposed to mean. I definitely don’t want a repeat of my overreaction to the kiss from two days ago.

“Maybe you should take the day off from classes today?”

“I can’t…. I have some things that I need to discuss with the student council president….”

We need to brainstorm possible plans for how to deal with the relationship between Ashley and Rona Randolph. If all goes well, maybe he can even use his position as Rona’s older brother to convince him to put some distance between him and Ashley?

Wait! But if I do that, Ashley will be friendless again! Agh, I don’t know what I should do…..

“I must insist that you stay home today.”

“……Huh?”

I’m feeling rather worried about this whole thing right now, but did he misunderstand and think that I’m actually feeling sick?

“I’ll go get permission to enter the girls’ dorm, so you go in and just relax. I’ll make sure to take good care of you.”

“But-“

“And if you have something that you absolutely have to tell the student council president,” he continues, gently putting his hands on my shoulders to turn me around and start pushing me back towards the dorm. “I’ll deliver the message for you as well. Please don’t worry about anything and just go back and get some sleep, Ojousama.”

He says all this in the low, gravelly tone of voice that he’s been using quite often for these past few days. This husky tone somehow carries with it a heavy sort of pressure that makes it hard for me to say no to him.

And since whether I tell Senpai the news today or tomorrow won’t really change anything, it shouldn’t hurt for me to do as he says. Besides, I have no intention of having him contact Gray-Senpai on my behalf…. Information regarding Rona is hardly something that I can discuss with Ashley so I’ll just wait until tomorrow. After many years of spending time with Ashley, I already know that resisting him when he’s tense like this will only end badly for me, so I quickly acquiesce.

“I’ll go back up to my room then.”

“I’ll let the school know that you’ll not be attending classes today. What about your message for the president?”

“It wasn’t that important. Don’t worry about it.”

“I see.”

＊＊＊

Since I managed to get this golden opportunity to sit bat and think for a bit, let’s take stock of the current situation.

It’s not like I’m actually feeling bad, and if I take just one day off from reviewing my lessons, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem, so let’s just forget about school for a bit and think things through.

This is a matter of life and death for me and Ashley, so I need to consider everything very carefully. I quickly throw my pajamas back on and get into bed and then resume my previous contemplation.

Rona Randolph.

Now that I’ve actually had the chance to see him, he seems even more suspicious.

That friendly atmosphere he had when talking with Ashley was all an act. And, maybe this is just my personal opinion since he had been glaring at me so forcefully yesterday, but he seemed somehow…. malicious.

Furthermore, he’s a ikemen.

With just that fact, he is already someone to be extremely wary of, considering if he wasn’t handsome, then there’s no way he would be one of the capture targets. To make matters worse, he is Gray-Senpai’s little brother-in-law which gives him a pretty conspicuous background, and since he’s already come into contact with Ashley, it’s looking more and more like he might have been an important character for the game’s plot.

“You look like you’re lost in thought, what’s wrong?” Ashley asks as he lightly pushes open my door and enters my room. Glancing up I notice that he also had changed his clothes and now he was wearing a plain vest over a white long-sleeve shirt instead of the school’s uniform.

“That was fast.”

“Is that so?” he asks, feigning ignorance but the light traces of sweat on his forehead give him away. He must have been quite worried about my condition and so he rushed to get back to me as fast as possible. He may have always been a bit blunt and unsociable from a long time ago, but he’s also always been very kind to me. Please, I’m begging you, you need to treasure you own life more. There’s a high likelihood that a crisis is fast approaching us and I need you to stay safe.

“Is there anything that you’d like to eat? I’ll make it for you.”

For a dorm room, I’ve always thought that my room was rather excessive. To even have a kitchen in it seems a bit ridiculous, don’t you think? But I guess that’s the privilege of being the daughter of a highly ranked court official. What I find most odd is that young ladies from decent families typically won’t have any use for such a commodity. Though I can’t say I’m complaining, seeing as it is quite the useful addition for me.

For the children of lesser officials/the nouveau riche like Sarah, or for servants like Ashley, on the other hand, I’ve heard that they don’t even have a room to themselves but are instead required to share a room in the dorms.

Suddenly a sinking suspicion crosses my mind.

“Hey, Ashley? Do you have to share your dorm room with someone?”

“Huh? Oh. Yes. Since I am in service to the Alldington family, it’s natural that I shouldn’t receive the same type of treatment as you do, Ojousama.”

What an oversight! Since I’ve always had a room to myself, I completely forgot about this possibility.

“Have you been getting along with your roommate?”

The dorm management office likes to put students of the same year together, so his roommate should also be a first year. And, it’s not unheard of for students who have been given a single room to request a roommate. It seems like many students have trouble adjusting to the new environment when they first move here and so they ask for a roommate in hopes of making a friend whom they can commiserate with.

The Randolph family, headed by Duke Randolph, has the highest possible court rank so even though Rona is the second son, and an adopted son at that, he would still be considered to be as a high priority person within the academy. That means…..

If….

On the off chance he decided that he also wanted to share a room…. I don’t even want to consider it….

“Yes. He’s a rather amiable fellow.”

Oh gosh, it seems really likely that it is him….

“What sort of kid is he? I’d love to meet him next time….”

“What sort…. Oh, speaking of him, you actually met him yesterday… When we were over in the courtyard. That guy with the curly hair who was bouncing up and down a bit in excitement, he’s my roommate. His name is Rona…. Oh yeah, now that I think about it, I think he’s the student council president’s adopted little brother.”

Noooooo! Why did it have to be literally the worst possible scenario!?

“Oh, really….?” I manage to get out, weakly.

I try to ignore the fact that Ashley’s face turned grim when he mentioned the student council president.

Could it be that even after I’ve told him so many times that they aren’t true, that he’s still worried over all those rumors about me Gray-Senpai? Then doesn’t that mean that if I try to tell him not to have anything to do with Gray-Senpai’s little brother, that I’ll end up looking extremely hypocritical? Won’t that make him end up hating me? But, if he keeps sharing a room with him, then he’ll surely be accosted by a bunch of death flags….

“Are you interested in him?”

“Eek!?”

Since he really had hit the nail on the head with that one, I accidentally yelped in surprise.

In response, Ashley looks at me hard, trying to puzzle out what I am thinking about.

“He is also a part of the Randolph family after all. Rona probably knows all sorts of things about that student council president that you are oh so close to.”

Ashley says with a cynical smile, bringing his gaze to rest on mine and looking decidedly down on me. When he looks at me like this, I can’t help but wonder if he just lacks the heart of a servant, or if he has a bit of a cruel streak, but either way, his eyes that bore into mine are ice cold.

“I’m really not all that interested in the president though? Really…. It’s just…..”

“It’s just?”

“….If I say it, you won’t get mad at me?”

Even if I insult your friend by saying that I’m worried that Rona might do something to you?

“I had thought you knew this already but….”

“What?”

“I am rather weak to your requests, Ojousama.”

“That’s a total lie. You say no to my requests all the time!”

“That’s only when they are things that I’m incapable of granting you because of my lack of ability or due to my position. Like that time when I caught a cold and you asked me to get better right away. Or when you had to get a shot and you asked me to take it in your stead. Or that time when we were served goat for dinner and you asked me to not only eat with you, but to also eat your portion as well.”

“I think that last one at least should have been doable….”

“It is not suitable for a young lady to be too picky. As your servant, it is my duty not to spoil you too much.”

Hearing this, I can’t help but pout a bit. My eyebrows naturally scrunch up as well but then Ashley takes a finger and lightly presses on the wrinkles in between my brows, rubbing them away.

“Anyway, if it’s not too big a request, then I will usually be able to accept it. Plus, I am your servant. If you tell me not to get mad, then of course I won’t.”

“Then, just listen to me and don’t get mad. Please.”

Gripping the sheets tightly, I take in a deep breath and resolve myself to speak.

“I’m just worried that your roommate…. will end up taking you(r life).”

“….. I don’t have that sort of preference.”

Ashley who had still been trying to lightly rub away the wrinkle between my eyebrows suddenly amped up the pressure of his fingertip as he said this. And, being a boy, he can push hard. It actually hurts a bit.

“I definitely asked you not to be mad!”

“There’s nothing I can do about it this time. When you said, that an uncontrollable flood of anger surged within me against my will.”

After saying that, Ashley says he’ll go cut up some fruit for me and then quickly escapes off to the kitchen. From where I lay on my bed, I am still able to see him though, and I guess that probably goes for Ashley as well, if he were to look up. I guess even when he’s mad, he still tries to be considerate of me. He probably decided to stand there so that if I needed something, it would be easier for me to call out to him.

“Ashley. Are you having fun at school?”

“Why are you asking that all of a sudden?” he asks, and then falls silent again for a while before going back and answering my question.

“If I compare it to last year, then every day I spend here is quite satisfying. But if I compare it to two years ago, I couldn’t really tell you which year was preferable.”

“But school life and life at home are completely different!”

“For me, those differences hardly matter. As long as I can stay by your side, Ojousama, that is all I need. Anything else can change aside from that, and I wouldn’t care either way. If I had to distinguish between the two though, I would say that having so many bugs here is rather inconvenient, thus home life is more comfortable.”

I’m a bit hesitant to point this out to Ashley, but I think that the Alldington estate actually has more bugs than here, considering it’s surrounded by nature instead of being in the heart of a big city like our school is…

“Your words sound just like a line from a novel. ‘Being able to stay by your side and protect you is the only thing that truly matters to me,’ or something like that! I think I’ve actually read that line somewhere before…. I wonder where it was. Oh yeah! It was in an adventure novel that I read. A knight says it to his lady. You’re becoming more and more like a proper servant, huh, Ashley?”

“I’ve never thought of myself as someone who seems like a servant.”

Well, that’s true. My relationship with any of the other servants in our household is truly nothing like my relationship with Ashley. After coming to the academy and seeing how others typically interact with their servants, I started feeling this even more. Normally, servants speak in a much more reserved manner to their masters and their masters in turn treat them as people whom they should order about.

Since Father doesn’t have one designated servant who attends to him, I never knew what a typical master-servant relationship was supposed to look like, so when I came to the academy I really was quite surprised.

“Well, when you put it that way, then I guess I don’t seem like the typical master either. If I were, I would be me proud and always maintain a composed expression and you as my servant would have give respect me…. But I know that I’m a bit lacking when it comes to pulling this off, which is why you end up making fun of me instead.”

“Oh, so you mean you were actually aware that you are somewhat lacking?”

If you were a normal servant, then I think you wouldn’t be saying those sorts of things to me, Ashley.

“I wish you’d be nice to me every once in a while.”

“Am I not? Nice to you every once in a while…”

“No–“

Well, maybe. Father did tell me that the only time that Ashley ever smiles is when he’s with me… Though from my perspective, he still doesn’t smile nearly often enough.

This chapter is scrapped from readlightnovel.org

“No. Even after thinking about it, I definitely think ill-tempered is a much more fitting description….Wow, you really cut the fruit like that??”

While I had been pondering again whether Ashley should be considered kind or not, he had come back from the kitchen bearing a plate of various fruits all cut into different shapes and sizes.

“I had intended for the platter to be pleasing to the eye…. But if you prefer, I will take it back and cut the pieces more regularly.”

Ashley, thinking that I was not happy with his fruit preparing performance, lowers his head in apology, once again picking up the plate to return to the kitchen.

“Stop! Don’t do it! How could you even consider cutting up those adorable bunnies?”

“Bunnies….”

It may have been a bit much for him to cut up the fruit into animal shapes for me when I’m already well into my teenage years, but now that he has, I somehow feel as if it’s my duty to protect them for as long as possible, even if it is their fate to be eaten later.

After hearing my declaration, Ashley slowly reshaped all of the fruit into little rabbit forms. Even the fruits that are rather difficult to shape, with his adept fingers, soon looked as if they would hop right off the plate. Even the kiwi, he somehow managed to cut these paper thin ears that stuck up so perfectly.

“This isn’t fair, Ashley. If you cut them so cutely, I’ll feel like it’s a waste to just eat them.”

“A woman’s heart is truly hard to understand.”

Picking up a single slice of apple, Ashley brings the piece up to my lips. I am so surprised by this action that without thinking I take a bite.

“It’s dewicious.”

“Please don’t speak with your mouth full.”

“You’ll make the perfect housewife, Ashley.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“Isn’t it okay for me to tease you every now and then?”

I grab an orange slice and pop it into Ashley’s mouth before he can protest. Hiding his embarrassment behind a light glare in my direction, Ashley lightly knocks his forehead into mine.

“I’m a sick person…..” I protest, rubbing the spot on my head that he’d just hit.

“I have no sympathy for a master who likes to carelessly run her mouth at another person’s expense.”

“You’ll never be popular with girls if you’re always this unforgiving.”

That’s a lie…. I’m sure he’ll be popular no matter what. He’s handsome, athletic, smart, great at both magic and housework, and his manners are impeccable. He’s so perfect, there’s no way the young ladies around his age will leave him alone. If he’s not careful, I’m sure his female teachers might even fall for him. No one will see him as being unsociable. With a face like his, such a demeanor can only be described as cool. And he’s only ever mean to me, so that one caveat can hardly detract from his perfection.

“As I thought.”

“Thought what?”

“Most girls probably prefer gentle guys like the student council president.”

Hearing this, my eyes widen a bit as I suck in a surprised gasp. Unfortunately, I just so happen to also be taking a bite from a second apple slice and so I end up choking a bit. As I cough, Ashley hands me a glass of water and gently pats my back.

“Thanks. I’m fine now….. I was just surprised! I thought you didn’t care about those sorts of things, Ashley. Did you manage to find a girl that you like?”

Please don’t be Leila. Please don’t be Leila. Please don’t be Leila. For the sake of both of our lives, please don’t give us any more reasons to interact with that girl.

“……..”

“What is that look supposed to mean?”

“Well…… I was debating whether or not I should ask about your preferences, Ojousama, as someone older, so that I could use them as a reference in the future.”

“So does that mean she’s older than you!?”

“……..”

I had no idea that Ashley even knew any older girls. Discounting the time that we’re in class, Ashley and I are practically always together, so I don’t know when he would have found the time to meet an upperclassman and fall in love with her all without me even noticing.

So, that leaves…. Sarah and Leila. As far as I know, those two are the only upperclassman that Ashley has had a chance to interact with. And it’s mostly my fault that he was even introduced to them!

“Oh wait! It couldn’t be…. is it a forbidden love with a teacher?”

“No.”

Then, it has to be…. Leila…. Why does everything seem to be going wrong lately?

“I had said that this was only for future reference. I also didn’t have anyone in particular in mind when I initally posed my question. Be that as it may, you haven’t answered my question. I suppose that means you do prefer the student council president’s type after all.”

“That’s not true.”

Not in a million years. Not even if the whole world was destroyed and we were the only two people left alive. Sure, if we were going only based off of looks, then he really would be my ideal type. But the one I liked was the Gray-sama from within the game, not the Gray-Senpai who currently resides in this world.

And it seems like rather a lot of other girls also liked Gray-sama, seeing as he was always number one in the online ranking polls. But that was mainly because the bad end for his route was the best in the whole game. It was just so hot!! ❤ But if I had to compare them as people….

“I think that Ashley….

In terms of personality, I actually liked Ashley’s better in the game. The only bad thing about him was that his bad end resulted in a lovers’ suicide…. But seeing as I don’t really need to worry about that anymore….

“I think you are much more charming and attractive.”

“….Oh no. I won’t be fooled by that again. No matter how straightforward those words may seem, you won’t make me believe in their implication again that easily,” he says, looking extremely displeased. Though, at the same time, the corners of his lips couldn’t seem to decide if they wanted to to draw up or turn down.

“But it’s the truth. I personally think that Ashley is a much better man. You’re probably the second best man out of all in my acquaintance.”

“…. Are you expecting me to be happy about that? And I suppose that Arkwright-Senpai is number one then?”

“No way! No matter how you look at it, my Father is way cooler, don’t you think?”

“I…. suppose so…..”

But even though these are my preferences, I have no way of knowing if they correspond with the majority of women in this world. And there is that saying, “To each their own.” But even if other women don’t share my preferences, I still can’t imagine Ashley having anything to worry about in that department.

“Ooh, this conversation is making my heart pound a bit. It feels like I’m exposing the secrets of how women think.”

“Must you speak in such a dubious way?”

What do you want me to say then? I figured you wouldn’t really understand the concept of girl’s talk. Oh, wait. It probably would have been clearer if I just said we were talking about love…. It’s not as nuanced as a girl’s talk but… it would have worked just fine.

“What about…. height…. for instance….”

“Ashley?”

Could he be worried about his height? Certainly, when you compare him with Senpai or Oswell, Ashley is decidedly shorter. But is he bothered by that? His character setting was like this in the game as well.

That means! What I say next in reply is of the utmost importance in securing Ashley’s confidence in himself!

“Hmm, I like guys who are just a bit taller than me, instead of towering over me. Then I don’t have to crane my head up to look at their face.”

“I see.”

His face brightens a bit as he says this. Okay! I did well. Now, I’ll just tell him my type, and that can be the end of our girl’s talk.

“Other things that I like…. Hmm…. Well, being able to cook well is a major plus. Did you know? Apparently, Father is quite the chef! And I think that men who work hard and never shirk there responsibilities are really cool. If the guy shares my interests, that would probably make me really happy as well. Like, if he had an interest in gardening….”

After saying that, I froze a bit in thought . It seems like the more I am listing off my preferred qualities, the more I seem to be describing Ashley…. Wait, wait, wait… But it’s not like that between us. Ashley is my servant; he’s like my little brother! Though he did remind me just the other day that we are not actually siblings. But that doesn’t mean I see Ashley in that way.

Let’s see… what type of face is best? I guess I prefer guys who are considered pretty rather than manly. And when a guy with really cute features puts on a sulky, sour expression, isn’t that just so irresistible!?. . . . . Wait, stop….. Stop….. No way…. That wasn’t Ashley. I was just imagining a generic pretty boy…. Ashley’s face was not the one who crossed my mind. It’s just that the guy I was imagining happened to look similar, that’s all.

Yup, this is awkward. Even if I have to resort to talking about fetishes or something, I need to change the topic before I dig my own grave. Let’s see… I quickly glance around the room, desperately searching for something else to talk about, before my eyes finally land on Ashley’s exposed forearm. It seems he had rolled up his sleeves while he was preparing the fruit for me.

“And um…. Arms! That’s right! My eyes are just drawn to them…. Look, Ashley, see how your sleeves are rolled up right now? When you do that, it always makes me think you look cool.”

“How rare…” says Ashley, bringing one hand up to cover his eyes while his head droops down, trying to hide his embarrassment. “For you to use the word ‘cool’ to compliment me, Ojousama.”

“……Ah–!? Please, I’m begging you, can you not react like that?”

I would have thought he would be used to being called cool by now! Apparently not. His face has gone as red as a tomato; just bringing his hand up like that is not capable of hiding that fact. It should be illegal for someone to react like this! That blush is bound to start giving me wicked thoughts. Wait… No! That’s not true. No wayward thoughts here! Not a one.

I guess I really was lacking in sleep after all. It’s starting to make me think weird things. If I can just have a good rest, I’m sure all these weird delusions and this awkward awareness of Ashley will all be cleared up.