Then suddenly, a pair of strong arms wrapped around my upper body and hugged me. Naturally, they were not Ortzenās, but Captain Julliusās arms. As he wrapped my upper body, he pulled me into his chest. The back of my head bumped against his wide chest lightly. What happened? Heās doing something he has never done before. As he put a little bit strength into the arms that embraced me, I raised my hand and touched the Captainās cheek lightly.\n\nāWhatās wrong?ā\n\nāā¦Nothing.ā\n\nHis voice that could be heard coming from above my head, sounded a bit like a murmur. Something seems to be different from usual, but I donāt know why. In that moment, Ortzen intervened.\n\nāAlright, thatās all for now. We have to get ready for tomorrow. We have to gather at the Church later tonight so as not to be seen by others. Captain and Lord Roel have decided to leave from your own home, right?ā\n\nāYeah. Sieg told me to ride the employeesā carriage.ā\n\nI was practically leaning against Captain Julliusās chest when I replied. This is kind of comfortable.\n\nāIām also going to accompany the two of you when you return to your homes. If I leave the Special Task Squad alone, itāll attract attention.ā\n\nāWhat about Clauen?ā\n\nāHe has gotten out of the city wall first. He prepared for the trip by himself.ā\n\nCome to think of it, heās someone who is affliated with the merchant guild, so I think heāll be good at preparing necessary items for the trip. Ortzen turned around and walked to his desk, then said.\n\nāThere is a few things left to finish, so please wait a moment.ā\n\nāTake your time.ā\n\nThereās still a long time until the sun sets, so thereās no rush. I was going to sit on the sofa, but I didnāt think Captain Jullius would let me go, so I just stood still. Should I have asked him to hug me from the start?\n\nāUmm, Sir Roel.ā\n\nAt that moment, Cain secretly studied my facial expression and talked to me again. Heās being very timid. Heās not this kind of guy.\n\nāHm?ā\n\nāSoā¦..ā\n\nThat guy hesitatingly looked at me and Captain Jullius behind me in turn and took a step backward.\n\nā⦠Itās nothing.ā\n\nWhat theā, spill it. How can I know what you want to say if you donāt say it out loud?\n\nāJust say it. Itās okaāā\n\nFwoosh. Captain Jullius suddenly lifted me in his arms in a flash.\n\nāItās going to take a while so we should go out and wait.ā\n\nāThen letās go to a restaurant.ā\n\nIf we leave the capital, we wonāt be able to eat good snacks until we return. Sweet snacks can only be found in large cities outside the capital. Cain was a bit of a bother, but there was no sign of him trying to talk to me again, so just like that, I went outside while being held in Captainās arms.\n\n\n\nI said letās go to the restaurant, but the place where Captain Jullius headed was the underground cave. While I was wondering why we came here, he put me down on top of a boulder. I sat on the boulder and looked up at Captain Jullius. He looked somewhat troubled as if he didnāt know how to broach the matter. If I just leave it alone, heāll be hesitating all day long, so Iāll have to open my mouth first.\n\nāWhat happened?ā\n\nThere must be a reason for coming here. The Captain answered my question in a small voice as if he was murmuring.\n\nāā¦ā¦ I hate it.ā\n\nāWhat do you hate?ā\n\nā⦠Roel, you⦠seem to be interested in Sir Silac.ā\n\nAfter he said that, he turned his head sideways slightly as if he was avoiding my gaze. Oh, what is this? Despite the difference in gender, Iāve seen this scene a lot. I have heard some ladies say āI hate it when youāre being friendly with Lady Xā quite a lot. I never thought Captain Jullius would say that. Somehow I burst into laughter.\n\nāI donāt really like Sir Silac, but why did you hate it when I only chatted with him a bit?ā\n\nāā¦ā¦ Because it was different.ā\n\nāDifferent?ā\n\nāItās just, I had that kind of feeling.ā\n\nThat kind of feeling? What is it? I thought Cain was a bit cute when he was flustered, but could it be that he noticed that?\n
āNo matter what you feel, I like you a lot more, Jullius.ā\n\nāI also know that.ā\n\n⦠Hello? I thought you were feeling insecure, but I see that youāre talking confidently now. I beckoned the Captain to sit next to me. Then I held his hand tightly and asked.\n\nāYou know already? No, well, I guess it goes without saying that I like you more.ā\n\nāRoelā¦..ā He continued in a slightly dejected voice, āSo now, the person you like the most isnāt me.ā\n\nā⦠What?ā\n\nāā¦.. Or am I still?ā\n\nāUh, thatās right, but wait.ā\n\nItās not wrong. Itās true that the person I like the most right now is Captain Jullius, but why is the Captain saying something like that? No, Iām not saying he canāt say it, but I think something is strange⦠Is it right to think that itās strange? Am I very obvious when when I like something? I think Iāve said I like him several times, but maybe Iām not good enough to be the person he likes the most? Rather than that, even though he is confident that the person I like the most is him, why is he often diffident?\n\nāSo, Jullius, uh⦠first of all, am I the person you like the most?ā\n\nSorting through my thoughts, this seems to be the first thing that needs to be confirmed. It will be my loss if Iām the only one who likes him the most. The Captain nodded right away at my question.\n\nāThatās right.ā\n\nGood, thatās enough.\n\nāWhy do you often hesitate and dither even though you know I like you the most? Itās okay to be more confident.ā\n\nEven if youāre not as confident as me.\n\nāHoweverā¦..ā\n\nHis pale grey eyes looked down at his hand in mine.\n\nāI donāt know how to keep being someone who Roel likes the most like this. I mean, I donāt know how to win someoneās favor.ā\n\nāWhat? Uhmā¦..ā\n\n
T/N: sorry guys for uploading this late, we were quite busy these days. (Mainly it was my fault tho *hides in the corner). Iāll try to finish another chapter on weekend, but weāll see how it will go haha