The Sword and The Dress - V3C1 PART3

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Here comes the bonus chapter. Happy reading~~nn
“Like, treat the other person kindly and friendly?”

“Roel’s already friendly from the start. About being kind….”

Captain couldn’t bring himself to continue his words so he shut his mouth. It’s alright. Even I myself think that I’m far from being kind. Honestly, I don’t have much recollection of me being kind.

“Captain’s also kind.”

“Captain again…”

“Ah, come on! Just leave it out. You see, I call you by your name. Jullius Jullius Jullius Jullius!”

My mouth isn’t used to it.

“Anyway, other than personality, you might be attracted to their abilities, right?”

“All I can do is, is just fighting in battles…”

“Well, so do I. But we’re both good at it. Even if you’re one of the best on something you’re good at, it still means you’re capable enough.”

Though I’m a bit weaker now. Ugh, if you think that way, it makes me look like the incompetent one. I’m lossing another factor that lessened my worth as someone you could fall in love with, this won’t do.

“Even in personality aspect… I’m not confident.”

Captain Jullius sullenly said.

“I’ve never heard of being told as someone who has a good personality.”

“I also have never heard of it from those who know me well.”

I’ve been told that I was very vivacious, but to be honest, it’s more of a sarcastic remark than a compliment. Goodness gracious, Captain at least still has an ability, but I have neither good looks nor talent nor even a good personality. At this rate, doesn’t this mean that I’ll be the only one who might fall in love with Captain while Captain might look for another woman? That’s a little, no, really bad.

“… How do you think you’ll fall in love with me?”

“If I knew about that, I’d have tried it. How about you, Roel?”

“I would also have told you if I knew.”

We sighed simultaneously. It’s difficult. I wonder how on earth do other people start loving someone.

“Jullius.”

“Huh?”

“Although we’re at a loss, but let’s try our best. Honestly, I don’t want to fall in love with someone else.”

“Neither do I. I don’t like any other woman besides Roel.”

Like this, we both have similar thoughts on what is love and why doesn’t it work out the way we want it to. I deeply sighed for the second time then Captain Jullius called me in a low voice.

“Roel.”

“Yes?”

“May I hug you?”

“Sure.”

There’s no reason you can’t do so. Soon after, he stretched out his strong arms and wrapped my upper body in his arms then gently drew me closer to him. When my cheek came into contact with Captain Jullius’ chest, I could feel his heart beating. Listening to the sound of the heartbeat that seemed to be faster than usual, my heart also started to pound quickly as well. If only he shines too, everything would be perfect, but I wonder why he doesn’t. It’s such a pity that it made me feel really bad about it.

‘It costs a fortune.’

That’s what my first impression of my bedroom is as soon as I saw it. The room was large and even more, the furnitures and decorations were all of high quality. I wasn’t interested in such things so I didn’t know much about it, but I recognized the design and it’s signature style. So, what I was trying to say was, I’ve seen it before because that’s the design which was mainly used to decorate the Imperial Palace. The carpet, which was laid out on the floor, was also soft and fluffy. A living room, a bathroom, and also a simple dress room were all included inside the bedroom. It’s totally different from those single rooms like the one in the church or my previous room at the Count’s pavilion. Shortly after I sat on the sofa, Sofia, -who has finished organizing the luggage-, approached me with an excited face.

“Miss, Miss! Isn’t this really cool?”

“Well, it looks like the bed is nice.”

Other than that, whether it’s nice or not, it had nothing to do with me. If the bed’s soft and good for sleeping, then it’s all good. But Sofia’s eyes brightened as she couldn’t stop looking all over the bedroom.

“Oh my gosh, this is such a gorgeous bedroom in a mansion near the Imperial Palace! As expected from a prince!”

“… my fiance is also rich, you know.”n
“Even if you have the money, it doesn’t mean you can easily buy a mansion like this.”

That’s right, but somehow it upset me. Sofia scurried across the living room and pushed the door to the balcony wide open. The cool summer breeze that came through the opened door twirled the thin curtain once and I could feel it brushed against my cheek.

“The scenery is also really great! The Madam–, ah, she’s not one anymore. This one is on a whole different level from that woman’s flower garden which was uselessly decorated in such extravagant way! This is exactly what you call as an elegant garden. I’m sure the other surrounding lower buildings are all elegant as well. Do you know? This mansion has no less than 300 years of history!”

… I’m not sure if it won’t collapse. There’re much older buildings in the Imperial Palace though.

“There were times when I couldn’t sleep because I was worried about Miss, and I’ve never thought a day like this would ever come… The late Countess would be truly relieved and pleased.”

(T/N: Sofia’s referring to Silla’s biological mom, not the evil stepmom)

Her words pricked my conscience. I ought to tell her the truth that I’m not Silla. I couldn’t deceive Sofia forever. It’s something that should be revealed for her and Silla’s sakes.

‘… but first of all, I’ll have to ask adjutant Sieg about it.’

If I decided to reveal it on my own, adjutant Sieg might interfere and tell me to shut my mouth. If by any chance he’s against it, I wonder how I’m going to persuade him….

“Miss!”

“… huh?”

As I was worried sick thinking about it, Sofia came in front of me again.

“Can I still come to the Special Task Squad’s headquarters freely?”

“Why?”

“I want to keep learning how to cook from Chef Ira and Chef Sana.”

“I’ll try talking to Ortzen. I think he’ll allow it.”

“Thank you! I told you before that I have a talent for cooking, so please look forward to it.”

Right, that’s what I’m really looking forward to. That being said, the other thing that I regretted the most after leaving the Special Task Squad’s headquarters and living seperately from Captain Jullius, was the delicious food. I looked up at Sofia who kept smiling brightly and suddenly asked her.

“Sofia.”

“Yes?”

“By any chance, do you know anything about love?”

“Love?”

“Mhm. So… like how do you fall in love, or things like that.”

I was thinking about asking adjutant Sieg, but after giving it some thought, I think Sofia might know things like this better. Sofia, who had a faint blush on her cheeks, held her hands together.

“Love is a really, really wonderful thing!”

“So what am I supposed to do to fall in love?”

“There’s no such thing as how to fall in love! You just suddenly fall in love as if you were struck by lightning! It’s like a natural disaster. You can’t predict it, you can’t prepare for it, and you can’t even resist it. It’s just, it just melts completely in your heart and you’ve no choice but to give in.”

… what’s she talking about?

“That’s why I’m talking about the reason, the reason. Even if you suddenly fall in love, isn’t there a cause for it to happen?”

(T/N: it’s not a typo. She said ‘the reason’ twice to emphasise)

“There’s no such thing. You’ll just fall in love!”

What’s that? I blankly looked up at Sofia who shouted passionately. It happened just like that?

“… uh, but usually there should be something. For instance, because the other person is handsome or beautiful.”

“If you fall in love simply by looking at someone’s appearance, then it’s not true love!”

“I don’t think so.”

“It’s true. How can you fall in love just by looking at one’s appearance?!”

But from my experience, a person’s face is very important.

“Wait a minute, Miss!”

Suddenly, Sofia ran out of my bedroom. The sound of footsteps in the corridor could be heard for a while then it quited down, and the ‘tap-tap-tap’ sound of her footsteps resumed as she ran back and entered the bedroom. When she returned, she was holding some books tightly in her arms.

“Luckily, my room wasn’t robbed, so my belongings left untouched.”n
Sofia said as she showed me her books. The former Count of Epheria had a considerable number of valuables stolen by his employees. The same goes for the pavilion where I stayed before because the jewellery I beguiled from the Countess had also disappeared. However, even if the books weren’t in Sofia’s room, but left in a very conspicuous place, I don’t think anyone would want to steal them.

“Please try reading these books.”

“What kind of books are these?”

I took one of the books and looked at its cover. The Crown Prince’s Garden? What is it, is it an advanced gardening manual? Sofia, with a proud look on her face, answered my question.

“If you read these books, Miss will fully understand about love too!”

“Is that so?”

There were all such books. If I read all these, I wonder whether if I would really know how to fall in love.

“Can I also lend it to Captain Jullius?”

“N, no, you can’t! This book is meant to be read for women only.”

Is it a love guide that is exclusively made for women?

“Are there any books like these for men?”

“For men…..”

Sofia’s face became strangely distorted.

“It’d be better if there’s no such thing for men!”

It means they do have these kinds of books for men. I’ve to ask adjutant Sieg to get it for me.

“Thanks. I’ll read it thoroughly.”

“Yup! There are more, so please do let me know whenever you need them.”

Sofia was delighted for some reason as she handed me all the remaining books.

***
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