Ch. 23
The Young Master I Carefully Raised Became ObsessiveThis chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Notes
Not sure how I feel about aggressive Ardion. -Charmaine
This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Not sure how I feel about aggressive Ardion. -Charmaine
I widened my eyes briefly before saying calmly, “Young Master, you don’t need to give me mana right away. You still can’t turn it into water.”
“But it’s not impossible. We could mix bodily fluids.”
“… No, you don’t have to give it to me that way.”
Ardion hadn’t met the female protagonist yet, so how could I kiss him before that? That would be absolutely unacceptable.
Ardion stared at me intently, his gaze deeper than ever.
“Young Master?”
“If that’s what you want… I won’t force you.”
Ardion quickly stood up, and I followed suit. The excitement from the festival was starting to fade.
So we returned to the mansion in silence. He wore a serious expression the entire way, while I didn’t feel the need to speak.
When we finally arrived, Ardion immediately entered his room.
Derol chirped, but he firmly closed the door.
I glanced at the closed door for a moment before heading to my own room. I wondered what his thoughts were on the way back.
Could he genuinely like me?
The thought made me snicker. It sounded absurd.
I shook my head. It couldn’t be true. What’s there to like about me? I’ve just been kind to him.
I cast my thoughts aside as I returned to my room.
❋ ❋ ❋
After the festival, the mansion was quite chaotic. Duke Orchid had suddenly fallen ill. When I heard the news, I felt quite at a loss.
What if he died without receiving all his punishment?
As soon as that thought crossed my mind, I pulled out all the evidence I had gathered. Ardion wasn’t yet fully an adult, but Duke Orchid needed to face justice. Ardion had almost grown up anyway.
As I spread the documents around my room, Derol hurried in. “Master, are we starting now?”
“Yes, I need to go to the post office first. I have to send the evidence to the investigation office.”
I stuffed a large stack of documents detailing Duke Orchid’s numerous illegal activities and the operations of Jonok’s casino into a big bag. All of it was a result of my and Dero’s work.
Before lunchtime, I sent the evidence materials from the post office to the investigation office. Now, I just needed to wait for the results.
As soon as I returned to the mansion, I started packing my things. It was time to prepare to leave.
“Master, when will we be leaving the mansion?” Derol chirped from my pocket.
“Let’s leave early tomorrow morning. We should rest comfortably tonight.”
“Yes, Master. At least we’ll be able to rest well tonight.”
I smiled. When I checked the time, it was already lunchtime. I picked up the trays of food and headed towards Ardion’s room.
After the festival, Ardion had been engrossed in reading magic books and hardly looked at me.
It was somewhat reassuring. Seeing him work hard motivated me too.
Now that Ardion had grown up, it was time for…
I thought about leaving the mansion and Ardion's future. He would also leave soon since Rowell would send him to war.
It was impossible for me to stop Rowell, as I was low on mana. The original story stated he had tormented Ardion until the end.
Still, I was glad to see Ardion was doing well here. At least he wasn’t sulking anymore and could smile.
Though these days, he didn’t smile as often… No, his expression seemed worse than before.
I offered the tray of food to Ardion. “Young Master, it’s lunchtime.”
Ardion nodded and continued looking at his magic book. Sometimes, he would ignore food when he was focused, especially if I was nearby.
Not wanting to disturb him, I quickly finished eating. “Young Master, I’ll take my leave now.”
I quickly organized the documents I had brought, but a few sheets slipped from my grasp. They were evidence I hadn’t sent to the investigation office yet. I planned to supplement the content before sending them.
I bent down to pick them up, but Ardion was faster.
“A casino?” Ardion looked at me with curiosity.
“Oh, it’s evidence regarding the gambling den operated by Jonok.”
“Why do you have this?”
“Well, I’m planning to leave the mansion…”
Ardion’s brow furrowed visibly. “Leave the mansion?”
His voice was disturbingly low.
I flinched slightly but responded calmly, “Regardless, both you and I will have to leave the mansion. Being under Duke Orchid…”
Ardion’s expression hardened as he said in a low voice, “I’m not leaving.”
He stared at me intensely, his green eyes unusually deep. He was different from the Ardion I had seen at the festival.
When I looked at him in surprise, he stepped closer and stood tall in front of me. I instinctively took a step back.
“Laila.” Ardion took another step closer. He had been training diligently in swordsmanship lately, and his shoulders were broad, so his overall frame somewhat intimidated me.
I instinctively stepped back.
He stood still. “Have you only thought about escaping this place all this time?”
“It doesn’t suit me here, especially with Duke Orchid around,” I replied casually.
Ardion sighed deeply.
“And, Young Master, this may sound selfish, but I only want mana. I know I’m in no position to ask this of you, but I hope you don’t dwell on it too much.”
“You just want mana from me?”
I nodded, not wanting to burden him further. Wanting anything more would feel like theft.
“… Is that really all?”
“Yes.”
When Adrion heard my light tone, his expression turned serious. As I looked at him in confusion, he moved closer again.
“Laila, there’s something I’ve wanted to ask for a long time.”
His unwaveringly serious stare lasted for a while before he continued, “Laila, do you love me?”
“Pardon me?”
“Do you love me?”
“… Young Master.”
“Because I love you.”
“…”
I was utterly surprised by what he said, speechlessly staring at him.
But Ardion approached me with a grin on his face. “Laila, tell me you love me. If you say so, I will give you everything I have. Hm?”
I stood there, staring blankly at Ardion. He looked so different now. The Ardion who used to fumble and blush around me seemed to have vanished.
“… Are you serious?”
“I’ve been serious all along.”
I was at a loss for words, my mind blank. Why?
I quickly shook my head. “Young Master, I haven’t done anything for you out of that kind of feeling. But you…”
“It doesn’t matter what you’ve done for me.”
“But I’m not the one for you.”
“Why?”
“That’s…”
My mind was a jumble. Ardion was supposed to like the female protagonist. He shouldn’t like me!
How do I even explain this...?
No, I couldn’t explain. If I did, he would think I was insane. Just being in this situation was absurd.
Yet I couldn’t stay silent, so I finally said honestly, “Because I don’t love you.”
“It doesn’t matter. You only need me to love you. I’ll…”
I stepped back, feeling flustered by Ardion’s sudden assertiveness. He gazed at me intently, deeply, sharply. Alas, it was clear to me now that the way he looked at me had changed.
“Aren’t you good at persuading me? Shouldn’t you tell me you love me especially now?”
“…”
“Besides, you’re low on mana.”
It was never my intention to receive his mana in that kind of manner.
While I was still bewildered, he strode forward a step. “Why don’t you say that to me? You could just say it even if it’s a lie, Laila.”
That was because it wasn’t right. I would only be giving him false hope.
“I won’t say such lies, especially when it involves feelings.”
With that, I left Ardion’s room.
As soon as I entered my room, Derol chirped, “Master, it’s definitely time to leave the mansion.”
I silently agreed.
❋ ❋ ❋
That evening, the mansion was unexpectedly chaotic. I was on my way back from throwing out some trash when Benji rushed over.
“Laila!”
“What’s the matter?”
“Rowell is here.”
“What?” I involuntarily raised my voice in surprise. In the original story, Rowell had never come here. Only his subordinates had taken Ardion away.
This wasn’t in the original… What’s going on?
Seeing my confusion, Benji said calmly, “He’s looking for Ardion. Where is he?”
“He’s looking for the young master?” I asked.
But before I could hear an answer, a voice interrupted us.
“Ah, there she is.”
An unwelcome voice rang out from behind. I turned around and saw Duke Orchid, who was said to be ill. But in my eyes, it looked like a lie. His voice was more arrogant than before.
“Rowell is looking for Ardion, so bring him over immediately.”
With that, he turned away.
I felt burning anxiety. I hadn’t anticipated this at all. Why is Rowell here at this hour? And why is he looking for Ardion…?
Recalling the original story, I remembered that Rowell had sent Ardion to war.
Could it be...?
I hurried to Ardion’s room and knocked on the door. “Young Master!”
The door immediately opened, and Ardion looked at me with a lowered gaze.
His words from earlier that morning still lingered in my mind, but it wasn’t the time to think about them.
“Young Master, you need to leave right now.”
I began gathering his belongings, but Ardion took the bag from my grasp.