Chapter 20: CH 20

It was already evening.

“What, what!”

Juliana’s eyes widened.

The maids, who came in without a word, busily spread a tablecloth and set the freshly cooked dishes from the cart they brought on the table.

Juliana looked at the servants who put the food down with a puzzled face. These maids whom she saw for the first time today acted mechanically. They had expressionless faces and their heads were bowed down. They were like dolls without emotions.

Among them was a young girl with scarlet hair. Anna, whose hair was braided in ponytails, was someone she was already familiar with, just like the lunatic’s butler.

Anna made a brief eye contact with Juliana and their gazes met. She then left the room with the rest of the maids. They came in and out as if they had teleported, Juliana was stunned.

“Just now, those people……”

Juliana, who had been stunned, came to her senses and quickly scanned the table. It was full of hearty food that was good for the health.

“……”

This was the first time the maids came in like this. Most of the time, the ones who visited were either the butler, or Anna, the girl who had just met her eyes.

“…Ah!”

Tak.

Juliana, lost in her thoughts, lifted her head as the freshly cooked steak was placed in front of her.

Louis handed his plate with the steak he had sliced to Juliana, then took the plate in front of her.

“It’s okay I can do…”

Juliana said as she looked at the sliced steak.

“Eat it while it’s warm, Julie.”

With his kind tone, Juliana laughed bashfully.

Steak was Juliana’s favorite food. Juliana pierced a piece of the steak with her fork and put it in her mouth. The juices and sauce in her mouth melted in harmony.

“Hmm, it’s delicious.”

‘This must be what it means to eat well.’

Louis looked at Juliana with a pleased expression. She swallowed the meat skillfully.

When he saw her cheeks bulging out like a squirrel’s, he felt full. The corners of Louis’ lips went up like a seal.

[T/N: Lol this author really likes using animals as a comparison huh. XD]

“Louie, eat a lot too.”

As he watched her eating, Juliana beckoned him to eat as well. Louis slowly began to slice and eat his steak.

“No, but Louis.”

“Yes, Juliana.”

“Isn’t this the first time servants came in like this? No one approached me, so I was wondering if there was some kind of ban…”

Juliana grimaced.

‘Well you got half right’

Louis thought calmly, but a different answer came out of his mouth.

“Don’t mind them, Julie.”

He moved his tableware leisurely.

“Juliana only needs to care about me.”

“Keukeuk.“

It was a very misleading statement. Juliana choked and coughed.

“Hey, don’t say it like that. Whoever hears it will misunderstand!”

Juliana’s voice rose even higher. As she glanced at the man and called him out for what he had just said, Louis tilted his head.

“What will they misunderstand?”

He stared at Juliana as if he couldn’t follow. His voice didn’t waver.

“Julie, do you not care about me?”

“Th-That… No, that’s…”

Juliana was bewildered because Louis, with his gentle voice, brought his face close to hers. He had a strange talent to fluster people.

‘Maybe that handsome appearance is the problem…’

“Sorry, Julie.”

Louis pouted his red lips.

“Julie must not care about me.”

He lowered his head. Juliana’s golden eyes shook at his forlorn look.

“No… I care, but…”

Swallowing her saliva, Juliana fiddled with the fork in her hand. Her hand trembled due to the tension.

“Okay. You just have to care about me like that.”

Louis smiled and blinked his eyes as if he was satisfied.

‘What are you saying?’

She almost doubted what she had just heard.

Juliana was puzzled at his conclusion. She almost dropped her fork. She appeared to be embarrassed and looked at him blankly.

‘No, how did you come to that conclusion…!’

It felt like a whirlwind had been swept away in an instant.

‘How should I say this?’

She boarded a boat, and it felt like the boat floated to an unfamiliar place and stopped in the middle of the sea?

Her mind went blank.

“Why? Isn’t this also a part of being your friend?”

Juliana stopped thinking. Louis paused as if he had read her tired mind and spoke bluntly.

“…because we are friends?”

Juliana looked straight into the man’s gaze. Louis raised the corners of his lips. He was genuinely happy.

“Of course. Because we’re friends.”

They were obviously friends but Juliana poked the steak with her fork when he answered something she hadn’t expected. She gnawed at the juicy steak and glared at Louis with her furrowed eyebrows. Louis smiled mischievously.

‘Yeah, we’re friends…’

Juliana nodded her head as if she was convincing herself.

This morning Louis had asked her to be his friend.

And so she did and was able to establish a relationship they could define.

‘Because up until now, we’ve had the ambiguous relationship of being prisonmates.’

‘But now it’s different!!’

Thanks to Louis’ wish, her relationship with him was now clearly defined.

‘Well then! We’re friends and I care about him because I thought of him as a friend.’

It was a logical argument.

He was dependable, they cared about each other, and they had fun together.

‘Stupid Juliana! I can’t believe I just realized it……’

As she re-evaluated their relationship, she felt more and more at ease.

Occasionally, her heart would strangely beat faster, but she just assumed it was an arrhythmia. She and Louis just hadn’t defined it in words, but they were already friends!

“Chomp Chomp.”

Juliana swallowed her steak and her shoulders moved. When she finally came up with a clear answer, her mood became so light she felt she could fly away. The food tasted so good that her shoulders danced involuntarily.

“…..”

At that moment, Juliana’s eyes saw the calluses in Louis’ hands. He was leisurely cutting and eating his steak.

‘Come to think of it, you seem very familiar with swords…’

Suddenly, a memory of him in the underground passage came to mind. Louis wielded the sword skillfully. She stared sharply at Louis’ ribbed fingers.

Peek.

Juliana looked at his right wrist, he was wearing the same magic restraint as she did. The restraints felt like a couple’s bracelet.

‘Ugh! No it’s not!’

Juliana waved her hands to erase the thoughts that came to mind.

‘What do you mean a couple’s bracelet, it’s a friendship bracelet…!’

No matter how much she thought about it, it was only right to correct the wrong thoughts immediately. Louis, puzzled, asked Juliana as her hand flew above her in the air.

“What is it, is there a fly?”

“…Oh, it’s nothing. Just… By the way, what’s Louis’ occupation?”

It must have seemed strange when her hands moved for no reason. Juliana quickly switched to a different topic.

“Would a knife-wielding profession be fine as an answer?” Louis replied with a playful smile.

Juliana had quite a few conversations with Louis. As for his personal affairs, he took the topic lightly and did not expound further.

‘I’m full.’

Juliana set the spoon down as she had already eaten a lot. Originally, she would have eaten like a bird, however, perhaps because she was with Louis, or because the food was so delicious, she ate a lot.

‘The Lunatic of the Empire might be fattening me up to eat me!’

Juliana grabbed the plump flesh on her side and made a tearful expression.

“I guess you like steak.”

Louis glanced at Juliana’s empty plate. Juliana, who was a little bit ashamed, scratched her head.

“I like steak so……”

“I see.”

Louis responded monotonously.

“By the way, what kind of food does Louis like?”

Juliana was disturbed by Louis’ strange action. He slowly curled his lips.

“I like fish very much.”

Juliana choked at the words he spoke plainly.

At that moment, she somehow remembered the memories from their early days together. Louis said that she resembled a fish.

‘The story back then has absolutely nothing to do with now, so why?!’

Juliana gulped the water in the glass in front of her in one go.

“Oh my.”

Louis’ eyes turned round.

“Looks like the fish is very thirsty.”

She thought he had said something, but she couldn’t hear it properly as she was wiping the tears from her eyes.

‘What’s going on today?’

Juliana looked out the window and had a puzzled look. She saw busy workers moving. It was especially chaotic outside today.

Crash.

“…”

Oops, she accidentally hit the teacup by mistake.

Juliana was startled and leaned down. Sharp shards of glass were scattered on the floor, and black tea was spilled everywhere.

While she calmed her startled chest, a tall man squatted down and picked up the pieces of the broken cup.

“Hic! I can do it…!”

Juliana, who had a perplexed expression, stopped the man.

“It’s okay, Julie.”

There was no agitation in the man’s low voice. He kept a calm face and a relaxed attitude while he picked up the broken fragments.

“Louis, I’ll do it.”

Dazed, Juliana bowed her body at the same time. Louis, who had been crouched down without responding, blocked her hand.

“It’s dangerous.”

Louis slowly raised his head, adding his calm words.

A good man who had a heart as grand as his dazzling appearance. Juliana withdrew her hand as she couldn’t push forward, and then fidgeted. Louis slowly cleaned up the pieces of glass with the speed of a tortoise.

“…Th-Thank you.”

Juliana was grateful and at the same time felt sorry towards Louis who had to correct her own mistakes.

While he went to throw away the shards of glass for a moment, Juliana was lost in her thoughts.

‘I’m not the type of person to be clumsy enough to break a teacup…’

She had been feeling a bit uneasy since this morning.

Jinx.

The word lingered in her mind. Juliana bit her lower lip and affixed her gaze out the window. An ominous feeling enveloped her as she stared at the unusual movements of the servants.