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Chapter 05
“Why? Why do you like me?”
“B-because you’re like an angel who came down from heaven.”
Jaylin stammered, her ears flushed red. It was such a foolish and trivial reason.
“A-and you’re kind and g-gentle. Th-that’s why I like you, Young Master.”
“You think I’m kind and gentle?”
The little girl nodded innocently.
‘But all of that is fake. What’s so lovable about fake kindness?’
Lionel suddenly became curious.
‘Would you still like me if I acted mean? If I showed you the real me instead of this fake kindness?’
Just then, a maid came in with snacks—freshly squeezed orange juice and cookies filled with sweet apple jam—setting them down in front of Lionel and Jaylin.
Lionel stared at the treats in silence before lifting his head.
Jaylin’s eyes were glued to the plate, her mouth almost watering. Resting his chin crookedly on one hand, Lionel looked down at her.
“Then, Jaylin, do you like the cookies more? Or me?”
Jaylin squirmed in embarrassment but finally whispered softly,
“I-I like you more, Young Master.”
If it were any other child, Lionel would’ve stopped there. He would’ve thanked her sweetly and told her that he liked her too—as a friend.
But he didn’t want to do that with Jaylin.
A cruel impulse stirred inside him—he wanted to make her cry.
He wanted to test her.
Would she still like him if he made her give up cookies? What exactly was this “like” she claimed to feel for him? How far did it go?
He was simply curious.
Lionel reached out and dragged Jaylin’s plate of snacks toward himself.
“Then I guess you don’t need these, right? Since you like me more.”
Jaylin’s eyes widened in surprise, but she still nodded.
Lionel popped a cookie into his mouth. The overly sweet apple jam melted on his tongue, almost sickening in its sweetness. He hated sweets, but he forced it down.
Then he took another cookie—Jaylin’s—and stared at her as he ate it.
‘Even now, do you still like me?’
Jaylin lowered her gaze, her eyes filled with quiet disappointment as they fell to her book.
‘You say you like me, and yet you look like that just over a few cookies?’
Lionel’s mood dropped sharply.
Even after a while, Jaylin’s eyes remained fixed on the intermediate Rune Language textbook. Her tiny hand slowly scribbled equations in the margins.
He wasn’t pleased.
Now that he thought about it, the fountain pen and paper he’d given her had vanished, replaced again by her old, worn pencil.
“Jaylin.”
At last, she lifted her eyes from the book and looked at Lionel.
Not even sure why he was displeased, Lionel forced a kind smile.
“What happened to the fountain pen I gave you?”
Jaylin dropped her gaze and bit her lip. After hesitating a moment, she finally answered in a small voice,
“S-sorry… I l-lost it.”
“It’s okay. These things happen.”
Lionel said gently, though he gave a bitter smile.
Maybe she thought he was disappointed, because Jaylin hung her head even lower, unable to meet his eyes.
‘If you were going to act that sorry in front of me, you should’ve taken better care of it. If you’d valued it even half as much as that Rune textbook of yours, you wouldn’t have lost it so easily.’
He was angry that Jaylin had lost something he gave her so carelessly.
Then a good idea came to him. He knew what she truly cared about.
‘If I took her most precious thing… would she still like me?’
Leaning lazily on his hand, Lionel asked,
“So, this Rune stuff… is it really that fun?”
“Y-yes. It’s r-really fun.”
“Why?”
“B-because… it’s the o-only thing I can d-do.”
“I see. Since you like it so much, I’m starting to get interested too. I want to try learning it.”
Perhaps because he’d picked a subject she loved, Jaylin’s face brightened as she looked up at him.
“Y-you’ll like Rune Language too, Young Master. I-I’m sure of it.”
“Then could I borrow your book?”
“H-huh?”
“Why do you look so surprised? That book helped you get good at Rune Language, right? So I figured if I study with it, I’ll get good too.”
“Oh…”
Jaylin hesitated for a long time, fidgeting with the frayed ends of her sleeve.
Eventually, Lionel’s gentle smile broke her down, and she reluctantly handed him the book in her hands.
“H-here…”
Lionel accepted the old, battered book. It was so worn, he didn’t even want to touch it.
“Thanks. I’ll read it and return it the next time you visit.”
Only then did Jaylin’s frozen expression start to ease a little.
A week flew by, and it was again the day Jaylin and Lionel spent time together.
Lionel took her to the cave. He showed her how to carve again, but for some reason, Jaylin couldn’t focus that day.
As their time neared its end, Jaylin lingered around Lionel, hesitant, like she had something to say.
After packing up the carving tools into a box, Lionel turned to her.
“What’s wrong? Got something to say?”
He already knew what she wanted to ask, but pretended not to.
Fidgeting nervously, Jaylin finally opened her mouth. Her voice was so small, it was barely audible.
“Um… Y-young Master… m-my book…”
Lionel smiled, his expression picture-perfect.
“Ah. Sorry. What a shame.”
Finally, the response he’d been saving for this exact moment left his lips.
“I lost your book.”
The wooden carving in Jaylin’s hand slipped and rolled across the floor with a dull thud.
The spring, once bursting with blooms, faded into the past. Summer arrived in Eduardo, bringing rich, deep green to the trees.
The normally peaceful garden of the Eduardo estate was bustling with guests.
“Happy birthday, Lionel.”
Sasha, with her honey-gold hair neatly swept back, handed Lionel a gift wrapped in golden foil.
Dressed in a pink lace dress layered with frills, the girl looked like a porcelain doll—elegant and lovely.
Despite Sasha’s cheerful greeting, Lionel’s face remained indifferent. As she handed him the gift, she looked up at him expectantly.
Lionel, masking his eyes behind a gentle smile, leaned in and gave her a cheek-to-cheek greeting as etiquette demanded.
“Thanks for coming.”
“How does it feel to be thirteen?”
“I don’t know. Nothing much has changed. Did it feel any different for you?”
Lionel forced the question out, not caring for the answer.
Faking politeness today, of all days—his own birthday—felt disgustingly exhausting.
“It was definitely different. My father bought me a horse for my thirteenth birthday. It has the most beautiful white coat.”
“Good for you. What’s its name?”
“Sasha the Second.”
Lionel let out a dry chuckle.
“Sounds just like you.”
“I know, right? It’s the perfect name! The white coat suits me so well. I once went horseback riding on Sasha, and the servants said I looked like a painting come to life. You’ll be amazed when you see us.”
‘Amazed by what, exactly?’
The conversation was so dull, Lionel felt like yawning.
He wanted nothing more than to shut that chattering mouth and escape.
But all he could do was keep up appearances and smile.
“Lionel, why don’t we go riding together? The weather’s perfect! We could even have a picnic!”
Sasha clasped her hands together like she was praying, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement.
“We can lay out a huge blanket on the grass and have the servants bring loads of delicious food! Just the two of us, sitting across from each other—it’ll be picture perfect! Oh! We should even call a painter to capture the moment—”
The conversation was unbearably boring. Lionel stopped listening halfway through.
Pretending to be engaged, he smiled sweetly as soon as she paused.
“Sounds fun. Let’s go sometime when we have the chance.”
“No, let’s set a date now. I’m free anytime.”
Sasha was persistent. She’d learned from past failures that if she didn’t get a firm promise, Lionel would never follow through.
Clinging to his arm with a sweet smile, she gently shook it.
“Hmm…”
Lionel gave her a troubled smile. Her touch made his skin crawl.
He wanted to shake her off and firmly say no, but that would’ve been improper.
His father had always told him: Be careful when you say no. Learn to decline without offending. That’s how you win people over.
Every rejection required justification—a reasonable excuse.
“Why? Can’t you? Lionel, I feel like you’re avoiding me lately. I know—it sounds ridiculous. There’s no way you’d avoid someone as lovely as me. But still, it’s been so hard to see you these days, I can’t help thinking that way…”
Sasha puffed her cheeks and pouted.
