MHOW 16

Chapter 16

It was a misunderstanding about going on a solo date or something.
Herina, feeling slightly embarrassed for no reason, raised her voice to shake off her awkwardness.
“While I go out on my own, you’ll be handling everything left in the mansion? This is your last day of vacation, isn’t it? Are you sure it’s okay?”

Ares nodded willingly, as if he truly meant it.
“Yes. I’m already grateful for everything you’ve helped with so far. Of course, I’ll still need your help in the future, but these are things I couldn’t have done without you. I just hope you enjoy your last vacation. After all, it’s the vacation you should have enjoyed with your Ares, isn’t it?”

That may be true, but…
Herina hesitated for a moment, feeling an inexplicable reluctance.
She couldn’t ignore the faint shadow under Ares’s eyes.
No matter how much she intended to take over this ducal family from him, she felt a twinge of guilt leaving this young boy behind while she went off to have fun by herself.
Herina hadn’t even reached the point of realizing that taking over this child’s ducal family in the first place was itself a guilty act.

“Let’s go together.”
Herina spoke with a tone of firm decision.
Her eyes lingered briefly on the documents on Ares’s desk.
“I’m really okay—”

“Who said we’re going to the market?”
Ares questioned, puzzled by Herina’s words.
“Then where are we going?”

Herina pointed at one of the documents on Ares’s desk and flung open the window wide.
Havinent, her estate, was warm year-round, but spring sunlight was especially beautiful. And right now, it was the height of spring.

“To the Res Valley amusement park. We’re going on a spring outing.”
“A spring outing…?”

Herina glanced over the remaining documents and nodded.
“You don’t know what a spring outing is? We’ll see flowers and even go boating. Res Valley amusement park is perfect for a picnic like that.”

It was the first time Ares had ever heard of such a thing.
He hadn’t even thought the words “spring” and “outing” could be connected. In his life, the concept of a picnic had simply never existed.

“Do people usually do that in spring?”

Herina looked at him as if appalled.
“You knew it, but you’ve really lived a boring life. I thought adults became boring, but seventeen-year-olds are equally dull. You’ve never been on a picnic?”

When Ares nodded slightly, Herina shook her head in disdain, then moved quickly as if she had made up her mind.

“What are you doing all of a sudden?”

Herina pulled out the document about Res Valley from the scattered papers and laughed, letting it flutter in her hand.
“Scratch the picnic. Since it’s your first time, it’ll be a field trip. Consider it an experiential learning trip.”

Though it was unclear what exactly she had planned, the sheer joy on her face was infectious.
Even Ares couldn’t help but smile along.

The promised weekend arrived.
The Adenman Empire, due to its vast territories, had varying seasons, but the capital, with its mild climate year-round, bloomed more beautifully in spring than any other continent.
Among all places, the Havinent estate, closest to the capital, was the most famous, and during peak spring, it was more crowded than usual.

“Are you really okay with this? We might run into other nobles.”

Herina, who had finished preparing, pressed a hat of the same color onto his head. Ares spoke with concern.
“With glasses and a hat, even if someone recognizes us, they’ll pretend not to. No one’s going to try to interrupt your vacation. By the way, Ares, have you grown taller? Around the wedding, I think there was about a hand’s difference between us.”

It had only been about a month, but Ares’s noticeable growth made Herina reach out to estimate it.
“That’s normal for this age,” Ares replied casually, adjusting his slightly uncomfortable glasses.
“Is that so?”

Herina didn’t make a big deal of it either, but Ares’s growth wasn’t just because of hormones.
Just as he had suddenly become younger, some secret change had taken place that only the two of them had yet to notice.

After about two hours riding with a carefully bundled-up Ares, they arrived at the pride of Havinent—the Res Cliffs.
The long river below, stretching along the cliffs, was crowded with people enjoying spring.

“Have you been here before?”

Ares, captivated by the waterfall cascading outside the window, nodded slightly.
“I was very young, the first moment I can remember. Even then, it seemed large, but now it seems even bigger.”

“Oh my, what have you been doing all this time without trying things like this? You’ve lived so boringly, and you haven’t even been here long.”

Previously, when she asked the twenty-four-year-old Ares, he had said he was too busy surviving to enjoy such leisure.
Both the twenty-four-year-old and seventeen-year-old Ares had been so preoccupied that they hadn’t known such pleasures.

“You had to become the Ares you know. That skill doesn’t develop overnight. Every day was a repetition. Learning something new is one thing, but training and acquiring it repeatedly is the same. Even without you, I would have eventually managed, but I wouldn’t have experienced something like this, so it feels a bit new.”

Ares closed his eyes to smell a flower branch as he spoke.
Herina felt slightly uneasy whenever she faced such earnestness in him.
She had luck disguised as fate, but here was a solid sense of responsibility she could never dare approach.

“Well, let’s enjoy it from now. There’s so much to enjoy in the world. Starting at seventeen, you can experience it fully.”

Herina said lightly. It was true that it would be good for Ares to notice the world.
“That would be nice, but I’ll take it in moderation. That way, I can at least try to follow the version of myself that you know.”

His calm laugh accompanied his words.
But Herina didn’t smile back. She didn’t want to melt into this boy’s heart unnecessarily.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

Luckily, Ares showed interest at the sudden change of topic.
“Now that you mention it, it is past lunchtime. Shall we eat?”

Herina looked around, passing the busiest areas, and pointed to a slightly shabby shop.
“Let’s go there.”

Ares looked puzzled at a shop that seemed at least fifty years old.
“Don’t you usually choose the best one? That shop at the entrance looks cleaner and bigger.”

Herina shook her index finger as if he knew nothing.
“Don’t you remember the complaints? People said it was overpriced. Many thought it wasn’t worth it. That shabby place has survived between all the flashy shops, meaning it must have some regulars. If we’re paying a lot anyway, wouldn’t we rather eat something tasty?”

Ares nodded to her convincing argument.
“Where do you get all this information? The more I know, the more different you seem from the ordinary young ladies I know. Is it because my experience is too limited?”

For Herina, from an age overflowing with information, it was completely natural.
On social media, advertisements flooded constantly, and real experiences were extracted from trial and error to separate truth from lies.

“Don’t respect me too much. If you respect even these little things, I’d be too embarrassed.”

Supporting her chin with her hand, eyes sparkling mischievously, Herina teased him. Ares shook his head, completely flustered.
“You must be really hungry. Let’s go eat.”

Herina followed him, who shook his head and walked ahead, muttering.
“Come on, let’s go together!”