Chapter 18 Awkward Two
"Ugh, did you see Prince Werner's face? He was all red and looked so frustrated! It was hilarious!"
Halesia's loud laughter echoed through the annex of the palace.
She was gossiping about the prince openly, but thankfully, the only ones listening were the maids from the Jouteau family, along with Rhiannon and Kaine.
After the scene with the third prince, Werner, in the library, the three quickly left and returned to Halesia's residence.
Kaine, who had come along to the palace, immediately said, "I'll go make some tea," and headed to the kitchen before Rhiannon could stop him, still dressed as his lowly noble disguise, "Zeke".
Rhiannon, trying to hold back a smile, gently scolded Halesia, who was still laughing uncontrollably.
"Halesia, you're laughing way too much."
"How can I not? I've been bullied by that twisted prince every chance he gets, so I'm totally satisfied!"
"Well..."
"Seeing you stand up to Werner without backing down was just amazing. You're the best!"
Halesia grabbed Rhiannon's hand, smiling dreamily.
Rhiannon, a little embarrassed, looked down.
"I got carried away and ended up acting immaturely."
"The immature one is Werner! You didn't do anything wrong, Lady Rhiannon!"
"No, but... I definitely said something that could be misunderstood, right?"
Halesia paused, then forced a laugh.
"Oh, you mean about Mr. Kaine? That might have caused some misunderstanding."
"Ugh, I knew it. I'm so embarrassed I just want to disappear..."
Rhiannon buried her face on the table.
She replayed the words she'd blurted out in her head: "If I were dating my butler, would that be a problem?".
"That's basically saying 'we're dating' out loud, isn't it..."
"Well, I guess it kinda sounds that way," Halesia nodded.
She wasn't going to deny it; that would only make Rhiannon feel worse.
"Isn't it great though? A romance with class differences is super romantic, I think."
"Before we even get to class differences, we're not even dating... Kaine has a poker face, so I can't tell what he's thinking, but he's definitely troubled inside! And yet, I went and said something like that in the heat of the moment..."
Rhiannon was regretting what she'd said deeply, almost to the point of sinking into the floor.
"I'm always like this. I've regretted so many things I've said on impulse..."
"Well, that's just how people are."
"Ugh, that's not comforting at all..."
As Rhiannon squirmed in distress, there was a soft knock at the door.
It seemed Kaine had brought the tea.
Before he could enter, Rhiannon quickly straightened up, putting on a composed face, though her cheeks were still flushed.
When Kaine walked in, he was back in his usual attire, not the disguise from earlier.
Halesia looked surprised.
"Wow, you look like a completely different person! You really are Mr. Kaine!"
"This level of disguise is just a butler's skill. By the way, Lady Halesia, I borrowed the kitchen and used some tea leaves from the shelf without asking; I hope that's okay?"
"Of course! Feel free to use anything!"
"Thank you for your understanding."
Kaine smiled coolly as he skillfully arranged the teacups on the table.
Rhiannon glanced at him, but his expression was unreadable.
(Seriously, he doesn't care at all about what I said... I thought he'd be a little shaken up...)
Rhiannon puffed her cheeks, thinking of him as such an unadorable butler.
After Kaine finished serving, Halesia, seemingly on a whim, nervously urged him to take a seat.
"Mr. Kaine, since we're here, why don't we chat a bit?"
"No, a mere butler shouldn't interrupt your lovely time, my ladies..."
"Oh, come on, come on, come on! Please, sit down without holding back!"
Halesia made Kaine sit in front of Rhiannon, then looked back and forth between them, sighing dreamily.
"Ah, you both are so beautiful; I knew it would be picturesque, but seeing it in person is just wonderful..."
"Oh, here we go again, Halesia's hobby of 'people-watching'..."
"Hey, Lady Rhiannon! I don't just observe ordinary people. My hobby is watching handsome guys and beautiful ladies!"
Halesia said this with enthusiasm.
Rhiannon couldn't help but smile wryly at Halesia's usual self.
Kaine, on the other hand, looked confused.
He had long mistook Halesia for a harmless noble lady, unaware of her true nature.
While Rhiannon smiled wryly and Kaine looked bewildered, Halesia got even more excited.
"I've been waiting for this moment! I want to sit here and watch a handsome guy and a beautiful lady chat!"
"Uh, wait, are you saying you just want to watch me and Kaine talk? Right now!? Isn't that a bit too much, or are you just too laid-back about it!?"
"I'm just going to be like air from now on! Go ahead!"
"What!? You can't just say 'go ahead' all of a sudden!"
An awkward silence filled the room between Rhiannon and Kaine after Halesia's unreasonable request.
Recently, Rhiannon had been avoiding Kaine, and Kaine had been spending more time away from the townhouse, so it had been a while since they had a one-on-one conversation.
Add to that the comment at the library… Rhiannon couldn't figure out what Kaine thought of her and was filled with a strong desire to avoid eye contact until things cooled down.
Kaine looked just as confused.
It made sense—being suddenly told to chat while being stared at by a suspicious-looking lady with gleaming eyes would throw anyone off.
Rhiannon furrowed her brows and sighed.
(What am I supposed to talk about in a situation like this?)
She tried to remember their usual conversations, but lately, it had only been business-related.
They didn't really have common topics anymore.
Reluctantly, Rhiannon decided to start with a safe topic.
"Kaine, how are you?"
"Yeah, I'm good, thanks."
Silence.
"Um, the weather's been pretty bad lately, huh?"
"It was really nice yesterday."
"Oh, was it...?"
More silence.
(Ugh, why is it that I can only think of dumb questions at a time like this?)
Rhiannon shot a glance at Halesia for help, but Halesia just smiled and ignored her, clearly wanting to stay a bystander for now.
With no other choice, Rhiannon asked something that had been on her mind.
"Hey, Kaine... can I ask you something? Why were you in the palace library?"
"As I mentioned earlier, I have a connection and have been tutoring there for a bit."
"Is it really possible to tutor a prince if you have a connection?"
"That's not something you should be concerned about, my lady. By the way, what were you doing in the library?"
"I just went to borrow a book. Was that a problem? The library shouldn't be a place I'm not allowed to go..."
"That's really my mistake, I guess... I thought Lady Rhiannon couldn't use that library since she broke off her engagement with Sir Werner. But if I think about it calmly, Lady Halesia is also royalty. She has the right to use that palace library..."
Kaine hesitated for a moment and then pressed his palm to his eyes.
"I'm just so glad you're okay. I was worried about what would happen when you ran into Prince Werner..."
"Come on, meeting Sir Werner isn't that big of a deal. It's like you're acting like my doom flag went up or something..."
When Rhiannon forced a strained smile, Kaine glanced at Halesia, looking unsure whether to speak in front of her.
Rhiannon nodded lightly.
"Halesia is someone you can trust, so it's fine."
At Rhiannon's words, Halesia nodded vigorously but stayed silent.
After thinking for a moment, Kaine shook his head and spoke as if resigning himself.
"My lady, you barely avoided one doom flag today."
"Wait, really!?"
Rhiannon covered her mouth, realizing she'd narrowly avoided a disaster.
Kaine shrugged.
"I was completely caught off guard too. I never thought the girl who hates studying would show up in the library. Plus, since you were wearing something different, I was a bit slow to react."
"Oh, you mean this outfit? Halesia picked it out for me."
"You look like a perfect villainess in that getup!"
"Right!? When I wear something that suits me, it just happens!"
Rhiannon buried her face in her hands.
Kaine let out a deep sigh.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)