I Became the Childhood Friend of the Northern Duchess - Chapter 265



265 – Side Story – Little Gentleman’s Spring

The next day.

Evan returned straight to his room after breakfast and busily changed his clothes.

Since Evan doesn’t have a dedicated maid yet, Eline usually helps her change her clothes.

Conversely, in Serena’s case, she receives help from Shuri.

You can think of it as each person borrowing the help of a maid of their same-s*x parent.

“Hey, Eline. How is it? “Does this outfit look good on you?”

Evan stood in front of her mirror and checked her appearance, asking questions she didn’t usually ask.

A happy smile appeared on Eline’s lips as she watched this.

Although she had heard about it in advance from her owner, she was surprised that spring had really come to Evan.

Ellie, who came up behind Evan, adjusted her clothes and straightened her hair for the last time.

Then she grabbed him by both shoulders and made him stand back in front of the mirror, and I could see the handsome little gentleman inside.

“Yes, you are very cool. Master.”

“Really?”

Evan had always believed Ellie’s words her her, but since she had to work hard today, she asked for confirmation again.

Then a soft smile appeared on her lips again and her head moved from top to bottom.

If Evan could reassure her with this, he would nod her head again and again.

“Sure. I’m sure Princess Marinette will be surprised.”

“!? Oh, did you know?”

Evan’s eyes widened.

She couldn’t have imagined that name would come out of Eleanor’s mouth.

“Because the head of the family gave me a word. Of course, I’ll keep it a secret from others, so don’t worry.”

“Eww… “I feel embarrassed for some reason.”

It felt like it was the first time Ellie had seen her look so surprised and embarrassed, so she smiled for no reason.

I guess I can say that now my eight-year-old side is showing.

It was heartwarming to see her feel shy and helpless about her first love.

“You don’t need to be embarrassed. Today, we will just visit Princess Marienet and her garden together, and then come back and have a meal together. You just have to remember this.”

“Okay! I’ll do my best!”

Did Eline’s support give you strength?

Evan looked at her a little, her face tense, but she nodded her head firmly, strengthening her resolve.

“Then shall we go? Master.”

“Yes!”

Only after making sure that she was relaxed did Ellie hold his hand and leave her room.

Even if this young boy’s first love doesn’t come true, she just wants her sweet memories to remain.

I sincerely hope so.

*

Not long after Evan arrived at the garden, Claire followed him.

As soon as Claire saw the neatly dressed little gentleman, she smiled and approached him.

“Good morning, Evan. “You look very nice today.”

“Really?”

“Huh. Really. “My sister is the most handsome man I’ve ever seen.”

When Claire stuck out her thumb and complimented Evan’s attire, the corners of his mouth quickly twitched to both ears.

For a boy in the midst of his sweet first love, compliments from someone he likes are so sweet.

“My sister is very pretty too.”

“Okay? Thank you. “I dressed pretty today because I wanted to show it to Evan.”

Claire showed off her outfit once again by spinning around in place.

Her light pastel-toned light blue dress definitely suited her quite well.

Especially when combined with golden hair fluttering in the wind, the noble feeling was further enhanced.

“Okay then, shall we go?”

“Yes!”

Evan confidently extended one of his hands towards Claire, who narrowed her eyes.

Even though Claire is older in terms of age, it was definitely he who escorted her.

That’s why Evan wanted to guide the person he likes in a great way without losing confidence as much as possible.

For that purpose, I came out early this morning and looked around the garden in advance.

So, leaving behind the garden that Sonia and I had seen yesterday, the two first walked into the garden between the main building and the annex.

As expected from the grand duke’s garden, they were greeted with colorful flowers that made the eyes dizzy.

“Wow… ! It’s pretty.”

Claire’s eyes lit up and she slowly scanned the garden from left to right.

Her family also has a garden, but its grandeur is so overwhelming that it cannot even be compared.

I have never seen a garden that is not only gorgeous, but also so sophisticated in terms of color harmony and arrangement.

But this is only a part of the many gardens.

Claire was most surprised by that fact more than anything else.

“This is the ‘Painter of Harmony.’ According to my dad, it wasn’t there before, but it was a new place that was built a few years ago.”

“I see… “I thought it was somehow neater than other places.”

Even if the rock is maintained for tens or hundreds of years, walls and structures are bound to deteriorate to some extent.

As proof of this, traces of time could be felt in some of the gardens that Claire saw yesterday.

However, I thought this place was strange because it felt particularly new, but I couldn’t believe it had been recently renovated.

“Do you know why it is called Flower Garden of Harmony?”

“I heard it too, but they said it was a place created to commemorate the peace agreement made with the Karbita people.”

That is why it was named ‘Painter of Harmony’.

Realizing this, Claire shook her head slightly and headed to the center of her garden to look around her again.

I felt like I finally understood why this garden seemed to have the characteristic of harmony more emphasized than other gardens.

As I was walking along the neatly laid out path in the garden, I was looking at the flowers one by one.

One light purple flower appeared particularly clearly in Claire’s field of vision.

“Evan. “Do you know what this flower is?”

Claire was somewhat embarrassed to ask an eight-year-old child about flowers because she was older, but the sight of flowers the size of fingers blooming so tightly was so cute that she couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s Startis. “I remember it because it is my older sister’s favorite flower.”

Evan came to Claire’s side, checked the flower, and skillfully told her its name.

Since she often went with Helene, who loved flowers, since she was young, she picked all the flowers in the garden by season.

“Amazing. “Do you really know all the flowers here?”

“Joe, a little bit. “I’m still confused about some things.”

When Claire pushed her body towards him and her eyes sparkled, Evan hurriedly looked away.

It was difficult for her to come to her senses as Claire’s warmth spread beyond her tightly held hands.

The girls in my class didn’t think much of it even though we got this close, but it was truly amazing.

“Evan, how did she come to like flowers?”

“Her grandmother likes flowers. So she told me this and that, and as she listened, she found it fascinating…”

“So you’re interested?”

“Yes…”

For some reason, Evan was embarrassed to say that the man liked flowers.

I wonder if Claire would hate her because she looks like a girl.

Maybe I’m laughing inside.

His mood swings today were so great that such pessimistic thoughts suddenly passed through his mind.

However, the answer that came back from Claire was something that Evan had never expected.

“There are no boys around me who like flowers. That’s why people like Evan look so cool.”

“Really… “What?”

“Then. Why are there kids like that sometimes? “I’m talking about kids who brag about things like learning how to use a sword or having experience hunting.”

Evan didn’t understand why that was something worth bragging about, but he decided to nod.

“They seem to think they are manly, but I don’t think so at all. Those kids usually bully and hit someone easily.”

“I saw kids like that sometimes too.”

“Yes? That’s not manly, that’s barbaric. But has Evan ever done that?”

“Uh, none. Really”

Evan could definitely say this much.

From the beginning, he had been continuously educated at home not to bully the weak, and was an adult boy who acted according to that policy.

In response, Claire smiled proudly and gently stroked Evan’s hair.

‘I feel strange for some reason.’

However, that action was not very pleasing to Evan.

It has to be that way.

Evan would have been proud if he had been petted by his parents or grandfather, or even by Ellie.

But even though he was a young boy, he couldn’t be happy about being treated like a child by the woman he fell in love with.

It wasn’t a matter of pride, in a way, it was like a man’s instinct.

“Hey, sister. Wait a minute… !”

“Huh?”

Evan hurriedly stepped back, left those words and suddenly ran somewhere.

That place is none other than a small resting place in the garden.

There was a flower on the white table, and when Evan saw it, he rushed over and grabbed the flower in his hand.

Actually, I was planning to tell you this once I had toured the entire garden and went to the rest area.

For some reason, the thought of giving now was the only thing that dominated this young boy’s mind.

“Haha…”

“Evan, where did you go in such a hurry… Huh?”

When Evan returned soon after and was out of breath, Claire tilted her head and tried to approach him carefully, but then stopped.

I found a flower in Evan’s hand

From noble mtl dot come

It’s none other than an orange tulip.

Evan took a breath and presented the tulip to Claire without delay.

“This… “It’s a gift.”

“A gift?”

Claire expressed doubts about the gift handed to her at a quite strange time, but she accepted the flower.

At that moment, the flower language of orange tulips suddenly passed through her mind.

‘Shy.’

Ordinary, ordinary flower language that is not a confession of love or even a meaning of affection.

But as Claire looked back and forth between the flower and the blushing Evan, she felt like she knew what he wanted to say.

That’s because Evan’s face was exactly the same as that of boys her age before he confessed to her.

Moreover, looking back, Evan had not been able to get particularly close to her since their first meeting her her her her.

I thought it was quite different from what I heard from Sonia, but if this is the reason, it may be able to explain it to some extent.

‘It’s embarrassing.’

A hesitant eight-year-old boy who can’t even look the person he likes in the eye.

It’s a bit early for him to talk about love, and he probably didn’t even have the courage to convey his true feelings to someone who would see him as a child.

That’s why I thought that the feeling of wanting to confess but not being able to convey it was captured in one word, shyness.

In a way, it felt more sincere to her than other flower language that contained the meaning of a straightforward confession.

‘What should I do?’

Claire had no idea how to respond to the bold yet literally shy confession of a four-year-old boy.

But one thing was certain: I didn’t want to say no to this boy right now.

Although she had received many confessions from children her age, it was somehow difficult to reject her innocence.

Claire smiled as she saw Evan closing his eyes tightly, as if waiting for an answer to her confession.

Since I was still a long way above Claire, I had to bend down to look at her face, but I didn’t mind.

Side.

“… !?”

As Claire pressed her lips to the bridge of Evan’s nose, his eyes widened at the unfamiliar touch.

Claire, who was chuckling at the sight, gently stroked Evan’s cheek and spoke in a soft tone.

“It’s my way of repaying you for the flowers and today’s escort. And…”

And? What will follow next?

Even though his heart was pounding like it was going to explode, Evan somehow calmed it down and waited for his next words.

“If Evan’s feelings haven’t changed later, tell me again. Okay?”

And the answer was good news that made Evan cheer right away.

Although Claire cannot immediately accept the young boy’s feelings, she hopes that he can move forward while keeping those feelings in mind.

At this, Evan’s eyes fluttered and then he nodded his head vigorously.

“… Yes “I will definitely do that!”

“Thank you. “Then shall we take a look around the garden some more?”

When Claire straightened her back and held out her hand, Evan held it tightly as if it were a precious treasure.

It seems that the first spring that has come to a little gentleman will last for quite a long time.