Chapter 12

A young lady wearing a bright pink dress was standing beside Vitor. Dressed in his uniform, Vitor was listening to her with a smile.

“I heard that the sea is endlessly beautiful, but also frightening at the same time.”

“That is true, Young Lady. The sea itself is something worthy of awe. When it is calm, it is endlessly peaceful, but when a storm comes, you realize just how weak human beings truly are.”

“I see. I always thought the sea would be a romantic and free place. But after hearing you say that, I suppose it isn’t always like that.”

The Marchioness’s daughter of Rüssel nodded as she replied. There was admiration in her voice, along with a desire to understand him.

“Ah, right. Did you hear that a theater will soon be opening in Clareville?”

“Is that so? I was getting bored, so that’s good news.”

“Really? You were bored?”

The young lady’s eyes sparkled. As if she did not want to miss the opportunity, she quickly continued.

“I happened to get tickets for the first performance. Would you like to go with me? You can bring your friends, too. I have several tickets, and it would be a shame to just throw them away…”

After saying that, the young lady lowered her gaze slightly. She seemed nervous, perhaps wondering if she had been too forward.

Vitor smiled gently and nodded.

“If you would invite me, I would be happy to accompany you.”

The young lady’s cheeks turned red.

The woman looked lovely, like a flower that had just bloomed, while the man looked at her as if he found her cute.

Roy, who had been quietly watching the scene, was overcome by a strange feeling.

So, this was…

‘Did that man forget the plan?’

It seemed there was a reason for the rumor that he was the greatest womanizer of the age. Was that really the attitude of someone who had even made a male lover because he did not want to get married?

He looked exactly like a man captivated by a woman!

‘If he cancels the contract first, does that mean I lose the payment I was supposed to receive?’

Roy regretted not thinking things through beforehand. Now that he realized even the payment he was promised could disappear, he began to regret it.

‘I know how easily nobles change their words, like turning over their palms. Why didn’t I make sure of it?’

Just as his self-mockery was getting deeper, Vitor suddenly changed the subject.

“Young Lady, I just remembered something urgent. Would it be all right if I left for a moment? I will be back soon.”

“Yes, of course. Please go and take care of it.”

The Marchioness’s daughter of Rüssel smiled kindly and nodded. Vitor politely said goodbye and then walked toward the direction where Roy was hiding.

Roy, who was hiding behind a tree, made eye contact with him as soon as he came in.

“I was wondering what I would do if you had run away, but I see you were getting ready?”

“We made a promise.”

Roy forced himself to keep a calm expression. Fortunately, it seemed Vitor had not forgotten the plan.

Vitor’s gaze slowly moved down from Roy’s head.

“W-Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Now that I look at you like this, you really do look alike.”

“You mean that woman?”

At Roy’s careless question, Vitor’s expression stiffened slightly.

“Did I ever say that woman had silver hair?”

Roy realized his mistake at once. He hurriedly changed the subject.

“I just remembered what you said last time. You said I looked like some woman. I wondered if she might be that person…”

“That is correct. Actually, I was originally going to ask that person to do this. But she left before I even had a chance to ask.”

If that was the reason, then it seemed like it had been a good thing that she ran away. She would have refused anyway.

But for some reason, a strange emptiness passed over Vitor’s face.

Feeling awkward, Roy silently looked away.

Soon, Vitor gave a small smile and suddenly placed one hand against the tree.

The distance between them became much closer.

“Then, are you ready?”

“I-I am ready, but…”

What was he planning to do?

Before Roy could finish speaking, Vitor placed a hand on his cheek.

Then his face came closer.

Very close.

At a distance so close that Roy could barely breathe, Vitor slightly turned his head to the side.

As if he were about to kiss him.

Sensing that something was wrong, Roy widened his eyes and pulled his head in the opposite direction.

“D-Duke, isn’t this different from what we talked about? You clearly said physical contact would be kept to a minimum…!”

“Put another way, that means we will do whatever is necessary when the situation calls for it. No one knows about our relationship yet, so we need to make a strong first impression.”

“That does make sense. B-But…!”

Vitor’s face came close again.

There were only a few centimeters left between their lips. They were close enough for their breaths to mix.

Roy finally could not take it anymore and shouted as if he were screaming.

“Duke, are you really okay with this?!”

“What?”

“I mean, aren’t you bothered by doing something like this with a man?!”

His movements stopped.

Roy took the chance to catch his breath.

Even if this wasn’t his first time doing something like this, still! How could he have no resistance to it at all?

Vitor even believed Roy was a man!

For a moment, Roy almost wondered if Vitor had discovered his true identity because he seemed completely unbothered by the idea of kissing a man.

“Ah. That? I’m fine with it.”

“What? W-Why, why, why?”

“Who knows? Why do you think?”

A lingering gaze and slightly curved lips.

A subtle smile.

Vitor tilted his head slightly with an unreadable expression.

There was something strangely sensual and ticklish about his expression. Roy’s neck suddenly stiffened as an ominous feeling passed through him.

“D-Don’t tell me you actually like men?”

He was so shocked that he had no time to worry about being polite.

“S-So you wanted to satisfy your own desires while also avoiding marriage!”

Despite how rude the words were, they burst out of Roy like a fit.

Vitor tilted his head as if he did not understand for a moment, then, a beat later, burst out laughing.

“Hahahaha!”

He completely stepped away from Roy and his shoulders shook.

He laughed loudly without realizing it, then belatedly covered his mouth with his hand, but laughter was still escaping.

What was wrong with him?

Roy had been asking seriously!

“Are you really not? Otherwise, this makes no sense!”

“Mr. Roy. I am unquestionably heterosexual. If I had that kind of tendency, it would have shown long ago while I was at sea.”

“But why…”

Roy’s confused voice fell weakly.

Come to think of it, when they went out to sea, they could spend anywhere from a few days to several months on the ocean.

Vitor must have spent all day living closely with other men inside narrow cabins.

If there had been even the slightest sign of something like that during all that time, rumors would have spread. Even if he had hidden it from others, there was no way Vitor himself would not have noticed his own identity.

“But why are you okay with me?”

Now that Roy understood his explanation, the situation felt even stranger.

“Because you smell clean, Mr. Roy.”

“Smell clean?”

“Yes. Unlike most men, your natural scent is very clean. It’s not simply that you smell clean. There is a faint scent of grass and flowers mixed together. I could smell it just now, too.”

“W-What does that…”

Roy nervously brought his own wrist to his nose and sniffed it. His expression became strangely twisted.

“…I don’t smell anything.”

“You’re used to your own scent, so you probably can’t smell it.”

Perhaps Roy’s reaction was funny again, because Vitor answered while holding back another laugh that kept trying to escape.

“It is a faint, sweet smell of grass and flowers. It also feels like something I have smelled somewhere in the mountains. The scent is delicate, but it also feels deep.”

“Could it be…”

As he continued listening to Vitor, one flower did come to mind.

“Do you mean the scent of acacia?”

“Acacia?”

“Yes. There are many of them in our village. They grow commonly in the mountains and in gardens, too. Since I work in the forest and also live there, I suppose the scent may have followed me…”

In truth, Roy was not sure that the scent was really that of acacia.

Vitor’s words simply meant that Roy’s natural scent was unusually clean for a man.

He had only said it because he felt like he needed some kind of excuse.

Fortunately, it was a fairly believable excuse considering how suddenly he had come up with it.

Who would have thought being a gamekeeper would be so useful?

The smell of dirt, the smell of trees, the scent of grass.

Those were scents that naturally clung to someone in this line of work.

Besides, Clareville was famous enough for acacia that it even made various local specialty products from it.

“Is that so? I don’t think I’ve ever seen acacia around here.”

“There are many. You’ll notice them if you pay attention. If you don’t go around admiring the scenery one by one, you might just pass them by without noticing.”

Vitor’s eyebrows drew together slightly.

As if searching his memory, he stared at one spot without saying anything for a while. Then he spoke with a rather serious expression.

“Then… are you saying that all the villagers have that scent?”

“I don’t think everyone does. But wouldn’t someone who spends a lot of time close to the forest, like me, have the same scent?”

“The forest. She didn’t seem like the kind of woman who would be like that…”

“What?”