Standing in front of the main gate of Gillis Won's Academy, Kyle Etman's existence was as natural as the school's streetlights. He's here again. The female students thought as they impressively glanced over the young man waiting.
Kyle looked over the gate and slyly grinned. He could see a young lady dragging her bicycle from afar. Kyle could recognize who the lady was through her graceful and gallant walk.
But it wasn't just her way of walking that he could recognize the girl.
Her face was always full of rich expressions and her body gestures were soft and subtle.
Her entire existence was everything to him. There was no other girl like Leyla and he had realized that ever since they t that sumr-underneath the shade of the willow tree.
"Leyla!
Leyla stopped when she heard soone vigorously call her na. She squinted her eyes towards the direction of the man who was approaching her.
Kyle liked those monts.
The mont the girl's steps grew faster after she recognized who he was. The mont the girl ca up to him and smiled at him gently.
"Why are you here again? It would've been more convenient for you to et at the cabin."
"Nah. I had plenty of ti anyway."
That was a lie. In order to return ho from school with Leyla, he had ditched his tennis club mbers. Even though his seniors might have been waiting for him with a racket on their hands the next day, Kyle was not worried at this mont.
Tomorrow's problems should be taken care of tomorrow. It'll all resolve.1
~~~~~~~~
The two students walked side by side on a busy street. They bought so ice cream as they passed by the shopping district. They then stopped by a bookstore that slled like dust.
Leyla laughed often. Besides Uncle Bill, Kyle Etman believed he was the only one in this world who knew how often Leyla laughed in front of him and how beautiful her smile was.
As they entered the path leading to the Arvis territory, the wind got cooler. Leyla's eyes deepened when their conversation led to the school exam. There was a bit of despair in her eyes when geotry was ntioned. Kyle carefully observed the minor changes in her facial expressions.
Not yet.
Kyle suppressed the heart fluttering words that almost ca out of his mouth. He didn't want their relationship to get uncomfortable through his hasty confession. He then wondered if it was necessary to ask her to go out with him when he was already thinking of marrying her instead.
Leyla Etman. That sounds nice. That's good.
"Why are you laughing?"
Leyla asked him while she frowned. She was complaining about her grade struggle in geotry until she found herself looking at Kyle dazedly chuckling.
"Huh... Well, ah! I heard Duke Herhardt is coming back?"
Kyle suddenly changed the subject.
"It's been a long ti. When is he coming?"
"I don't know."
"Everyone's been babbling on and on about Duke Herhardt returning but you don't seem to really care."
Leyla's hands that were on the bicycle handle tensed up.
During the past years, there wasn't much contact between Leyla and Duke Herhardt. They only greeted each other when they t in the woods or whenever Claudine summoned her to the mansion. Even passing by the duke was uncomfortable that she tried to avoid him at all costs.
She didn't want to see him.
And she had never wanted to see him again ever since the day Duke Herhardt stopped her spinning gold coin with his foot that sumr evening.
Claudine was the one who invited her and left her but the duke was the one who made her realize how much of an insignificant being Leyla Lewellin was in that strange, colorful world.
That encounter left a scar different from the mistreatnt she experienced at Lovita. It was a mory she wanted to forget but whenever she faced the duke, he made her recall that terrible day. Leyla hated him. The duke's appearance kept reminding her how irrelevant she was in that beautiful estate.
A black car passed by as Leyla struggled to calm her uneven breathing. Madam Norma never rode a car, so Leyla figured it was Madam Elysse, who must've co back from a social gathering.
"With the duke back, Arvis must be hectic for a while."
"Yeah."
"Oh yeah. Leyla. Should I try becoming an officer too?"
Kyle now began to walk backwards while facing Leyla.
"I want to receive a dal just like Duke Herhardt. Captain Etman, a brilliant marksman who can shoot down every enemy with just single shots."
Kyle pretended to shoot an imaginary gun and then smiled like a naughty boy.
"Look here, Mr. Etman. You can't even kill a chicken."
Leyla smirked. Although his pride was hurt, Kyle failed to refute.
It was at that ti last year when Kyle proudly insisted that he would pay for his als in the cabin by helping out. Uncle Bill had ordered him to catch a chicken for dinner but when he stepped into the chicken hen, he was unable to even pull out a single feather out. That was when Etman got his embarrassing nickna: 'the gluttonous herbivore'.
"My sweet friend Kyle Etman. That is why I like you."
Leyla smiled at Kyle's upset face.
"I hope you use your hands to save people's lives instead of killing them."
"Uh... Of course. I am planning to beco a doctor."
Kyle awkwardly touched his cheek.
"Then should I be a military doctor? Do they give dals to military doctors?"
"If you save a lot of people, wouldn't they give you one? It's a better achievent than killing."
"Really?"
The two arrived at the crossroad amidst their conversation. Etman's house was at the end of the road leading to the left.
"Ah! I left the geotry note I promised to lend you at ho."
Kyle wrinkled his eyes in sudden realization.
"Then co in ti for dinner later. Make sure to bring the notes."
"Hey. Are you planning to wait for or the notes?"
"The notes."
Leyla brazenly replied as she soon burst into a mischievous laughter. Kyle started to rush ho.
"You don't have to hurry! Dinner takes ti anyway!"
Leyla loudly shouted toward Kyle's back.
"Don't bother! I'm going straight to your house after picking up my notes!"
Kyle's retort was even louder.
Leyla shook her head at Kyle's stubbornness and started to ride her bike towards the platanus road leading to the Arvis mansion.
Matthias pulled the car over in the front of the mansion driveway. The driver and the butler panicked at their master's abrupt request.
Duke Herhardt's return was sudden. The Arvis servants and residents were busy frantically moving around to prepare for the duke's early arrival. As a result, his arranged social gatherings with the nobles were all moved up.
Butler Hessen swallowed his dry saliva out of nervousness.
"Master, we still haven't....."
"I want to take a walk."
Matthias cut off the butler's words with his calm tone. The driver hesitantly got off his seat and opened the back seat door.
"No."
Matthias briefly shook his head towards Hessen, who was about to follow him out.
"See you at the mansion."
Matthias smiled as he turned his back. Hessen obediently got back in the car at his order while the driver swiftly returned to his seat. As they drove away, the road beca quiet again.
Holding his officer hat in one hand, Matthias began to leisurely walk underneath the tree shade. The sound of his boots and the sound of the leaves swaying in the wind created a strange, but pleasing harmony.
Matthias von Herhardt was a perfect child, a perfect student, and a perfect officer. And now, he was about to marry a perfect woman and beco a perfect father. All of these things were so obvious in his life that he started to get sowhat bored.
Matthias gradually slowed his pace. The bright stream of light flowing through the cracks in the tree leaves made the edge of his slightly slanted eyes stand out. The light then gently flowed down upon his golden belt buckle and the shining insignia that adorned his blue-gray uniform.
'You should get engaged this sumr.'
Matthias had gladly agreed to his mother's words; simply because it was his rightful duty to marry at the right ti and give birth to a successor.
'I think Claudine is the best lady for the next Duchess of Arvis.'
Matthias had also accepted his grandmother's notice with good grace; simply because Claudine von Brandt was a highly qualified bride and had a brilliant lineage.
Matthias had never desired anything.
Because everything was already in his hands before he knew it. Desire was a distant emotion that seed fictitious to him. So was marriage.
Matthias hoped for a perfect marriage.
To him, marriage was simply a stepping stone that allowed him to strengthen his world. He believed there was no need to exhaust any unnecessary emotions in a marriage. Claudine von Brandt was his most reasonable partner, and for him, she was enough. He wasn't interested in anything else. He didn't feel like the need to.
Matthias paused in the middle of the road. He had suddenly sensed an unexpected presence of a woman. When he raised his head, the shredded sunlight pierced his eyes.
Matthias turned his eyes at a woman riding a bicycle headed towards his way. When he slowly backed away, the woman brushed past his left. Her clear golden locks fluttered in the air like waves.
Leyla Lewellin?
The mont Matthias rembered her na, the woman flicked her head towards his direction. The woman's green eyes widened when she t eyes with the man.
While they stared at each other, Leyla had lost her balance and fell from her bicycle. Her screams were heard as the bicycle made an impact against the ground.
Even after her collapse, the wheels of the bicycle still continued to wildly turn.
Matthias steadily approached the woman who fell on the street. The woman raised her head underneath his shadow. Without a doubt, it was Leyla Lewellin.
The little girl who was a crazy bird lover.
"... I'm sorry, my lord."
Leyla frantically bowed her head to apologize. She waited for him to pass her by.
Matthias was about to make his leave until he was distracted by Leyla's clothes. Her school uniform was dirtied with dust and blood was seeping through her torn stockings.
When the spinning bicycle wheel stopped, silence ca upon the two.
Leyla raised her thinly frowned eyes and glanced at Matthias. Although the look on her face was insolent, it strangely made a soft impression.
This girl grows as well.
Although it was natural for the child to grow as ti went by, her change in appearance had sohow scratched his nerves.
To Matthias, Leyla Lewellin was just a little girl. The girl who always tried to desperately avoid him. The girl who he thought was insignificant. But he could no longer see the insignificant girl he knew of in his mory with the Leyla Lewellin who stood in front of him now.
The slender lines of her body showing underneath the thin, sumr school uniform were no longer those of a skinny child as well as her fresh cheeks, lips, and her soft body scent carried by the wind.
Leyla struggled to get up as Matthias felt a strange displeasure. Taking a step back, she fixed her shoes and dusted off her school uniform. Although Leyla was now a grown woman, her height had still failed to reach the tip of the duke's chin.
"Leyla Lewellin."
Matthias impulsively called. Leyla's shoulders flinched at his voice.
"I'm sorry, my lord."
Repeating the sa words over again, Leyla crouched under his feet and began picking up her scattered items.
Bag. Books. Notebook.
Matthias's eyes moved along the small, pale hands that were soiled with dust and blood. His gaze fixated on a pen Leyla gently nudged while gathering her stuff.
Matthias slowly took a step forward and purposely stepped on the pen. Leyla only then glanced up and saw his eyes filled with irritation.
"Leyla Lewellin."
He called her again.
"I'm talking to you."
"Yes, my lord."
Leyla answered as she tightly closed her eyes. She struggled to pull the pen out of his feet but Matthias didn't bother to budge.
"I'm listening."
Leyla said quite confidently even though her body trembled. Her green eyes that had resembled the vivid sumr forest sparkled in anger mixed with humiliation. She was suddenly reminded of the ti when the duke stepped on her gold coin. On that day and today as well, the duke was looking down at Leyla with the sa expression and the sa gaze.
After letting out a silent laugh, Matthias lifted his foot and nonchalantly passed by Leyla. He put on his officer hat and started walking leisurely along the road as if nothing had happened.
Leyla blankly stared at the back of the distant Duke Herhardt.
Why would he do such a thing if he's not going to say anything?
Leyla's pen twitched in her hands.
Would the people of Arvis believe that Duke Herhardt, who's praised as the perfect aristocrat, act like this?
She bet her whole savings that no one would ever believe her. Everyone would've called her crazy.
Leyla tightly closed her lips and pulled up her bicycle. She made sure to thoroughly wipe the pen and placed it in her bag.
She then started to follow the duke who was walking at a slow pace. Her skin that had peeled-off was terribly sore. Even though she was sure the duke wouldn't look back, she tried to walk properly. To prevent herself from limping, she constantly flexed her leg muscles.
It would've been great if he used those long legs to walk faster.
When Leyla was about to sigh out of frustration, Duke Herhardt had abruptly turned around. The soft wind shook the tree leaves and the pattern of the sunlight oozing through the leaves bounced over the path in a slow rhythm.
The surprised Leyla stood still. Matthias focused his eyes on her face. His gaze slowly shifted downwards along her loose, wavy hair and then onto her body.
The upright chest irregularly panting up and down. The pale hand holding the bicycle handle. The unbelievably narrow ankle and petite feet.
And then the eyes.
Matthias examined Leyla's erald-colored eyes for a long ti in deafening silence.
Leyla was still just an orphan living in the dugout located on his estate, but one crucial fact had seed to change everything.
Ti passed and the child grew.
And when he accepted that fact, he noticed Leyla.
She was no longer a child. That woman, Leyla Lewellin.
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