Chapter 271
What happened to my ears?
Did the word honey come out of Perez"s mouth?
It was Perez, who was embarra.s.sed to even call himself that when I was playing around in the carriage leaving Lombardi and didn"t know where to put himself.
But why all of a sudden?
"H- honey?"
"Yeah."
When I asked my question, Perez lengthening his words and answered.
No, I didn"t call you!!
Seeing my embarra.s.sment clearly, he even smiled and hugged me tightly.
"You weren"t there before, so I came to find you. I was worried."
"Huh? I- I"m sorry. Just being there is a bit boring."
"Really? Good job."
The touch of stroking my hair and forehead is also outspoken.
Suspicious, suspicious.
I looked at Perez with squinty eyes.
I don"t know when it"s just the two of us, but in a place where other people are together, this kind of relentless touch.
This is not like him.
It"s like you"re acting like you"re looking at others...
At that moment, I could see Perez"s eyes gliding as he looked down at me affectionately.
And at the end of his gaze that I secretly followed, I was able to find the answer to this situation.
It was Mortega Loupe, who was standing still with a shocked face.
"By the way, what about you?"
Perez, who had some cool eyes, asked Mortega Loupe.
Maybe it"s just his personality as well as his innocent looks.
Mortega couldn"t answer as if he were a bit dumbfounded.
He only looked at me and Perez with his trembling eyes alternately.
It seems that he is very surprised by the sudden love act between the couple.
Yes, it could be.
It was when I tried to introduce myself, hiding my embarra.s.sment.
"This is Mortega..."
"I"m- I"m sorry! Excuse me!"
"Ah......"
This.
I was just about to talk about the Lombardi Scholarship Foundation.
That"s too bad.
I was going to persuade him.
Later, I had to send a formal letter and make a proposal.
Since no artist refuses the Lombardi Foundation"s proposal, Mortega Loupe will also accept it.
Thinking so, I watched Mortega Loupe"s back as he mixed with people.
"Why?"
Until I felt the gentle touch of stroking my cheek.
As I turned my head along the touch, I met Perez"s eyes.
It was a persistent eye somewhere.
"What?"
"Why... are you keep looking at the him?"
"Well, that"s too bad."
Maybe I"m not my grandfather"s granddaughter for nothing.
Every time I met talented people, I would find myself craving to put a Lombardi name tag on them.
"......are you sad?"
"Yes, I suppose."
Although he is still only a singer on board, Mortega Loupe"s "The Pledge of love" is a song that will soon reborn as one of the most famous singers.
It is also scheduled to become a favorite song for men in the Empire who propose marriage.
Of course, that is a few years later.
But I can"t say this to Perez.
"I really liked the song. So was the voice."
"......voice."
"It was a beautiful voice, but it must be said that it is a voice that makes people listen automatically. He was such a powerful singer."
It"s not a made-up word.
In fact, the Mortega Loupe in my previous life was popular because of his rich voice and tone.
However, Perez"s reaction is a bit strange.
"You like my voice, too."
He muttered in a somber tone somewhere.
"Huh? Of course it is."
My personal preference is a low voice like Perez, rather than a voice like Mortega Loupe.
"But Mortega Loupe is a singer, and with the support of the Lombardi Foundation, it can become even bigger......"
Wait a minute.
I stopped talking and looked up at Perez.
He was still glumly looking at the direction Mortega Loupe disappeared.
No, he was staring.
No way.
"Perez."
I tugged at the hem of his clothes.
Then red eyes look at me.
"What did you call me earlier?"
".....Huh?"
Look at this.
I think you"re trying to pretend you don"t know, but your eyes are shaking.
As I watched Perez"s ears slowly turn red, I leaned slightly towards him.
And said a little.
"Honey."
Startle.
Perez"s chest, which I was hugging, trembled slightly.
"Right? You said "honey" to me earlier, didn"t you?"
After hesitating for a while, Perez finally nodded.
The redness had already spread to his neck.
Oh, I shouldn"t laugh.
I asked, dragging down the corners of my lips that were about to go up.
"I thought you didn"t use that nickname."
"...come to think of it, I think we need a more convincing performance to maintain camouflage status."
"Ah, was it because of the camouflage status?"
"......"
"Are you, by any chance, jealous?"
His body flicked once more.
Oh, I can"t stand it.
"Humff."
Eventually, the laughter escaped from between my lips.
Then, Perez"s ears grew even more red.
Oh, he"s going to get upset.
"No, hmm. Why? Why are you jealous?"
I patted Perez"s chest and continued talking as if to comfort him.
"It was just a brief conversation."
I"ve seen him for a long time, but this is the first time I"ve seen him so blatantly jealous.
"That"s it."
Perez, who had kept his mouth shut for a moment, answered slowly.
"Because he was looking at you with that kind of eyes."
"That kind of eyes?"
"The eyes that you can"t take your eyes off because it shine brightly."
Unlike sweet words, his voice is heavy.
I could feel the arm holding my waist a little tighter.
As if afraid of losing me.
"Eh, ah."
It was me who was bewildered by the unexpected words now.
"It"s not like that."
I smiled on purpose and said lightly.
"And how do you know that by looking at it from a distance?"
"I know."
But Perez"s answer was adamant.
"Because I did."
A hard finger rubbed my chin gently.
"Because I was like that the day I first saw you in the forest."
As if reminiscing on that day, Perez"s eyes, which had hardened, spread warmth.
With a smile that you can barely see.
In an instant, it was a face that seemed to be able to hear the rustling of the green forest in the wind.
It was a big deal.
Just a moment ago, my heart started beating faster than I did when Perez grabbed my hat.
"So you were jealous?"
In an attempt to relax, I taunted Perez to make fun of him.
However.
"Huh."
This time, it was me who was rather perplexed.
The tips of his ears were still red, but Perez looked down at me with his unshaken eyes and said.
"So I was jealous. It"s enough for me to see you like that."
There are already too much.
Perez murmured, adding a few words that didn"t make much sense.
"And, Tia."
The finger that had been stroking my chin suddenly came up to my lips.
His slightly rough fingertips rubbed my sensitive skin as if he was pressing it.
Perez"s red eyes, not knowing what to see, sank dark.
"I"m more jealous than you think."
"Huh......?"
"And I"m a more humble man than you think."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Still."
Perez took my hand and dragged me, kissing his lips on it.
"But please don"t abandon me."
"Ugh!"
His lips rested on the thin skin of the back of my hand.
Surprised by the sensation, I tried to pull out my hand, but Perez"s large fingers took the gap and wrapped it around my hand even more.
"Wait a minute..."
I was going to ask him to let it go.
Perez"s subsequent actions made me speechless.
"Promise me."
He was rubbing his cheek on the back of my hand.
"You won"t abandon me."
Like a big beast who craves his owner"s affection.
"You, you really...!"
Where did you learn this dangerous aegyo?
I want to yell at him if they"re his Academy colleagues, but I couldn"t.
If you are a person with a well-attached heart, you will not be able to get angry at those red eyes that come face to face with the corners of his eyes down.
"Even if you ask me to let you go, I won"t let you go."
I said, pulling Perez"s hand.
"Got it? Let"s go have dinner. You"re talking nonsense because you"re hungry."
As I strode forward and started walking, a large body was gently dragged along.
Perez has always been like that.
With the power to immobilize anyone, he has never failed to follow my lead.
And what to throw away?
"Perez."
"Yes, Tia."
"Don"t say such strange things again. I have no intention to throw it away, you."
"......"
Perez didn"t say anything.
I hope he"s not crying.
Looking back at the creeping worries, to my surprise, he was smiling.
His eyes were nicely folded, and his red lips were open like flowers.
With a very happy face.
Perez nodded his head as he clasped his tightly clasped hands.
"Right. Even if you throw me away, I won"t be thrown away."
No, maybe he looks relieved as if he found the answer.
I looked at him for a moment and then urged him again.
"Okay then. Let"s go eat. If you want to see the fireworks after dinner, you should take the best spot first."
Ha ha.
Perez"s delightful laugh, as if heard from afar, followed our steps.
***
The first dinner on cruise was excellent.
It was a rich dinner with a light Southern style and sweet and sour Eastern dishes.
After we finished eating, we walked towards the deck.
"The back deck is more famous than the front deck. This is something my father and Clarivan have emphasized over and over again."
"Normal people will flock to the slightly larger front deck."
"That"s why the back is even better!"
It was when we reached the back deck leisurely while continuing the conversation.
There was something beyond the railing of the ship where I had unintentionally cast my gaze.
"Huh?"
It was a boat approaching the cruise quietly through the dark river.
Without lighting a single light, mixed with darkness, the speed of approaching was very fast.
It meant that it wasn"t an ordinary fishing boat.
"What boat is that?"
Aside from us, the people who had been on the back deck in advance discovered one or two boats and began to stir.
Although much smaller in size, the momentum to quickly cling to the side of the cruise was far from friendly.
And at some point, the fire lit up on the boat.
The first ones to be seen were the Sushou soldiers full of boats.
Among them, a soldier who was at the forefront of the boat shouted loudly.
"Stop the ship! From now on, there will be a checkpoint according to the command of Lord Chanton Sushou!" (TN: Eugh. Chanton is getting more and more annoying.)