Chapter 40

After hearing her story, Chase spoke in a calm and gentle voice.  

“Sabrina, you should have told me. I would have helped you in any way I could. Didn’t you know that?”  

Sabrina smiled faintly at his words.  

“No, I knew.”  

Sabrina slowly parted her lips.  

“I knew that if I told you, Your Majesty, everything would have been resolved cleanly, and I knew that you would undoubtedly take my side.”  

Chase furrowed his brows, tilting his head in confusion.  

“Then why?”  

“That’s what I’ve been wondering too….”  

Sabrina fidgeted with her fingers around the teacup, her voice trembling slightly as she continued.  

“I think it was because I wanted to stand tall in front of you, Your Majesty. If I started relying on you, I might lose sight of my duties as your aide.”  

“Sabrina.”  

“I shouldn’t be someone who depends on you, Your Majesty; I should be someone you can depend on.”  

In the quiet meeting room, Sabrina’s voice resonated clearly.  

“I didn’t want to burden you with personal matters, Your Majesty. Though I’m sorry if that ended up surprising you even more.”  

After a brief silence, Chase slowly nodded.  

“You’re right.”  

“…”  

“But Sabrina.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty.”  

Chase opened his mouth, his voice low.  

“Even so, I hope you lean on me a little more. I want to be the first person you turn to for help.”  

Sabrina’s eyes widened slightly. Chase continued speaking in a serious tone, devoid of any humor.  

“I’d like your personal matters to disrupt my day a little more. Sometimes, I find myself wanting to blur the clear line you draw between work and personal life.”  

“…”  

“I want to know what you like, what you dislike, and what’s been troubling you lately…”  

Chase took a short breath.  

“I want to know everything—not from someone else, but directly from you.”  

His eyelashes trembled slightly with tension. Lowering his gaze, he muttered,  

“Even though I think it would be better if you were a little more cunning, I can’t help but find your sincerity endearing… It seems I’m not normal either.”  

When Chase finished speaking, it was Sabrina’s turn to respond.  

Under normal circumstances, her reaction would have come naturally, without a second thought. But today, she remained silent.  

It wasn’t because she had nothing to say.  

It wasn’t because she felt indifferent. Absolutely not.  

Sabrina realized that when she had too much to say, she ended up unable to say anything at all.  

Gratitude, guilt, emotion, embarrassment, and the pent-up frustrations from the past all swirled together, overwhelming her.  

Lowering her head to hide her reddened nose, Sabrina remained silent. After a moment, a gentle voice reached her from above.  

“Sabrina.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty.”  

Sabrina lifted her head.  

“For just one day.”  

Chase emphasized the word “one day.”  

“I want to spend a day with you, just the two of us, personally.”  

And then,  

“On that day, I don’t want anyone else—just you.”  

* * *  

What could that possibly mean?  

Sabrina found herself staring blankly into space several times a day.  

Even now, she was lost in thought as she walked home, repeatedly mulling over Chase’s words from the previous day.  

“When we go to Sahel this time, just one day. I want to spend it personally.”  

“…”  

“On that day, I don’t want anyone else—just you.”  

The words Chase had casually thrown at her had been stuck in her mind for 24 hours straight.  

No matter how much she tried to brush them off as nothing, as she usually did, it wasn’t working this time.  

The suggestion of spending a day alone with just the two of them felt, to Sabrina, like a date proposal.  

‘A date proposal? From Chase? To me? No way.’ 

Whenever she dismissed the idea as ridiculous, a small voice in her head would rise in protest.  

‘But then, how else am I supposed to interpret those words? It’s not impossible, is it? After all, I’m a woman, he’s a man, we’re around the same age… Feelings could develop.’  

And just as she began to think that way, a wave of self-reproach would wash over her for entertaining such thoughts about her superior.  

Sabrina slapped her cheeks lightly with both hands, muttering to herself.  

“Get a grip, get a grip. There’s no time to be distracted right now.”  

A gruff male voice sounded from behind her.  

“What have you been muttering about all this time?”  

“You wouldn’t understand, Lord.”  

Clayton, who had been leisurely walking behind her on their way home, quickened his pace to match hers.  

Sabrina glanced up at Clayton and said,  

“I told His Majesty about our relationship.”  

Clayton nodded with his usual stoic expression.  

“I know.”  

“I’m sorry. I should have given you a heads-up, but the situation didn’t allow for it.”  

“We were going to tell him anyway. The timing just got moved up. It’s fine.”  

“Thank you for understanding. You might have been caught off guard.”  

Sabrina gave a small smile.  

“Avery mentioned hearing rumors about us.”  

“Did he?”  

“Seems like the rumors are spreading.”  

Clayton shrugged.  

“Well, that’s to be expected. After wandering around so much, it’s natural for someone to notice.”  

True enough.  

Sabrina recalled the times she had spent with Clayton.  

Visiting every famous tea house in the capital to sample desserts. Weekend strolls in quiet countryside areas. Always ending with him escorting her back home.  

Looking back, it was the epitome of a classic date. While it had simply been an awkward attempt at friendship for Sabrina, it was easy to see how others might misunderstand.  

“But, by the way.” 

Sabrina began, cautiously broaching a new topic.  

“Do you really have no intention of getting married?”  

Clayton looked down at her with a steady gaze. His expression seemed to ask why she was bringing this up, prompting Sabrina to quickly add an explanation.

“No, I don’t really have any intention of getting married, so it’s fine… But if you’re planning to get married someday, wouldn’t it be troublesome if such rumors about us spread widely?”

Clayton responded firmly.  

“I’m not worrying about things that far ahead.”  

He then turned the question back on Sabrina.  

“And you?”  

“Hmm?”  

“Are you really indifferent? Do you have no intention of ever getting married in the future?”  

Sabrina shrugged her shoulders once and answered decisively.  

“I like what I’m doing now. I like His Majesty, and I enjoy helping him. I have no desire to give up my current happiness to live as someone’s wife.”  

“What if there were a man who could respect and support that? Would you still dislike the idea of marriage?”  

Sabrina looked straight into Clayton’s light gray eyes. Normally, Clayton would have stopped asking questions with a simple “I see,” but this was unusual.  

After pondering his words for a moment, Sabrina tilted her head slightly and answered.  

“But… would such a person even exist in the first place?”  

Clayton’s lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but then he pressed them tightly together. His expression seemed frustrated, almost as if he were troubled.  

Unaware of his reaction, Sabrina waved her hand dismissively.  

“Never mind. What’s the point of imagining such a scenario? I don’t even get lonely in the first place.”  

A smile spread across Sabrina’s lips as she thought of Lay waiting for her at home.  

“Now that I even have an adorable puppy… I have no reason to feel lonely.”  

Turning her head sharply, Sabrina locked eyes with Clayton and asked,  

“By the way.”  

“…”  

“Why have you been following me around since earlier? Normally, you’d drop me off at the entrance and head straight back in your carriage.”  

Clayton had always escorted Sabrina close to her home but had never once gotten out of the carriage to walk with her. Yet today, for some reason, he was following her along the winding uphill path.  

At her question, Clayton looked slightly flustered and his cheeks reddened. Shifting his eyes, he answered in a small voice.  

“…Because I wanted to see the puppy.”  

Ah.  

Sabrina nodded cheerfully.  

“Well, I guess it’s about time you’d want to see him, right?”  

“Yes, I suppose.”  

Excited to talk about Lay, Sabrina spoke in an animated tone.  

“You’ll probably be surprised when you see him. He’s grown so much recently. He eats so well, I can’t imagine how much bigger he’ll get when he’s fully grown. But he’ll still be cute, no matter how big he gets.”  

“He’ll grow quite large. His mother was like that.”  

“Oh, I see.”  

Just then, as if hearing Sabrina’s voice, a sharp bark came from beyond the fence.  

“Woof!”  

Thud-thud-thud! The sound of paws kicking up dirt grew louder as a shiny, light-brown puppy bounded toward Sabrina, licking her hand energetically.  

Even though Lay had only briefly seen Clayton before, he seemed to remember him, rubbing his body against Clayton’s leg.  

What a clever pup.  

Feeling proud, Sabrina crouched down and stroked Lay’s fur.  

“Have you been doing well, Lay?”  

“Woof!”  

Picking up the leash Lay had dragged along, Sabrina turned to Clayton and said,  

“Since you’re here to see Lay, why don’t you take him for a walk?”  

“Sure.”  

Clapping her hands, Sabrina exclaimed,  

“Great! I needed to pack some things to take to Sahel anyway.”  

Clayton gave her a bewildered look.  

“…So, you’re telling me to walk the dog by myself right now?”  

“Don’t you want to? You said you came here because you wanted to see him.”  

“I obviously…” 

Clayton, about to protest indignantly, abruptly turned his head away. His ears turned bright red.  

“Fine. Go pack your things.”  

“Thank you, Lord! Have a nice walk!”  

Waving her arms cheerfully, Sabrina dashed into the house. She headed straight to her wardrobe.  

It had been several days since she packed for her trip to Sahel, but she felt there was one more thing she needed to bring.  

“Clothes. I need something decent. Not the dull ones I always wear, but something bright and fresh… but not too flashy.”  

She didn’t know what Chase meant by his words, but she had to prepare for every possibility.  

If Chase’s words were indeed a veiled invitation for a date… she couldn’t just show up looking indifferent.  

“What would be the best choice…?”  

Standing in front of the mirror, Sabrina held up one outfit after another, unaware of the soft blush spreading across her face like cherry blossoms.  

Thump-thump-thump-thump.  

Her heart was beating much faster than usual, but she didn’t even realize it.