The Maid and The Usurper - Chapter 32
At the gentle sound of her name, Layla snapped out of her reverie and returned to reality. Leopold was playfully toying with her silver hair. For reasons she couldn’t understand, he seemed to have a particular fondness for her hair.
“What’s with all these clothes? They must have been expensive.”
“Thanks to you, I’ve got a lot of money in my pocket.”
The cleverly stashed money had accumulated enough for a splurge, and Leopold chose this moment. Before him, Layla was as beautiful as the moonlight. Her fine silver hair shimmered in the light, and her pale azure gown was in harmony with it.
“Why? Is it not to your liking?”
He had imagined Layla would be delighted, but she seemed dissatisfied, fiddling with the hem of her dress with a sulky expression. While he believed his taste wasn’t that bad, the feelings of the recipient were different. Layla quickly shook her head.
“No, it’s beautiful. I really like it.”
Despite the dress being lovely, the unsettling feelings that had begun last summer showed no sign of abating. Each time Leopold was this kind to her, those feelings only deepened. Leopold seemed relieved, his expression softening.
“You’re not too busy today, are you?”
The answer was quite obvious. The head maid, with her sentimental heart and fondness for cheap romance novels, had given Layla some much-needed rest after a particularly taxing week. In truth, the head maid was probably Leopold’s biggest supporter.
“Yes, the head maid said I could take it easy today since I worked hard last week.”
“Well then, would you like to go on a spring outing with me? There’s a place I’ve had in mind for a while.”
“With me?”
Layla repeated, wide-eyed in disbelief, wondering if she had misheard.
“Yes. Just you and me.”
“Did you eat something strange today?”
“No, I’m perfectly fine. You always ask that whenever I suggest doing something.”
Leopold looked displeased at Layla’s answer.
“You always seem to forget your place, Count. Don’t you think it’s strange for you to go out with a maid?”
Layla was just a lowly maid. Regardless of the reason, it was always scandalous for nobles and maids to associate with each other. Thankfully, the servants here were discreet, thanks to Count Bard’s influence, but that wasn’t the case outside.
“People are less interested in other people’s business than you think, and we’ll be going somewhere out of sight anyway.’”
Leopold’s face drew closer. Her cheeks flushed, and her heart raced. She almost wished she had a heart condition. Layla grasped the hem of her dress tightly. It was a feeling she needed to protect until the very end. This foolish emotion had to be just a fleeting illusion. That was the only way to preserve the last shred of her pride.
“Well, who am I to say no. Of course, I’ll follow you, Count,”
She regretted the words that came out. She hadn’t needed to sound so sarcastic just to preserve her pride.
“Why the sarcasm? Don’t want to go?”
Leopold asked in a voice that sounded like a dejected puppy. Layla hurriedly waved her hands.
“No, I was just saying. I’d love to. The weather has been nice lately, and I wanted to see the flowers.”
Although she didn’t want to think about La Ellosa, she loved spring. The flowers blooming in the streets of Tennel were more beautiful than anywhere else.
“Perfect. That’s what I was planning too—flower viewing.”
“You, Count?”
“That feels like a blow to my pride. Am I not allowed to enjoy flower viewing?”
“No, it’s just that I thought you might want to go boating on the lake.”
“Do you want to go boating? Then let’s go boating.”
“No, I prefer flower viewing more.”
Leopold smiled, as if relieved. He extended his hand to Layla with a flourish, just like at the moonlit ball. This time, she took it without hesitation.
