Ch.1558 Years Old (2)

“…Robelia received a confession.”

Irene, with her hair tied back, spoke while holding her spoon. She had rushed over with a serious expression, making me wonder what she wanted to talk about, but suddenly bringing up a confession was unexpected.

Can’t kids confess their feelings to each other? It’s not like dating now means they’ll get married. Realizing Irene’s reaction was unexpectedly cold, Evan smiled bitterly.

“Irene, did Kyle confess to Robelia?”

“Evan confessed to me too.”

“In the storybook, it said Mom confessed!”

“How many times have I told you that’s all lies? I got this ring from Dad.”

At Arthur’s words, Irene showed the ring on her finger.

The diamond ring was kept in a box, so the emerald ring she usually wore was the one Evan had given her when he confessed.

And well, Kyle wasn’t a bad choice. Irene actually thought this situation was quite good.

Rather than having her charm multiple men like Evan did, it would be better if Kyle held onto Robelia firmly.

“I’m being serious right now.”

“Be quiet and teach Arthur some swordsmanship. Don’t you know there’s a sword exam at the academy in a week?”

“…I’m going to sulk.”

“What are you, a child? Evan, stop that and come hold Rose for a bit. I need to look over some documents.”

Evan pouted but couldn’t refuse her request.

It was actually an awkward situation to make a big deal about—who would object to young children dating?

Holding Rose, Evan skillfully patted her back. Didn’t she just have baby food?

When Rose finally burped, Evan looked at Robelia and spoke.

“So, what did Kyle say when he confessed that made Arthur hit him?”

“…Well. It was pretty normal. For Kyle, that is.”

Robelia continued with a frown. It was quite an elaborate confession for a 7-year-old, but Kyle was that kind of child.

He acted a bit more dramatically than others and used his status as the crown prince’s son in a positive way.

Though he set aside his authority to get along with his peers, there weren’t many who genuinely approached him wanting to be friends with the crown prince’s son.

Arthur and Robelia, who had been close to him since they were very young, were probably the only ones.

Perhaps Kyle confessing to Robelia was inevitable.

Isn’t confessing to a childhood friend quite common? Of course, Evan knew this.

But knowing something and being okay with it were completely different matters.

His daughter already having a boyfriend? If he could, he’d want to watch over her 24 hours a day…

But he’d just be called overprotective, so he could only sigh deeply.

“This time he confessed while giving me a flower. He had candles spread around and everything.”

“That’s pretty ordinary for Kyle.”

“Right, for Kyle. He probably did that because he knows I don’t like flashy things.”

“So, did you reject him properly?”

At Evan’s words, Robelia pressed her lips together. She rolled her eyes, glanced at Evan, and then hung her head.

“…I haven’t rejected him yet. I told him I’d answer later. Is that… okay?”

“You don’t actually like Kyle, do you?”

“It’s not about liking or disliking. If I reject him outright, it might be awkward to face him later.”

Robelia answered while scratching her cheek.

They’d known each other since they were young, and an immediate rejection might make future interactions difficult.

So she didn’t reject him outright. She just said she’d consider it if Kyle acted more maturely.

“What does acting more maturely mean?”

“I just said it. I see Kyle as more of a younger brother. Don’t you think he was probably just joking around?”

“Him?”

It seemed too serious to dismiss as a joke, but Robelia didn’t think much of it.

Won’t they forget about it with time anyway? Arthur was somewhat skeptical but kept quiet when he saw Evan’s gloomy expression.

If he kept saying Kyle seemed serious… it would probably just add to Dad’s worries.

“It’ll probably be resolved soon.”

“I hope so.”

“Don’t worry too much. It’s kids’ business, so let the children handle it.”

When even Irene said that, Evan finally sighed deeply and nodded.

If he interfered more, Robelia might dislike it. Being hated by his daughter once in his life was enough.

That cold look Robelia gave him when he gave her the wrong birthday present.

That look still appeared in his dreams, making Evan shudder.

How on earth did his father-in-law endure these feelings?

Thinking he should contact him sometime, Evan shook his head slightly.

#

“…I heard you fought, but all you got was a bump on your head.”

“I swung my arm too. I just didn’t hit him.”

“I heard from Evan. Kyle, you confessed to Robelia again? How many times is this now?”

Kaisel couldn’t help but feel complicated emotions looking at his son.

Whether it was because he’d been close to Evan’s children since he was young, he had to confess to Evan’s daughter of all people.

Kaisel knew well that Evan was particularly attentive to his children.

Hadn’t he complained that he wished Robelia would never get married?

Without a daughter himself, Kaisel found it hard to understand such feelings, but he simply thought Evan, who would brag about his children when drinking, was just a bit peculiar.

Well, some people have special affection for their children.

Of course, that didn’t mean Kaisel didn’t love Kyle. Rather, as his only child, he paid a lot of attention to him.

He assigned Theorad to teach him swordsmanship and brought court magicians to teach him magic.

However, he let Kyle do what he wanted. If he wanted to learn swordsmanship, Kaisel provided a teacher, but if Kyle disliked it, Kaisel gladly let him stop.

After all, these were processes he’d have to go through to become emperor, so Kaisel wanted to give him freedom while he was young.

“How many times is this now?”

“Ten times.”

“They say even a tree will fall if you chop it ten times. You’ll probably succeed next time.”

At Kaisel’s words, Kyle nodded in agreement. Scarlet glanced at him incredulously, but Kyle had his own confidence.

-Well… I don’t know. Unless you show me a more mature side, you’re just like a little brother to me.

“What does being mature mean?”

Kyle recalled Robelia’s words and thought seriously. What does it mean to be mature?

Is being mature becoming a splendid knight like Robelia’s father?

When Kyle asked, Kaisel chuckled and stroked Kyle’s head with a satisfied expression.

“Well, everyone has different standards. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what being an adult means. But why are you suddenly thinking about this?”

“Robelia says she likes mature men.”

Ha, at Kyle’s words, Scarlet almost dropped the plate she was holding.

She wondered why he was having such admirable thoughts, but of course it was because of a girl.

How could he resemble his father so much? He looked exactly like Kaisel.

Scarlet was even afraid he might inherit his father’s womanizing ways.

How much trouble had she gone through when they first dated?

Kaisel didn’t cheat, but the problem was women from his past clinging to him.

Scarlet looked at Kyle with concern, hoping he wouldn’t repeat that pattern, but Kaisel chuckled and gazed at Kyle fondly.

“You really take after me. How are you so similar? I don’t see any resemblance to Scarlet at all.”

“My personality takes after Mom.”

“That’s true. If you had my personality too, you’d have three girlfriends by now.”

“Are you actually bragging about that?”

“…It was a kind of lesson not to live like me. Like learning from a negative example.”

Kaisel smiled awkwardly after checking Scarlet’s reaction.

Kaisel’s colorful past was something he could never bring up in front of Scarlet.

How much trouble had he gone through before getting married? Kaisel briefly wiped his forehead and then gazed at Kyle, lost in thought.

Knowing Kyle, he probably wouldn’t give up on his feelings.

Evan probably hadn’t complained yet because he was treating it as a joke.

Kaisel knew Robelia well too. He often imagined having a daughter like her.

If Kyle and Robelia started dating… they’d make a good couple. Smiling slightly, Kaisel gently gripped Kyle’s shoulder.

“Do you want Dad to teach you what being mature means?”

“Really?”

“Of course. I didn’t meet your mother for nothing. I confessed maturely, and that’s how we ended up married.”

“Mature? Hardly.”

Recalling when Kaisel confessed to her, Scarlet let out a hollow laugh.

He couldn’t even confess properly and ended up confessing at the same time as she did.

With his face pale from nervousness, he looked like a man confessing for the first time in his life to anyone watching.

How on earth did he date other women?

But Kaisel neatly ignored Scarlet’s laugh.

He’d been worried lately because Kyle wasn’t studying.

Thinking about educating Kyle under the pretext of teaching him what a true adult is, he couldn’t help but smile.

“I’ll teach you what a real adult is.”

At that evil smile, the innocent Kyle could only blink his eyes excitedly.