episode_0032

A few days after the entrance exam.

During that time, Zeros never left Princess Katlena’s side, holding her bottle.

“Umm.. Go.. Princess. Ah.. Spread it.”

“Aaang~”

Zeros scoops up some moderately warm soup and puts it into the princess’s mouth.

At this, Katlena put it in her mouth with a rather happy face.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, maybe it’s because Zeros blew on it? It tastes better than usual.”

“Hmm…hmm…that…could that be true.”

“Hehehe, just kidding, just kidding. Don’t blush so much.”

In that way, Zeros, as her servant who takes care of her, is receiving ‘nagging’ which can be considered a rather hot expression of affection.

Honestly, it had been quite some time since she collapsed from overwork and her physical condition had almost completely recovered, so there was no need for him to do this to her.

But, despite that, Zeros was literally doing whatever Katlena asked him to do without even a single complaint.

It wasn’t just because he was her servant.

To repay her, even if only a little, for all the hard work she’s done for him in the past.

And, since she was someone I would not see for a while anyway and would gradually drift apart, it was an action that came from a sense of duty that I should at least repay her pure affection to some extent.

There was one more reason that Zeros himself was unaware of, and even if he did know, he couldn’t admit it…

“Haa, I ate well. Thanks Zeros.”

Princess Catlena looks delighted after finishing her meal.

Then she slowly got up from her seat and looked at Zeros and said.

“Okay, then let’s go for a walk to help with digestion?”

“Yes, I understand, Your Majesty.”

Now that my body is almost healed, there are no major problems.

So Zeros and Katlena began to walk around the garden in front of the palace alone.

“By the way, it’s almost time for the acceptance notice to come.”

“Yes, I guess so. I don’t think you should expect too much.”

“Hehehe.. Okay, I got it.”

Katlena continued talking with a small laugh as Zero spoke in a cautious voice.

“According to what you said, honestly, I don’t have high expectations either. The test was pretty hard. Above all, the last mock test score I saw was pretty disappointing. And..”

Princess Catlena glanced at Zeros’ face as she said those words.

Seeing her with her cheeks turning pink, Zeros couldn’t help but turn his head away as something came to mind for a moment.

His face turned red in an instant.

-Because I like it.-

The story that Princess Katlena had told him a while ago. Thinking back to it, Zeros could not help but try to calm his heart that was suddenly starting to pound.

‘This… The aftermath is harder to ignore than I thought…’

The first confession I received since I was born.

It was a lie to say that it didn’t bother him at all, even though it belonged to a young girl.

‘Let’s not think too deeply about it. We won’t be seeing each other for a while anyway, right? She and I both have to go our own ways.’

So, Zeros tries to shake off this feeling somehow.

Meanwhile, looking at the boy who was so embarrassed, Katlena smiled faintly.

‘Hehehe… He really is quite cute. Is it because he’s still a young boy? I didn’t know he would be so embarrassed by something like that.’

Although it was a confession that went along with the mood, Katlena was quite satisfied with the fact that it surprisingly had a lasting effect.

Of course, the effectiveness of confessions at this age is clearly limited, and Katlena was well aware of this.

It took some more time for the wedge to fully sink into his heart.

After both of you have grown as a man and a woman and are able to feel affection for each other, you should make a formal confession.

Of course, the best way would be for Zeros to confess to Katlena with his own mouth, but honestly, she thought that part would not be easy at all.

‘No matter what, it’s hard to ignore the difference in status between us. In the end, it’s regrettable, but this time, I have to be the one to convey my feelings first.’

It is not easily accepted by custom that a servant named Zeros would have feelings for a noblewoman named Katlena.

The good news is that if Katlena extends her hand, the situation may go much more smoothly.

The reason was simple.

Because there was such a good precedent right next to her.

That precedent is…

“Oh, Mother!”

“Oh my, my baby.”

Duchess Rosetta, whom I happened to meet on one side of the garden.

At this, Katlena immediately approached her, and then Zeros also bowed his head respectfully towards the Duchess.

“Yeah, are you feeling okay now?”

“Yes, Mom. I’m almost better now.”

“Thank goodness. If this happens, there will be no problem in going to the academy.”

“Huh? Ah.. That.. That’s..”

At Rosebetta’s words, Katlena suddenly began to feel embarrassed in an unexpected way.

An action she had taken a while ago to give Zero a chance.

She recalled how she had buckled down and refused to go to the Academy unless she went with Zeros, and for a moment she wasn’t sure how she should react here.

‘What should I do… I guess Zeros’s admission will be out of the question, so do I have to try and cheat here again?’

I tried my best and honestly don’t have any regrets about my failures.

However, because of my previous actions, it has become natural for me to be unreasonable in this situation.

‘Ugh… But honestly, there are a lot of reasons to get upset about something like that… And now there’s Zero next to me.’

No matter what, it was absolutely impossible to do that again in front of Zeros.

It was at this point that Katlena momentarily made a mistake in judgment as to what to do and how to act.

“Katlena is healthy, and the brave knight who will protect our youngest princess has passed the exam. Oh, and by the way, the Duke said he will wake up soon and hold a banquet to celebrate our daughter’s admission..”

“Ah. Yes..Father is having a banquet.. Huh?

“?!?”

A story from the mouth of Duchess Rosetta.

At this, a look of confusion and surprise began to appear on Katlena’s face for a moment.

“Okay. Wait a minute, Ji. What did you just say, Mom? Who… Who said what happened?”

“What the heck? The Duke is holding a banquet..”

“That… That’s not it! There was a story we told before, right?”

“Before that?.. Oh. You haven’t heard from me yet? I sent someone to Zeros this morning. Maybe we got lost.”

With those words, the Duchess slowly turned her gaze towards Zeros, who was looking at her with a blank expression.

Then she spoke to him with a deep smile on her lips.

“Congratulations, Zeros. You passed the entrance exam to the Academy Adelan. Now you don’t have to worry about being separated from Katlena.”

“… . in?”

“That. That.. Is that really true? Really.. Really Zeros..”

Zeros still has a blank expression on his face at the Duchess’s words.

On the other hand, the moment she heard that story, a bright smile of joy began to bloom on Katlena’s face.

“That’s right. This morning, I got a letter from Elios along with my certificate of admission. He congratulated me on my admission and asked me to take good care of Katlena in the future.”

“Elios.. The Princess..”

Zeros muttered in a very stiff voice at Roseveta’s words.

The next moment, Katlena hugged his stiff body tightly, filled with joy.

“I passed! I passed! That was great! Thank you Zeros! You worked hard! Now we’re going to the academy together!”

“Ah..hahaha..n..yes..that..that’s really..f..happy.”

With those words, Zeros’ expression hardened and tears streamed down his face.

At this, Katlena judged that he was shedding tears of joy, and Rosebetta thought the same.

Meanwhile, in the heart of Zeros, who had become the object of celebration, at this very moment…

Only one word was ringing out clearly.

‘Fuck you!!!!!!’