By Zephyria 
“Try this too, Young Master! How is it? Delicious, right?”
“Eup, wait, just wait a moment…”
“Hehe. I’m so glad. I was wondering how I was going to handle all this by myself.”
“No, there’s still something else in my mouth…”
“Yes? You want to eat pudding this time?”
I pretended to be oblivious and smiled, shoving a large spoonful of pudding into Carlisle’s mouth. The Grand Duke Graham, who seemed prickly on the outside but was actually a pushover who couldn’t kill even an ant on the inside, couldn’t refuse any further and just mumbled with his mouth full.
As expected, he had a gentle reaction befitting the capture target with the best personality.
The Crown Prince, as well as Kyle, whom I wouldn’t mind chewing up and spitting out, and Lennox, who was second to none when it came to being insidious. The Alphas who were head over heels for Allen were always finding all sorts of miraculous ways to put me down. Even in the midst of all that, only this pebble, no, Grand Duke Graham, kept his distance and politely gave warnings in words.
“How is it? Delicious, right? I worked hard to pick out the most delicious ones from the kitchen!”
“Th-That…, no, now that…”
The expression of the dignified Grand Duke, who had never experienced shaking until now, was full of embarrassment at the relentless barrage of desserts. He looks like he’s only fourteen now. Without any personal feelings, honestly, he’s a bit cute.
“I don’t know who you are, but thank you again. You saved me, Young Master.”
His small head nods greatly once. His lips, still busy chewing and swallowing the full food, didn’t open. But even if there was no food, nothing would have changed.
Just as it was disrespectful to call the Crown Prince, who had been appointed, ‘Prince’ instead of ‘Your Highness,’ it was equally disrespectful to address Graham’s Grand Duke, who had long been confirmed as the heir, as simply ‘Young Master.’
All the subordinates within Graham’s territory usually addressed Carlisle Graham as ‘Young Duke’ or ‘Young Master,’ respectfully.
So, unless one didn’t value their life or had lost all sense of fear, it was impossible to call him ‘Young Master, Young Master’ cheerfully from the start.
The reason why I, who was acting as a servant, was doing such a daring thing to Carlisle Graham was firstly to let him know that this uncontrollably cheerful servant had not properly recognized his status, and secondly because I was confident in his upright character, which could not properly punish even a subordinate who had committed a wrong.
In fact, I even thought about treating him comfortably from the start, calling him ‘kid’ as soon as I met him, since I was already going wild anyway. But he looked too aristocratic from his clothes, so that was too much. Carlisle was kind, but he wasn’t stupid.
“…Really, you don’t know who I am?”
Even though he’s mature, he’s still a kid. The corners of his mouth, muttering to himself, thinking I couldn’t hear, are slightly raised. Everyone he’s met so far, except for his father, Grand Duke Graham, must have prostrated themselves and trembled before him, so this treatment must be new and refreshing.
I pretended to tidy up the snack tray, which had already been greatly reduced, and looked around. Roses and peonies, which had already fallen in the capital due to the cooler temperature than other regions, were blooming beautifully under the blue sky.
‘When it becomes unbearable, I always hide in the inner garden of the castle.’
‘Hiding under the densely grown rose bushes and the abundantly blooming peony flowers…’
‘I finally felt like I was alone in the world.’
‘Carlisle…’
‘Because you’re here, my lovely Allen. It’s okay now.’
Carlisle’s voice, confessing to Allen with a shy expression, suddenly came to mind. The place where Carlisle whispered his love to Allen was also a garden with flowers blooming. The very place that I had been hopelessly deprived of by Allen, where even the climbing roses, Scarlet Tree, and neat Stock flowers that I loved so much could no longer find a place to set foot.
The yellow tulip field, which was Allen’s taste, was dazzling to even look at. I don’t know what kind of vain sentiment I was trying to take… At that time, I dragged my twisted ankle and trudged all the way to one corner of that garden. Was it because there was no place to hide? Was it because there was no place to cry in peace? I don’t remember well because it was so long ago, but I remember that scene that I happened to see and hear there very vividly.
However, there is one thing I dare to hope for.
‘Could you become my lush garden?’
Making eye contact with Allen’s tearful eyes softly. Enveloping Allen’s white cheeks with warm hands. I was unbearably envious and greedy of his appearance as he gently pressed a sacred kiss on his straight forehead.
‘I love you. I dare to, I dare to love you.’
I had never even sold matches, but secretly hiding in a corner of the garden and stealing glimpses of someone else’s paradise and someone else’s happiness was too addictive. It was even more so because there was no one left to wipe my tear-soaked face.
“By the way…”
What woke me up from my reverie was a small call that suddenly came. It was a voice much younger and weaker than the voice of ‘Carlisle Graham’ that I was familiar with. I instantly returned to the present.
“Yes, Young Master. What is it?”
“Who are you…? You’re too new to be working in the castle.”
Carlisle asked in a slow tone that was filled with an awkward air.
“Ah! It’s natural that you haven’t seen me before. I’m a servant who came with Young Master Hamilton. I only arrived at this castle yesterday.”
“…I see. Is this, this ridiculously large amount of refreshments your master’s taste?”
“Haha, I guess so? Our Young Master is so fickle. I worked hard to bring it, but now he says he’s tired of just looking at it and told me to take it away and get lost. I don’t even know the geography here. I was just wandering around, not knowing what to do, but then Young Master appeared and helped me. Thank you so much.”
The image of Young Master Hamilton, who visited Graham, would be greatly diminished, but it didn’t matter. By the time I revealed my identity, I would have already completely taken this pebble into my hands.
“By the way, I’m really worried. Graham Castle is really wide, so wide. Sigh… If I want to run errands for our Young Master, I need to know at least roughly where everything is…”
I laid the groundwork in advance to ask him to guide me through the Ducal Palace after running into him a few more times by chance and becoming close enough. The young Grand Duke frowned diligently, unaware that the complaints I was deliberately making were bait for the future.
“He seems to have a really nasty personality. The one you call your master.”
I forcibly suppressed the laughter that was about to burst out at Carlisle’s serious atmosphere. Anyone would laugh at the sight of a young boy, who still looked more cute than handsome, pretending to be mature.
Against the backdrop of the summer garden, where peonies and roses were mixed disorderly, but harmoniously as if they had been tailored. This is how we first met in this round.
“…Sometimes this isn’t so bad.”
The young Grand Duke muttered to himself with a slight blush on his expressionless face. The faint pink that dyed his cheeks looked softer than the plump peony blossoms. The sight was strangely familiar, and I blinked my eyes a few times.
I’ve seen it several times in the game’s illustrations, but I’m sure this is the first time I’ve actually been here… A subtle sense of déjà vu surged.
‘Sometimes it’s not bad. This rest too.’
The voice of someone calm overlapping over the young voice must also be just a delusion. The faint floral scent mixed with the gently blowing breeze made me feel naturally drowsy.
Even if I stayed still, all the muscles in my face were pulled. I rubbed my cheeks as if crushing them with an ice pack that was so cold that it woke me up, and only then did I feel a little better.
In Graham’s territory, located in the north, there were ice valleys with a constant coldness throughout the four seasons in the mountains surrounding the territory, so getting ice was always a piece of cake. This one thing was really good.
If the genre of this game that I entered was not a 19+ BL romance simulation but a wholesome territory development game, I would have definitely developed a summer vacation tourism business with this and hit the jackpot. It’s not even my land, but I feel like it’s a waste.
“Oh my, Young Master. Are you okay?”
“Euheong. Gaeana…”
Nicole, who had come in as soon as I entered the room, washed up, and lay down, and was just rolling around without even getting up properly, began to pour out worries again. Because I was pressing my cheeks with a bag full of ice, my pronunciation kept slurring.