n

n

n

nThen Noel took out his handkerchief that he had pulled out and handed it to her.

nAs if she had just required it, Rieta wiped her tears away and blew her nose.

n“Okay, so the Princess wants me to be mad, right?”

nWhat? Rieta’s expression is slightly distorted at Noel’s conclusion.

nShe had a face that seemed to say, ‘You idiot’ for some reason.

n“Is that not it? You’ve been doing so many things that only make me angry!”

n“It’s not like that!”

n“What do you mean no, aren’t you crying because I didn’t get angry?”

n“Noel, really.”

nRieta blew her nose once more and applied the words she had learned a while ago.

n“You idiom.”

n“Hah, what?”

n“Noel you idiom!”

n“You, you! Do you know what that means?”

n“Of course I know. It’s such a bad word that a child shouldn’t look it up in a dictionary. It means something like a fool.”

nRieta’s explanation, which she added flauntingly, managed to point to the description of the word idiot.

n“Pronounce it right. What is ‘idiom’? I can’t even understand it. Ohh.”

n“The, the Princess understood it too?”

n“You, you! You said that to Sister? Are you crazy?! Are you planning to destroy the Liz Kingdom?”

n“You think I’m like you, Noel? I don’t say things like that to the Princess.”

n“Anyway.”

nNoel grabbed Rieta’s cheeks sideways, causing her little lips to part.

n“You had to open your mouth like this and make a sound.”

nShe had to pronounce ‘idiot’ correctly one by one.

n“Hid . . . eous?”

nRieta followed him carefully, but again, her pronunciation was wrong, so Noel clasped Rieta’s cheeks on both sides and she let out rustling noises.

n“It’s not that, idiot! Idiot! . . . Huh?”

nNoel’s face, who was instructing her on pronouncing it, suddenly turned blue.

n“Noel?”

nAs Rieta called in a low voice, his chin began to tremble.

nAs if he was terrified.

nWhy is he . . .?

nRieta turned her head slightly to see what was happening where Noel was looking.

n“. . .”

nThe Duke was standing there.

nCompletely frozen.

nAt that moment, Rieta thought about how the two of them would appear in his eyes.

nRieta was crying.

nNoel grabbed her face and screamed about ‘idiot’.

n. . . Ah.

nRieta was also very sorry for the misunderstanding and the consequences that Noel would receive.

n* * *

nFortunately, the Duke believed Rieta’s story.

nAlthough he left the words, ‘You have to be a little bit careful when you learn those words.’

nStill, seeing that he didn’t tell her not to learn them, it didn’t seem like he was wary of Rieta knowing bad words.

nThe Duke scolded Noel and Rieta equally, and returned to the office.

nA deep sigh rang out in the drawing room, where only the two of them were left.

n“I was really scared . . .”

nNoel sat down on the spot.

nThe moment he shouted ‘idiot’, the door opened and he saw his father, so he thought he would be in big trouble.

nFortunately, Rieta fervently defended him, so it was no big deal.

n“Noel had no reason to be scolded.”

nRieta sat down in front of Noel.

nEven with her words, the tension still remained on his face, so it must have been quite surprising.

nThe two looked at each other for a moment and giggled.

n“By the way, Princess.”

nNoel looked at Rieta’s face. She still had tears in her eyes.

nAfter rubbing her eyes and nose with his handkerchief so much that her white face seemed to be all red and swollen, he spoke.

n“Why did you cry earlier?”

n“. . .”

n“Why did you cry, huh?”

n“That, I.”

nRieta bit her lip slightly, feeling like crying again.

n“. . . I.”

n“Hmm.”

nNoel nodded his head again and again as he listened to Rieta’s story this time as well, waiting for her.

nSometimes, he acted kindly in strange places.

n“I was upset.”

n“At me?”

n“Hmm.”

nRieta nodded her head passionately.

nNo matter how much she thought about it, it was the correct answer, so she couldn’t think of any other words.

n“The Princess was upset at me?”

nBut Noel didn’t seem to understand her at all.

n“I worked really hard.”

n“I know.”

nBecause he was so good at mimicking a true gentleman, Rieta almost fell for it.

n“. . . However.”

nRieta wiped the tears with the back of her hand.

n“Suddenly, it felt as though Noel had become a completely different person.”

nAnd Rieta added one thing in case he misunderstood.

n“Still, it was nice for you to act gentlemanly in front of the Princess and other people.”

n“So, the Princess meant.”

nNoel pondered Rieta’s words for a moment, and then came to a conclusion.

n“You mean that even if I act like a gentleman outside, you want me to be angry with the Princess here?”

n“No!”

nShe was not asking him to be angry. She was asking him to be honest.

nRieta shook her head violently.

n“Then?”

n“You said we are friends.”

n“That’s right.”

n