History at the Library

Aidan moved to pick up Vivian’s notebook. He bent his back. The movements that were reminiscent of a predator who showed a weakness in order to relieve his prey of its wariness.

“Your precious notebook, you dropped it.”

She had thought that the notebook was worth as much as her life, but it appeared that was not truly the case. She would rather give up possession of the notebook and run away from this situation.

Vivian took the notebook with a trembling hand and her eyes shook. She dearly wished to collapse this very second and escape from reality, but she had the sin of being too healthy and she was physically and mentally far too normal and unaffected.

“Y, your Highness, the Grand Duke?”

“Aidan.”

“Aidan?”

“Yes.”

Gasp, I called him by his name! Vivian muttered after him subconsciously and after realizing she had said it out loud she became surprised.

According to his notoriety, it wouldn’t be odd if an arrogant maid who dared to speak his name had her neck throat ripped out. However, he didn’t have a single hint of discomfort or agitation – rather his eyes were filled slightly with satiety.

Even if he’s calm, he’s too calm. He was just like a predator who had their fill.

The library started to be stained by the rising sun, but the area where he stood appeared to be sunken in darkness.

As she faced those blue eyes that flashed with mercilessness, Vivian took hold of her tactlessly pounding heart. Did it pound out of fear or did it flutter in excitement? The boundary line was so ambiguous that there was no way for her to understand how they were different.

He was a man who was inhabited by contrary notions. He was dark and gloomy at the same time he was beautiful, and goosebump raisingly frightening while being elegant as well.

“Then, shall we continue what we were talking about previously?”

“W, wait. Please wait.”

So, the Black Grand Duke was Ray. Vivian calmly looked down at the marble floor. She looked as though she was considering if she would be able to collapse and faint from the physical force if she flung her head towards the floor.

“Then let’s consider it gone……”

She muttered in a state of half-consciousness. She prided herself for overcoming her share of hardships in life, but she couldn’t see the breakthrough past this set of obstacles.

“Are you playing with me?”

“How can that be?!?”

It wasn’t like she had nine lives, so how could she possibly string along the Black Grand Duke. If she had that courage, she would have become a lady knight rather than a maid. Vivian shook her from side to side and sniffled slightly.

She wanted to die as she was unable to do this or that. She even wondered if this was precisely the definition of a living hell.

What in the world, the Black Grand Duke pretended to be a scholar as he borrowed books from the library? Not to mention, he was a conman and robber with too much time on his hands!

Vivian’s eyes shook as she spoke.

“J, just a moment ago, can you forget what I had spoken earlier?”

“Do you mean the phrase, ‘I’m a conman and robber with too much time on my hands’?”

“…….”

“I don’t have plans on punishing Vivian for that incident.”

She had predicted that she would finally meet her death after living so rashly while saying whatever she wanted without filtering the words she should and should not say, yet Aidan was still generous.

Even till now, the Black Grand Duke was treated as an existence that was scarier than even Satan in this Empire. The prince who was unable to differentiate between morally right and wrong, acted like a street bully, and in the end retreated from the line of succession, the defeated. Wasn’t that precisely the Black Grand Duke?

However, the rumors and what she had seen from Ray thus far were two totally different things. They were so different, that once could call them polar opposites. Vivian spoke of her exact feelings just as she felt.

“…… You’re very different from what the rumors say.”