The weight gently pressing down on his shoulder and the hot heat made Beni feel strange again. He nearly answered that he would for a moment, but barely holding onto his senses, he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I have somewhere I need to go this evening, so it will be difficult to go early…!”
He worried about what to answer if Ruan asked where he had to go, but Ruan only said, “That’s a shame,” and left it at that. Somehow Ruan seemed to be in a bad mood, but Beni couldn’t rashly ask.
Beni mentally recited again the ‘100 Mistakes First Servants Must Make’ he had read earlier.
* * *
After his work was done, Beni finished dinner and hurriedly moved his steps. In his arms were a book and notebook, and beside him, Ren was following with his hands stuck in his pockets.
The place the two headed to was a cabin near Acre Farm—James’s house. Those with special occupations like James didn’t have quarters in the Demon King’s Castle but were provided with personal residences.
When Beni knocked on the door, it opened and James came out in comfortable clothes.
“Hello!”
James glanced at Ren, who was glaring at him from the side, then quickly gestured for them to come in. Beni familiarly took a seat at the table in the living room, and Ren also sat right next to him. What the three of them gathered to do every evening was none other than—
“I don’t know these words today.”
Beni handed James a list of unknown words he had written down while reading the book. It was studying letters.
James took the small notebook and looked it over. Then, seeing the two in front of him looking only at him, he wondered how he had ended up doing this.
A few days ago, Beni, who had come to the farm, suddenly asked carefully.
“James, you know letters well, right?”
Since James was from a noble family, he even had an academy graduation certificate. Though it was from the agriculture department rather than general studies, there was no way he wouldn’t know letters.
“Yeah, why?”
This answer, given without much thought, was the problem. Beni’s eyes sparkled and he suddenly held out a book, pleading earnestly.
“I’ve been reading books lately, but there are many words I don’t know. Could you possibly teach me? I won’t take up much of your time!”
It was shocking that the Demon King’s child didn’t know letters well, but he wondered if asking him to teach wasn’t some kind of trap. He knew he should maintain an appropriate distance from this kid who was presumed to be the Demon King’s child, but being stared at so intently like this made it difficult to ignore.
In the first place, no matter what, for the Demon King’s child to be struggling with reading—had he been making wild assumptions? But if not, then the Demon King being particularly kind to Beni couldn’t be explained. For a moment he thought maybe not a child but a mate, but he erased that thought.
What crazy person would keep their mate as a servant? He had heard that the Demon King Race had been particularly possessive for generations. So coming back to square one, Beni must be the Demon King’s child after all.
James briefly considered refusing nicely, but upon meeting those sparkling yellow eyes, he swallowed a sigh inwardly.
And so it had come to this.
“…Hyeonjeon. Hyeonjeon is, well.”
“Yes, yes.”
“Simply put, it means ‘to be here.’ But it’s not just being there—it’s that you can feel the presence of being there.”
“Ah! That’s what it meant! So I should think of it like ‘currently existing,’ right?”
“That’s right.”
Beni nodded and put the newly learned words into his head. Though James thought he had gotten involved in a troublesome matter, he seemed to have a teacher’s temperament after all. Judging by how he felt proud every time he taught Beni something.
However, the one thing that bothered him was Ren, who was sitting next to Beni with his chin propped up.
“I’ve been curious from before, but why do you come?”
Ren glanced at James and replied bluntly.
“Just because.”
James let out a hollow laugh as if he knew he wouldn’t tell him. Beni, who had been laughing along from the side, replied, “Ren can read well too. So I think he wants to come!”
In truth, Ren had said he would follow because he was worried about Beni suddenly going to James’s cabin alone, especially on this dark night. Seeing the two really just studying made it seem like he had worried for nothing, but the cabin turned out to be quite cozy, which was nice. Moreover, when he came here—
“Keep reading your book. I got leftover cookies from the kitchen earlier. I’ll bring them.”
James gave him food. He absolutely had no intention of telling the truth though.
Beni, who had been reading, subtly covered his mouth with the book and stared at Ren. His narrowed eyes were tinged with subtle mischief.
“What are you looking at?”
“You actually like coming here too, don’t you, Ren?”
“N-no I don’t!”
Having been hit right on the mark, when Ren shouted, Beni giggled softly.
After eating the cookies and warm honey tea James brought out, Beni also learned simple etiquette and culture from him.
Since James was also a noble even if his title wasn’t high, he could sufficiently teach simple things.
“Beni, don’t hunch your shoulders, stick out your chest. Ah, but don’t hold your breath!”
From how to walk to how to greet, having someone teach him directly seemed to correct his posture more quickly than when he looked at books alone.
Ren, who had been watching while eating cookies from the side, also straightened his back for no reason.
And so, while Beni was having a pleasant time at James’s cabin—
“Haah…”
Ruan was lying face down on his study desk, sighing as if the ground would cave in. In front of him, a Recording Orb was projecting a small screen in the air. He hadn’t wanted to secretly peek at Beni’s day like this, but lately he couldn’t help it after hearing that Beni had been going in and out of the farmer’s cabin.
He had expected it wouldn’t be anything strange, but it was more wholesome than he thought, which actually upset Ruan.
“I’m smart too…”
If Beni asked him about things like this, he could teach more kindly and in detail. Had he been giving too many hints lately that he wanted Beni to be his servant? Still, the fact that Beni hadn’t asked him even once hurt his feelings.
But why would he suddenly try to learn etiquette? Judging by how he kept avoiding conversations about the exclusive servant, it didn’t seem to be that either…
Could it be… had he found someone else he wanted to look good for? No, this was going too far. Was he getting too ahead of himself?
Ruan stared intently at Beni, who was smiling brightly in the video while lying face down.
Love was more difficult than he thought. The desire to let him live freely and happily as he wished, and the emotion of wanting to make him look only at himself and restrain him, twisted together and mixed in his heart. He thought carelessly that he had waited quite a lot by now, hadn’t he?
* * *
From one day on, Ruan no longer said anything to Beni about the exclusive servant. Moreover, his behavior strangely changed from before.
To others it was a very subtle change, but Beni, who saw Ruan every single day, couldn’t help but notice. The white rabbit that had been lying sprawled on the Demon King’s lap raised its face at the hand that had stopped petting.
Ruan, who was always looking at him, was for some reason quietly gazing out the window. It seemed like he was lost in thought so he didn’t want to disturb him, but at the same time, lately somehow… it felt like his interest in him had decreased compared to before, so the rabbit squirmed its body to move his hand from its waist to the top of its head.
Only then did Ruan quietly let out an “Ah” and smiled faintly.
“Sorry.”
When Ruan moved his hand again and gently scratched Beni’s cheek, the rabbit’s body immediately spread out and lay sprawled on his thigh. The warm touch and delicate caressing hand were still the same, so his anxious heart was relieved. And so, while Beni was falling asleep on Ruan’s thigh—
A low voice could be heard softly.
“Won’t you stay here for the rest of your life, Beni? Don’t go anywhere.”
When the rabbit perked up its ears and raised its head, Ruan was smiling the same as before, but perhaps because of the backlighting, the atmosphere seemed colder than usual.
Beni stared up at him blankly, then nodded his head. Beni had already resolved to bury his bones in this place. At the rabbit’s answer that came back without hesitation, Ruan ended up laughing as if deflating.
What was he even thinking?
Ruan muttered inwardly and looked down at the small existence that was completely entrusting its body to him. He always had to be careful because if he touched wrong, all its bones might crumble. When he had decided to treat it preciously. Ruan calmed the deep possessiveness toward Beni that had surged for the past few days.
In the first place, the one who had fallen in love was himself, not Beni.
So it was right for the one in love to match the other’s pace. Ruan rubbed the rabbit’s forehead with his fingertips and whispered softly.
“Still, I wish Beni would like me just a little more.”
The rabbit just tilted its head and merely licked his finger.
