Deflower Me If You Can Chapter 9

“This is our youngest, Bliss. Bliss, you should say hello.”

Despite the emergency treatment, dark traces of chocolate still remained in patches on his face as Bliss gave a chipper greeting.

“Hello. I’m Bliss Miller.”

“Oh my, how adorable.”

The duchess’s reaction came immediately. Smiling brightly, she peered at the child’s face.

“Hello, I am Elizabeth Strickland. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Then, looking at Bliss’s still-swollen eye, she asked as if worried.

“Is your eye alright? The bruise is severe. It must have hurt a great deal.”

At the kind words, Bliss puffed out his chest proudly and answered.

“I’m fine, because I’m a man!”

At those words, the lady blinked as if surprised, then soon smiled and nodded.

“How splendid. Then of course, something like this is nothing at all. Because you’re a man.”

At that, the duke and Ashley also laughed aloud. Amid the cozy atmosphere, Koi was thinking entirely different thoughts. Once the guests left, he was going to give Bliss a thorough scolding. Naturally, Ashley was of the same mind.

Completely oblivious to such inner thoughts of theirs, Bliss beamed and looked at Cassian. Cassian, without much thought, smiled back. Never imagining the fate that was about to befall him.

“Um, Duchess.”

With a thoroughly elated voice, Bliss opened his mouth. Still fixing his gaze on Cassian, he made a bombshell declaration.

“Is it okay if I play with Cassian a little more? I want to ride the rides with him!”

At the child’s sudden words, everyone’s eyes grew round. The most shocked and flustered among them was, of course, Cassian himself.

What is he saying, this peanut-sized runt?

“You want to play with Cassian? What do you mean?”

Instead of Cassian, whose words had failed him at the unexpected, absurd situation, the duke asked. Bliss looked at the duke and answered as if it were the most natural thing.

“Cassian and I became friends. So I want to ride my rides with Cassian. Is that okay?”

“Ha…”

An incredulous sigh escaped Cassian’s lips. What on earth was this. Only then did he understand why Bliss had diligently followed him all the way here. In short, he had come to get permission from the parents to play with his newly made friend.

As if the fact that Cassian was an age soon to be an adult was utterly none of his concern.

Even though he had seen through the audacious little runt’s dark ulterior motive, it was already too late. Seeing the duke and duchess, completely smitten by the child’s adorable face, burst out laughing, Cassian was certain of his bleak future.

“Is that so? How lovely that you’ve become friends with my son. Do you have rides?”

“Yes, out in the garden there. They’re mine.”

At the duke’s kindly question, Bliss nodded and added proudly.

“Since Cassian is my friend, I’ll specially let him ride them. Please let him play with me.”

This was bad. At the request that came once more, Cassian, belatedly but urgently, cut in.

“Wait a moment, didn’t you say you were looking for me? Didn’t you have business to attend to?”

Though he asked in a polite tone with a smile, feigning nonchalance, inwardly he was shouting furiously at the duke.

Say you have business, right now!

Playing along with the child had been nothing but a fleeting whim. Had he known it would land him with babysitting duty, he would have simply ignored it whether the kid got hit on the head by a jar or whatever.

No, I would have stopped the accident from happening.

Cassian corrected his thought, but the conclusion remained no different. The fact was, he had never wanted this situation, regardless.

But utterly unaware of her son’s anguished heart, the duchess took up the response this time.

“No, we called for you because we were worried you might be wandering lost inside the house. Go and enjoy yourself.”

Cassian was about to politely decline, saying It’s quite alright, I’m not a child anymore. But before he could say anything, the duke let out a hearty laugh and nodded first.

“Indeed, do go along. Cassian, you heard? Off you go.”

“I’d rather just rest here.”

Cassian attempted rebellion with a smile on his face. He expressed his refusal in a roundabout way, but the duke would not accept it.

“You’re bored anyway, aren’t you? With nothing to do, you must be weary of it. Go and play with your newly made friend.”

I’m not alright.

Cassian spoke inwardly and demurred once more.

“I’m not particularly fond of rides…”

“It’s okay, Cassian. Once you go and ride them, you’ll come to like them!”

The peanut beside him, utterly incapable of reading the room, butted in. Just as he felt the urge to simply smack him, the duchess spoke up.

“Yes, Cassian. Do go along. We can wait long enough, so don’t you worry.”

“I…”

Was about to say no, thank you, but the situation was no longer in his favor. Confirming that four pairs of eyes were directed at him, Cassian only gaped his mouth before, in the end, he was forced to answer, “Yes.” Ultimately, pale-faced, he had to practically be chased out into the corridor with the brat who had been running wild on his own.

“Now, let’s go, Cassian!”

Bliss said, stretching his hand out in high spirits. No matter how hard he stretched his arm, Cassian’s hand dangled far above, so it meant little. Nevertheless, at the sight of the child beaming and extending his utterly short arm, trying his best to hold Cassian’s hand, Cassian finally vented his exasperation.

“You, how old are you?”

At the question ground out through clenched teeth, Bliss answered artlessly.

“Six. You?”

“I’m almost eighteen, Bliss.”

Taking care that the adults beyond the door might not hear his voice, Cassian added in the lowest tone possible.

“That means I’m about to be an adult. A grown-up.”

It was meant to signify that he was not of an age to ride children’s rides, but of course, it didn’t get through to Bliss.

“It’s okay. Even if you’re a little old, I don’t mind.”

No, I do mind. Very much.

Watching Bliss, who patted Cassian’s leg as if in encouragement, beaming brightly, Cassian thought. But paying no mind to his twisted expression, Bliss chattered on freely.

“My papa and daddy ride my rides too. So you can ride them.”

Here, even beyond this, he was rendered speechless with disbelief, but the kid went a step further and said this:

“We got permission from your papa and mommy, so it’s fine. Hurry, let’s go!”

I passed the age of needing parental permission just to ride a ride long, long ago.

Cassian wanted to shout, but of course it was impossible. Bliss, who had grown tired of waiting for him to take his hand no matter how long he waited, hopped up and grabbed hold of Cassian’s hand. As a result, Cassian was jerked forward and pitched over, and toward him, Bliss—having plopped back down onto the floor—said:

“Trust me. It’s going to be really fun!”

And then he started running on his own. In the end, Cassian had no choice but to be dragged, one hand caught by a brat who was maybe half his size at most, awkwardly loping across the corridor.

∞ ∞ ∞

The rides installed behind the mansion were, in a word, staggering. Starting with a roller coaster, there was a flume ride, a carousel, a pirate ship, a drop tower, and more. It seemed as though every conceivable kind of amusement ride was there.

The problem, however, was that they were all, every single one, for children.

“Here, Cassian. Get on, quick.”

Before he could even find the answer to the fundamental question of ‘Why on earth would someone build these on private property?’, Bliss, who had nimbly climbed aboard a pirate ship that didn’t even reach Cassian’s waist height, pointed eagerly to the opposite end and gestured vigorously. Seeing him, seated on this ridiculously small and piddling pirate ship, yet having fastened his seatbelt with not a gap to be found, Cassian was rendered even more dumbfounded.

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t have to be shy! Sit down, hurry.”

He waved his hand no, but Bliss shouted again and pointed repeatedly to the opposite seat. Cassian, however, held his ground with all his might.

“Bliss, look. I’m this tall. How could I possibly ride a ride this small?”

It was a reason that most people—Cassian included—would find perfectly understandable. Of course, Bliss was not part of that most, regrettably.

“It’s fine! My papa is even bigger than you, but he sits up there just fine!”

Cassian looked down at the seat left empty for him, his face turning utterly pale.