How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 339

“Canceled?”

 

“More accurately, it’s postponed. The river swelled because of the rain that poured down all day, so holding the fishing contest tomorrow would be dangerous.”

 

Just as my older brother said, the rain that had been falling nonstop had only now begun to weaken late at night.

 

Even so, it hadn’t completely stopped. The ends of my brother’s shoulders were damp when he had just returned home.

 

“Postponed? Then when will it be?”

 

“Well… probably not sooner than a week from now.”

 

It seemed he noticed the change in my expression at those words.

 

Taking a towel from a servant and drying his wet clothes and hands, my brother asked me with a faint smile.

 

“Are you disappointed that you can’t participate in the fishing contest?”

 

“Rather than me…”

 

The servant standing behind him made me hesitate to finish my sentence.

 

So I first told my brother to go wash up in warm water.

 

“I’ll be in your study. I want to talk for a moment.”

 

“Hearing something like that from you makes me a little nervous.”

 

Maybe my expression looked very serious, because my brother joked lightly as he patted my shoulder and said he would wash up quickly.

 

When I went to his study and sat down, the head maid—perhaps already given instructions—came in with a large plate of snacks and a pot of warm tea.

 

“This tea helps with a good night’s sleep. Please drink it while you wait.”

 

She poured chamomile tea that carried a deep fragrance.

 

It wasn’t usually the kind of tea I liked, but strangely it went down smoothly. Just as I finished one cup, my brother entered the study.

 

“Chamomile? That’s unusual. It’s not your taste.”

 

“Maybe because it’s warm? Somehow it’s easy to drink. You should try some too.”

 

The teapot the maid left behind was a magical item Lily had made, so even after some time, the water was still warm.

 

My brother seemed to like the tea too, nodding as he let out a small hum.

 

“It’s certainly the perfect temperature… So, what did you want to talk about?”

 

“As you probably guessed, it’s about Lala.”

 

“Ah…”

 

As expected, he had already guessed.

 

But he didn’t immediately add anything else and only ran his fingers around the rim of his teacup.

 

It was proof that he was thinking deeply about Layla. And it didn’t seem like his thoughts were heading in a direction favorable for her.

 

“Lala said she wanted to ask you out on a date, but you seemed so busy that she couldn’t bring herself to say it.”

 

“Did she? I invited the lady here myself, yet ended up being rude to her.”

 

My brother probably hadn’t pretended to be busy to make Layla nervous.

 

If something wasn’t right, he was the type to clearly say so rather than do something sly like that.

 

Perhaps he had simply been too busy to realize how his actions might affect Layla.

 

Except for the first day when he slept early to recover from travel fatigue, I had heard he worked late into the night every day.

 

Especially yesterday—he had spent even more time in his study to free up time for Noah’s birthday party.

 

‘…Wait. When I return to Ajas Castle, won’t I end up in the exact same situation?’

 

Suddenly the thought of going home felt a little frightening. Maybe I should just keep living here…

 

‘Well, I’ll worry about that later.’

 

Right now I need to focus on helping my one and only maid.

 

“Now please answer honestly. Brother, what do you think of Layla?”

 

“Hmm…”

 

The troubled look on his face was answer enough.

 

I almost asked why he invited Layla here in the first place if that was the case, but instead, I let out a small sigh.

 

“You can’t be harsh with her because of me, right?”

 

Instead of answering, my brother took a sip of tea.

 

It made me think that if Layla hadn’t been my maid, he might have already given her proposal a polite but firm rejection.

 

“Brother. You’re not planning to stay ambiguous until Layla becomes tired and gives up, are you?”

 

“That would… not be proper.”

 

“It may not be proper, but it sounds like you secretly hoped for that.”

 

As if he had nothing to say in response, my brother raised the teacup to his lips again.

 

I couldn’t stop the sigh that escaped.

 

“Brother, do you know the phrase ‘giving someone false hope’? Sometimes kindness can hurt someone.”

 

“I know. I know it well… Yes. It seems I’ve done something I should apologize for to Lady Cloud.”

 

“Whatever the outcome is, please settle it clearly. That’s all I ask of you.”

 

This was the first time I had ever seen my decisive brother behave so ambiguously.

 

Knowing that it was because of me made me feel guilty—both toward him and toward Layla.

 

“If you’re going to make her cry, then do it properly. Understood? I’ll be the one to comfort her.”

 

“That’s very reassuring.”

 

My brother chuckled softly and then spoke with a shallow sigh.

 

“Even at this age… sometimes I realize that I still have a long way to go before becoming a mature adult.”

 

“Well, that’s only natural. Honestly, you still have far more years ahead of you than the years you’ve already lived. You might even think the same thing ten years from now.”

 

“Hmm. If I still haven’t matured by then, I think I’ll be disappointed in myself.”

 

His words made me think for a moment too.

 

‘Me… with a three in front of my age…’

 

Would I finally become mature by then? Somehow I couldn’t imagine it.

 

Meanwhile, my brother had already finished his tea and set the empty cup down before speaking again.

 

“Sitting here like this reminds me of when we drank together at Ajas Castle.”

 

“You’re right. Back then it was alcohol.”

 

The next time we could drink together again would probably be around this time next year at the earliest.

 

And that would only be if my brother came to Ajas Castle himself, since Titianna would have just been born around then.

 

“What are you thinking about while staring at my face like that?”

 

“I was thinking that I want to meet my niece soon.”

 

“Ahem.”

 

Even though he had already finished his tea, my brother coughed as if he had choked on something.

 

“…I’m sorry that I can’t meet your expectations.”

 

“It’s okay. More than a niece or nephew, I’d rather see you in a sweet romantic relationship.”

 

Even when he had been engaged to Julia before, it felt less like they shared affection and more like he simply respected and treated his future wife with proper courtesy.

 

Thinking about it now, regardless of what kind of person Julia was, it was probably fortunate for my brother that an engagement without any real feelings ended.

 

“Sweet romance… Can you actually imagine me acting like that?”

 

“I can’t imagine it, but I think it’s possible. Just look at my husband.”

 

Before I got married—no, even after I got married—I never dreamed that my husband would say something like “my wife’s lips are sweeter than grapes.”

 

My older brother didn’t know the exact sweet words Leonhard had whispered to me, but he seemed to understand the general idea and nodded with a smile.

 

“Still, your husband was kind to you from the beginning, wasn’t he?”

 

“My husband?”

 

“When no one gave you flowers, he gave you flowers in the middle of that crowd.”

 

My brother was talking about our first meeting.

 

“I think that’s when I first had a good impression of him.”

 

“I felt the same way.”

 

‘It’s not like I randomly said I would marry him for no reason. Ahem.’

 

“Now that we’re talking about it, what was your first impression of Lala?”

 

“Well… I’m not sure…”

 

After thinking for quite a while, my brother still didn’t give a clear answer.

 

I hadn’t really needed to hear it either, so I didn’t press him.

 

It was enough if the thought that came to my mind just now helped him with the decision he would make.

 

* * *

 

—Knock knock

 

“I said I’m fine without dinner. I want to rest today, so please don’t disturb me.”

 

At the sound of knocking that broke the silence, Lyla mumbled while lying face-down on the bed.

 

Even though her pronunciation was unclear, the meaning seemed to get across because the knocking stopped.

 

Instead, a worried male voice spoke from outside the door.

 

“I heard you rested in your bedroom all day. Are you feeling very unwell?”

 

“C-Count?”

 

Layla quickly sat up and hurriedly got off the bed, standing in front of the mirror.

 

As she fixed her messy clothes and hair, she raised her voice so Oliver could hear her through the closed door.

 

“N-no, nothing is really wrong. I just wanted to rest!”

 

“I’m glad to hear that.”

 

She said that because she didn’t want Oliver to worry, but when he replied as if he might simply say Then please rest well and leave, Layla suddenly panicked.

 

‘Should I say I feel a little feverish after all?’

 

No, that wouldn’t work.

 

Hadn’t Raenel said so? Pretending or acting cute wouldn’t work on Oliver.

 

If he found out she wasn’t actually sick and had taken his time by pretending, he would definitely be very disappointed.

 

Instead, before Oliver could leave, Layla quickly opened the bedroom door.

 

“Ahem… Count. If you’re not busy, would you like me to serve you a cup of tea?”

 

“Ah…”

 

Oliver hesitated slightly at her brave invitation.

 

For a moment Layla felt her heart sink, but she forced the corners of her lips upward so it wouldn’t show.

 

“If you’re busy, please feel free to refuse. I’m already happy that you came to check on me.”

 

“No, it’s not that… There’s somewhere I wanted to show you. But if you’re not feeling well, perhaps it would be better to spend time in the drawing room?”

 

“…No! Yes! Yes, that sounds great! I don’t know where it is, but I definitely want to see it!”

 

Layla hurriedly reached out toward Oliver, but then remembered what she was wearing and covered her face with both hands.

 

“C-could you give me just a moment? I’ll change clothes as quickly as possible and come out.”

 

“I can wait as long as needed, so please don’t rush and take your time preparing.”

 

Oliver said he would wait in the lobby and left, even calling over the maid who was in charge of attending to Layla.

 

Layla opened all her luggage and spent thirty minutes that felt like a battlefield.

 

She changed clothes several times and fixed her hair again and again, but she still wasn’t satisfied with the reflection in the mirror.

 

‘I want to show him the most beautiful version of myself in the world.’

 

She had a feeling.

 

That today Oliver would say something very important to her.

 

* * *