I’m Just a Counselor Chapter 82

Julian clenched his jaw, then added grimly.

 

“But that doesn’t mean it’s bad.”

 

“Well, I’m glad to hear it.”

 

“Anyway, you left the mansion because you wanted to be alone? Hmmm. Bad timing, isn’t it. Considering what happened at the New Year’s Ball.”

 

“Oh…”

 

“What if that guy who was holding your hand did something to hurt you?”

 

“Ahaha…”

 

I gripped my fork tightly as I laughed off the unspeakable with a smile.

 

Julian stared at me, as if he’d forgotten what I’d done, and then asked.

 

“Did you go back and put the medicine on?”

 

“Yes. I had the princess put it on me, just like Julian said.”

 

“Hey, then give it back to me.”

 

“What?”

 

“Give me my handkerchief.”

 

Julian demanded boldly, and I wasn’t surprised by his brazenness, as I knew this was coming. I’m glad I kept the handkerchief instead of throwing it away.

 

“It’s at the mansion, …I’ll give it back to you later.”

 

“Later when? That’s my favorite, give it to me now.”

 

“If you care so much about it, why did you give it to me… Do you want me to come back out with it then?”

 

“How dare you ask me to wait for you?”

 

So what. I looked at Julian with incredulous eyes.

 

Julian maintained his stern demeanor, then snorted and crossed his arms.

 

“Bring it here tomorrow at this time.”

 

“Tomorrow…?”

 

“Yes. I guess I’ll have to be here to get my handkerchief.”

 

I actually kind of like that arrogant attitude.

 

“What is it, that face?”

 

“Nothing, I’ll do as you say.”

 

At the insistence of the eighteen-year-old crown prince, I finally surrendered.

 

The unexpected meeting ended with a one-sided promise from Julian and the revelation that the café’s patissier was indeed from the imperial palace.

 

The next day. I took Julian’s handkerchief and sat down at the same table as yesterday. After a few minutes, Julian showed up and sat down across from me.

 

‘How is it possible for someone as powerful as the crown prince to take time out of his day like this?’

 

The thought crossed my mind briefly as I watched Julian leave the crown prince’s palace for the second day in a row, but it quickly faded. That’s for Kianton to think about, not me.

 

I glanced at Kianton, who was still crouched at the table next to me.

 

“Here’s your handkerchief.”

 

I quickly handed Julian his handkerchief before he could squirm.

 

It was freshly washed and ironed. Nothing more to nitpick.

 

“Uh. I see.”

 

“I thought you said you loved it.”

 

“But?”

 

“No…”

 

Julian tossed his favorite handkerchief haphazardly on the table and frowned.

 

“You said it was that guy, Gale Huons?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“The more I think about it, the more cowardly he is. If he dared to do something like that at an imperial banquet, he might actually kidnap you. In times like this, you’d be better off locked up in the mansion.”

 

“But I’m in this situation because of…”

 

Isn’t it actually because of Julian? If Julian hadn’t sent me the invitation, I would never have come face to face with the Gaelic stranger.

 

I stare silently at Julian as this realization hits me.

 

Julian munched on his cookie as if he didn’t feel my stare.

 

“Did something happen with the princess, or the duke?”

 

Julian asked, picking up where he left off yesterday. I stared at him, my eyes narrowing. Julian gave me a knowing smirk.

 

“I guess that’s why you wanted to be alone.”

 

“…….”

 

“Hmm. Is that why the duke was in such a hurry?”

 

“What? What is the Duke in a hurry for?”

 

Instead of answering my question, Julian blurted out something else.

 

“What do you think it will be like to be a noble again?”

 

“Uh… me?”

 

“Yes. I can put your family back on the nobility rolls, and you’ll be a viscount again.”

 

I was a little dumbfounded by this, as I hadn’t expected it. Julian was speaking as if I would do it for him.

 

But he didn’t seem to be speaking entirely to me. Julian continued to mumble, as if thinking of someone else.

 

“Still, the Duke is good enough… to succeed, if I do say so myself…”

 

“The Duke succeeds at what?”

 

“Nothing. Anyway, if you win the lottery, the Viscount Asell is a noble family that belongs to the Isles, so would you like to come to the Isles?”

 

“…….”

 

“I’ll help you move into society, you may consider it an honor.”

 

That sound again.

 

I glanced at Julian’s stubbornness and shook my head. I was just as stubborn as he was.

 

“Even if I win the lottery, I’m going back up north.”

 

“…….”

 

“Sure, Viscount Asell is part of the system, but that doesn’t mean I’m not a noble if I go north… And frankly, Viscounts aren’t even high nobility.”

 

“So, Vanessa, you’re stuck with the Duke until the end.”

 

“She has a princess…”

 

But Julian didn’t seem to be listening to me.

 

He stared off into space for a moment, seemingly considering something, then clicked his tongue loudly and sneered at me.

 

“What do you get for being so loyal to Oppenheim? Money? Well, you’re going to need a lot of it to rebuild your family, and you’ve been bankrupt before, so you have every right to be greedy.”

 

“No, look,…”

 

“Or is it honor? With a name like Duke’s, you’d think he’d have more than a viscount’s honor in the North. He’s Lord of the North, after all. Ha! It’s land within the Empire.”

 

“…….”

 

“Or what, you want to be a duchess or something?”

 

I could tell he was annoyed by the constant rejection, but did he really have to say that?

 

I shot Julian a sarcastic glare.

 

His words reminded me of something I’d been trying to ignore. The fact that I was so far below Jeremiah.

 

‘Yes, if I insist on staying by Jeremiah’s side, he’ll think I’m trying to get something out of him.’

 

That would be true even if I regained my viscount’s name, but I knew what people would think of me now that I was a fallen noble.

 

And if Jeremiah kept me by his side, I’d be a liability to him.

 

“I think I like you.”

 

Maybe that’s why I wanted to run away so badly.

 

I know very well that people should play with each other. But Jeremiah and I were so different in so many ways.

 

When Jeremiah first proposed to me, I was flustered, but I didn’t even think about it because I didn’t see the sincerity in his eyes.

 

We hadn’t spent much time together, and we didn’t know each other well enough. So neither Jeremiah nor I could take it seriously.

 

But the confession was different.

 

I confirmed that Jeremiah was being sincere with me.

 

I had to really think about Jeremiah, because I couldn’t give the same nonchalant response to someone who genuinely liked me.

 

‘Now is not the time to be thinking about this.’

 

I shook my head, deciding to let the thoughts that had filled my mind in an instant pass.

 

Sure, Jeremiah would be there when I got back to the mansion, and I might run into him unexpectedly, but it’s not like… he’s pushing me to answer right now.

 

Besides, it’s not Jeremiah in front of me, it’s Julian.

 

It would be rude to think about someone else in the presence of my opponent. I decided to focus on Julian again.

 

“Why do you hate the Duke so much, Julian?”

 

“What?”

 

Julian looked puzzled for a moment, as if he hadn’t expected me to take his statement as a question.

 

“You seem to speak very poorly of the Duke now, and I’ve heard you speak very poorly of him before…”

 

I thought back to the events between him and Jeremiah, whom I had known since Kianton was in the Duke’s castle.

 

‘Now that I mention it, I really do wonder about Julian’s reasons.’

 

I had assumed that he was jealous of Jeremiah, but now that I had seen him in person, I realized that was probably not the only reason.

 

“Honestly, isn’t it good for Julian? With the Duke protecting the north, the defense is strong, and the demons have been slain.”

 

“Ha! So I’m supposed to be grateful to him?”

 

“Not necessarily…”

 

“Never mind, there’s plenty of people who think so.”

 

Julian turned his head and crossed his arms as if to turn away from me. But I didn’t give up and spoke to him.