Chapter 30 Friendship? Ha! I Excel In It
Maeve was rounding up the meeting with her new workforce to which she had assigned different roles of her company— and made each and everyone sign a contract before they returned to their respective places, not excluding her Mother, she hurried to the stables—
Because of course, Lucien had made a whole big deal about returning to the stables as the Stablemaster since he would not be following her for her trip and clearly was not needed.
Well, it wasn’t a big deal, but he had literally written an entire resignation letter about being her knight and only stayed around for official purposes but left afterwards, not speaking a word to her.
“Where is my favorite male?!” Maeve practically yelled at this as she walked into the stables, two bottles of wine raised in the air. Naturally, horses being horses got spooked and looked very clearly uncomfortable by her presence but she didn’t care. “There he is!”
Lucien didn’t even bother to look up, from the brushing of his horse though he let out a small grunt to make it clear that he heard her.
She got closer, sitting right on a haystack that was close enough to him as she said, “Okay, okay. You’re mad at me because I didn’t tell you about the secret plan because well, first, it was secret. Two, I knew you wouldn’t be on board with it—”
“Do I get no choice in what I wish to be onboard with and what I do not?”
It was the first time since the duel he was actively speaking to her and Maeve was surprised by how much she had missed it. Maybe it was Isabella’s body, she wasn’t sure, but she felt herself let out a genuine sigh of relief at hearing his voice again. “What are choices really—”
When he turned, Maeve seemed to realize that he was… really buffed. And muscular. And… and with his serious face, quite attractive. She shut her eyes. “You can keep speaking. I just cannot afford looking at you right now,”
There was silence for a few minutes then a deep sigh echoing through the place. “You can leave, Isabella. I have a lot of work to do,”
Maeve’s eyes flew open. “Okay. They’re open again. And I can’t leave without my guard—”
“Why did you make me your personal knight if you don’t believe that I can protect you?”
She stopped there. “Uh… I don’t… understand?”
He turned to look at her again, and this time whatever anger he had before was twisting into something now. Hurt, but not the depressed kind. The type that she had felt many times in her life. One born from helplessness. “I know the kind of person you have become now. You see… value in people. You calculate it. And the only reason you have let me be by your side is because you see something of value in me. But I thought I did. Only for me to find out that you were actively manipulating the duel to make sure I win for one of your… plans. And I was just—”
Maeve rose up from the haystack and within that split second, slapped him hard across the back of his head. Of course, he didn’t get time to dodge it so it hit him before she was suddenly grabbing him by her arm and shoving his head under her armpit and began ruffling his hair, “I would kick you in the balls if you weren’t so cute!”
“Wait— what are you— I can’t breathe—”
When he did manage to pull away from her grasp, he ended up on the opposite side of where she stood, three inches away, and breathless. He looked slightly confused, and blushing at the same time as he stared at her. Maeve was nice enough not to let him speak first, “Okay. This was the plan. Apparently, I have an ability that makes me take the pain of my Vessel for a given amount of time, but apparently, it has a slight setback— which involves me feeling slightly ill the more I use it.
“Now, me using that ability on you wasn’t because I thought you were weak. It was because I couldn’t watch you go in a duel unprotected against people who had actual mana power when I wasn’t sure if I could provide you with any. You still have use— I mean, you are my friend! And come on, did you not notice a difference in your movements? You’re a fast learner, and you won fair and square. I just took away some of the pain so you could focus better. That’s all,”
Maeve, of course, had said it all in one breath, so she knew he still needed time to process it, but before he could give a response, she added, “And I know you’d say something about me not putting myself in danger, but I knew I was safe if you were safe. What would I do if you died? Listen, best friends watch each other's backs, okay? You do the duel for me, I keep you alive to keep doing more duels for me— and maybe also some slightly illegal activities that I know everyone might judge me for but not you—”
The rest of the words hung in the air as she felt him suddenly wrap his arms around her body, holding her so tight she was sure he would break her but Maeve didn’t say a word. She felt him squeeze tighter, heard him moan lightly— not sexually, you perverts, just one of joy as he said, “You are the most irritating person I know,”
\[APPROVAL RATING: +56\]
Ah. That’s big
“I’m sorry that I am,” Maeve didn’t know why those words left her lips, or how, but they did.
Lucien pulled away from the hug, his eyes staring down at her with the same devotion and love they always held as he smiled, “I am glad you are apologizing,”
Maeve began making different weightlifting poses as she said, “I’m so cool, aren’t I?”
“Yes.”
A back flex with a turned head. “Ever so humble?”
“Of course,”
Front lat spread. “The pinnacle of humility?”
“… sure,”
“… do I hear hesitation?”
Now, that was all it took to make matters right with Lucien. And to Maeve who was currently laughing, she was glad— but as her eyes moved to the entrance of the stables, she couldn’t but notice the flash of red ruby eyes in the darkness, staring back at her with an emotion she had seen some days before.
Hurt.
But the moment she blinked, the person was gone.