SIWALL Ch 57

The next day, Elliot sought out Henderson.

“A vacation…?”

Henderson asked back, glancing at Elliot from over his nose-glasses. Elliot nodded with the most innocent face he could muster.

“Yes, I’m feeling a bit unwell. Could you manage even a week—no, just five days?”

Elliot’s eyes were moist and looked sincere. Henderson looked at Elliot for a moment and then shook his head apologetically.

“Young people these days really use the word vacation so easily. In my day, taking time off work was simply unimaginable, Elliot, my man.”

“Head Butler… please, I’m begging you.”

Elliot brought both hands together tightly.

“You must know that the final approval has to come from His Grace the Grand Duke. Elliot, you are currently irreplaceable. Aren’t you the only person who can put the Grand Duke to sleep?”

“Then that means if His Grace gives permission, it’s fine, right?”

“That is correct. For your reference, His Grace the Grand Duke is currently in the library.”

Henderson kindly informed him of Arzen’s whereabouts, as if to say, “Go ahead and try if you can.” Elliot gave a polite bow, turned around, and headed for the library.

The reason he was trying to take a vacation was nothing special. He wanted to get far away from Arzen for a bit. He didn’t even want to see his face. If he saw his face, it felt like his anger would melt away too quickly, or conversely, that he would get even angrier.

Elliot couldn’t get a grip on his own feelings either. Even though it was his own heart. These kinds of things were all too unfamiliar to him.

‘This is severely contradictory….’

Elliot scolded himself and knocked on the library door.

“Your Grace, are you in?”

He asked in a tone flatter than usual. But no sooner had Elliot’s question ended than an eager response came from inside the room.

“Elliot Brown? Come in.”

Elliot carefully opened the library door and stepped inside. And the moment he entered, he forgot all about being angry at Arzen and let out an exclamation.

“There really are so many books….”

“If there are any books you like, you are welcome to take and read them anytime.”

“It’s not to that extent.”

Elliot immediately straightened his expression. Arzen silently gave a single nod.

“What brings you here?”

“Mr. Henderson told me. Um, I have something to discuss with you.”

“No.”

“A vacation… pardon?”

“What?”

“Why would you say no without even listening?”

Elliot asked sharply. Arzen looked awkwardly away into the distance for a moment before looking back at Elliot.

With his white shirt unbuttoned down to his chest and handling work in comfortable attire, Arzen looked extremely sexy. As he looked down at Elliot with languid eyes, Elliot experienced mixed feelings once again: wanting to hit Arzen and wanting to hug him tightly.

Let’s not fall for it.

That jerk uses beauty tactics at all hours, how annoying….

Of course, Arzen was simply born handsome and had never once used any such beauty tactics, but anyway, in Elliot’s view, it seemed like he was quite calculatingly utilizing his own looks.

“Weren’t you about to say you were quitting?”

Arzen asked. He looked slightly angry.

“No. I came to see if I could get a vacation.”

Elliot retorted without backing down, using an equally angry tone. Then, strangely enough, Arzen softened a little bit.

“Ah, a vacation… sure, you may go. For about a day.”

“I’m requesting a week.”

“Three days.”

“A week.”

“…Five days. Even I can’t grant more than that. And you cannot go far. You must rest in this estate. The situation where you must remain attached to me has not changed yet.”

It meant that he could manage somehow without sleeping for up to five days, and that even during that time, he would still protect Elliot. Elliot’s heart softened for a moment.

Taking time off work due to his own caprices was a first, combining all 24 years of Lim Seongsik’s life and the roughly three or so months of Elliot’s life.

Should I just… not take a break?

Just as Elliot’s slave mentality began to wiggle its head up, Arzen cut off that train of thought decisively.

“I am in favor of you resting. You need to rest a bit.”

“…Yes, thank you.”

Elliot slowly bowed his head and left the library. He had secured a five-day vacation, but it didn’t feel as joyful or liberating as he had thought it would.

∞ ∞ ∞

Though he had gotten a vacation from one job, the other job was still ongoing. Elliot locked all the doors in broad daylight, sat down at his desk, and began writing a letter.

{To Grand Duke Arzen Teron,

Your Grace, I am in deep trouble today after hearing the news that my friends got into a fight. As a piece of the divine, I sometimes have to mediate conflicts between friends, you see. It’s quite the ordeal.

Anyway, do listen to the story of my friends. I will refer to one as Grumpy and the other as Dapper (reflecting their traits, of course).

Grumpy is the kind of person who doesn’t mind bugs at all, while Dapper is utterly terrified of bugs.

However, since Dapper is so terrified of bugs, it seems Grumpy felt concerned. Saying he would catch all the bugs for him, he supposedly applied a bug-attracting scent onto Dapper’s face. As a result, all sorts of bugs came rushing at Dapper’s face—things like cockroaches and centipedes, too. You know what I mean, right?

So Dapper ended up fainting. With bugs swarming all over his face. Taking advantage of that opening, Grumpy supposedly plucked off all those bugs and burned them. And then he told the woken-up Dapper, “No need to say thanks.” In a very annoying way, at that.

What do you think of this incident? I want to take Dapper’s side. If even a single bug had stuck to my face, I would have wanted to die from horror. If I were Dapper, I think I would cut ties with Grumpy. I’d love to hear Your Grace’s expert opinion as well—what do you think?

Please write back in your reply. I will refer to it in settling the rights and wrongs between friends.

P.S. O light of Lantar, my hero Grand Duke, a thought suddenly crossed my mind that you might not be afraid of bugs after all. If so, please imagine your most feared and hated thing.

Sincerely, Loran Pedet}

Two days later—an all-time record for speed—a reply arrived from Arzen.

{To Loran Pedet,

I also want to take Dapper’s side. I thoroughly despise uncharitable and self-centered humans like Grumpy. I suppose Grumpy didn’t actually say such annoying words out loud, but I agree that Dapper felt that way.

However, I would discourage them from cutting ties with one another. Human relationships are not things to be snipped away so easily within a short time. Even if you cut it off in one stroke, uncleared knots are bound to remain here and there.

Since you’ve taken on the role of mediating between Grumpy and Dapper, be faithful to the mediation. Do not needlessly egg them on to sever ties. I trust you, Loran Pedet.

P.S. I, too, extremely detest bugs.

Arzen Teron}

It was the longest reply he had received from Arzen thus far. Elliot read and re-read the letter. Actually, Grumpy was written with Arzen in mind—had he figured that out?

On top of that, this sentence:

‘I trust you, Loran Pedet.’

Elliot chewed nervously on his lower lip. He knew that Arzen and Loran had grown closer starting from their last meeting, but he hadn’t expected their relationship to reach a point where he would say something so affectionate.

Elliot picked up his pen to write a reply.

{To Grand Duke Arzen Teron,

Your Grace speaks as though you already know who Grumpy and Dapper are that I’m talking about. For your reference, those two are friends of my friend in a distant continent. How do you know whether Grumpy actually said those words or not, Your Grace? Of course, I only heard it through the grapevine too, but Grumpy really said it like that, they say. Having the habit of making groundless speculations is not good, Your Grace.

Sincerely, the strict Loran Pedet}

Of course, Grumpy—or rather, Arzen—had never actually said anything like that. But those words were the core element of the story Elliot had fabricated. To appeal Elliot’s unfairness, he had to make up at least that much.

And Elliot knew well from his days as Lim Seongsik that hiding a single falsehood within a genuine core makes for an excellent lie.

However, the letter he had just written looked like a sloppy excuse even to his own eyes. He tore the letter up. If his suspicions were already aroused, it was better to just brazenly push through. He wrote a reply on a fresh sheet of stationery once more.

{To Grand Duke Arzen Teron,

Grumpy supposedly already made up with Dapper yesterday. My mediation became unnecessary. But thank you for the advice.

Grumpy reportedly knelt before Dapper and gave a heartfelt apology. In addition, he promised to grant whatever single wish Dapper asks of him, so I hear.

Personally, I think it’s an intriguing method of apology. But if someone asked me to go that far to apologize, I would rather scoff and walk away. Because I have dignity as a piece of the divine, you see.

Sincerely, Loran Pedet}

If Arzen thought that Grumpy and Dapper were himself and Elliot, he would sooner or later try to apologize following the method Loran had suggested. Elliot bit his lips tightly.

If Arzen came forward offering to grant a wish, there was one wish he had in mind that he wanted to tell him.