*Tap tap tap*
The sound of light steps walking down a wooden floor could be heard.
"*Happily humming*"
And alongside those steps, a soft and happy hum from a gentle girly voice could be heard as well.
The girl in question was none other than Nanako, whose figure had only gotten even more gorgeous thanks to the good care she have been receiving from the manor for the last 3 years. Her face had become both cute and beautiful with almost no rivals, while her body had grown by a lot in many of the right areas. Nanako's looks had grown to such a point that whenever she walked on the city's streets for buying groceries, she would end up attracting the attention of everyone in the vicinity.
Her perfect gentle and calm personality, only caused even more men to fall for her, with the only thing stopping them from confessing to her, being the fact that she worked at Count Harding's manor, and more importantly, she was always seen walking closely beside Edward whenever he had to do a task at the city.
As for what Nanako was doing right now, she was bringing tea and snacks for Edward, who was currently humoring an important visitor. And she was feeling even happier than usual because ever since the visit Edward, and his father, Oliver, did to the duke's manor, Edward had to spend less time at his family's territory, and as a consequence, he and Nanako started to spend less time together. So for Nanako, this was a good opportunity for her to spend some time close to Edward.
"It should be here" *Opens the door* "Edward-sama! I brought some snacks and tea for you and your... Visitor?... ... ... Eh?"
When Nanako initially opened the door, she announced her arrival with quite an enthusiasm and cheerfulness, but when she saw the scene of a beautiful blonde girl sitting close to Edward as she hugged his arm and rested her head on his shoulder with her eyes closed and a happy expression. Nanako's cheerfulness started to be replaced by confusion alongside a weird feeling that she never felt before, as she felt a stinging pain inside her chest.
This caused her to stand still right in front of the door, as she felt unable to say anything amidst her turmoiling emotions. Then Edward who also had his eyes closed, opened his eyes and noticed Nanako standing near the door.
"! Ah! Nanako, good afternoon"
"! Y-Yes! G-Good morning, Edward-sama! I-I brought some tea and snacks for you, a-and your visitor..."
Thanks to his voice, Nanako snapped back to reality and repeated what she said earlier, but with nervousness and a hint of sadness in her voice, after she saw Lysette glued onto Edward.
"Thank you, Nanako. You came at the perfect moment"
"T-Thank you f-for your compliment, Edward-sama... ... ...!"
Nanako who was slowly getting her cheerfulness back from talking with Edward, then noticed Lysette looking at her with an intimidating and interested stare.
"... Edward-sama, may I ask for you to introduce this maid to me?"
"Huh? Sure. *Clears throat* Lysette-sama, this is Nanako, one of our 'interns' at the manor. She sometimes assists me in my day-to-day tasks, and is also someone who I get along with"
"I see... Nanako"
At hearing Nanako's introduction from Edward, Lysette once again went back to looking at Nanako, this time with a more pressuring gaze as she called Nanako by her name.
"Y-Yes?"
"My name is Lysette Neville, and I am currently engaged to Sir Edward as his fiancée. It is a pleasure to meet you, Nanako-san"
"Ah!... Y-Yes... Likewise, Lysette-sama... ... ... Hm? Engaged?"
Nanako who now had been properly taught basic etiquette by Camilla, respectfully bowed down to Lysette, but as she did so, she became slightly confused at what Lysette meant by being engaged to Edward. So when she finished her bow, Nanako opened her mouth and with a lot of difficulty asked Lysette a question.
"H-Hmm... L-Lysette-sama, m-may I ask you a q-question?..."
"Of course. Ask me anything, Nanako-san"
"Then... Hmm... W-What e-exactly d-do you mean w-with b-being engaged to E-Edward-sama?"
"It means, that we are contractually in a relationship, with the intention of us getting married once we become adults. And I do not plan on giving up on my engagement with Edward-sama"
After saying so, Lysette further snuggled on Edward with a happy face, while he, on the other hand, could only let out a dry laugh. Edward by no means hated Lysette, but he still felt that this engagement and Lysette was too much sand for his carriage.
As for Nanako on the other hand... She was showing a friendly smile, but her eyes were full of shock, she had been taught enough to understand what a marriage enthralled, but when she heard that Lysette would be marrying Edward in the future and that she also didn't have any plans from letting go of him, Nanako felt something shattering inside her.
"I-I-I see... T-Then... I-If you two e-excuse me..."
With a trembling voice with a clear saddened tone, Nanako bowed down and then forced herself to leave the place, she opened the door, bowed to the two once again, and closed the door.
"..."
She kept standing in front of the door in silence for long seconds, before walking away from it with a lot of difficulty. Then droplets started to fall on the floor as she walked, barely moving away from the door, Nanako stopped in her tracks as her tears only increased due to her messy emotions. She didn't really understand why she was crying, but she was unable to stop herself from crouching down and start crying, as she did her best to keep her voice as low as possible.
.
.
.
"... ... ... Lysette-sama?"
"What is it, Edward-sama?"
"Did you really need to say all that to Nanako"
"Yes, I did. Let's just say that I was probing her to see how she would react"
"I see..."
"... Are you worried about her, Edward-sama?"
"I would be lying if I said no"
"Humu *Nods* Then it appears that I may have a rival then"
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing big... Just thinking about some possibilities depending on how along Nanako-san and I will get... ... ... In any case, Edward-sama. I ask you to talk with Nanako-san later on?"
"Sure, but why later?"
"Because I am a selfish daughter of a duke, who will not be giving my private time with you to anyone else"
"I see"
With that, Lysette went back to cuddling onto Edward as he did what he could to make her enjoy her time with him. Still, he couldn't help but continue to worry about Nanako after seeing her leave like that, and from what Lysette said.
.
.
.
The evening of that same day
Edward was inside his room, as he pressed his temples with both hands because of a bad headache.
<I can't sleep... And I can't think of anything... Haa... ... ... Hm?>
Then when he looked out his window, he noticed that there was someone in the back garden near the gazebo. Thanks to the clear weather and full moon, he was able to see a person's glossy black hair shining under the moonlight, as the person was crouched as they watched a small flowerbed near the gazebo. And that flowerbed in particular was the home of the flowers that Edward always gave to Nanako as her birthday gifts.
"... Now, that I think about it... I didn't have time to talk with Nanako after that... *Sigh* I'm tired, but since I can't sleep, I might as well go talk with her"
With that, Edward got up from the chair he was sitting on, put on a coat, as well as picking another coat for Nanako.
...
Nanako was looking at the flowers that Edward had gifted her during her supposed birthday, but differently from her usual cheerful and merry expression whenever she did so, she instead had a saddened expression as she wasn't still able to sort out her feelings ever since her meeting with Lysette.
"..." <So Edward-sama will be marrying Lysette-sama in the future?>
When that thought came to Nanako's mind, she couldn't help but feel another sting in her chest, and the feeling of tears forming in her eyes. Nanako was so focused on herself that she was unable to notice a person coming from behind her, and before she knew it... There was already a coat on her back, which caught her by surprise.
"!?"
"Ah! Sorry, did I surprise you, Nanako?"
"E-Edward-sama!?"
"It has been a while since we last talked alone, hasn't it?"
"... Uuuuuuuuuuhhh..."
"!?"
Nanako whose emotions were a mess couldn't help but start crying, after being on the receiving end of Edward's goodwill yet again. This caused Edward to start panicking since he didn't expect her to start crying, so all he could do was offer her a hand for her to grasp, which she did so, before immediately jumping to hug him as she cried, without much else he could do Edward simply rubbed Nanako's back as he waited for her to calm down.
A few minutes later
"Are you feeling better?"
"... Yes..."
After Nanako calmed down, the two moved to sit inside the gazebo, where an awkward silence ensued since Nanako was still unsure about her feelings, while Edward was carefully thinking about what to say, without causing Nanako to start crying again.
"... So... Is there anything I can help you with, Nanako?"
"... ... ..."
"..." <I already ran out of things to say! I'm sure Nanako is upset about something regarding Lysette-sama, but I don't know what!>
"... ... ... I..."
"Hm?"
"I don't understand what are these emotions that I've b-been f-feeling... ... ... When I saw Lysette-sama close to you, I felt a sharp pain in my chest... And when she talked about her engagement with you, I couldn't help but feel like crying..."
"..."
"I don't get why I felt that... But... It almost feels like I lost something when I think about you together with Lysette-sama... And... And... ... ..."
"... I see"
After hearing that from Nanako, Edward simply closed his eyes and acknowledged what she had said, before returning to his silence. But inside his mind on the other hand...
<... ... ... So Nanako likes me, huh?... ... ... Yeah, I have no idea how to handle this.
On one hand, I have Nanako who likes me, and who I wouldn't mind reciprocating her feelings even though she's basically a servant.
And on the other, I have Lysette-sama, who's a duke's daughter, who I cannot under any circumstance, anger her, and who I also do enjoy her company>
Edward wanted to explain to Nanako what she was feeling, but doing so would only make her feel sadder, something he wanted to avoid. But leaving things as is would also worry him a lot, since it would only cause Nanako to feel worse. So with those things to consider, Edward decided to take the third option, the cowardly one that he would still regret doing, but that he felt was better than nothing.
"Nanako, what you're feeling is... Rivalry!"
"Ri... valry?"
"Yes! You felt a sharp pain in your chest, because you felt like your place beside me is going to be stolen by Lysette-sama, and you felt sad because... Erm... Because you felt like you had lost to her, yeah, yeah, it was that, yes."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it is" *Nervously nodding*
"I see... Then... Edward-sama, do you have any suggestions on what I should do to not lose to Lysette-sama again?"
"Erm..." <I don't know why, but I feel like if I don't say anything only bad things will happen> "Hmmm... Nanako, you should... You should face her head-on, just be yourself, and you can say that you're acting as my... Hmm... Personal maid, so that you can always stay by my side, even when she's visiting... Yeah, that's all you need to do"
That was Edward's third option, mislead Nanako and turn it into a problem for Lysette to solve later. That was a totally 4d chess move that he prepared everything for, and not an on-the-spot decision that he made without any thought whatsoever, nuh-uh, it was totally according to his keikaku. Yep, that'll definitely not come back to bite him back eventually... This is totally not a foreshadowing, nuh-uh.
"Edward-sama?"
"Yes?"
"What do you mean that I just need to be myself?"
"You know, just be the honest, gentle, and nice girl that you already are and that I like a lot"
"..."
"..." <... ... ... Shoot! I said too much!>
"Edward-sama... You like me?"
"Y-yeah, of course, I like you, Nanako"
"I see..."
Hearing that, Nanako started showing a faint happy smile, as she felt that her worries were now starting to disappear from Edward saying that he liked her. Then just as Edward was preparing to get up and leave as soon as possible, Nanako hugged his arm, in the same manner as Lysette, and began resting her head on his shoulder. Something that she felt was being too improper, even though she wanted to do it.
"Then, Edward-sama. Do you mind giving this shameless girl some of your time?"
"... Of course!"
Without the courage to say no, Edward decided to give in to Nanako's request, and as they kept company to each other under the night sky... Edward couldn't help but feel that he might've put himself in a tough spot.
.
.
.
Some time later
"Edward-sama, here is your tea!"
"Thank you, Nanako"
"... ... ... Nanako-san, do not you think you have been too close to Edward-sama recently?"
"Not at all, Lysette-sama. As Edward-sama's personal servant, It is my duty to always be by his side, anytime and anywhere!"
"I see, that is certainly a good point to make. I wonder who suggested it to you"
Lysette then sent a sharp glance at Edward, who simply looked away, refusing to accept any of the blame. It was clear that Lysette had noticed what Edward said to Nanako, but he still feigned ignorance, seeing him looking away just caused Lysette to sigh, but not angry, because she knew that Edward would come to her later to apologize, meaning that she could use that as an excuse to have him spend more time with her.
"Lysette-sama, would you like some tea as well?"
"Yes, I do"
"Do you also want some snacks to accompany it as well?"
"How thoughtful, I would appreciate it very much"
Lysette then accepted Nanako's tea and snacks, but she could still see that Nanako had second intentions with her goodwill.
"..." <She's clearly doing all this, just so that I can't have a private time with Edward-sama, but... I can see that she's also doing this because she likes Edward as well and that she doesn't have any ill will against me... ... ... Fufu, you're definitely a nice love rival to have, Nanako-san>