Chapter 399 : But You Are Adelina

After driving the sigil car out of the encirclement, Felyn got out and ran to Adelina's side.

Thank goodness he made it in time.

"Fe-Felyn, didn't you leave?"

Adelina's eyes were shut tight, her hands clutching the collar of Felyn's shirt.

Felyn's heartbeat echoed in her ears, gradually synchronizing with the frequency of her own.

"Aren't you still here?" Felyn looked down at Adelina in his arms. Seeing her body trembling slightly, his voice softened considerably. "I can't just abandon you and run away alone."

Adelina was his former client.

If he followed the bottom line he had set in the past, then tonight he should have stayed far away, avoiding any entanglement with Adelina, lest she develop inappropriate feelings for him.

But...

But if he really did that, would he still be human?

To use his professional bottom line as an excuse to stay away from Adelina, away from the fight, away from the conflict, and let her face the danger alone.

Felyn could not bring himself to do such a thing, no matter what.

Especially since Adelina was facing that danger for his sake.

What professional bottom line? That was just a coward's excuse.

"Felyn, you shouldn't have come back. I... I'll make Miss Daiyi jealous..." Adelina opened her eyes, glanced at Felyn, and then her gaze shifted to the car where Daiyi was.

"Huh? Adelina, you're still in the mood to make such an unfunny joke at a time like this?" Felyn couldn't fathom why Adelina would say such a thing.

Receiving Felyn's reply, Adelina let out a whimper in his arms, the heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settling down.

She wanted to bury her head in Felyn's chest, to lean on his shoulder, to enjoy his embrace.

But she felt restrained, uneasy.

She was afraid her actions would trouble Felyn, afraid he would tell her to leave in the next second.

When the thing she had always wanted appeared before her, she found herself unable to believe it, unable to be happy.

Adelina was afraid this was all just a dream, that if she became too happy, she would wake up and it would all end.

"Felyn, I'm not your client anymore." Her voice was muffled against his chest, carrying a slight tremor. "So you don't have to come and save me."

Felyn didn't answer immediately, only tightening his arms around her.

The night wind swept between them, scattering the faint rose scent from her hair.

"But you are Adelina."

But you are Adelina.

Felyn said something he would never have said to a client before.

At this moment, Felyn did not evade Adelina's feelings.

From her confession until now, Adelina's actions had repeatedly battered his psychological defenses.

She took care of him gently, she would handle all the troubles around him for him.

For the past two months, she had constantly comforted him, helping him solve his problems.

Tonight, to take care of him, afraid that he, soaked to the bone, would catch a cold, she had proactively chosen to forgo the final role-playing time before the contract ended.

Tonight, to protect him, she had chosen to go to war with Silafiel's guards and Dorothy's knights.

Most importantly, even though he kept rejecting her, even though he had already shown her his true self, Adelina still hadn't given up.

She was sincere.

Understanding this, confirming this, Felyn no longer mentioned the contract.

In the past, Felyn had always rejected Adelina's advances, always told Adelina not to like him.

That was because Felyn was afraid that what Adelina liked was the perfect version of him from the contract, which would hurt them both.

But now, after two months of getting along, Felyn knew those doubts no longer existed.

To bring up such things at this point would be an evasion.

To enjoy a girl's affection and pursuit on one hand, while using the contract as an excuse to maintain his own "purity" on the other.

‘It was all her initiative, she's the one who likes me, I'm just passively enjoying it, you can't blame me, I did nothing wrong, I'm still a good person.’

Please, that was just too disgusting.

Felyn's words made Adelina, in his arms, freeze abruptly. Her heart stopped for an instant, then began to pound violently against her chest.

The fabric between her fingers was clutched even tighter, and her grayish-blue eyes began to mist over.

Adelina looked up, and after confirming that Felyn was not lying to her again, tears finally broke through her defenses, soaking the collar of Felyn's shirt.

(Finally…)

(Finally, Felyn is willing to acknowledge my feelings.)

(Finally, Felyn isn't pushing me away anymore.)

Felyn avoided Adelina's scorching gaze. He could feel the girl's body temperature rising rapidly, could feel her heart about to burst from her chest.

He felt he needed to say something.

"Adelina, although we've graduated tonight, if I can go to school in the royal capital district, you can still... you can still come and see me more often."

"Felyn, I..."

Adelina hadn't yet recovered from the surprise. For a moment, she couldn't comprehend Felyn's words.

"Let's get this straight, the contract is over now. I won't be letting you have your way all the time," Felyn interrupted Adelina. "If you find out I'm not the Felyn you imagined, you can't get angry at me."

Felyn's fingertips unintentionally twirled a strand of Adelina's hair as he continued, "Helping you clean and cook and that sort of thing isn't out of the question, but it'll cost extra."

"Mhm!"

Adelina's response was impossibly cheerful.

She knew that although Felyn hadn't agreed to be with her right now, he was no longer using the contract as an excuse to avoid her.

He finally no longer saw her as a client. He was finally willing to slowly get close to her, to slowly get to know her...

Perhaps in the future, in the royal capital district, there would finally be a day when she and Felyn would be together.

When Felyn subconsciously looked down, he happened to see her blooming smile.

It was a pure smile, with all pretense cast aside.

It was a countenance countless times more brilliant than the fireworks in the sky.

It was... it was Adelina's heart, the girl's ardent feelings.

At this moment, Adelina finally pressed her entire body against Felyn's. This time, she didn't have to worry that he would push her away.

"Felyn, then I'll have to give you special training next..." She gently nuzzled his neck with the tip of her nose, her moist breath ghosting over his ear.

"Special training?"

"I want to be in the royal capital with you, so you must pass the exam. I will give you special training." Her grayish-blue eyes blinked, appearing before Felyn's.

"Do you charge?"

"I am the eldest daughter of the Claude family, the top student at Lanche Academy. Of course, I charge." Adelina's finger gently poked Felyn's shoulder as she muttered in a small voice, "Thirty thousand crowns a day."

Her finger quickly pressed against Felyn's lips, not allowing him to refuse.

"But..." Adelina's voice grew smaller and smaller, her rose-tea colored bangs falling to cover her eyes.

"If you cover room and board..." The tips of her ears turned red at a visible rate. "The... the fee can be waived..."

After saying this, Adelina bit her lower lip tightly, abruptly turning her face away. Even her neck was tinged with a faint pink.

Looking at such a shy Adelina, a faint smile graced Felyn's lips.

‘What's free is the most expensive. It seems Miss Adelina isn't so honest after all.’

"Mr. Felyn, have you two forgotten that I'm still here?"

Veronica's words interrupted the conversation between Felyn and Adelina.

Seeing Felyn and Adelina's relationship grow closer right in front of her, she felt even more worried for Dorothy.

It feels like the princess is going to be left far behind by Adelina.

"Now, would you please let go of Miss Adelina?"

(End of Chapter)