I Ran Away And The Reverse Harem Started

Chapter 47 I took out a wooden cup filled with hot water that I had brought earlier. Then I took out a wooden spoon and added some pickled orange and honey. I even added a pinch of cinnamon. “Voila.” Before I could finish the pickled oranges, I made Colin a cup of tea, too. “That’s good.” “It’s so good, it’ll cure a cold in a day.” “It’s a shame because we’re already grown up.” I placed a new cup on the rock and made my share of tea. “I like this rather than tea made by carefully selecting the teapot, water temperature, and tea leaves.” “Really?” “Yed. All you need is some candied fruit and boiling hot water.” “I’ll keep that in mind. Rose’s favorite.” We sat side by side, each clutching a cup of tea and sipping. To our right was a forest path that led to a slope, and to our left, a grand ivory mansion. The wind blew from the right side road. “By the way, Colin.” “Yes?” Colin, who was silently facing the wind, turned his gaze to me. A green eyes as vivid as the leaves around me captured me. “I….” I chose my words carefully, pretending to taste again. It would seem suspicious to ask him if he wanted anything outright, right? As much as I’d like to find out what Colin wants for his birthday, I don’t want to come across as someone who wants to give him a birthday present. Sure, you could ask, “What do you want for your birthday?” and then give him what he wants. ‘Anyway, it’s a bit weird to give a gift to a friend you haven’t seen in 10 years like that.’ So I decided to take a detour and ask. “I heard from Mika that blue shirts are popular in the capital these days. Men’s shirts!” “Really?” “I heard that and suspenders are trendy lately?” Colin sipped his fruity tea. “But a blue shirt will lose color every time you wash it.” “Huh? Really…” “Then the money will be waste, and the maids will have their hands dyed blue. I don’t want to go to all that trouble to look good.” I panicked for a moment, but tried to keep my cool. It’s an answer I hadn’t expected. “Okay, then… What books are you reading these days? If it’s interesting, please recommend it.” Colin likes books, so there might be a book he wants. “There is one famous writer these days.” “Really? What is it?” I looked at Colin curiously. Then Colin rolled his eyes and glanced at me. “It’s Saint Deborah’s favorite mystery novel…” “Oh, never mind, that’s enough.” Deborah’s favorite novel? No wonder. As she read the mystery novel with passion, she immediately realized that I was Daniel’s friend from the orphanage. “This is the first time I’ve realized that mystery novels can be so scary.” “I read it because it was recommended to me by a saint, and it’s worth reading. Though it starts with three people basically dead in one chapter.” “Ugh.” I turned my head away, frowning. Colin smiled at me. But I couldn’t give up here. At this point, I’m getting dizzy. As an adult, I wanted to find out what he liked, what he wanted, what he wanted to have. I crossed my arms, looked at him as if measuring him, and then asked. “… I heard that in the next country, it’s trendy for men to wear earrings too. What do you think, Colin?” How much does Colin like dressing up? It may be different for each person, but nobles and high-ranking officials should decorate themselves to the fullest, even if it means being conscious of what others think. I suppose I could get him some jewelry… Of course, my wallet would cry, and I wouldn’t be able to buy them anything expensive or fancy. Unlike before, Colin did not answer right away. He put down his wooden cup in response to my question and folded his hands in his lap. Then he stared at me. … Why do you look like that? I met Colin’s gaze. Then Colin made a “hm” sound and looked at me. Colin stroked his chin, as if lost in thought. ‘Why?’ When I just asked the question with my mouth, he laughed helplessly. “No, just. I thought Rose had become more interested in me.” “Huh…?” As I hesitated in confusion, Colin stretched the corners of his mouth and smiled. “You’re that curious about me? Of course, Rose is welcome to ask about me three days and three nights… I’m a little embarrassed by your sudden interest.” Colin tilted his head closer to me. His clear eyes blinked rapidly beneath my chin. There was a smile on the corner of his mouth and he was smiling. For someone who is said to be embarrassed, he seemed to be enjoying himself a lot. The person who was really embarrassed was me who had to receive those bright eyes. “No, I was just curious…” “You? You’re curious? really?” Colin’s cheek came close to touching my shoulder. It was so close that it felt like he was leaning against my body. I was so embarrassed that my face turned red and I screamed. “Yes, I’m curious about you!” Something seems strange now that I’m talking about it… Colin leaned towards me and moved his body as if he was going to rest on my shoulder. Should I say that its appearance resembles a fox wagging its tail? Colin’s brown hair gently touched my shoulder, like the tail of a large animal. Soon I would feel his breath on the back of my neck. ‘I don’t know why I’m embarrassed and don’t understand this situation’ One thing is for sure, Colin is enjoying the situation. He teases me for asking about him. “You’re either going to answer… or I’m done!” I gulped down my cold tea and stood up. The strong tea poured down my parched throat. “Rose?” I turned to Colin, who called after me, grabbed two mugs, and ran back to my dorms. The strategy of quietly finding out what he wanted was a poor strategy. I decided to move on to my next plan.  * * * “So, you want to go out to the square with us?” Since Colin and I got separated in the woods, I went straight back to the dorms. Luckily, Mika and Angie were there. I said as I washed the cups in the kitchen. “Yes, I’m going to buy a birthday present for my best friend, but I need to know the geography of the nearby square. I just went there once last time while running errands.” “Hmm.” “Well, if you don’t feel comfortable, I can go by myself.” “No, it’s not uncomfortable. I’ll go with you.” Thank god. After wiping my wet hands on a towel, we sat together at the communal table. Then, with my elbows on the table, I looked at them eagerly in turns. “I don’t think Marie can help me because she doesn’t know the geography of the square than I do. I think it would be great if Mika and Angie could help me!” “Yeah, sure. It’s not difficult.” The two people had lived in this area even before Daniel became Count Drunia. They know this place really well, and if we go together, we might be able to bargain. In a short period of time, I got to know Mika and Angie well. For starters, Mika has upturned eyes and a habit of wrinkling the bridge of her nose when she speaks. She’s slender and has a bubbly personality. Sometimes she would tell me about her great experiences with men. At that moment, she started talking about the men she dated before. “When meeting a man, it’s always about the face. No matter what the income is, you just need to be good-looking and not have any gambling debt.” “Why is the face important?” “No matter how angry you are, you will be forgiven. Of course, you have to be that handsome.” In short, she’s telling me to find a beautiful man whose face would melt away my anger, even if he does something outrageous. Even if you become broke overnight, meet a man that’s really handsome that I want to feed him, or something like that. Mika said that the three masters in the mansion were a very suitable example. Of course, I was glad I didn’t have Marie, the sprout growing next to me. Mika, who had been speaking passionately, sighed deeply and complained that she too wanted to go to school. Originally, she wanted to study, but her family discouraged her from doing so. “If I go to school, I’ll meet people who are decent but basically smart!” I just laughed at her wistful lament. I don’t know if it’s the academics or the boys. Mika was a fun person, but I also liked Angie’s softness. Angie had a genius knack for braiding even my messy hair neatly. She said it was a pity that there was no young lady in this mansion. She would be able to get a higher salary if she became her lady maid. “I have seven sisters in my family.” “Se-seven?” “Yes. My father passed away early, so it’s literally a woman-only house. I braided the kids’ hair every day.” Angie was the second daughter, and early on, she traveled from aristocratic manor to aristocratic manor to make money, and ended up at the count’s house. She had to support her sick mother and five younger sisters. Hah, I sighed softly. ‘If you think about it, Angie and Mika are no different from me. Struggling to survive… We’re an extra who doesn’t even appear in the original, so why does we have such bizarre backstory?’ After all, they are just characters created for a novel, but isn’t such a harsh life too much? Anyway, we both needed money, so we came here. We had a common understanding, and we became close enough just by talking about our daily lives. And Mika was a friend with extraordinary personality. “Then, let’s go to the square tomorrow, Rosieta.” “Yes? Tomorrow?” “Do you have anything to do tomorrow?” “Not really, but…” “Good. We both have nothing to do.” So the three of us decided to stop by the square on the weekend and pick out gifts. When I think about it, Marie, Mika, and Angie were the first same-gender friends I had after Lynne. The thought of going out to the square with those friends, buying delicious food, and looking around the shops made me feel very happy. “So the three of us decided to go to the square together. Do you want to join us, Marie?” I entered the room and glanced at Marie lying down. A few days ago, Marie’s bed came in and my room became a double room. Marie said, lying down on the bed and rolling around. “No, I’m not interested in shopping.” “Really?” “Yes. I don’t like having sore feet either. The three of you can go.” Meanwhile, Marie asked for a strawberry pudding when I returned. In order not to forget, I wrote down the pudding at the pastry shop in front of the clock tower in my notepad.