Chapter 47: This Is My Bed

The moment the words left his mouth, wind elements exploded beneath his feet.

Cassius’s figure shot out almost instantly, leaving only a harsh curse carried back by the wind.

“Idiot!”

Harvey stood alone, staring at the quickly disappearing figure. He was silent for two seconds.

What had he said wrong this time?

…

“Idiot!”

Harvey shrank his neck, not daring to meet the Head Maid’s eyes.

“W-What did I do wrong now…”

He carefully muttered a rebuttal, afraid of fully igniting the already sour mood of the woman before him.

Considering that he had just angered Her Highness the Princess, and Cassius had mentioned that Lavia had encountered her in the Teaching Building, he had to stay in his room as per the Eldest Miss’s orders.

Harvey quickly returned to the Mansion and hid himself.

With no one to disturb him for once, he felt a bit relieved.

The morning’s experiences had been too bizarre.

But not long after, Evelyn pushed the door open without even a greeting and walked straight in.

Harvey, holding the book he had brought from the Duke’s Mansion, turned back in surprise.

A flash of admiration passed through his eyes.

Ever since he’d discovered that the maid was strikingly beautiful, he’d occasionally find himself staring at her.

Today she was still wearing that form-fitting black-and-white maid dress, highlighting her already tall and slender figure.

Her waist was cinched extremely tight, and the hem fell with dignity, like a cold, elegant flower branch.

The most restrained outfit imaginable, yet on her, it made it hard for Harvey to look away.

Hadn’t it already been a whole morning?

Even when facing Lavia, he had never felt this strange.

But when he faced the serious Head Maid, inappropriate thoughts kept creeping into his mind.

Thinking about it gave him a headache.

Evelyn naturally didn’t miss the barely concealed panic in his eyes, but clearly, there were more pressing matters to attend to.

“You’re asking me?” she retorted coldly.

The distance between them wasn’t large. Harvey could clearly smell the faint, cool fragrance.

—And the Head Maid’s anger.

“The Duke’s Mansion sent you to the Academy, not for you to be a student.”

“Your duty is to take care of the Eldest Miss.”

“And yet here you are, sitting alone reading a book, leaving the Eldest Miss with her instructor—Harvey, do you think that’s appropriate?”

Harvey stared blankly at the fast-talking Head Maid.

Did she… the Head Maid, usually speak this much?

“But Instructor Mei Li said she wanted to keep the Eldest Miss overnight. How could I force my way in?”

He helplessly defended himself. “Miss Lavia is Instructor Mei Li’s disciple. They haven’t seen each other for a whole holiday—they must have important plans.”

“…”

Evelyn’s momentum suddenly paused. “Overnight?”

“Yeah.”

Harvey nodded. “Given Instructor Mei Li’s age, she probably treats the Eldest Miss like a granddaughter.”

Though it might be a slight overstep in status, who would dare say anything to a kindly Mid-Rank Archmage?

At times like this, the importance of noble status was somewhat diminished.

From the sights and sounds outside to the argument in class,

and then to Instructor Mei Li keeping Lavia behind alone.

Harvey’s account was somewhat scattered, but it roughly explained the situation.

Evelyn listened quietly, no longer scolding him like before.

Looking at Harvey, who was so enthusiastic about today’s events, the coldness on her face didn’t fade.

But the reprimand she had originally planned was abandoned after hearing the words “Lavia staying overnight outside.”

She knew Instructor Mei Li’s identity, and with her age and status, she wouldn’t do anything to Lavia.

Moreover, according to what the two maids had said before, it was common for the Eldest Miss to stay over at her instructor’s place.

But that wasn’t the issue.

—Tonight, the Mansion would be left with only her and Harvey.

The thought had barely surfaced in her mind when Evelyn frowned almost imperceptibly.

Though Her Highness the Princess lived on the other side, the distance was vast. Unless one deliberately crossed the Corridor and the Courtyard, it was almost as if she wasn’t there.

This realization made her feel a vague unease.

It wasn’t fear, but an almost instinctive alertness.

She looked down at Harvey.

The boy was still sitting there, the book he had been holding now set aside, honestly looking up at her.

His gaze wasn’t bold—it was even restrained.

His youthful expression still held the innocence and awkwardness after his explanation.

Yet beneath that awkwardness, something else was clearly mixed in.

He had been trying his best to avoid her, to act natural.

Evelyn saw it clearly.

That was precisely why she felt it was inappropriate.

She didn’t care whether Harvey developed restless thoughts because of her.

Normally, she would have just turned around and left, finishing her day’s work as usual.

But since they had this rare moment alone, she thought it better to clarify things.

Evelyn lowered her eyelashes, and the hesitation in her heart gradually faded.

She still didn’t understand why Harvey, who had seemed like a clueless kid about these things, had suddenly started reacting to her this way.

Not understanding was one thing.

That didn’t stop her from making a judgment.

In Evelyn’s eyes, it was perfectly normal for members of the opposite sex to feel lust.

It wasn’t dirty, nor was it something to be ashamed of.

If even such instincts didn’t exist, how could any race continue?

The Fairy Clan had stepped to the brink of extinction precisely because they had too few opportunities for Reproduction.

What Harvey truly needed to learn was never “don’t have it,” but “how to view it,” and “where to place that emotion.”

That Harvey’s mind was unsettled by her proximity, by the scent of an adult of the opposite sex—that was a normal reaction in her view.

But that was all.

If such loss of control ever fell upon Lavia—

Evelyn’s gaze turned a fraction colder.

That wouldn’t do.

The Eldest Miss must not be touched by desires that had not yet learned their boundaries.

Even if Harvey himself might not even know what his feelings were, it still wouldn’t do.

With that thought, her previous hesitation of “it’s not appropriate” turned into something else—something that felt right.

Perhaps this was an opportunity.

A chance to teach this child properly while no one else was around.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Harvey had been expecting her to say something about the morning’s commotion, but after waiting a while, Evelyn still hadn’t spoken.

The silence made him uneasy.

He called out softly, “Head Maid?”

Evelyn snapped back to reality, her gaze falling on him again.

Compared to the anger she’d had when she first entered, her current eyes were even more unsettling.

At least that was how Harvey felt.

He instinctively sat up straighter. “Are… are you okay?”

Evelyn didn’t answer immediately.

She took a step forward.

Her heels made a faint, crisp sound on the floor.

The already narrow distance between them shrank even further.

That cold, clear fragrance became even more noticeable, like the scent of night wind brushing past garden flowers, grazing his breath.

Harvey’s back stiffened instantly.

Evelyn naturally didn’t miss this subtle change.

Then, under Harvey’s nearly frozen gaze,

she walked straight to the bed, raised her hand, and smoothed the skirt behind her.

It was a simple gesture to adjust her dress, yet it somehow accentuated her tall, graceful figure.

As if completely unaware, she sat down gracefully under his gaze.

The soft mattress dipped slightly.

The black-and-white long skirt fell naturally along her movement, but as she sat, it lifted just a little, revealing a sliver of pale, pure calf above her dark shoes.

It was especially striking in the midday light.

Harvey stared at her, dumbfounded.

But Evelyn seemed to notice nothing, still sitting primly on his bed, leaning forward slightly.

“What did you just say?”

Her dark eyes looked straight at him, her expression calm, almost cold.

There was none of the shyness or embarrassment a woman should have.

“Sorry, I wasn’t listening carefully.”

Harvey opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn’t even know where to put his hands. He sat frozen, his gaze darting around.

“I… I…”

He stammered for a long time without forming a complete sentence.

Evelyn looked at him like this, was silent for two seconds, and finally spoke flatly.

“Why are you so nervous?”

“Ah, no, it’s just that you, Head Maid…”

Harvey’s throat was a little dry, and he instinctively tried to deny it.

But the words that came out turned into—

“…This is my bed.”