My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage Chapter 84
TN: Hi, there has been a mistranslation in ch 80 and 81 of childhood friend, it's supposed to be ‘My Husband and His Childhood Friend’s Wedding as a Funeral’ and not 'My Friend and Her Husband's Wedding as a Funeral'. The previous chapters have now been corrected!
Translated by d6y (ko-fi)
Chapter 84
I turn towards the doorway where Lancer stands.
"What brings you here?" I ask, walking back into the mansion with him.
"I came to see you, but I thought you were in the dining room. Turns out you weren't, so I came here."
"But you somehow managed to find your way here on your own."
"Of course I did. I'll make sure to find you wherever you are! By the way, Skyla, have you eaten today?" Lancer asks, as if it bothered him a little that I have finished my meal so quickly, unlike usual.
"Yeah, I ate."
"Really? What did you eat?"
"Something to eat."
I take Lancer upstairs to my room. Given that he had come to see me this late in the evening, he must have something he needed to talk to me about.
And I have something I want to ask him, too.
"Where is Lady Artberry?"
Lady Artberry.
I'm a little worried about having handed her over to Lancer when she's supposed to be meeting with Hubert.
But Lancer beams with no problems. "Lady Artberry has gone home safe and sound!"
"Really? Did you show her around the duchy?"
"Yes."
"Then I'm glad to hear it."
If Lancer says so, then there's that. I decide not to prod him further.
Nevertheless, Lancer continued to talk, even though I didn't ask him to. "I noticed something curious today while showing Lady Artberry around."
"What?"
"It was the first time I've ever let anyone see my house. It was different to see someone else marvelling at something I usually take for granted."
"She must have liked it a lot," I smirk and shrug. I have somewhat expected it. Lady Artberry has only just come to the capital. This must be the first time she's ever visited a noble family as large as the Soli Duchy.
"And when I gave her the flowers, she was delighted."
"Oh, the flowers."
I recall the bouquet Hubert has prepared to give to Artberry.
"Yeah, who wouldn't love to get flowers."
"I guess so. She was so happy to receive them. She said it was the first time she'd ever received flowers from a man, and she kept thanking me."
"...Hmm?" I blink my eyes slowly.
Hold up.
"Why did she thank you?"
Lancer rubs the back of his head nervously. "Uh… because I gave her a bouquet?"
No, no, no.
"It was Hubert who gave her the bouquet, you just delivered it."
"I know, but at the end of the day, Lady Artberry got the bouquet from me, that's why she thanked me."
Wait a minute. This is a little weird.
My head begins to spin at Lancer's logic.
Unable to hide my impatience, I quickly ask Lancer. "Lancer, did you… say that it was your Hubert who arranged the flowers for Lady Artberry?"
Then a cruel word falls from Lancer's lips.
"No."
Boom!
I jump to my feet.
"You didn't tell her?!"
"S-Should I have said it?"
"You should've, or else she'll think you've arranged a bouquet of flowers for her!"
"But… I thought it was just a gift for a house guest, and I didn't think it was necessary to tell her who it came from…."
I suddenly realise where Lancer has gone wrong.
Does he not understand the romantic implication of a bouquet?
As it turns out, Lancer has never given me flowers. Sometimes he would give me new flavoured tea leaves or snacks from exotic vendors, but never flowers.
No way….
I begin to question him again, my heart pounding in my chest. "Do you… remember when Hubert asked you to tell Lady Artberry to make an appointment with him the next time you had a chance? Did you do that?"
"Yes."
Good, you're good at answering questions.
"How exactly did you tell her?" I let out a small sigh and plop across from Lancer.
Then he flashes me a sunny grin and proclaims, "I told her we'd get together next time!"
But I can't smile back. I can't help but notice another problem here.
Together next time….
So… who is asking to get together next time with whom?
No matter how I read that sentence, it doesn't sound like Hubert is the one suggesting another meeting, it sounds like Lancer asking her instead.
Well, I guess we're screwed.
"You told her that…, and what did she say?"
"She blushed and said yes."
"She blushed...?" I ask, sensing that something is a little off in the atmosphere.
Lancer nods. "Yeah. I guess she was nervous."
Nervous?
"If you're blushing in that situation, it's because you're shy!”
"Shy...?"
Lancer's eyes widened at my words. He tilts his head. "Skyla, I don't understand. Why was she shy?"
"It's because… she has a crush on you, and she thought you were asking her out!" I shout without thinking, and I wince at how loud my voice is.
What the hell am I doing?
I don't know why I'm shouting.
At the same time, I realise that I'm reacting a little too strongly to the fact that Artberry blushed when she received the bouquet from Lancer.
Lancer, on the other hand, is being Lancer.
"A date? No, I'm not going out with anyone but you, Skyla. Speaking of which, Skyla, why don't you go out with me?"
"You're saying that after the accident you caused?!" I press both hands to my forehead.
Poor Hubert…. His crush is stolen away from him by his own brother.
Artberry must be writing a romance novel in her head right now….
I feel sorry for Hubert, but there are more important matters at hand than that.
"Listen, Lancer, you've been so nice to Lady Artberry today that she's probably thinking you're in love with her by now," I say, regaining my composure.
After a moment's hesitation, Lancer speaks up slowly. "Well… but Skyla, you told me to be nice when dealing with other people."
"That's true, but you've been too kind to the point of being unnecessary, and unnecessary kindness leads to unnecessary misunderstandings."
Barely able to comprehend the situation, I remind Lancer of the problem at hand.
He goes quiet as he thinks back at what had happened.
"...."
There's a moment of silence between us.
And it's Lancer who breaks the awkward silence.
"I'll write to Lady Artberry first thing tomorrow morning."
"What will you write?"
"I'll tell her that Brother Hubert will be present at our next meeting. And I'll tell her that I'll be unable to make it."
Ooh-la-la.
That would naturally leave Lancer out of the equation, and it would be just Artberry and Hubert. He can then explain to Artberry that he's the one who arranged the bouquet.
It's not a bad idea. Or, more accurately, it's a brilliant idea.
I stroke Lancer's hair and praise him. "Good job, Lancer."
"Wow, I'm being complimented." Lancer smiles and tilts his head further down toward me. He looks like a puppy, wagging his tail as much as he can to get more praise.
I find it unnecessarily cute, so I stroke his head for a while longer. Then Lancer speaks again. "My neck hurts."
"Oh."
I inadvertently gave Lancer a neck-stretching exercise. I rush to pull my hand away, but he's faster.
"How about this?" He moves over to my side and lays his head on my lap.
My face flushes. "Wh-What are you doing?"
"Having you stroke my hair."
"Then why are you suddenly lying down!"
"Because I'm more comfortable in this position… Oh, by the way, Skyla, why are you blushing? No way, you're shy…."
"No, I'm not, I'm hot, it's the candle, and by the way, why did you leave the candle burning like this, Phoebe!"
I start to blame the innocent Phoebe. I'm sure she's probably sneezing in her room right now.
Of course, this isn't the first time Lancer has laid his head on my lap.
When we were younger, we used to do this a lot when we were playing tag. Usually, Lancer would play the role of the child patient with rotten teeth from eating candy and not brushing his teeth properly, and I would play the scary dentist.
Yes, there's no shame in this! Lancer is the poor patient with the cavity, and I'm the dentist!
As I chant to myself, Lancer looks up at me with a grin. "My head's not heavy, is it?"
"You don't have anything on your head, so it's very light." I try to hide my embarrassment, but the harsh words slip out of my mouth.
Oops, I thought. But fortunately, Lancer doesn't seem to understand my sarcasm.
"I'm not carrying anything inside my head. There's only a skull, a brain, and other bodily organs…."
"Let's just not talk about it."
I sigh and run my fingers through Lancer's hair. He smiles, looking up at me.
His blue eyes bore into mine. His blue, crystalline pupils are beautiful to behold.
"How was your day?"
"What?"
"You met with the Crown Prince. What did you do?"
"...."
For a moment, I'm stunned and speechless.
Why would he suddenly want to know what the Crown Prince and I did?