23 Chapter 22

Atherton Cox, with his brown hair neatly slicked back and tied into a pony tail which he had only started growing early this month, he appeared handsome in the eyes of the onlookers, especially the ones of opposite gender. The midday sunlight that was falling on his face is not the one to be blamed for his scrunched eyebrows and displeased demeanor.

His steps came to a halt in front of the most renowned bakery of the capital, 'Grape-Vines', but instead of walking inside he chose a glass window, which the store manager preferred to be kept shut, and plastered his face on it. Some ladies who were standing near the transparent window, shrieked and rolled back when the face they were admiring from afar was suddenly sticking to its glass and glaring at them from outside.

Their shrill voice commanded the attention of other companions who were enjoying sugar in the shop, and when their eyes fell on what made the ladies agitated, their faces adorned an expression of understanding.

Because of the fact that he felt nauseated around flamboyant dresses and perfumes that hit you in the back of your nose, he couldn't gather the courage to enter a place jam-packed with ladies. However, unaware of how unrefined he appeared, Atherton Cox wasn't in the least bit concerned by the aristocratic ladies dispersing away from him.

He had already spotted the stall of cakes which had the most ladies lined in front of it, patiently awaiting their turn. He glared at the queue for a bit and then at the ladies who were glaring back at him, and decided it was better to come here at a time when he would have to encounter fewer of them and turned back on his heels to leave.

It was only in the morning when he was sipping lemonade in his chair, listening to the birds' chirp outside his office and looking forward to a peaceful day. He had finished organizing the information he had received from their spies in Lativia and just sent it to his master, Derek Wintern. Afterwards, he received the news that Derek would be visiting the guild but it was not something he had to specially prepare for. Derek dropped by the guild almost every other day, so he did not pay any mind to it and lazed in his office chair.

But when his master came today, he was not alone. He had a caramel-haired man accompanying him. His hands were held by Derek and was dragged by him to his office. When Atherton followed them, only to retrieve his coat, he was glared at, ordered to buy the best cake from the best bakery in the capital and had the door of his own office shut at his face.

When the coachman had announced that the carriage had arrived at the Black-Gold guild, Derek decided to control his desires. Afterall, carnal pleasure wasn't the reason he had brought Hansel there. He wanted to show Hansel around the guild and spend some time with him, away from the mansion.

But one look at the blushing, trembling and teary Hansel, who was lying on the seat, made his determination crack into two. He made Hansel sit up and tidied his shirt only to grab him by his hands and lead him out of the carriage.

"Welcome to the guild." Atherton greeted Hansel as he got down. "I am the manager. Please tel-"

"Cox!" Derek cut him off, bored, "I need your office." declaring this, he pulled Hansel and went inside. Contrary to its appearance from outside, the inside of the building was well lit and looked warm, if not big.

"Wai, wait?!" Hansel cried, the ground below his feet felt unsteady. He was disorganized after all that happened to him inside the carriage but more than that, he was worried about all those curious eyes that were watching him getting dragged.

Atherton silently pitied the young man who seemed as if he had no idea why in the world was he even inside a shady building.

Hansel was a plain commoner with nothing about him that had made him stand out of the crowd all these years. Bothered by all the unnecessary scrutiny he was receiving; his mind was thrown into chaos. So before long, he tripped over his own poorly placed steps and fell down face first on the ground.

"Oof!"

"What? Hansel?!" Derek had looked back when Hansel's hand tugged his, as he toppled down to the floor. He was shocked and reacted quickly but it was too late to prevent his fall. Silence occupied the hall.

Derek crouched down facing him, waiting to help him up. But Hansel showed no sign of movement. His face remained plastered to the ground as if he was kissing it. After waiting for a few seconds, the stillness made Derek feel unsettled. His hands moved and taking a hold of Hansel's chin, Derek made him look up.

Hansel's forehead and nose were red but his ears and cheeks were redder. Whether it was from the pain of getting hit on his nose bridge or from the embarrassment of being clumsy in front of all the eyes watching him, Hansel's eyes were brimming.

"Tch." Derek clicked his tongue. Although he liked to see Hansel's eyes teary, he didn't like how he looked now.

Meanwhile Hansel wondered if Derek was angry with him when he saw his eyebrows form into a frown. So, he was dumbfounded when somehow Derek managed to pick him up, into his arms.

Hansel's breath hitched in his throat. The guild employees were surprised too, so much that their faces had become distorted. Except Derek, everyone's mind had stopped working.

"All of you." Derek commanded their attention and received it as well, "You are all dismissed for today."

The employees started seeing Hansel in a new light. Since the nobles and aristocrats had started plotting a war together with the Lativian king, all of their holidays had been revoked. But they suddenly got half-day off, all thanks to the clumsy gentleman who was hiding his face in their master's arms.

"Th-Thank you sir!" One of the employees expressed his gratitude to Derek.

"Just get out already before I change my decision!" Derek brushed him off, annoyed. They were just wasting his time that was meant to be spent with Hansel. He walked away with Hansel after giving them a warning.

Hearing him, they rushed off quickly. It was rare for Derek to spare them some consideration, so they were happy.

Atherton was happy too. His wish to sit out in the open under the sun didn't seem distant. After he would grab his coat from the office, he wanted to visit a public park.

But when he entered the office for his coat, his heart thumped. He saw Derek and Hansel sitting really close to each other. But it was good that he wasn't noticed by any of them.

"I can't believe a knight who trains with swords every day is so clumsy that he would trip down on a flat floor and break his own nose." Derek scolded Hansel as he pressed his nose bridge carefully. Luckily there was no cut or fracture. It would only be swollen for a couple of days.

Derek calmed down after he had examined him. He looked at Hansel, who was sitting in front of him with an apologetic expression plastered to his face.

"What happened to you now?" Hansel got his nose pinched by Derek and he flailed from pain.

"Oww…" he rubbed his nose to ease the pain. He looked Derek in the eye and waited for a few seconds before uttering the words out of his mouth, "Are you angry at me?"

"Why?" Derek was bewildered. He had no idea what hit Hansel now.

"Because I fell in front of all those people. They might be thinking less of you because of me."

'Why is he behaving like a teenage girl?' Derek thought. What Hansel accused him of, didn't even cross his mind for once. He was their employer. He would like to see anyone who dared to talk about him behind his back. But the Hansel in front of him, who was worrying about how Derek thought of him, appeared really cute in his eyes.

"So, are you going to appease me if I'm angry?" Derek smirked; his face was slowly nearing Hansel's. After a long wait, he would finally get what he wanted.

But before their lips touched, Hansel placed a palm to block him. "Wa-wait! Someone's here." Hansel's eyes shifted towards the door, guiding Derek's as well.

"You're still here? Oh great!" Derek had a dangerous smile plastered over his face as he called out to the brown-haired man whose hairs were tied into a small ponytail. The poor man had successfully grabbed his coat but was still at the doorway, just steps away from his freedom.

"No, no!" Atherton turned around quickly, "I was just leaving." But Derek had already covered the distance from across the room and was already at his face.

"What? Then why can I see you standing in front of me?" Derek was smiling, to the point that his eyes looked like they were already closed.

"That was-" he tried to mutter some excuses but was cut off once again by Derek.

"Anyway, since you're reluctant to leave your duties, go buy the best cake in Estonia for me. And be back till the evening or you will be reprimanded." Derek shut the door at the young manager's face.

And so, Atherton Cox bid the leisurely evening filled with warm sunlight a goodbye.