Do Heroes Need Welfare Too? - Chapter 72

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 72

“Haha!”

Adam, who had been wearing a sullen expression, suddenly burst into laughter.

The sudden burst of loud laughter made Iberis, who had been calmly sharing her thoughts, blink her eyes.

“Ah, Eve. Eve is more materialistic than I thought.”

“Who doesn’t like gold!”

Iberis, belatedly realizing she was being teased, hastily made excuses.

Grab anyone and give them gold. No one would refuse gold that came into their hands.

“Of course, Hero’s eyes are prettier than these metal lumps. They look like stars have been embedded in them.”

“Haha.”

Adam laughed softly.

Then he smiled, and since he didn’t look displeased, she ended up smiling too.

If it was the Imperial Palace’s money, she would have been ready to take even poison, but receiving such a large gold ingot made her suspicious instead.

Giving gold for no reason?

Unfortunately, in human relationships where there absolutely couldn’t be no ulterior motives beyond beef, there had to be something hidden.

“But why did you suddenly give me a gift?”

Adam thought for a moment before speaking.

“It’s around this time that my birthday falls.”

Iberis was flustered and her mouth gaped open.

…She had completely forgotten Adam’s birthday.

Of course, she had never heard it from him, but how could she forget a birthday?

It was because she had never properly celebrated a birthday, so she had become indifferent to birthdays.

“When?”

She jumped up from her seat in surprise.

Fortunately, the large carriage that the Prince had provided didn’t cause the mishap of her hitting her head on the ceiling even when she stood up.

Adam seemed to think deeply, as if retracing dates he wasn’t sure of himself, then answered.

“Um, exactly yesterday.”

“Since midnight has passed,” Adam added, then continued awkwardly.

“Don’t worry about it.”

No, yesterday?

Nothing happened at all!

They just normally ate together, read books together, and chatted together.

In short, nothing special happened at all.

What about cake? Birthday presents? Birthday song!

Rather, in the evening, hadn’t he been dragged away by the Emperor and suffered humiliation?

“…”

Iberis was left speechless with her mouth agape.

“That’s why the Emperor was even more… Anyway, don’t worry about it. You gave me something before.”

Did she have any memory of giving Adam a gift?

To her confusion, Adam smiled and explained.

“On Founding Festival day, you gave me a gift.”

“That! That was just a small thing. It wasn’t expensive, and it wasn’t meaningful either… It was just a souvenir sold at the Founding Festival.”

When placed alongside the Prince’s gift, only her gift looked shabby.

She would secretly go out and give him a wonderful gift.

As Iberis was making a firm resolution to herself, Adam called her.

“Eve doesn’t need to prepare anything.”

“I can’t do that!”

At least he should receive a good gift to make it special.

“The birthday I spent with Eve was much happier for me.”

“But that’s too much of nothing…”

In her disappointment, her voice finally came out mixed with sobs.

Iberis was startled by the voice that came out of her own mouth.

“I’m not saying anything bad about Hero for not telling me…!”

“Haha, it’s okay.”

Iberis, who had been desperately explaining, stopped her actions and looked at him when he burst into laughter.

Iberis looked at Adam with an unfamiliar emotion.

“Being able to see this face is a gift for me.”

What kind of face is that?

More than that, how is looking at a face a gift?

Iberis sighed deeply in frustration.

If she had known earlier, she would have prepared a splendid birthday gift.

She would have been the first to congratulate him on his birthday and spent time with him.

And she would have stopped Adam from going to the Imperial Palace, even if she had to grab his pant leg.

‘Did the Emperor know it was Adam’s birthday?’

If he knew it was his birthday and still did that, he was truly vicious.

All he did after calling him was steal his time, make him stand in the Hall all day, and turn him into a spectacle.

Later, he even made him kneel before him.

He was quite the fellow who created wonderful birthday memories.

Thinking about it again made her angry.

Iberis, who was showing her bubbling anger again, belatedly noticed Adam’s scent as he drew closer.

“…Hero?”

Adam’s eyebrows narrowed as if he didn’t like the title that came from Iberis’s mouth.

“Adam.”

A name that was both familiar and unfamiliar came from its owner.

Iberis’s eyes widened.

It was a name she had always called only from behind him or in her heart.

“Please call me Adam.”

“…”

Adam, who had hidden and refused to reveal even his name in the beginning, was facing her and smiling.

At his smile, one side of Iberis’s heart began to ache sweetly.

Then Adam’s hand touched beneath her eye.

“What is this wound?”

“Ah, I accidentally earlier…”

It wasn’t because of the wound, but her cheek where Adam’s touch had landed felt hot.

Iberis quickly covered the cheek his touch had reached with her hand.

However, since Adam didn’t withdraw his hand, it became a situation where her hand was placed on top of his.

“…Adam.”

Iberis slowly brought out the name that had only lingered in her mouth.

It was the first time she had mentioned his name in front of Adam when he was in his right mind.

Then Adam smiled beautifully, crinkling his eyes.

“…!”

Adam, who had been looking at her languidly, suddenly startled in surprise and withdrew his hand.

Heat rushed from where he had touched as if flames were blazing.

While she was glad that he had withdrawn his hand himself, she also felt a wave of regret.

Not knowing why she felt regret, Iberis called out to the flustered Adam.

“Adam?”

“Ah… I’m sorry.”

Adam pressed his lips tightly together.

He had an expression different from usual.

He seemed to be smiling ambiguously, and also seemed to have lost his composure.

Adam’s ears, as he repeatedly rubbed his face with his hands, looked redder than usual.

In an instant, all expression disappeared from Adam’s face.

It was an expression that had turned pale white, as if belatedly realizing something.

“It can’t be….”

Adam muttered.

“It shouldn’t be….”

The small murmur only grew fainter, buried in the rattling of the carriage.

* * *

Adam had been acting strange lately.

No, he was always strange, but perhaps I just hadn’t noticed until now.

However, this time I received such blatant stares that I couldn’t possibly fail to notice, so I moved to a different spot.

Wherever I moved, at least one person’s footsteps followed.

At first, I thought it was just bored Potato following me around.

But seeing Potato rolling around in the garden, swinging his paws at butterflies, I figured out the source of this déjà vu.

‘If Potato is over there, then who’s following me from behind right now?’

I glanced back with my peripheral vision.

The gaze that kept watching me from behind wasn’t my imagination.

I had thought it was Potato and didn’t think much of it, but the hair of whoever was trailing after me wasn’t Potato’s brown fur, but white.

He was staring so blatantly it was obvious.

Thanks to that, I became troubled by the gaze piercing into my head.

However, seeing him humming a tune, I roughly understood.

‘…Hmm, Adam must be in a good mood.’

He’d been like this a lot since the Founding Festival.

No, had he been showing signs of this little by little from before?

Unlike Adam’s previous attitude, his much more docile behavior was obvious enough that even Abracxas could tell as he passed by.

A few days ago, he passed by looking disgusted at Adam’s good mood, which earned him my light punishment.

Well, if Adam’s happy, that’s good!

It means he can come out to the garden and wander around.

That’s when my eyes met Adam’s.

I looked at him and gave him a bright smile in return.

Seeing a beautiful person in a good mood automatically made me smile.

When I changed my expression looking at him, Adam instead quickly turned his head away.

Before turning his head, his shoulders trembled as if startled, but I didn’t catch his intention and just blinked.

‘Huh? Why did his mood suddenly drop.’

I couldn’t make sense of his emotions that fluctuated so rapidly.

He too seemed bewildered by his own actions, constantly running his hands over his face.

In the meantime, I approached Adam first this time, who had been following behind me like we were playing tag.

He was definitely different from usual.

If it were the usual Adam, as soon as I got near him, he would have noticed my approach and met my gaze with a smile.

Now the roles had switched.

“Hero?”

“…Yes.”

“Why do you keep avoiding my gaze?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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