I Don’t Believe in Ghosts, But I Make a Living by Exorcising Them! - Chapter 128

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

I Don’t Believe in Ghosts, But I Make a Living Through Exorcism! Episode 128

‘So suddenly?’

There was no appointment scheduled with Harman today.

We went to the festival together yesterday, so there’s no way we would have made plans!

If there had been a schedule in the first place, I wouldn’t have arranged tea time. And we always exchanged letters to make appointments before meeting.

There were no letters exchanged this time.

‘But I can’t just send someone away after they’ve come all this way.’

The more I pondered, the longer Harman would have to wait. I rushed out hastily.

“Bella, you didn’t leave the Duke standing at the main gate, did you?”

“Of course not. He’s right next to me.”

Bella demurely pointed to the side.

Someone suddenly interjected.

“Lady Siena, did you sleep well last night?”

“…Duke?”

Harman had poked his face through the crack of the open door.

‘What brings you here so suddenly?’

I was about to say that but stopped.

His neat face and crisply dressed uniform were no different from usual, but somehow his expression looked anxious.

“Lady, today is the second day of the week.”

“…”

I didn’t understand what he meant, so I repeated it several times in my head.

Once I understood, my mouth fell open.

So when he asked to meet for a week, it wasn’t just something he said casually.

‘He really meant meeting every single day for a week?’

So we’re really doing a ‘week-long lover experience’?

…No, more than that.

It’s true that I’ve become a wealthy unemployed person, and it’s true that I’m just resting at the manor with no schedule!

But is it okay to just show up like this without warning?

He couldn’t have known that I was unemployed.

‘Of course, I’m happy about it.’

It would have been even better if it weren’t for right now.

Hiccup.

At the sound from behind me, I glanced back.

Grace met my eyes and covered her mouth in embarrassment.

Floren’s situation wasn’t much different. Knowing that Harman was beyond the door, she had completely frozen up.

‘These three people and Harman are bound to run into each other.’

Since they now know about each other’s presence, it would be proper etiquette to at least greet each other.

At least it’s fortunate that Rudian seems indifferent.

‘But I was just talking about dating you…!’

I’m really going to die of embarrassment.

I turned my head awkwardly.

Harman was looking at me without understanding what was going on.

“Duke, meeting with you every day for a week sounds absolutely wonderful. But I misunderstood that in a different way and scheduled tea time…”

“Ah, you were having tea time.”

“Yes! There are some people I’m close with inside.”

“Then may I greet them?”

“I would be grateful if you would.”

“Understood.”

Harman smiled brightly.

I’m dying of embarrassment, but the person who actually has to greet my friends(?) is calm, which is somehow annoying.

But then.

“…!”

Harman grabbed my hand.

Just like how I had grabbed his hand under the pretext of ‘enjoying the festival like ordinary people.’

Before I could stop him, I was dragged into the reception room.

All three people’s gazes simultaneously turned to our clasped hands.

‘!’ ‘!’ ‘!’

Their expressions changing in sequence seemed like they were embodying exclamation marks.

Harman smiled gently.

“It’s been a while since we met after the banquet.”

“Oh, hello, Duke.”

Grace hesitated but was the first to respond.

Next was.

“What’s with those hands! Why are you two holding hands?”

The chair made a thud as it toppled backward.

Rudian had risen in an awkward position, pointing at our clasped hands.

She seemed quite shocked, as her expression was pale.

Then Harman lifted our hands as if to show off and intertwined our fingers. Rudian’s body swayed backward.

Just like the chair that had fallen over.

Oh, right.

‘I haven’t told them that we’re not actually dating yet.’

‘What on earth is this.’

Is this what tea time is normally like?

No, I’ve never heard of anything like this…

I tried to understand what had just happened.

In the end, I failed.

So, Harman suddenly showed up and then boldly entered the reception room to greet everyone.

‘Then shouldn’t one side disband?’

Shouldn’t either the tea time team or Harman go back?

Why are we all having a second round of tea time together?

“So the Duke asked you to go to the festival together?”

“That’s correct.”

“Kyaaaa!”

Grace covered her reddened cheeks and screamed.

Floren, who had been quietly concentrating while pretending not to listen, was the same.

‘Harman, why are you answering all of that?’

I feel like a boyfriend summoned to a friend gathering who’s being bombarded with various questions by the friends.

…Come to think of it, that’s exactly right?

‘No, we’re not officially dating yet though…’

This is tricky – he’s not exactly my boyfriend, but it’s also awkward to say he’s not.

Rudian, who had almost collapsed from the shock of seeing Harman and me with interlocked fingers, was lying face down on the table.

After eating the signature strawberry cake from the famous dessert shop that Harman brought, she dramatically came to her senses.

“Well, it’s fortunate that you’re not actually dating yet.”

Wipe the cream off your mouth before you speak.

And stop smacking your lips like that.

Still, it seems like we got through this well. I should consider whether anger really does drop blood sugar levels.

If it were the usual Rudian.

‘Even if he is a Duke, I cannot tolerate him holding hands with Miss Siena when they’re not even dating yet.’

She would have said something like that.

Rudian scraped the empty plate with only a little cream left down to the bottom and set it down with a regretful expression.

“Duke, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”

It started.

Now she’s going to start asking questions in earnest.

“Yes, Count. Please go ahead.”

Harman answered resolutely, as if he would answer whatever question came his way.

I too looked at Rudian with an anxious heart, wondering what she would say next.

A moment of silence.

A strange atmosphere passed between them.

Rudian ruffled her hair irritably.

“My guard knight has been acting differently lately, constantly making me worry about him.”

“…”

“No one gives me a proper answer, so I’m dying of frustration, really. Duke, you’re the same gender as him, so you must know something!”

“…”

“…”

“Well, we should head back now!”

“Right, I need to go to the government office before it closes. I almost forgot.”

As Grace jumped up, Floren also hurriedly gathered her documents and stood up.

Only Rudian looked bewildered, pounding her chest in frustration over what was so suffocating.

She’s someone who loosens up a tense tea time atmosphere.

Thanks to that, the tea time that seemed like it would never end finally broke up.

“Count, let’s hurry and go. We’ve stayed too long. Originally, it doesn’t look good to be stuck between a man and woman like this.”

“No, I haven’t gotten my answer yet. Duke, please say something! Why is my guard knight acting like that?”

Rudian was dragged out of the reception room with both arms grabbed by Grace and Floren.

Harman, sitting upright, didn’t even look in their direction.

“We’ll be going now, it was enjoyable. Siena!”

“See you all again next time.”

I just waved gently toward the closing reception room door.

Thud, the door closed.

Only then did I look at the door and quietly mutter the words I had been debating whether to tell Rudian.

“Count, that’s the denial phase of falling for someone.”

You have no idea how much Sir Zeros has been suffering all this time, do you?

Rather, when he wasn’t around, you seemed fine, but now that Sir Zeros has returned, you’re acting like this.

‘But I won’t tell you that your feelings are mutual.’

Surprisingly, Sir Zeros was still sulking at me.

Even when our eyes met, he just greeted me and pretended not to know me. Really petty.

“Falling for… denial phase?”

At the puzzled voice from behind, I hurriedly turned around.

‘Oh, right.’

I quickly sat down next to Harman, who was tilting his head. Feeling embarrassed for no reason, random words just popped out.

“This is the first time I’ve seen you have such extensive conversations with other people, Duke.”

But, that would make sense.

This is really just random talk.

Realizing something was wrong while speaking, I decided to quickly change the conversation.

“But you didn’t drink even one cup of tea?”

I pointed to Harman’s teacup.

The other people’s teacups had already been emptied several times and the cake was almost all gone.

Only Harman’s remained untouched.

Didn’t it suit his taste?

“I deliberately didn’t drink it. I wanted to have tea time alone with the Lady.”

…Ah.

“Bella, fresh tea please!”

At the answer that came as if it were natural, I, who had been dazed for a moment, shouted loudly.

Whatever.

Let’s go for a third tea time.

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