"Anyway, before we talked, how about we ate some dinner first?" Lyle smiled as he looked at the three girls sitting on the sofa.

The two girls raised an eyebrow. "Dinner? Are we going to eat somewhere?"

Lyle smiled and shook his head. "No need. I will just fixed some light food, I'm hungry ... how about you darling?"

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I'm also hungry~"

"Oh you can cook?" Angelica asked curiously.

Lyle nodded his head. "Yep..."

Angelica and Feme looked suspiciously at Lyle from head to toe for a long time. "Seriously ... ?"

Moori looked at them with a bemused smile and said: "Believe him. Lyle's home cooked meals were extremely delicious~"

Ignoring them, Lyle walked towards another room.

By the way, whenever they work inside the Headmaster's office, Lyle was the one who brewed the tea they drink.

Even though he was always busy, he would never forget to do it.

That's because, Moori would always asked him to. The reason being, Moori claimed that Lyle was better at brewing tea than she was.

Two days ago, when Lyle had gotten hungry he tried to ask for food but Moori had just got out. So he walked around the office and found out that the room beside this office was actually a kitchen.

Lyle couldn't help but be amazed by the framework of this office. It really looked like a real house!

After making something, Moori arrived just on time and saw him. When she tried it, she was immediately captivated by his cooking.

And since then, due to her petition, she always asked Lyle to make something for her if she saw him finished working.

Thinking about the food, Moori's stomach rumbled.

Lyle wore an apron-looking cloth and rolled up his sleeves.

He then waved his hand to call Moori.

"Help me here, darling ..."

"Okay~"

Lyle gave Moori a plump potato and a knife.

After washing the potato, she quickly peeled it. She presented the potato to Lyle and she smiled sweetly. "Done!"

"Good. Here another one." Lyle put another plump potato in Moori's hand.

Over these past few days of staying and working together, the distance between them had already began to shrunk considerably.

Moori obediently started peeling the second potato.

Lately I've gotten better at speaking with this guy ...

Moori stopped for an instant to steal a peek at Lyle again. He was cheerfully moving the knife in his hand to cut the vegetables, still smiling while chatting with her.

They would talk to each other without holding back, and from time to time they would fight, but they would always seem energetic and cheerful.

She even had already forgotten that he was almost 2 decades younger than her and unknowingly treated him as someone close to her age.

'The true way of treasuring someone was not treating them like someone superior, or older than you. It was showing each other their good and bad parts without holding back while bypassing the boundary known as age, status and gender. ' That's how Moori felt.

Really, I wouldn't be able to beat this brat ...

“Ah...”

That was when Moori noticed for the first time, that a long time had passed since she last called him 'brat' and was instead calling him by his own name.

When? When did I started calling him by his own name?

Moori's heart began pounding and she scanned through her memories, going backwards in time, confirming every time she had called him Lyle.

That desire fiercely stirred up her feelings, and for each time she recalled Lyle calling her 'Darling', her heartbeat got faster.

Since when ...?

... ...

She had already heard about the rumors spreading around about her relationship with Lyle. And although it was quite absurd but she didn't flare like last time. She even started to feel amused by it and treat it as a good thing.

Because of this rumor, there were less suitors knocking up her door. Before there were many men looking for her to express their love and stuff but she found this too annoying. She had already told them that she currently wasn't interested in entering relationships, but they still forced themselves ...

And now that a rumor about her and Lyle was already flying anyway and she knew that she would never be able to stop it, might as well use it ... right ?

Although she know that she had already pass the marriageable age and was treading the path of being a single for life. However, she didn't care about it ...All the men she met up until now seemed to be lacking something she was

looking for and that is why they would never be able to catch her attention.

In the past, whenever her parents told her to look for a partner already, she could only say 'I'm still thinking about it.

' And in these passing years, they had already chosen to give up on her.

But she can't help it, she always thought to herself. Might as well remained alone than choosing someone incompatible with you ... right ?

You might even regret in the future~

But towards this boy who was almost two decades younger than her, she somehow felt a strange feeling. A favorable

impression or some sort ...

But for why she felt like that she didn't know. She wasn't really that experienced in this kind of area in the first place.

Thus she could only put it on the back of her mind right now ... ...

But unbeknownst to her, that was because she had already acknowledged Lyle.

She already started treating him, not as someone younger than her but to someone with the same age.

--- But these changes ...

It was probably something they had both overlooked. Since neither of them refused to back down when staring at each other, the only thing they had changed after acknowledging one another was the way they were calling them.

It was the same now.

They were treating each other like someone close to them without them even realizing it. The distance between them had gotten closer without them noticing it.

In Moori's mind, her memories of the days she had spent with Lyle popped up.

The first time they had met with each other. The second time where he suddenly barged into her office, bringing some girl he didn't noticed he was dragging and then slept as if he own the place.

... ...

The first time she experienced the tip of his real strength and these past three days of working together.

They would clash sometimes. However, when they really needed it, they would lend each other a hand. There was no end to the memories that filled her heart.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

Moori let out a loud sigh and dropped her shoulders. Complex feelings were welling up inside of her.

Though she was hesitant about her own change, she didn't think it was wrong.

He had already invaded my heart without me realizing it ... ...

-------------------------------

“What's wrong?”

“I-It's nothing, nothing at all.”

Moori's face that shook side to side was redder than ever. It was about as red as a tomato or apple.

Because of her getting flustered, a potato peel was accidently flung on Lyle's pants. She lifted her hand to take the potato peel off his pants, but her hand froze in mid-air.

Moori squatted, she laughed and she pointed at the potato peel that landed in the middle of Lyle's crotch.

"How about we peel that?" Moori smiled and teasingly said.

Moori suddenly thought, teasing Lyle had a kind of excitement to the situation.

Hearing Moori's words, Lyle was slightly stunned. He was a little embarrassed and withdrew his gaze.

Moori is a little too daring. She actually said these kinds of words to him.

That seductive look of hers, pairing up with such ambiguous words, a normal man would have a hard time controlling himself.

Although he’s only twelve years old, within that tender shell of his, hides a young, vigorous soul.

He bitterly smiled and said, “Darling, don’t play this kind of joke on me.”

"Why not?" Moori sweetly smiled as if she found Lyle's reaction very amusing.

Seeing her looks, Lyle's brow slightly twitched.

Looking down on him was an absolute mistake.

It’s obvious that her actions meant to tease him!

Smiling mischievously, he then seriously said, “Darling, why don't you peel it for me? I think that would be sweet and wonderful.”

Moori was dumbfounded.

She never thought that Lyle would not have a bit of embarrassment or shyness, and would really say those kind of things. It seems like he's really a shameless rogue and his face was even thicker than the Academy City's walls!

After hearing Lyle's words, Moori's face blushed a deep red.

She never had any contact with guys before. The only reason she said that to Lyle was because she wanted to see his bashful and flustered face. She momentarily forgot how shameless this prince was!

Moori suddenly realized that she had a messed up appearance. Her face was flushed red, as though she was drunk.

She hurriedly stood up to hide the reaction from that strange feeling in her body.

Her voice slightly trembled as she said, "Peel that yourself, you shameless rogue!"

Lyle calmly flicked the potato peel off his pants while revealing a child-like innocent smile as he said childishly, "If you won't then it's fine, you can peel it later."

This woman actually treated him as a twelve year old boy and teased him. This resulted in getting herself teased instead.

Yet, Lyle has to admit that the moment he heard what she said a while ago, his pure heart couldn't help but jumped in fright.

"As if I would do that!" Moori's flustered voice echoed in the whole room.

Lyle smiled once more. Unlike the smile from before, this was the kind of smile he would only show to someone special.

"So much for that, after you peel the potato, can you sweep the floor and empty the rubbish bin."

"..........Ok," Moori replied reluctantly.

----------------------

"Wash this carrot" Lyle said.

‘Ok,’ Moori said.

"Cut this into cubes" Lyle said.

‘Ok,’ Moori said.

"Not that, like this ..." Lyle said.

"Oh, I see" Moori said.

As the two was immersed in their cooking, two pair of eyes stared at Lyle and Moori. Naturally, they belonged to Princess Feme and Angelica whose jaws had almost dropped into the ground.

Princess Feme and Angelica was drinking some tea while eating some snack. However, they weren't focused on it, but rather on Lyle and Moori. They would glance at the two from time to time.

Princess Feme and Angelica sat down besides each other, drinking tea by the tea table. However, the two seemed to be in a really bad mood, and their cheeks were slightly puffed up while perking their ears to the limit towards the

other room.

However, once they had confirmed that Lyle and Moori was focusing all their attention in their work, both of them started moving at once.

They stared at the two by the front door of the kitchen. Their heads peeked around the corner, above one another.

From the top it was Princess Feme, and finally Angelica. They looked almost like a totem pole.

What entered both of their vision was the sight of Lyle and Moori getting along.

Although that doesn't sound too bad, but what caught their attention was the way they were acting.

It's as if they were newlyweds who was flirting with each other inside the kitchen!

Seeing that, both of them couldn't help but glared at them in frustration.

"Is there something you need?"

The next moment, both of them hurriedly pulled their heads back. That was because Lyle suddenly turned around to face them.

"Ah, no, no ... I... I'm just bored, that's all ..." Princess Feme answered with a flustered face.

"Th-That's right...Uum, yeah...hahaha"

Both of them spoke in harmony.

"I see, please wait for a moment okay ... this will be done in a minute." Lyle lightly smiled and nodded towards them.

"Ah, don't worry, haha take your time."

If Lyle had listened more carefully, he would have noticed that the both of them sounded a bit obvious.

"Here, I'm finished"

"Oh thanks, darling~"

"“ ... ”"

Hearing this light exchange that could be very well, easy to misunderstand, both of their mouths involuntarily drop

into an O …… can it be …… ˟o˟

Their heads then appeared in the same totem pole fashion. They stared at Lyle and Moori's backs as they work inside

the room.

“When did they get so close!? I really want to know!!”

“Aren't I the fiancée here?" t-t

Just below princess Feme, Angelica was shaking with anger. Angelica was unusually angry as she clenched her fists.

In contrast, Princess Feme's eyes were bloodshot as she looked towards them, ready to cry any minute.

Worry and a bit of jealousy tugged at her pure maiden's heart.

Having splendidly misunderstood Lyle and Moori's relationship, the two girls silently felt lost as bitterness invaded their hearts.