Chapter 138: The end of the date
The river had grown darker, and the café had started to quiet down as more people left and the night settled in fully.
Evelyne let out a small breath, her head still resting against his shoulder.
"...It’s getting late," she murmured.
Klein glanced at the sky, then at the nearly empty tables around them. "Yeah."
"...I don’t want today to end," she muttered softly.
Klein looked at her for a moment, then let out a quiet breath. "It doesn’t have to."
She blinked slightly and lifted her head to look at him "Hm?"
"We can go out again... It’s not like this is the only time."
Evelyne stared at him for a second.
Then slowly... she smiled.
"...Then next time. I’ll plan it better."
---
They walked out together, letting the cool night air brush past them as they stepped onto the street.
Their steps fell into the same pace naturally, and neither of them spoke for a while, but the silence wasn’t awkward.
Evelyne found herself glancing at him once or twice as they walked.
Each time, her gaze stayed just a little longer than before before she looked away.
The faint light from the streetlamps reflected in her eyes when she did, softened her expression even more.
After a short distance, she slowed slightly.
Klein noticed and stopped as well, turning toward her with a questioning look.
Evelyne stood there for a moment, looking at him and her fingers curled slightly at her sides before relaxing again.
"...It’s getting late," she said softly.
Klein nodded once. "Yeah."
She stepped forward and slowly wrapped her arms around him, pulling herself into a gentle embrace.
Her face pressed against the side of his neck, her warm breath caressing his skin as she held him there for a brief moment.
Klein’s arms came up around her in return, settling naturally across her back and drawing her a little closer.
The cool night air continued to drift past, but the space between them remained warm and still.
For a few seconds, neither of them moved.
Evelyne’s grip tightened just slightly before slowly loosening again.
She lifted her head just a little to look at him and raised her left hand, brushing her fingers gently along his cheek before cupping it lightly.
Then, without overthinking it, she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against his cheek.
When she finally pulled back, a faint blush spread across Evelyne’s cheeks under the glow of the streetlamps.
This time she did not look away and glanced at his face as if she wanted to remember the exact expression on his face before the night ended.
The cool breeze stirred a few strands of her crimson hair against her cheek, but she made no move to brush them aside.
"...I’ve been thinking about what you told me that day."
Klein remained silent, watching her with a soft expression on his face.
Evelyne’s thumb brushed lightly along his cheekbone. "About Arwen and Cynthia,"
"When you first said you already had two girlfriends... I was shocked."
She let out a quiet laugh "But the more I thought about it, the more I realized something."
"You told me because you decided to take my proposal seriously. You wanted me to know exactly what I would be walking into before I went any further."
"That mattered to me more than the fact that there are already two women by your side."
Evelyne’s eyes softened further "In our noble society... Love isn’t simple, as most marriages are for political reasons."
Her lips curved faintly, "I grew up knowing that one day I would marry someone like that."
"...But after meeting you, Klein... it changed."
"You could have stayed silent and accepted my proposal while keeping them a secret. Most men in your position would have."
"But you told me the truth even though it risked pushing me away."
Her hand slowly lowered from his cheek, resting instead against the front of his jacket "So my answer hasn’t changed."
"I’m still willing to stand beside you, Klein."
Klein exhaled slowly, and a faint smile touched his lips "I told you because I didn’t want to build anything with you on a lie. If you were going to choose me, I needed you to choose the full picture."
He raised his hand and gently covered the one she still rested against his jacket.
His fingers closed lightly around hers "I’m not going to lie that... this complicated relationship will be simple,"
"Arwen and Cynthia matter to me. They’ve been with me long before I awakened and any of this started. I won’t push them aside, and I won’t ask you to pretend they don’t exist."
"But if you’re truly willing to stand beside me knowing that... then I won’t push you away either."
His thumb brushed once across the back of her hand.
"I can’t promise I’ll always know how to balance everything perfectly. I’m still figuring it out myself. What I can promise is that I won’t treat your feelings as something secondary just because the situation is complicated."
Klein’s eyes remained steady on hers "If you’re going to walk this path with me, Evelyne... then I’ll take it seriously. The same way I take them seriously."
A faint smile touched the corner of his mouth "...Though I should warn you. They’re both older than me, and they’re not exactly the quiet type. You’ll have your work cut out for you."
Upon hearing this, she let out a giggle "...You’re really honest to a fault."
Evelyne’s fingers curled lightly against his jacket. "Arwen and Cynthia... I’ve only seen them from a distance so far. They both seem strong-willed. Especially the dark-skinned one with white hair."
"Cynthia," Klein said.
"Yes. She looked like she wanted to kill me with her eyes when my attendant approached you after the Rite."
Evelyne’s smile turned a little wry. "And the other one... Arwen, right? She was quieter, but I could tell she was watching everything carefully."
She leaned forward, resting her head against his shoulder "You should introduce me to them someday. We’ll figure the rest out as we go."
Patting her head, he gave a nod "Mhm."
She stepped back slowly and looked up at him "...Then I’ll see you at the academy."
"Yeah."
At that moment, the soft sound of an approaching care broke the silence of the street.
A black car with the Langford family emblem pulled up smoothly along the curb.
The driver’s door opened, and a woman in a neat uniform stepped out.
She walked around the vehicle, stopped a few paces away, and bowed her head respectfully toward Evelyne.
"My lady."
Evelyne glanced at Klein with a tender smile on his lips "Get home safely."
Klein gave a slight nod. "You too."
Evelyne walked toward the car and the driver opened the rear door for her.
She paused just before entering and looked at Klein one last time under the streetlamp light.
Then she stepped inside, and a moment later the car pulled away from the curb.
Klein remained standing there for a short while, watching until the car was completely out of sight.
Only then did he slip his hands into his pockets and turn in the opposite direction.
Taking his mobile, he messaged to [Milf]
’I will be there now.’
---
Liora was sitting cross-legged on her chair with one foot tucked beneath her as she leaned slightly toward her laptop.
She originally opened her laptop just to pass time.
But then a notification popped up.
[Klein Fan Club 💙🔥] (237 unread messages)
"...What now?" she muttered under her breath, clicking into the chat.
The moment the group opened, the screen flooded with messages moving faster than she could read.
"WHO TOOK THIS???"
"NO WAY THIS IS REAL???"
"HE’S ON A DATE???"
"SHE’S PRETTY!"
"THATS EVELYNE FROM THE DUKE FAMILY, RIGHT???"
"NEW SHIP UNLOCKED 🔥🔥🔥"
Liora blinked "...Huh?"
Her fingers paused for a moment before she scrolled up and her eyes narrowed slightly as she searched for whatever had caused this chaos.
Then she saw an image of Klein and Evelyne standing close.
Seems like someone has taken a picture of them while they were on their date.
The messages kept coming.
"I’M TELLING YOU THIS SHIP HAS POTENTIAL"
"NO NO SAINTESS SUPREMACY."
"WHAT ABOUT THE POUCH GIRL???"
"HE’S COLLECTING THEM ALL 😭😭😭"
"THIS ONE LOOKS CLASSY THOUGH..."
"DUKE DAUGHTER?? BIG W"
Liora stared at the screen blankly "These people... do they not have anything better to do?"
---
Night had settled fully over the city by the time Klein arrived.
The hotel Lyra chose was in a quieter district.
Klein stepped inside, crossed the modest lobby, and took the stairs to the floor she had mentioned in her message.
He stopped in front of the door and knocked once.
A moment later it opened.
Lyra stood on the other side, dressed more casually than when they had first met in Crownfall.
Her brown hair was loosely tied back, and she stepped aside without a word, letting him in, then closed the door behind him.
"You actually came," she said, turning to face him.
Klein raised his hand without hesitation and delivered a firm slap across her ass before giving it a faint squeeze "Yeah..."
"You bastard!"
Lyra rubbed the spot where he had slapped her, glaring at him.