The Male Lead’s Sickly Aide is My Type - Chapter 101.1
Chapter 101.1
“We seem to be seeing a lot of each other lately.”
Ian greeted Carinne with his usual artificial smile. Carinne returned the smile, her mind elsewhere.
‘Why did they bring Ian along to discuss territory matters?’
She needed to know why Ian was here before she could separate him from Iris. Only then could she decide whether to send him away or not.
“What brings you here?”
“I was taking a walk in the forest and happened to run into these lovebirds.”
A coincidence.
She had been worried they’d planned to meet, but thankfully, that wasn’t the case. Judging by how he referred to Iris and Duke Lucas as ‘lovebirds,’ he didn’t seem close to Iris.
…Wait, lovebirds?
“Oh my!”
Sure enough, Iris blushed, pleased with the implication. Being seen as lovebirds meant they were considered a well-suited couple.
“Weren’t you two dating? My mistake.”
Seeing Iris’s reaction, Ian scratched his head, feigning an innocent blunder, but that couldn’t be true. It was more likely he’d sensed Iris’s feelings for Duke Lucas and said it on purpose. Not to make her happy, of course, but to feel superior while observing her delight.
Carinne clearly remembered the author’s description of Ian’s inner thoughts in the novel. In the original story, he was perceptive and manipulative.
In fact, she could see a mocking smile flicker across Ian’s lips, though it was fleeting.
He quickly returned to his guise of a pure-hearted young man, chuckling awkwardly as he changed the subject.
“You seem to love animals, Lady Carinne. Coming all this way just to give acorns to a squirrel.”
Ian seemed to have overheard the conversation between Iris and Carinne. And of all things, he chose to bring up the squirrels, which made Iris light up as if she’d met a close friend.
“Ah, the squirrels are my friends.”
“Friends, you say. My guess was right. I love animals, too.”
“You’re friends with animals too, Ian!”
Iris was overly enthusiastic, perhaps because she’d finally met someone who shared her interests.
This couldn’t continue.
The worst-case scenario from the novel flashed through Carinne’s mind. She quickly inserted herself between Ian and Iris, pulling Archen, who had been standing silently, into the conversation.
“He loves animals too! Don’t you, Archen?”
“Not particularly…”
He was about to answer honestly, oblivious to the situation, so she nudged him in the ribs. He looked flustered but played along.
“…I’m rather fond of them.”
She couldn’t deny that Ian and Iris shared a common interest. However, if it was a shared interest among all of them, it was a different story. Hoping to dilute Iris’s special feelings for Ian, Carinne continued to embellish the truth.
“Right? I suddenly remembered what I heard earlier. Iris, it looks like everyone here loves animals.”
“Carinne, why were you hiding this? If you had told me sooner, I would have introduced you to my friends!”
Fortunately, Iris was more interested in Carinne’s love for animals than in Ian’s. Carinne felt a twinge of guilt, but it was for Iris’s sake.
“Ahaha… I didn’t have the chance. It just happened that way. Oh, right. Iris, I have something to tell you about that. Can you come over here for a second?”
“Sure!”
This was it. Well, it was half done. Now, she had to take Iris aside and give her another warning. The problem was that Archen would be alone with Ian while she was gone.
‘Well, it’s just for a moment, so it should be alright.’
“Archen, wait a moment…”
Carinne stopped mid-sentence. Duke Lucas had approached them unnoticed. Duke Lucas with his cold expression, the clueless and beaming Crown Prince, and Archen looking at her with an expression that seemed to say, ‘Are you really leaving me here?’
She felt sorry, but this couldn’t be helped. She needed time alone with Iris to warn her again and separate her from Ian.
“…Wait for me. I’ll be right back.”
Leaving Archen looking devastated, Carinne took Iris’s hand and led her to the lakeshore. Iris was excited about sharing a common interest with a close friend.
“What did you want to tell me, Carinne?”
To have a serious conversation, she needed to set a serious mood. Carinne wiped the smile off her face and took a deep breath before she held Iris’s hands.
Iris’s eyes widened as their palms touched.
“Yes?”
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