I'm The Ex-Girlfriend of a Soldier Chapter 4

Translator: Shiko

Proofread: Asu

"Meize."

My shoulders shook the moment I heard the ear-splitting voice. Oh god, did he see that?

"You don't have to be so awkward. Actually, I didn't come here because I wanted to. I don't mean to pressure you, so please feel free to be comfortable."

"What? I… Sir Yse…"

"Yse. Please feel free to call me comfortably, Meize. Call me Yse."

You may feel comfortable, but I don't. I murmured in my head. I had to be careful when breaking eye contact with Yse, who stared into my eyes as if hurrying me. 

"Yse."

"Yes."

The answer that followed as if it'd been waiting was soft. I coughed a few times and put my hands neatly on my knees.

“I've heard that Yse is looking for a bride. I guess that's why I was nervous. I've never been in a position like this before.”

I tried to keep my mouth shut, hiding my embarrassment. If he was too handsome, he would have thought of nothing to reply with because he wouldn't have a sense of reality, but if he was simply handsome enough, I could like him.

"It's a blessing."

"What?"

"No, nothing."

He was slightly suspicious, but the face in front of my eyes was a lively, good-looking type, so I eased the tension in my stiff shoulders.

“Well, why did you come all this way?”

I whirled strawberry juice with a straw in the guise of nonchalance. I wasn't looking to get into a relationship, but it felt strange hearing that the other party was not looking for one either. 

"It's nothing much. My mother was tormented. I had a chance to meet a good girl, so she urged me to."

You're no match for your mother even in this world. My mom used to have such a personality. I envied you for being able to see your mother at any time.

"But I would have regretted it if I hadn't come today."

"Why?"

“I almost missed the chance to see such a pretty girl.”

Nobody takes offense at a compliment. We're both human. I drank the juice from the straw, hiding a rising red blush that erupted at the praise of a careless, beautiful man. 

I feel good to be praised for being pretty, but I was still hungry. Oh, how nice it would be to finish the rest of the sandwich. But you don't want to be shooting a sandwich eating show in front of the other person's face, do you? Moreover, there's a saying that if you leave food behind, you'll be punished in hell later on…

"The sandwich looks delicious, may I have one?"

His gentle words and beautiful smile were plunged to the ground in an instant. They fell immediately, just like my opinion of him. I'd rather take candy from a child. How could you go after my sandwich? Especially since it's the last one on the plate? Is that why you went out of line?

“Of course, go ahead and eat.”

Please don't. I want to eat it. But I couldn't take off my mask even if I wanted to. If I hurt Yse's feelings and his complaints got to Mrs. Becca's ears… Ugh, I don't even want to think about it.

"It was a nice idea to use fresh vegetables."

With a forced smile, I pushed the sandwich plate toward Yse. Yes, a sandwich I can't eat. That you're going to eat. My delicious sandwich with very fresh vegetables. 

“It's really delicious. I think it's the best sandwich I've had lately.”

It's not that praise-worthy. It's good. But… You ate my sandwich.

I never realized watching someone else eat would give you such a terrible feeling. I'm hungry. I wish anyone who ate my sandwich would get sick. My heart kept me from letting go of the sandwich which disappeared at the drop of a hat. Yse raised his hand quietly and called the waitress.

“Can I have a cup of Letina coffee, please? What else would you like to eat, Meize?”

“I'm full.”

I almost said something harsh at Yse's suggestion, but at last I shook my head with a fake smile. To be honest, I didn't know if it was because I ate a sandwich or because I saw someone else eating my sandwich, but I couldn't keep my eyes on the leftover sandwich because I wasn't confident that I could eat it with my mouth wide open.

“Can I have two extra sandwiches, please? Cut one into smaller pieces. I'd like to have a bite or two to eat.”

This guy came to eat, not to see me.

How do you eat two sandwiches instead of one? I don't think he's that handsome now. What do you mean, top-compatibility with Syukr?

Come to think of it, brown hair and brown eyes. Even a tactless personality. Just like Syukr. It's amazing.

I stared at Yse with a sullen look. It wasn't something I'd normally do but I was more determined to get rid of him than I ever was.

"Here's your coffee and breakfast special. Where would you like me to place it?"

“Small cut sandwiches over here.”

Until I saw him pointing towards me. The small cut sandwich was placed before me.

"This is…"

“I took Meize's sandwich and ate it. It's a reward.”

“But it was only one thing… and I was full…….”

If I had known this was going to happen, I would've said I was full earlier. I shouldn't have said that. Yse's handshake was too memorable to forget. I clenched my fist, swallowing the sadness and regret of my sandwich once again.

“I know Meize is full, but I feel lonely eating alone. Would you mind joining me?”

Facing my gaze, Yse smiled with his eyes. I took turns between looking at his face and the sandwich before steadying my eyes on his face. It wasn't just because of the sandwich, but I felt that he got a bit more handsome.

It might not be the direction Mrs. Becca wanted to push me in, but I enjoyed my time with Yse. 

I was a bit prejudiced at first but not only was he handsome and well-spoken, he left the impression that "oh, this person cares about me". Unlike my empty sandwich plate.

His sandwich plate had barely diminished. 

"Wow, Yse raises a dog? It must be cute."

"Do you like dogs?"

"Yes, my dream is to live with a dog later in my life. I really envy you. Do you have any pictures… No, do you have a painting?"

My eyes glistened desperately and I pressed my hands tightly together. If it were my past life, you could just ask them to show a picture with just a push of a button. In a world where there were no cameras, the only thing that could be asked for were paintings.

“There's actually a painting… but it's a little bit too much to show.”

"Please show me! All dogs are cute! I bet your dog is cute too. So, please…"

A curly hair, round eyes, a touchy nose, a fluffy tail, and a pungent smell on the soles of your feet. When I recalled the dog's mother's habit, I unwittingly let loose. 

“Hmm, if Meize says so, I'll show you later. I don't carry pictures with me. Or maybe it's better to see Kero in person rather than in paintings.”

"It's name is Kero? That's a very cute name."

"Yes, it's name is longer, but we call him Kero."

“Simply, don't tell me it's real name is Kerberos or something?”

It was a joke, but Yse only smiled instead of answering. I rolled my eyes and smiled back. Certainly, Kerberos reminded me of the three-headed dog from greek mythology. It's no wonder that a common man's dog has a big name. However, my common sense dictated that it was too much to place Kero, which I knew, on the same boat as the guardian of Hell. 

ilgim note: the 3 headed dog is called cerberus xd 

[Shiko note: in some mythology its kerberos, the more u know™]

(Asu note: I watched u type that. Also, nice.)

"It's a brave name. You certainly won't have to worry about thieves. Is Kero a big dog? I'm guessing a big and reliable dog given his name." 

"It's definitely big."

"I really want to meet it. My dream is to roll around with a big dog around the lawn."

“That's great. I'll introduce you later. He's easy to raise because he's easy to manage. Of course, I don't recommend rolling the lawn together.”

“… is Kero an aggressive animal?”

I frowned with sudden anxiety. I don't want to get bitten no matter how much I like big dogs. Usually, large dogs are big and innocent, but it's not cute when you get bitten and it's all bloody. 

“No, he isn't. Kero is well-trained and doesn't bite anyone except the enemy. He wouldn't bite anyone unless they attacked first.”

"What?"

I don't know about biting, but now that the atmosphere is nice, I laughed along with Yse as well. It was best to laugh if you didn't have anything to say. 

"Meize is really good at laughing. You smile often, right?"

“Well, I prefer smiling rather over frowning. There aren't many people who don't prefer smiling."

“That's right, like Meize said, laughing is a good thing.”

I'm sure you're a positive person, but why can't I understand the mind behind your words?

"By the way, there was something I was meaning to ask you… If you don't mind, may I?"

He was a little suspicious, but I didn't pay too much attention. Since we had no intention of dating each other, the purpose of the meeting was long forgotten and we just wanted to spend this time together normally.

"If Meize is the one asking, anything is fine. What do you want to know?"

"You said you worked as a Royal official. How is work? Isn't it hard?"

"…Ah, it's about work?"

Yse's unshakeable smile shook slightly. I stared into his eyes and quickly added an excuse.

“It's a little awkward to talk about this in front of each other. Yse, I'm not thinking about dating… and I don't think I'll ever have a chance to meet a royal official like this again, so I'm asking you casually.”

“What makes you so curious?”

“Well, I haven't told anyone about this, but I'm actually thinking of becoming a Royal official.”

I couldn't tell people that a country girl was preparing to become a royal official, but a royal official was a job that I was interested in these days. Though I felt that I should do well in my life, I thought that it would be better for me to have a stable job.

Chapter end