A Practical Guide to Ending a One-Sided Love - Chapter 63

It was a message from Bjorn saying he wanted to meet her in person. And what he said at the meeting was even more astonishing.

“I can’t give you a definite answer right away, but… I’ve become curious about you, Miss Bailey.”

“Come to think of it, aside from your name, I know nothing about you at all. If it’s alright, would you consider meeting me with the premise of a relationship? I thought it might be good for us to slowly get to know each other.”

The unbelievable words left her momentarily speechless. Moreover, it was the most human invitation she had ever seen from him, one that even showed hope, and she felt tears of emotion well up. Suggesting meetings meant he had finally gained some emotional room. Bjorn, who had never let anyone stand beside him until now, seemed ready at last to meet someone.

That did not mean she dared covet him. Leila still had no intention of claiming a place at his side. However, accepting the invitation for a while seemed like a good way to help him.

Even if it did not become a romantic relationship, perhaps she could become close to him and cheer him up. Perhaps she could become a good friend and show him the small pleasures of everyday life.

Since he had only recently returned to the capital, beginning interactions with her would eventually lead him to meet other young ladies, and among them someone who could truly make him happy would appear.

Rather than hoping she might become his lover, Leila gladly accepted simply because she could stand near him.

However, Bjorn observed up close was somewhat different from when she had watched from afar. Still, that did not affect Leila in any way.

From the beginning she had never expected him to be perfect nor held any illusion about him. She only thought, “Ah, he had a side like this too,” and realized it with quiet admiration.

His table manners were nearly disastrous, which surprised her, but considering life on the battlefield, it was understandable. His request that she pay the meal cost also did not bother her at all since she had intended to treat him anyway.

When they encountered ruffians she felt somewhat puzzled. Having watched only him for fifteen years except during the holy war, Leila knew not only Bjorn’s swordsmanship but even his small habits and fighting style. Only after hearing he had circumstances he could not speak of did she conclude there must be a rule about not harming civilians.

“…After seeing me like this, do you still not dislike me?”

Bjorn asked that, but the years she had cherished him were far too long for such trivial things to create prejudice or negative feelings.

In Leila’s eyes, Bjorn was still the eight-year-old child who cried loudly, the thirteen-year-old boy who cried in frustration, and the seventeen-year-old youth who cried out wanting to end his life. There was no way she would dislike the twenty-eight-year-old him simply because he was a little clumsy.

* * *

However, she worried greatly about the matter of the light he confessed during their second meeting.

She had heard that paladins who lived only within the temple from childhood often got scammed once they entered society. She wanted to help him before his debt grew uncontrollable. His sense for money was concerning, but she thought that too could be corrected over time.

His confession about impotence was the same. From the beginning, for Leila who had little interest in s****l matters regarding him or anyone, it was not a problem at all. Rather, hearing he was distant from animal urges or instincts made Bjorn seem even more pure and clean.

But perhaps he considered it a fatal weakness. Judging from how he revealed such a flaw before even formally asking to date, he seemed very concerned about it.

Had that been why he avoided meeting anyone until now? Even before the holy war, Bjorn had been unusually distant from women. Learning another of his secrets made her empathize with him and want to comfort him somehow.

The light kiss on his cheek meant exactly that. Even without the physical exchange he worried about, true lovers could feel each other through affection like this. Therefore he did not need to be discouraged nor have his pride as a man hurt.