CH 19
The Next Day.
Marienne ate the delicious breakfast the maid had brought to her room. After putting on clothes that had been ironed without a single wrinkle, she came down to the first floor, where Vileon greeted her with a smile.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
Hello? Is this the Guard? I'd like to report something. My superior has been radiating healing energy like a sun-kissed tree since this morning.
He has the face of a poet drenched in melancholy, but his chest is way too big.
I'm sorry. Actually, this isn't a report—it's a boast. I just lost my mind for a moment, so please don't arrest me.
"Yes, the bed was really, really soft and fluffy."
"Soft and fluffy?"
Vileon repeated Marienne's words with a smiling face.
"That's good to hear."
Ha, dangerous. This is dangerous. Talking about beds with a beautiful person with a great body first thing in the morning. And on top of that, this beautiful person is completely unaware of his own charm.
Even the commute to work was so perfect that Marienne only remembered what she had to do today as she was about to arrive at the Imperial Palace.
She had to go to that Northern bastard's room at noon!
"What should I do?"
Marienne furrowed her brow.
"If I don't go, he'll definitely storm into the Chancellor's Office."
"There's no reason for us not to go, is there?"
In the midst of this, she was grateful to Vileon for grouping them together as "us." Marienne pressed her hands together and spoke quietly.
"I'm sorry for constantly troubling you."
"That's your twenty-third apology."
"I want to accomplish this on my own as much as possible without your help. But that's... not going well. I guess I'm not as capable as I think I am."
Marienne's voice gradually trailed off.
"This is for your sake, Sir Byers. I wanted to surprise you—ta-da!—like a gift. But instead, I'm the one receiving your help."
"Aide Didi."
Vileon called out in a gentle voice.
"Have I ever told you I was grateful?"
"Huh?"
Marienne blinked, a bit confused by the sudden question.
"To whom?"
"To you."
"Sir Byers... to me? Why?"
"Because I'm grateful."
What on earth is he grateful for? After all the nonsense I've put him through, like dyeing his perfectly fine hair black.
On top of that, I've repeatedly found myself in crisis and received Vileon's help.
Poor Vileon.
Just because he's Marienne Didi's favorite character, he's become trapped in the cycle of karma… helping, helping, and rescuing me again.
Marienne had even pessimistically thought that she must be a particularly high-maintenance person among transmigrators.
And yet he says he's grateful.
"You just said it yourself, Aide Didi. This is all for my sake. You're working hard to somehow make my unrequited love succeed, so it's only right that I do this much."
"But—"
"Do you dislike receiving my help?"
Vileon's voice suddenly sounded sad as he said that. Marienne thought, 'Oh no,' inwardly.
She'd forgotten for a moment.
The man before her is inherently kind and devoted. Vileon finds it hardest to endure moments when he can't help someone he cares about.
'Just like the Countess Byers said yesterday: "Here you go again, overprotecting."'
Before she knew it, Marienne had earned enough trust from Vileon that he called her "my person."
His overprotection stemmed from that. If she refused his help, from Vileon's perspective, it might feel like she was pushing him away.
"Let me make one thing clear. I don't dislike Sir Byers's help. I just want to do well on my own too."
Marienne quickly asked.
"You understand that those are two separate things, right?"
"...Of course."
Vileon smiled faintly.
"Why wouldn't I understand?"
"It's about my pride. It's absolutely not Sir Byers's fault."
He's smiling like that again. Marienne trailed off mid-sentence.
When she was a reader, she used to shout at the characters every other day.
"Please just talk to each other! What's the point of having mouths if you don't use them! I feel like dying because of characters who let misunderstandings that could be resolved in just ten minutes of honest conversation fester for years."
'But now that it's actually real, it's different.'
It was incredibly frustrating. No, wait—we are talking right now, aren't we? Then why does the situation get more tangled the more we talk? Am I not conveying my meaning properly?
"Someday."
Marienne said solemnly.
"I will definitely provide solid help to you too, Sir. Until then, I would appreciate it if you could... tolerate my shortcomings."
Marienne bowed deeply. Her goal was to make Vileon happy. So she should prioritize the other person's position.
Right now, Vileon understands Marienne's words intellectually, but for some reason, his heart feels a bit hurt.
If she tried to make him understand further at this point, it would only deepen Vileon's upset feelings.
Now was the time to set aside Marienne Didi's pride for a moment.
"Alright. Then from now on, you will also rely on me freely. Understood?"
"I'm already relying on you enormously, though."
"You're just receiving help because you have no choice. While apologizing constantly."
Vileon continued.
"Stop that and accept it a bit more comfortably."
Marienne's lips twitched. At Vileon's gesture to say whatever she wanted, Marienne attempted to change the mood.
"What if I actually asked to borrow a huge sum of money? Since we're close, huh? If I shamelessly asked for a fifty-year interest-free loan..."
"Then we'd be bound together by a loan document for fifty years."
Vileon gently lifted one corner of his mouth.
"Just say the word anytime. I may not look it, but I have a lot of money."
‘I may not look it’— does Vileon actually think he's modest?
Hey, you. You look loaded from a mile away. You ooze aristocratic charm from head to toe.
Marienne tried to brush it off, saying it was just a joke. To which Vileon countered that he wasn't joking.
◇ ◆ ◇
Noon arrived.
Marienne hadn't said a single word since stepping into Cain's reception room, only staring straight ahead.
It was Vileon's instruction. He said to leave the conversation to him. No matter how much she disliked the flow of the conversation, she had to endure it.
He emphasized that the most important thing today was not to let the Duke find out about the secret weapon.
That's right. The hair removal cream.
As long as they didn't get caught planning to put it in a shampoo bottle and make him bald, it would be a great success.
To that end, Marienne must not get excited. Marienne resolved to endure a moment of humiliation for the greater good.
"Chancellor Byers, you have a stronger stomach than you look. Even for the sake of protecting your subordinate's life, offering such nonsense as an excuse."
Great, just great. But this damned bastard is really determined, isn't he?
From the moment their eyes met, Cain Blackwood kept his gaze fixed on Marienne and deliberately chose only provocative words.
As if testing how far she could endure.
"That thing."
First of all, his basic form of address is "that thing." Apparently, in that Northern bastard's eyes, Marienne Didi doesn't even count as a fellow human being.
"Do you really think I'd believe someone did all that because they liked me? Are you asking me to believe that?"
Even if you don't believe it, just say you believe it. Don't you dare object to my favorite character's words.
"Liking me? Who courts someone like that? Look at her even now."
Cain gestured with his chin toward Marienne.
"Those eyes. That vague, cloudy sky-colored eyes. Why can't she look directly at me and only stares straight ahead?"
Are you asking because you don't know? Here's why.
"Probably because if our eyes meet, her true feelings would be exposed."
You know well.
Marienne began counting the patterns on the wallpaper across from her.
Vileon was far more skilled at acting than his aide. Without batting an eye, he responded as follows.
"Aide Didi is shyer than she appears, so I would appreciate your understanding."
"Shy?"
Cain sneered.
"Did the definition of shyness change while I was away from the capital?"
"It remains as you know it."
"Then I must point out that shy women don't push naked men's backs."
When did I ever push your back? I just patted your boulder-like shoulder a few times with my fist.
Don't subtly insert false information!
Marienne's brow furrowed with tension. Just as she turned her head to glare at Cain, Vileon's small cough brought her back to her senses.
"If the Chancellor's claim were true, then you would gladly accept my proposal."
"What proposal might that be?"
"The proposal that your dim-witted aide become my personal attendant."
Marienne and Vileon opened their mouths simultaneously.
"No!"
"That won't be possible."
Cain shrugged as if to say "See?"
"Both sides are firmly rejecting it. May I ask why?"
"It violates the regulations. My aide hasn't even been with the Chancellor's Office for a year yet. Department transfers are only possible starting from the third year."
"My explanation was insufficient. I'm not asking for a department transfer. Just keep her affiliation as is and have her attend to me."
"That too is outside of work—"
"Anyway, I understand why the Chancellor objects. Then shall we hear from the person in question?"
The insufferable bastard cut Vileon off and turned the arrow toward Marienne.
In truth, his target had been Marienne from the start.
"It's a chance to serve someone you like up close. I thought you'd naturally accept."
Before answering, Marienne glanced at Vileon. "Just stay calm," he gave her silent permission.
"The work of a personal attendant is very different in nature from the work I currently handle. I would need an adjustment period. During that time, I think you, Duke, would find it quite inconvenient."
Marienne finished speaking, suppressing her seething insides. She thought she had managed the crisis well enough.
But Cain stared intently at Marienne's face.
"Now that I look at you, you can speak normally, can't you?"
"...Thank you."
"Now you're thanking me, when you couldn't even acknowledge my gratitude for saving your life."
Cain chuckled.
"Honestly, your face is tolerable. When you keep your mouth shut, you even look rather cute."
Surely she shouldn't have to say thank you for such nonsense.
Marienne kept her mouth firmly shut.
"Your looks are decent, you're strong, but your head doesn't work very well. The work you're doing at the Chancellor's Office doesn't seem very important. Just accept my proposal gratefully."
"I respectfully decli—"
"As expected, beating around the bush is tiresome."
He's insane. When has he ever beaten around the bush? Yet now he's suddenly claiming he'll speak directly.
"You are the first woman who has seen Cain Blackwood's naked body. So you need to take responsibility."
He had finally reached the peak of nonsense. So dumbfounded was Marienne that she became indignant.
"It's not like looking at it wears it down."
"It did wear down."
Cain made a gesture of pulling open his shirt collar.
"You didn't just look. You deliberately groped me. Don't you remember? My shoulder that your hand touched, it's definitely worn down."
"You're insa—"
"And you also cut my hair."
Suddenly, Cain's blue eyes flashed sharply.
"What reason could there be for risking your life to break into my room and cut my hair?"
She must not step into the trap.
Marienne closed her mouth, which had opened to hurl insults, and kept it shut. Then, as before, she glanced at Vileon.
'Huh?'
Vileon had maintained his composure even in the face of Cain's rudeness. Even when interrupted mid-sentence, he hadn't lost his professional, businesslike smile.
'But what happened in that moment? He looks... extremely angry.'
It was the first time Marienne had seen such an expression on Vileon's face. The hands that had been naturally resting on his thighs had clenched into fists.
0 Comments