YSR 51 (Patreon)

Lillian stood with her hands together as if she had been a sinner. Then the man who shed her disapproving eyes gave a cold look and spat out,

"Where's Marquis Evans?"

"He's gone for a moment,"

Lillian answered calmly, but her head was in turmoil. Her career as a lifelong supporting actress gave her a lot of experience. She could guess a lot just from the man's question.

Although the man was tall and strong, he didn't seem to be a knight. His outfit and the title he addressed Enrique by were a testament to that. If he were a knight, he would have called him "General Commander Evans" or "Sir Enrique."

He instead cited Enrique's peerage, the Marquis of Evans, even without honorifics due to high-ranking nobility

'That means he is a noble of higher rank than the Marquis.'

He was at least a Marquis, maybe a Duke, or if she was really unlucky, a member of the royal family. Lillian, who hit such a man hard, was scared.

The man's thorny eyes poured out a pricky glare towards Lillian.

"Who are you? I know there's a different aide to the Marquis of Evans."

"Excuse me. My name is Lillian Rossetti, and I'm a temporary assistant, replacing Lord Kale during his vacation. May I have the name of this distinguished guest, sir?"

Lillian greeted him as politely as possible and asked his identity discreetly. Then, the man's face was more irritated than before.

"How ridiculous! An assistant asking me a question? I don't know how the Marquis of Evans educates his subordinates. Aren't you dozing off during office hours— how dare you put your hands on me!"

It was the truth. His face was so pretty, but he had such a nasty temper.

Lillian was annoyed, but the man must be too high-status to face him openly. Recalling her own circumstances as a fallen aristocrat, she was deeply saddened. So she decided to overcome the crisis by taking advantage of this feeling.

"…… I'm so sorry. I've caused great offense."

A remorseful voice left Lillian's mouth. At the same time, her elegant eyes moistened. The man who saw this showed a slight sign of fluster even though he was annoyed. Lillian didn't miss the opportunity and opened her mouth while pitifully sniffling.

"I beg you for forgiveness, but my only father has recently disappeared...… I couldn't sleep well at night due to anxiety and tension. I know that I shouldn't drag my personal issues into public office hours. But if anything happens to him, I...…!"

Lillian, who was stuttering, finally began to sob with tears in her eyes. Her father, Herbert, of course, had already died. But there were only two people who knew this, herself and Saleos.

Fortunately, Salos was a devil, so he could transform himself into a different shape. He turned into Herbert as promised before and dawdled into town a few times. It was to secure Lillian's alibi. A few days ago, Lillian finally filed a report of her father's disappearance. Lillian's crying lament, which had no visible fault, was even more potent.

"Hic-hiccup… Where are you? What are you doing now? When I worry about my father, I can't sleep at all.…."

"Hey."

The man seemed perplexed by the sudden reversal of the atmosphere. Until earlier, he was lecturing absent-minded, lazy aides during office hours. But now, he felt like trash admonishing a poor lady who lost her father.

The drastic turn in events shook the man's raised eyebrows.

Lillian glanced at the man's face, pretending to wipe her tears. He still looked annoyed, but he showed signs of wanting to run away from this situation. He seemed to be the type who was ill-equipped and unprepared for dealing with emotions—a low-EQ avoidance type of man.

'Oh.'

Seeing this, Lillian's eyes sharpened and gleamed. Since he had held her hostage just a few moments ago, she wanted to give a taste of his own medicine. Sneakily, Lillian obstructed the closed door with her body, pretending to lean against the wall. After so thoroughly blocking the man's retreat, she burst into tears. [t1v: HAAA!]

"I'm so— hiccup— so sorry!! As a recipient of the kingdom's salary, I shouldn't do this. When I think of my father—uh, without realizing it.…!"

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