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Chapter 26
Fleur flinched, startled, when Dylan reached out first—she hadn’t expected him to—and quickly wrapped her shoulder, which he had touched, with her shawl.
“So you’ve finally come to your senses,” he said lazily, observing her every move.
“I know Fleur well enough to take your offer to enter the room at face value. But others wouldn’t. So please refrain from such words and actions around other people…”
“I wouldn’t say that to anyone but Dylan.”
“…What do you mean by that?”
Dylan’s expression stiffened.
“I know that you, Dylan, would accept it without misunderstanding, so I can speak comfortably.”
“….”
“That’s why I came all this way to make amends.”
Fleur extended her hand again, which she had briefly withdrawn.
“So, will you accept my apology or not?”
Even in the dim bedroom, her yellow eyes shone brightly as she asked. Dylan still hadn’t grasped her hand, only clenching his fists.
“…Colin invited me to go with him, saying he’d reserve a place for me at the Martin estate.”
“Colin?”
“Yes.”
“I see…”
Fleur’s eyes widened slightly, but she only nodded subtly, not looking overly surprised.
At her reaction, a grinding sound came from Dylan’s clenched fist.
“Is it alright if I go?”
Dylan took a step toward her. Fleur didn’t back away and replied,
“If you want to go, Dylan, I won’t stop you.”
Important notice.
Dylan’s favorability decreased without a quest.
Current favorability: 7% → 5%
Error correction time: 48 minutes
“What? Why did it drop again?” Fleur quickly continued, worried it might fall to 0%.
“Actually, the Valen family is very small and powerless. So I think it’s fine if you work for the Martin household.”
“…Why?”
“That way, you can earn money faster to live with your younger sister. It wouldn’t be easy to raise your salary given your skills…”
Her eyebrows drooped from self-reproach.
“If other people at the party try to take me away, you won’t stop them?”
“If you want to go, I can’t forcibly stop you.”
“….”
“But you can’t go to the wives alone at night. That’s something I absolutely won’t allow.”
Dylan’s head, which had been looking down, suddenly snapped up.
“…Why not?”
“I want you to earn money using your skills as my aide, not by serving women at night.”
“….”
“If any wife clings to you persistently at the party, tell me immediately. I’ll handle it all.”
Fleur pointed quickly at him with her index and middle fingers, then suddenly widened her eyes like a startled rabbit.
“Gasp, Dylan… You don’t want to go to those wives…?”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, if you really want to, I can’t stop you. But instead of serving women at night for money, wouldn’t it be better to stay with me? Your sister would feel better knowing you’re earning through real work.”
“….”
“Not right away, but once the party succeeds and the business grows, I’ll raise your salary first. Okay?”
Dylan, staring blankly at Fleur as she expressed herself so earnestly with gestures, suddenly burst into a loud laugh.
“Haha, hahahaha.”
It was the first time she had seen him laugh so heartily, and though she was momentarily flustered, she soon smiled along with him.
“You smiled just now, didn’t you? That means we’ve reconciled, right? So now we shake hands?”
After a few prompts, Dylan finally grasped her hand. Fleur, happy, shook it vigorously, but he didn’t let go.
“Do you remember what you said when I first became your aide?”
“I will serve Fleur as my first and last master.”
She remembered perfectly and nodded immediately.
Then Dylan lifted their clasped hands and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.
“I already belong to you, Fleur.”
“….”
“That fact will never change.”
Congratulations.
You have increased Dylan’s favorability within the time limit.
Current favorability: 5% → 21%
Double favorability event is active.
With 28 minutes left, her favorability increased. She hadn’t even done anything herself; he simply accepted the apology, yet the quest was a success. It was a double win: she avoided errors and reconciled without much effort.
“Then, from now on, I’ll be counting on you, my aide.”
Congratulations.
You have increased Dylan’s favorability within the time limit.
Current favorability: 5% → 21%
Double favorability event is active.
Why did it rise so well? Fleur looked at her status window, bewildered, not expecting it to increase this much.
“I will serve you even more devotedly,” Dylan said, tightening his grip on her hand and staring at her with a chilling gaze.
D-Day
Finally, the day of the long-prepared party had arrived.
Fleur, more alert than usual due to nerves, got up immediately without lazing in bed.
Jenny sensed her movement and entered the bedroom.
“Miss, you’re already up?”
“Yes. You’re up early too, Jenny?”
“The staff were checking the venue, so I had to start early as well.”
“Everyone’s working so hard for me.”
“Not at all. I know how much effort you’ve put in for today, so I want to help see it through successfully.”
Hearing that, Fleur felt as if she had already succeeded.
“Shall we start with a bath?”
They had to prepare a lot for the evening party. As the head of the Valen family and for showcasing the business, she wanted to leave a strong impression.
After a perfumed bath, she returned to her bedroom, where several maids busily attended to her.
One brushed her hair, another applied nourishing oil to soften her skin, and another started her makeup.
They were in the middle of helping her put on a yellow square-neck dress adorned with beads, layering the underdress carefully.
Knock, knock.
“Miss Fleur.”
Jenny greeted Dylan’s voice in her place.
“She’s still changing clothes.”
“How long will it take?”
“There’s still a lot to do, so about an hour more.”
“I see… that’s a problem.”
“Dylan, is something wrong? Did something happen at the venue?”
Hearing her concerned voice, Fleur forgot she wasn’t fully dressed and moved toward the door.
“Ah, Miss!”
Startled, the maids blocked her path, and Dylan quickly turned his back.
“There’s no problem at the venue. Please don’t come out.”
“Then what is it?”
“A guest who received the invitation has come.”
“What? It’s not even noon yet!”
She checked the time, wondering if she had misread it. The party started at 7 PM, but it was not even 8 AM.
“They thought the party was in the morning, not evening.”
“Who holds a party during the day…?”
“They were asked to come again in the evening, but they can’t due to other plans. If it’s not rude, they just wanted to see you, Miss Fleur.”
“Alright. I’ll finish getting ready and go meet them in the reception room.”
“Understood.”
Dylan knocked again as he was about to leave.
“Jenny.”
“Yes, Aide Dylan?”
“Tell the guest to wait sufficiently and make sure Miss Fleur is fully prepared and her skin isn’t visible yet.”
With that, he left. Fleur blinked, alone.
“Did he tell Jenny instead of me because I wouldn’t listen?”
The maids didn’t deny it; they only smiled faintly and continued preparing her.
In front of the reception room
“Are they inside?”
Fully prepared, Fleur pointed to the door and asked Dylan.
But from the moment she walked up, he had looked frozen, like a clock with a dead battery.
“Dylan? Are you tired?”
Waving her hand in front of him, Dylan cleared his throat and nodded.
“Beautiful… ahem, yes. They are inside.”
“What’s the guest’s name?”
He pointed to the guest list.
“Minos Vivant, eldest son of the Viscount Vivant family.”
“Are they from a well-known family?”
“They were in the past, but now their fortune has greatly diminished.”
After the brief explanation, she nodded and, putting on her business smile, entered the reception room.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
The man on the sofa immediately stood.
“Ah, hello.”
He wore a black formal suit, had a large frame but hunched shoulders, messy dark brown hair, thick glasses, freckles, and a simple, honest-looking face.
In that moment, she understood why he had mistaken the time.
You have met the target character ???.
Current favorability: 5%
The man who had once saved her from being mistaken for a thief appeared now in a completely different guise.
