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Chapter : 03
Rian’s striking looks and exceptional physique.
And those “black hair” and “red eyes.”
Just by his appearance alone, he was absolutely not a game NPC.
“Even from 500 meters away, doing a handstand, he’s still one of the male leads.”
But the strange thing was, neither Rian’s face nor his name…
I had any memory of seeing them anywhere.
“I know almost every million-seller romance fantasy, but I’ve never heard of a male lead named Rian de Vichel.”
His name wasn’t so common that it would be easily forgotten…
Or maybe I’d read so many novels that I just forgot.
That could be it.
“Rian isn’t even my type at all.”
My preferences were firm.
“Always the kind male lead!”
That’s why I’d made Johann, who was kind, gentle, and handsome, my favorite.
Naturally, the male leads I disliked were just as clear.
#Flirt, #DirtyTalk, #BadBoy, #RegretfulMale…
I filtered out all of these keywords without exception.
“Still, if he were a million-seller romance fantasy lead, I should know him.”
I glanced up at Rian.
No matter how much I examined that butter-smooth face, there was no clue to solve the mystery.
After struggling with Rian for a long while, I finally gave up.
“Wow, what kind of human is this, like a stone statue?”
If I kept this tug-of-war up, I’d completely drain my stamina.
“Hah…”
Resigned, I began walking.
Rian followed closely like a puppy.
“So, Director, you decided to take on two jobs? You really are diligent.”
I emphasize again—I dislike people like Chase.
The current time was 1:00 PM.
I sat at the outdoor table of the tea salon with Rian.
Even though it was early summer, I wrapped a scarf around my head.
It was a kind of disguise.
“I don’t want to stand out, just in case.”
I wasn’t personally acquainted with Violet, but she might recognize my face, so I had to be careful.
Right now, Violet was inside the salon, having tea with her friends.
“…You know what!”
“Oh my…”
The glass wasn’t thick, and I could occasionally hear their laughter.
I sneaked glances at Violet while jotting down notes.
[+ Violet is a regular customer at . According to the salon owner, she visits every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Her favorite tea is “Darjeeling.”
-> This place could be the first meeting spot… but no, since she comes here with her friends, it doesn’t seem appropriate.
- Violet’s friends: Dalia Zerhenstone, Flora Maien]
As I diligently wrote, I felt a blatant gaze.
“Huh…?”
I turned my head slightly and saw Rian’s tall nose right in front of me.
I hurriedly pulled my face back.
“Wh-what is it?”
When did he get so close?
“I was definitely sitting across from you just a moment ago.”
Rian rested his chin on his hand and wiggled his feet under the table.
“I’ve never seen you wear glasses, Director, so I came to take a look.”
As he said, I was wearing not only the scarf but also thick horn-rimmed glasses.
I answered reluctantly.
“You could just look from your seat, though.”
“My eyesight isn’t good. I like seeing things up close.”
“……”
“Good things should be seen up close, don’t you know?”
Eyesight? What nonsense.
“I saw you three days ago sitting on the sofa, reading the addresses on parcels by the entrance.”
That’s practically Mongolian-level vision.
Meanwhile, Rian’s gaze was fixed on my notes.
He looked over what I had written and spoke.
“Hey, Director. You don’t like Miss Violet?”
My eyes widened.
He had hit the mark out of nowhere.
“You don’t like Violet?”
Of course not.
She’s the woman who dared to steal the heart of my favorite, so how could I possibly like her?
“And she’s so impossibly pretty too…”
The problem was how Rian had noticed my feelings at all.
“All I did here was watch Violet expressionlessly.”
I tried to act nonchalant.
“No, not at all. Why do you ask?”
“The handwriting I know from you is neat and straight. But today, it looks as if you forced down your unwillingness, it’s all crooked.”
“……”
“Especially the V and I. See how they don’t go straight down but curve to the left? That’s proof you wrote while letting your feelings interfere.”
“……”
“In short, you’re doing something you don’t want to do.”
Rian rattled it off like a machine gun.
“How does he know so much about my handwriting…?”
All he’s done for the past month is sit at work.
But… honestly, there was no mistake in what Rian said.
“I don’t like Violet.”
Besides, the whole situation—following her around to investigate—was frustrating.
But this was Johann’s request, and it involved money, so I was doing it reluctantly.
“That doesn’t mean I can just tell him everything straightforwardly.”
I maintained a composed demeanor and diverted the conversation.
“Stop talking nonsense and be quiet. You haven’t been helpful, yet you talk too much.”
“What are you saying, Director? I’ve been cooperating just fine.”
“What cooperation? All you’ve done since coming here is sip tea, right?”
Rian blinked twice at my sharp remark, then rested his cheek on the back of his hand with a lazy smile.
“Of course I’ve done more.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve been restraining myself from fooling around with you on such a nice day, waiting patiently.”
“……?”
“Don’t you think that deserves praise?”
His black head came closer to me.
“Honestly…”
And yet his hair was so thick.
“Well, no worries about baldness later, I guess.”
I lightly pushed his head.
“Move it.”
“Aren’t you going to praise me?”
“What am I supposed to praise? There’s nothing to praise.”
“I’m not usually good at waiting. But I’m doing it for you, Director.”
“What…?”
Ding-dong.
The bell at the salon door rang.
Our gazes simultaneously turned toward it.
“…Violet.”
Rian grabbed the back of my head and pressed me down onto the table.
“Stop talking now.”
“Yes, yes.”
Rian lay across the table, smiling slyly.
I could faintly hear Violet and her friends talking.
“…By the way, Violet, that’s the dress you decided to wear to the ball, right?”
“Yeah, I’m going to try it on today.”
Flora and Dalia bounced with excitement.
“Oh my, a dress from Valenri’s boutique. I can’t wait!”
“His Highness will surely fall for you. I guarantee it.”
“At this ball, Violet, you’ll definitely steal His Highness’s heart!”
“Oh, you girls…”
I flinched as I overheard the conversation.
“…Huh?”
Did I just hear that correctly?
Right then, Rian started muttering beside me.
“Director, is your dream to grow up to be Zara? No matter how curious you are about Miss Violet, at this rate your neck will stretch all the way over there.”
He suddenly wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me toward him.
The chair wobbled, and my previously off-center weight shifted back.
“Ah… I almost fell.”
I hadn’t realized the chair nearly tipped over while focusing on Violet.
“I almost gave a physical comedy performance and got caught by Violet.”
I was about to thank Rian when I snapped back to reality.
“His Highness will surely fall for you. I guarantee it.”
“At this ball, Violet, you’ll definitely steal His Highness’s heart!”
Now that I think about it, greeting him wasn’t the important thing.
“Did I just hear that correctly?”
I hurriedly asked Rian.
“Did you hear what they just said?”
“Yeah.”
“Tell me. What did they say?”
But Rian didn’t answer immediately.
He stared at me for a while, then slowly spoke.
“I heard, but I won’t tell.”
“Huh? Why not?”
When I frowned, Rian’s mouth curved upward.
He leaned toward me and whispered,
“You told me not to talk.”
