Chapter Index

    135 – Lucy’s Delusion

    135 – Lucy’s Delusion

    After Daniel left the office to meet with the Security Agency Director.

    “…….”

    Lucy put down her documents and stared blankly at the door Daniel had exited.

    Her gaze, somewhat unsteady, lingered on the door before she shook her head.

    She thought it best to set aside her strange thoughts for the moment and focus on her work.

    Lucy picked up the documents and began reviewing them, but she soon had to stop.

    She simply couldn’t concentrate.

    It was more than just a lack of focus; her mind was filled with thoughts of Daniel Steiner.

    ‘He’s definitely being suspected by the Security Agency Director…….’

    Lucy knew it vaguely.

    It wasn’t the Security Agency that had wiped out the Palentia branch, but Daniel.

    In the past, it was also Daniel Steiner who had attacked and eradicated the Prince’s private organization.

    It was clear that he had destroyed the Palentia branch in a similar manner this time as well.

    If so, what was the reason?

    In Lucy’s view, Daniel’s attack on the Palentia branch was like wielding a double-edged sword.

    If successful, he could cleanly excise the Allied Nations’ spies from within the Imperial City, but if he failed, Daniel would not only lose his private organization but also become the spies’ top assassination target.

    Why on earth would Daniel take such a risk to attack the Palentia branch?

    After much thought, Lucy came to one conclusion.

    ‘……Could it be because of me?’

    This wasn’t just speculation.

    Daniel knew that Lucy was a test subject.

    ‘I don’t know if he felt pity or sympathy from that fact, but…….’

    In Lucy’s view, Daniel was particularly kind to her.

    He frequently took her to dessert shops and bought her various foods.

    Moreover, when the Security Agency police barged in, he took the lead in defending her.

    ‘Even though Daniel knows that I’m a test subject and an Allied Nations spy, he’s always been there for me.’

    There was nothing to gain from being nice to her.

    Even though he knew that such actions would put him in danger, Daniel didn’t stop.

    ‘If Daniel moved this time to protect me again…….’

    All of these events would be more than understandable.

    From Daniel’s perspective, eliminating the Palentia branch would have been easier to protect Lucy.

    In reality, Daniel had only eaten a meal at a restaurant called Beer Heaven, but Lucy had no way of knowing that.

    After all, Daniel was not only running a private organization but also skilled in gathering information, even knowing that his adjutant was a test subject.

    In addition, he had recently turned a newspaper into a propaganda outlet and formed a strange alliance with a religious group.

    It didn’t seem likely that such a person would be unaware of the Palentia branch.

    If he had investigated the Palentia branch, he would also know that Lucy had fought against the Palentia branch and then turned her back on them.

    ‘……So he took action.’

    To protect his adjutant.

    As that thought occurred to her, guilt seeped into Lucy’s heart.

    She felt uneasy thinking that she had received help from Daniel again.

    ‘I couldn’t do anything for him…….’

    Daniel silently went about his work as if it was okay.

    Even though he knew that helping an Allied Nations spy, even if she was his adjutant, wasn’t right.

    Lucy felt a pang in her heart at Daniel’s attitude, which could even be described as devoted.

    ‘I want to repay him. Somehow…….’

    She wanted to give Daniel Steiner more than she had received.

    Not just making him desserts or Beet Soup, but being of real help.

    However, she couldn’t figure out what she should do in the current situation to help Daniel.

    She wondered if she should run away before causing any more trouble for Daniel, but she soon shook her head.

    She thought that disappearing arbitrarily after receiving his kindness would be the same as betraying Daniel’s efforts.

    Then how could she help Daniel?

    Lucy, who had abandoned her work and was racking her brains, soon let out a low breath.

    ‘I don’t know.’

    She really didn’t know anything.

    The only information Lucy knew about Daniel outside of work was that he liked desserts and was more playful than she thought.

    ‘I don’t know what else he wants…….’

    Lucy paused in her thoughts.

    Come to think of it, there was one more piece of information she knew about Daniel.

    ‘Kelly.’

    The woman Daniel had lost.

    If she knew what that woman looked like, she could at least try to imitate her.

    Lucy, who was having somewhat absurd thoughts, shook her head.

    ‘No. He might hate it…….’

    He might think it’s more beautiful to leave the past in the past.

    Ugh─

    Her forehead furrowed as a headache came on for no reason.

    Lucy, who was unusually tapping her desk, turned her gaze to Daniel’s seat.

    ‘Coat…….’

    Daniel’s Officer coat, which he always wore, was hanging on the chair.

    The thought that there might be a picture of Kelly in that coat’s inner pocket made her feel uneasy.

    ‘I want to see it.’

    She wanted to know what kind of woman had stolen Daniel’s heart.

    ‘But…….’

    She couldn’t bring herself to act, thinking that Daniel would hate it.

    ‘Let’s not. I shouldn’t.’

    Lucy, who was repeating the word “patience” in her mind, grabbed the documents to return to work.

    However, her attention kept going to Daniel’s coat.

    As if drawn by a magnet, her gaze kept moving to the coat.

    Even when she closed her eyes tightly to come to her senses, the picture that might be in the coat kept flashing in her mind.

    Lucy, thinking that she couldn’t stand it any longer, slowly got up from her seat.

    ‘Just a little peek. I’ll be fine if I just look a little…….’

    Lucy, who had made an absurd resolution, walked towards the coat that Daniel had taken off.

    She hesitated for a moment in front of the coat, but Lucy eventually put her hand into the inner pocket and took out the picture.

    However, there was no woman who looked like Kelly.

    Because what Lucy took out was a picture of Daniel smiling while surrounded by children from the orphanage.

    It was a picture she had seen before.

    Lucy’s eyes, which had been staring blankly at the picture, widened slightly.

    It was an unknown emotion.

    The taut string of reason stretched out long, and impulsive thoughts floated in her head.

    In addition, fragments of emotions that were somewhat sad and lukewarm were rushing in haphazardly.

    The reason was Daniel’s kindness shown in the picture.

    Ironically, Lucy was jealous of Daniel’s kindness.

    ‘Daniel is a good person. So…….’

    Even if it wasn’t Lucy Emilia, Daniel would have helped his adjutant.

    What Daniel was trying to help with his life on the line wasn’t ‘Lucy Emilia’ but ‘a pitiful woman from a test subject.’

    It was clear that Daniel would have reacted the same way even if someone else had taken this place.

    ‘Even when we met in disguise in the park the other day…….’

    From Daniel’s point of view, it was a woman he was meeting for the first time, but he took the lead in escorting her.

    Not only did he talk to her in a friendly manner, unlike usual, but he also told her his inner thoughts, which he hadn’t told his adjutant.

    Ironically, Daniel revealed his inner thoughts more easily to the person he met for the first time in the park than to Lucy, his adjutant, whom he had known for nearly a year.

    Lucy didn’t like that.

    She didn’t like that Daniel was ‘a kind person to everyone.’

    She didn’t want to accept that she might be just one of many people to Daniel.

    Lucy, who let out a low sigh, put the picture back in her inner pocket.

    Then she paused at the strange smell emanating from the coat.

    It was like a subtle soapy scent with a bit of sweat mixed in.

    The clean and soft scent was reviving her low mood.

    Lucy, as if possessed, bent down and smelled the scent.

    ‘Good smell…….’

    It was similar to the scent she had felt when she hugged Daniel, who had come to her accommodation in the past.

    Lucy, who had been savoring the scent with her eyes closed, was startled and opened her eyes wide.

    She felt unconsciously ashamed of herself for acting instinctively.

    Lucy, who blushed for no reason, cleared her throat and stood up.

    However, her gaze was still directed at Daniel’s coat.

    It wasn’t based on the instinctive thought of wanting to smell the scent again, but on the thought of the picture inside Daniel’s coat.

    She thought that she wanted her appearance to be added to the pictures that Daniel always carried around.

    ‘I don’t want to be remembered as an ordinary person…….’

    Lucy’s eyes narrowed softly as she raised her hand and gently stroked the shoulder of the coat.

    ‘But how…….’

    How could she make Daniel recognize her as a special person?

    Furthermore, she wanted to become a precious person.

    Lucy, who had been lost in thought for a while in such worries, gave an awkward smile.

    ‘Liking someone alone is…….’

    Because she realized that it wasn’t as pleasant as she thought.

    Author’s words (Author’s note)

    Thank you for the 10 coins, GomGomGomBearYuna! Thank you for your support today! I hope you’re enjoying it! Thank you!

    Thank you always to all the readers!

    The weather seems to be getting really warm these days! Right?

    It seems like spring is finally coming…!

    I hope that spring will come into the lives of all the readers!

    Then see you again tomorrow!

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