episode_0065

“Chief of Staff. Let’s call it a day. The Cologne mayoral election is coming up soon anyway…”

“We need to wrap up the ongoing tasks and hand them over to the next mayor. We can’t just pass them off as no longer our responsibility.”

“You’re right, Chief of Staff. How about considering running for the Cologne mayoral election?”

“I’ll think about it…”

Awkwardly smiling, the secretary exits the room.

Running for mayor.

It was a choice that had never crossed my mind.

I only took on the role of Chief of Staff temporarily after Lawrence’s death.

I thought it would be none of my business once the election was over.

“If I run, am I guaranteed to win?”

It’s not baseless confidence; objectively speaking, the chances of winning are very high.

No one had properly prepared for this election after expecting Lawrence’s re-election.

Some candidates hastily prepared after his sudden death, only to withdraw due to impracticality.

Amidst all this, I, as the Chief of Staff, have performed the duties of mayor even better than Lawrence.

I successfully completed the repair work of the massive sinkhole created by the dungeon collapse.

If there’s any flaw, it’s just that I’m a woman.

But I’m not a pampered lady of a noble family; I’m in a position to lead a noble family as the deputy count, so that flaw can be easily compensated for.

If I run, it’s practically a guaranteed win.

Any other person would have run without hesitation.

I, too, have ambitions for power.

Ambitions for success.

“I wonder if he would approve.”

But above all, Eugene is the most important to me.

If I become the mayor of Cologne, Eugene might not approve.

Becoming a mayor comes with much greater responsibility.

There will be frequent audits.

I’ll have to disclose my bank statements.

People will start questioning the mysterious man who spent large sums of money across the continent.

He doesn’t seem to want his name to be known.

I have a feeling that if people start paying attention to him, he’ll disappear without a trace.

Leaving me behind…

“I guess running for mayor is not a good idea.”

I’ve made up my mind.

It’s definitely not a good idea.

The current Briemga is strong enough.

All ongoing projects are on track.

There’s no need for me to take on the heavy responsibility of being mayor.

“I miss him…”

This is bad.

Whenever I think of him, I miss him even more.

I had decided to focus only on work during work hours.

But I can’t help it.

*Sigh…*

Eugene’s ring made of jade.

Small and unassuming, but more valuable to me than gold, I roll it in my hand, savoring its texture.

And my other hand slides down below…

Thud!

“Huh? What? Why?”

Suddenly, the door opens.

It’s a door that should not be opened without knocking…

As I raise my head to express my annoyance…

“Long time no see, Cornelia. I was thinking about you… Uh, um.”

The person who appears outside the door is completely unexpected.

He, Eugene, locks eyes with me.

After looking at me for a moment, Eugene swallows his words and says, “Seems like you’re busy.”

“Uh…?”

“Sorry. I’ll come back later.”

He closes the door and steps back.

Only after seeing his puzzled expression do I realize how I must look right now.

Face flushed, lying on the desk.

Breathing heavily, hand reaching under the desk…

“I-I wasn’t doing that!”

I shout in surprise, knowing that the lie won’t work.

“Just now! That thing you’re thinking about, I wasn’t doing that!”

“How do you know what I was thinking?”

“You thought something weird…”

“No? Really?”

“Ugh. Well, I guess that’s what you thought.”

Smirking mischievously, Eugene sits down next to the young vampire.

It annoys me.

But at the same time, I can’t help but feel so happy that I can’t control my laughter.

“I’ve been learning tea ceremony lately. Let me make you a cup of tea.”

“It’s quite luxurious to have the Chief of Staff personally make tea for me.”

“Don’t tease me…”

While turning my back to Eugene and taking out the teacups,

I had to struggle to suppress the corners of my mouth from twitching with amusement.

Even a tiger will come when called.

“Here you go. A cup for the little guest too.”

“I-I don’t want it.”

“Huh?”

“She’s scared of flowing water.”

As I was about to pour water into the cup,

the pale-skinned girl stutters and buries herself in Eugene’s arms.

She seemed a bit more aloof before.

Perhaps she has become closer to Eugene in the meantime.

“Why are you sitting here?”

“The chair on the other side is a bit uncomfortable.”

“It’s the same chair, isn’t it?”

“It’s different.”

Sighing, after pouring all the water into the cup,

I sit next to Eugene, turning my back to him.

Quietly, he tapped her thigh.

This warmth.

This voice.

This trembling.

Just sitting next to Yujin made her stress melt away and her mind calm down.

Ah, maybe not calm down, actually.

Her heart kept pounding faster and faster…

“I missed you. I was actually thinking about how much I missed you just now, and here you are.”

“What a remarkable coincidence.”

Actually, it’s not a coincidence at all.

She spent more than half of her day thinking about Yujin.

Excluding sleeping time, she could only appear when she was thinking about Yujin.

Still…

It’s more romantic and nice to think of it as a coincidence.

Even though she focused only on work during work hours.

“The check Cornelius gave me. I’ve already used them all.”

“Yes, I confirmed that all 5 checks have been used. You don’t have to worry because all payments have been made correctly.”

“So, this time, I’d like to request about 20 more checks.”

“I’ll prepare 30 checks for you.”

“Thank you, Cornelius.”

“Hehe…”

Swiftly.

She leaned her head on Yujin’s shoulder.

In response, Yujin wrapped his arm around her shoulder and gently stroked her head.

It feels good.

The sensation of being enveloped by Yujin’s large hand feels so good.

It feels like she belongs to Yujin…

“Oh, right. I have a gift for you.”

“A gift?”

“Yes, thanks to you, I didn’t have to worry about money while traveling. Here.”

“This is…?”

Clack.

In the luxurious box, a dazzling gem revealed itself.

Wait, is this a magic stone…?

The beautiful colors made her eyes widen involuntarily.

It wasn’t a combat accessory like the black ring Yujin usually wore, it was clearly a decorative or gift magic stone.

“What is this for?”

“I stopped by Elvengard. I found it there and picked it up.”

“Are you kidding me? Are you serious?”

“I’m serious.”

She was speechless at Yujin’s serious expression.

She had been thinking every day that she wanted to be someone special to Yujin.

She waited for him endlessly.

But deep down, she had a feeling that the chances of her feelings being reciprocated were very slim…

So she changed her strategy.

Instead of actively pursuing Yujin.

She decided to become the woman he would come to at the very end.

“A proposal…?”

But she never thought that day would come today.

An expensive Elvengard magic stone.

Not some cheap gimmicky magic stone for a proposal, but a genuine luxury item.

The intention is clear.

A proposal method suitable for a high-class noblewoman.

It may be cliché, but that’s what makes it more meaningful.

“Ah…”

She was so happy that she couldn’t speak properly.

She felt like tears would start flowing any moment.

As she choked up, Yujin chuckled and wiped her tears away.

“Oh. Is that…?”

“Do you not like it?”

“I love it! I love it so much! I’m so happy…”

“You seem so happy that tears might come out. You could probably make a lot of money if you sell it.”

“What?”

But when Yujin continued speaking, she realized that she had been misunderstanding something.

“You want me to sell this?”

“Yes. Use it to support the family.”

“…I see.”

Ah, she understood now.

She realized the whole story.

Yujin was not a nobleman.

So he wouldn’t know the meaning of giving such an expensive magic stone as a gift to a woman.

Once she realized that, she felt deflated.

She felt like a fool for getting excited for a moment.

“Thank you… I like it…”

But she forced a smile, suppressing her disappointment.

She took comfort in the fact that Yujin cared about her.

That he wasn’t completely indifferent to her, which was somewhat reassuring.

“So, what did you do in Elvengard?”

“This is confidential. I’m not sure if I can tell you.”

“I’ll keep it quiet. You know I can keep a secret.”

“I know. I mean, I kept the fact that Lawrence is a demon’s minion hidden until now. Let’s see… where should I start…”

Business was put on hold.

She leaned on Yujin’s shoulder, listening to his long story.

Although she had to omit some parts in between, she found Yujin’s story entertaining.

She couldn’t tell everything, but she enjoyed listening to Yujin’s tales.

Eugene’s characteristic indifference was evident in his demeanor.

His own achievements were brief and concise, while he emphasized others’ greatness to the fullest extent, giving me a rough idea of how significant his accomplishments were.

“Oops…”

Time passed.

As the sun began to set, a sense of gloom settled in.

It was almost time for Eugene to leave.

“It looks like the sun will set soon.”

“Yeah.”

At some point, I found myself leaning into Eugene, resting my head against his chest.

I wished this moment could last forever.

I hoped Eugene wouldn’t leave.

Not venture into dangerous places.

Not meet other women.

Just stay with me here forever.

“But that’s unlikely…”

Such futile hopes had long been abandoned.

Eugene would never choose me.

The reason was clear and fatal.

“Eugene probably thinks I’ve been defiled by Lawrence…”

The fact that Eugene wouldn’t accept me was mainly due to this reason.

It was useless to deny it.

Sometimes the truth seemed more false than lies.

How convincing would it sound to say that I had kept my virginity during the months of being forcibly married to a violent man?

Even I wouldn’t believe it.

There were surely many younger and cleaner women around Eugene.

There was no reason for him to choose me over them.

Bitter as it was, that was the harsh reality.

“Oh! The last train is coming soon! Shouldn’t we get up now?”

“I should go. But it seems like I’ve been talking about myself too much. Did anything happen to you?”

“I… nothing happened…”

I pushed him forward with all my might, urging him to leave.

But Eugene came back to me and gently stroked my messy hair.

Leaving me with lingering regrets…

“Aren’t you tired?”

“I’m… fine.”

“Really? The workload seems overwhelming.”

“It’s… a little tiring…”

It’s because of you that I’m tired.

I miss you so much it hurts.

My heart aches every day.

But I couldn’t bring myself to burden Eugene by saying so.

“Stay strong. You’re doing great. Thanks to Cornelia, I’ve also received a lot of help.”

“Oh…”

Tightly.

My whole body warmed up as Eugene’s rough embrace enveloped me.

It wasn’t a tender and loving hug from a lover, but for now, it was enough.

The fatigue dissipated.

The stress melted away, and I felt better.

For a while, I enjoyed the pressure of Eugene’s strong arms.

Slowly, Eugene’s grip loosened.

As the tension in my shoulders eased and my heels touched the ground, our eyes met.

Eugene’s gaze was so warm.

“Anything special happen in Königsberg?”

“No. Everything is going well. The sewer construction is finished. Two days ago, there was a commotion when the saint visited…”

“What? The saint came here?”

“…”

But in that moment.

Confusion crept into Eugene’s voice.

His face paled.

I immediately realized.

This man.

Must have some connection with the saint.