“I don’t want to be engaged or married. Not to anyone.”
Laila quickly added that it wasn’t a rejection specifically because of him.
Of course, it was true that Laila was rejecting Kidon because he was Kidon.
Who would want to marry a person who had brutally slaughtered ten slaves simply out of disgust?
It was better to die—no, to be tortured instead.
“But you have to. With someone.”
“Me? Why do you think so?”
“Marquis Hildegarde is not the type to keep valuable goods without selling them.”
Laila froze.
Valuable goods.
It was an excessively cold and sharp remark to make in front of the person involved.
Laila looked at Kidon’s face.
Contrary to his words, he didn’t have a harsh expression. He looked gentle.
His voice was also kind.
“Especially for something whose value decreases the longer you keep it.”
“….”
“He would want to sell it at its highest price. By any means.”
Kidon spoke as if he were merely stating a fact, showing no intention of hurting Laila at all.
Laila, too, didn’t feel particularly hurt by such words now.
However…
‘This is a big problem.’
Overwhelmed with despair, Laila’s vision darkened. It appeared that Kidon Reisic was determined to get engaged to her and even marry her.
As expected, Kidon continued speaking.
“I am a person who can buy Lady Laila at the highest price. And I will treat you better than anyone else.”
“Lord Reisic…”
“You can call me Kidon.”
Is he crazy? This wasn’t good for her.
Thanks to her carefully applied makeup, it didn’t show, but Laila’s complexion was steadily worsening.
Kidon seemed like a solid wall.
In other words, he didn’t seem like someone who would listen to her.
Laila pondered. Ordinary words of rejection seemed unlikely to reach him.
So…
“I’m sorry. Actually, saying I don’t want to get engaged or married to anyone is a lie.”
“Excuse me?”
“Milord, you’re not my type.”
Laila decided to scratch Kidon’s pride.
As deeply as possible and thoroughly.
“As you said, Count, I am indeed a valuable product. Someday, I will be sold off. However, I should at least be able to decide where I will be sold, right?”
Laila blinked her eyes innocently, as if conveying pure sincerity.
“Milord, you are the last place I want to be sold to.”
“….”
“I don’t like your face, your voice, and, to be honest, even your name.”
She couldn’t bring herself to say he was ugly; that would sound too much like a lie.
“I’m truly sorry. But you understand my feelings, right? You must have had someone who made your skin crawl just by looking at them, right?”
Get angry.
Be offended.
And say you’re canceling the proposal.
It didn’t matter if he insulted her in the process.
“How could I live with someone whose face I can’t even stand, no matter how outstanding their conditions are?”
As long as she could avoid marrying Kidon, Laila could endure anything. Laila thought of this without exaggeration.
“Please respect my decision, Lord Reisic.”
Laila intentionally smiled slightly, hoping it would make Kidon feel even worse.
Kidon stared at Laila’s smiling face before speaking.
“You don’t like my face, voice, or name?”
“Yes.”
“Then what kind of face, voice, and name do you like?”
“What?”
“I’m asking what kind of person would match Lady Laila’s taste.”
Laila blinked rapidly, her smile fading. She was taken aback.
Kidon didn’t show any signs of anger. This fact unsettled Laila.
“…Why do you want to know?”
“I want to see if there’s anyone among my acquaintances who fits Lady Laila’s taste.”
“And if there is, what will you do?”
“Well…”
The silence was brief but felt long. Kidon curled one side of his mouth slightly.
“Should I kill them?”
“…”
“If I keep doing that, eventually only people who don’t match your taste will remain around you… Oh, I’m just joking.”
Kidon corrected himself as he observed Laila’s expression.
Only then did Laila realize that she was frozen.
“It was a joke. Did I scare you that much?”
“…”
“Lady Laila, do you perhaps have someone you like?”
Laila almost instinctively denied the sudden question.
“No.”
“I’m not asking to harm that person. I’m just curious.”
“…”
“I wonder who the lucky person is that has captured the heart of someone as beautiful as you.”
Kidon whispered; his tone seemed genuinely curious.
Of course, Laila wasn’t naive enough to believe that statement without question.
More importantly, she didn’t have anyone she liked. Was her situation so peaceful that she could have such a thing? Absolutely not.
“I would like to satisfy your pure curiosity, but I really don’t have anyone.”
“Is that so? That’s a pity.”
What’s so regrettable? Laila didn’t ask. She wanted to end the conversation quickly.
“You don’t look well, Miss Laila. You should rest for today.”
For the first time, Kidon said something pleasant to hear.
“I won’t decide on the engagement date right away.”
It would have been better if that statement hadn’t followed.
What she really wanted to hear was that he wouldn’t decide for a lifetime.
But Laila decided not to provoke Kidon further. She remembered when he had asked, “Should I kill them?”
The Kidon who made that statement didn’t appear to be joking at all.
… A chill ran down her spine. If she brushed off her arm now, would it look like she was just cold?
It would be truly terrible if Kidon offered to take off his jacket.
Laila decided to escape the dreadful situation as quickly as possible.
“…Then I’ll go take a rest. Thank you for coming to my birthday party today. I hope you enjoy the party enough before you leave.”
Kidon smiled and didn’t say anything else, implying that she wouldn’t see him off.
Laila hurriedly turned around and left the terrace.
She had said she was going to rest, so she needed to do just that. She wanted to get out of the party as quickly as possible.
The villain probably wouldn’t stop her now. He had achieved his goal of making her meet Kidon.
Laila quickened her pace and walked without paying much attention to where she was going.
Then, a problem arose.
“Ah!”
Laila stumbled after colliding with a solid body that felt almost like a wall. A hand suddenly reached out from the person and grabbed her.
The person helped Laila regain her balance and then withdrew their hand. Laila naturally looked up at the person she had bumped into and who had caught her.
A servant? The clothing suggested so, but the person was quite tall. Laila unconsciously measured the height difference between herself and the person. About a head taller.
And, based on how solid the body felt when she bumped into him, it seemed quite well-trained… Why would a servant bother to train their body?
Could it be that they are working as a servant now but dream of becoming a knight later?
As Laila lost herself in these thoughts, her eyes suddenly widened.
She had finally noticed the color of the person’s eyes.
Black.
Laila’s mouth moved on its own.
“…Sion?”
The eyes that peeked out from behind the full-face mask curved into a smile. Laila pressed her lips together. Her heart raced, though she couldn’t understand why.
Sion was wearing a servant’s uniform, a black mask, and a brown wig that fit his head perfectly. Sion bowed his head and whispered in Laila’s ear.
“Happy birthday.”
Omg, this guy is effing crazy