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Chapter 252: 5 + 1 (2)

What was next once my assignment at the academy ended? Going straight to work at the Prosecutors’ Office.

I stood in front of the Ministry of Finance’s building, staring blankly up at it while holding a case tied with a red ribbon in one hand.

According to the original plan, this case wasn\'t supposed to see the light of day for another week or two. The 1st Manager would come after Irina according to their order, and I intended to give Irina her answer only after the New Year’s Ball.

But I momentarily forgot that my plans always end up crumbling.

There’s only one left.

This was such a headache. I wouldn’t be in this dilemma if I had two or three rings left. It would mean that there were still several people waiting for my answer, and I could at least pretend I was being fair.

But there was only one ring left and only one person left without an answer. It would be hard to argue that I wasn’t deliberately avoiding the 1st Manager.

Sure, the 1st Manager didn’t know about Louise or Irina, but I did. It didn’t sit well with me to delay my answer to her confession when I had already given everyone else theirs.

"The chain of rings."

A wry smile crept up on my face. Just like how all the confessions started pouring in one after another once the Mage Duchess took the first step, here I was, repeating the process all over again.

But what could I do? I had already made up my mind, and deliberately delaying it would just be toying with people’s feelings. And while I might have multiple options, I wasn’t interested in stringing anyone along.

It wasn’t the most convincing logic, but it was what it was.

“So please, just one chance, just give me one chance…”

Maybe it was because I saw how desperately the 1st Manager pleaded that I just couldn’t bring myself to make her wait any longer.

And if—just if—I ignored my conscience and bypassed the 1st Manager, how would she feel when she found out that she was the only one left in the dark? She’d probably feel like she never had a real chance and break down.

This is my fate.

I sighed and walked into the building.

It was honestly a luxury to complain, but couldn’t they have spaced them out over two months if I was going to get all these confessions anyway? Then, I wouldn’t be agonizing over the timing like this.

***I saw the managers munching on bread when I opened the office door. Did they come straight to work without eating?

“Oh. You’re here, Executive Manager?”

And just my luck, I made eye contact with the 2nd Manager, who was closest to the door.

Why did the 2nd Manager have to be the first person I see after arriving? Well, today was off to a bad start.

“Yeah, I’m here.”

I nodded vaguely and quickly scanned the room. The 3rd Manager was stuffing his face with bread and nodding, and the 5th Manager swallowed his bread and bowed.

The Senior Manager was likely buried under paperwork in his office, so I skipped over him.

“Ah, Executive Manager!”

Finally, I saw the 1st Manager running over with a bright smile.

She stopped in front of me and gave a proper bow, her eyes sparkling and her smile warm—nothing like the manic energy she usually gave off.

It was strange. The 1st Manager I knew wasn’t normally this... composed.

“It’s been a while, Elizabeth.”

Still, I accepted it calmly since I knew what it must have taken for her to act so normal. I didn’t forget to pat her on the shoulder and call her by her name, either.

It worked like a charm. Her eyes widened in surprise, and then she started grinning from ear to ear. If I’d known it would make her this happy, I would’ve done it two years ago.

“What’s this? Are we finally calling each other by name now?”

The 2nd Manager, who had been watching the exchange, smirked as he spoke.

He looked a bit surprised when I suddenly called the 1st Manager by her name, but he quickly caught on to the teasing. He sure could read the room fast—though it was often in a way that was more trouble than it was worth.

“No, you suit \'the 2nd Manager\' better than \'Lafayette.\'”

“That’s harsh. You’re making me abandon the name my parents gave me.”

He didn’t seem particularly upset even though he said that. It was understandable, though. It wasn’t like a guy would get all giddy just because another guy called him by his name.

In fact, he’d probably cringe and ask what was wrong with me if I called him \'Lafayette\'.

“If the Executive Manager says so, then that’s how it is. From today onwards, you’re Manager Varon.”

“This is ridiculous.”

The 2nd Manager shrugged with a laugh at the words of the 1st Manager, who had apparently evolved into a loyal subordinate.

“That won’t do. I’d have to get new business cards printed.”

“Well, I guess we have no choice then…”

The 1st Manager murmured in a sleepy voice as I patted her head.

This was still strange. How did the 1st Manager, of all people, become such a gentle and loyal subordinate? What were those two years of suffering for, then?

It seemed that the other managers felt the same way. The 3rd Manager shook his head and the 5th Manager quietly closed his eyes, looking like someone who just couldn’t process what they were witnessing.

“Elizabeth.”

Seeing their pitiful reactions, I realized that I needed to get the 1st Manager out of there.

Honestly, it was embarrassing to give her the ring in front of everyone. Besides, for the other managers who were watching, this would be like a cosmic horror show. A boss slipping a ring onto a subordinate’s finger—it was practically workplace harassment.

“Should we step outside for some fresh air?”

“Yes!”

At my suggestion, the 1st Manager beamed and stuck close by my side.

“…Why did I even bother crawling around?”

I heard the depressed muttering of the 5th Manager just before leaving the office, but I ignored it.

If even the 5th Manager was despairing this much, then it must’ve been something serious—but unfortunately, there wasn’t much I could do to help or comfort him for things that happened while I was away.

Hang in there, 5th Manager.

***There was a small garden attached to the Finance building. It was supposed to be a place where people could take a breather during work, but it was rarely used.

After all, not many civil servants had the luxury of visiting a garden during work hours. Who would have time to take a walk when there was work to be done?

Of course, the Executive Manager was an exception. The only one in the Ministry of Finance who could say anything to the Executive Manager was the Minister.

“It’s chilly. Get closer.”

As we stepped into the garden, the Executive Manager hooked his arm around mine and pulled me close.

The affectionate gesture from the Executive Manager came out of nowhere. At that, a wave of satisfaction surged through me, and I couldn’t help but smile.

Hold it in.

There was so much I wanted to say, like asking the Executive Manager if he missed me that much, or how he managed to hold back from this kind of affection. My lips were itching to say it all out loud.

But I couldn’t. I promised I wouldn’t mess around with him and that I’d behave and listen. I have to keep my word. This opportunity didn’t come easily.

“Just act naturally.”

“Huh?”

“Act like you usually do. Don’t hold back for no reason.”

The Executive Manager must’ve read my mind because he chuckled and said something that left me a bit confused.

Why…? Wasn’t it better if I acted well-behaved? I thought that I shouldn’t tease the Executive Manager and should instead play the part of a demure lady. Senior Aria said so, didn’t she?

“I want to be with the person named Elizabeth, not a doll who’s too scared to be herself.”

My heart skipped a beat at the Executive Manager’s casual words.

This wasn’t fair. How could he say these sweet things so bluntly, like telling me he liked me just the way I was, even though he was younger?

“Hehe, I guess you like it when I keep things interesting, huh?”

I tried to suppress the fluttering in my chest as I spoke. I’d just end up being led around by the Executive Manager if I let my embarrassment show.

“I’m just comforting a sister who cries so easily.”

However, his words made me shut up.

So unfair... I wouldn’t be able to retort when he says something like that...

“You cry so much that I thought I might have to comfort you forever.”

Yet, all my frustration melted away when the Executive Manager patted my head.

I wasn’t an easy woman, but the Executive Manager was the exception. If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t let them dare lay a hand on me.

“Then I guess I’ll have to cry every day. You’ll comfort me every day, right?”

“I shouldn\'t have said that…”

It wasn’t much of a conversation, but I couldn’t help laughing.

I felt happy. It felt like we were more than just a boss and subordinate; we were two people together, as a man and a woman. Even though I had worked with the Executive Manager for two years, I had never felt this way before.

Honestly, there wasn’t a specific moment that made me fall for him. I just started admiring his reliable, resolute, and decisive nature, and the way he took responsibility and moved forward. That was when my feelings grew.

To be honest, how could I not be interested when a young, handsome man acted so cool?

The problem is that I was the only one who fell.

...Unfortunately, these feelings were one-sided, so I never expressed them.

Besides, how could I possibly make a move when I knew what the Executive Manager had been through? I was never confident enough to replace Hecate.

But I’m happy right now.

Yes, I was happy now. Thanks to Lady Marghetta, the shadow hanging over the Executive Manager had lightened, and I was finally able to show my true feelings. And thankfully, he took my feelings positively.

I hadn’t received a direct answer to my confession yet, but wasn’t it pretty much confirmed at this point? The Executive Manager wasn’t the kind of person who would go on a date with someone just to push them away. He wasn’t the 2nd Manager, after all.

“I’ll be having a meeting with Marquis Iones soon.”

The Executive Manager mentioned my father as we walked arm-in-arm.

“He always worries so much about you whenever I see him.”

“He’s still so overprotective even though I’m already a grown woman.”

I pouted at the Executive Manager’s words.

Father really was going too far. I was already over twenty, and yet he still thinks he needed to keep an eye on everything I did.

“He’s only doing it because you’re grown up now. You’re twenty-five and still not thinking about marriage.”

“Couldn’t he at least think I’ve been holding out for true love until twenty-five?”

“Weren’t you already over twenty before you met me?”

How sneaky of him to counter with the truth.

I glanced down, feeling even more annoyed, when I heard the Executive Manager chucke.

What a bad little brother. One day, I’d have to show him my authority as the older sister.

“Here. Once he sees this, I doubt the Marquis will have anything more to say.”

I slowly lifted my head.

The idea of not hearing my father\'s nagging was pleasant, but the reason would be obvious if the man who’d been pressuring me about marriage became suddenly quiet.

And sure enough, when I looked up, I saw the small case in the Executive Manager\'s hand.

“I was thinking of adding some romantic lines to my proposal... but you don’t need that, do you?”

“No.”

I answered firmly. Romantic lines? What was the point? What mattered was whether or not there was a ring in my hand.

Honestly, I’d let go of all those romantic ideas ever since that night when I cried my heart out in front of the Executive Manager. At this point, things like romance and atmosphere didn’t matter. All I cared about was efficiency.

“I figured as much.”

The Executive Manager smiled again as he untied the red ribbon on the case. I liked the ribbon—it was red, the most beautiful color of all.

The ribbon slipped off with a soft sound and the case opened carefully, revealing the ring inside.

I felt happy, so happy. I was really, really happy, but…

“Um, Executive Manager?”

“Yes?”

“…Why is it only half a ring?”

I couldn’t suppress my instinct and asked.

I’d heard that Lady Marghetta also received a half-ring. Given how it started, I expected to get a half-ring, too.

But expectation and understanding were two different things. Why was a perfectly good ring cut in half…?

Is it because it’s a ring that symbolizes two becoming one?

That reasoning sounded plausible. If I heard it from someone else, I’d probably nod and think it was romantic.

But I had known the Executive Manager for more than a day or two. He wasn’t the type to pursue such romantic gestures on his own. He was the kind of person who’d buy whatever was convenient at the nearest shop.

“Isn’t it unique?”

Maybe it was just my imagination, but the Executive Manager seemed oddly pleased with my question about the half-ring.

Why...?

***Enen still hadn’t abandoned unnie.

And neither had Master!

— Yuris, how have you been?

“Unnie!”

It was in the middle of the day while Master was at work that the head butler called me. They said that someone was asking for me.

As soon as I heard that, I had a hunch. There was only one person who would be looking for me from outside. It could only be Penelia unnie.

“Why didn’t you contact me sooner?”

My pent-up sorrow and frustration spilled out as soon as I saw her face through the communication device.

If only she knew how much I worried and how much it tore me up inside every time I saw someone else getting ahead of her! I was also so scared that something might have happened to her!

— I’m sorry. I just didn’t have the time.

Her voice was firm but it also sounded very tired, so I looked at her closely.

...It seems true.

Unnie’s face was as expressionless as ever, but her eyes were the windows to her soul.

And those eyes were overflowing with fatigue. The unnie who always seemed like she was made of steel had tiredness in her eyes.

What on earth had she been through…?