104 — 104

I seriously wondered if I should accept the money. There was no way I could suddenly pull off my mask and announce, “Actually, I’m Cornelia. Surprise.”

“Don’t refuse—take it. You deserve it.”

Right. This was payment for my side job, no matter what my conscience said. I kept repeating that to myself as I accepted the relationship-advice fee from my lover. I didn’t even have words for how that felt.

The Duke smiled approvingly and, fortunately, didn’t pry into what had happened. Still, I couldn’t help but ask, “How long have you been dating—?”

We’d been seeing each other since the delegation, so about a month.

“As of today, it’s been thirty-five days.”

He remembered more precisely than I did.

“No major problems? Anything you want?”

He shook his head. “Even now, I’m at a loss for what to do—it’s almost a shame just to watch you.”

I felt embarrassingly self-conscious facing him. Apart from the mask, he was nothing less than a handsome wolf.

So that’s all hand-holding is.

We never announced our relationship openly, but both of us tacitly avoided making it obvious. It wouldn’t help, professionally or socially. After a moment’s thought, I decided to use the chance to gauge my boyfriend’s true feelings.

“Do you perhaps want to take physical intimacy further…?”

“What? It’s only been a month. That’s far too soon.”

He flailed, startled in a way that betrayed his usual composure; the skin beneath his mask flushed red. Clearly, he had no immunity in this area.

I’m the same, though. Should I protect him a bit?

It turned out that Vespera, Duke of Ariadne—the empire’s ultra-elite specimen—was an innocent when it came to romance.

“…She is too young.”

“…!”

Wait—age even here? So he wasn’t the one I needed to shield; he was protecting me.

I reminded myself: among the nobles I knew, he was the most devoted to duty. Cheating wasn’t a concern, but progress would be glacial.

“What are you talking about? She’s clearly an adult, isn’t she?”

“That may be true, but I’m not eager to move forward as if I’ve been waiting for it. I take her seriously. I want to advance slowly, step by step.”

He said it so earnestly I had nothing to answer. It felt warm to be treated not as a fleeting whim but as someone with a future. My chest felt light.

“If that’s how you feel, I’ll fully respect it.”

Even without a single touch, my thirst felt quenched.

“Next number, please come in.”

The door opened and a mild-looking Chancellery applicant shuffled in, visibly nervous. When she sat, I scanned her resume and asked professionally, “Please introduce yourself.”

“Ah, yes!”

She swallowed and began in a trembling voice. “Hello. I’m Selena Laurentia. I previously worked as a manager at the Demian Trading House. I mainly handled document organization and accounting. I applied for the Chancellery assistant clerk position because I want to do work for the imperial people. I believe incidents like bridge collapses should never happen again.”

After interviewing thirteen assistant clerk candidates, I finally met someone who could actually speak—and I cheered inwardly.

We’d changed the hiring process: modern practical and personality interviews. I’d heard the Chancellery had a culture of absurd questions. It was astonishing.

‘What business does your family mainly run?’

‘Which families are you close to?’

‘Can you drink well?’

‘Isn’t it time to find a husband rather than a day’s job?’

‘Which academy did you attend?’

‘What do your family members do?’

‘If you have any special skills, let’s see them.’

Most questions focused on family background or political connections, not job competence. Compared to that, the way the Minister of Finance scouted me seemed almost normal.

Once I understood why the Chancellery had been such a mess, I decided to run the assistant clerk interviews myself. Hence this current situation.

None of the earlier candidates could introduce themselves properly, but Selena’s voice sounded terribly familiar.

Could it be that Penguin?

Only a few candidates remained and we needed two hires. I had planned to reject or recommend most elsewhere, but now it looked like we had to save our own department first.

“What would you do if a boss asked you to do something you didn’t want to or couldn’t accept?”

It’s a standard interview question.

Selena thought, then answered, “A boss has more experience than me, so unless it’s illegal, I would follow orders at first. And I would ask questions: I’d say I find this hard to understand for these reasons—could you explain?”

She’s really good.

For one, she’s not egotistical like Eldo. And she clearly opposes illegal acts. A superior’s order doesn’t make something right. Not every boss is competent or moral.

I asked other questions, and Selena—whom I suspected was the Penguin—gave faultless answers.

“Any final remarks?”

A bonus question. If none, the interview ends; if there is one, it can earn or lose points.

“If I pass, what kind of work would I be doing?”

Pass.

I let out a long breath and marked her as accepted. Her proactive interest deserved credit. You can’t fault a newbie for answering this well in a first interview.

Disqualifying her just because her identity might be discovered would be absurd and unfair. I thought about that as I finished the interview.

The rest continued, but no one matched her clarity. Lukan and Elysia beside me nodded in satisfaction.

Elysia muttered while organizing documents, “If those two had interviewed, they’d be instantly disqualified.”

Exactly what I thought.

By the time I finished interviews and caught up on work, quitting time had long passed. In the company, team leads rarely left on time; now I understood why.

The Chancellery encouraged people to leave once duties were done, so I was the only one left in the office. Lukan said he’d wait, but I firmly told him not to—ridiculous.

This was the first time I was the last to leave here. It had been common in my previous world, but the nostalgia lingered. I snacked on treats Lukan had bought and, with nothing urgent, walked out slowly.

“You’re back?”

The Duke stood at the entrance, waiting.

“Did you wait for me, by any chance?”

“I didn’t see your face even once today.”

There had been so many applicants I hadn’t left the interview room except for a restroom break.

He probably thought I was leaving on time and waited.

“Did you wait long? I’m late getting off today…”

He chuckled, took my bag casually, and extended his other hand. I’d grown used to holding hands, but moments like this still embarrassed me.

What was that question about wanting to move forward for? I can’t handle this.

Since it was late, we decided to walk through the Imperial Palace gardens instead of continuing the date. It was a special route only possible because the Duke was royal, and with no one around we walked comfortably.

“Give me your bag. I can carry it.”

“It’s heavy. No.”

“What do you mean heavy—this would look bad: the Duke carrying a woman’s bag.”

“Why care what others think? I’m offering to carry my tired lover’s bag. If you have any strength left, how about lifting my hand instead?”

He loosened his grip. When I suddenly lost my balance and staggered, he hastily tightened his hold.

“…”

“Now listen to me.”

“Yes…”

My mouth opened without meaning to, and the hand touching his swung gently.

“Did you have a good day, Duke?”

“I praised Illya for improving his document drafting skills and he cried.”

If that’s the case, he really had reason to cry—being recognized after always being told he was incompetent.

I silently cheered, Mr. Bull, well done.

“That’s wonderful. I hope you get praised by the Duke often from now on.”

“If you worked like you do, he might praise you until he got sick of you.”

“Ugh, there you go again.”

“I’m not flattering you. How many times must I say it for you to accept the praise? You are…”

We shared our days and chatted until we lost track of time. Despite our difference in status, we communicated well and enjoyed it. It might be because the relationship was new and we were still adapting, but neither of us felt forced or fake.

“Hoho, let’s sit for a moment on that lamppost bench.”

“Sounds good.”

We turned the corner toward a lit lamppost, and the Duke suddenly stopped.

“Duke? Uh…?”

I followed his gaze and froze at the scene before us.

A man and a woman were pressed together, kissing fiercely as if to devour one another.

I swallowed involuntarily.