Chapter 101
<Event ‘Interception Preparation’ progress has been updated!>
- Progress: 95%
“Adrian, this one.”
“Bring it here.”
Lounging around in Adrian’s office, I got up at the automatically updated progress notification. The documents Adrian was handling were at a level of confidentiality that I couldn’t touch. Although the progress was slower compared to when I had first joined, it was steadily increasing.
Because he refused to hand over any classified documents, I was more at ease, but Adrian also prevented me from returning to Lucius’s palace. In the end, all I could do was continue watching him work in his office.
Adrian would glance at me occasionally as he worked but never spoke, leaving me utterly bored.
Rolling around on the sofa in the corner of the office, I leapt to my feet with Adrian’s permission. He definitely told me to bring it, right?
“Give it to me.”
Adrian, assuming I was handing over a document, extended his hand without even looking at me.
I turned his hand over and poured healing ointment on the back of it.
“What is this?”
“A scar removal ointment. You never used the one I gave you, did you?”
I took the time to make it, yet he hadn’t used it even once.
As I asked bluntly, Adrian flexed the hand I had grabbed and gave a faint smile.
“I told you before, I don’t care about having scars. Do they look unpleasant to you?”
“It’s not about appearance; it’s about emotion. Every time I see them, I’m reminded of how you suffered, locked up in the herb chamber.”
As I rubbed the ointment into his hand, Adrian put the documents down on his desk and turned to look at me.
Then, as if encouraging me to continue, he held out his other hand as well.
Caught off guard, I hesitated while holding both of Adrian’s hands, only snapping back to my senses when he urged me.
“Why are you stopping? Keep going.”
“You need to relax your hands if I’m going to continue.”
Adrian, who had been entwining his fingers, loosened his grip and gave me a boyishly innocent smile.
Under Adrian’s watchful gaze, I diligently worked my fingers. I carefully applied the ointment from the back of his hands to his long, neatly shaped fingers, then smiled lightly as I observed how the ointment made his hands shine.
“Just a few applications, and the scars will fade significantly.”
As I rubbed his well-shaped nails, Adrian curled his fingers, catching my hand.
The smile on his face grew a little more serious. Applying a slight pressure to my fingers, Adrian asked, “Are you planning to suddenly disappear again, like last time?”
“What?”
“You told me before that once I recovered, you wouldn’t be able to contact me. If all these scars disappear, will it be like that again…?”
“Adrian.”
It was a rather impressive deduction, but this time, he was wrong. There was no reason for the system to control me now.
“I won’t disappear anymore. I’ll stay by your side.”
“That…”
“Saintess!”
Speaking while looking into Adrian’s eyes, I turned my gaze toward the voice calling me from outside. It was Lucius.
“Lucius is here. I should step outside for a moment…”
As I loosened my grip, intending to go out to Lucius, Adrian suddenly stood up.
Startled by Adrian’s abrupt movement, I stumbled back against the desk. My hand, slick with ointment, accidentally brushed against my cheek.
Adrian, who had been touching my face, gazed down at me before slowly lowering his head.
“Adrian?”
“I am still grateful to Lucius.”
“Oh, right. He did save you.”
Did he really need to say that so close to my face?
Feeling a bit tense for a moment, I gave a slight nod.
“Saintess!”
“Adrian, I think I should go out and see Lucius.”
“You can’t.”
The voice calling me from outside grew louder. As I turned to leave, Adrian grabbed my chin and spoke sharply.
“Stay here.”
“But Lucius is looking for me.”
“Wait.”
“Adrian? Adrian, where are you going?!”
Pressing me down into his chair, Adrian walked toward the door.
Was he aware that the desk was covered in documents I wasn’t supposed to see? He must have known.
Yet Adrian left the office without concern for whether I read them or not, heading into the reception room.
Hmm… Can I take a look?
“Adrian, where is the Saintess?”
“She still has tasks to assist with.”
“Do you even know how many days it’s been? Even if she offered to help, she should at least be getting proper sleep.”
“Her sleep schedule is being appropriately managed, so there is no need to worry.”
“Do you really think she can rest properly in the office? I’ll take her to her room today…”
“When the Saintess stays with you, her rest efficiency seems to drop significantly. Or am I mistaken?”
Listening to the conversation through the door, I found myself nodding absentmindedly. Adrian had a point.
I never got proper sleep when I was with Lucius.
Clearly, Adrian had been aware that we engaged in intimate relations without fail every night. Of course, he had seen it every morning, so it was no surprise.
I glanced down at the documents spread across the desk.
Was there any information on classified documents?
While listening to their conversation, I quickly skimmed through the papers. The document on top detailed the Emperor’s current condition.
‘Critical’—the first thing that caught my eye was the statement that the Emperor’s condition was extremely severe. He was barely holding on to life, and it seemed there was nothing more that could be done.
Is it that bad? Since this wasn’t particularly relevant to me, I skimmed through and moved on to another document.
Hmm, not this one either…
‘Holy Kingdom’
Ah. There’s something here.
I spotted a document with only its upper part peeking out from beneath the pile of papers. Glancing between the closed door and the document, I hesitated.
If it contained information about the Holy Kingdom, it might be significant. However, if I pulled it out and read it, Adrian would likely notice that I had gone through the documents.
“…Mistaken…”
“Today, the Saintess…”
Hearing the ongoing argument outside about my whereabouts, I reached out my hand.
I’ll just take a quick look and put it back in its place, right?
Although I had been assisting with imperial affairs, my true role was that of a Holy Kingdom spy. This was the most crucial setting, and I had never forgotten it. If I failed to retrieve the stolen document from the Holy Kingdom, I would fall into a bad ending even if I successfully captured every character.
No matter the route, I had to retrieve and read the document to enter a happy ending—this was the most critical event.
No matter what, the ‘Player’ must read the classified document.
Yes, no matter what. Resolving myself, I reached for it.
I’ll just sneak a peek and return it to its place.
I carefully pulled out the document concerning the Holy Kingdom. Taking care not to shuffle the papers, I placed it in my hands. Just then, a system window popped up.
<Information regarding the ‘Holy Kingdom’s Secret Document’ has been acquired!>
- Original owner: ‘Lucius’
- Copy owner: ‘Third Prince’
The document itself contained no content, but instead, there was information about its ownership. At some point, the copy that had been in the Second Prince’s possession had transferred to the Third Prince.
The original is what matters; the copy is of little importance.
Whether the Second Prince or the Third Prince held it, they wouldn’t be able to read it anyway.
What’s crucial is the original held by Lucius. How do I retrieve it?
I scrutinized the document carefully, but no new information was generated. Sighing, I placed it back where it was.
For something I reached out for with such resolve, the information gained was rather disappointing.
Well, if it were that easy to obtain, this game wouldn’t have earned a reputation for being difficult.
I let out a sigh of regret and tidied up the papers. As I aligned them to match my memory of their original placement, Adrian entered the office.
Watching him approach, I asked naturally, “What about Lucius?”
“He left. Until the preparations are complete, there’s no need for you to return to Sir Lucius’s palace.”
Returning with a relieved expression, Adrian declared this with satisfaction.
It seemed the winner of today’s debate was Adrian.
“What were you looking at?”
“I was reading about the Emperor’s condition…”
“I see.”
“You’re not angry?”
“It’s something you already knew. There’s no harm in you reading it.”
Watching me sit so closely at the desk, Adrian checked its state and spoke nonchalantly before helping me up.
As I was pulled up by Adrian’s hand, he calmly took a seat in the chair. I tilted my head and asked, “You said you needed me?”
“So you were listening.”
“Then why won’t you let me leave if you’re not giving me any tasks?”
Having lost my seat to Adrian, I leaned my head and asked, to which he replied indifferently, “I’m going to give you something now.”
“Alright, what do I need to do? Just assign me anything.”
Doing nothing and lying around was far more frustrating than working. I spoke to Adrian with a voice full of enthusiasm.
Seeing me clench my fists and overact in enthusiasm, Adrian didn’t respond. Instead, he pulled me onto his lap.
“Huh?”
“Is this uncomfortable?”
“Uh, no…?”
Seated on his thigh, I answered blankly.
“Then stay like this.”
“Uh…”
“If you’re tired, you can sleep.”
Wrapping his arms around my waist, Adrian spoke monotonously. Unlike when Lucius embraced me, there was no sensuality in his touch.
It was as if he were hugging a large stuffed bear—he simply held me without any emotion and flipped through documents.
What’s this about…?
If he had touched me improperly, I would have understood, but since there was no sense of passion, it just felt strange.
What is he trying to do?
Holding me absentmindedly, Adrian began organizing documents.
“Ah, don’t read the papers.”
When my gaze unintentionally shifted toward the documents, Adrian curtly stopped me. As I was about to nod, I noticed something smudged on the top of the ‘Holy Kingdom’ document I had read earlier.
A faint but distinct stain had appeared on the previously pristine, crease-free paper. Squinting, I focused on the circular smudge and immediately recognized what it was.
That’s the ointment I applied to Adrian’s hand.
The ointment from my fingers must have seeped into the edge of the paper.
“There are classified documents here, so don’t…”
Adrian reached for the stack of documents I had touched. If he looked at them, he would realize that I had read them.
<If Adrian’s suspicion increases, the progress of the route ‘Aberration of Virtue’ will also increase!>
A timely system window appeared. Nervously shifting on Adrian’s thigh, I panicked.
T-this is bad. I can’t let him see it!
“Saintess?”
As I twisted my body, Adrian furrowed his brows and looked at me.
Meeting his gaze, I decided to resolve this crisis in the way I was most familiar with.
“Saint…”
Pulling Adrian’s head down, I lifted my body and pressed my lips to his. His large green eyes widened in shock, trembling wildly.
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