Chapter 25
Episode 25
Seeing his face, which seemed to say that making me do housework for the rest of my life under his control was a proposal, left me speechless.
"As a matter of personal preference, I prefer the man to propose first..."
I clamped my mouth shut, horrified at what had slipped out. It was a side effect of having a big mouth. I hoped he hadn't heard and quickly tried to improvise.
"No, I mean..."
"Would you like me to?"
He asked, his eyes softening into a gentle curve. I felt like he had inadvertently poked a weak spot.
That man is a fox. A nine-tailed one at that.
I was captivated by his uniquely charming smile, with a dimple that deepened on one cheek.
How could I explain the unfamiliar sensation that even made my fingertips tingle? I never dreamed that someone's appearance could make my heart race.
No, it's not just the appearance. It's the combination of his unique languid atmosphere and voice, and the way he treats me kindly. Of course, that's probably because I'm his employer.
"Dear housekeeper, that's not it. And let's use objects in our sentences. This conversation is too suspicious."
I bit my lip, trying to look away. It was my fault for thinking I wouldn't be seduced by hiring such a fatal housekeeper.
When he brought up the proposal with that bewitching face, I even planned for my retirement. How far am I going to fall?
As I mentally lashed myself, Dante pressed a tissue to the cut on my teacup-stained finger as if to stop the bleeding.
"I understand. There's more blood than I thought."
"Didn't you squeeze it out on purpose just now?"
"I'll put some medicine on your wound, so please wait a moment."
Dante neatly ignored my words and left to get the medicine.
I sat alone at the table, staring at the very slight cut.
"This is strange. I don't even know myself."
At first, I was determined to fire him, but now I want him to be by my side.
How can my mind change so quickly? There must be scientific evidence for the old saying that a person's heart is like a reed.
I rested my forehead on the table and sighed.
Maybe I'm just afraid of the loneliness of being alone. Like when I was left alone after my grandfather passed away, I'm afraid I'll stop like a machine that's run out of fuel.
Before I knew it, he came back with the medicine, applied it to my finger, and put a bandage on it.
"Be careful not to get water in it, or it will fester."
Judging by his tone, it was definitely the veiled language of a noble lady, subtly telling me not to interfere with the housework.
"I can help with the housework, you know? Why do you keep excluding me?"
I expressed my feelings of being left out, and he noticed my disappointment, asking with a serious face.
"Master, are you bored these days?"
"...That's not it."
"Shall I play with you?"
"Do you think I'm a child? I'm a busy person too, you know?"
* * *
As an adult, I refused Dante, who was smiling like an uncle and offering to play with me, and quickly left the mansion.
It's definitely not because I was chased out by the housekeeper's scheme or provocation. It's not because I'm embarrassed or ashamed either. It just happens to be the day to water the fields.
I pushed up the straw hat on my head and looked around at the bright sunshine. The weather was clear, making the garden scenery look even more refreshing.
"It's a good day for farming."
As I was carrying a heavy bucket of water to water the seedlings I had planted, I dropped the bucket in surprise as soon as I discovered something rummaging through the field.
"No!"
At first, I thought it was a wild boar or a roe deer that had invaded my field. They were common destroyers of crops when I lived in the countryside.
But after seeing its black body, hard scales, horns on its head, and yellow eyes, I knew who it was.
It was none other than Toto.
That damn dragon is eating all the crops I planted!
"Stop eating my cabbage! It's for my detox juice!"
It tore up and trampled on the lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and even the perilla seedlings that I had managed to get.
"I can't live like this!"
All I could do was clench my fists and shout from a distance. Fear outweighed my frustration.
"Pii?"
Toto, who came to ruin my field, tilted his head with an innocent expression.
"That's right! Dante is going to punish you!"
"Piii."
Despite my stern scolding, Toto didn't stop. Instead, he stood in the middle of the field, braced himself, and began to shake his body.
Is he... suddenly defecating?
The crops that were hit by the feces melted away, and smoke rose from the soil.
"Is that hydrochloric acid or something?"
He's definitely looking down on me. My shoulders slumped with helplessness and a sense of loss.
"Ah, a bad harvest. My small and precious field..."
I swept back my bangs and lamented. It was a field I had cultivated while fighting against Mathias's oppression that it ruined the aesthetics of the garden.
Just then, I heard the clanking sound of armor behind me, and then Killian's worried voice.
"What's wrong?"
I turned to him with the face of a farmer who had been helplessly struck by a natural disaster.
"Toto ravaged the field like a wild boar and ate all the crops. Do you know the pain of a poor farmer who has ruined the year's harvest and is worried about winter?"
"I am truly sorry. It is my fault for being careless."
"He's the one who did wrong. He even took a dump in front of me."
I conveyed the facts of the damage and made a regretful expression, and Killian bowed his head and apologized repeatedly.
"I will compensate for everything and take responsibility, so please be lenient."
I stood with my arms crossed and scanned him with a critical eye.
"You'll have to take responsibility in a big way. Buy new seedlings and replant them. Especially, perilla leaves are hard to get unless it's the day the merchant ship comes."
That's right. Toto had crushed my dream of wrapping meat in perilla leaves.
Killian nodded.
"I will. And I will make sure this never happens again."
He whistled, and Toto trampled on even the few remaining crops and trotted over. I began to scold Toto harshly.
"Toto. Dad is getting scolded instead of you because of you. Did you do wrong, or not?"
"Toto, apologize to Master quickly."
"Pii..."
Toto finally understood the situation and drooped his tail and ears. But how does a dragon apologize?
"Pii."
Toto bowed his head to me.
He knows how to apologize.
Okay, he showed a deeply remorseful attitude, so that's enough. I'm a generous human being.
I'll forgive him, so should I ask if I can pull his tail once? The way he's nodding is quite cute.
I've never been close to him because I've been too scared, so Toto and I are still awkward. Maybe I can get a little closer?
"Killian, is there a way to get closer to a dragon? I want to get along with him."
At my curious question, Killian raised his head and looked at me.
"Dragons like those who are stronger than themselves."
I made a regretful face, having been rejected before I even started.
"I guess that won't work for me. Then I'll have to stay awkward forever."
"As I said before, Master is not weak."
At that moment, Toto, who had been bowing his head, slyly raised his eyes and looked at me. Those eyes, they're the eyes that look at the weak.
"Toto is looking at me with contempt. How do you explain that?"
But that man had a habit of not answering difficult questions.
Instead of answering, Killian climbed onto Toto's back and said.
"First, I will quickly get some catnip for reconciliation. Toto, let's go."
"It's not catnip, it's perilla leaves. It's sesame..."
"I'll bring a stray dog too."
No! Is it because he can't hear well because of the helmet? Or does he not know what it is?
Before I could correct him, Toto spread his wings and flew away with Killian on his back.
I stared blankly at them as they flew further and further away, then looked at the pile of feces in the field and shouted at the sky.
"Take the poop with you!"
But the damn dragon and his master had already flown far away over the mountains and disappeared.
"Oh my god... It's not even elephant poop."
In the end, I cleaned it all up. It was heavy, and so toxic that it even melted the shovel. To dump something that can't even be used as fertilizer here.
There are so many incidents and accidents since the number of people in the mansion has increased. Still, I thought that the lively atmosphere now was better than being quiet.
I brought in the mastermind as a housekeeper
