Chapter 53
“…So, your name is… De—”
But that was fine. He could learn her name slowly.
“De…”
“Date?”
“…What?”
“Go on a date. With me.”
“…What?”
Gray was so startled that he just repeated himself.
Deborah’s amethyst-like purple eyes were shining kindly.
It took Gray a moment before he finally spoke.
“Sorry, but… is there a reason you’re saying this to me? It’s just… so sudden.”
“I like you.”
“You don’t really know me.”
“So far, I like everything I’ve seen. That’s why I want to go on a date—to see if I like the rest, too.”
“…”
“And also to see if I can make you like me.”
Panting heavily, Willie drooled while watching the two of them.
Even to a dog, it was quite the scene—especially seeing a huge man sweating nervously over being asked out for the first time in his life.
“I…”
What should he say?
The kind of danger Gray felt now was something he’d only ever experienced on a battlefield.
‘Well, this is happening… but wow, what a personality…’
When he’d rejected one of the main building maids, Riana had scolded him for “just giving her to the dog.”
This time, he couldn’t just toss the matter aside.
But because of the promise he’d made to his savior, he had to reject her firmly.
‘Alright… be honest, explain the situation, make it clear it’s impossible. A tactical retreat.’
Clenching both fists like he was going into battle, Gray spoke.
“I can’t date anyone. Not you, not anyone.”
“Then how about just a simple walk?”
Damn. She’d changed the attack route.
Gray quickly blocked.
“I can’t take walks either. Not with a woman.”
Deborah’s face dimmed a little.
“…Why?”
“I don’t think I need to explain that.”
Deborah’s rosy lips pressed into a straight line.
Gray wondered if he’d been too blunt, so he added an apology.
“Sorry. I’ll be going now.”
He bowed his head and was about to leave—
—when Deborah spoke the name of the most important person to him, forcing him to stop.
“Is it because of Miss Riana?”
Gray turned back, startled.
“How do you know that?”
That promise he’d made with Riana—to never fall in love.
Had Riana told this woman?
Now that he thought about it, Riana never actually said it was a secret.
“So it is because of her.”
“Well… since you already know, yes. That’s how it is.”
Deborah nodded, as if she’d expected it.
She had guessed already—that Gray and Riana were romantically involved.
She’d been watching Gray, so of course she’d noticed moments when he seemed unusually close to the maid from the Isolation Tower.
Even this morning, she’d gone to the square for an event and seen the two of them standing together.
The way Gray had looked at Riana made it hard for Deborah to stay nearby, so she’d left.
‘Hearing it confirmed from him still… hurts.’
Deborah forced a smile and lowered her head.
“I understand. If that’s how you feel, Mr. Gray.”
Gray nodded and left with Willie.
As soon as he was gone, Deborah dropped down onto the grass.
‘One-sided love… is harder than I thought.’
So that’s how Allen must have felt.
She suddenly felt respect for her old friend.
“Allen…”
She whispered his name softly. The name she could no longer call whenever she wanted.
From now on, she’d have to face her exhaustion alone. But she didn’t regret ending things with Allen—
—because she’d given her heart to someone else, leaving nothing left to give to anyone else.
Her attention, her thoughts, her gaze—they were all tied to one person now.
“Haa…”
Deborah buried her face in her knees with a pained sigh.
Being “the other person” in someone’s heart was more painful than she’d imagined.
Meanwhile…
The moment Deborah left the grassy yard, the bushes nearby began to shake.
“Ugh, my legs are numb!”
Riana groaned as she stretched out her cramped legs.
The patch of dirt beneath the tree roots was just enough space for her to sit with her legs bent.
She leaned back against the trunk, replaying what she’d just seen.
‘So… Deborah was serious about Gray.’
Since the Genevieve Castle incident, there hadn’t been much interaction between them, so she’d thought it was just her imagination. But she’d been completely wrong.
‘Well… at least Gray turned her down…’
That thought lasted only a second.
‘—Wait, no!’
An enormous misunderstanding had just been born.
‘Deborah now thinks Gray rejected her because of me!’
In other words—she thought Riana and Gray were… together.
Riana shuddered at the disgusting idea.
‘Thanks a lot, Gray. Now I’m officially the heroine’s rival.’
One more “villainess achievement” added to her record.
She was wiggling her toes, trying to get the blood flowing again, when a chilling voice brushed her ear.
“There are exactly two people lately who’ve been making Killian Droche’s nights miserable.”
“Kyaaa!”
Riana screamed in fright, but the owner of the voice stepped calmly out from behind the tree.
“The current maid of the Isolation Tower… and me.”
Brilliant blond hair, eyes as black as his soul.
Troy Diares—the prince of the kingdom.
She’d seen him from a distance before, but never this close. She was frozen in shock.
His cold voice continued.
“I didn’t expect we’d have something else in common…”
Like the distasteful hobby of stalking Deborah Millicent.
‘Wow… he’s actually aware he’s a stalker.’
He was full of surprises.
And the fact that he’d been hiding here in the flower bed all this time was even more shocking.
‘He must’ve hidden his presence.’
Truly a professional stalker. Meanwhile, she’d been sitting there cramping up.
But while she was distracted, Troy’s hand shot out.
He grabbed her neck.
“Gkk—!”
His large fingers pressed into her throat. She couldn’t speak, and her airway was being crushed.
“End your relationship with that knight.”
Riana’s flushed face twisted in confusion.
‘What the hell is this lunatic talking about?’
If he’d overheard the same conversation as Deborah, he would have the same ridiculous misunderstanding—that she and Gray were close.
But telling her to “end it”?
Not something you’d expect from a man who supposedly liked Deborah.
Reading her confusion, Troy grinned widely.
“Oh, right. Millicent will be my wife someday.”
“…”
How many times had she rejected his proposals now?
Riana narrowed her eyes, unimpressed, but Troy went on unfazed.
“That doesn’t mean I’m fine with her being heartbroken by another guy.”
“…Ugh!”
His grip tightened, making her legs kick involuntarily.
Afraid he might actually break her neck, she gathered magic to reinforce her spine and neck.
It kept her bones safe, but didn’t help her breathe.
‘I’m actually going to die like this…’
Her hand brushed against a tree root.
She grabbed it and squeezed. Instinctively, magic surged into her hand.
The root crumbled in her strengthened grip. She wanted to smash that hand into the prince’s temple—
—but she held back. ‘Hold it in. As long as I can.’
Unaware of her inner struggle, Troy continued his threat.
“I’m going to give Deborah Millicent everything she wants. That’s how I propose. So I need you to cooperate.”
Apparently, the thought that giving Gray to Deborah might ruin his chances with her had never even crossed his mind.
But then, as someone born with the name Diares, arrogance was practically his birthright.
Proposing to Deborah was his version of being polite—he could just order his family to make her princess if he wanted.
“Break up with that knight.”
He spat the words out and finally threw her aside.
“Cough! Cough! Gah!”
Riana lay on the ground, gasping for breath.
By the time she could breathe again, Troy had vanished as quietly as he’d appeared.
‘What the hell was that…’
Flat on her back, Riana muttered curses.
“Damn it… I almost died just now!”
Whether from suffocation, or from losing control and attacking a prince—both would have gotten her killed.
Oh, and before the execution, she probably would’ve been fined for hiding that she was a mage.
In the original story Boss, Please Be My Employee, none of the male leads ever hurt anyone for Deborah’s sake.
‘But this twisted world? Yeah, here, love-crazed male leads apparently add “eliminate annoying people” to their list of achievements.’
