The Male Lead’s Younger Sister is Still Sad Today

Episode 17

* * *

One should never ignore their intuition. If you have a bad feeling, something is undoubtedly amiss.

The issue was that I felt this way now.

I had come to this conclusion after thinking about it continuously since that day, but it seemed like it was only a matter of time before Riden found out that I was a girl.

The problem was that I had become complacent since he had never found out during my stay at Marquis Seville.

Was it a mistake to come into the Duke’s residence with Abel in the first place?

But with my family on the brink of ruin, and who knew if my relatives would continue to provide for us?

Should I leave the Duke’s residence now, even with my blood relatives on the verge of dying?

I mulled it over intensely, but the answer was always the same. No matter how much I thought about it, persuading Abel in any way and leaving the Duke’s residence together was the best option.

After all, Isis’s memories would return eventually. In that case, Abel could have a happy ending without forcing himself to die.

At the moment, Abel was stubborn and wanted to stay at the Duke’s residence.

And that was the extent of my dilemma.

“Let’s stop.”

Abel was the one who brought up the idea of stopping first.

“What did you just say?”

“I found a job at a café near the Clock Tower. It might not be a great place to live with the money we’ve saved so far, but we should be able to find a place to live for the two of us. Let’s work at the café and start over.”

I had never expected that Abel would bring up this topic before I did. I wondered if I had heard her incorrectly and asked her again.

“Are you being serious right now?”

“Yes.”

He was dead serious now, his face devoid of any signs of laughter.

Honestly, I was grateful that Abel was willing to come out with me. If we left the Duke’s residence, at least he wouldn’t have to die.

The only thing that made me uneasy was whether Isis would regain her memories even if we strayed this far from the original plot.

If the storyline deviated, there was a chance that the well-drawn happy ending would be ruined.

Of course, if Isis couldn’t remember us, I would take Abel and try to get her to remember by bringing her to the places she frequented.

It was possible that she would recall her memories, even if it meant making a scene.

If that’s not possible, I thought I might as well hit Isis in the back of the head with a hammer or something.

Anyway, what I cared about most at the moment was preventing Abel’s death.

I had to suppress the urge to scream with joy.

“Don’t change your mind later.”

“Of course not.”

I was worried Abel would change his mind, so I quickly stood up and opened the dresser.

Inside, thanks to Abel, who enjoyed writing resignation letters as a hobby, there were numerous resignation letters that had already been prepared. Of course, they were all written with my name.

I took one of the resignation letters from the pile and, as Abel had become a master of writing them, he quickly wrote one more resignation letter with his beautiful handwriting and then wrote his name on it for the first time.

“Submit yours as well.”

“Alright!”

Ah, did I answer too excitedly?

With a forced gloomy expression, I held the two resignation letters close to my chest and left the room with light steps.

Leaving the Duke’s residence so soon after entering it pricked my conscience a little, but it wasn’t the first time the Duke’s servants had changed.

I went straight to meet Mr. Henry.

Henry was busy writing in the ledger and didn’t look at me once.

“Going out again today?”

“No, I came for another reason today.”

I brought out the resignation letters I had kept in my bosom and handed them to him.

It was exhilarating to have the thought of confidently submitting my resignation.

Without looking at the envelope I handed him, Henry glanced at it for a moment, then turned his gaze back to the ledger and twirled his pen.

“I don’t accept bribes.”

“…Mr. Henry, do you really see me as that kind of person?”

“It’s not a bribe, is it?”

I couldn’t say anything in response to Henry’s words, which stabbed at me.

With a sheepish smile, I could only stare at him. Henry looked at me seriously, as if doubting his ears.

“…Is it really a resignation letter?”

“I’m sorry, but that’s what it has become…”

Mr. Henry’s face turned somewhat more serious after doubting his own ears. However, that was also only for a moment. Soon after, Henry opened his mouth with widened eyes.

“…It can’t be a resignation letter, right?”

He put down the pen he had in his hand on the table, making a thud sound, and took the two resignation letters I handed him and quickly began to read them.

Apparently, he didn’t quite understand the reasons written in the resignation letters, so he asked me.

“Can I ask what the exact rea…son is?”

I summarized the verbose reasons in the resignation letters in one word.

“Work is difficult, and my brother and I are still young. We want to try self-improvement.”

“Do you have a lot of saved money? There’s no place that pays as well as here, even though it’s difficult to work here because of the Duke. I know he’s not the easiest person to work for… If that’s the issue, I’ll change your responsibilities. Are you close to Flynn? Going alone? Or should I assign you to Peter?”

“It’s okay! The Duke is kind, and…”

“It’s hard to find someone who isn’t as scared of the Duke as you. Not many people work quickly with so little experience.”

Although Mr. Henry looked at me with pleading eyes, I couldn’t help it due to another problem.

When I couldn’t find anything to say and gave him a rueful smile, Henry eventually opened his mouth as if there was nothing he could do.

“…Alright, thanks for telling me in advance without running away secretly.”

“No, that’s only natural.”

The servants who disappeared in the middle of the night without settling their accounts were incomprehensible to Henry. Regardless of how hard it was, you should finish your work and leave. What a waste of money you’ve earned so far to run away like that.

Henry let out a small sigh and spoke.

“…If you ever change your mind, let me know anytime, okay?”

“Yes!”

I felt a little disappointed to think that I would be quitting.

Then the bell rang like crazy. It was the Duke’s call.

If anyone with ears was here, they would have heard that loud bell, and the Duke was on the hasty side.

Henry looked disgusted upon hearing the sound.

Nevertheless, I felt an inexplicable surge of energy all over my body because I handed in the resignation letters.

I hope Abel felt the same way as me.

I smiled brightly, bid Henry farewell, and quickly headed to the Duke’s room.

* * *

When I entered the room, Raiden was sitting silently in front of a table filled with fancy desserts.

I wanted to ask him if he was doing some sort of austerities, but that would be improper as a servant, so I kept quiet.

“Your Grace… did you call for me?”

As I approached Raiden with cautious steps, he turned his head while his chin was resting on his hand, deeply immersed in dessert exploration. His strange gaze was instantly fixed on me. I stopped in my tracks, unable to do anything except roll my eyes.

Has he already realized that I’m a woman?

At that moment, I stopped dead in my tracks for a fleeting moment, while a myriad of thoughts raced through my mind.

What brought me back to reality was when Raiden, who had his mouth closed, opened it.

“Chase.”

“You called me.”

“Sit down.”

I recalled the hellish drinking session from the last time.

I awkwardly took a seat on the couch across from him. Raiden looked at me attentively, making me feel as if I were about to choke, even though I hadn’t eaten anything.

Is this dessert spread some kind of offering for me?

Raiden’s gaze was quite intense. To exaggerate a bit, it felt like his gaze could pierce through my body.

I couldn’t bring myself to meet Raiden’s eyes, so I stared into space for a moment and then glanced at him briefly. He was still looking at me.

Suddenly, he spoke, “Eat.”

On the table, there were plenty of desserts piled high with my favorite chocolates.

Raiden nodded slightly and said, “Well, then, I will… eat gratefully.”

I’m not sure of the exact reason, but I felt like I should eat when he told me to eat. I picked up the fork and cut a piece of chocolate cake that could fit in my mouth, then I took a bite.

Even as I ate, my mind was racing. Was he realizing that I’m a woman? Is he doing this to reward me for eating well?

Raiden tapped his fingers against the armrest, then asked me, “What… is there anything wrong?”

“No,” I replied.

“Any injuries?”

“No,” I repeated.

As my words ended, Raiden’s narrowed eyes scrutinized me intensely. Because of his gaze, I lowered my head and continued eating the cake.

Despite the situation, the cake was so delicious that it almost brought tears to my eyes.

Raiden seemed like he wanted to say something, but he remained silent while I focused on eating. I wondered if he was waiting for me to finish out of consideration, so I hastened my pace.

It would have been better if he had said something like, “I already know you’re a woman, so let’s get this punishment over with.” No, maybe I was already being treated like a dog.

It was when there was about half of the cake left in front of me.

“Your Grace, if you’ll excuse me for a moment.”

I heard Mr. Henry’s voice from outside the room. Raiden ordered him to come in, and Mr. Henry, who had been holding onto some documents, entered the room briskly.

Mr. Henry approached Raiden and started discussing matters related to the documents. Sensing an opportunity, I began to hurriedly stuff the cake into my mouth.

“Well, let’s proceed this way then.”

With his waist slightly bent, Mr. Henry glanced at me in front of Raiden and expressed a sorry expression.

“Have you already started the meeting? I unintentionally interrupted, it seems.”

“What meeting?” Raiden and I almost simultaneously looked at Mr. Henry, marking the first moment when our thoughts aligned since he had entered the room. Mr. Henry shrugged lightly, not understanding his words.

“Chase submitted a resignation letter. Isn’t this a meeting related to his resignation?”

Raiden’s expression changed suddenly upon hearing Mr. Henry’s words.