Chapter 22

“This is a copy of the Employment Contract.”

However, the moment Bianca received the Employment Contract, her expression stiffened.

“Wait a second.”

Watching her reaction, Diena became slightly worried.

‘Is the salary really too high after all?’

Both Varkan and Hasen had let it slide, so she had acted confidently.

Still, she had thought it might be pushing the limits a little.

If she had to prove her value for it, though, Diena had plenty to say.

She carefully spoke up.

“I do have something to say about the salary.”

“Ah, that’s fine. It’s coming out of my brother’s pocket anyway. You should take as much as possible. Get even more out of him, Diena.”

The firm response made Diena’s eyes widen.

Soon, she silently nodded.

Bianca then spoke with a serious expression.

“More importantly… so this was the important report. That was close.”

“…?”

“Diena, is there anything you want?”

Diena tilted her head in confusion.

It was exactly the same question Hasen had asked earlier.

“Not really these days.”

“…These days?”

“Right. I don’t really lack anything.”

“Really nothing at all? If you had to choose one thing, what would it be?”

Seeing the earnest look on Bianca’s face, Diena fell into thought.

It felt like she should say something.

In that case…

‘She’s still not eating properly yet.’

It wasn’t something she wanted.

But if there was something she wished for, it was for Bianca to eat well for the sake of her health.

Recently, Diena had been visiting Bianca during every meal.

Whenever she did, Bianca would often say things like this.

“When you’re here, my condition feels strangely better and I can eat properly… but when you’re not around, I just can’t bring myself to eat. I don’t know why.”

“No, cough, it’s not like the food tastes better because of you or anything. Anyway, that’s why you need to come every day, Diena. Every single day. Got it?”

Every time she heard that, Diena found it puzzling.

Darkness Corruption didn’t cause someone to lose their appetite.

Besides, she had no idea why Bianca would awkwardly cough whenever she claimed she had no appetite.

‘My ability shouldn’t improve someone’s appetite.’

Blaming it on Matilda didn’t quite fit either.

After all, Bianca only seemed to eat well when Diena herself was present.

It seemed like she needed to observe Bianca during meals more carefully.

With that thought, Diena spoke.

“I’d like to have a nice meal with Lady Bianca.”

The moment she said that, Bianca’s face lit up.

Smiling brightly, she asked,

“Then… would you like to have lunch with me later?”

* * *

Hasen walked slowly through the corridors.

His destination was Varkan’s office.

Standing before him, Hasen held out the Employment Contract.

“I handled everything as you instructed, Lord Varkan.”

Hasen looked at him with a tense expression.

“And Miss Diena and Lady Bianca seem to get along even better than expected.”

“That’s impressive. Bianca has never taken a liking to someone that easily.”

Separate from Matilda’s attempts to drive wedges between people, Bianca had never been someone who easily liked others.

The fact that Diena had somehow won Bianca over was astonishing.

“And I have another report.”

“What is it?”

“Miss Diena dismissed a large number of Lady Bianca’s maids.”

“Really? I already gave Diena full authority, so there’s no need to report things like that individually. Anything else?”

Some nobles might gossip about him behind his back.

But Varkan couldn’t care less.

Hasen had expected that reaction and acted quickly for exactly that reason.

He nodded.

“No, that’s all.”

Varkan absentmindedly reviewed the Employment Contract.

Then suddenly, his gaze froze on one section.

“Hasen, what’s this?”

“Hm?”

“Why didn’t you report something this important?”

Hasen quickly looked at the spot Varkan was pointing to.

Diena’s birthday was written there.

“Today’s Diena’s birthday, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I almost ended up becoming the kind of person who doesn’t even acknowledge the birthday of someone under contract.”

“Ah… I see.”

“You help manage the merchant company too, so you know this already. When two parties enter a contract, maintaining a friendly relationship is important.”

“…”

“And you know how important it is to remember special occasions if you want to do that.”

“Well…”

“On top of that, Diena is taking care of Bianca personally. So for Bianca’s sake, I need to stay on good terms with her. Tell the head chef to make a cake immediately. And what would Diena like as a gift?”

Hasen shook his head firmly.

“You don’t need to worry about that, Lord Varkan.”

“…?”

“Lady Bianca has already taken the initiative and won her favor. The family’s chefs have all been mobilized to prepare food for Miss Diena. They started making the cake quite a while ago.”

Varkan was left speechless.

Looking at him, Hasen continued.

“You want to give Miss Diena a gift, don’t you? But Lady Bianca beat you to it.”

“That’s not it.”

After spending so much time with Varkan, Hasen had become an expert at interpreting his words.

That response basically meant it was exactly right.

“Of course. I understand that’s not the case. Even so, I’d like to report the results of my analysis.”

“Analysis?”

“While talking with Miss Diena, I figured out what she likes.”

“…What is it?”

“Money.”

“…”

“But from what I’ve observed, she also has a surprisingly sentimental side.”

“A sentimental side?”

“Yes. Lady Bianca asked her what she wanted, and she said she wanted to share a meal together. In other words, she has a rational side that likes material things such as money, but also an emotional side that values sharing meals with people.”

“So what do you think she actually likes?”

“I think she’d be happy if Lord Varkan personally gave her money. It would satisfy both her rational and emotional sides.”

Then Hasen added,

“As much money as possible.”

* * *

“Happy birthday, Diena!”

Diena looked at Bianca with startled eyes.

An extravagant feast had been laid out before her.

In the center sat the largest cake she had ever seen in her life.

“If you had told me earlier, I would’ve prepared something even grander.”

“How could this possibly get any grander…?”

“When it comes to money, nothing is impossible. And if something seems impossible, it just means you haven’t spent enough money.”

The words Bianca casually spoke sounded strangely familiar to Diena.

After all, she had often heard Varkan say the exact same thing.

As she found herself thinking about him, Bianca suddenly murmured with a sad expression.