My Sweet Deceiver

Chapter 26

***

Danielle was preparing to leave the palace, organizing the files and documents. As she was busy every day, her desk was always strewn with objects and documents as if it had been hit by a bomb.

Ellie and the other maids had already left the palace.

She was tired.

Danielle yawned quietly.

She would go back home early today, have beer and sleep. She didn’t think there was a better way to end the day.

She had been with Tehez for more than 10 years since she served the Princess from Ingeliger’s mansion.

Time flies.

Meanwhile, Tehez got engaged and married, and Danielle was still alone.

It was common for people to forget their commitments when immersed in their work, so even if she met gentlemen, they often broke up with her.

She said so when she argued with the man she met last time.

“Since I’m busy, shouldn’t the gentleman adjust?”

When she said that, what did the man say…? She didn’t even remember his name.

“Miss Danielle, I want a woman who can help me raise my children in my house. You’re too enterprising.”

She smirked.

A woman who can raise children and help.

This would never be possible in Lubern or Newb Shabel.

What would she do with the man?

It was just that they were not meant to be together.

Daniel tried to get up after putting the papers to be seen tomorrow morning again on top.

Knock, knock

The face poking its head through the crack of the door after knocking was Sylvan.

“What?”

Danielle asked sternly.

“I’m here to see if you have already left, Danielle.”

“What would you do if I left the palace?”

“Well, it’s a shame, but I’ll have to wait for another time. The weather is cool, so why don’t we go to dinner?”

“Are you done?”

“Ah, no, that’s not it. What do you do when you go home alone and have dinner at this time? Let’s have a drink together and talk about the world.”

Danielle was shaken by Sylvan’s offer that she would have normally rejected. Even if it was autumn, and her heart was just churning.

“Okay.”

“Oh, really?”

Sylvan replied with a surprised expression, as if he did not know that she would agree.

“You can only be fooled. Let’s go. Where are we going?”

Danielle got up with a bag around her shoulder.

“It is a new restaurant, and the Enlandic fish dishes are amazing! It’s great with sparkling wine.”

“Go ahead.”

Sylvan nodded his head and led her.

The restaurant that Sylvan guided was in Palio Street, an emerging district of Lubern.

Perhaps it was true that it was a popular restaurant because customers flocked to the restaurant as soon as she entered, and it was packed. The restaurant was decorated like an old diner made of rough stone and logs. Enland’s paintings and photos hung on the walls.

On the right side of the restaurant, there were tables with a single wooden plank on oak barrels, making it look like a bar, and on the left side of the restaurant, red chairs were placed on a red tablecloth and decorated like a classy restaurant.

And right next to the table, you could see the outside of the window, where trees were arranged in harmony, and cheerful music was playing inside.

“It’s pretty good.”

“Right? Have a seat.”

Danielle naturally sat down as the chair was pulled out by Sylvan.

Sylvan ordered sashimi, fried shrimp, mussel soup, and wine when the waiter brought the menu.

“When have you been here?”

“I came here last time. It was delicious, and the atmosphere was nice. I thought I should come here with Danielle later, so I remembered it.”

“With whom? In this kind of atmosphere, would you have come with a woman?”

Danielle asked in a passing tone.

“Woman? Well, a woman-”

The conversation was cut off when the server brought wine.

Sylvan didn’t further answer.

“Well, anyway, is it okay, Danielle?

Sylvan smiled and tilted the glass to Danielle as if toasting her, and Danielle also gave him a toast. A refreshing sound came from the wine glass that clinked.

Delicious food in a lively atmosphere and even a comfortable partner.

It was the opposite of the uncomfortable atmosphere she had experienced while dating recently.

Danielle was assimilated into a relaxed atmosphere, and her mood was rising.

It’s already her second bottle of wine.

Sylvan was constantly talking about rumours and interesting stories in the palace, and Danielle laughed.

“Again, again, I heard something funny!”

“What is it again?”

Danielle was drunk and listened to Sylvan’s story with her head down.

“The story of the resignation letter written by an employee of the Ministry of Justice who left the palace 10 times in three months.”

“Three months? Wow, that’s crazy.”

Danielle, too, had a sudden rush of work that she couldn’t leave the palace for a fortnight last year. She couldn’t possibly have completed it. Anyway, she got to sleep at her home.

“Yes. I think it was time for a new law to be enacted. His boss told him to save time when he left the palace, and he bought him an extra bed. So, it is the story of putting up with a pile of horse dung on his boss’ desk on the last day.”

“What?!”

Danielle hit the table in exhilaration and laughed.

One by one, people were leaving, and the restaurant’s business hours were coming to an end.

“Customers, the restaurant is closed.”

It was almost midnight before they knew it.

When the man who seemed to be the owner came and spoke to Danielle politely, she got up as if it were a pity.

“Oh, I just remembered something funny.”

“What is it?”

“I have to go home.”

Sylvan whined.

“Hey, tomorrow is your day off. Let’s go for the second round.”

Danielle led Sylvan out of curiosity. However, no bars were open as expected. The one place where the door was opened was so full that they couldn’t find a place to sit.

Unsurprisingly, Danielle and Sylvan were walking around the streets of the capital city, despite the fact that she was curiously dragging Sylvan’s arm.

The night was getting deep.

“Hey!”

“Yes, Danielle.”

“Let’s go to my house.”

“What?”

“Let’s go home. I have a lot of beer at home. I’ll give you unlimited beer, so let’s go.”

“Can I follow you? I’m not going to be found dead the next day, right?

“Did you just live by being fooled all the time?”

“Yes. My mother told me that if you close your eyes, you will cut my nose.”

“I’ll let you know I won’t cut your nose even if you close your eyes. Come with me.”

She dragged his arm around and grabbed the carriage.

She thought as she stood at the front door and put the key in the lock.

Oh, it’s been over a week since she hadn’t cleaned the house.

“Hey, wait a minute.”

She quickly opened the door and ordered Sylvan to wait outside for 10 minutes, then threw a pile of her clothes and rubbish into the small room.

“Come on in.”

“Oh.”

Sylvan looked around Danielle’s room.

“More than I thought…”

“More than you thought what?”

When Danielle got angry, Sylvan quickly praised her.

“You’ve done a great job, and the room is amazing, Danielle!”

“Yes, sit there. I’ll give you the beer I bought from the artisan’s shop.”

She took out the beer and dried squid from the cupboard.

“No, this is…”

“Yes, it’s a dried squid. Only if you eat this can you say that you really drank beer. Here we go again.”

“You have something in common with me, Danielle.”

“This kid. You know how to eat?”

Danielle and Sylvan talked all night long.

“Why… Why aren’t you getting married?”

“There is no one…”

Both were already drunk, and their words were slowing down.

“Why…?”

“If it were me… would you do it?”

“I do.”

“What?”

Danielle felt sober.

“Would you… why?”

“You know, you’re charming. So cool!”

“Hey, you… Why are you seducing me?”

“What?”

Sylvan answered with a flushed face due to drunkenness.

He looked cute and stupid.

“Keep on… Then this woman will attack you.”

“Do you have to say that in words? We can just do it.”

“You-”

Danielle pressed her lips against his plump lips.

Danielle’s reason had already flown away.

***

“Arghh…”

Danielle got up from the bed and held her head. She drank sparkling wine, red wine, and beer when she got home, and she felt like she was going to break her head from a hangover. She looked at the clock and saw that it was already noon.

“Hey!”

Danielle shook up Sylvan lying [email protected] next to her.

“Wake up.”

Sylvan woke up.

“What? Where are we?”

“Huh? Don’t you remember?”

“What are you talking about, Danielle?”

Danielle laughed in vain.

When Sylvan woke up, he saw her and himself [email protected] and quickly got out of bed. Only then did he seem to have understood the situation.

“What’s going on? Did anything happen yesterday?”

He was careful to ask if he already felt something intuitively.

Danielle got up from her seat and gulped down the water from the kettle. She answered by roughly wiping the water off her mouth with the back of her hand.

“What do you think?”

“Ha…”

Sylvan bowed his head and examined his body thoroughly.

“My mother was right. I heard you would cut my nose when I close my eyes.”

“Ha!”

Danielle snorted as she looked at Sylvan as of it was absurd.

“When I closed my eyes… …I lost my precious thing instead of my nose…”

“What nonsense are you talking about? You said you liked it, too”

“Now I’m no longer… pure.”

Sylvan bowed and pretended to cry.

“Stop being noisy, get dressed quickly. Let’s go get a hangover soup. I don’t think I’ll ever drink with you again.”

“Don’t say that! Danielle, please drink with me!”