Chapter 3
The aides were left speechless.
“Is that… really the imperial seal?”
A sense of reverence for Smith, who had brought back the legendary item, welled up within them.
Where did he even get that?
“His Majesty gave me the imperial seal when I returned from my trip.”
“When?”
“Just now.”
Mr. Smith winked.
“It’s only temporary. He said I’m trustworthy and asked me to handle a few important documents on his behalf.”
Now it all made sense. His Majesty had come up with another emperor-like solution.
“Giving such a heavy responsibility to someone who just got back from a business trip… His Majesty really is…”
As I spoke with a look of despair, Mr. Smith gave a playful smile.
“Do I stamp it here?”
“Yes, yes! Please stamp it in the official seal section!”
Thud!
Seeing the vivid golden imprint of the seal appear was like a soothing balm.
A problem I had struggled with for three days melted away like snow.
“As expected, Mr. Smith, you’re our savior!”
“Senior Smith is the light of our lives!”
Even the junior aides gave Mr. John Smith a round of heartfelt applause.
“There. Done. Take it.”
As soon as the documents, now resolved, were handed over to the foreign affairs department, I nearly cried tears of joy.
I leaned back in my chair with a sense of relief.
“Mr. Smith really is the best.”
I gave a thumbs-up to him, standing beside me. His usually expressionless face brightened a little.
“If it’s for you, Miss Foi, this much is nothing.”
He looked quite pleased, as if he had just heard the words he had been waiting for.
“If you ever need the seal again, just say the word. I’ll get it for you.”
He truly was my unicorn of a boss. Someone who could fetch the imperial seal at any time.
Having a boss like him was as lucky as finding an oasis in the middle of a desert.
“Honestly, he’s just too competent.”
Mr. Smith’s shoulders lifted ever so slightly.
His cheeks turned a bit red, though I failed to notice it.
In any case, the nerve-wracking day was finally coming to an end.
“I’ll be heading off now!”
One by one, those remaining in the aides’ office began to leave.
Even the ones who had stayed late eventually left to catch their streetcars, and the office fell quiet.
Unsurprisingly, I was stuck with another night of overtime.
“There’s just too much paperwork…”
One corner of my desk was piled high with papers so sharp they looked like they could slice a finger. I’d held a pen so much that my fingerprints were probably worn off.
Now that the foreign affairs were handled, the domestic matters were becoming a headache. Such was the life of an aide.
As I buried my head in my desk in despair, my amazing boss suddenly spoke up.
“You’ve got a lot of paperwork?”
So he was listening. I took the chance to vent some long-held frustration.
“Isn’t it insane? Paper here, paper there—it’s like a flood. I dream of being buried in white paper every night.”
Mr. Smith fell into thought.
“Now that you mention it, there really is a lot being done on paper.”
“It’s basically just approvals for the sake of approvals.”
“Now that’s irrational.”
He rubbed his chin like someone struck by a realization.
“This is something that needs to be improved.”
“Right? I wish someone would change it already.”
Just the fact that he understood me made me happy. Even if nothing changed, at least we were on the same page.
After jotting something down and thinking for a while, Mr. Smith suggested I go home.
“Go on. Whether you do it tonight or tomorrow, the amount of work is the same.”
“…”
“Just think of it as taking a short break. Go home and come back in the morning.”
It was kind advice… but why did it feel so sad?
“Haha. I guess you’re right. I’ll be resigning now—ah, I mean, heading home.”
“I’ll make sure you show up for work tomorrow, Miss Foi.”
We laughed cheerfully, joking about preventing a runaway servant.
…Too bad. I was this close to quitting for real.
Everyone had left the aides’ office.
At 8 o’clock, Smith returned to the empty imperial office.
The sound of his footsteps echoed through the dark, officially ownerless space.
Returning the imperial seal to its original place was no trouble.
He was very familiar with this room.
In fact, there had been quite a commotion behind the scenes that morning just to bring the seal.
He had rushed back from his trip, burst into the office, convinced the imperial guard Merlin, and bolted with the seal—all in under 30 minutes.
Still, having someone say he was the best made all the effort feel worthwhile.
Of course, he had no intention of telling Miss Foi the backstory. She didn’t need to know about his awkward scrambling.
Seated naturally at the massive mahogany desk, Smith opened a drawer.
Inside was a single, well-worn piece of paper.
John Smith’s Code of Conduct
He read through it casually.
Act like a kind superior
Identify areas for improvement in aide work
Pretend to seek approvals as an excuse to enter the imperial office
So far, everything was on track.
At the bottom, a newly added section appeared:
P.S. Code of Conduct for Miss Rose Foi
Help in emergencies
Learn her favorite foods and restaurants
Favorite food: Spicy dishes
Smith neatly added another line.
Bring her the imperial seal if needed
His crooked smile deepened.
Having done this for so long, he had developed his own set of tricks.
Now, he even had room to include a section just for one person.
He reviewed the code slowly, now a master at playing the perfect John Smith.
“Rose Foi.”
She was likely the granddaughter of Baron Foi.
Before the emperor had officially “gone on strike,” Baron Foi had sided with the loyalists.
That’s probably why she had been selected as an aide.
And she had met his expectations.
‘Out of everyone I’ve met so far, she’s the most impressive talent.’
He tapped his pen on the desk. Calling her simply “talented” didn’t do her justice.
“A true loyalist… worthy of the title.”
He had been observing Miss Foi for quite some time.
When exactly had it started?
—Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Rose Foi.
When she was first assigned to the aides’ office, she seemed like a typical new hire.
But she was different.
She had an incredible sense of responsibility.
—Miss Foi. Where are you going? Wasn’t that task handled already?
—It’s an important matter. His Majesty needs to be briefed personally.
—He probably won’t even read it. Just do it quickly.
Even when her fellow new aides cut corners, she always kept the emperor in mind.
—We work in the palace. Don’t say things like that. We’re aides to someone important.
—Geez, you’re such a stickler. Do you know how exhausting you are, Miss Foi?
Even when her first supervisor insulted her, Smith felt a rare flare of righteous anger.
It was as if he had been insulted.
So he fired her supervisor. The official reason: dereliction of duty.
Then he cleaned house and removed the other slacking aides as well.
All their exits were framed as voluntary resignations. Miss Foi would probably never know.
Naturally, Smith became her next supervisor.
—Mr. Smith will be training me? But you’re the chief aide—you must be so busy! I still make lots of mistakes as a newbie…
—That’s okay. Newcomers are supposed to make mistakes. For some reason, I’ve always wanted to personally train you from start to finish.
He answered every question she had with sincerity. When she made mistakes and got discouraged, he comforted her.
—I only started understanding this job after working for years. You don’t need to be perfect right away, Miss Foi.
And so, he mentored her, shared lunch with her, and even pulled late nights together.
Before he knew it, he had become attached to her.
It wasn’t a bad feeling. He acted as “John Smith” and won her trust.
While strictly following the code of conduct of a regular man.
As long as nothing major happened, he would continue like this.
If his feelings ever grew too strong… maybe then, he’d have to consider revealing his true identity to her.
“…That’s a problem for another day.”
He added another line to the page:
Be careful not to reveal your true identity
He tapped his pen thoughtfully, then added one more:
Devise a way to reduce paperwork (Important) (Urgent)
He patiently waited for the ink to dry.
His long, graceful fingers drummed lightly on the desk.
Once dry, he rolled up the paper and placed it deep inside the drawer.
Then he locked it.
Just in case someone ever entered this room, they would never find it.
The lock code: 0504.
Rose Foi’s birthday.
