Episode 7
“Ahem, Liliana. I didn’t actually think you’d come up with 300 gold in three days.”
“…And yet you made that proposal?”
“Maybe I had a sliver of hope. Who’d have thought you’d jump at the chance to sort out the family registry?”
Who was the one begging and persuading me?
The fact that I’d survived a den of demons felt less grim than the reality I’d just realized.
“So, while I was pondering what to do, someone made me an offer. They’d introduce me to someone willing to buy the worn-out Baron Walker’s daughter for a whopping 500 gold!”
“You’re insane.”
“They’re coming in two days, so just stay put at home.”
He finished his explanation and hummed, tilting a beer bottle to his lips. The rancid smell of alcohol filled the room.
“Hah.”
What had I been expecting?
A father who’d come to his senses after I handed over 300 gold? A version of myself free after sorting out the registry?
What was clear now was that the future I’d hoped for was nowhere in sight.
Staring into the void, I let out a long sigh and erased my emotions. Then, coldly, I spoke to my father.
“I’m sorry, but that won’t work.”
“What?”
“Unlike your expectations, I managed to earn 300 gold.”
He was briefly startled but set the bottle down and approached me.
“Ahem, I don’t know how you earned it, but you’re still my property.”
“Are you?”
Ugh, this is the worst.
Me, clinging to the past with expectations, and you, utterly broken.
“You don’t seem curious about where I got the money. If you knew, you wouldn’t be so calm.”
“What, did you go to a loan shark? Surely you didn’t beg on the streets.”
“I’ve become the aide to the Duke of Winspear. I received 300 gold as a signing bonus.”
He flinched at the name Winspear, but soon shouted loudly.
“Forget it! 300 gold isn’t the point! Someone’s offering 500 gold for you!”
Fool.
Even if they don’t engage in public activities, it’s a ducal family, a pillar of the empire, and he talks about them like this?
“Really? Then sell me. But you’ll have to pay Winspear 900 gold.”
The family name alone wouldn’t sway him. I laid out the reality in terms he’d understand.
When I explained the contract with Winspear, his face grew paler.
Ironically, the name Winspear, which I’d wanted to escape, was now my shield.
“I don’t know if you have that kind of money, but if you do, go ahead and sell me.”
“…”
“If you can, that is.”
“Damn it!”
“At least it’s fortunate, isn’t it? Since I brought 300 gold, you won’t be dragged to the salt fields.”
Ignoring my bitter smile, he stomped his feet in frustration.
Even looking at him felt like a waste of time.
I turned and packed my things. My meager belongings barely filled one hand.
I glanced at the small pile of possessions, then at the house I’d lived in for so long, and finally at my father, sitting on the floor, pounding the ground.
Standing before him, I ignored the lump in my throat and spoke.
“I’ll take care of the registry paperwork.”
“Lil… Liliana…!”
“Here’s the 300 gold you asked for.”
I bent down and placed the crumpled check from Winspear into his hand.
“It was truly awful, and let’s never see each other again.”
Leaving my muttering, dazed father behind, I walked out.
The rain that had stopped started again. The light drizzle soon turned into heavy drops.
“Oh.”
I’d left my umbrella at Winspear.
“I’ll just have to get wet…”
I raised my bag over my head to run. But my action didn’t come to fruition.
Because someone blocked my path.
“Miss Walker.”
A ticklish, soft voice brushed my ears.
“…Mr. Roan?”
“It started raining. Since you left your umbrella at Winspear, I thought you might be in trouble.”
“Oh.”
“It’s not that I didn’t trust you and followed you.”
…What an awful day. To be comforted by a demon.
Blocking the rain, Roan asked.
“Have you packed everything? Shall we head back?”
“Oh, I need to handle this paperwork first.”
Roan’s gaze fell on the documents in my hand.
“If it’s urgent, it’s best to take care of it now.”
He didn’t ask for details. It wasn’t hard to see it was out of consideration.
A demon and consideration—what an odd pair. Yet why did it feel so comforting?
Ignoring my sinking heart, I asked him.
“It took longer than expected. Is that okay?”
“It’s fine, so don’t worry too much, Miss Walker.”
“Um, you can’t call me Miss Walker anymore.”
“Why not?”
“Once this paperwork is processed, I’ll be a commoner.”
At my words, Roan scanned me with interest.
“You’re not saying you can’t be an aide as a commoner, are you? I’ll have to explain that to Mr. Bael.”
It was a calculated move to say this.
I knew Bael had no authority to fire me, and I said it knowing Roan was the ultimate decision-maker.
Unaware of this, Roan asked seriously.
“Were you worried about that?”
“Of course. I’ll be a commoner with nothing left. If I lose the aide position at Winspear, I’ll be out on the streets.”
At my quip, Roan blinked widely.
Soon, a clear laugh burst from him, loud and pleasant enough to drown out the rain.
“Would the Winspear Ducal Family make such a ruffian-like decision?”
“Just in case.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. Unless the contract is voided, even Mr. Bael wouldn’t have the power to do that.”
Roan explained how formidable my contract was.
Even if soaked in water, burned, or cut with scissors or a knife—even top palace mages couldn’t tear it, he assured.
Coming from a demon and a duke, his words were oddly reassuring.
“By the way, what should I call you from now on?”
Though the man before me was a demon—the final villain of Paradise’s Angel—his smile seemed angelic.
Shaking off the pointless thought, I took a resolute breath and said.
“Liliana should be enough.”
Having stopped laughing, he seemed to ponder for a moment.
After a brief pause, Roan made a suggestion.
“How about Ria? It’s short and nice.”
Whether it was ‘Liliana’ or ‘Ria’ didn’t matter much to me. Except, recalling my past life, the name ‘Ria’ felt oddly familiar.
“Whatever you like.”
At my willing response, Roan nodded.
We walked slowly to join Sion, waiting nearby, and headed to sort out the registry.
They didn’t rush me, and thanks to that, I successfully removed the Walker name.
Now completely alone, I stepped out of the building, feeling both relieved and bittersweet. The sky was still dreary, and the rain poured.
Right on cue, Roan approached.
“All done?”
“Yes, thanks to you.”
“Then I look forward to working with you, Miss Ria.”
Whether he was the Duke or not no longer mattered much.
I didn’t know why Roan hid that he was the Duke, but regardless, I’d fulfill my three-year contract and distance myself from both Winspear and the original story.
“Me too, Mr. Roan.”
I gave a faint smile to the man who couldn’t know my thoughts.
