Chapter 8
“Eil?”
Before she realized it, Eil had stepped right up to her. She suddenly placed her hand on Riss’s forehead. The height difference was so large that Eil had to lift her heels slightly off the ground.
“My lord. Are you feeling unwell?”
“—!”
Startled by the warmth touching his forehead, Riss flinched and stepped back. But Eil didn’t withdraw her hand—instead, she followed right along, closing the distance again.
“Your face is red. Your ears too… I don’t think you have a fever, though.”
“This is because of you, Eil…”
“Me?”
At the claim that he was the cause, Eil’s blue eyes immediately filled with indignation.
‘If I get written up again after already being forced to write a report, I can’t afford more mistakes.’
For a brief moment, Eil’s expression darkened. Riss’s violet eyes flickered subtly as he caught that change.
“People usually get startled when they see someone’s… bare body.”
“…Ah.”
Only then did Eil realize her mistake and rolled her eyes around frantically.
‘But I’ve seen that kind of thing every day…! Why would I be surprised?!’
This was nothing more than the consequence of her environment. Unfortunately, “Black Rose” had far more men than women, and as a result, Eil had grown up surrounded entirely by men.
“Today is leg day!”
“Protein! Protein!”
“Eil, I gained more mass. Pretty amazing, right? Look at these abs. Insane, right?”
“Get lost. Just get lost.”
Having spent so long living together like family regardless of gender, Eil had become so accustomed to seeing bodies that something like a “chest” wasn’t shocking at all.
“My lord, I was surprised.”
“It’s too late for that, Eil.”
Her belated attempt at recovery naturally didn’t work.
Tch. Eil swallowed her regret and forced down a sigh.
‘I need to act like a normal girl my age or I’ll raise suspicion. I have to be careful.’
At this rate, she wasn’t gaining trust—she was pushing it away. Feeling the urgency, Eil silently began helping Riss get dressed.
“Eil, I’m going to the fighting arena today.”
At his low voice, Eil’s hands paused mid-button.
The fighting arena was a place where relentless, brutal battles took place endlessly—a place no noble young master should ever visit.
“May I ask why you’re going there?”
“Someone told me I’m useless just because I have money, and that I should hire guards instead. So I’m going to hire some.”
“Pardon? Who would dare say something so outrageous to you!”
Who on earth would say something like that to the young master of Cassio? It must be some fool who didn’t value their life.
As irritation rose in her chest, Eil frowned—and then paused.
A memory surfaced.
‘What’s the point of having money? You’re too weak. Don’t go around alone. Use your money and hire guards.’
Every word she had just thought of matched perfectly with something she herself had said.
“…That was me!?”
Eil froze, internally screaming. She had no idea Riss had taken that to heart!
‘Addendum to target profile: surprisingly petty and holds grudges.’
Eil quickly composed herself with an awkward smile and let go of his collar.
“I’ll prepare your meal first.”
“Mm.”
As soon as she left the room and closed the door, Eil headed toward the dining hall.
“A fighting arena, huh…”
The target was Cassio. A family so arrogant they didn’t even keep proper guards in their mansion.
And yet, after a single encounter with a passing assassin, he was going to the arena to hire protection?
‘What is he thinking?’
Though she didn’t show it, his destination was full of questions.
There was no reason someone like Cassio—who was practically synonymous with strength and monstrosity—would need guards.
‘I’ve never seen his power directly, but based on what’s known… he’s definitely not weak.’
The Cassio family was called monsters for a reason. Everyone who had faced their power had died.
‘Then why was he being overpowered in the forest? Is he too young to use his strength properly?’
If that were the case, his decision suddenly made sense. He must have felt danger after nearly losing his life.
“…I should observe a bit more.”
She needed to consider the possibility that he either didn’t have the rumored power—or hadn’t awakened it yet.
With that thought, Eil entered the dining hall.
Knock knock.
At the sound of knocking, Riss answered briefly. The door opened, and Demon stepped inside holding a thick stack of documents.
He gave a short bow toward Riss, who was looking out the window.
“Reporting, my lord. The aftermath of the assassins in the Black Forest has been completed. They were all involved in human trafficking. Their bodies were chopped into pieces and scattered off a cliff. We also sent their families a torn piece of their clothing.”
A cruel method—so cruel it left no room to determine whether they were alive or dead.
There was no trace of mercy. It was a one-sided slaughter.
“And the task you assigned will take some time due to complexity. I will expedite it.”
Riss simply nodded, unbothered.
Demon, however, didn’t leave. He hesitated, lips moving slightly as if struggling.
Finally, he spoke.
“…My lord, if you had told me earlier that the ‘angel’ you met in the forest was an assassin and had entered this estate, I would have handled things more carefully.”
Last night, after receiving Riss’s secret order, Demon had learned Eil’s identity.
Riss was not the type to explain everything in detail—but this was too important to omit.
It involved Riss’s life, after all.
“Well, I hadn’t seen her myself yet. Didn’t expect her to actually come here.”
Riss spoke lightly, as if it were nothing. But Demon could tell—this wasn’t ignorance.
“You probably would’ve made a fuss.”
“…Th-that’s…”
Demon flinched. That was true. If he had known, he would never have stayed silent.
What kind of mad aide would calmly allow an assassin near their lord?
“Is there a problem?”
Riss looked as if it were obvious.
‘This isn’t just a matter of timing…’
Riss had stayed silent until Eil adapted to the mansion. In other words, he had deliberately waited until she was past the phase where she could easily be expelled.
Only two days—but for an assassin who specialized in quick exits, that was more than enough time.
‘The mansion’s layout is probably already being sold on the black market.’
Demon sighed inwardly, thinking he would need to clean up the underground market soon.
“Isn’t it too dangerous to keep a Black Rose assassin by your side? Why appoint a maid as your personal attendant?”
“Because she’s like a bug.”
“…Pardon?”
Demon’s eyes widened. Did he just hear that correctly?
‘She was an angel a moment ago, and now she’s a bug?’
Riss’s thoughts were impossible to follow.
“In front of me, she’s annoying. Out of sight, she’s still a nuisance.”
There was no malice in his voice. He was speaking purely in terms of comparison.
Only then did Demon understand.
“By ‘annoying,’ you mean she’s within your field of vision…”
Riss’s lips curved slightly.
“And killing bugs is easy.”
