Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Min-ha and Noah headed to the East Annex along the road that was now quite familiar. Then, she greeted the servants of the East Annex, who had become acquainted with her from the cleaning work, and went up the stairs at once before standing in front of the office.

Standing in front of the office door, which seemed to be 1.5 times her height, she took a deep breath without realizing it.

“…Hoo. All right.”

And, as if she was determined, Min-ha grabbed Noah’s hand and knocked with her empty hand. At that, the sharp and blunt voice of Seth Persen came from inside the office.

“Who is it?”

​​

“It’s me.”

“….”

“…Excuse me?”

​​

“Come in.”

When she answered Seth’s question about who she was, the answer didn’t come back for a while. So, she knocked on the door once more and urged him, and only then did the answer come back.

Min-ha held Noah’s hand, opened the door of her office, and entered.

“What’s going on? I can’t believe you’re here. With Noah, even.”

Inside the office decorated with dark blue and silver insignia, Seth, who sat at a huge desk that seemed as though three people could fit, spoke in a blunt voice.

She gazed at Seth without realizing. After not seeing him for a few days, his face seems to have gotten a little thinner, and it looked like he had a little shade under his eyes.

‘Has he been busy lately?’

Just looking at it, the signs of overwork were evident, so she narrowed her brows slightly.

​​

‘The handsome man, who was always so proud and full of confidence, looks like he is going to die today for some reason. Has he been that busy with work…?’

Maybe it’s because of his weak face that she saw for the first time? Kim Min-ha, who wanted to ask if he had been too busy to sleep. As those questions sprung up from the corner of her heart, she struggled to press them.

‘…No. I shouldn’t say that. He will interpret it in a bad way, and it’ll start a fight.’

Thinking so, Min-ha opened her mouth, swallowing the worries about Seth that had blossomed in her mind.

​​

“Is this a place I shouldn’t have come in?”

“Well, I don’t mean it that way. Rather, let’s just say it’s awkward for you to be in my office.”

“Awkward, you’re talking like it’s the first time it’s happened? Oh, you don’t let people in the office?”

‘Is he the type of person who only receives written reports without getting face-to-face reports…?’

When Min-ha shrugged her shoulders and asked, Seth looked at her and answered.

“It’s the first time…”

“Pardon?”

“It’s the first time. This is the first time you have come to the office, though to be precise, it’s the first time you have come to me.”

“…Oh.”

​​

Min-ha unknowingly exclaimed at the return answer. She thought he would be sarcastic, but what he replied back was a little surprising.

‘No, if you’re a married couple, don’t you go visit each other’s workplaces at least once…? Much less even in the same mansion.’

A question suddenly popped into her mind, but he didn’t bother to ask because she seemed to know the answer from Seth’s gaze, which fell low as he stared at her.

It was obvious that the ‘former’ Minase Persen played a part. Also, he wouldn’t have told her to come to his place to break her pride.

​​

She glanced at him with that thought in mind. At the same time, Seth, who narrowed his brows slightly at the sight of Min-ha looking at him without saying a word, spoke.

“By the way, didn’t you come here because you have something to say? It must be quite urgent for you to come to my office in person.”

“…It’s not urgent. I have a favor to ask of you.”

“Request? What is it this time?”

​​

Hearing her words, he smirked and crossed his arms.

Min-ha groaned a little but held it in. This was because his cooperation was desperately needed. Therefore, despite Seth’s twisted attitude, she confided her business without saying a word.

“Please give me permission to go out with Noah.”

“…Going out, you mean going out of the mansion?”

​​

“Yes. I didn’t know, but I heard today is Noah’s birthday? I want to go to buy Noah’s birthday present and eat out. So, please let me go. Originally, I was just going to go because I didn’t know if I needed to report these things, but they said that I need your permission to go out? They say we need a guardian knight for Noah. That’s why I’m asking you.”

“….”

“Right, Noah?”

​​

“…That’s right, brother.”

As she finished speaking, she stroked Noah’s little head softly, who was standing next to her, and the little boy smiled shyly and replied back.

Seeing the two of them like that, Seth frowned even more than before. He stared at Min-ha with a sharp gaze and said,

“Do you think I’ll let you and Noah go alone?”

“Why? Because you’re afraid I’ll hurt Noah? Don’t worry. That’s why I’m asking you. It’s all right to attach a guardian knight, so please give me permission.”

“….”

“I’ll buy a gift, take a look outside the mansion, eat out with Noah, and then come back. I’m not even going to sleep for the night, so what are you so worried about? Could it be that the security is so messed up that you’re worried? Is that why?”

“That’s ridiculous. The Knights of the Persen family are the most elite army of the Empire. There is no such thing as a security problem.”

“Really? So, what are you worried about? There’s no problem, then.”

At Min-ha’s prompt, Seth just stared at her as if at a loss for words.

​​

‘Yay. I won.’

She laughed triumphantly at Seth, who couldn’t object to her words for the first time.

Seeing that, he narrowed his brow even more. Then, for some reason, he gazed at Min-ha and Noah alternately without saying a word, with a thoughtful expression on her face,

Then, soon after, Seth got up from his seat and opened his mouth.

“I will go with you.”

“…Pardon?”

“Huh, really? Brother?”

At his words, Noah shouted with excitement and joy, while Min-ha looked surprised.

‘He wants to go with me…?’

It was a completely unexpected response. At best, she thought he would attach Lancelot or other knights, though Min-ha never imagined such an answer.

“…Now, wait a minute—Did I hear it wrong? I beg your pardon?”

​​

“I’m coming with you.”

​​

“…Why?”

“Are you asking because you don’t know? It’s because I can’t let you and Noah go alone.”

“No, I don’t mean that. Of course, I knew you wouldn’t let Noah and me go alone. However…”

“That means that someone is expected to join. So, what’s so surprising?”

As he asked back to Min-ha again, her head went blank even more. Of course, that would be. Although she didn’t think that the companion would be Seth Persen…

‘What… Why?’

Question marks filled her mind. Isn’t that person, Minase Persen, terrible and disgusting? Then, why does he want to go out together? Why?

Why…?

After a while, she answered Seth, who looked at her bewildered face as if he was laughing at her.

“…Well, I didn’t think you’d say you would go.”

“Then, who did you expect to go with?”

“I don’t know… Perhaps, Sir Lancelot?”

​​

At his question, Min-ha gave a name that came to mind without much thought, although Seth’s handsome face distorted in an unpleasant way. He stared at her with her sharp eyes.

“I didn’t know when you became so close with my knight.”

“…Pardon? I’m not that close. I just say hello to him because of Noah?”

“Greetings? You? …Ha, anyone related to me would make you shudder, but Lancelot is special?”

“Oh, my God. There’s nothing special about it, okay? In the first place, the only knight I knew in this castle was Sir Lancelot.”

“It’s a good excuse. What should I do with Rupert Guineabis? I wondered what you would do if you saw him one more time. So, you were the one who watched my knights’ imperceptions and only looked at the opportunity… Or, maybe your lover’s tastes have changed a bit?”

“Oh, seriously! Why do you always interpret everything that way? Aren’t you tired?”

She was going to let it slide quietly, but there was no way she could let what he just said pass like that. Min-ha shouted angrily at Seth’s unilateral criticism of Minase Persen’s karma again today.

​​

‘I know there’s a lot of stuff that has accumulated over the years, though interpreting good intentions crookedly like this all the time would be a talent.’

So, she tried to open her mouth to say something to him. However, Noah, who had been holding her hand all this time, squeezed her hand a little, which caught her attention.

At that small movement, Min-ha quickly lowered her head.

​​

“Huh? What’s wrong, Noah?”

“…Don’t fight. Brother, sister-in-law…”

“Oh, no. We’re not fighting.”

“…I, I’m just not going to go. I’ll be home. So, don’t fight.”

​​

Min-ha felt the pain of someone stabbing her chest with a needle when she saw Noah bowing his head, saying that she would not leave.

Until a while ago, Noah had been looking forward to going out with her. However, with his favorite brother and her growling, it was not unreasonable to think that he would not be able to get out because of that.

‘…Anyway, really.’

​​

Min-ha squatted in front of Noah, who was dispirited, stroking his little head and glaring at Seth. Seeing that, he clicked his tongue briefly.

Her eyes were full of regret as she peered at her child, whether she had any realization that she had offended Noah.

She stopped arguing with Seth and spoke in a soft voice, making eye contact with Noah to cheer him up.

“It’s not like that, Noah. It wasn’t a fight, and it wasn’t because of Noah.”

“…Really?”

​​

“Yes!”

“…Th—then, can I go out with sister-in-law today?”

“Sure! Of course, we can go!”

As Min-ha confirmed, Noah’s face, which had been gloomy, brightened in an instant. Although at that moment, he suddenly glanced up, hesitating and said, looking at her eyes.

“…Then, will brother be going, too?”