CH 21

The last time I saw Sian, he was covered in scars all over.

Three weeks have passed since then.

I thought he would have healed to some degree.

‘What do you mean there was an uproar?’

Looking at Lisa’s way of speaking, it’s never in a positive direction.

Come to think of it, it was strange that the wary Sian didn’t look for me even after being treated.

“What’s going on?”

I looked up and pulled Lisa’s sleeve.

Lisa tilted her head.

“I don’t know much because there is a separate maid in charge of that slave.”

“Miss Billishia?”

“Miss!”

It was then.

The maids who had been walking as if they had run away in the distance stopped.

They were the maids in charge of Sian.

Their faces were full of embarrassment like they had seen a ghost.

“What about Sian?”

Those who managed to interpret my incoherent question turned their eyes.

“That is… The treatment went well, but.”

“Yeah.”

“He keeps refusing to eat. Rather than rejecting,”

“…he doesn’t speak.”

“That’s right, he doesn’t speak.”

The maids nodded in reply.

Aaah.

That’s possible if it’s Sian.

“I’ll try to go for once.”

He was a child who doubted and rejected even chocolate bread.

Even adults he has never seen before said they would give him food, but it was to the point of not attacking him.

As soon as I came to the palace, I had to take care of myself as a princess,

‘I haven’t been able to find him because I’ve had a lot of work in my own way.’

I moved on with a slight regret.

The door at the end of the hallway was slightly open.

A faint light flickered through the cracks in the door, and I could hear a conversation.

“Do you want to eat this? You could be malnourished if you continue to refuse to eat.”

“…”

“It’s grilled chicken. Delicious, isn’t it?”

“…”

“You don’t like grilled chicken? Would you like something else?”

Servants gathered around Sian, who was on high alert.

It was more like a one-sided monologue by the servant rather than an exact conversation.

‘Is it because of the unfamiliar situation?’

The view brightened through the door.

Inside the treatment room, emotionless black eyes were floating in the air.

Blond hair like a thread woven by sunlight.

Children-like milky white skin.

Although he looked extraordinarily pretty and unrealistic for an extra, Sian, who had no expression, was more like a doll than a person.

A physical doll displayed among servants.

It didn’t mean that it was like that.

Sian sat quietly, as if he had no free will.

‘…What is Sian’s real personality?’

He seemed like a completely different person than when the two of us were talking alone in the underground prison.

At that time, he seemed very curious and talked a lot.

It was then.

One of the weary maids put her hand on her forehead.

“If you don’t eat food and don’t answer, the treatment won’t get better, though?”

“…Haa, I can’t give up on the order of the Princess. Talk about what to do with him.”

“Let’s give up having him to eat today, and get him treated.”

“Shall we? Then if the treatment…”

Since he didn’t talk, the servants didn’t even look at Sian anymore.

It was then.

“…Princess?”

“Miss Billishia?”

The maid who was shaking her head accidentally spotted me and lowered her head.

“…Billie’s voice…”

However, it wasn’t just the servants who reacted to my appearance.

Was it a familiar voice?

Sian’s eyes, which had been muttering barely audible, finally opened.

His expression, which was colorless, took on a look of surprise.

Jumpㅡ

“Billie?”

Eventually he got up from his seat.

However, seeing my ambiguous expression, it seemed that he wasn’t sure when he saw my clean clothes and face.

“…Billie? Is that you?”

‘Now you noticed, dull boy.’

At that time, if he had only checked the situation in Viscount Shrek’s basement, he would have noticed that I was Billishia.

“You should eat!”

Regardless, I strode towards Sian.

The maids around me vacated their spots for me.

As he quietly watched the situation, he wrinkled his forehead.

“You, you then… I knew you were a slave too… Ugh.”

Sian, who was about to move quickly, flinched.

It seemed that the severe pain had come to the place where the Viscount hit him hard.

But even as I grabbed his ribs, his jet-black eyes were fixed on me.

“…Were you brought here too?”

“Huh? No, that’s not it…”

“You have to run away.”

A stern answer stuck.

For an instant, my shoulders twitched.

He was the one who was full of scars, yet he was worried about me.

“I heard rumors that the owner of this place is vicious. It’s not good for you to come here, so run away.”

“Vicious…?”

Lisa nodded as if she was sympathizing with Sian’s words, then she looked at me and came to her senses.

“I guess that child doesn’t know the identity of the Princess.”

“It seems so.”

But what should we do?

‘I’m the daughter of that vicious owner.’

It seemed like it would be nice to have a conversation with just the two of us.

When I asked Lisa and the servants to leave with a blink, the servants lowered their heads and left their seats.

Finally, around the time Lisa closed the door.

In the wind, at first glance, monologues close to whispers lingered.

“…I think I heard that the Princess lives in the annex.”

Huh?

You want to go to the annex?

Unfortunately, I misunderstood his words.

“So, you, Billishia… Of all things…”

“…”

“…That means you’re the Princess.”

Sian immediately changed his tone and bit his lower lip.

‘Looks like he’s the type to make sense of things.’

However, when I saw Sian immediately showing respect, I felt strangely uncomfortable.

Sian was the only friend I became close to without any calculation.

“When I woke up, the handcuffs were off. And this isn’t even a basement…”

“I asked for it separately. At that time, the person Dad was trying to take was not you, but the Viscount.”

Grabㅡ 

With both hands, I struggled to drag a simple chair and settled down on the side of the bed.

Sian’s dark eyes, which had been looking at me like that, shook.

“And between us, you can speak informally!”

I was comfortable with informal speech.

When there were servants, I had to draw a line by being considerate of Sian and everyone else.

“…I apologize.”

However, Sian’s expression darkened.

Huh, gosh. This guy.

“Let’s talk casually between us.”

“I apologize.”

“Speak informally. Sian. I like being comfortable.”

Seeing his head slowly shrinking, I felt like my friend was getting farther away.

In the end, I forced myself to smile and held out my hand, but a low voice flowed from the corner of Sian’s mouth, who was staring at me.

“…I apologize.”

A polite answer.

Yet a hoarse voice.

“…Sian.”

“…”

“Speak informally. I told you to speak informally.”

My voice lowered, a little angry at the series of rejections.

Our tiki-taka fit really well.

It’s not easy to have such a good friend in the life of a villain’s daughter.

Being so determined, I stretched out my arms.

“!”

As if he wanted to somehow avoid contact, he leaned his upper body slightly backwards.

The corner of my lips trembled at the resolute refusal.

‘…You don’t want to be friends with me because I’m the daughter of a vicious owner?’

[If you make friends with someone like Billishia, you will end up being used. Break up.]

[Eh? Billishia. Wasn’t it a business anyway? I asked to be friends with you because you seem to know this area well.]

The figures of many people overlapped with Sian who rejected me.

The area around my chest was throbbing.

“…Can you bring me some food? Steak please.”

He refused treatment, so I need to feed him something.

For a while, I quickly hid my arms that had been floating in the air.

I was worried and ordered a meal right away, and a delicacy was immediately served.

“Eat first and get healed.”

He might reject me because of my status.

But let’s wait and see.

I’ll get to know you again somehow.

I deliberately brought him delicious food, and nervously checked Sian’s reaction.

As expected, he seemed to have never had such a delicacy.

Unlike his desire to draw a line, a surprise was already revealed in the expression on his face.

“…I don’t want to owe anything. I won’t eat.”

Am I a moneylender?

Why do people keep turning me into a villain?

“…Are not you hungry?”

“I’m fine.”

With patience engraved in my heart, I exhaled lightly.

“I don’t know what kind of trauma you have with nobles, but just go after the treatment is over. You’re not even a servant of our mansion after all.”

“But…”

“Can’t you just get better and go?”

I politely interrupted Sian, who was about to add something.

Please. I hate this ending.

My voice trembled slightly at the too eager chin.

It was then that Sian, who was about to wake up, stopped.

“But the steak…”

“It’s so delicious!”

“…I was going to say that it’s very expensive.”

He stared at me like an ignorant child with narrowed eyes.

Then crackㅡ

A crashing sound was heard from the other side.

It seemed that my sincerity had been communicated, and that he had decided to withdraw for now.

“…All I need is wheat bread.”

However, the steak refusal remained.

Wheat bread is a prison ration.

It must be because Sian also knows that the bread given to sinners is the cheapest.

However.

“I’d rather just eat steak than throw away my steak to eat wheat bread. I can’t eat what a slave throws away.”

Winceㅡ 

Taken aback, he furrowed his eyebrows.

At first glance, it seemed that his ears were also slightly red.

I smacked the steak with a fork while smirking.

“I specifically asked for the food I usually eat. But if I throw it away… How many gold coins will I waste?”

“Oh, how much.”

Confused, he muttered innocently.

I passed.

“It will be three gold coins. Besides, it’s a dish made by the head chef of Vallois… I guess it’s not cooking, it’s art.”

“Art…”

“Yeah. So don’t leave it behind and chew it thoroughly. Don’t throw away gold coins.”

With a satisfied expression on my face, I placed a fork in the stunned Sian’s hand.

Yet he didn’t even speak.

“It’s really delicious, though?”

“Not that…”

“Just take one bite.”

“…No…”

It was then.

Sian’s eyes suddenly went blank, and he lowered his head.

“…I don’t know how to eat.”

I gasped at the unexpected answer.

Seeing my expression, Sian jumped up from his seat as if he was embarrassed.

“I don’t have to eat.”

“The way to eat steak is to eat it as delicious as possible! Nothing else beside that!”

“Yes?”

When I saw the pitiful figure, I flushed and jumped up.

“Hook with a fork! And, om nom nom, chew on it!”

Let’s dip the steak with a fork and put it back in his handㅡ

“That,”

“Eat.”

“…Hm.”

Sian was really surprised, yet he was talking half-heartedly without even realizing it.

“I’ll s-speak informally when there are two of us.”

I didn’t know that I was so happy that Sian’s tone became more comfortable.

It feels so good that my cheeks are burning hot.

“Speak informally from now on too.”

“…What? Billie, wait…”

“Eat.”

It’s hot, but still.

I nodded and ran out of the guest room as if I were running away.