Naturally, Delia’s gaze swept over Kaiel’s figure from top to bottom. When her gaze, which had taken in even the tips of his shoes, returned to his face, she barely managed to swallow the exclamation that almost escaped her lips.

He was beyond what she had imagined.

What would he look like? Would he really be as handsome as she imagined? What would his voice sound like?

The face she had envisioned countless times whenever she thought of him.

That perfect face was now standing right in front of Delia’s eyes.

With just his entrance, he captured everyone’s attention without sparing a glance at anyone. He moved his long legs and quickly approached the innkeeper. Since Delia was seated right in front of the innkeeper, it was as if he was standing right next to her.

“Here.”

His voice came from high above her head.

“I heard you sell unique drinks.”

A chillingly low, cold voice.

“Ah, yes. Unique drinks.”

Innkeeper Heather felt the air suddenly grow colder and answered with an awkward smile. Then she glanced at her strange friend, who was still deeply cloaked, more than usual today.

“Thanks to my friend sitting here who introduced me to various brewing methods….”

Delia had introduced many types of modern drinks to Innkeeper Heather. Although she never answered how she knew so many drinks, based on her stories, Heather was able to develop various brewing methods.

After some time, Heather’s tavern became popular in the nearby villages for selling unique drinks.

Apparently, the rumors had spread far enough to reach Kaiel, who was visiting Sheriton unintentionally.

“It’s a gift for my younger sister, so give me the best one.”

Kaiel, who had turned his head towards Delia at the innkeeper’s introduction, quickly withdrew his gaze, seemingly uninterested in the rest of the story. He took out a gold coin from his pocket and placed it in front of the innkeeper.

Heather’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight of the gold coin.

“I-I’ll get it ready right away!”

Innkeeper Heather quickly pocketed the gold coin and immediately got busy making a drink for the esteemed guest.

Kaiel stepped back and crossed his arms, sharply watching the innkeeper’s busy movements.

To others, it might have looked like he was monitoring whether the innkeeper was making the drink properly, but to Delia, it didn’t seem that way.

‘Is he interested in the process of making the drink? His eyes are shining.’

Delia, unable to openly stare at Kaiel who had come close, kept glancing at him from behind her hood. Realizing he wasn’t paying any attention to her, she began to openly observe him.

An older brother who came all the way to this small village to buy a gift for his younger sister.

‘Who would believe that such a ruthless villain cares so much for his sister?’

At that moment.

Ding.

The familiar notification sound and the status window appeared.

[Eliminate the villain ‘Kaiel Ceder’ to fulfill the author’s responsibility.]

The system reminded her of her mission once again.

“Sigh….”

Delia let out a deep sigh.

Seeing him in person made it even more daunting.

Kill?

Kill Kaiel?

Deciding to kill him to escape the penalties was something she resolved before facing Kaiel directly.

Now that she had seen his face, that resolve vanished.

Moreover, the person she had to kill was no longer a fictional character in a novel. He was a living, breathing person, speaking and moving right in front of her.

Previously, she could kill or save a character with just a sentence, but now the weight of it was different.

Killing a person so easily was absurd. She was neither a born assassin, soldier, knight, nor agent.

At least she couldn’t kill him right here in the open, which was a relief.

‘I don’t have to kill him right now….’

Delia shook her head as if to clear her thoughts. Because of that, the hood that had been quietly covering her face slipped off.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice the small movement of the hood slipping off. Kaiel, whose gaze had been fixed on the innkeeper, glanced at her briefly.

‘I have to stick close to Kaiel, whether it’s a mess or not. I have to follow him. Only then can I find an opportunity or a gap….’

It’s impossible right now.

With her thoughts sorted, Delia realized she had been staring at Kaiel. At the same time, she met Kaiel’s eyes that were directed at her.

‘Huh?’

Calm, deep sea-like blue-gray eyes.

Gasp.

Feeling her face heat up instantly, Delia quickly turned her head away. Regret immediately washed over her.

‘Why did you turn your head! You should have looked more! Look again!’

But when Delia turned her head back, he had already withdrawn his gaze.

As if she were just another passerby, those few seconds of interest were all there was. To him, Delia was just that insignificant.

‘Wow… really, he’s completely Kaiel.’

His personality of not sparing a glance at anything outside his interest. He was exactly as she had depicted him in the novel, Kaiel Ceder.

‘Still, he could have looked a little longer….’

Delia touched her face from her cheeks down. Her high nose, soft skin, and long eyelashes brushed her fingertips.

‘I’m quite pretty… and he didn’t show any interest. What a celibate.’

A sudden thought crossed Delia’s mind.

Could it be,

‘Does it not work on main characters…?’

Suspecting a possibility, she recalled a system window that had appeared long ago. It was information that had appeared shortly after she entered the novel.

[The ‘author’ possesses three abilities.]
[First, the ‘author’ has a high charm score.]
[Second, the ‘author’ is immortal unless they wish to die.]
[Third, the ‘author’ can view information about all characters through the status window.]

So Delia had three abilities she gained upon entering the novel.

One of them was a ‘high charm score.’

Delia was indeed beautiful, and her personality was naturally kind and lovely.

This ability enhanced her charm, creating a synergistic effect.

Thanks to this, she could easily gain the favor of anyone she met. Innkeeper Heather and others felt a strange attraction to her, and this ability helped with that.

Although the degree varied depending on the situation and the person, most of Delia’s experiments had succeeded.

But now….

Delia stared intently at Kaiel. Then she nodded slightly a couple of times. Her tightly pursed lips looked as if she was trying hard to understand.

‘Yeah. A celibate character wouldn’t easily show interest in me. That’s not right.’

Thinking that she couldn’t ruin the character she had created, she closed her eyes tightly. It was a habit that came out when she was deeply contemplating something.

Fixing her gaze on one spot and not moving, or closing her eyes completely.

When she closed her eyes, Kaiel’s face, which had been staring at her in the darkness, appeared.

‘He looked completely indifferent, didn’t he?’

It seemed that her high charm score wasn’t enough to attract the attention of that cold-hearted villain.

‘How am I supposed to stay close to him…?’

She was just about to think of a way to approach him.

“So, what does the Grand Duke of Tranade look like?”

Delia heard a conversation from a table nearby.

“From what I heard earlier, he’s like a wild beast?”

Oh.

Her tightly shut eyes suddenly opened wide.

“His hair is disheveled… Ah! They said his face is extremely fierce. Like a boar. The cute Miss saw him herself!”

People’s gazes naturally turned to Delia.

“That Miss over there…!”

Delia immediately turned her head to check on Kaiel.

‘He didn’t hear that… right?’

She hoped their voices hadn’t reached him.

But as soon as she saw Kaiel’s expression, Delia’s vain hope shattered.

“…….”

His eyebrows, though barely noticeable, were slightly, but definitely, furrowed.

She, who was knowledgeable about him, was certain.

Ah.

‘…He’s angry.’

She had written ‘Kaiel Ceder’ as someone whose facial expressions rarely changed. Therefore, only Delia could recognize his subtle expressions.

Quietly observing Kaiel’s mood, Delia swallowed hard. It wasn’t because she was afraid of his anger. She was worried that he might be hurt by the insults.

Kaiel Ceder.

Even if he was someone she would eventually have to kill her, he was still her favorite.

To think that her favorite felt displeased because of the rumors she had spread, even if they were false and vulgar.

‘Absolutely not.’