“Just let them think that.”

“No!”

He furrowed his brows and glared at his subordinate, who could only nod in agreement. But more than that, the sight of the woman lightly hitting his shoulder while he smiled and took it made it look like…

‘A couple displaying affection…?’

The employee couldn’t help but think so.

Regardless, seeing his usually expressionless, frowning, or sneering boss smile made the woman seem like an angel.

Maybe having her around would curb his temper…

Unaware of the employee’s thoughts, Lysith sighed and spoke softly.

“Sorry for the late introduction. You might not recognize me because of my hair color, but I’m Lysith Gronevelt.”

She thought that introducing herself would make them believe she wasn’t his girlfriend. But contrary to her expectations, the employee clapped his hands in realization.

“Oh! That’s why you look so much brighter. You seem much more relaxed and happier than the last time you visited. Our Master may have a temper, but his face…”

“What?”

“…isn’t the only good thing about him. He has many great qualities!”

The employee’s desperate attempt to cover for his boss was pitiful.

Lysith let it slide and recalled her last visit. She remembered having the ‘Melancholy’ passive on at that time. Now, it was off.

The comment about her looking brighter seemed to imply she looked better because she had a new lover. Unfortunately, it was just the passive being off, and she had no intention of becoming his lover.

As she pondered, she suddenly looked at the employee in surprise.

“Wait. Did you recognize me back then?”

“Of course. The staff at ‘Dinev’ know all the nobles. We didn’t recognize you because only the Master can change hair color like that.”

Before the employee could finish, Ashites interrupted.

“I was the one you bumped into back then.”

“Oh. …Really?”

When she said ‘Really?’ and fell silent, Ashites looked away awkwardly.

He hadn’t meant for it to come out like that. He just wanted to say that they had met before and that he knew it was her. But thinking back, he realized he had acted like a jerk back then. He just wanted to get her attention.

As Ashites avoided her gaze, Lysith turned to the employee with a light smile.

“You must have been startled when I freaked out. I expected something like this, but I didn’t think it would actually be here.”

“It’s understandable. That’s why we don’t display it in stores frequented by nobles.”

“Of course, if it were openly displayed, no one would buy it. But I thought maids or servants might come here to buy it.”

While chatting with the employee, Lysith noticed him glancing at his boss, who was unusually silent. It seemed he found it just as surprising.

‘…Actually, I find it surprising too.’

As Lysith glanced at the employee who was also sneaking glances at Ashites, their eyes met. Unable to look away, she simply stared, and suddenly, for some reason, he furrowed his brows.

“…Noona.”

“Yes.”

“Sorry…”

She hadn’t expected him to apologize so suddenly, and her surprised expression seemed to encourage him as Ashites gently grabbed her sleeve.

Having roughly finished his calculations, Ashites thought to himself: Based on her attitude towards the employee, it was clear that her behavior and demeanor varied depending on how the other person treated her. If someone was kind to her, she reciprocated; if not, she didn’t go out of her way to be kind either.

Until now, she had shown the minimum courtesy to him because he was the Master of the Magic Tower, but now that he had told her to drop the formalities, she was acting more naturally and comfortably.

Ashites realized that the reason she wasn’t particularly kind to him was because he had left a bad impression on her so far.

He didn’t want to be the same as that Grand Duke or whoever else she looked down upon.

From now on, he just needed to be more considerate. At least to Lysith.

He didn’t care how he treated others; he only wanted to make her smile, meet her gaze, and become the object of her affection.

“I won’t say things like that anymore.”

“……”

“Really. If I act that way towards you again, just cut it off, ugh.”

“Alright, just stop there…”

Lysith quickly covered Ashites’ mouth, considering the ears around them, and sighed softly. His sudden change in attitude was as unpredictable as ever.

Anyway, he had apologized and promised not to act that way again, so there was no need to insist otherwise. She hadn’t been deeply hurt by his words; they had just been annoying enough to make her want to punch him.

And the employee, watching their antics, was struggling to hold back his nausea.

The employee’s eyes had started to tremble when Ashites called her ‘Noona,’ and when he apologized, they quaked like an earthquake. When he promised not to say such things again, the employee’s jaw almost dropped.

Ashites, who didn’t care whether the employee drooled or lost his eyeballs, quickly intertwined his fingers with Lysith’s again.

“Do well. Tell the others.”

“…Yes? Yes.”

Lysith wondered what he meant by ‘tell the others,’ but she assumed it was just a work-related instruction and let it go. She would later scream upon realizing what he actually meant.

The two of them left the shop and shared snacks like a normal couple on a date. Ashites kept asking if she was okay with street food, finding it surprising that a noblewoman like her had no aversion to it.

Lysith, who felt more at home with this lifestyle than her noble one, naturally had no issues. She usually relied on her residual memories to get by.

While sipping juice, she frowned, feeling like she had forgotten something. What was it?

“Oh, right.”

“Huh? What?”

“So… what’s the reason?”

“Oh, that.”

They had gone to the shop because he claimed there was a reason he was good at it from the start, but she still didn’t know what it was. Considering it was an R-rated game, it would have been problematic if the male protagonist was bad at it just because it was his first time.

Thinking about it that way, she could accept it as simply a talent.

“I’m the one in charge of everything. I did the final review of the place that surprised you.”

“So you got good at it because you needed to sell it?”

Ashites nodded while munching on a snack, confirming her question.

Although she got an answer, it was essentially the same as saying he was naturally good at it. Not everyone would be good at it just because they were selling it.

In conclusion, it was just a talent.

As she chewed on a pink cotton candy, she noticed a jewelry shop and glanced at it. Following her gaze, Ashites spoke first.

“Is there something you want?”

“No, it just looks like good quality… It’s interesting since this area is mainly for commoners.”

“Sometimes people like us or wealthy individuals come here.”

Pausing briefly to look at the shop again, he casually said something astounding.

“Should I buy it for you?”

“What? Do you mean a piece of jewelry?”

“No. The shop.”

“……?”

Did she hear him right? Her eyes trembled just like the employee’s had earlier, but he continued to look at the shop, murmuring seriously.

“Hmm, no. The central area would be better. Maybe the whole street? I might have to negotiate with the Emperor for that…”

Listening to Ashites’ muttering, Lysith felt like fainting. This must be what they meant by a different level of thinking.

‘What? Buy the street? Negotiate with the Emperor?’

…Honestly, she would be lying if she said she wasn’t tempted.

Even though she had lost her memories, she was still a Korean at heart, and the thought of owning a shop, real estate, or being a landlord made her mouth water a little.

‘But that’s just too much…!’

Wiping her non-existent drool, Lysith grabbed Ashites’ arm. If she didn’t stop him, he might actually negotiate with the Emperor and hand her the street saying, ‘This is yours now.’

“No need!”

“Really?”

To reiterate, Ashites was incredibly wealthy. It wasn’t that Lysith was poor; it was just the difference between an ocean and a lake.

He seemed a bit disappointed by her refusal but told her to let him know if she ever wanted it.

No sane person would want it after hearing he would negotiate with the Emperor. And Lysith was a very sane person.

They continued walking, looking for something else to do, but there was nothing special as there wasn’t a festival or a national holiday. The streets were just as usual.

‘In novels, don’t incidents like pickpocketing usually happen when you go out…?’

Reality was so peaceful it felt strange. On the other hand, she felt that since this world had given her the task of conquering four men, it owed her some peaceful daily life.

As they leisurely walked back to Lysith’s mansion, Ashites’ reluctance to part became evident on his face, which Lysith found awkward.