“But wasn’t Lady Rosie the one being charged with the guide’s murder?”

“Well, Lady Rosie claims that the Center Director coerced her.”

What?! Who coerced whom?

This was absolutely ridiculous.

The possibility of Rosie and Duncan working together was about as likely as me suddenly turning into a man tomorrow morning.

In other words, it was absolutely impossible!

Perhaps because I’d heard such an unbelievable story, I felt stifled. I gulped down the remaining potato juice.

How did things end up like this?

All I knew was that Duncan had reported Rosie to the imperial palace, and she would soon face trial.

I hadn’t heard from Duncan about what happened after that.

The last time I saw Duncan was at Tachis Cathedral.

‘I hope Duncan isn’t being backed into a corner.’

I felt sorry for him.

Duncan had gone out of his way to help me even though he knew there was nothing in it for him.

I only meant to give Rosie a bit of trouble, but now she was dragging Duncan into it.

I wondered how Rosie, who had nothing but Benjamin on her mind, came up with such a tenacious strategy.

At the same time, I was certain that involving Duncan wasn’t her idea.

The answer could be found in the women’s conversation.

“And the most surprising thing is, the person fully supporting Lady Rosie’s claims is none other than…”

None other than?

“Lord Benjamin.”

“…!”

Be-Be-Benjamin? Why is he showing up here?

At that moment, my encounter with Benjamin at Tachis Cathedral flashed through my mind.

Back then, I predicted that Benjamin wouldn’t back down so easily.

Sure enough, it seemed Benjamin had used me to counterattack Duncan. Damn it!

“Bless. Let’s go.”

Bless, his cheeks stuffed full of potato bread, nodded.

The plate in front of him was completely empty, not a trace of potato bread left.

I tucked Bless into my clothes and quietly left the café.

My next destination was the Guildmaster’s study.

‘I should ask the Guildmaster to help me get in touch with Duncan.’

***

Unfortunately, the Guildmaster was absent.

A guild employee I’d never met before told me to wait for him in his study.

There was no one else in the study except for Minky, who was sitting in one corner.

“Minky! Long time no see.”

Minky seemed happy to see me too, running over with his tail wagging.

I gently picked him up and pressed my lips against his tiny mouth.

“Aww, our Minky.”

Oh right, the Guildmaster told me not to kiss his pet.

Minky whimpered as if startled by the sudden kiss. Then he started squirming to get away from me.

“Woof, woof, woof!”

“I shouldn’t do this?”

Minky spoke politely, using formal speech unlike before.

He then hid behind the Guildmaster’s desk and kept peeking at me.

He looked scared that I might kiss him again.

‘Was my show of affection too much?’

I thought it would be okay to kiss him since he liked me so much.

“Alright. I won’t kiss you anymore. Don’t be scared.”

Even after saying that, Minky remained wary. I should bring his favorite snacks next time to make it up to him.

“Really! And I promised Honey I wouldn’t do it either. Let’s keep today’s kiss a secret, okay?”

“Whine…”

‘I want to keep it secret too…’

“Minky, by the way, when is your master coming? I have something important to tell him today…”

“Woof woof woof!”

‘The unmaster-like master is busy today!’

“What’s he doing that’s keeping him so busy these days?”

“……”

Minky answered with silence. Perhaps he was working on some secret business that couldn’t be shared with me.

It was then that the wristwatch hidden deep in my robe went ziiing―.

I took out the wristwatch to check the Center’s alarm.

⌜Code Zero!

Mass appearance of S-class monsters!

Location is Pandora Forest’s D-10 sector!

All Espers and guides who received this message must deploy. Must deploy!⌟

It was an urgent message filled with appropriate typos.

Reading the message about the mass appearance of S-class monsters a couple more times, a tension that seemed to crush my heart rushed in.

I instantly knew that today was ‘Yerena’s death day in the original story.’

“……ha.”

Even the simple act of turning off the watch’s alarm left me breathless. My vision turned yellow as if I was having anemia.

After hesitantly turning off the alarm completely, the room suddenly became quiet.

I saw Minky, who had kept his distance after the sudden kiss, padding softly towards me.

He leaned against my frozen body. That warmth somewhat soothed my startled heart.

Minky carefully asked if I was okay, and Bless also worried about me, gently stroking my cheek with his wing.

Even with the touch of these lovable animals, my startled heart wouldn’t easily calm down.

Why am I so afraid?

Yerena won’t die as predicted in the original story.

I thought there was no possibility of spider monsters appearing in the capital and destroying the city.

If that happened, the original work’s genre would have to change from reverse harem romance to apocalypse.

Just as I was rubbing my hands which had grown cold as if drained of blood, I heard a human voice.

“Have you been waiting long?”

The voice belonged to the Guildmaster, who had come down in what looked like an elevator.

The Guildmaster strode over on his long legs and stood before me.

“…Is something wrong?”

He worried about my suddenly subdued demeanor, though he seemed awkward about it.

His pleasant voice prompted an uncharacteristic whim from me.

“Just for a moment… even if just for a very brief moment, could you hold me?”

I regretted it after saying it, but I didn’t want to take it back.

I craved the embrace of the Guildmaster, the person I was closest to among those I currently knew.

I needed human warmth, not just the small comfort of animals.

Without answering, the Guildmaster wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

Finding it uncomfortable to hug me while I was sitting, he grabbed me under my arms and pulled me up. My body was lifted up with the motion.

The Guildmaster perched on the desk behind him and pulled me into his embrace.

I ended up pressed against him without any gap between us.

Finally able to fully take in his warmth that I wanted.

The Guildmaster smelled nice, with a slight hint of sweat.

Even hearing his small, breathless panting, I could tell he had run here.

Did he run here after hearing I was waiting?

Come to think of it, this man had also come running when I was in danger. As if he was going crazy with worry about me.

While wondering what the Guildmaster thought of me, I focused on my ear pressed against his chest.

Proving he had run here, his heart was beating rapidly. It showed no signs of calming down.

As I appreciated those quick beats, my own heart seemed unwilling to calm down.

While the Guildmaster’s robe tickled my cheek, I didn’t understand why my heart felt ticklish too.

I rolled my lips inward, hoping this strange feeling would fade.

“First you say you missed me, and now you want me to hold you.”

“When did I say I missed you?”

“Didn’t you leave a message?”

The Guildmaster said this as he pulled me away.

We separated our closely pressed upper bodies slightly and looked at each other.

My hood fell off as I lifted my head, but I didn’t put it back on. I just recalled the message he mentioned.

「Honey. I’m going out with Bless for a bit.

And you know what… I’m saying this just in case… If you’re worried about me, please attach a parrot to me like before. Your white parrot was really pretty. Hehe.

I miss you.」

Ah, he must be talking about the message I left before going to save Potas.

He wasn’t around when I returned. I wonder when he discovered it.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Since you asked me to hold you today, I might misunderstand that message’s meaning.”

Though it wasn’t my intention, I felt it would be okay if he misunderstood.

Before I realized it, the Guildmaster’s thumb was gently rubbing my cheek.

I couldn’t resist his careful touch, as if handling fragile glass.

That hand slid down and briefly touched the corner of my mouth.

He hesitated for a moment but finally found his destination – my lips.

The tips of his fingers touching my lips felt hot. Despite not allowing me to touch his own lips before.

But I wasn’t given a chance to question it.

“So, didn’t you miss me?”

His lips looked particularly red as he asked this.