Chapter 25

After tossing and turning a few more times, Chase finally gave up and opened his eyes. It seemed sleep was out of the question tonight.  

As he revisited his memories, feeling both unsettled and slightly exhilarated, Chase murmured to himself.  

“Come to think of it… she did say she liked my face.”  

Chase suddenly recalled a conversation he’d had with Sabrina during the interview for a new assistant not long ago.  

“What was your first impression of me, Sabrina?” 

“Your first impression, Your Majesty?”  

“…”  

“It was, of course, good. You were as perfect then as you are today.”  

He could vividly picture her face as she tilted her head slightly and smiled softly.  

Chase was confident he could recreate that moment without a single flaw.  

No, he could even describe the atmosphere of that day in detail—the humidity, the temperature, the way the sunlight streamed through the large windows.  

‘That day was… unusual.’  

There was a reason Chase remembered that day so clearly: Sabrina’s behavior had been strangely out of character.  

Lost in thought, she had missed hearing him call her name. Her cheeks flushed like that of an excited young girl…  

He vividly recalled her reaction when she had reached out to adjust his cravat and accidentally brushed her knee against his.  

Though she had helped him with his attire countless times before, the closeness they shared that day felt particularly intimate.  

Close enough to see the fine downy hairs on her cheeks. The meaningful smile that played on her lips when their eyes met.  

The glances she stole at him. The subtle nuance of someone hiding a secret.  

At the time, he had dismissed it as a misunderstanding, chalking it up to the unfamiliarity of the situation.  

“You really are different today. Have you always been this interested in my appearance?”  

“Of course! Your Majesty, your beauty is something I must protect at all costs!”  

Chase pressed his hands to his flushed face.  

‘So Sabrina really does like my face.’  

He had heard countless compliments about his appearance before. As tiresome as it was, what could he do? It was the truth. False modesty would only be hypocritical.  

The public’s praise whenever he appeared in an official capacity, the young ladies who approached him with their faces flushed red—it all left no room for doubt.  

But for some reason, knowing that Sabrina valued his appearance felt different. It hit him in a new way.  

Why?  

Was it because she wasn’t the type to express such things often? Or because her opinion, being so objective and rational, carried more weight?  

Who knew?  

He couldn’t quite figure it out, but one thing was certain: Sabrina found him to be an attractive man.  

The words he had once brushed off with a smirk now carried a different meaning.  

Chase’s mind began to piece together past events, reconstructing them in a new light.  

Her laughter at his jokes, the fleeting touches of her hand—all these moments took on new significance.  

Like a snowball rolling down a hill, his thoughts grew larger and larger, gaining momentum. As his hypothesis gained traction, any gaps in logic faded into the background.  

By the time the dark night sky began to lighten with a bluish hue, Chase was half-convinced of Sabrina’s feelings.  

‘So… what should I do from now on?’  

Bathed in a soft pink glow, Chase tossed and turned, his mind racing. Despite having stayed up all night, his eyes sparkled with an unusual brightness.  

Wouldn’t things become awkward if emotions got involved between colleagues? There wasn’t anyone as competent or as familiar with me as Sabrina.  

As he reached that point, his returning reason briefly intervened.  

‘There’s no point in jumping to conclusions without concrete evidence.’  

After some deliberation, Chase arrived at a decision.  

‘…I’ll observe her a little longer for now.’  

* * *

“Your Majesty, may I come in for a moment?”  

Knock, knock, knock.  

Sabrina entered the office, her arms full of documents.  

“Sabrina.”  

His voice, unusually gentle, made Sabrina lower her head slightly.  

“Good morning, Your Majesty.”  

“Yes, good morning.”  

Smiling brightly, Chase’s face seemed to radiate a halo of light. Sabrina squinted slightly. His face, always impressive, seemed even brighter than usual today.  

Sabrina returned his smile and said,  

“You seem to be in a good mood today.”  

“Do I? Perhaps.”  

“You must have slept well.”  

“Slept? Ah…”

Chase scratched his forehead awkwardly and laughed.  

“Well, yes, I suppose.”  

What was this?  

Sabrina tilted her head slightly in thought. It was hard to pinpoint, but something about Chase seemed a little different today.  

He felt oddly buoyant, almost as if he were floating.  

‘I don’t know the reason… but it’s good to see him in a good mood.’  

But for Sabrina, that wasn’t the important thing. What was important, you ask?  

What else could it be? Work, of course.  

Sabrina heaved the stack of documents she had been carrying onto the desk with a grunt.  

Chase’s eyes widened as he noticed the pile.  

“What’s all this?”  

He raised an eyebrow as he asked,  

“All these tasks to handle at this hour? Did something happen that I don’t know about?”  

Sabrina shook her head.  

“No, these are just all the things you need to take care of today.”  

“All of them? Right now? Why?”  

Sabrina smiled, her lips curling upward as she replied,  

“You’ve been going out quite often lately for various reasons. I thought if you handled as much as possible before leaving, you’d be able to rest more comfortably later.”  

To summarize her lengthy explanation: finish your work before going on a date with Elena.  

A passionate romance, the love story of the century… Sure, that’s all well and good. But still, he was the Emperor, wasn’t he? If a Duke slacked off, their house would fall, but if the Emperor slacked off, the Empire would collapse.  

At that moment, Chase spoke up abruptly.  

“I’m not going out today. I’ll be here all day.”  

“Really?”  

At Chase’s unexpected declaration that he would remain in the office, Sabrina couldn’t help but beam.  

‘Yes! I can leave on time today.’  

Had I been too obvious in my reaction? 

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Sabrina tucked her loose hair behind her ears.  

As she did so, Chase, who had been quietly watching her, tilted his head and asked,  

“Are you happy that I’m staying here?”  

Without hesitation, Sabrina nodded.  

“Yes, of course.”  

“Why?”  

“Oh, why, you ask?”  

If he asked me that, how was I supposed to answer…  

After a brief moment of hesitation, wondering how honest she should be, Sabrina smiled brightly and replied,  

“I think you look the most impressive when you’re working, Your Majesty. It’s a joy for me to assist you during those moments.” 

“…Really? Impressive, you say?”  

“Yes, absolutely.”  

Chase’s eyes widened ever so slightly at her words. After blinking a few times, he shifted his gaze to the towering stack of documents in front of him.  

‘Now’s the time.’  

Sabrina quickly placed the first report in front of Chase and said,  

“In that case, I’ll step out to prepare some tea and snacks for you.”  

“Alright, thank you.”  

Chase picked up his pen without another word, a determined expression flickering across his face.  

‘…Strange. He seems different today.’  

As Sabrina turned to leave, she tilted her head slightly in thought.  

But what did it matter? Chase would be staying in the office all day, and she would be going home without a minute of overtime.  

‘This is amazing!’  

Sabrina’s steps were as light as if she were walking on clouds.  

* * *  

“Hey, Senior.”  

Jeremy emerged from Chase’s office and strode toward Sabrina. Without looking up from the documents she was reviewing, Sabrina replied indifferently,  

“Yes? What is it?”  

“Did you have a private conversation with His Majesty today?”  

“Hmm?”  

At the mention of Chase, Sabrina looked up. Jeremy plopped down in the empty seat next to her and said,  

“It just feels like he’s acting a bit differently than usual. I thought you might know something.”  

Sabrina’s eyes widened slightly.  

‘Oh, so it wasn’t just me who noticed?’  

In a calm tone, Sabrina asked,  

“What made you think that? How exactly was he different?”  

Resting his chin on his hand, Jeremy pondered for a moment before replying,  

“He seemed… more passionate than usual, I’d say.”  

“Passionate?”  

Jeremy nodded emphatically.  

“Yes! I mean, I saw you carrying all those tasks into his office earlier.”  

“Yes, I did.”  

“Well, it looks like he’s already finished almost half of them.”  

“What? Really?”  

Sabrina’s jaw dropped at Jeremy’s words.  

‘It’s not even noon yet, and he’s already done that much…’  

Sabrina was well aware that Chase worked quickly, but this was unprecedented.  

And today’s workload was no joke. The tasks had piled up considerably while Chase had been preoccupied with his romantic endeavors.  

‘I thought he might not even finish everything by the end of the day.’  

This was a stroke of luck, truly.  

Suppressing her delight, Sabrina smiled to herself.  

“Looks like today is going well for him.”  

Jeremy’s eyes sparkled as he agreed,  

“Yeah, it really seems that way. His Majesty usually likes to joke around, doesn’t he? Whenever I go in, he always makes small talk, but today he didn’t say a word.”  

“Really? That is unusual.”  

“Oh, wait. He did say one thing.”  

Jeremy tilted his head as he added,  

“He asked what you were doing.”  

Sabrina’s eyes widened.  

“His Majesty asked that?”  

If that was the case, this wasn’t the time to be casually chatting. Sabrina began to rise from her seat, but Jeremy waved his hands frantically.  

“There’s no need for that. I told him I’d bring you if he needed you, but he said that wasn’t what he meant. He was just curious.”  

“Oh, I see.”  

Sabrina relaxed back into her chair. Jeremy then asked,  

“There’s nothing I’m missing, right? His Majesty seemed so different that I got a little worried.”  

“…”  

“Oh! Not in a bad way, of course. It’s just that when someone changes so quickly, well, um…”  

As Jeremy began to falter, Sabrina cut him off.  

“You’re not missing anything. I don’t think there’s any need to worry, either. If His Majesty is more dedicated to his duties, that’s something to celebrate, isn’t it?”  

Jeremy quickly nodded.  

“Yes, yes! You’re right. I was worried for no reason.”  

Sabrina patted Jeremy’s shoulder lightly and said,  

“It happens. By the way, how’s the report I assigned you yesterday coming along? Will it be ready by today?”  

“Oh, yes! I just need to finish the final touches. I’ll hurry it along.”  

“Alright, I’m counting on you.”