Please Lend Me 50 Million - Chapter 63

Officer Melburne was so terrified by Harriet’s strangely settled attitude that his hands and feet were practically numb. If he had shown anger, the officer could have at least tried to soothe him, but that heavily settled rage made him fear the aftermath. Yet Asha, who was the one actually dealing with Harriet, was answering his questions half-heartedly.

To become the Countess of Bellstein, one must be able to punch out a mere Viscount and casually ignore the rage of Count Bellstein.

It was a strange misunderstanding, but since Harriet, after a brief greeting, immediately led Asha out, he couldn’t ask anything else. Officer Melburne, who stood up awkwardly and watched the backs of the Count and his wife, scratched his head as if a storm had just passed. They were… a truly bizarre couple.

Asha’s mind, which showed no sign of returning, came back to her from an unexpected place. She wanted to deny the scenery passing by the window, but it was a painfully familiar view. We’ve arrived at the mansion already? I haven’t even thought about what to do with the plan yet?

Asha’s fingertips twitched. The anxiety she had briefly forgotten spread in an instant like a wildfire. Being heartbroken over the ruined plan or feeling hollow while reflecting on the past were luxuries she could only afford if she had time. Now that the mansion was this close, she had to come up with a solution somehow. …But what solution could there be in this situation? Should she just give up everything and run away? What is it with that damn crotch of his.

For a moment, the temptation to flee seized her mind, but soon, her thoughts began to flow in another direction. Why did I go through all that trouble? What about the mockery he gave in response to my temptation? When she recalled even the laughter she faced after tempting him with all her heart and soul, instead of losing heart, a new resolve began to burn.

Asha began to rack her brains, clenching her fists to keep from tearing her hair out. But just because her desire grew didn’t mean a clear solution would pop out immediately. Only her tightly clenched fists turned white. She was using her head so intensely that she didn’t even notice the dark gaze watching her.

Mercilessly, the carriage stopped before long, and Asha got off as if being pushed. Had she reached the mansion doors without any particular plan? Cornered, Asha made a decision.

Since it has come to this, it’s a tactical retreat.

Asha hurried her trembling legs and moved them mechanically. Her mind, focused solely on the box she must have hidden in Harriet’s bedroom, made her unaware of what she was even answering to others, but anything was fine. She just had to enter his bedroom before him and hide the box somehow.

However, as she crossed the hallway, Asha soon realized there were footsteps following her. Something was going wrong.

Eh…?

The stagnant cold sweat trickled down her back, and a chilling shudder tickled the nape of her neck. Ignore it. She made a quick judgment and increased her pace, but as if to make that judgment futile, he called out to her from behind.

“Asha.”

…Should she answer?

Should she pretend not to know?

It was certainly the most conflicted moment in Asha’s twenty-five years of life.

After a moment of intense deliberation, following the teachings of a certain businessman teacher who said one must know how to give up small things for the sake of a great event, Asha moved her feet while pretending not to hear. She should have at least been a good actor—her posture as she feigned ignorance was incredibly awkward.

“Ha—”

Harriet, letting out a small, hollow laugh, slowly followed behind Asha. After callously ignoring him when he called, it was only when it seemed he would follow her all the way to the bedroom that Asha finally turned back to Harriet.

“H-Harriet. Are you going to the b-bedroom already?”

How could she be so bad at controlling her expression? The sign of please go somewhere else was plastered all over her face.

“I thought you were guiding me to my bedroom.”

Even at his wife’s expression, he smiled slowly and murmured in a low voice. It was a smile that looked relaxed at a glance, but the anger beneath it wasn’t fully hidden.

“But don’t you have a lot of backlogged work? Because of m-me, you had to come out so suddenly…!”

“No, Asha. I’m more curious about what kind of scheme you’re plotting again.”

“S-scheme. Where would such a thing be?”

Asha shook her head vigorously and claimed her innocence, but somehow, he didn’t seem to believe her. Come to think of it, is he different from the usual Harriet…? Realizing a subtle difference, Asha looked at Harriet.

His strangely settled expression was chilling somehow. She recalled his picture-perfect smile and the polite tone he used toward her, but she couldn’t shake the eerie feeling.

It was as if she had encountered a predator hiding in the dark.

“Are you angry…?”