Chapter 37: My Heart Aches
After Kailun and his entourage left, Ella dismissed the workers, granting them a paid day off.
She closed the shop and sat alone behind the counter, lost in thought. She questioned the purpose of all her years of hard work.
Her life seemed to have lost all meaning, leaving only the bare act of existence.
She couldn’t understand why Kailun had targeted her. Why would such a powerful figure bother with a small fry like her?
She rested her chin on her hand, her spirit broken.
“Auntie, Auntie, are you alright?”
Paul’s voice startled her from her daze.
She glanced at him with an empty expression. “Paul, the shop is closed today. Go home. I’ll still pay you for the day.”
“Clink, clink!”
She pushed a few stacks of copper coins towards him.
He shook his head. “Auntie, that’s not what I meant. I’m saying, don’t take what happened earlier to heart. Don’t worry, those nobles who bullied us will pay one day. I’ll crush them all, every single one!”
Ella offered a bitter smile. “So you saw everything.”
Her affection for her nephew had diminished considerably. He had hidden in his room while she was being humiliated, only to emerge afterwards with empty boasts and slogans.
What good was that?
If not for his father, she wouldn’t be in this mess. It was all their fault. Why was she the one paying the price?
And this fool was even hiding his own sister’s disappearance, refusing to report it to the academy for his own selfish reasons. Did he even know that his sister was currently being toyed with by that devil?
She looked at him with disdain, seeing him as a selfish and clueless idiot.
“Auntie, why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong? I couldn’t do anything against those people! Even the captain of the enforcement squad didn’t dare to speak up! How could I…”
He instinctively defended himself, but her increasingly cold gaze silenced him.
“Sigh…”
She pointed at the coins on the counter. “Take your money and leave. And don’t come back.”
“Auntie… can I borrow some more money? I’m really short on funds right now.”
Realizing she was angry, he abandoned his excuses. However, he desperately needed money to continue inscribing magic circles. He lowered his head and pleaded with her.
He figured that since she had just received ten thousand gold coins from that idiot Kailun, a few hundred wouldn’t be a problem.
“You want money? Fine! I’ll give it to you, but I never want to see you again. How much do you need?”
She angrily reached into her coin purse. Her frugal nature had allowed her to save some money.
“Three hundred… no, five hundred gold coins. I need a large sum urgently. With this money, I can quickly become stronger, and then…” He envisioned a bright future.
Ella: “？？?”
“Five hundred gold coins? You could sell this entire shop and still not get five hundred gold coins! Are you insane?!” Her gaze turned icy. She had finally seen his true colors.
Paul couldn’t give up. Time and money were his most precious resources. “Auntie, you just received ten thousand gold coins from Kailun. I only need five hundred. I’ll pay you back when I’m rich. Double, even!”
“What? You even want a share of my earnings from selling myself?” She said bitterly.
In Paul’s mind, “selling herself” simply meant working for Kailun. He didn’t consider the deeper implications.
He nodded. “It’s Kailun’s money anyway.”
Ella: “…”
Sometimes, anger manifested as an eerie calmness. If Kailun were here, he would be envious of Paul’s talent for infuriating others.
If he could say such infuriating things, reaching -100 favorability would be a breeze.
“Clatter!”
She swept the copper coins back into her purse and glared at him. “Leave. I won’t give you any money. I need it to earn more for Lord Kailun.”
Paul was dumbfounded. “How could you do this?!”
She ignored him and retrieved a sword from beneath the counter. Before she could even draw it, Paul had fled.
She could hear him cursing Kailun as he ran.
At that moment, she almost found Kailun less repulsive.
…
[After witnessing such a peculiar individual, Ella’s favorability towards you has increased by 5. Current favorability: -75.]
[Paul’s hatred towards you has reached its peak. Favorability -5. Current favorability: -80.]
Kailun, strolling through the city with Carol, was puzzled. He understood Paul’s irrational hatred, but why had Ella’s favorability increased? Was she a masochist?
Thinking of his strange talent, he suddenly worried about reaching -100 with her.
“Philip, discreetly assign someone to keep an eye on Paul. Report any unusual activity immediately. And don’t alert him.”
He decided to have Paul monitored. If he stumbled upon any opportunities, Kailun wanted to snatch them first.
“Yes, sir. I’ll take care of it right away.”
Philip bowed respectfully. His admiration for Kailun continued to grow.
With Philip gone, only Roden remained by his side. The two assistants were tasked with escorting the prisoners to the mines.
With Ella’s matter settled, Kailun had some free time. He decided to take Carol on a tour of the Royal City, a place he had once known intimately, reminiscing about his lost youth.
As they turned a corner, they encountered the little princess, her mood sour as she strolled through the streets with two female knights as her escort.
Vivian froze upon seeing Kailun. Before she could turn and flee, he called out her name.
“Princess, long time no see. Are you here to see me? Or are you eager to attend the banquet at Youlan(Orchid) Castle tonight?”
“No! I’m not! Don’t slander me!”
Vivian glared at him. If she could, she would lock him up and torture him!
Yes, with lots of little toys!
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