The Villain is Being Suspiciously Kind - Chapter 100

Chapter 100

In contrast to Elaina’s solemn determination, Citrina wasn’t thinking about anything right now.
That was because her mind was blank.
The kitchen of her mansion was now enveloped in grey and black smoke.
Truthfully, the mansion the emperor had gifted her was fully equipped. There was even a servant to deliver groceries, so things weren’t too bad. However.
“It’s burnt.”
Citrina said weakly. Lita looked at Citrina and waved away the smoke with his hand.
“…It’s all burnt.’
-Ack, that smell!
The little spirit who was never far from trouble, Gemma clapped her hand over her nose.

“Hey? This isn’t a dream, is it?”
In truth, Citrina was never much of a cook. Back in the barony, Mrs. Mack did all that work. Baron Foluin liked Citrina to work, but he didn’t like her to work in the house. It didn’t pay well.
“Yes. I don’t think it’s a dream…” [Lita]
“Let’s clean up first.”
Citrina mumbled idly as she watched the servant tidy up. It wasn’t a special occasion, but she wanted to treat Desian to something delicious, so she fired up the oven, read some recipe books, and even asked the chef for advice. She thought it was going to be quite a nice sit-down dinner-

‘Desian should be here soon, so what should we do?’
But Citrina quickly came up with an idea.
A few hours later, inside Citrina’s Flang mansion.
Desian was the first noble to be invited to the Flang mansion. For nobles with non-hereditary titles, family members are usually the first to be invited to dinner, but Citrina’s case was different.
The servants were busy preparing for the mansion’s first guest. The Flang residence was not as grand as Pietro’s, but it had a serene atmosphere.
Because the curtains were drawn, the surroundings were not very bright. But the lit candles on top of the table created an elegant atmosphere.
“Del, thanks for coming right away.”
“I wanted to see you, Rina.”

Desian and Citrina sat across from each other at the wide dining room table. One by one, the dishes started to come out.
Citrina looked at the servant bringing the tray of food, and then at Desian.
Sitting across from her at the spacious table, Desian gracefully picked up his knife.

It was a little embarrassing.
And why was it embarrassing…
“I’ll enjoy the meal.”
“…Yeah, okay.”
Citrina nodded and looked at the table.
Past the first dishes of consomme and a light vegetable soup, a large bowl held ham and other high-quality meats. The smaller bowls around it held all kinds of seafood, cold shrimp salad, and finely chopped cutlets. There were even formal desserts, like dried figs.
The chef was so excited that the kitchen had already made a soufflé and was waiting.
In other words, all of this food was too fancy for Citrina to have prepared.

‘This food is all too fancy.’

She’d asked for just plain food, but the chef had gotten a little too ambitious.
Earlier, it was Citrina who had ruined the food.
She had one good idea. That was to enlist the help of the mansion’s chef.

‘I thought he could just help a bit.’

Everyone was so excited that the quality of the food became too luxurious.
Citrina looked at Desian’s plate and nodded inwardly.
‘Well, I put my heart into it, so it must be okay.’
Desian seemed to be eating well, and the atmosphere with the candlelight wasn’t bad.
“Del, I made it by myself at first, but the kitchen caught fire.”
As she spoke honestly, Citrina ran a hand through her hair. She felt like she was burning for some reason.
Desian gazed at her. He was obsessed with making sure she was unharmed.
Desian has been very concerned about her safety lately. She didn’t get it, but she was alive and well in front of him right now!
But before Citrina could open her mouth, Desian whispered.
“It’s dangerous, so do it with me next time.”
That sentence obscurely omitted a word. ‘Cooking’ should have been included in those words.
Citrina was taken aback.
Because…

“Del, do you…know how to cook?”
She dropped the knife she was holding.
Desian seemed centuries away from cooking.
“…Maybe.” [T. L. Note: Well, he’s going to learn now!]
Desian replied, smoothly avoiding Citrina’s gaze. Citrina thought that she would try cooking with Desian soon.
This hurt her self-esteem!
Desian might be expecting the same thing, a romantic cooking class. But at this moment, in Citrina’s mind, his “let’s cook together” proposal has begun to morph into something else.

Like a cooking battle between Desian and Citrina.
“Then…let’s try cooking together later.”
Desian nodded. He didn’t seem to care what the meal would be. He was just paying attention to Citrina’s words, her attitude, and her feelings.
‘He’s sweet and kind.’
She knew what Desian was really like. But every time he acted like that, she was surprised by Desian’s kinder side.
Citrina picked up her knife again. The important thing was to eat. Citrina decided to eat for now. The food the chef had skillfully prepared was so delicious that she couldn’t stop eating.

As the meal came to an end, the mansion’s chef brought out an ambitious soufflé.
The main point of conversation always came up during dessert. Today was no different, and Desian opened his mouth silently.
“Thank you for the food, Rina.”
“…Yeah. I’ll get you something more delicious next time.”
Citrina smiled as she closed her eyes. Desian smiled back at her. The smile had the effect of dispelling the silence at the table at once.

“I also have something for you.”
“What is it?”
His tone was softer, and his piercing eyes seemed more gentle now.
Citrina blinked at him. Desian handed her a velvet, palm-sized box.
Citrina accepted his gift.
“Can I open it now?”
“Yeah.”

Inside the box, Desian handed her was a flower.
“I’ve never seen a flower in a velvet box before…huh?”
What Desian had handed her wasn’t a flower. It was a rose without roots.
Desian spoke softly, his voice laced with laughter.
“It’s not a flower, Rina.”
“If it’s not a flower, then……. Wait, don’t tell me! Let me guess.”
Desian smiled in affirmation.
Citrina squinted and looked inside the box. Under closer inspection, it wasn’t a real flower.
It was a glass rose that looked like it had been delicately carved.
“A glass rose! Right?”
When Citrina realized that the rose was made of glass, Desian replied simply.
“Yeah. It’s a…magical tool in the form of a glass rose.”
“A magical tool?”
“Yeah. It’s a tool for communication.”
In a word, Citrina was wrong. As soon as she heard his words, she felt herself blushing from the roots of her ears down.
He remembered that Citrina mentioned earlier that she was jealous that only Lita had a communication device to contact Desian.
‘I was just throwing it out there.’
Yet Desian quickly brought her something even lovelier.
It had been a long time since she felt shy or embarrassed.

Her man was adorable today, too, with his sharp tongue and soft mouth.

Citrina’s eyes twinkled mischievously.
“Then can we test it out? I want to hear your voice.”
Desian replied playfully to her cheeky whisper.
“I’ll let you hear it.”
“How do I use it?”
“Put it to your ear.”
Citrina held the petals of a glass rose to her ear. It seemed that Desian had the same tool. He placed a glass rose in his palm. Then he bowed his head, remaining still.
It looked as if he was kissing the glass rose.

[Hi, Rina.]
Desian’s low voice came right to her ear. Her ears tickled.
[I love you.]

Her heart swelled as if it was going to burst at the declaration of love in her ear. Based on that, she must like his voice.
Citrina stared into his dark eyes. Eyes that resembled the depths of the ocean, very, very black, as if they could always be penetrated.
“Me too.”

And those obsessive eyes, the same ones she’d gotten every time he’d told her he loved her.
“I love you, Del.”
But Citrina couldn’t do anything about it.
Because she liked him.

The experiment with the magical tool on the table was almost over.
Desian’s face became a little more serious. Now it seemed like he was going to talk about safety.
Citrina’s eyes twinkled. Things like when it would be safe and when Elaina would give up on her were pretty interesting topics.

“I’ve got a general idea about their movements. But it’s not perfect”
“You haven’t finished analyzing the magic sword yet?”
“Right. It should be done soon.”

Yes, the envoys hadn’t returned yet, and neither had the investigators.
Elaina was also getting ready to place the curse on Citrina.
They’re staying in the palace, courtesy of the Emperor.
As if he knew what Citrina was worried about, Desian added simply.

“I assigned an escort to be nearby you. You don’t have to worry about your safety.”
“I don’t have to worry because I have you.”
She meant it.
Citrina knew that her life was the most important thing in the world. There was no reason for her to refuse.
Desian was offering to protect her, and she didn’t want to have to run from a life-threatening situation.
Anyway, it was ironic.
Citrina died at Desian’s hands in the original work, but now she could survive thanks to Desian.

“The atelier will be closed for a while, so what should I do now?”
She’d become jobless. Citrina looked at Desian and spoke cheerfully.
“I was thinking of doing a bit of volunteering, but I shouldn’t rush it, right?”
That’s because it would make it difficult for her escort.
In the meantime, Citrina had been mulling over the question of giving back. Now that she had a legitimate reason to rest, maybe she should think about that too.

“No, it’s alright to start now.”
“You don’t need to be overly protective.”
She didn’t have an urgent need to volunteer right away
But Desian had a different train of thought.
“Besides, I like volunteering.”
But Desian’s smile was not the one she was used to seeing. Briefly, a dull expression passed over his face.
…In other words, it’s hard to trust him when he says something like that with a face that doesn’t look like it.
For the moment, she hid her embarrassment smoothly. She wondered if she should tell Desian that she’d discovered his secret.

“I see.”
Citrina had good luck. She knew how to hide her expression skillfully. She answered casually.
“Well, I’m happy to hear that you like volunteering.”
Citrina smirked and grabbed her souffle. If he was going to pretend to be a nice person, she wished he would act as if it was second nature to him.
“There’s a poorhouse sponsored by the Pietro Duchy.”
Pausing, Citrina put the souffle down before it reached her mouth. Somehow, she knew what he was going to say next.
Had Citrina known Desian for too long? Citrina asked back in a carefree manner.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Do you want to come with me?”

It looked like Desian wanted to come on strongly to her.
It meant that he had noticed Citrina held some suspicions towards him. It seemed like he was trying to show her what a nice, warm-hearted person he had become.
Citrina’s guesses were usually accurate.
So she thought to herself.
“Alright, let’s do it. What’s the atmosphere like at the poorhouse?”
“…I haven’t been there yet.”
Desian paused for a beat and then spoke smoothly again.
“I’d like to go with you.”
…Somehow, she’d never thought about going.
In that sense, Citrina distrusted Desian too much.

“Let’s go together. Oslo gave me some seeds to plant as a gift. I want to donate them.”
Now, planting the seeds was just an excuse.
Citrina felt she needed to know things, like how much she had captivated Desian, and how perfectly Desian could hide his true nature from others. With the heart of a matador on the bullfighting stage, she finished off the rest of her dessert.
“When should we go?”
“The sooner the better, Del.”
The candlelight flickered over the table, the conversation still lovely. Citrina smiled and closed her eyes.
Ah. If only every day could be as carefree as today.