When Pride Fell At My Toes - Chapter 28



Only Noblemtl

#28. The Price of Compensation
2024.01.28.

For a moment, only the sound of footsteps echoed in the hallway. Soon, the employee stopped in front of the room they had reserved, opened the door, and politely pointed inside with his hand.

As they entered the room, her hand that was being held by him was finally released.

“Stop worrying about useless rumors and take off that annoying hoodie.”

As they entered the room they had been guided to, Enrico said nonchalantly while taking off his coat. The employee who had received the coat nodded his head as if agreeing with Emilia.

“We operate under a strict membership system, so we never reveal what happens inside. You can rest assured.”

Emilia hesitated for a moment, then took off her hooded coat and handed it to the employee. The employee really didn’t seem to care at all about the mysterious woman who had come with Enrico. He simply put the coat on a hanger with a face focused on his work, and said goodbye, saying that he would prepare the reserved meal right away, and left the room.

The door closed and there was silence for a moment. Emilia looked around aimlessly, trying to avoid Enrico’s gaze, who was staring at her intently from across the room.

The three-story building was not as large as the Duke’s dining room, but it was quite spacious and had separate private rooms.

A narrow river flowed beyond the arched window on the opposite side of the entrance, and a forest of trees spread out behind it. The branches of the trees that had spent the winter were still bare, but the ripples sparkling in the sunlight flowed without any obstruction.

“The doctor is supposed to come in the afternoon, right?”

She was staring blankly at the water flowing away. She blinked at the soft question and looked at Enrico.

“… … Yes.”

“If there’s anything even a little strange, tell me clearly. Don’t make a fuss later.”

Following what he had said earlier, it seemed like the manager was disguising his concern. Emilia nodded obediently, looking at him, who seemed to be trying to check for even the slightest flaw.

Just then, the employee came back. Her eyes were dark as she watched the food being served on the table in an instant.

Even though the smell was stimulating her sense of smell, she didn’t feel hungry. Even if it was okay to eat together after finishing her schedule at the Duke’s residence, her mouth felt uncomfortable eating with him like this on a weekend morning. It

’s true that there are many cases of people with sponsorships eating together, but wasn’t it true that he and she weren’t in that kind of normal relationship in the first place?

‘It’s my fault. If I had just taken care of my health properly, the schedule wouldn’t have been canceled… .’

For Enrico, who pursues perfection, watching someone who looked even a little unwell on stage was a waste of time, so it was worth canceling.

The problem was that he was trying to get compensation by using that as an excuse, creating such an awkward situation.

Enrico never opened his mouth while eating, so for a while, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the dishes. He didn’t open his mouth once while the courses were served one after another, and like last time, he put down his dishes only after the dessert came out.

“How was the audition?”

he asked, lazily looking down at his wine glass. The red-wine colored purple slowly turned to Emilia.

“Even if there was something like that, it would have been wrapped up, right?”

“Yes. It was the same as usual.”

“What was it like?”

“… … I meant that the audition was conducted as usual.”

I don’t understand why someone who had reported everything, and perhaps even knew the casting results, would ask such a question. Emilia answered calmly, wishing she had finished eating and gone home quickly.

“Ah- That’s why you applied for the audition role half-heartedly like last time.”

However, he didn’t seem to have any intention of ending this conversation easily. Her hand, which was drinking water, stopped at his tone that felt secretly sarcastic.

“Effie’s role is also an important role.”

“Oh, so you applied for that role because I didn’t say I was the main role?”

“You’ve seen the role of Sylphy a lot. I thought you might want to see other roles.”

He narrowed his eyes while keeping a loose smile on his face out of courtesy. She blinked her eyes, trying to calm herself down, as if she was wondering what to do about it.

“What an incomprehensible woman. She’s always irritated by useless things, but then acts all docile in unexpected places.”

Her slightly droopy eyes, located under her thick eyebrows, gave off an unfamiliar vibe. Even when she smiled or spoke softly, she didn’t seem affectionate at all, and instead, perhaps because of the cool arrogance that always hung in his eyes, the underlying sense of intimidation couldn’t be hidden.

Enrico, who had swallowed the remaining red wine, muttered in a dry tone.

“What other roles? It’s interesting.”

“… … .”

“But is that all?”

Perhaps he had sensed her inner desire to not stand out, so she didn’t act greedily. She kept her mouth shut at his words that seemed to be deliberately probing her.

“Next time, definitely bring me the main role. I prefer to see you dancing on my stage, but you were also pretty when you shined on the big stage.”

Fortunately, he didn’t seem to want to hear her answer. He just revealed his clear purpose to his interests. She

hesitated, thinking that if she answered rashly and didn’t get the main role, it would be a headache. He stared at her hesitating figure and said,

“If you bring me the main role, I’ll give you a reward.”

“Reward? Oh… … . A jewel would be fine.”

“No, I’m saying I’ll give you some information.”

“… … Information? Really?”

“Yes.”

There was no need to worry. Emilia nodded immediately.

“I’ll try. Please keep your promise.”

“Now you look a little more motivated. If you had kept that gloomy expression on your face, I would have considered breaking the contract, but that’s fortunate.”

Her eyes shook with a start. Unlike her soft voice, her intense gaze was staring at her as if it was stabbing her.

“I am generous to beautiful things, but I don’t know how far I can go. If you don’t want to test my patience, it would be better to rebel moderately.”

She lowered her eyes and remained silent. He seemed to have no intention of saying anything more in the accepting atmosphere, so he continued to speak while pouring red wine into his empty glass.

“Next week is the fifth stage, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry that I borrowed a week for the compensation.”

“… … .”

“Emilia. Should I tell you the compensation in advance?”

For a moment, she didn’t understand. Tell you the compensation? Right now? Emilia looked at him.

“You wanted to know.”

“That’s true, but… … Why are you suddenly telling me?”

“Well. Because you wanted to?”

She shook her head as she absentmindedly watched him turn his wine glass. It was a little tempting, but she was reluctant to accept the favor without understanding it right away, thinking that he might make unexpected demands later.

“It’s okay if you don’t hear it in advance. “ It’s not like I can do anything right away just because I know a little bit sooner.”

“It’s not like there’s nothing to do. I have to think carefully.”

“… … What are you talking about?”

His eyes sparkled with interest.

“I might meet someone suspicious.”

Someone suspicious? Her pupils shook greatly.

***

I don’t know how yesterday went. Enrico dropped her off at her house and left right away, but Emilia couldn’t get him out of her head until the morning.

As she slowly walked up the stairs of the opera house, Emilia pondered what he had said.

“Your parents invested in the automobile business from the beginning. As a result, they ended up with a large investment, but the problem is that someone who found out about the investment too late became dissatisfied with the investment.” “

Who on earth is that?”

“Count Sebas Vallemont.”

“Vallemont…?”

She had heard him somewhere. After thinking about it all night, she realized that he was an old man who had taken a ballerina named Clarice as his lover last year, and that the dancers were always gossiping about him.

‘They say the Count often told Viscount Este to hand over all his shares because he was aiming for a monopoly. And when I checked the current automobile business shares, I confirmed that a large number of investors were not Viscount Este but were anonymous.’

‘… … It’s not your father’s name?’

‘It seems there are more people connected than I thought. The more I investigate, the more there is to sell.’

‘Ha… … .’

‘Well, then I have a chance to meet Count Valemont. Do you want to go with me?’

Count Valemont and my father had clashed. It was the first time I had heard of it because it happened when I was so young. But what was more surprising was Enrico, who suggested that he go to a ‘masked ball’ with him.

He said that if he wore a mask, his identity would be less exposed and he would feel less burdened, and that he should go and see for himself what kind of person Count Valemont was. His words were almost like the whispers of the devil.

In fact, even if I went there and saw Count Vallemont, I wouldn’t be able to do anything right away, and it wasn’t something I could talk about. I just wanted to quickly see his face, so I decided to follow him to the ball.

Before I knew it, I had arrived on the third floor and saw a small group of people gathered in front of the central bulletin board.

‘Oh, that’s right. Today is the announcement day.’

Normally, there shouldn’t be anyone here at this time, but it seemed that they had come early because of the audition announcement. Emilia slowly rubbed her forehead, which was stiff from fatigue, and approached the bulletin board.

“Oh, Emilia. You came? Congratulations on being chosen as an epi.”