I Became a Gallery Manager in Another World

Chapter 92: A Big Step Forward (1)

ㅇㅇ(89.74): Seal off the library entrance now.

ㅇㅇ(89.74): Make sure no one can come near.

Justice's Magical Girl■: Yes.

Laplace did not question why.

The command of the ruler was absolute.

No matter the circumstances, it must always be the utmost priority.

And the reason for the command became immediately clear upon arriving at the library entrance.

‘Huh?!…♥Cough..Uh-huh!..Oh♥Ugh…Ah..Huh!..*Gulp ♥Ho…*Choke.!♥’

Which fortunate female was receiving the ruler’s favor?

To clandestinely observe the ruler’s intimate moments…

It was a bold move for a mere Onahole, yet it was too tempting to resist.

‘…Helen Redrose?’

To her surprise, the recipient of favor was the heir to the Redrose family.

Naturally, an ordinary female would never catch the ruler’s eye.

However, to directly obtain ‘Redrose’ was unforeseen.

‘I did not receive his favor today…’

While witnessing the intimate scene, Laplace bit her lip and proceeded outside to guard the entrance as instructed.

…About 30 minutes remained until ‘Elise’s Day’ concluded.

Step- Step-

The ruler exited the library, buttoning up his shirt.

“Ah, Ian. I’ll handle it…”

“It’s okay. I’ve got this.”

“…Yes, understood.”

“Besides, you came unexpectedly, thanks for making the effort.”

“…Ah…no problem. And maybe because it’s Elise’s Day, there weren’t many people around…”

Laplace halted mid-sentence and closed her mouth.

There was no need for someone like her to elaborate. The all-knowing ruler must already be aware of everything.

‘…Then, why did the ruler summon me?’

It was perplexing.

If he knew no one would come, why summon her?

‘Perhaps, to see me?’

The thought almost made her blush, but it was a naive notion.

The ruler’s actions and words always carried deep significance.

Of course, no matter how hard she tried, she could never fully grasp the ruler’s thoughts. Yet, she hoped to understand even a fraction of them.

‘…For what reason… Why? There must be an important reason the ruler called me!!…Exactly…I…Ah!!!’

Then, Laplace felt a chill run down her spine.

This was both a revelation and a test from the ruler.

It was to show that he had finally taken action after biding his time, by taking the Redrose family… no, Helen, into his hands.

Shivering-

The thought of passing the test made Laplace tremble with ecstasy.

He had given plenty of hints, but the ecstasy stemmed from having approached the ruler’s thoughts, even slightly.

‘…Ah! …My eternal ruler!’

She dared not even hope for an equal position as a ‘wife’ or ‘lover’.

To the ruler, all humans were no different from monkeys.

…But among them, there were always those to whom he was more attached.

‘The most attached monkey’

That was all Laplace wished for now.

“Now, you can go back. Good work.”

“No, it’s nothing… Ian. Thank you very much.”

Laplace, deeply bowing, spoke with sincerity.

Just being tested by the ruler was proof of being a bit more ‘special’ than the other monkeys.

May 7th.

Two days since Elise’s Day.

Helen, who was expected to come to retrieve the ‘Rose Brooch’ immediately, had been surprisingly quiet…

“…Estelle didn’t come today either.”

“Right…”

Estelle still hadn’t attended school.

The homeroom teacher claimed Estelle was physically unwell and would be absent for a few days, but it was obviously a lie.

“….”

Looking at Estelle’s empty seat filled my heart with unease.

‘…Estelle.’

Swoosh-

I touched my forehead with my hand, but after receiving ‘healing’, the wound had vanished without a trace.

I desperately wanted to visit Estelle, but her absence from school likely meant she needed time alone.

I didn’t want to inadvertently remind her of that day’s memories and cause her more distress.

“Hey… Ian.”

“Yeah, Evelyn.”

“You said you had something important to tell me this weekend. About that, I was wondering if we could po…”

Evelyn, who had swallowed her words, bit her lip and then sighed deeply.

“……sigh, it’s nothing. We are going on a date this weekend, right?”

“…Yeah, we should.”

Revealing my harem plan to Evelyn was not a decision made lightly.

If I postponed it now, I wasn’t sure when I’d muster the courage again.

“Sigh… Okay.”

Seeing Evelyn sigh again while looking at Estelle’s empty seat made my heart heavy.

‘…Let’s focus on Evelyn for now.’

Even if I became aware of my feelings for Estelle, we were still just ‘classmates’.

Evelyn was what mattered to me now.

Sunday.

“Oh, you’re here?”

Evelyn, dressed a bit differently than usual, smiled brightly at me.

“Evel…”

Thump-

As I was about to speak, Evelyn’s finger touched my lips.

“Ahh!! Don’t just say it right away. Let’s enjoy the day as normal childhood friends for the last time.”

“….”

That wasn’t what I intended to say…

‘Normal childhood friends…’

As Evelyn said, regardless of today’s outcome, our relationship as ‘normal childhood friends’ was ending.

“Then, let’s go! Ian!”

There was no need for explanations; my date with Evelyn was enjoyable.

Strolling through the plaza chatting, drinking coffee at a café, entering any shop to admire crafts, and even getting our fortunes told at a suspicious-looking fortune teller’s place - every action was fun.

…But the end of that enjoyable time was approaching.

Step- Step-

Hand in hand, we walked on the gravel path in the forest, slightly away from the shopping district.

“Chuckle~.”

“….”

The place where we stopped walking was a clearing with two tree stumps arranged like chairs.

It had been our secret spot since childhood.

Thinking about it now, the presence of a gravel path nearby meant it was frequented by people, making it hardly a secret spot…

But it was a place filled with countless memories with Evelyn.

“Today was really fun, wasn’t it? Right, Ian?”

That made it all the more painful.

That Evelyn had chosen this place as the last spot of our date.

…And that I had anticipated this.

“Yeah, indeed.”

“…What’s with that reaction? Are you nervous? Hehe!”

Evelyn’s face turned red against the sunset.

“Chuckle!! Yes! I’m ready now. You can say it!”

“….”

I couldn’t delay it any longer.

Taking a deep breath, I slowly began to speak.

“…Evelyn.”

“Hey… wait….”

Just saying her name made Evelyn sense something was off, and she interrupted me.

“W-Wait… no? It’s not a misunderstanding, right?”

“Evelyn…”

“…That’s…impossible!! …How could that be! Do you know what your expression looks like? Like when you said you were moving out and becoming independent from your family!!”

“…Evelyn.”

“Hey, what…what are you trying to say? No, I don’t want to hear it!! Don’t do it!! Don’t say it!!”

Evelyn’s tearful voice, recalling the happiness just moments before, sounded even sadder.

“Damn it! …Hey, just let me say it. Ian… I like you.”

“Yeah… I like you too, Evelyn.”

“Don’t pretend you don’t know!! …You know!! It’s not just liking!! I like you as a man! Being childhood friends… being friends with benefits isn’t enough! I want more… I want to go out with you, get married, and have kids!! ….So, don’t say what you’re about to say. Let’s not. Okay?”

“…Evelyn.”

“No!! I don’t want to!! Please… Ian… don’t say anything… Just…like nothing happened….”

Swoosh-

Evelyn, clutching my clothes, begged me.

“Just kiss me…Ian…okay? That should…be enough…for us…just being together…is enough to be happy…”

It felt like tearing out my own heart wouldn’t hurt as much as this.

But…

“…I’m sorry.”

I found myself blurting it out as if I were expelling a bitter truth.

“……why……why!!…sob…!!…why….am I…not…good enough…you said I was pretty!!! That there’s not a single part of me from head to toe that isn’t pretty!!! Ian… I can really do anything you want… if you would love me… truly anything…”

“I do love you. I could die for you over and over again.”

“Then why won’t you kiss me!!!!!”

Eventually, unable to contain her tears any longer, Evelyn shouted.

“Why….!why…won’t you…do it….sob…”

The images of Evelyn smiling happily at me overlapped, making it difficult to speak.

I wanted to be honest with her about everything.

But if Evelyn were to tell me, ‘The Goddess Elise said if I don’t have sex with other men, the world will end.’ would I be able to believe her?

She would never believe such a thing.

And even if she did, it would only cause problems.

‘I would surely grow to resent Goddess Elise.’

Just the thought made me feel an intense dislike for Goddess Elise.

I couldn’t let Evelyn feel that way.

And…

If I ever became involved with Goddess Elise, she would become my woman too.

I couldn’t shift the responsibility onto my woman, even if she came from the future.

There was only one decision I could make in this situation.

‘I have to be the villain.’

No, I was already the villain.

Could I, if Goddess Elise suddenly announced there was no longer a need to gather ‘fate energy’ and told me to live happily with Evelyn?

It was impossible.

Yuris and Laplace had already become dear to me.

I couldn’t bear the thought of abandoning anyone now.

With my decision made, I slowly began to speak.

“Evelyn… I can’t love only you.”

“Sob…?…What?…What?…Sob…Am I…not enough…for you?…What…don’t you like about me..sob…I’ll change it…no, I will change…everything….every part…you don’t like…I’ll change it all…so…”

“No, let me be clear, Evelyn. You are too good for me. I’m incredibly grateful and happy that you love me.”

“…..Then!! Why!! Sob!!!…What’s the problem!! Why aren’t you satisfied with me!!!”

Squaring my shoulders.

Clenching my fists.

Glaring.

Gritting my teeth.

Taking a big step forward.

“Sex───!!!”

I shouted, as if exhaling all the air from my lungs.

“I’m lacking sex!!!”

Then, Evelyn, who had been wearing a mix of despair, frustration, fear, regret, responsibility, anger, remorse, and sadness…

“…….Huh?”

She seemed not to understand what I meant for a moment and looked at me blankly…

And then, for the second time in my life, she gave me a sincere slap.