I Became a Gallery Manager in Another World

“What, what, what’s this!!! Why are you here!!”

“Why am I here? Because you said you missed me.”

Ian’s reply with a smile made Evelyn’s words catch in her throat for a moment.

“Wh…what are you talking about? When did I say I missed you…”

Ian, you bastard.

He’s really, insanely handsome.

Even though she knew she shouldn’t be swayed, just seeing his smiling face for a moment was enough to ease her anger.

“No, but weren’t you at the palace!! How did you get here so fast!?”

The palace and the Marigold family estate weren’t exactly next door…

It was hard to fathom that Ian, who was at the palace just a few days ago, was now standing right in front of her.

“I left as soon as I got the message.”

“…What?…Immediately?”

“Yeah. I left that night and came straight here with almost no rest.”

“…H, hm~… Ian, you crazy bastard… Did you miss me that much?”

Trying to act nonchalant, Evelyn’s lips twitched against her will.

“Yeah, I missed you. Evelyn.”

“…Uh!!…What, why are you suddenly being so honest… Hmph! Well, what can you do? I was just… you know, whatever.”

She said this hoping that Ian had been as emotionally affected as she had.

“…Oh? …I see. Got it. Then I’ll leave… Evelyn…”

But as Ian, with a downcast expression, turned to leave…

“Eh? Wait! H, hold on…!”

Evelyn instinctively reached out and grabbed the hem of Ian’s clothes.

Tug—

“You missed me, right?”

At the same time, Ian, with a mischievous smile as if he knew it all along, asked her.

“…You bastard!! You’re so rotten!!”

“Yeah, yeah. So you missed me.”

“Yes! You son of a bitch! I missed you! I missed you, okay!! You knew that and still didn’t contact…!!”

Hug—!

Even as Evelyn grumbled, Ian hugged her tightly, petting her head as if she were adorable.

“I’m sorry. I was too busy to find the time to contact you.”

“…Bullshit. How busy could you be…”

“Well…”

“Ah! Forget it! If you’re going to talk about student council business or whatever, just don’t say anything!”

“Okay… then I’ll show you with actions instead of words.”

“What? What nonsense are you talking about now!”

“Come here!!”

“Kyaaah!”

Ian pushed Evelyn down onto the bed and looked into her eyes.

Thump- Thump- Thump-

“You beast… All you think about… is dirty stuff, huh…”

Even as she spoke, Evelyn subtly adjusted her position to make it easier for Ian to move, her face flushing.

“…Wh, what are you doing… If you’re going to do it, do it quickly… or not…”

“Huh? We’re not doing anything naughty though?”

“…What? Don’t lie?”

“….”

“…No, are you really not going to? You bastard, messing around again…”

As Evelyn’s anger seemed to rise like a gradient, Ian quickly offered an excuse.

“No… I will do it later, but before that, I have something to ask.”

“…Look at this pervert. Tch, so what do you want to ask?”

“It’s nothing serious, just what did ‘Ninetails’ steal?”

Evelyn’s eyes widened at Ian’s question.

“Wh, what, what are you talking about! Ste, steal what! They didn’t steal anything! Are you saying our parents did something to make them a target for Ninetails?”

“Of course not. I know their character better than anyone. Naturally, Ninetails wouldn’t touch the treasure. But… that doesn’t mean they took nothing, right?”

“…What?”

“You called me under the pretense of being sick as soon as Ninetails visited the Marigold family. Are you saying there’s no connection? You should trust what’s believable.”

“…”

She was really dumbfounded.

How could he be so quick to notice things like that when he was so slow to understand her feelings?

But what Ninetails had stolen was something she couldn’t openly admit, even to Ian…

No, especially because it was Ian, she couldn’t reveal it honestly.

“Hmph! Who said I was faking being sick?… I really am si… Kyaaah!..What, what are you doing!! You said no naughty stuff!!”

“No, I’m just checking if you’re really sick.”

“Kyah!…You, you crazy bastard!!..You, you think you’ll know just by touching!?..Kyahee!!..I, I get it… Ha, hah…It…it tickles!…Hng!”

“Surrender?”

“…Ha…Hah…!!….Ha…surrender…what are you talking about…!..Rea, really…stop it!?…Kyaa!”

Tickle-tickle─

No matter how much Evelyn struggled, Ian’s tickling didn’t stop.

“Ha…Hah…! Stop..!..Stop!..Kyahah!”

“Say you surrender.”

“…Fuck!…Hah…Hah!! Stop…you pervert! Rapist!”

Being like this with Ian reminded her of old times.

Recently, whenever they were in bed together, all they did was naughty stuff, but…

Back in the day, they used to get under the covers and play around a lot.

“Hii…I, I get it! Ian…I surrender!…It’s a lie…”

Finally, when the air inside the blanket was filled with warmth from her breath, Evelyn admitted.

“Haah…! Haah…! You, you bastard…I’ll kill you for real…”

“Yeah, yeah. So, what did they take?”

“Phew… Hey, before that, can I ask you something?”

“Blue.”

“You crazy bastard… Who asked about the color of your underwear? I’m being serious here…”

Seeing Evelyn’s eyes slightly trembling, Ian stopped joking and spoke seriously.

“Yeah, I get it. Tell me, Evelyn.”

“Haah… You that time… Why did you leave our house?”

“What?”

“…You heard me. Ian, why did you leave that day?”

“….”

Ian couldn’t easily answer Evelyn’s question.

Not just because it was sudden, but…

“….”

Because even now, talking about that day was still painful.

“You liked our home!! So why did you leave? Because I tormented you? Because you hated me? There must be a reason.”

“…Evelyn, no matter how many times I say it, I’ve never hated you.”

Yes, he never hated Evelyn for even a moment.

“Then why!! Why did you leave!”

“….”

How should she put this?

From the moment he regained consciousness at the Marigold estate, his world was grey.

He didn’t know why, but one thing was certain…

Before coming to the estate, he had lost something precious.

And as a punishment for losing something precious?

Everything he ate felt like sand, and nothing brought him joy.

In this hollow, grey life, the only thing he longed for was death.

…So, even the people who initially approached him kindly began to give up on him.

It was only natural.

Back then, he was no different from a doll, and even the kindest person couldn’t continue to show interest in an unresponsive doll.

Amidst everyone giving up on him…

It was Evelyn who never let go, who stayed by his side until the end.

Of course, according to Evelyn, she was tormenting him, but…

‘You wouldn’t know.’

She would never know how much that saved him.

And Evelyn had once said that he saved her life that day.

That was wrong.

In fact, it was him who was saved.

Without Evelyn’s endless attention, he would have given up on life long ago.

“Then why! Why did you leave!! Why did you leave this house… no! Why did you leave me!!”

But because of that, he had to leave the house.

He realized that just as he loved Evelyn, she did not love him back.

“….I won’t say.”

“No, I need to know.”

“….It’s already in the past. It’s not important anymore.”

“It’s important!! It’s very important to me!! Do you even know how I feel right now? I’m scared! I feel like I could die from fear!! Now that we’ve finally connected, I’m terrified you might leave me again!!”

“Evelyn… I will never leave you.”

“Stop bullshitting! How can I believe a guy who talks about building a harem!”

This was one thing where his guilt was too great to argue.

“Hey, just by looking at your face, I can tell what you’re thinking. I’m really scared too, that’s why I’m asking… So please tell me. That day… why did you leave me… What did I do wrong… Tell me. Ian, I don’t want to lose you again.”

Hearing Evelyn’s desperate voice, he knew he couldn’t run away this time.

“…Haah.”

Thud—

He relaxed the arms supporting him and buried his face into Evelyn’s chest.

Not to turn it into something naughty like always.

…He just lacked the courage to face her while speaking.

Perhaps sensing this, Evelyn gently placed her hand on his head, waiting.

“….”

Yes, it’s all in the past now.

He repeated this to himself several times before he opened his mouth.

“…Actually, I… I heard it back then.”

“Heard? What?”

“…That you didn’t want to be family with me.”

Perhaps the reason he couldn’t realize Evelyn’s feelings all this time was due to this.

Having been hurt by rejection once, he didn’t want to hurt himself again.

Despite this, his feelings for Evelyn overflowed, leading him to almost confess several times…

But it took a long time for them to finally connect.

At that moment, Evelyn pushed him away roughly, grabbed his collar, and shouted.

“Wh, when did I ever say that!! You bastard!!”

“…You don’t have to lie. It’s all in the past anyway.”

“No, you idiot!! Listen to me!! I didn’t say that, I swear!! No lies or anything, I didn’t say it! Ah! Could, could it be because of when you first came to our house? That’s…”

“No… no way. We were just kids then.”

“Then! What’s the problem!!! Fuck!! At least after the fire at the mansion, I never said such a thing to you!!…When exactly did I…Ah…?Co, could it be…?”

“Yeah… You remember.”

“This, this, this…this….”

Waiting with dread for what Evelyn might say next.

Bam—!!

“Guh..!!”

Suddenly, Evelyn’s tightly clenched fist struck his solar plexus.

“This, this, this idiot! You couldn’t believe in me!! Fuck, are you that dense!! How could I say something like that when I loved you so much!!”

“No…!! I didn’t want to believe it! But I heard it with these ears, clear as day?”

He could never forget, nor did he mishear, those words.

[I hate it! I said I don’t want to be family with Ian!!]

Then, with tears in her eyes, Evelyn grabbed his collar and shook him, her voice full of frustration.

“Fuck, that wasn’t what I meant, you idiot!!”