At William’s words, I told him that I would talk to him separately after the party. If I hesitated any longer, I felt like my true feelings would be exposed.
***
After the party, Amelia, Ed, Rachel, and I saw William off.
“Hyunjin, come here for a second.”
Before getting into the helicopter, William called me over.
“What is it, My Lord?”
“Take care of Amelia.”
“Huh?”
What did he mean by taking care of Amelia?
The question was soon answered by William himself.
“If it’s you, I can trust Amelia to be in good hands—as both her friend and her loyal attendant. I could tell just by looking into your eyes.”
“… Do you read minds?”
“Haha! That’s an interesting thought, but no. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen eyes so brimming with conviction.”
In the original work, William had a knack for reading people’s personalities and attitudes just by looking into their eyes.
Was that quality at play now?
“So that’s… what this is about.”
“Isn’t my daughter truly adorable and lovely?”
“What… would that be a proper thing to ask?”
“Looks like you have no intention of sugarcoating your words!”
“I’m just not used to that sort of thing.”
“I think about it sometimes—whether I’ve been forced to learn the formalities I despise, simply because of my position. Things like that.”
As he spoke, William glanced at Amelia.
“You don’t need to worry about that. You seem to be enjoying yourself well enough.”
“Ah, is that so? Looks like I was worrying over nothing.”
William stroked his beard before speaking again.
“So, about what I asked earlier… I’d like to hear more.” His expression turned serious as he asked, “What do you think of my Amelia? You seemed hesitant to talk about it before, so I made sure to call you over.”
“Well, yes. I don’t think it’s appropriate to bring up such topics in front of the person concerned. In fact, I find it in rather poor taste.”
“Hahaha, is that so? I like your honesty.”
“It’s best to be honest in moderation.”
I had no intention of backing down. William, on the other hand, seemed amused.
“Still, it’s been a while since I’ve met a young man like you.”
“Well, I suppose you meet people when you live long enough.”
“You’re right.”
William nodded.
There was no avoiding it—I had to give an answer.
‘My thoughts on Amelia…huh,’ I hesitated for a moment.
Before I came to this world, Amelia had been my favorite character. Even now, to some extent, she still was.
Not that it would matter to William.
“You asked what I think of Lady Amelia, so I’ll answer honestly. I want to see her smile.”
“Huh?”
William looked at me in surprise, likely sensing my sincerity.
“Truly. Deep in my heart… I just want her to be happy.”
That was the truth.
Even when she had only been a character in a story, I had always rooted for her. I had even thought that if she ended up with Ryuunosuke, that would be fine too.
“I see.”
“Yes.”
“Are you saying that if Amelia wished for something, you’d cast yourself aside for her?”
William’s sharp gaze bore into me.
“If it’s out of loyalty, if it means Lady Amelia’s happiness… then I will endure it.”
“Kuh, you really are… quite the amusing one, Hyunjin.”
“Yes?”
“Hey, do you have any interest in working under me officially?”
I hadn’t expected such an offer.
Shaking my head, I replied, “I can’t do that. The only person I serve is Lady Amelia. I have never considered serving anyone else… nor will I ever.”
I meant every word.
Amelia was everything to me.
That would never change.
If it was for her happy ending, I would do anything.
It had already been five months since I made that resolve.
Someday, my feelings might fade or shatter. But for now, I wanted to stay true to them.
I wanted to change a defeated heroine into one who won in the end.
“I see. I understand.”
William turned away.
Lowering my head slightly, I said, “Please take care on your way back. It’s cold.”
“Mm. Hyunjin, now that I know what kind of person you are… let me know if you ever need help. Tommy!”
“Yes.”
At William’s call, Tommy—the elderly butler who had been standing beside him—stepped forward and handed me a card with a phone number on it.
“You can call me anytime, boy. Whenever you need assistance, I, Tommy, will be ready to help.”
I took the card and nodded.
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Well, that’s that, then. I’ll be heading off for real this time.”
“Yes.”
Before leaving, William hugged Amelia one last time, lifting her into the air and twirling her around a few times before gently setting her back down.
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