제논 brought some ridiculous news with a bright face.

“I submitted my resignation, Princess.”

Zeno grinned.

“I’m not going to be a butler anymore.”

He knelt on one knee.

In one hand, he held a strawberry ade with ice floating in it.

“Would it be alright if I became your good adult? I’ll be a better adult than Sir Hixson.”

Viola’s mind became a jumble.

In the novel [Shadow of Bellatu], Viola and Zeno are partners until the later parts.

Suddenly, a resignation?

That’s a monumental shift!

‘What do you mean resignation?!’

Her head was a mess, but she decided to accept the strawberry ade for now.

And another day passed.

To sum it up, Zeno’s resignation was rejected.

It was handled by Chief Butler Carlton.

‘You haven’t completed your mandatory term of seven years.’

‘However, if you still wish to resign, you must follow through with the contract.’

‘The penalty fee is 10 billion dalia.’

Viola sat in her chair, laughing in disbelief.

‘10 billion dalia?’

Dalia was akin to the Korean won.

So that meant 10 billion dalia was similar to 10 billion won in Korea.

They made such a ludicrous contract?

The novel hadn’t detailed the specifics of the contract.

So, this was new information for her.

Upon hearing the reason,

“I didn’t think I’d ever need to resign, so I didn’t check the termination conditions.

‘All the other terms were too favorable,’” he said.

Viola let out a sigh of relief.

‘There can’t be too many variables.’

It’s true that she needed to twist the story.

But she shouldn’t introduce too many variables.

One small misstep, and it could cost her greatly!

She had to carefully and gradually alter things.

Zeno entered the room.

Today too, he held a strawberry ade in his hands.

“That’s too bad.”

“Right?”

So unfortunate!

The novel even states that there are hardly any butlers as capable as Zeno.

‘There’s no way such a capable butler didn’t look at the contract.’

He must have known the contents of the contract.

Seems like he made a bold move by submitting the resignation.

The chief butler wouldn’t accept it, and even if he did, he wouldn’t be able to pay the penalty.

It felt like he was testing her in such a clever way, as if she should notice without being obvious.

‘Indeed, he’s an excellent character.’

Almost fell for that plot again.

Snap out of it.

Even if Zeno were to turn into a trap, as long as she kept her wits about her, she’d be fine.

‘Why is he so good at acting?’

And,

‘He can be called a craftsman of strawberry ade.’

Viola slurped on her straw.

The strawberry ade was delicious.

She had never tasted such an amazing strawberry ade even on Earth in the 21st century.

Moreover, her taste buds had been refined, making the strawberry ade Zeno served feel like the ultimate comfort.

She spoke sincerely.

“You can’t escape being a butler.”

“I guess so.”

“So stay beside me as a capable butler.”

“Of course.”

Zeno pulled out a notebook from his pocket.

“By the way, I have something to report.”

“Report?”

“Um….”

Zeno scratched his head.

He seemed a bit hesitant to speak.

“It’s okay, just tell me.”

“It’s about the Princess’s dog.”

“Tundra?”

“Yes. Although he gets beaten to a pulp every day, he still hasn’t lost his temper. There are rumors I might die from it, too.”

“He won’t kill him.”

“I’ve seen it; he was really close to dying.”

Zeno looked a little worried, too.

Killing within the Winter Castle was strictly forbidden.

No matter how much of a Hixson one was, if they committed murder within the castle, they’d face beheading.

“No, he won’t kill him. He’ll just beat him to the brink of death.”

That’s how it was in the novel.

From an outside perspective, it looked like mere beating, but it wasn’t.

Through that beating, Tundra would excel.

Viola knew this from having read the novel. She remained calm.

Zeno narrowed his eyes.

“You trust Sir Hixson completely, don’t you?”

“I do. He wouldn’t kill my dog.

It’s mine.”

“I suppose so.”

To Zeno, it appeared that Viola trusted Hixson completely.

In that moment, Zeno realized something.

‘It seems I have developed feelings.

And these feelings are…

Am I feeling jealousy?’

He couldn’t understand why she trusted Hixson so much.

Although he was a former hero, hadn’t he spent three years living like a shut-in?

And why did she only trust Hixson that much?

‘Am I feeling jealousy toward Sir Hixson?’

Zeno forced a calm expression.

He recalled Viola’s words.

‘So, you stay beside me as a butler.

What Viola Bellatu wanted was Zeno as a capable butler.

Then he should just be that butler.

He steeled himself.

Viola Bellatu was quintessentially Bellatu.

He had to be the butler she wanted.

Jealousy was a feeling that had no place for a butler.

He resolved to cut that feeling out.

“But wouldn’t it be good to check out the training grounds?”

“Why?”

“I think it’d be best to see how Sir Hixson treats the Princess’s dog firsthand.”

Viola tilted her head.

For some reason.

It felt like someone was snitching.

She felt a slight dislike toward Hixson.

…Must be her imagination?

He had been acting a bit strangely lately, but that was undoubtedly a test,

‘After all, Zeno is a character with very few emotions.’

It was probably just her imagination.

Viola thought so.

*

In the end, Viola agreed.

She was a bit curious.

How was Tundra training?

How well was he growing?

She figured it would be upsetting to see him actually getting hit.

Tundra with Kang Han-jun’s face.

That made her a little scared.

Finally, they arrived at the training grounds.

Viola scanned the arena with astonished eyes.

‘Huh? Why?’

Bichen and Tundra were swinging their respective weapons at each other with incredible ferocity.

‘Why are you here?’

She looked around in disbelief.

She felt an acute killing intent.

It was as if a sharp awl was pricking her skin.

‘Why is it so violent? What’s going on?’

Hixson, sitting on a bench set up on one side, approached.

“Oh. You came?”

“Why are they fighting?”

“It’s a spar, a spar.”

“Is that a spar?”

It felt incredibly deadly!

“Yup. It’s just a spar. Don’t worry about it.”

Hixson chuckled as he put his hands on his hips.

“See? I lost weight, right? I look cooler now?”

While a deadly dance of swords was taking place over there, Hixson seemed like he was in another world.

‘It should be… fine?’

At least Hixson seemed composed, so she deemed it trustable.

In response to his question about looking cooler, she decided to reply.

“Uncle, sorry, but I went to the welcome banquet yesterday.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Unfortunately for you, my dad was there.”

Compared to Duke Heron, most of the people in the world became mere squids.

Although affection sometimes clouded her judgment, it was mostly true.

The Duke’s beauty had a strange ability to make everyone around him look unattractive, regardless of age or gender.

“Next to Dad, you’re a squid.”

“Well, that’s a new expression I’ve never heard, and it oddly makes me feel bad. It’s especially terrible how well I understand what you mean.”

He frowned deeply.

“And also.”

Hixson’s eyebrows twitched.

She touched on a different point.

“Did you say my dad?”

“Yup. Duke Heron Bellatu.”

“When did you start saying ‘my dad’? Have you gotten so close?”

“Is he the type of person one can get close to?”

“Guess that makes sense?”

“Yup.”

“You’re not close, are you?”

“It’s hard to say we’re close.”

“Well, well. You are a tough nut to crack.”

Hixson seemed somewhat satisfied.

“But seriously, why are they fighting?”

“I told you, it’s a spar, right?”

Bichen and Tundra were engaged in that spar.

It seemed excessively life-threatening to be called a spar.

Bichen was wielding a wooden dagger, while Tundra had a broadsword.

If those weapons weren’t made of wood,

It wouldn’t be surprising if one of them was already dead.

Hixson made a comical face.

Lowering his voice, he playfully asked.

“If they fight, who do you think would win?”

“Could you please ask the question properly?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you asking who would win if they were to fight normally or who would win in the current situation?”

Hixson’s eyes narrowed.

‘This little girl is something else.’

She was already aware that she was an exceptional girl.

But he hadn’t expected her to pinpoint the key point like that.

In the current situation.

1. The space is completely open,

2. The opponent is aware they are under attack.

3. They are sparring with wooden swords that do not endanger life.

And,

4. Tundra has only just started learning swordsmanship.

That was what it meant.

If the circumstances changed, the result would differ.

Viola identified that.

Han Ah-rin recited what she knew from the novel.

“Today, Bichen will win.”

“Why do you think that?”

“Because Bichen is stronger.”

The male lead, Tundra, was born with tremendous talent and potential.

The novel described him as a genius.

But did that mean Bichen was particularly lacking in talent compared to Tundra?

Not really.

“Bichen was trained since birth. He’s pure-blooded Bellatu. It would be stranger for him to lose, right?”

“Then why did you specify ‘in this current situation’?”

At some point, Hixson’s playful expression had vanished.

He was awaiting Viola’s answer.

“Because Bichen and Tundra’s swordsmanship are different.”

Hixson’s heart began to race.

Rumors were already circulating in the Duke’s mansion about the ‘insight of the adopted youngest daughter.’

They said she possessed a keen insight above any other ability.

“How are they different?”