Turning off the communication magic, Colin sighed. He hadn’t expected that the next time he saw his master, it would be just to ask for a favor. It seemed he really needed to train harder. He couldn’t just be content with where he was now; continuous improvement was necessary.
After his sigh, Colin left the room and stepped into the corridor. From a distance, he spotted Liami sneaking around suspiciously.
He was about to greet her when Liami noticed him first. Her expression changed instantly, and she took off running, dashing downstairs and out of the manor.
That scene left Colin stunned, but he didn’t chase after her. He knew that if she wanted him to follow, she wouldn’t have acted that way.
But then, what exactly was she up to?
Curiosity stirred within Colin. Thinking carefully about recent events, the only thing that could have made Liami behave like that was…
A strange thought crossed Colin’s mind, making his face look odd. Could it be… that Liami was preparing for their upcoming walk together?! Is that really possible?! But if not that, then what else could it be?
Colin swallowed nervously and stopped himself from thinking any further. He understood that even if Liami was indeed preparing for a walk with him, there was nothing to worry about.
After all, he and Liami were good brothers—just going for a walk. What could possibly happen? …It really was just a walk, right?
He dared not imagine any other possibility and forced himself to believe Liami was genuinely just going to walk with him. Nothing else would happen.
Besides, she had been a man before! Thinking of that, Colin felt a bit relieved. How could he have forgotten that? Liami was once a man; how could she have that kind of interest in him?
Exactly. Liami definitely wouldn’t have those thoughts. He was just overthinking. It was better not to continue pondering such impossible things.
Putting an end to his wild thoughts, Colin regained focus and was about to go downstairs to check on the new servants. But just before stepping down, he paused.
His expression showed hesitation, unsure if what he was about to do was right. Finally, recalling Liami’s strange behavior, Colin made up his mind.
He turned back to his room, checked his wardrobe, and selected a few outfits, placing them in a conspicuous spot for easier changing later. Then he took some coins, preparing to go out and buy a few things.
As for the new servants—Ryan and Rant—since Lola was helping them get familiar with the manor’s chores, Colin wasn’t too worried. Other matters could wait until he returned.
With that decided, he strode out toward the street, planning to visit the item shop first. But just as he was about to enter, he stopped for a few seconds, then walked into the flower shop next door.
After a while, Colin emerged from the flower shop. Yet he didn’t leave immediately. Standing there pondering for a moment, he then entered the item shop he had originally intended to visit.
Some time later, Colin left the shop with the owner bidding him farewell.
Back on the street, Colin found himself uncertain of what to do next. After observing his surroundings for a bit and recalling Liami’s preferences, he began analyzing a route while walking.
He continued like this until dusk approached, by which time he had mapped out a fairly satisfactory route.
Satisfied that his goal was met, Colin turned back toward the manor. But just as he reached the front gate, he spotted Liami again, peeking furtively into the manor with a sneaky look.
Colin wanted to greet her but noticed something in her hand first. It looked like… some kind of clothing? And it seemed to be women’s clothes?
Liami usually wore androgynous clothes, nothing particularly feminine. The last time Colin saw her in women’s clothing was when she was tricked by Sivney and the others into wearing a maid outfit.
At that time, although Liami didn’t exactly hate women’s clothes, she clearly wasn’t comfortable in that kind of attire. And now she had personally gone to buy women’s clothes? Could it be that she…
Colin quickly suppressed that thought. He couldn’t think like that; it would be disrespectful to Liami!
Right! Maybe this was a gift Liami was preparing for Sivney? After all, Sivney had helped her a lot in the recent incident, so it was only natural to want to give her a gift.
Plus, judging by Liami’s hesitant, awkward demeanor—hesitating to go inside—it did look like she had bought a present for Sivney but didn’t know how to give it because of pride or something.
Yes! That must be it! Liami was a man before—how could she possibly be interested in women’s clothing?
Well, even if she was curious about women’s clothes now, maybe she just wanted to try them on. What’s wrong with that! Men have all sorts of curiosities. Just trying it out wouldn’t cause any problems… right?
Seeing his thoughts spiral further out of control, Colin stopped before it got any worse. He planned to just go up and ask Liami directly what was going on.
At that moment, after observing several times and confirming there was no one inside—especially no sign of Colin—Liami took a deep breath, ready to rush inside to her room.
But then, behind her came a voice she least wanted to hear right now.
“Uh, good afternoon, Liami. What… are you doing? And what’s that you’re carrying? What’s it for?”
Colin’s voice was a little awkward as he spoke, eyes filled with expectation, hoping for a strong reaction.
But Liami froze in place the moment she heard his voice, and Colin saw the entire scene unfold behind her.
Colin swallowed nervously and asked again, “Why aren’t you saying anything? Why won’t you turn around and look at me?”
Liami felt this was the most nerve-wracking moment of her life. Hearing Colin’s questions, her mind was a complete mess, and she didn’t know what to do.
As for what was inside the bag? Of course, women’s clothes! Carefully selected ones at that! She had been so secretive to avoid being discovered!
Now what? Should she admit it? But how would Colin think then? Could they still be brothers afterward?
While Liami was desperately thinking, Colin couldn’t stand the silence any longer and slowly offered his last guess.
“Uh, inside there is… women’s clothing, right? You’re probably planning to give it as a gift to Sivney! Am I right?”
“Y-yeah! That’s right! It’s… a gift for Sivney! I saw her favorite clothes got melted by the magic circle at the Aric household, so I bought her a new set! I hope she’ll like it.”
Liami looked at Colin nervously after speaking, only to see him suddenly exhale with relief and smile with an “I knew it” expression.
“I knew it! Of course, it’s a gift for Sivney. There’s no way Liami would wear this herself, right? How could that be? You agree, don’t you? Haha…”
Colin chuckled awkwardly, but Liami frowned at his words and whispered, “Why wouldn’t I wear it? I’m female now, after all…”
“What?!”
Before Colin could react, Liami blushed deeply and rushed into the manor, heading straight to her room. Once inside, she immediately locked the door, refusing to let anyone in.
Only a shocked and incredulous Colin was left standing there.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.