Chapter 47: Heroine Distribution Episode (!!!!!!!!)
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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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I’d hung up on Lapis Julie to avoid Scarlet’s wrath, but I couldn’t just ignore her.
Even though she was engaged to a good man, she was still my direct superior, and knowing her, she’d give me hell for hanging up on her.
I’d better send her a text. It was better than nothing.
Optimistically speaking, now that she was engaged to a famous, powerful, handsome, and wealthy man like Wool Blonde, she might lose interest in me.
Considering she’d called me on my day off, that was unlikely, but hope wasn’t a crime, so I decided to be optimistic.
I quickly typed a text message, my back to Scarlet, hoping she’d finally leave me alone.
‘Sorry for hanging up. Something came up.’
Normally, I would have added, “I’ll call you back later,” but I didn’t want to give false hope to an engaged woman, and I didn’t want to talk to her again, so I kept it short and simple.
Okay, text sent. Now, to deal with Scarlet.
“Faster! Wait up! What’s the rush?”
Scarlet, having caught up to me, grabbed my arm. She was unusually… slow today. Instead of her usual fiery impatience, she seemed… relaxed, almost leisurely.
It seemed she wanted to prolong our outing.
Well, it had been a while since we’d gone out together, just the two of us. She probably wanted to spend more time with me.
I hadn’t even protested when she’d suggested going out, so this outing must have felt special to her, unlike our previous forced outings.
Our previous outings had felt more like forced errands, with me as her pack mule. But today… it felt like a date. My agreeable attitude had changed the atmosphere between us.
Honestly, the thought of going on a date with Scarlet was… unsettling. But she was buying me clothes, so I had to endure.
Even though Scarlet was the most annoying of the S-rank bitches, and our history was far more complicated than with the others, I still felt more comfortable with her.
We’d known each other for fifteen years, and we’d grown… accustomed to each other, for better or worse. Fifteen years was a long time.
Accustomed to each other, not romantically involved. I had to make that clear.
I reaffirmed the platonic nature of our relationship and said casually,
“I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten anything since I woke up.”
“Ugh… just wait a little longer! We haven’t gone out together in a while! We should take a leisurely stroll, take some pictures, post them on Insta… you know?”
She hadn’t used the word “date,” but her suggestions, a stroll, pictures, posting on Instagram, were typical date activities. Anyone with even a modicum of social awareness would have picked up on her signals.
Scarlet was practically screaming, “I like you! Notice me!”
Why was she so aggressive today? She wouldn’t normally dress like this or say these things. Did something happen?
But I couldn’t ask.
Just mentioning a stroll, pictures, and Instagram had made her blush.
How could she be so embarrassed by this and yet so shameless when using the hypnosis app, spewing vulgarity about pussies and sex?
Despite knowing her for fifteen years, there were still things I didn’t understand.
Like, Why does she even like me? and How can she say such vulgar things without an ounce of shame?
Well, those weren’t important right now.
I chuckled, looking at Scarlet, who was completely at my mercy, thanks to the dog collar.
“Okay, let’s take a stroll, take pictures, and post them on Insta. Do whatever you want today.”
Scarlet, surprised by my easy agreement, usually met with complaints and a sour expression, looked at me quizzically.
“W-Why…?”
Her bewildered expression made me want to tease her.
“If you don’t want to, fine. I’m just offering.”
“N-No! I didn’t say I didn’t want to! Why do you always twist my words?!”
As I turned away, feigning annoyance, Scarlet rushed after me.
She looked like a child who’d stopped throwing a tantrum and run after their parent, afraid of being left behind. It was almost comical.
I had to control my laughter. Even though Scarlet was now a pathetic, whimpering mess who couldn’t resist my scent, she still had a fiery temper.
And we were in public. I’d brought the dog collar, just in case, but I didn’t want to put on dog ears and nuzzle Scarlet’s neck in front of everyone.
“…”
“Faster, why are you smiling? Are you… making fun of me? You? Making fun of me?”
I tried to suppress my laughter, successfully stifling the sound, but I couldn’t control the twitching of my lips. Scarlet, noticing my barely contained amusement, was getting ready to explode.
Scarlet’s anger was like gasoline, igniting and exploding in an instant.
The best way to deal with it was to prevent it from igniting in the first place. I smiled at her, a relaxed, easy smile.
“Yeah, I was smiling. How could I not? You looked so cute running after me.”
“Wh-What?”
Scarlet, about to unleash her fury, was stunned, momentarily forgetting her anger.
I was seeing a lot of Scarlet’s flustered side today, and it made me happy.
My smile widened, and Scarlet, looking at me, seemed mesmerized, like a lovesick schoolgirl.
I knew Scarlet liked me more than I could have imagined, but it still felt… strange.
And I didn’t intend to reciprocate her feelings. At least, not until she gave me a sincere apology. Until then, our relationship would remain that of childhood friends, nothing more, nothing less.
If she gave me a truly heartfelt apology… then I might reconsider.
The only woman I’d ever considered more beautiful than Scarlet was Silk Blonde.
But Scarlet, crying and begging me not to leave her on the day my apartment was destroyed, had looked even more beautiful than Silk Blonde.
No man would reject a beautiful woman, especially one as stunning as Scarlet, without a good reason.
So, for both our sakes, we needed to resolve our issues.
Well, I had three months, until the S-rank dungeon raid.
If she didn’t apologize by then? Tough luck.
I’d disappear without a trace, change my name, and start a new life. I’d become a suspiciously wealthy, unemployed man.
So, this time with Scarlet, while it looked like a date, was actually a grace period, an opportunity for her to redeem herself.
If she didn’t take this opportunity, it was her fault.
“B-But Faster, if you think I’m cute… Shouldn’t you take a picture? You have to preserve cuteness, right? And it’s common sense to show off cute things. We should post it on Insta. R-Right?”
Scarlet, oblivious to my thoughts, was clearly scheming. I chuckled at her predictable behavior and nodded.
“Yeah, you’re right. Give me your phone. I’ll take the picture.”
“Y-Yes! Here!”
I took her phone, opened the camera app, and stood beside her. Scarlet quickly wrapped her arm around my waist, and I put my arm around her shoulder, adjusting our position for the picture.
“Hee?!”
“Say cheese.”
-Click.
I snapped the picture just as Scarlet, flustered by my embrace, blushed. Her bewildered expression was perfectly captured.
Even like this, she was still beautiful.
“Okay, now where were…”
“Let me see first!”
Before I could even look at the picture, Scarlet snatched her phone back.
She quickly uploaded the picture to G Cloud and locked it, making sure it wouldn’t be accidentally deleted.
“Good. Now that the picture is safe… time to do what I have to do.”
Scarlet, satisfied with her perfectly preserved picture, hummed a tune and opened Instagram.
I couldn’t see what she was doing because she’d moved away, hiding her phone from me.
What was so important about posting a picture on Instagram that she had to hide it?
I didn’t use Instagram. Or rather, I couldn’t use it.
Back when I was working as a butler for the Rate family, feeling lonely, I’d tried using social media to connect with others.
I’d posted a picture, and my account was immediately permanently banned.
Apparently, I’d leaked classified information. The Rate family crest had been visible in the corner of the picture.
And then, Scarlet, furious, had given me a “lesson,” effectively curing me of my desire to use social media.
So, even though I didn’t understand why she was being so secretive… Well, it didn’t matter.
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Lapis Julie, after receiving Faster’s text, “Sorry for hanging up. Something came up,” felt a sense of unease.
Scarlet’s voice, faintly heard just before the call disconnected, Faster’s text about something coming up, and the news report about her engagement… everything felt… wrong.
What should I do? What went wrong?
Lapis Julie was uncharacteristically flustered.
She’d agreed to the engagement to make Faster confess, but now that he wasn’t even answering her calls, she was just… an engaged woman.
That realization filled her with panic.
-Buzz.
As she struggled to figure out what to do, her phone vibrated.
“Ah!”
Hoping it was a message from Faster, she quickly checked her phone and froze.
“…”
‘Took a picture on our way to the outlet mall. Buying him clothes. Lol, jealous much?’
@Lapis Julie @Silk Blonde @Ia Aris
A picture of Faster and Scarlet, smiling and hugging, had been posted on Scarlet’s Instagram.
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The battle of the girls just started😏
