Truth be told, there was no way I’d give up that 10 billion. There could very well be a chance that I’d be stuck in this world forever. If I couldn’t return to my old life, then I at least needed money to survive here. There was nothing better in life than free money, so there was no way I would pass up the chance. I was inside a novel, but I could still buy property here.

In the original story, Lacius ended up getting tired of Villainess No. 4 and her obsessive antics, but I definitely won’t let that happen this time.

I made my decision, my fork still hanging out of my mouth. Theobalt covered his mouth and let out a small laugh. His pleased expression made me feel rather embarrassed. I felt like I needed to clarify again that I was just doing this for the money.

“Well, remember to brush your teeth before sleeping,” Theobalt said, still smiling.

“I will.”

“Have a good night.” Theobalt bowed and turned to leave.

I was about to devour the rest of my cake in a single bite but then stopped.

“Um, Theo?”

“Yes, miss?”

“Is Lacius okay?”

He’d seemed totally fine, but still... He obviously wasn’t going to die since he was the main character, but he’d still gotten shot by poisoned needles. He could be seriously ill.

Theobalt gave a strange smile. “To be honest, he’s not okay.”

“I suspected so.”

“Nevertheless, he’s been through many wars. He’ll make a full recovery after a couple of days of rest.”

I still felt worried despite Theo’s reassurance. I couldn’t help but frown.

Hmm, so I was right.

There was only one way to stop something like that from happening again. I needed to draw a bodyguard. The more exquisitely it was drawn, the longer it would last, in addition to being way more effective. Doodles and scribbles couldn’t last longer than a minute, but a proper painting could make wonderful things come to life.

Maybe I should draw some maids first.

In the real world, I had been a not-so-famous webtoon artist. My webtoons weren’t popular enough for me to make a living from them, so I’d also worked part-time as an art teacher. FYI, I studied oil painting in college.

I never expected it to come in handy like this.

I needed to go and buy some art supplies in the next few days. There could be more attacks, so I needed to make a few paintings that I could carry around to protect me from danger. According to the novel, if people found out that I was an art mage, I could become hunted by those who craved my power.

Then I’ll also have to paint a strong guard who’d protect only me.

I made all kinds of plans as I brushed my teeth.

Afterward, I threw myself onto the fluffy bed, in desperate need of sleep.

* * *

Meanwhile, Lacius was thinking about his new “darling.”

Am I doing the right thing?

“Are you thinking of Miss Shaye?” Theobalt asked as he applied ointment to Lacius’ wounded arm. It was as if he could read his mind.

“I can’t hide anything from you, can I?”

“You got hurt trying to protect her. You must like at least some part of her.”

Lacius didn’t say anything, but he knew that Theobalt was right. He was a cold, heartless man who didn’t trust others. Always rational and cool-headed, he wasn’t the type of person to protect those who didn’t matter to him. Since his childhood, he had taken care of only the few who he deemed as “his people.” Despite this, his body had reacted without thinking earlier that day.

Why did I do that? Because she can free me from this hellish life? It wasn’t like he’d had that in mind at that moment.

Lacius thought intently for a long time before he spoke. “It’s strange.”

Theobalt remained silent, focusing on tending Lacius’s wound, rather than pestering him to explain.

“She’s weird,” Lacius said eventually.

“Are you talking about her personality?”

“Yes. It’s like she has nerves of steel.”

She could’ve been killed, but right after she had been all “honey” and “darling” without a hint of fear. Upon her request, he also had to pick a term of endearment as part of their fake marriage. She had a strong heart indeed.

“Isn’t that perfect? There’s no telling what may happen going forward,” Theobalt asked.

“You’re right.”

At any given time, he had about four to five stalkers around him. They were either ladies or people hired by those ladies, but they had only one goal: to find out what he ate, where he went, and who he talked to.

Whoever had thrown those poison needles that day had been with a mage. Lacius always had his doors and windows closed, lest someone tried using an aphrodisiac, or sleep incense on him, but that was no good when it came to the mages connected spaces together. He tried hiring a mage of his own to stop it, but the few existing mages had already been hired... Since it was the princess’s doing, there was nothing he could do. Lacius sighed and rubbed his face.

“Good night, Your Grace,” Theobalt said. Having finished treating the wound, he started packing up the medical supplies.

Lacius glanced outside and saw that there were few signs of anything suspicious near the manor. Only then did he sit on his bed. It had been another exhausting day, but something was different. It must have been because of the unfamiliar sound of someone else sleeping in the manor...

“Theobalt?” Lacius called in a barely-there voice before Theobalt left the room. “She won’t give up, right?”

She was his last hope for salvation. 10 billion wasn’t an easy sum to give away, even for Lacius. Even so, he was willing to sell one of his sizable businesses to come up with the money. He was that cornered, mentally, not physically.

“Yes, and she won’t get killed either,” the butler replied reassuringly, hiding his pity.

“I should hope so. She does appear to be lucky anyway.”

Shaye had been intense from the moment he first saw her. Unlike the slaves who’d been sold before her, she had determination in her eyes. She wasn’t going to give up.

And that’s why... He was drawn to her. He didn’t know how to describe what he felt. Sparkles? It was as if his instincts were trying to tell him that she could be the key to his freedom.

Of course, buying her and bringing her with him was part of an effort to completely eradicate the slave trade for good, but he couldn’t deny that there was something more. The prince he was with at the auction had told him to buy someone else, but Lacius had insisted on Shaye. Even now, he knew that it was unlike him to make such a decision. It was very strange for him to willingly have a woman living in the manor with him.

I’d better get busy.

Someone already knew that she was with him, although he didn’t know who it was. But this mystery person’s attack had failed, and since they had seen Lacius protect Shaye, they were definitely going to try again. He had to protect Shaye until she was ready.

Unlike in the past, he didn’t feel lost as he went to sleep. He felt rather relaxed.

He fell asleep, listening to the sound of Shaye’s breathing coming from not too far away.

* * *

A few days later, the sky was a brilliant shade of blue. Thanks to the sunlight tickling my cheeks, I woke up in a pleasant mood. Then I had a great idea.

I should go out! It would be a sin to stay home when the weather is so beautiful.

I went to his bedroom just as the clock struck eleven.

“Lacius, wake up! Lacius!” I called as I knocked on the door.

“I’m already awake.”

“Then let’s go out!”

Lacius looked baffled as he opened the door. Even in his confusion, he still looked stunningly handsome. Once more, I quietly admired his shining beauty.

He really is so handsome.

Granted, he wasn’t unbelievably beautiful like me, but he certainly had particular masculine charms. It was especially attractive seeing him in an unbuttoned shirt as the first thing I saw in the morning.

I guess this is what all those women are eager to see.

I cleared my throat and removed my gaze from his chest, which took no small amount of willpower.

Nope, he belongs to someone else. He’s not mine.

“There are some things that I’d like to buy,” I stated.

“I was going to request merchants to visit the manor.”

“No, that’s not how we should do it. Let’s go out. We need to show off to other people and let them know that we’re together.”

I was feeling quite confident. I already had twenty drawings for emergencies ready to use. Even if I got kidnapped or confined, I’d be able to find my way out. And no one would guess that my doodles were serious business and take them away. I had made a lot of progress in my recovery, so I thought it would be fine to go out on the streets.

“It’s too dangerous. You were attacked only a few days ago,” Lacius objected right away.

He must have planned to bring merchants to the manor, buy things for me, and then take a perfect version of me to a ball or something. I had no choice but to take out my drawings and show him. He immediately looked up in embarrassment as I undid the buttons of my dress that came up to my neck, exposing some skin.

“Here, look,” I said, showing him the paper I kept on my body.

“It’s a drawing.”

“Yes, that’s the one I keep on my chest, and here, look at my ankles.”

Lacius flinched as I pulled up my dress. I felt like I was corrupting an innocent boy, but I kept it cool and showed him my ankle.

“See? I have a drawing on each of my ankles and wrists. There’s more on my inner thighs.”

“There’s no need to explain in so much detail,” Lacius said, frowning at the unwanted information.

I shrugged and dropped my skirt again. “The point is, I’m protecting myself just fine so you don’t have to worry. I don’t have decent art supplies yet, so these drawings would only last seconds, but they should buy me enough time.”

I was so self-assured that Lacius couldn’t refuse me. He became silent. I took back the drawing in his hand and put it back inside my dress.

“Plus, this dress is too uncomfortable. It comes up to my neck, so it’s too hard to hide and take out the drawings.”

“I’ll buy you new dresses,” he said.

“They have to be the latest trend! With the most expensive jewels, but not overly flashy either. Just enough to make me look stylish.”

“Got it.”

“Then let’s go!”

I’d always wondered why fictional villainesses had to be empty-headed and wear all kinds of excessive jewelry. The women considered villainesses always sounded like they were popular idols of their world. Why would such refined, trend-setting celebrities all wear obnoxious perfume and thick makeup? It didn’t make sense to me.

“I know you’re not interested in women, but you need to play your part too,” I said.

“I’ll try…” he said weakly.

“If you don’t know what to do, just play along with me. You can do that, right?” I asked as I got in the carriage.

Lacius was desperate, and desperate people were willing to do anything for salvation. I had little to no faith in his acting skills, but I did trust in his desperation.

Good. An innocent white dress, and a half-updo hairstyle. I look perfect.

It was the best look to start our first rumor. I’d thought hard about how to pull this off and had concluded that I first had to divert all the attention from Lacius to myself.

He’s like an idol star for everyone. If he were to belong to a single woman, everyone would just hate her instead and leave Lacius alone.

“We’ve arrived at the art supply shop,” he announced, drawing back the thick curtain that covered the entire window. Bright sunlight came in and I saw a beautiful art supply shop.

As I didn’t know anything about this world’s architectural skills, I’d imagined seeing a place similar to those shabby art supply stores in front of schools. But once I saw the store, my mouth dropped open.

Oh yeah, I’m in luck!

To art students, nothing mattered more than the cost of their materials. It was all about the money. But now, I could buy all the art supplies I wanted without any worries! I couldn’t help getting excited.

I suddenly felt a huge surge of loyalty to Lacius.

My money bag... I mean, my poor client! I shall do my utmost for you.

Just then, a smooth warm voice echoed through my ears.

“Let me take your hand.”

For a moment, I almost forgot who he was due to how different he seemed when he actually treated me like a lady. Lacius had gotten out first and extended his hand toward me. Behind him, people were already trying to see what was going on. Such was his life.

With a grin, I got ready for my first assignment.

“Thank you, Lacius— Ah!”

I took a deep breath, and then after counting to three, I pretended to take his hand... before throwing myself straight into his arms.