Working at a Haunted Mansion Chapter 51

Aiden had no awareness of how he looked. The only thought in his mind was that he should move from this spot.

‘It’d be awkward if she thought I was loitering outside her door.’

After all, they had only exchanged a subtle hint— he didn’t want to seem overly attached.

He turned to head back to where he had been before. But his feet didn’t move as easily as he expected. It felt like someone was pulling him from behind—
resisting every step, he moved slowly.

A quiet chuckle escaped his lips. Only once he began moving did his mind start to work again, and he slowly began to understand what had just happened.

He couldn’t hold back his laughter. There was no better way to describe it than the simple, undignified phrase: “I’m ridiculously happy.”

Just one night ago, he’d been in the opposite state— trembling with betrayal, thinking Lily Dienta had rejected him out of fear.

But now, at the base of the stairs, unlike just moments ago when he’d stood frozen like a statue, he couldn’t calm down and paced back and forth.

The night felt unusually long.

 

 

 

****

 

 

As morning broke, Aiden moved to the office.

While waiting for the sun to rise, he had regained a fair bit of composure.

The elation had settled, and in its place came a wave of doubt— the creeping suspicion that maybe he’d been acting like a fool. It felt like he was obsessing over a woman more noisily than some love-struck rookie.

He sat down at the desk. The surface was spotless. Lily Dienta’s diligent hands had never left a single speck of dust behind when leaving the office. Even when she came in each morning to tidy up, everything was always in its place.

So for Aiden—who couldn’t open a single drawer by himself— there was nothing to do but sit quietly at the empty desk and take in the traces she’d left behind.

And when he did, he naturally recalled the sight of Lily’s back as she bustled about trying to leave work even a little earlier, her light-colored braid swaying down her spine, and the smile she’d flash as she looked around the office, proud of her work.

And that bright, lively woman had called him by name!

Aiden started to stand up in a rush, then took a deep breath and slowly closed and opened his eyes.

His mind… wasn’t in a normal state.

‘Since when did I start putting so much weight on this?’

He was beginning to feel alarmed. He was getting swept up way too easily.

Looking back, the way his mind had spun at dawn had been completely over the top. Though he couldn’t even drink a drop of alcohol, he’d acted as if he were drunk.

In his daze, Aiden searched his memories for any time in his life he’d ever been this emotionally shaken.

His boyhood in the imperial capital had been rather harsh. But instead of being consumed by frustration, anger, or helplessness, he had turned them into nourishment and grown stronger.

What about the early days of floundering as Duke Kashimir? Even then, he had focused solely on keeping a cool head and steering situations to his advantage.

Even his first meeting with Lily Dienta had been the same. His calculating mind had left no room for emotion—he’d only ever played his role with strategic finesse.

As he reviewed the past, Aiden recalled exactly how he used to operate.

‘This is no different.’

He had been completely passive over the last few hours, but now that there were only minutes left until his next encounter with Lily, he resolved to reclaim control of their dynamic.

Being dragged along wasn’t his style—and he wasn’t the sort to let it happen, either.

Aiden Kashimir gathered his pride. In age, status, wealth—he held the upper hand in every way. It might be petty to spell it out, but facts were facts.

More than anything, this pathetic behavior… was not attractive.

Just then, the door handle clicked.

Immediately, he deployed his best asset— the elegant expression Lily sometimes gazed at with dreamy eyes.

He would greet her with a smile from his desk—the desk that faced the door directly. It was their first meeting since she’d said his name aloud.

He was already starting to feel giddy from just the turning of the doorknob. He had to rein himself in just to keep from forgetting his resolve to take the lead.

There was a brief pause between the handle turning and the door actually opening.

That delay gave Aiden enough time to add a hint of relaxed charm to his practiced smile—
he was ready.

At last, the door flew open, and Lily Dienta strode in, full of energy, as if she’d never hesitated.

“Good morning!”

Lily’s unusually spirited voice was paired with a deep breath and squared shoulders.

If only he could’ve laughed at her rookie-like boldness. But instead, Aiden just blinked, completely forgetting his mental prep.

Lily Dienta’s hairstyle was different from usual. She had parted her hair in two, braided it, and coiled the braids into round buns behind her ears. Each bun was tied with a red ribbon that matched her hair color, bouncing slightly with every step she took.

Until now, Aiden had never paid attention to how women styled their hair. But this new look seized his attention completely. She looked even cuter and more petite than usual.

What really disarmed him, though, was the fact that she had changed her hair this morning.

Lily Dienta was thinking of him.

He wasn’t the only one putting in effort— he wasn’t the only one trying to look good.

Until yesterday, that role had belonged solely to Aiden Kashimir. But now, Lily was participating too.

Now that he thought about it, her lips looked livelier today, closer to cherry-red, and her cheeks were slightly flushed…

Aiden blinked. Lily’s softly flushed face suddenly lit up with a deep red. It was almost unnaturally intense—like she was burning up.

She fiddled with her coiled hair and stammered:

“D-Does it look… weird?”

She looked mortified. Only then did Aiden realize he hadn’t greeted her at all— he’d just been staring at her.

That smooth, confident smile and casual grace? Gone, evaporated without a trace.

[No. It suits you.]

Aiden stood up as if to smooth things over. As he approached, Lily’s eyes darted from side to side. Her hands, busy touching her hair, moved even more frantically.

He barely managed to recover his smile. Then, reaching toward the part she was fussing with, he gently tapped the end of her braid— and, very much on purpose, brushed her fingers as he did.

[You look really cute.]

“Wha—?!”

She let out a half-shriek, as if she’d heard something unbelievable. Then, snapping back to herself, she replied:

“T-T-Thank you.”

She stepped back to avoid his hand, then quickly passed by him— muttering something about airing the room, or pulling out documents, as she bustled about.

Aiden pretended not to notice and snuck glances at her from the corner of his eye. Lily’s expression was constantly shifting.

While the crimson flush stayed constant, her lips puckered, then broke into a pleased smile, then tightened with determination—it was nonstop.

Then suddenly, sensing something, she snapped her head up. Their eyes met. Lily’s eyes widened, filled with surprise, as if asking: “Were you watching this whole time?”

Aiden gave her a small, affirmative smile. Lily’s half-cooled face turned red all over again. Her flushed neck drew his gaze.

After a few seconds, she cleared her throat and raised her lips into a rather awkward smile.

“Hmph, hmph. Am I really that cute you can’t look away?”

She wore the teasing expression of a cat itching to pounce.

Aiden answered without hesitation.

[Yeah. You are cute.]

“Eek!”

Lily screamed like she’d seen a ghost, and Aiden nearly took offense. No matter how generous he tried to be, her reaction looked exactly like she was freaking out.

Her face, her eyes, even her hands covering her ears like she wanted to claw the sound away— everything screamed real panic.

This was unfamiliar territory for Aiden. Aside from a raided bandit camp, he’d never seen anyone look like that in front of Duke Kashimir.

And if someone had, he would’ve given them a cold, disdainful glare for acting so ridiculously.

But for some reason, seeing Lily Dienta like this…

‘Ah, she’s really cute.’

He found himself smiling without meaning to. It was a purely unintentional smile.

Then again, Lily Dienta being cute wasn’t exactly new. She’d had her moments before.

But what used to be idle observations, now hit him with almost painful clarity. With his senses wide open, she etched herself vividly into him.