How Lilies turn Black Chapter 21 - Silvano Giacone (6)

Lilia timidly stepped into the office, carefully navigating around the clutter of items scattered across the floor before settling onto an old leather sofa.

 

The once noticeable trembling had completely subsided. 

 

Seeing the man’s demeanor, which didn’t seem immediately threatening, helped her fear to dissipate.

 

However, his sly behavior made it clear that he wasn’t letting his guard down, which made her feel distinctly uncomfortable facing him.

 

Lilia fidgeted with her fingers as she glanced around the unfamiliar room.

 

Whether it was the first or second floor, it was equally dirty. Just lifting one of the boxes on the floor seemed like it would cause bugs to come pouring out.

 

‘Ugh…’

 

At that thought, her neck instinctively shrank.

 

Moreover, a strange smell wafting from somewhere felt eerily like the scent of blood, leaving Lilia unable to shake off her unease.

 

As she turned her stiff neck, she suddenly met a pair of black pupils staring directly at her.

 

“…!”

 

“Done looking around?”

 

“…”

 

“Not much to see, right? This place is a bit of a mess. Just a garbage dump, really. That good-for-nothing guy doesn’t take care of it.”

 

That good-for-nothing guy?

 

Lilia’s eyes widened as she hesitantly asked, “Who… are you? Are you the… cleaning person?”

 

At her naive question, the man burst out laughing as if it were absurd.

 

“What are you talking about? I’m saying that Silvano, that guy, doesn’t manage this place properly.”

 

“Huh? Aren’t you Mr. Silvano Giaconé?”

 

“Me?”

 

He retorted, leaning back fully against the chair with an incredulous look on his face.

 

Lilia, equally dumbfounded, couldn’t muster a response. She had naturally assumed he was Silvano. 

 

After all, there was no one else here but him.

 

“Unfortunately, I’m not that Giaconé. I’m supposed to be his secretary, but I’m just the lackey who ends up handling all the tasks he keeps putting off.”

 

“Ah… I see.”

 

“Why are you looking for Silvano? It’s rare for visitors to come by.”

 

Just as a wave of disappointment seemed to wash over her, the follow-up question made her tense up again.

 

“Um…”

 

Lilia hesitated, carefully choosing her words.

 

“I have a personal proposal I’d like to discuss with him.”

 

“A proposal? What kind?”

 

“I’d prefer to speak to him directly about it… I’m sorry.”

 

At her shrinking apology, the man waved his hand dismissively, showing a look of discomfort.

 

“Ah, no need. I’m not the person you’re looking for, so why apologize?”

 

“…”

 

“By the way, it won’t be easy for you, I’m afraid.”

 

Was he about to say that Silvano was a terrifying person? That a mere delicate woman like her couldn’t possibly handle it?

 

She had heard such things so many times that she was already fed up. But what followed was completely unexpected.

 

“He might not come. To be precise, I don’t know when he’ll show up.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“If you’re lucky, he might come right away. If not, maybe in a week? Or a month later? I don’t know. The good news is, he hasn’t been around here for a while. I thought he might be due to show up around this time? Though that’s just wishful thinking.”

 

Lilia’s slightly red lips parted slowly, letting out a faint groan.

 

Why hadn’t she thought of that? The possibility that she might not even get a chance to meet him.

 

The man, indifferent to her reaction, fiddled with his nails.

 

“That guy has pretty much-lost interest in the affairs here.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“Well, I’d like to call him and have him come over, but I’d need to know where he is to even make the call.”

 

He smiled with a slight grimace and shrugged his shoulders. 

 

The sense of desperation belonged solely to Lilia, as there was no trace of any active willingness to help her from him.

 

“If you’d like, you can wait here… or go out and look for him. But let me tell you upfront, I once searched high and low, but I never caught a glimpse of that shameless fellow lounging around anywhere.”

 

Could things be any more hopeless? Lilia let out a frustrated sigh and swept her hair back.

 

“Do you know any places he frequents?”

 

“If I knew that, would I be here alone right now?”

 

“…What about where he lives?”

 

“Here, right here. But well… you’d have to catch him coming to sleep. Whether he’s passed out at a bar or mooching off some woman’s place, who knows?”

 

“…”

 

Enough said. It was clear that asking further would only lead to more sarcasm and yield nothing useful.

 

Lilia settled her troubled mind and concluded that waiting for now was the best course of action.

 

Hadn’t she driven for a good five or six hours straight? 

 

She didn’t have the confidence to search every nearby store in her current state, feeling like she could collapse at any moment.

 

“Do you have any books or magazines worth reading?”

 

At her indirect way of saying she’d pass the time here, the man chuckled.

 

“Planning to wait?”

 

“Do I have any other options right now?”

 

“Good thinking. As for reading material… Well, I’m not exactly a cultured person like Silvano or anyone.”

 

Scratching his head, he let out a dying groan and got up. Then he disappeared wobbling into a pile of stacked belongings.

 

“Let’s see…”

 

Muttering from the corner of the office, sounds of rummaging followed. 

 

After hearing the quack of a rubber duck, whose presence here was inexplicable, and the jingle of a tambourine… the man came back with a few booklets, uttering an unenthusiastic exclamation.

 

“Would you like to look at these?”

 

Thud—

 

A cloud of fine dust rose from the stack of papers he set down. 

 

Lilia waved away the dust and flipped through the overturned book. But as soon as she saw the cover, she gasped in shock and threw it back down.

 

“…Gasp!”

 

My heart pounded in surprise. Did I see that wrong?

 

But as I rolled my eyes and looked down…

 

‘What is this!’

 

The cover photo showed a nearly naked woman sitting in a suggestive pose. It was the April 1958 issue of Playboy magazine.

 

Lilia’s mouth went dry, and she wanted to swallow her saliva, but she couldn’t. If she did, it might seem like she was reacting to this vulgar cover.

 

‘Is this guy for real? Is he messing with me?’

 

She turned her flushed face sharply and glared at the man. Ironically, her anger had nowhere to go, as he was casually humming a tune while cleaning up the trash.

 

“Since the lady has arrived~ I should clean up this pigsty~.”

 

What should I even say to that? Lilia stared at him in disbelief, her mouth slightly open. She couldn’t even muster a sigh.

 

She hadn’t met Silvano yet, but his so-called secretary was undoubtedly just as difficult to deal with. Maybe birds of a feather really do flock together.

 

“Enough, enough…”

 

“Huh? What did you say?”

 

At her muttered words, the man suddenly lifted his head and looked at her. His eyes were bright and innocent, as if nothing was wrong. 

 

Feeling a headache coming on, Lilia closed her eyes tightly and waved her hand dismissively.

 

“It’s nothing.”

 

“Come on, don’t be so dull.”

 

His chuckling voice subtly grated on her nerves. Lilia tried hard to maintain her composure and not let him get to her, changing the subject.

 

“By the way, where’s the restroom?”

 

“The restroom? Go down the hallway, third door on the right.”

 

As she immediately headed out of the office, his voice followed her.

 

“Ah, wait a second!”

 

“Yes?”

 

“It’s horrifyingly dirty, so keep that in mind. I usually avoid it and go to the bushes outside to do my business.”

 

It was a story she didn’t really want to know, and she swallowed the words, ‘I didn’t have any expectations anyway.’ 

 

Lilia, still clutching her throbbing head, stepped out into the hallway. The long, narrow corridor was lined with several rooms, all with their doors closed. 

 

The only place that carried the scent of human presence was the space she had just left.  

 

‘He said the restroom is the third door on the right…’

 

As she walked down the dimly lit hallway, she glanced back once. 

 

From the office she had just closed behind her, the faint sound of a radio could be heard, but there was no sign of the man.  

 

Confirming that she was now completely alone, Lilia cautiously opened one of the doors.  

 

Click—

 

The doorknob turned, and the first room on the left obediently revealed itself to her.  

 

The darkened space didn’t seem to hold anything particularly special. A few metal shelves reached up to the ceiling, each compartment filled with wooden boxes of varying sizes, their contents unknown.  

 

‘Could all of those be smuggled goods…?’  

 

Curiosity bubbled up, but she didn’t have time to open each one. Lilia quietly closed the door and this time stood in front of the door on the right.  

 

Just as she placed her hand on the cool metal doorknob and began to apply pressure—  

 

A man’s large, rough hand overlapped hers on top of her slender, bony knuckles.  

 

“…!”  

 

At the same time, the body heat she felt from behind stiffened her entire body, and she drew in a sharp breath.