"Yeah, I did. It was pink. All pink." Varian said with a straight face.

"H-Heuk!" Hazel swallowed her saliva and looked up in surprise.

What a pervert he must be to admit seeing her panties!

"Of course I'm talking about the papers, you dirty pervert!"

"Ahh!" Hazel realized she had been tricked and looked at him with an aggrieved expression. "To tease me like this, you are definitely not an illusion."

Varian flicked his wrist and the air crackled. "Neither is my whip."

"Wait!"

Hazel saw the papers floating around and her breath nearly stopped. She wanted to bury herself in the ground and never see light of the day.

"The domineering president is not based on you, master! I swear on your honor and dignity!"

"Then why is his name Var or Varion or Verian?" Varan stretched the whip and swung it.

"Heuk!"

Hazel closed her eyes in fear but the pain did not come.

Boom!

When she opened her eyes, the whip slapped the ground below the mountain and Hazel's eyes widened. "Wait!"

The soil split open and papers, pink papers numbering in hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions came into view. The entire mountain was hollowed out and filled with papers, papers and papers.

Even though Varian was expecting it, he was dumbfounded. Hazel lowered her head in shame and he raised his whip again.

The intention was clear. He's going to destroy the papers.

"Master!" Hazel found courage she didn't know she had and jumped at him, grabbing his arm. "Please!"

"Matriarch will only get whipped, you'll get killed if even one of these remain." Varian shook his head.

"I don't care!" Hazel yelled. "I didn't see you for a thousand years, I was going crazy, this was my only sustenance. These are my fears, desires and hopes. The story of these stories is the story of my thousand year solitude.

Master, are you really so cruel to destroy it all?"

Varian looked at Hazel's teary eyes and then at the literal mountain of papers.

"Haa~"

With a deep sigh, he put away the whip and turned around.

After vanishing for a thousand years, he didn't have the right to complain or act like he pleased. Hazel endured a lot of suffering.

She chose to live here in solitude even though she had a chance of living a normal life among people in Hortus.

"I'm sorry for making you suffer. And thank you for living."

"Hehe, of course~" Hazel stored away the papers and smiled at him. "When you returned, I didn't want to greet you as an old woman!"

"…"

"And master, you've grown more masculine!" Hazel looked at him with glittering eyes.

"…"

"And your scent…it remained the same. Ah, I already feel weak in my legs."

"Living alone for a thousand years, you are not differentiating between your thoughts and words. You're speaking everything on your mind."

"Ah, that cold, tingling voic—aaaah! Wait, I said nothing! Nothing!" Hazel covered up her burning cheeks. "How could I say that? Even though I hear his voice in my drea—mff!"

Hazel covered her mouth with one hand and slapped herself with another. Grabbing her pen and a sheet of paper, she wrote.

[Master, I can't speak for the time being. I will writing as a medium to communicate.] She displayed the paper.

"You better." Varian nodded before giving her a pitying glance.

[Wh-What is it, Master? Why are you looking at me with such pity? Do you feel sorry for making me wait and want to make up for it?

Then of course, please be at home and let me serve you well! I can only be a proper maid if you're a proper master!

Oh and you can buy me some gifts to make me happy or praise me when I do a good job. That's all I need.]

"Alright. But that's not the reason for my pitying gaze." Varian shook his head. "I met Helena before coming here. She also got into some trouble. But it's only with Sia. So, I'm confident I can at least intercede.

But you…I don't know, I'm worried whether they'd really kill you."

Hazel's eyebrows shook and she looked around like a thief before looking at him with teary eyes.

[They won't know if you don't tell them.]

"…"

Varian's lips twitched.

Firstly, this was the same line the maid used on the president in a nasty episode. Of course, nothing happened but still.

Secondly…

"Do you really think they aren't following me with their divine senses? At least two of them would have their eyes on me anytime. Even if it's four, I wouldn't be surprised."

[…]

Tears rolled down Hazel's eyes and she hugged him tightly. Wetting his shoulders, she cried.

"Master, I don't want to die! I never did anything worthy! Neither as a genius nor as your maid! My entire life was a waste. I don't want to die! I don't want it to end just like this!"

Patting her back, Varian looked up at the sky.

There were four dark clouds up above, in the peculiar shapes of a fox, tiger, rabbit and dragon.

As if sensing his gaze, the rabbit cloud dissipated. Shortly after, the dragon cloud too vanished.

"Master, if I'm going to really die, I'd rather die in your hands! It'll at least make my wait meaningful!"

Hazel pulled away from the embrace and placed his hand on her throat.

The tiger cloud faded.

"You won't die. I'll ask Sia for help. She'll help me convince everyone to spare you. She's a sweet girl."

The fox cloud moved slightly and then vanished.

"Haa~ Fuck!" Varian exhaled greatly and looked at Hazel who took out a dagger.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"Queen Sia will help?" Hazel gave a bitter smile. "She'll be the first to kill me. Master, I'll at least die in front of you. Please remember me as your loy—"

"That's enough!"

Varian's voice shook the mountain.

Primula who was still trying to break the barrier and Matriarch who tried to enquire about Varian's situation from the stubborn little girl, both looked up in shock.

"M-Master?!" Hazel muttered in fear and surprise as she looked at Varian's bloodshot eyes.

Varian breathed heavily and slowly loosened his clenched fist. In a broken voice he didn't realize he had, he said.

"I'm not remembering anyone in my memories, Hazel. I want you to stay alive, stay in front of my eyes.

Don't die. Never, ever die."

His voice grew softer and quieter as he reached the last part.

"Please?"

Seeing him in so much pain, Hazel felt like crying.

'Master, master, master.'

He's a good man. Even though the world always threw him trouble, he lived carefree. And he always took great care of those around him.

A maid was the most disposable thing back in her province. But here, a maid was given a great deal of respect. And it wasn't just about being a maid, but being able to watch the life of someone like him.

'From Prince Charming to Domineering President, what an evolution.'

Hazel clasped his hand and nodded with a bright smile, trying to alleivate at least some pain in his heart.

"Don't worry, Master! Why would I die if I can look at your face every day as long as I'm alive? Of course, I'm going to live forever with you!"