Why was Ian coming out from the house right next door?

As I looked puzzled, the manager kindly explained,

“It’s a dormitory, this place.”

“Ah.”

That made sense then. It explained why Ian was a next-door neighbor.

Ian still looked surprised. It was understandable, considering a human who hadn’t been streaming lately suddenly appeared from next door with the manager.

Ian gave a small laugh. He seemed a bit bemused.

“What’s going on here?”

“Don’t get any weird ideas.”

The manager clarified the situation with his usual calmness.

“She was whining about wanting to visit the Celestial Realm, so I just brought her over for a while.”

“I’m still jealous of the communication between you two―”

Even when we weren’t streaming, the manager and I could have private conversations. It was a relief that Ian didn’t seem to suspect much.

“So, where are you headed?”

“Taking her to the shopping district to buy her something.”

“Me too.”

Ian said brazenly. The manager and I looked at him, baffled.

“What for?”

“I want to go too.”

“Why?”

“I want to buy a gift for Jiha.”

It was the same reason as the manager’s. I couldn’t understand why they were so eager to buy me gifts. Maybe it was the heart of a fan.

“Aren’t you busy?”

“It’s my day off today.”

“…Well, then. Jiha, is that okay with you?”

“Yes.”

I nodded in response to the manager’s question. Ian wasn’t someone I felt uncomfortable around, and having one more person didn’t seem to make much of a difference.

Eventually, the three of us headed out to the shopping district together.

It was a place I had visited once before. It was the same place I came with OnlyFinley, Poppopo, and PleaseShakeACarrot. It seemed like the biggest shopping district around here.

“It’s not too crowded. That’s good.”

“It’s a weekday morning, after all.”

It was the least busy time, which allowed us to comfortably stroll through the shopping district.

“Is there something specific you want to buy?”

Ian asked me. Unlike last time, this time I had a clear purpose.

“I want to buy something for dressing up.”

Immediately, I heard the manager sigh beside me. Ian looked at me, puzzled.

“Suddenly? You don’t usually like that stuff.”

“Twelve thous―”

I was about to speak when the manager covered my mouth with his hand.

Right, of course. The matter with Bates was supposed to be a secret. I almost spoke without thinking.

“Twelve thousand points?”

But Ian couldn’t have failed to hear that.

“Now that you mention it, you’ve been staying at the Erpeso mansion lately, so you haven’t had a chance to meet Bates. Have you given up on the twelve thousand points?”

“……”

The manager and I fell silent.

We were still striving for those twelve thousand points even at this moment.

“Our Jiha isn’t someone to easily give up on points.”

Ian’s way of addressing me had become more intimate.

He looked at me and flashed a wry smile.

“You two seem to have gotten quite close lately. Was Bates actually Hans?”

He hit the nail on the head.

Was it just a guess? A joke? As I pondered, the manager asked him with a furrowed brow,

“When did you start noticing?”

He was probing even though he already knew. The manager, who had known Ian for a long time, seemed to have caught on immediately.

Ian chuckled.

“Don’t look at me so fiercely. With Jiha not streaming these days, I had a lot of time to think on my own and I came up with various theories. There were quite a few suspicious things.”

Ian started counting on his fingers.

“First, Jiha’s streaming frequency noticeably decreased.”

I had nothing to say about that. Even if I had moved houses, the intervals between my streams had become excessively long.

“Second, Hans stopped coming to work. That never happened before.”

The manager, too, clamped his mouth shut. He seemed as caught off-guard as I was.

“Third, Bates disappeared.”

Others might not have noticed, but Ian could. He was Venecia, after all. He was in a good position to notice changes in that world.

“Fourth… Want to continue?”

“Forget it.”

The manager waved his hand dismissively. That alone was enough evidence. It was impossible to fool the eyes of Ian, who was Venecia, from the start.

“Well then, shall we have a talk?”

Ian pulled a chair over. It was an outdoor table with a parasol, where anyone passing by could comfortably rest.

Ian gave me a reassuring smile, and I sat down in the chair he had pulled out.

The manager sighed deeply and dragged a chair over to sit beside me.

“What are you curious about?”

“Everything? How did things end up like this?”

“I’ll explain.”

I stepped forward to speak.

“No, let me explain.”

“Why? I’m confident I can explain it well.”

“Just let me speak, please.”

He seemed uneasy about leaving it to me. So, I quietly closed my mouth.

The manager pressed his temples and began the story.

“As you know, she’s been involved in a lot of accidents.”

“That’s true.”

“When the first accident happened, I pretended to be Bates and entered the other world to investigate. Didn’t find anything, though.”

It was certainly strange that the manager, who had conducted a thorough investigation, had come up with nothing.

Even Crown Prince Irmin had gotten involved, but he too hadn’t discovered anything. He just kept making absurd claims that the perpetrator didn’t seem human.

“And then you guys made that damn bet, and somehow she ended up discovering my identity.”

“I’m quite perceptive, you know.”

“It was more like I just came clean about it.”

I got caught right away trying to seem like I knew it all along.

Indeed, until the manager himself told me, I had no clue at all. I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.

“Even after all that has happened, she is still set on getting those twelve thousand points by trying to woo me. That’s the situation now. Done, right?”

It seemed he deliberately avoided mentioning that we were engaged.

Ian was looking at us with eyes full of interest.

“It’s such an interesting situation, and you’re not showing it to the viewers. That’s a bit disappointing.”

“She has her own privacy to maintain too.”

“It seems more like your privacy than Jiha’s.”

He wasn’t wrong. I wasn’t particularly bothered about being exposed, but the manager was the one who strongly opposed it.

“So, Jiha is trying to make Hans fall for her by dressing up now?”

“Yes.”

At my response, Ian burst out laughing. He seemed to be enjoying this a lot.

“That’s really cute, honestly.”

I felt like I was being treated like a child. But to Ian, I probably was indeed very young.

“Then I should help you earnestly. Let’s go.”

“Hey.”

The manager called out to Ian, who was about to get up.

“Don’t go spreading rumors.”

“You don’t trust me?”

“If I trusted you, I wouldn’t be saying this.”

“I’m hurt. Was our friendship only this much?”

The two seemed quite close. I just watched them, feeling somewhat out of place.

“Don’t worry, I won’t spread any rumors.”

“……”

Despite Ian’s assurance, the manager looked at him with distrustful eyes.

Even though the manager was uncomfortable, I was determined to enjoy myself since I was here.

We started walking towards the store, and I casually brought up a topic.

“What’s the manager’s taste like?”

Knowing that asking the manager would be futile, I directed my question to Ian.

Ian pondered for a moment before responding.

“Hard to say. I would have to see him dating someone.”

“He’s never dated?”

“No.”

How can someone live several times longer than humans and never date even once? I glanced at the manager.

“So?”

The manager replied irritably, his mood visibly low. I discreetly lowered my gaze.

“Why are you like that to Jiha? She’s a precious person, treat her well.”

“Shut up.”

The manager was indeed much more affectionate towards me than I realized. The difference in his demeanor when we were alone compared to now was like night and day.

“Still, considering his personality, he might prefer a neat and orderly style.”

I had somewhat expected that. If the manager were to have a partner, it seemed fitting that they would be very modest and neat.

“That’s the complete opposite of me.”

“Looks like it.”

“Can you two not have this kind of conversation in front of me?”

“Alright, let’s ask the person in question.”

Ian looked at the manager with an expectant smile.

“Hans, what type of person do you like?”

“…….”

“If you don’t speak honestly, I’ll spread rumors.”

“Ugh….”

Even though he promised to keep it a secret, it was as if he had been caught with a weakness.

The manager kept his mouth shut for a while before finally speaking.

“…Someone cute.”

“Huh?”

Even Ian was surprised by his response. It seemed even for someone who knew him for a long time, this was unexpected.

“Since when has that been your preference?”

“Enough, stop asking.”

He seemed too shy to talk more about it.

Ian looked at me with a smile.

“Cute suits our Jiha perfectly, right?”

“Do you think I’m cute? I can’t see it.”

“You’re incredibly cute.”

Maybe it was just because I was significantly shorter than him. There’s about a 40cm height difference between Ian and me, so it’s possible he finds it cute in the way one might find a child cute.

In such situations, it’s only fair to ask the manager too. I looked up at the manager and asked,

“Manager, do you think I’m cute?”

“…….”

The manager stared at me for a moment, then pushed my face away with one hand, obstructing my view.

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“I was just asking.”

“Haha.”

Ian laughed as if he was enjoying our interaction.

In that case, I should aim for the cute side.

The problem was that I was a person with no charm or cuteness.

Should I at least try to wear cute clothes? It didn’t seem quite fitting, but I decided to give it a try.

“How about that store?”

Ian pointed to a store. It was a clothing shop filled with cute and pretty clothes.

“It seems to match Jiha.”

He really must think I look cute. Even though it doesn’t seem to match my style.

“What do you think, Manager?”

“I don’t know, do whatever you want.”

The manager waved his hand, seemingly uninterested. Ian put a smile on his lips and placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Let’s go.”

Simultaneously, the manager swatted Ian’s hand away. Ian’s hand fell off my shoulder.

“Ouch.”

“Don’t casually touch.”

“Got it, I’ll be careful. Sorry, Jiha.”

“It’s… not really a big deal to me.”

That level of physical contact wasn’t uncomfortable for me. It was more like the manager was the one overreacting.

‘Though he’s the one who’s always stroking my hair.’

I chuckled to myself.