Maxim furrowed his brows at her sudden change in tone. Marianne sent him an elegant smile.

“It’s not a matter that can be resolved by one party being polite.”

“Ugh.”

He clenched his fist, and Yan’s eyes widened in astonishment. His large eyeballs looked as though they would fall out. Even Florian’s corpse-like face displayed surprise.

“How can it be even more chaotic before sorting? You’re not doing this on purpose to mess with me? If that’s not the case, then the only possibility is that you’re incurably stupid.”

The documents that she and Christoph had sorted by case yesterday were once again in disarray.

“What did I do wrong? I sorted it all while pulling my hair out, and you can’t even say thank you! What? Incurably stupid?”

Maxim’s eyes narrowed in fury as he abruptly stood up. Yan pretended to pick up a dropped pen and hid under the desk.

Maxim’s voice, filled with discontent, shook the office.

“So you’ve graduated from the Royal University and now you act smug in front of me? You’ve only just learned to read and write, right? This is ridiculous!”

“When did I act smug? This is about basic…”

“That’s enough.”

Nicholas, who had been watching the two, intervened. Maxim glared at her with his irritated eyes. His face flushed with alternating colors.

“I apologize for not even being able to do the basics!”

Maxim kicked the desk and stormed out of the office. Florian picked up their coats and followed him. Then he looked back with a sudden realization.

A gloomy smile formed at the corners of his mouth, making him look even more like a corpse.

“Have a good day, not Mrs. Schneider, but Marianne.”

Marianne glared at Maxim’s retreating back with cold eyes. She wasn’t going to take it lying down. If there was a chance to counterattack, she would seize it without hesitation, letting him realize she wasn’t an easy target.

At that moment, Nicholas tapped her shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it, Maxim’s been like this for more than a day or two. Besides.”

His experienced eyes looked into hers. Nicholas scratched the bridge of his nose with his index finger.

“Blauwburg is different from the capital, Marianne. Here, people choose the police force to survive. Even if bones break and blood flows, it’s better than starving. Many didn’t even make it through college. Hard to believe, but there are people who barely read and write. They may improve in fieldwork over the years, but not in paperwork.”

“!”

At his words, Marianne closed her mouth as if she’d been stabbed. Her eyes flashed with confusion.

“I am…”

Nicholas nodded as if he understood.

“Maxim used to be a carpenter. A few years ago, there was a malicious arsonist who burnt down a building Maxim was constructing. He lost everything in an instant. Fueled by the desire to catch him, he became a policeman. So, his circumstances are completely different from yours, a graduate of the Royal University. He worked his way up from a patrol officer.”

“…”

“Not everyone starts this job with a noble sense of duty and passionate devotion.”

Marianne lowered her gaze, at a loss for words. Maxim may have been rude, but she was rude as well. She hadn’t considered his perspective at all.

Not everyone had received the same education and was equally competent. She had disregarded Maxim’s best efforts.

“…I see why the paperwork is always piled up like a mountain.”

Marianne’s voice softened.

“Now, if you understand, please clean up the rest. We’re lucky to have you, Marianne. To be honest, no one on our team knows how to properly sort the documents. It takes days to even write a report. When asked to write a report, Yan writes it like it’s a diary.”
Nicolas paused for a moment, glancing at the protruding red hair under the desk.

“‘Caught the jewel thief. The jewel thief is a bad guy. Showed a good image to Marianne as her senior. Need to pay more attention to the montage from now on.’… This is what he wrote as a report on the last jewel theft case.”

“Uh-huh…”

Marianne sneaked a glance. The red hair under the desk looked sulky.

“It’s still fortunate. I was about to get buried in paperwork, but you came, Marianne. Please continue to help me out, haha.”

Nicolas patted her shoulder and whistled as he left the office. Marianne let out a deep sigh. It seemed her fate in this life was to never escape sorting paperwork.

Still, her heart felt much lighter than before. The fact that she was sorting papers out of her own will, not obligation, gave Marianne both resignation and peace.

The office quickly regained its tranquility. Finally, Yan stretched his stiff body. He couldn’t bring himself to offer any help. He had his own work to finish—a report that he hadn’t even started.

What’s half of it? Haven’t even started. What does ‘Don’t write it like a diary’ mean?

Yan cautiously sat down, observing her mood.

“Where did Christoph go?”

Marianne squinted, scanning the area. Her junior’s face was nowhere to be seen when she needed him. She sighed again just as she was about to start sorting the paperwork.

“Marianne, would you like to have lunch together today?”