Not knowing how his words would affect her. Because he kept thinking that all the words to reassure the woman were deception.

He couldn’t say anything.

His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly.

Had he always been such a willful and emotional person?

Why had he become so emotional in the first place? Did pretending to be a man in love with a woman cause an error in the circuits of his brain?

But he couldn’t just stay like this. To improve his relationship with this woman, he would have to make pleasant-sounding excuses again, which would only intensify this stifling feeling…

No, is it right to be troubled by such trivial emotions? Was he really such a willful and emotional person…

Damion bit his cheek hard.

He had been going around in circles with such thoughts for days. He was being utterly foolish.

Fortunately, the car soon stopped at the end of the ginkgo tree-lined road, in front of the orphanage. Damion got out of the car as if escaping from the hamster wheel.

“Welcome, Major. Hello, madam.”

The orphanage director, Delman, who had come out even before the car arrived, approached and greeted them warmly.

“It’s been a while, Director.”

“But you were here just three months ago. Oh yes, we received the goods you sent in advance. You must have been busy with the wedding, yet you still thought of us… Thank you as always.”

Three months ago? Always? Ansi looked at Damion curiously. He had said he wasn’t particularly interested in charity. Had he been making efforts since three months ago?

He answered nonchalantly.

“My wife wanted it. She said she wanted to continue supporting this place.”

“Yes, I really wanted to come after hearing about it from Damion.”

Ansi smiled. As he had requested, and for her own sake, she intended to make an impression.

“Let’s look around…”

“Sponsor!”

Loud voices were heard, and children came running. Ansi’s pupils shook at the surprisingly large energy. However, Damion seemed used to it and stretched out both arms. Several children hugged him with smiles.

“Rodan, you seem to have grown taller.”

“Hehe, that’s right! I’m taller than Kelsey now.”

“Me too! I can score goals well now. Let’s play soccer together, sponsor!”

“Shall we?”

Damion smiled kindly. It was completely different from the expression he had been wearing in the car just moments ago.

“I’ll be back in a moment. I’m looking around the orphanage with the director, Ansi.”

He took off his jacket and casually hung it on a tree branch. His well-fitted white shirt was revealed.

The number of children gathered around Damion had already grown quite large. He headed to the playground with the children.

“He’s truly a wonderful person. I’m sure he treats you well too, madam?”

The director was watching Damion and the children with a pleased expression.

Ansi quietly gazed at the man running on the playground. There was a clear vitality and light on his face.

Everyone here looked comfortable. The children running on the playground with bright smiles, and Damion playing with them.

“Does Damion come here often?”

Ansi asked, her gaze fixed on the playground.

“Yes, he’s a kind person who visited often even when he was in the military.”

“I see.”

“Besides delivering donations like this, he comes to meet the children for small matters. I’m overjoyed that he still comes together like this even after getting married.”

The director’s voice was imbued with the impression he had received from Damion’s good deeds.

Ansi inwardly laughed bitterly. He had said there was no reason not to publicize donations or charity. He had said he came to make an impression on the director.

Would such a person immediately go to play with the children without spending any time with the director? And with that expression?

“You asked if Damion treats me well too, didn’t you?”

“Yes, how is he?”

“He’s a good husband. And a good person.”

The answer to the earlier question flowed from Ansi’s lips.

It was sincere.

“Could we look around the orphanage?”

“Yes, I’ll guide you.”

Since making an impression was her mission for today anyway, Ansi deliberately looked around the orphanage with the director.

Inside the old two-story building, quite neat facilities were in place. The director said that was also supported by Damion, and that this wasn’t the only orphanage he sponsored.

The more she heard such stories, the more curious Ansi became about what was going on in Damion’s head. Why he insisted on acting as if he was desperate to be seen as an unkind person.

“This is the library for the children.”

“The smell of books is nice.”

Ansi’s eyes sparkled as she looked around inside. The unique paper smell of books indeed had something that stirred people’s hearts. She bent down to examine the spines of books on the low shelves.

“You seem to like books.”

“Not particularly.”

“You use similar speech as Major Orphe.”

“Me?”

“The humble way of speaking. The Major always says he’s only helping a little, even though he donates a lot.”

Humble. She hadn’t particularly thought of it that way when she said it. She had just answered “not particularly” because these days she didn’t read books enough to deserve praise from someone.

‘Is that man similar too?’

Is that why he said he wasn’t particularly interested in charity? Thinking about it that way… it did seem like they used similar speech.

“Now that we’ve seen all there is to see, you can stay here and come out slowly if you’d like.”

“But since I’ve come this far, please let me know if there’s anything I can help with.”

“It’s alright. It’s the children’s nap time now, so it’s our break time anyway.”

The director laughed heartily. The statement about the children’s nap time didn’t seem to be a lie, as the noisy sounds that had been heard were gradually diminishing.

In the end, Ansi nodded as well.

After the director left, Ansi slowly examined the books. Then she discovered a fairy tale book on the window-side bookshelf. Ansi picked it up.

‘The story of children going to the candy house.’

The book, about the size of two palms put together, was the fairy tale she had talked about with Damion in the maze garden last time.

He had said he didn’t like this book very much back then. Looking at it again, she thought she might understand why.

Ansi sat on the floor, using the bookshelf as a backrest, and opened the fairy tale book.

Rustle, the paper turned with her touch. The wind blew in through the slightly open window. The stray hairs peeking out by her ears fluttered lightly.

The fairy tale was short.

Ansi closed the book after reading it to the end. Somehow, she felt dejected.

Damion’s question came to mind.

She hadn’t remembered at that time. She hadn’t paid attention to it, thinking it wasn’t a particularly important part in the development of the story.

The important thing was that the children discovered the candy house, and they defeated the witch who tried to eat them there. And that they met a happy ending by reuniting with their family again.

But…

‘It was the parents who abandoned the children.’

The parents abandoned the children, but the children return to those parents.

Looking at it again, it seemed like an incredibly strange narrative. On the other hand, since the world is too hard for children to live without adults, it also seemed like the children’s return was an inevitable choice.

In other words, the children had no other options.

Ansi opened the front part.

The father and stepmother headed to the mountains to abandon the children.

Rip, the sound of tearing paper echoed in the quiet space. She tore out a few more pages, including the part where the parents were embarrassed to see the returned children, and the part where they abandoned the children again afterwards.

As a result, the story was abruptly cut off. The disconnected story remained ridiculous.

It would be better to bring another book instead.

Finally, Ansi opened the pocket inside her skirt. She intended to put the whole book in, but the book was larger than the pocket. Still, she thought she could somehow fit it in if she crumpled the book, and was struggling when…

“What are you doing?”

Ansi flinched at the puzzled voice. When she turned her head, Damion was standing in the doorway. With a frown on his neat brow.

“…I was reading a book.”

“It looks like you’re putting the book away.”

“It wasn’t very interesting. I don’t think the children will find it interesting either.”

“So you’re stealing the book?”

“I’ll buy another book to replace it.”

Damion narrowed his eyes and looked at Ansi. He moved his steps and came closer. Ansi quickly stood up and hid the book she hadn’t managed to put in her pocket behind her back.

But she couldn’t hide everything.

Flutter, a single page fell.

“…!”

Damion bent down and picked up the paper. It was an unhurried gesture.

The man’s downcast eyes scanned the text.

The parents took the children deeper into the forest. The children broke the bread into pieces and dropped them on the ground.

The man’s lips parted slightly. He recalled talking about this fairy tale with her last time.

He could imagine her flow of finding this book in the library, tearing out the parts she didn’t like, and then trying to hide the book altogether.

He smirked.

“No matter how uninteresting it is, you shouldn’t damage books, Ansi.”

Damion lightly waved the paper. It was in a mischievous tone.

Ansi’s face reddened.

“If we put a more interesting book…”

Ansi’s eyes widened as she tried to make some excuses.

Rip, Damion was tearing the paper in half right in front of her eyes.

Not content with that, he folded the torn paper and tore it once more. There was no hesitation in his elegant gesture.

The man held the folded papers tightly in one hand.

“Now it’s done.”

What is? Damion smiled at Ansi, who was frowning.

“Accomplice.”

His red lips curved up lazily. A playful yet seductive smile was directed at Ansi.