Watching the three of them—Isabella and her friends—flee in panic, Felyn still found it a bit unbelievable.

"Felyn, are you okay?"

Turning around, Adeline reverted to the gentle young lady Felyn was familiar with.

"I'm fine. By the way, if you could get out on your own, why did you pretend to be trapped in the utility room?"

"I wanted to maintain a ladylike image in front of you, Felyn. Kicking down a door... doesn't really suit me, I feel."

Now that Isabella was gone, it was time to properly handle the matter with Viloti.

"Viloti, about what just happened..."

Before Felyn could finish, Viloti sat down on a chair, hooked her shoe off with her hand, and then peeled off her lace stockings with both hands.

Felyn's words just now had sent the young lady's heart racing.

"Viloti?! What are you doing?" Adeline wanted to go and pull Viloti's stockings back up, but when she saw her expression, she couldn't help but stop.

What in the world is this? It's too cute.

Even Adeline couldn't bear to ruin such a scene.

"Felyn... you said just now you wanted to touch my feet. Y-you can touch them now."

Is this a victory CG? Felyn felt like he had suddenly entered a bonus scene.

Though it might be an exaggeration, Felyn truly felt as if delicious-looking clouds were drifting through the equipment room.

Besides the exceptionally perfect and slender shape of her feet, her fair complexion was a significant bonus.

Especially with the pink nail polish on her toenails, they were as alluring as the red tips of a celestial peach.

But this was merely physical pleasure. The best part was Viloti's expression.

With the thought of making the other person happy, she endured her shyness and offered her foot to be played with, having resolved herself to let him do whatever he wanted with it.

This shy yet eager-to-please expression was the most exciting part, wasn't it?

Physical bodies are a dime a dozen, but reaching such a state of mind is difficult.

One has to completely surrender their heart to the other person.

True love is rare in any world.

But true love can also spoil. Love is not like an inorganic substance that can last forever.

If there is a huge gap between the two parties from the start, then under countless difficulties, the thought of "How could they be like this?" will inevitably and slowly arise.

Once that seed begins to sprout, it will sooner or later grow into a towering tree, separating the two.

Felyn's hand wanted to touch Viloti's foot. Who wouldn't?

He was just a teenager in his puberty. At this age, he could go five times a day and be fully recovered the next.

Perhaps because Felyn didn't react for a long time, Viloti's toes cutely splayed out and then slowly closed together again.

This action left an alluring trace on Felyn's retina. His brain, receiving the visual signal, caused various hormone levels in his body to rise.

But soon, the hormones found themselves blocked by an iron-like thought.

If Viloti hadn't shown such helplessness and confusion in front of him, hadn't shown that expression of being on the verge of closing herself off again when faced with the "possibility of the contract's existence," then Felyn would have unceremoniously started touching her feet right now.

He wanted to touch, and the beautiful girl was willing to be touched. Why wait?

But Viloti did show that expression, an expression Felyn was exceptionally familiar with. It was the same expression she had when he first met her, the one that made her want to shrink into her clothes, not speaking or interacting with anyone.

If Viloti were to learn the contents of the contract at this moment, she would undoubtedly shut herself off.

Perhaps Viloti would take a year or two to get over it and hate him for the rest of her life, but he couldn't tell her now.

The new term in the Capital District would start in a few months. He had to at least wait until Viloti was enrolled there before telling her.

Felyn continued to gaze at the foot before him, not noticing that Viloti's expression was gradually softening, not noticing that her amber eyes were slowly dimming.

But... why tell her at all?

If he just slowly distanced himself from Viloti like before, wouldn't everything be fine?

Once she was enrolled in the Capital District, they wouldn't see each other so often. Plus, she would have to start taking over family affairs, so how much time would she have for romance?

At most, on a quiet night when she couldn't sleep while hugging her pillow, she might look at the moonlight seeping onto the floor and suddenly think, "Ah, I wonder how Felyn is doing lately. It feels like we haven't been in touch for a long time."

That would be enough.

He had rejected Viloti once before. He just needed to do it again.

Indeed, someone like me shouldn't have contact with clients or former clients. Otherwise, everyone will get hurt.

After the contracts end, I'll cut off contact with everyone.

Otherwise, I'll make a mistake again, and another incident like Viloti getting hurt will happen.

It's better to just leave me alone. Find a manor and live a shameless, uninhibited life with a maid.

But this thought, which he had entertained countless times on ordinary days, now seemed less alluring, less attractive.

Everyone is like a color palette. When you come into contact with others, you are always stained with their colors.

When a drop of pink paint falls onto a white palette, no matter how much white paint you add, it will never be pure white again.

Even people like Felyn and Daiyi, who considered themselves absolutely rational, would still fail to notice their originally pure white palettes gradually turning into other colors.

Felyn had noticed long ago that he was influenced by the people around him. His method was simple and crude: just get a new palette.

Move to a place where no one knows him, never see that client again. Even if he felt a little uncomfortable, as long as he repeatedly told himself that he wasn't qualified to be in a relationship, he could endure it and get over it.

But with Viloti, Felyn found that he was already hesitating.

Hesitation leads to defeat, both in the future and in the present.

Felyn didn't notice that the alluring toes had drooped, slipping back into the shoe.

Viloti bent down, put on her white lace stockings, then slowly put on her shoes and stood up, holding onto the chair.

She wanted to get closer to Felyn, but the foot she stepped out with could never seem to land.

"Felyn, I'm heading back now."

The words drifted away in the afternoon wind, so light they were like a whisper to herself. Without waiting for a response, she turned and left.

Her amber pupils remained downcast, not daring to look at Felyn's expression.

Every step was straight, only the slight trembling of her fingertips betraying her emotions.

Felyn watched her small figure gradually recede. He saw her turn her back to him, walking into an unfamiliar world, as if she would never look back.

Felyn had just overlooked one thing: Viloti had social anxiety. She didn't like to talk, but her heart was extremely sensitive.

Every glance from Felyn, every moment of hesitation, would lead her to deduce countless thoughts in her mind.

And the thoughts she had just deduced in her mind were naturally, unavoidably influenced by Isabella.

Felyn's hesitation... could it be because the contract is real, and he's hesitating, thinking about whether to avoid me again?

Viloti didn't want to delve into this question, because she knew that regardless of the outcome, if she investigated, it would mean she didn't trust Felyn.

She was unwilling to not trust Felyn, so she simply avoided the problem.

As long as she didn't see Felyn, as long as she wasn't rejected by Felyn, then in her heart, Felyn would never be the Felyn who approached her because of a contract. Felyn would still be the boy from her memories.

Viloti was one step ahead of Felyn.

Before Felyn could make up his mind, she chose to hide from him, to escape from reality.

(End of Chapter)