“Alice!”
As soon as Olive spotted her, she ran over, clinging to her arm and playfully pouting.
“Why… why are you acting like this?”
Worrying was one thing, but this was just too much.
Even when Alice shook her arm off, Olive didn’t care and pulled her along, insisting they go eat.
“Where are you trying to go? I have a restaurant in mind!”
Surprisingly, Olive didn’t look like she was about to die.
“I have a place reserved!”
“How do you know the good restaurants around here?”
“I did my research; it’s near your company. Since it’s a secretive matter, I looked for a restaurant with a private room, but there aren’t many options.”
Sometimes, Olive’s thoroughness was a bit scary. She even looked for a place with a private room.
“You’re thorough!”
Olive shrugged and smiled.
The place they were led to was a course restaurant called ‘Tuna Artisan.’
The interior of the restaurant made it seem like a true artisan would prepare the dishes, and even the lunch course was quite pricey.
‘So you’re planning to break the bank.’
Well, if my friend is having a hard time, this much is nothing.
The two entered the room reserved under Olive’s name.
.
.
.
“What?!”
As soon as the course dishes were served, Alice dropped her sashimi (raw fish or meat that’s thinly sliced and often eaten with soy sauce) in surprise at Olive’s words.
“So you’re saying they’re going to publicly announce you at Ranold? Why would they do that? Aren’t they the ones who deny your existence?”
“Of course, they’ve been denying it! The existence of the illegitimate child has already been rumored far and wide… It seems there’s a big scandal related to slush funds at Ranold, and they want to use me to cover it up. They’ll want at least one more article out of it. The first official appearance of Ranold’s rumored youngest daughter!”
Olive spoke nonchalantly, but her eyes were shaking.
Alice knew very well that Olive hated getting involved with that family.
“To be honest, I don’t want to fall for their dirty schemes either, but since the rumors are already out, it might not be bad for me to just establish myself as Ranold’s youngest daughter.”
Olive had hinted that she couldn’t be free from Ranold.
It was clear that Olive’s will was not reflected in any of this.
Seeing Olive like that made Alice bite her lower lip in sympathy.
“There’s a VIP party coming up with a famous overseas designer, and I’m supposed to attend… So, can you come with me?”
Is she talking about me?
When Alice looked at Olive in confusion, Olive was already pleading with both hands towards her.
“Are you crazy? How can I attend that? And if I go looking like this, I’ll probably hear insults as I walk by!”
Even if she wanted to help, she couldn’t.
It was obvious that only chaebols and famous celebrities would attend. If she went looking like this, they would definitely gossip about her appearance behind her back.
This was absurd. Both Alice and Olive would surely be criticized.
“I’ve never attended such an event. I won’t have anyone on my side. Who knows what those people will do…”
As Olive trailed off, Alice felt her resolve weakening.
“Just stay quietly by my side. I’ll rely on you. Just standing there will make me feel a bit more at ease.”
Hearing Olive’s last plea to lean on her made it hard to refuse outright.
“Fine. But if you’re next to me, it might draw more attention.”
As Alice resignedly replied, the pleading look on Olive’s face disappeared, and she clenched her fists, her eyes lighting up.
“Anyway, they’ll be too busy staring, so let’s make sure to draw their attention! I’ll make sure those people get buried under…. Olive! It’s not my fault I was born like this!”
Seeing Olive looking energized made Alice feel relieved, but then Olive’s expression turned serious as she asked.
“But… Alice, don’t you think that look is a bit much?”
“What do you mean?”
Olive cleared her throat and sat back down, interlocking her fingers and resting her chin on them.
“You can’t keep going around like this forever. Don’t you think it’s time for you to practice going back to your original self?”
Olive’s words were indeed valid, but Alice still lacked confidence.
She had become too accustomed to the convenience of this appearance. It wasn’t an easy decision to let go of it all at once.
“I… haven’t thought about it yet.”
“Isn’t it better for Miss Olive to have a pretty Alice by her side? It’s just for a short time, right? Just a little while!”
She was indirectly saying that being unattractive was embarrassing.
Alice seriously contemplated whether she should harden her resolve against Olive’s weakening influence.
“I won’t ask for much. Just three hours! You can disappear like Cinderella after three hours. I’ll take care of everything. Just come!”
“Ah… really, Miss Olive.”
