In This Life I Will Be The Lord Novel - Side Story, Chapter 8

It was the complete opposite of what had happened in the carriage just moments ago.
I was flustered, and Perez, on the contrary, was smiling leisurely, as if enjoying the situation.
A sudden surge of annoyance made me turn around and look at the room again.
But of course, a bed that wasn’t there wouldn’t suddenly appear.
Violet, you’re the death of me!
Violet had been in charge of arranging the transportation and accommodation for this journey.
‘Even if the disguise is for newlyweds!’
Only one bed!
There was a time when I used to sleep in the same bed as Perez when we were children.
But now, it was a completely different situation.
“…Right. Who can I blame?”
It was all my mistake.
I had told Violet, who asked, ‘How should I prepare the fake IDs?’, that ‘newlyweds would be good.’
Then, of course, I should have expected the accommodation to be prepared for newlyweds.
It was as I sighed.
“Shall we go in?”
Perez effortlessly picked up my bag and his own, one in each hand, and strode into the room first.
He showed no hesitation whatsoever.
“…How annoying.”
I reluctantly followed Perez, muttering towards his back.
The room, though not conspicuously luxurious or beautiful, was quite comfortable and satisfactory.
I nodded slightly, trying my best not to look at the bed.
But then, instead of his previous meaningful demeanor, Perez’s face, with a slight frown, caught my eye.
“What’s wrong?”
“Is the accommodation… okay, Tia?”
“Are you worried I won’t like the room?”
“Because this is a place mainly used by commoners.”
“Well, our disguised identity is a commoner couple on their honeymoon to the East, so it can’t be helped.”
I said, pressing my finger gently on Perez’s furrowed brow.
“How demanding do you think I am?”
Perez gently took my hand and pulled it down, then replied, “But Tia, this must be your first time sleeping in a place like this.”
Now I understood what Perez was worried about.
The Tia Perez knew had rarely left the Lombardi mansion.
He probably thought my only experience was going to the North for Ivan’s matter.
“It doesn’t matter. And this is excellent, actually.”
Compared to the shabby house I rented in my previous life, this room was practically a palace.
“Are you okay, Perez?”
He’s the Emperor, after all.
“Well, I often slept outdoors during my academy travels.”
Perez said that, then gently brushed back my slightly fallen hair.
As the conversation ended, the atmosphere became awkward in an instant.
The hand Perez held felt unusually hot, and the sound of him brushing my hair felt suffocating.
I quickly pulled my hand away and turned around.
“Wow, let’s go look around before the sunset completely fades!”
I hurriedly opened the door and half-ran out, hearing a small chuckle from behind me, and Perez quickly followed.
“Let’s go together.”
It was a voice heavily tinged with amusement; I could tell his expression without even looking.

The name of the city we would be staying in tonight was Magnus.
Located in the southern part of Lombardi’s territory, I prided myself on knowing many things about Magnus, including its population, area, main products, and even the scale of its taxes.
“Wow. The roads here are really beautifully paved!”
But Magnus, when I actually stepped on its ground, was a much more beautiful and vibrant city than I had expected.
“The market is still open even though the sun is setting. Hmm, well, the report did say it was a city with very good public safety.”
It was very enjoyable to confirm the information I had in my head with my own eyes, one by one.
As I busily looked around the market near our accommodation, Perez walked quietly beside me, hands clasped behind his back, matching my pace.
“Even though it’s a trip that happened by chance, I really like it.”
I said, reaching the end of the market and looking back at the path we had walked.
“Seeing the people of my territory with my own eyes like this makes me want to work even harder.”
The thriving city and its lively residents living their daily lives.
They, too, were people I had to protect.
“And come to think of it, this is my first trip, isn’t it? When I went to Ivan, I was in such a hurry that I didn’t have time to look around.”
I smiled at Perez and offered a slightly belated greeting.
“Thank you for granting my request and coming with me.”
“Tia.”
Perez called my name in a voice much softer than usual, conscious of our surroundings.
And he reached out and slowly stroked my head, saying, “Anytime.”
His affectionate touch wasn’t unwelcome.
“If there’s anything I can do for you, anytime. That’s my joy.”
“…You’re impossible.”
To say such things directly to my face.
How shameless.
As I subtly averted my gaze, Perez chuckled softly.
“Magnus has a beautiful square. I’ll guide you.”
“Have you been here before?”
“I traveled the South often.”
Perez extended a hand to me.
I didn’t hesitate to take it.
Breathing in the evening air, which grew cooler as the sun set, we arrived at the square.
“Wow, it really is. The square is beautiful!”
Under the evening glow, the neat square, paved with reddish-brown bricks that beautifully preserved the traces of time, naturally drew exclamations of awe.
Especially the large statue in the center caught my eye.
The statue, which looked as if time had stopped to preserve a handsome man in his mid-thirties sitting on a chair, had a familiar name written beneath it.
Rulac Lombardi
“Looking at it like this, my eyes really resemble Grandfather’s, don’t they?”
Grandfather’s younger appearance was still fascinating to me.
Perez, looking as surprised as I was, slowly nodded in response to my question.
It was then.
“Oh oh!”
A child, about four or five years old, who was running past us, seemed to trip and fall.
I turned my body towards them, thinking, Oh no!, when a hand suddenly shot out from somewhere and firmly embraced the child’s small body.
It was Perez, who had been talking to me just moments ago.
“Waaah…”
The child, startled by almost falling, whimpered as if about to burst into tears.
“Be careful.”
Until Perez said that and patted the child’s small back.
The child looked up at the adult comforting him, and his eyes widened, sparkling as if he had seen something wondrous.
“Little one, are you okay?”
I also approached and spoke, and this time, he looked up at my face, a pink blush appearing on both his cheeks.
“Oh dear, Timmy! You’re extra energetic today.”
“Grandma!”
“Timmy, you shouldn’t run off by yourself like that! You almost got hurt.”
The child’s grandmother approached and said to us with a smile.
“Thank you.”
“Not at all. The square is beautiful, but there are some broken parts on the ground that might need some repair. Timmy probably tripped on that stone.”
“Oh dear, that would have been terrible.”
When I return to the mansion, I should tell them to repair this square.
As I thought that and looked around the square with different eyes, checking for other problems.
“Even if it’s a bit old, it’s the pride of our Magnus. Isn’t it wonderful?”
“Yes. My husband… and I were just talking about that. That statue is also very impressive.”
Right, I’m just being faithful to my disguised identity.
I vaguely mumbled the awkward word, trying to soothe my embarrassment.
“That’s Lord Rulac, the former Head of Lombardi. When I was a young lady, Magnus was just a small village, and it’s all thanks to him that it became such a big city.”
Timmy’s grandmother said with a proud smile.
“When I was about your age, young lady, Lord Rulac visited here, and he was so handsome that all the women in the village went wild.”
“Haha, really?”
“No joke, he was a truly handsome man with a glowing aura!”
As if transported back to her youth, the grandmother smiled somewhat girlishly.
“The fact that I lived without much worry is all thanks to Lord Rulac governing the territory well. I heard the new Head of Lombardi, his granddaughter, is also a wonderful person. Do you two know anything about her?”
“Ah… haha.”
I hesitated, embarrassed to praise myself.
“The new Head of Lombardi is a very excellent person. She cherishes Lombardi’s land and its people.”
Perez answered for me, with a faint smile.
His gentle demeanor and voice were unlike the cold, rigid person he usually was when dealing with nobles.
“Oh, that’s a relief then. Our Timmy will also be able to live without worry. My eldest grandson recently visited Lombardi and happened to catch a glimpse of the new Head of the Family dismounting from her carriage from afar.”
Flustered.
My shoulder involuntarily trembled slightly.
“He praised her so much that his tongue nearly fell out. He said her long brown hair was like silk, and her clear green eyes were so striking they would appear in his dreams. Just like my grandson, he brightened his face too much… Hmm?”
The old woman, who had been clucking her tongue while talking about her eldest grandson, stopped speaking and stared intently at my face.
“Come to think of it, young lady, you also have brown hair and green eyes? But have we met before?”
“Me? Oh, no. This is my first time in Magnus.”
“Really? But why does your face look so familiar?”
Why, you ask?
Because I resemble my grandfather.
It’s natural for my face to look familiar since you’ve seen the statue countless times over decades!
I turned my face sideways and smiled awkwardly.
“I-I just have a common face!”
“Common? How can such a beautiful young lady, who stands out even from afar, be common? Let’s see. Where did I see you…”
“Larita, shall we go back to the accommodation now?”
Perez subtly inserted himself between me and the grandmother and asked.
“Ah, yes! That’s a good idea!”
Time to escape!
“Then we’ll be going now. Goodbye, Timmy. It was nice meeting you. Be careful of the floor for a while!”
I quickly said goodbye to Timmy, who was still looking up with sparkling eyes, and the grandmother, who was tilting her head, and turned my back.
“That was a close call.”
I doubted the young lady on a trip would be thought of as the Head of Lombardi.
But it was a time to be careful.
I hurried back to the accommodation, opened my bag, and took out what Violet had packed for me.
Two heavy bottles of hair dye.
She had put them in just in case, saying I might need them.
As expected of Violet.
I handed one of the hair dye bottles to Perez.
“Just in case, let’s both change our hair color.”

“It feels awkward after a long time.”
My hair in the mirror had turned black.
There was a time when black hair was natural for me.
But it seemed I had grown used to my current curly brown hair.
I dried my wet hair well and brushed it down.
“Now that my hair is black, my green eyes seem to stand out even more.”
Just then, I heard the sound of a door closing outside the bathroom.
It was Perez returning after dyeing his hair in the communal bathroom.
‘I want to see him quickly!’
Honestly, it was a decision for disguise, but I also wanted to see Perez’s different appearance.
I quickly got dressed and burst out of the bathroom.
And there,
“Tia.”
Blonde Perez was looking at me with the same expression Timmy had earlier.