My Life Was Taken by My Charm-Wielding Sister—But It Ends Here (The Mind-Reading Noble Lady’s Journey to Happiness After Escaping Her Toxic Family) - Episode 33

During the break, Otilie was chatting amiably with her fellow assistant officers.

“You’ve gotten quite accustomed to the work, Otilie.”

“Yes, thanks to all of you. Thank you.”

Since Varick had plans for a dinner meeting today, only the assistant officers excluding Airny were in the room. It was a rare opportunity, so she felt a little nervous. In contrast, the assistant officers seemed more relaxed because Varick wasn’t around.

“I heard you’d hardly ever had a private tutor, so I was worried how you’d manage, but you pick things up so quickly. It’s really impressive.”

“Absolutely, absolutely. I can’t believe you’ve only been working for three months. You always prepare documents accurately and meticulously, and you’re sharp-witted, aren’t you? You’ve got an astonishing grasp of legal statutes and specialized knowledge across various fields; far more capable than the average civil servant. You must be working hard behind the scenes. As expected of the Einhorn family… No, it just goes to show Lord Varick saw your potential.”

“Eh, ah… Do you really think so?”

“Absolutely.”

Since Otilie could hear their inner thoughts, she already knew their true feelings. But hearing them voiced aloud for the first time made her a little bashful.

“Up until now, the assistant officers have all been men, so we’re really happy to have such a lovely girl join us. It brightens the atmosphere, you could say, or softens it.”

“That’s right. Airny hardly ever engages in small talk, so it’s hard to tell what he’s thinking.”

“Ah… yes, I suppose so. That’s how it seems.”

As her colleagues said, Airny was the type who only spoke when necessary, which apparently made him seem mysterious to others. But, unexpectedly, he was a passionate person who always had Varick and his assistants in mind.

(…Though I can’t share that without his permission.)

Otilie felt it was a bit unfair.

“Hey, what does hearing inner voices sound like? You can tell what we and Airny are thinking, right?”

“Yes, I can hear them. As for how it sounds… well, it’s hard to explain verbally. It might be quicker if you experienced it yourself.”

“Experience?”

Otilie gently took the hand of her colleague Brad, who was tilting his head in confusion.

[Ah, that Brad! He’s holding Otilie’s hand! I’m jealous. I want to hold her hand too.]

Another assistant muttered this in his heart. Meanwhile, Brad widened his eyes before peering closely at her face.

[I see. So that’s how it sounds… Interesting.]

Thinking this, he smirked mischievously.

“You sure about that? Thinking something like that? I’ll tell your fiancée! Besides, you know Otilie can hear you, yet you still think that way. What’s wrong with you?”

“Wha—!”

At Brad’s remark, the other assistant’s face turned bright red, and he glanced around nervously.

“Cut it out, Brad. My fiancée is seriously scary, you know? I just got really nervous there.”

“I know or rather, I sensed it. I could hear your heartbeat, the tightness in your chest—everything.”

Chuckling, Brad glanced briefly at Otilie. She nodded slightly.

“Come on, seriously. She’s incredibly possessive and gets insanely jealous. The other day at the evening party was hell. Just greeting a few other young ladies, and she glared at me with such intensity. Of course, she only let me dance with my fiancée. Don’t you think that makes proper socializing impossible?”

“That’s your fault, isn’t it? You know what kind of fiancée she is, so why talk to other women right in front of her? Dancing with your fiancée should be enough, and you can socialize through work, right?”

Saying this, Brad sighed in exasperation. Another assistant shook his head in disagreement.

“Don’t you think it’s a waste when there are beautiful women right in front of you and you can’t even greet them? Wouldn’t you want to get to know them? Become closer? Besides, building connections outside of work might come in handy later.”

“Well, that’s a fair point.”

“…Speaking of which, that’s amazing, Otilie. Just by holding someone’s hand, you can share your ability with others.”

Abruptly, the topic returned to Otilie. Flustered, she replied, “Yes.”

“Lord Varick taught me. He said there are ways to use the ability like that. At first, I wasn’t very good at it, but with practice, I’ve become able to activate it more reliably.”

Three months into her job. As initially promised, Otilie regularly met alone with Varick to discuss work and receive special training for her ability.

Being able to use her ability when needed, Otilie was happy that this had become possible.

Her ability had more uses than she had initially thought.

First, when negotiations or coordination with civil officials were necessary, knowing the other party’s true intentions made interactions much smoother. Naturally gauging where the compromise line lay was key to handling work efficiently.

Also, at Varick’s request, she had attended gatherings with nobles. He asked her to secretly tell him later what they had been thinking. Of course, she couldn’t hold their hands during the meeting, so it wasn’t in real time, but he was extremely grateful afterward.

“Huh… I see. I’d like to try it too.”

“—I’ll tell your fiancée.”

“No, not like that! I’m just genuinely curious about what it feels like!”

Giggling softly, Otilie said, “Alright,” and took the assistant’s hand.

Just then.

“Looks like fun. Mind if I join…”

Varick returned to the office. But his smile was somewhat stiff, and his words trailed off.

“Lord Varick?”

Otilie tilted her head slightly. What was wrong? This wasn’t like the bright, cheerful Varick.

Then, from somewhere, she heard a sharp, painful throb in her chest.

[This might be really bad.]

(Huh?)

At Varick’s inner voice, Otilie’s eyes widened in surprise.