When I returned to the guest house, for some reason, a group of armed personnel "gently" guided me to the receiving room. Given the unique appearance of their armor, which is especially reminiscent of ancient Chinese armor, I more or less guessed the reason why I was dragged there.
Inside the room that I was guided to, Wan Li and the silver-haired girl from last night were standing side by side behind one of the sofas. They wore tunics with the majority of the colors reflecting each of their hair colors. Wan Li wore a black tunic with gold lining while the silver-haired girl wore a bluish-white tunic with white lining. Their attires were contrasting each other but were strangely easy to the eye.
"You must be Will, correct?"
A pretty mature-looking lady asked with a commanding tone while sitting on the sofa. She similarly possesses silver-colored hair, although a bit faded. Looking between her and the other girl, their features were quite similar. 'Are they mother and daughter?' I kept that observation to myself.
The air in the room was heavy as if I was facing the queen of a country. Almost instinctively, I knelt on the ground and lowered my head before replying "yes" to her question.
"Fumu, it seems you have manners at least. Then, is it true that you did something rude to my daughter last night?"
After her short praise, the following question felt like daggers poking my sides. Of course, I didn't even need to ask whom she was referring to. Upon hearing this, I immediately kowtowed and apologized.
"Although it was an accident, it was still rude to the young miss. Please accept my deepest apologies!"
Before the other side could even voice a complaint, I quickly apologized. Although it may seem a bit cowardly, I learned that there's nothing worse than making a woman in power your enemy.
The root of my actions was probably my trauma.
In my past life's memory, while I was still working for the company, I unintentionally earned the ire of one of the HR head's mistresses. From then on, for three whole years, I was technically bullied until I was reduced to almost nothing.
Around that time, every time I was reprimanded by any female colleague of mine, my hands and legs would uncontrollably shake and I would almost immediately bow down to them and apologize. I lost all pride I had, and was just a shell of my past self by then.
In the end, the reason the bullying stopped wasn't due to me getting forgiven, but that it was found out that the said mistress was cheating on the HR head. When he found out, out of anger, the mistress was stripped of all her wealth and was thrown on the streets penniless.
After that, I resigned and became a NEET for a few months before my memory ends.
"Raise your head, Will."
As she ordered, I quickly raised my head. I noticed how she was hiding half of her face behind her folding fan. However, her sharp eyes were like two cold beams of light that pierces through my very soul. I couldn't help but shiver from an instinctual fear.
"Fumu, it seems like you were telling the truth. It's rare to hear a sincere apology nowadays, sorry for doubting you."
"Please, it was my fault in the first place. If I were in your shoes, I would have doubted such a quick apology too."
I quickly tried to appear humble, however, it seems like she was seeing right through my facade. Her eyes slowly turned from cold discernment to a warm "amused" gaze.
"Based on your actions, you probably have guessed my identity. Therefore, let me get straight to the point. I want you to get engaged with my Ying Yue."
Hearing her talking about engagement, I turned to the silver-haired beauty by reflex. As a man, having such a beautiful fiancee would be a perk. However, getting engaged right now would probably prevent me from achieving my dream of creating a monster girl harem.
This engagement is probably to make up for "seeing a maiden's body" which happened unintentionally. Although I tried reading her intentions, I can't help but feel like this is a trap question.
"Pardon my rudeness, but I am afraid I have to refuse."
Mustering my courage, I bluntly refused.
"Hoo? Is my daughter not to your liking? Although I may be biased as her parent, my Ying Yue could be considered a top-tier beauty. Can you tell me why you refused?"
Her words may seem a bit interrogative, however, her tone contains not a single trace of anger from refusal. Seeing this as a hint that I chose the correct response, I quickly elaborated.
"I am but a lowly seed grown from the dirty corners of the slums. I am afraid that I don't even have the qualifications to stand by Lady Ying Yue's side, let alone take her hand in marriage."
The two of us stared at each other. Her eyes seemed as if she was evaluating something seriously.
"Fumu, amusing. To think such a well-mannered lad could come from something as lawless as the slums. If not for that, then I may have pushed for your and Ying Yue's engagement genuinely."
"Mother!"
Ying Yue couldn't help but raise her voice in complaint.
"What? Personality-wise, he's way above all of your suitors. His ability as a tamer is also something to look forward to. If he had even a bit of noble blood, then I don't think it would be a bad deal for you too."
'Too bad he is a commoner.'
Even without her voicing the last part, I could almost hear it. After I sighed in relief after dodging the engagement, after a brief silence, she quickly added.
"As the acting head of the Luo Family, I, Luo Meng Yao, hereby guarantee that we would let bygones be bygones."
After saying that, Lady Luo quickly stood up from her seat.
"Since I still have some business to attend to, let's end our conversation here. If you, Will, ever had the honor of earning nobility of at least Count level, we would once more continue the conversation regarding the engagement."
After saying the last part, Lady Luo winked at me before walking away, Ying Yue following a few steps behind her mother. The guards followed behind them leaving only Wan Li behind.
"Sorry that it became such a big deal."
Wan Li quickly apologized.
"I didn't think reporting what happened last night to the madam would lead to this..."
"It's fine. I think you're here to relay Lady Luo's words, correct? something like [Keep quiet about the accident last night], I guess?"
Wan Li quickly nodded.
"As you've surmised, that is the intention of the madam even before the meeting."
Hearing this, I let out a long sigh of relief.
"So the last part is probably a joke of some sort, right?"
"... Sorry, but I think the madam ended up liking you after your talk. She probably means it."
Wan Li smiled bitterly. I, too, ended up smiling bitterly. Please give me a break.