119 - The Butler Dismissed by the Saintess Couldn’t Possibly Be the Demon Dragon Princess

Chapter 119: Cat-Girl Ian Ian's body suddenly froze. Her head turned stiffly, and the envelope in her hands slipped with a "snap" onto the floor. Ian's heart sank to rock bottom as the first thing she saw was Ailea's face, filled with a mischievous grin. It was exactly as the saying goes—smiles never fade, they only shift. "Let me see what that envelope in your hand is all about." Upon hearing Ailea's words, Ian's heart pounded erratically. She instinctively took a step back. But when she realized what was about to happen, it was already too late to stop Ailea's action. Ailea had bent down to pick up the letter, and with a flick of her fingers, she turned the envelope around to the front. "Wait, Ailea!" Ian was like an ant on a hot pan, her hand hovering in mid-air, wanting to snatch the letter back but never doing so. She knew she had no chance of getting it back from Ailea's grasp. "Ailea's Secret Love Affair (Regret If You Don't Read Version)." Ailea's gentle voice echoed in the lounge, but to Ian, it felt anything but gentle—more like the calm before a storm. "It's over." Ian muttered softly, never expecting to encounter Ailea in this place and be caught red-handed. "My dear Ian, can you explain what this letter means? Why is my secret love affair written on it, and why were you carrying this letter here?" Ailea deliberately elongated her speech, feigning confusion. "Could it be you're planning to place this letter in Avenna's dressing room?" Ian knew that Avenna was the star of today's concert, a celebrity whose fame resounded across the continent. "Of course not. I, I just accidentally wandered here. I didn't even know where this was." "And that letter? I just picked it up by chance." Ian played dumb, hoping it might let her off the hook with Ailea. "Oh, so you just happened to avoid the eyes of so many outside, just happened to pass by Avenna’s dressing room, and just happened to walk in." "Yeah, what’s the problem with that?" Ian stubbornly held her ground, left with no choice but to continue pretending. She dare not admit she wanted to ruin Ailea's reputation in front of Avenna, thereby driving Avenna away from Ailea. However, her main intent was revenge against Ailea. "Could it really be that coincidental?" "Yes, it’s just a coincidence. If there's nothing else, I’ll be going now," Ian said, making her way to the room's exit. But just as she approached the door, Ian felt a tug at her collar, halting her in place as if she were a kitten being picked up. "What are you doing? I’m leaving." Ian flailed her arms and legs, trying to break free from Ailea's grasp, but she remained as immovable as a kitten caught in Ailea's "iron grip." "In such a hurry to leave? Why not stay a bit longer?" "No, I have other things to attend to, so I won’t disturb you anymore." "Other things to attend to? Let me guess, are you planning to set me up somewhere else?" Ian's heart tightened at Ailea’s words, but she didn’t relent, insisting, "Where did that come from? Don't accuse me wrongly." "Wrongly accuse? I dare say someone here is better at accusing me," Ailea opened the envelope and casually skimmed through its contents. "Tsk tsk, there’s so much about my love affairs in here. How did I not know about this?" "Or, are these love affairs something you experienced on my behalf, Miss Ian?" "Are you hoping this letter will ruin my relationship with Avenna and bring about my downfall?" Speechless, Ian finally managed a weak rebuttal, "I just don’t want Avenna to be deceived by someone like you." "Oh, aren’t you quite the righteous one? But I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed." "Because Avenna knows everything about me," Ailea continued, raising her eyebrows, "and to think I gave you two VIP tickets for the concert yesterday—this is how you repay me?" "What should I do with you?" "Whatever you want." Ian resigned herself, knowing she was out of excuses. "How about having you perform as Avenna’s backup dancer at the concert?" Ailea mused, her eyes lighting up. "Is it that simple?" Ian had some dance training, so such a task wasn't challenging. "But shouldn't you check with Avenna? Would she agree to me being her backup dancer?" Ian asked. "Don't worry about it. With me on the case, I’m sure she won’t refuse," Ailea confidently reassured. Then Ailea moved to a side box, rummaging around for something. "Since you’ve agreed, you’ll have to do it my way. Understand?" Ailea said. "I got it," Ian replied, sensing some ulterior motive behind Ailea’s words, but unsure what it might be. "Found it." Ailea stood up, showing Ian what she had in her hands, "Wear these when you dance on stage." A pair of fluffy black cat ears on a headband and a soft cat tail belt with a small bell at the end. When Ian saw what Ailea had in her hands, her face flushed red: "What on earth are those? I'm not wearing them!" "Oh, come on, the dance needs a unique touch," Ailea said with a wink. "And didn't you say I could decide? Are you going back on your word?" Ian felt a bit wronged, saying, "How could I have known you'd make me wear these? If I had known, I wouldn't have agreed." "But you already did." Ian bit her lip, struggling for a moment before reluctantly agreeing, "Fine, I'll wear them, but just this once." Ailea smiled triumphantly and placed the cat-ear headband on Ian. The soft, furry sensation made Ian shiver, her ears burning crimson. Then Ailea moved behind her, securing the cat tail belt around her waist, and mischievously tugged at it. "Ailea!" Ian turned with embarrassment, her movement making the bell ring crisply, freezing her in place. At that moment, Ian wished she could find a hole to crawl into. "Perfect!" Ailea stepped back to admire her handiwork, "It suits you perfectly."