Chapter : 680

"I do not know who you are," Olivia stated firmly. Her voice carried absolute certainty. "I do not know what kind of magic you possess. I do not know why you are pretending to be a weak servant for Princess Iris. I do not know your true goal."

Olivia rested her hands on the table.

"But I know you are dangerous," Olivia concluded. "You are far stronger than you pretend to be. You are playing a massive game."

Ken swallowed his cake. He set the silver fork down on the small plate.

He dropped his goofy smile .

Ken looked directly at Olivia. His posture did not change. He still slouched in his chair. But his dark eyes turned cold. They turned sharp. For one single second, the lazy slacker vanished. The absolute ruler of the shadows looked back at her.

The air around the small table felt suddenly very still.

"If you know that much," Ken said quietly. His voice was smooth and serious. "You should not make things difficult for me."

It was a very clear, very polite warning. Ken did not threaten her. He did not explain his god-like magic. He did not tell her about his shadow army. He just set a firm boundary. He wanted a peaceful life. He did not want her exposing his secret.

Olivia felt a tiny chill run down her spine. She realized she was sitting across from a massive, unknown force.

But Olivia was a brave soldier. She did not back down. She smiled a small, calculating smile.

"I will not expose you," Olivia promised softly. She leaned back in her chair. "I do not care about your secrets. As long as you do not hurt Princess Iris or the unit, your true identity is none of my business."

Ken picked up his fork again. He went back to eating his cake. His goofy smile returned instantly. The cold look vanished. "That is very good to hear. Exposing me requires a lot of paperwork. Paperwork is terrible."

"However," Olivia added smoothly. She tapped her finger on the table. "I am a practical woman. I have a problem. You have a secret. We can make a deal."

Ken sighed. He pointed his fork at her. "I knew this was a trap. What is the deal?"

"I will keep my mouth shut," Olivia offered. "I will never mention your hidden power to anyone. I will let you pretend to be a lazy fool. But in exchange, you will help me."

"Help you do what?" Ken asked lazily.

"You will play my boyfriend whenever I need you," Olivia stated clearly. "If that annoying noble comes back, you will hold my hand. If I need to attend a boring social event and avoid marriage proposals, you will come with me. You will be my official fake boyfriend on standby."

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Ken stared at her. He ran the logic through his mind.

"So, I am literally a rental boyfriend on a permanent retainer," Ken summarized casually.

"Yes," Olivia nodded firmly. "Do we have a deal?"

Ken ate another bite of chocolate cake. He thought about it. Playing a fake boyfriend was very annoying. It required walking outside. It required wearing clean shirts. But Olivia was smart. She saw through his disguise. If he refused, she might start asking too many questions. A deal was the easiest way to keep her quiet.

"Fine," Ken agreed lazily. He took a sip of his lemonade. "But the previous rules still apply. You have to buy the snacks on our fake dates. And you cannot make me do push-ups in the courtyard anymore."

"I will stop the push-ups," Olivia compromised. "But you still have to tuck your shirt in when we are in public."

"You drive a very hard bargain," Ken joked. He offered her a slice of cake. "Do you want some? It is very good."

Olivia actually smiled a genuine smile. She took the plate. "Thank you. Now, put your arm around my chair. The guy in the purple suit is staring at us again."

Ken let out a loud, dramatic yawn. He stretched his arm out. He placed his arm casually over the back of Olivia's chair. He put his goofy smile back on his face.

They sat together at the cafe. They ate cake. They acted like a perfectly happy, normal couple. The angry noble behind the cabbage cart finally gave up. The noble turned around and walked away in defeat.

The fake date was a complete success. Olivia solved her stalker problem. Ken secured his secret. They had a new, mutual understanding. The lazy boy and the strict soldier formed a very strange, very secret alliance right in the middle of the crowded market.

---

The crowd cheered very loudly inside the capital city arena. The noise echoed off the high stone walls. The seats were full. People yelled and clapped. They watched the fighters in the center ring.

Ken Eliot sat on a hard wooden bench. He slumped his shoulders as far as they could possibly go. He wore his wrinkled navy blue pants. His white dress shirt hung completely untucked over his belt. He did not wear a tie. His black hair stuck up in wild, messy spikes.

He held a massive bucket of buttery popcorn in his lap. He reached into the bucket. He pulled out a large handful of popcorn. He tossed the food into his mouth. He chewed it slowly. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

Olivia sat right next to him. The disciplined warrior wore her spotless dark-blue uniform. Her silver-tipped spear rested against her seat. She sat perfectly straight. She watched the martial arts tournament with intense focus. She did not slouch. She analyzed every single punch and kick in the arena.

Ken swallowed his popcorn. He let out a long, dramatic yawn. He stretched his legs out. He accidentally kicked the seat in front of him.

"This is boring," Ken complained lazily. He stared at the fighting ring. "Tournaments are always the most predictable part of any story. It is a classic anime trope. The writers just want to show off different character designs. They put two people in a circle. They make them yell very loudly. It is a massive waste of time."

Olivia did not look away from the fight. "This is not a cartoon, Ken. This is an official martial arts evaluation. We are here to gather tactical data. We need to observe the fighting styles of the other units."

"We are here because you needed a fake boyfriend for the afternoon," Ken corrected smoothly. He offered a goofy, relaxed smile. "We made a deal in the market. I agreed to be your rental boyfriend. You agreed to buy my snacks. I am currently fulfilling my contractual obligations. But I still think this tournament is flawed."

Olivia sighed quietly. She finally turned her head. She looked at his shirt. She resisted the urge to tell him to tuck it in. They had an agreement. She promised to stop yelling at him in public.

"What is flawed about a martial arts tournament?" Olivia asked simply.