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After shoving Karen away and leaving, the red-haired man with glasses maintained a stern expression on the surface, but his mind was in complete chaos as he tried to understand how Karen knew the name Goo Xingen.
(Why does that man know that name? I've never met him before. We've never spoken. So how does he know it?)
The moment he heard the name Goo Xingen earlier, the red-haired man had felt both horrified and furious toward Karen.
(It would've been much simpler if I could just kill that man. Unfortunately, young lady forbade it.)
At that moment, he truly had wanted to kill Karen to eliminate any future trouble.
But he remembered his young lady's order not to cause problems, which was why he had settled for merely warning Karen.
(There's no way a man with zero sense of tension could've hunted down Samidoride. He's obviously a fraud.)
The red-haired man believed Karen wasn't strong at all and that killing him would be easy. The only reason he held back was because of his young lady's command.
"Damn it!"
A curse slipped from his mouth—something his young lady would scold him for.
Ignoring the pain, he slammed his fist hard against the wall after suddenly realizing something serious.
(That man definitely realized I used a fake name to enter the competition. This is bad! I need to report to young lady immediately!)
As an attendant, the red-haired man had undergone professional training. No matter how panicked he felt inside, he had to appear calm and composed on the outside.
Thus, without visibly rushing, he briskly headed toward the stairs leading up to the spectator stands.
The moment he emerged from the entrance beneath the stands, he turned left and descended ten steps before heading toward a specific row.
For him, keeping track of his young lady's whereabouts was child's play. Even before the competition began, he already knew exactly where she was seated.
The arena's spectator stands were nearly packed to capacity and incredibly crowded.
Yet his young lady had deliberately chosen a seat farther inside.
With an extremely irritated expression, he forced his way past the seated spectators in that row. Only after spotting his young lady did his expression finally return to normal.
His young lady is a petite and adorable girl several years younger than him. She had a youthful face, bright black eyes, and smooth, glossy black hair cut short.
"Young lady."
"Brother, I told you not to make that scary face at people. Look, you frightened them."
The girl quietly scolded him because of the fierce expression he had worn while walking over. The spectators had hurriedly lifted their legs to make room for him out of fear.
However, there was no empty seat beside the girl for him to sit in.
So he glared at the man sitting next to her, and the man immediately stood up, clearly intending to surrender his seat.
At that moment, the girl also stood up and stopped the man from leaving.
"Wait. Please stay seated. I'm sorry—my brother doesn't mean any harm. He just looks intimidating. We'll move instead. Brother, let's go."
The girl thoughtfully stopped the man from giving up his seat and instead chose to inconvenience herself.
She genuinely disliked the red-haired man's overbearing behavior. It made him look like some street thug.
She pushed the red-haired man out of the row and led him to the very top level of the stands.
Still annoyed, the girl immediately began lecturing the red-haired man, Buhe, while he stood stiffly at attention.
"Buhe, how many times have I told you not to call me Young lady? Right now we're just commoner siblings."
"Young lady, I've also told you many times that I am not worthy of addressing you by name. Calling you young lady is already my greatest compromise."
"You're only one rank below me. Besides, it's just the two of us right now. There's no need to follow those rules."
"I cannot. These rules are iron."
Buhe obeyed regulations without exception.
Faced with his inflexible stubbornness, the girl puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction.
But Buhe remained silent and unwavering.
Unable to win against his hardheadedness, the girl finally surrendered.
"...Fine, you stubborn idiot."
She then turned toward the judges' area and spoke regretfully.
"It looks like we won't win. There's no way rose water can beat bubble milk tea."
"How can you tell?"
"It's obvious just by looking at it. Bubble milk tea is a completely new drink. One day it'll spread across the entire world."
"As expected of Milady. Your insight is remarkable."
Buhe's praise came from the heart.
The girl happily—and a little shyly—played with her smooth hair before humbly denying it.
"No, no. Anyone can tell that bubble milk tea is going to become popular. It's not like I'm especially smart."
In her eyes, anyone could see that bubble milk tea would become a huge sensation.
However, Buhe stared at her strangely.
Based on past experience, he had expected her to proudly declare that her brilliance was common knowledge. Her unexpectedly humble response left him unsure how to react.
"..."
After calming down from the joy of being praised, the girl changed the subject.
"By the way, Buhe, did you talk to Hero Karen earlier? I saw him follow you in."
In truth, she had noticed Karen constantly glancing toward Buhe, and she also knew Karen had delayed leaving because he wanted to speak with him.
Hearing Karen's name finally reminded Buhe why he had come to report in the first place.
"Right. I suspect that man already realized I entered under a fake name. He kept asking where the fake country was located."
"So?"
The girl responded with an innocent expression, unable to understand why Buhe was so nervous.
But Buhe was extremely anxious and couldn't help losing his composure.
"You're far too relaxed about this! If he reports us to the organizers, we're finished."
Truthfully, Buhe was confident he could safely escort the girl out of the country if necessary.
This nation was far too peaceful, which had resulted in soldiers with bloated, sluggish physiques. He could kill them easily.
The real reason for his panic was the existence of Arakeya Diklar.
The overwhelming difference in age and experience made Buhe sincerely believe that facing the dragon Alakaya meant certain death. He doubted he could even sacrifice himself to protect the girl.
Yet the girl showed no concern whatsoever.
After staring thoughtfully at the cooking station Karen had used, she calmly said,
"...No. I don't think he'll say anything."
"Why do you think that?"
Buhe couldn't understand why the girl trusted a man she had only seen once.
But the girl herself couldn't explain it properly either and could only give a vague answer.
"Hmm… I don't know. He just feels familiar somehow. I'm a little curious about him."
The moment she admitted being curious about Karen, Buhe panicked and immediately shouted in protest.
"That's unacceptable! You—!"
Before he could continue, the girl raised her small hand to silence him and explained herself.
"Stop. Not that kind of curiosity. Do you think I don't understand my own position?"
She understood her status and standing perfectly well.
Her interest in Karen was merely the sort of curiosity one might have toward an extraordinary person. There were no romantic feelings involved.
Still, the petite girl was bothered by the fact that even when she raised her arm as high as possible, her hand barely reached Buhe's chest instead of effortlessly covering his mouth.
It made her desperately wish she could grow taller already.
Buhe relaxed after hearing her explanation, though he still doubted her reasoning. There was no evidence—just intuition.
"That's good, but feelings without evidence aren't reliable."
The girl placed a hand against her chest and asked him,
"Do you not trust me?"
Her bright black eyes seemed capable of seeing through everything. Her clear voice carried not the slightest hesitation.
Faced with such confidence, Buhe questioned himself.
How could he doubt her judgment?
She had always been right.
Still, the risk this time was enormous, and he couldn't shake his unease.
But for a servant to distrust his master was unacceptable.
Thus, he could only answer—
"...I trust you."
"Then don't worry."
Although Buhe's voice was full of unease, the girl didn't seem bothered.