Inside the brightly lit mansion, Lycaon, Ellen, and Rina had been waiting for quite some time.
When Zhong Yan arrived, Lycaon and Rina immediately stood up, while Ellen remained seated on the sofa with an indifferent expression, even deliberately turning her head to avoid looking at him.
This scene, of course, was taken in fully by Zhong Yan, but the current atmosphere wasn't suitable for approaching Ellen.
So, he had no choice but to focus on Lycaon, who was walking toward him: "Long time no see, Mr. Lycaon."
Lycaon shook his head at those words and smiled. "No need for such formalities, Mr. Zhong Yan. If it weren't for you that day, we would've been blown to ashes. It truly is our honor to have you here today."
It had to be said—Lycaon was the epitome of a gentleman. His words gave Zhong Yan goosebumps, especially when paired with that signature professional smile. It was hard to imagine how such impeccable etiquette was cultivated.
At that moment, Lycaon noticed the motionless Ellen on the sofa and immediately said, "Ellen, aren't you going to greet Mr. Zhong Yan? You two are close friends, after all."
Hearing this, Ellen pouted, then reluctantly stood up from the sofa and gave Zhong Yan a deep, perfunctory bow. "Thank you for your visit, Mr. Zhong Yan."
Seeing her attitude, Zhong Yan felt a strange sourness in his heart. Maybe she's still upset about what happened before... she probably hasn't forgiven me yet.
"This... Mr. Zhong Yan, Ellen, she..." Lycaon noticed something off about Zhong Yan's expression and tried to smooth things over.
However, before he could finish his sentence, Zhong Yan raised his hand to interrupt him: "It's fine. I did something that wronged her. I haven't had the chance to apologize properly until now. Her reaction is understandable."
As Zhong Yan spoke, he kept an eye on Ellen's expression. He noticed her purse her lips slightly at his words. He wasn't sure what that gesture meant, but it left an impression.
"If that's the case, then your visit today must be for that reason as well... Forgive my boldness, but once our master heard you were coming, she wished to meet with you. Would you happen to have the time, Mr. Zhong Yan?"
Lycaon looked slightly hesitant. He wasn't sure whether this request would be accepted—or worse, whether it would offend the man before him.
The Uchiha's strength was terrifying. Unlike the Hollow House, they didn't share a close relationship with Zhong Yan. Their only connection was Ellen.
Under such circumstances, they had to tread carefully with every word and action. The master of Victoria Housekeeping Co. had suggested meeting with Zhong Yan to hopefully strengthen ties between them.
After all, the Uchiha were highly sought after—even the Hollow Investigative Association was desperate to win them over. Naturally, Victoria Housekeeping Co. was no exception.
"No." Zhong Yan replied without hesitation. He had only come today to apologize to Ellen. He wasn't interested in anything else, including any invitations from Lycaon or Victoria's master.
Zhong Yan's response made Lycaon's face freeze momentarily, but he still forced a smile and said, "Understood. In that case, I'll leave the rest of the time to you and Ellen. I hope the two of you can mend things."
With that, realizing he shouldn't linger, Lycaon took Colleen and Rina and left immediately.
Only Zhong Yan and Ellen remained in the room.
...
"How did it go, Lycaon?" In another room of the mansion, the master of Victoria Housekeeping Co.—a silver-haired man in his early thirties—looked expectantly at the trio who had just entered.
"I'm terribly sorry. Mr. Zhong Yan only wished to apologize to Ellen and wasn't interested in meeting you, so... the request was declined," Lycaon lowered his head, his voice tinged with apology.
Upon hearing this, the master didn't seem surprised. He simply smiled faintly and said, "I see. I didn't expect that... it turns out little Ellen actually has such charm. Since he doesn't want to meet, we'll leave it for now. As long as Ellen's still around, we don't have to worry about him turning against us."
After learning that Zhong Yan was an Uchiha and about his relationship with Ellen, his first thought had been to propose a marriage alliance to solidify ties between the Uchiha and the Victoria Housekeeping Co.
Originally, he had planned to bring this up during their conversation. But now that he refused to meet, there was nothing he could do.
...
Meanwhile, in another room.
Zhong Yan stood stiffly in place like an idiot for a long while, then finally mustered the courage to walk over and sit beside Ellen.
Seeing this, Ellen deliberately shifted her body to put some distance between them, resting her chin in her hand and continuing to look away.
"Ellen." Zhong Yan reached out and gently poked her shoulder.
Yet Ellen didn't respond to his touch at all—she just stared silently at the wall, saying nothing.
Zhong Yan knew that getting her to talk was the most important thing right now.
So, he increased the intensity of his gesture and reached toward Ellen's chest.
That did it. Ellen couldn't hold back anymore. As soon as she felt his hand, she sprang up, grabbed the massive gardening shears from nearby, and raised it high above her head.
Zhong Yan, seeing this, didn't flinch. He quietly watched Ellen, ready to activate Kamui and phase into intangibility if she attacked.
No helping it—high offense, low defense, that was the classic Naruto style.
"You bastard! Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" Ellen's cheeks turned a faint shade of red. That kind of contact had made her embarrassment swell out of control, and her whole face was heating up fast.
If she hadn't kept a sliver of reason, she probably would've stabbed him already.
"I just wanted to talk to you! And about before—I've never had the chance to apologize properly. Isn't now the perfect time?" Zhong Yan said with a playful grin.
As he spoke, he didn't stop what his hands were doing, which finally made Ellen break her composure and weakly release her grip on the gardening shears.
And just like that, the two of them ended up in each other's arms.
Zhong Yan's mood improved considerably. All the signs pointed to one thing—Ellen was just being tsundere.
Deep down, she still loved him.