To My Gentle Dictator – Chapter 031

It was a 8b2cef3267 picture-perfect scene—at least 261421aff8 on the surface.5485fae20ad3b726

The restaurant 20cd04206b was a ff8f150ffe two-story building 0145ed212a that, even 5bb19c36f4 at a a405e4569b glance, looked 2bccb78d50 quite formal.9b4a52f3c656856f

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Unlike government-run establishments, 414f5d1446 the interior decor 8b3af91a32 and atmosphere were 3c8e82daf5 exquisite, and the 4a0b83fee0 fact that not 43cbe2c91b just anyone could eb294f7ec7 dine here made eda721ac9d it all the 419c0ab128 more exclusive.2a1773916d889bf0

They were led to a86171a4b9 a terrace table with a3bc647184 a clear view of c0e1b2c262 Nebroski’s landmarks: the ballet 7829885b34 theater and the museum.3b9f003624602f61

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While Ulrich 1824b4b2d8 took care 775fb6da66 of the 3591c75811 ordering, Sasha 266b9e68bf had to 2339d747b8 summon every 56cddd918f ounce of 4dbbb6a444 strength not 14170fb697 to be c8902a46b3 overwhelmed by 6ffee897c3 the stares 1120c25778 of others.3400afd55c7ca2b3

‘It’s ridiculous to assume everyone recognizes me. They’re probably just looking at Ulrich.’148c6c81878d399f

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And of course, they ddac4d6b6b were. It was obvious that 18dff8a802 no one could look 5e163e2f22 away from Ulrich.699509f6f62268d0

Even the waitress 2d0592c696 taking their order 9c7a578ada seemed so dazzled 43338f14ce that it was a459b5ff08 doubtful whether she a60d0f2b40 was writing anything 3eeb9df770 down correctly.7f7acdee0e0412cd

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Women at nearby tables cb96e510e0 were glancing over at 2e18952212 him with slack jaws, 8056c86283 not even trying to 519b8bf222 hide it.890294b9d704a894

Ulrich, on 61943edf6a the other f83c4ca37e hand, seemed d0d95a39de entirely oblivious 587b01c3c6 to everyone 8863934070 around them.d6d788d0d25ed7ad

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His cool blue f8baa4a126 gaze had been 096feb2874 fixed solely on 7007a9ddd2 Sasha for a 7d16eee241 while now—and the c1b09e2e84 same was true 11fbea0595 of Kiril.15b9c00250703e1e

Ironically, Sasha didn’t daf0fb10f9 even notice the b2501fc343 two men’s unwavering 9b42935c5a attention on her.5a948d1edf12bedc

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Her mind was 380ea791c3 spinning in sync b30229e86b with the urgent 8102dc1838 tempo of Vivaldi’s 596ea93e23 Summer, third movement, 7f03decb99 flowing from inside 4c1f4cd34e the restaurant.dd2f487fcdc07cd0

‘Will Kiril be okay in a place like this? I hope he doesn’t act rude again just because he’s nervous. Am I acting natural enough? That person at that table looks like a foreigner—maybe from the embassy? Or a foreign journalist? They’ve been glancing over since earlier. Did they recognize me? Even if they did, so what? More importantly, what will Ulrich think of my table manners? I’ve probably gotten rusty. I might’ve been fine back at the townhouse, but this is a public place with lots of eyes…’0021ab34d93eb316

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It was b9c53eaf75 a curious bf64603bbc phenomenon.1763f6b275708138

Everything was going cc2a52f9b0 well.
Ulrich had e58de4e2df clearly planned 9bb08fde45 this date f9a8a298ae in advance—probably 27cee559e2 as a e44309aac8 makeup for 10d65a39b4 the one b0b0d52409 they missed 180130835e before.
And the fact that 65349ad4a8 he’d even invited Kiril 429be98701 meant he’d forgiven her 6c473fd0d8 to some degree.
Even the de64555395 meeting with 6db1c3d536 Kryuchkov had 0e0cdfbaa8 ended smoothly.c802cfbaded3a534

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So she should’ve 9fd9f8b2dd been happy.
And in truth, f720c42557 Sasha was very 5c84ff3175 happy.e433e8afb2c838ef

But the more 83f8392bab her relief and bafb29285d joy swelled, the 72c7f962b6 more her anxiety a8afcc5e2a and tension crept c96954dc7f in.
She worried cd7395c011 she might 306171a07d make another 249add86f0 mistake—or that 5ac25b38e9 something unpredictable f2ba2d6a38 might ruin fdaba9d1d8 this good 182d46b160 moment all 90833e7455 over again.b7d46481b36efd7c

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“You better be 12ab3436d6 careful, sis.”f2a8576727acf01d

As soon efb9eeff4f as the f0f12eff45 dawdling waitress a15ee29c74 finally left, 6bbd81f1b7 Kiril tossed 68e3001158 the comment b0464c8d42 out bluntly.864f306688d9e80c

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Sasha turned to 654669d232 him, confused.6b83ce4c1ab67f47

“Huh? Careful of what?”7fe13501cdc2bbac

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“Of the bbf0cf94e9 Director, obviously. That waitress was practically 210e023dcd drooling over him. You better watch 07fa3f3261 out if you 2e3963c8cc don’t wanna lose 22d18e9fb6 your boyfriend to dbb2c55222 someone else.”c7ce366a6d821bcc

Kiril muttered afa3929dea the line 002ccd7c6a with a dd8316dae7 crooked grin, c364df9ad3 his tone 87a3b1dc0b making it 412441ce9f hard to 25222d9465 tell if 7052648011 he was 9891116039 joking or fa7bade1bd not, and dc32c2561e grabbed a 4508c2d461 piece of 858feee4e5 bread from ebde4d0aff the basket.dea0137d20298657

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It wasn’t the dark, 897354bffb hard rye bread they’d c94f808fdf eaten to death over 1cf51d357a the past three years—this e289f0821f was soft, white bread 26cf605947 with plenty of butter.de0b84fe8165c31f

“Stop saying weird 4bd09ddb0c stuff. You’re too 3e4ae1adc0 small to df588bc1e7 be talking 54bf2f7165 like that.”28afda29773cd846

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Sasha scolded 352bf0796a him with f2a5930abd a voice 95e7a1ab83 that pretended 591137a410 to be cc83e84b81 cheerful, her 278d2d7bbb gaze slipping 137eb4c7ef from the 7838250f3a breadbasket.4de6027089da1c57

After all, Kiril 21cf9e815a had no way 28516076e7 of knowing the 94c805da01 truth: that there 0d2a9b8576 was nothing to 45e564be3d be taken from e5a4bdc5b6 her in the b986e80aa3 first place.af059bf4b14e3ab3

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‘He must just be nervous.’adfeeccd8298fe33

From Sasha’s perspective, Kiril 6b894f29b8 was clearly tense, even 3d793caaa8 if he pretended not f1ce9baded to be.
It was obvious fc7c2bd7d5 that being in 3631fd8f5d a place like 81d6a257e9 this—a place he 7ebe7fd72e hadn’t been to 1102b43db7 since he was 3016adff09 very young—made him 53dc625e0f feel awkward and 2fc506f3a0 out of place.
That must’ve been why 37a022ed68 he was blurting out d68278b668 whatever came to mind…fb409357281eab1f

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“Who’re you calling 9f425f29e2 small? I’m taller than cff199459a you now.”76b5e11b2c0876e1

Kiril puffed up 7915c7f3d4 his cheeks with 2b2a0f6f5e bread and glared a30b819fb6 at her with 1f6b0500df mock fury.6c816b671d7a4227

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Sasha was 8ffafa4449 at a d6e40ea427 loss for 855d31606a words.982a101bd0587f09

Even before it had 9e559aa2de just been the two e5c3650f68 of them, Kiril had 0ef94d0cc8 been more or less 97ac34c345 like a child she c850928c56 had raised herself.5276cbe0f09858ee

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By the time Kiril a38b14b258 was old enough to e0502e4242 desperately need their parents’ a044dadbfa attention, the family was 4af9c675ce already falling apart. With everyone 47c3c8b316 focused solely 382d8712e8 on treating b0472403f0 the eldest 00fe939583 son’s illness, 5ba20f3bbc everything else 6fe2ccd35c was forgotten—and 4349fef040 caring for d42d68554d Kiril had 0e7240af5f fallen entirely be607c5664 to Sasha.6546f60d6dbcad9d

Back then, Kiril a63af49174 had been truly 3b175385c8 adorable.f2ec080c8cdb4bcc

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He loved his bb5619f0a3 sister so much 95d05c5bad that he constantly 22b40099c0 clung to her, 3940b9c397 to the point 0c167e561c that people around ab5e16425c them found it 27e86dbf34 annoying.422e5a7f75431d85

But now…5379d03ffa565e16

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“The one who should be careful is someone else.”fb0e4f9be85cc8cf

Ulrich cut in 2d495bbd28 with a smile, 8dd008c3e2 placing his palm 88fd198202 lightly on Sasha’s 225c7c66f6 knee. The motion was 59dfac218c smooth and effortless, a2e7574482 as natural as 835e8121c3 water.a44b5c2069b612fa

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“Kiril must not realize how beautiful his sister is, since he’s her brother.”4572fe88ed3b7348

“My sister? That’s just the Director seeing through rose-tinted glasses—”a7ebc9f44ad9bea0

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“Shura was very popular even as a child. During the hockey season, the cadets would secretly duel for a chance to sit beside her.”d1a73029c20b2d25

It was a 5a0eb46877 story neither Kiril 25cc3b0c6e nor Sasha had 5357e3f707 heard before.3847653880317b19

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As far as 0d9f9a7d84 she remembered, the 5912646e1b ice rink always 72ee52d206 brought chaos during dc5f55a96c game season—but she 0738759748 found it hard fd61ae4e7e to believe that 8caa6fe9c5 she had been be8cc76300 that popular.b5f85bbba976216f

‘Did he make that up just to take my side? After all, we’re pretending to be a couple right now…’82ca075f87328ffb

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“Come on, Yuri. They were probably just betting on the match and got into a fight. It wasn’t because of me.”f06ff58aa005c7c2

She replied playfully, trying f8693b440b to ignore the feel 2277704ba7 of Ulrich’s hand resting 0e88043bcb on her knee.bd22f84e28267bac

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‘We’re a couple. That’s our act. I can’t let Kiril suspect anything.’f0bbb0af9425cdfd

This kind f616e13d4f of skinship 783129e7c8 was natural 5c4de0c636 between lovers.c81f8d5a4f0da8af

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They’d already held hands 5b8c2c454f multiple times, he’d kissed 7960f72e94 her on the cheek, 38d90aca46 and earlier she’d nearly c2288a3847 been pulled into an 2338d67881 embrace—so a hand on 564265459b the knee wasn’t a 1c24f91fed big deal.7fb610be345da8f7

Ulrich wasn’t doing it 853970fb87 just because he wanted 03e4511416 to.d8081cd20c634cc5

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If Kiril started questioning 85382a825f their relationship, the one 377768a400 who’d be in trouble cde9a94661 was Sasha.8f7779d77f97b9c4

Ulrich was 1119c8b628 playing his 39460dc3b8 part solely d1bba879ea for her ba94796356 sake.71f806f50ec7f88d

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‘I have to act properly.’9d6971661f4487be

Rather than 64e8162da9 guilt over 937264fadd deceiving her 28ac836f65 brother, Sasha’s e01611d07b mind was 39f6c7e9fd filled with eb5fc566f0 one thought: 0720dba268 she couldn’t e80faad2ab risk making e89d868352 things harder 8aa45826d0 for Ulrich.7f2925c98ee6e642

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Contract or not, Ulrich was someone she was genuinely grateful to. Just look at how different Kiril was now…3905b90034672376

Thankfully, Ulrich soon c74e0cd164 lifted his hand eda06e8c81 from her knee f92ddcb54a and pulled out 895d3a4168 a cigarette.54298c4f250661d4

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Sasha quietly let out 10b16ac030 a breath of relief.38db0d6a7aa84215

“…Guess all those guys must’ve had bad eyesight.”a313983faf72828d

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Kiril, who’d been staring bdca7ef9da at her knee, muttered 99633e0485 gruffly.07ab109dbce6214d

Then he lowered his 9138af105c gaze and focused on f3a1e3cbf7 devouring the bread from 81091aab49 the basket.286b5a02de2f5fc6

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Before long, the 594ac668af signature dishes and 2953a626e4 drinks began to efb025ea87 arrive.890c65cf2998a1f3

Seafood salad, veal 3e76f309de saltimbocca with prosciutto, 033a2a4e40 lemon cream pasta, bbf205c6e0 and spinach frittata f370af0a8a were all served d9ea0a8264 one after another.6355815d1a3211db

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Just as Kiril 9fc53017cc finished off the a10d2166cf breadbasket and began 1f2f1f214c inspecting the plates, d9364fc258 he blurted something a29ecdbe4d out of nowhere 258c01075d again.5e561e11a4db9e37

“You don’t like eggs.”ebcbe64020a72c7f

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Sasha turned to 39d3145f72 him, startled.a29e10e3dac615e1

What kind of cda51b3c74 sudden remark was 9eabe287cb that?13b9be951a1371a1

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Ulrich quietly ground out 76d699601d his cigarette in the 6308bf3630 ashtray and looked at 47bc20f34a Kiril, a flicker of 77a34fd0cb amusement in his blue 54a62a24be eyes.058fa3adb7a8b81e

“Shura doesn’t like eggs?”07cb202f8275d4b1

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“Yeah. She never touches them. You didn’t know?”9a9eb650406f9c43

Kiril replied casually, completely 1b457f1cb4 unfazed by Sasha’s startled ba1b017111 expression.ea23f3860d0efec2

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“Is that so…? I’m not sure since when Kiril thinks that’s the case, but the Shura I knew used to love omelets for breakfast when she was little.”e197a6d82cecadfb

Ulrich turned bec5c4b372 to Sasha ba828d983d for confirmation, 94f2f39f2e his tone 86ea94fcdb calm and 2f785e0e99 curious.fdcf9e25ad649562

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Kiril, too, stared at 1f26e5bce4 her with a ‘that 47163b86fb can’t be right’ expression.01082dd771807713

‘What is this even…’ec070e5a226c023b

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Sasha’s mind thudded 2e580f39b4 with confusion as d1bed63ac3 she faced the 26891bfe78 unexpected dilemma.1591b36bc4367172

Ulrich’s statement ee9ce548a5 wasn’t exactly 0cdc185221 false—but she 61fd9ca7fa couldn’t say 6eac849967 Kiril was f849aae587 wrong, either.a40015ffe65d038a

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Back when the 4b63e41f59 siblings lived together a35604c598 in that matchbox a1a776d0ba apartment, eggs had a769afa940 been a luxury.425692606e590e42

And it wasn’t c341a0fe76 just about price. Even if they scraped f23be34bb3 together money and lined c73e6b06e4 up at the market b31f84517b at the crack of d5735f24b3 dawn, they often went 6b97620119 home empty-handed.ce4888f72508cc1b

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The black market a233227d27 didn’t require lines, 3ae912bcac but there was 166b6d75bb no guarantee those 270640270a eggs were even c1cd09acd4 real.fa0cbcfe0e86df64

 5e941107d65b2faf

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