He thought they were just ordinary colleagues, but they were so close.
Ramiro quickly followed and walked up to Chloe, accompanying her upstairs.
The three of them sat down together.
Ramiro called the boss to bring the menu.
Leo silently criticized Chloe for being a foodie. Other girls went shopping for clothes and cosmetics, but Chloe only chose to eat.
Chloe flipped through the menu, her fingers sliding over the items until she stopped at one. “A bowl of black bean noodles,” she said to the waiter.
Leo and Ramiro were both stunned because Chloe spoke in Korean.
The waiter standing by didn’t react, seemingly mistaking Chloe for a Korean.
Ramiro was delighted. “You speak Korean?” he asked in Korean.
Chloe nodded.
Ramiro was overjoyed. Speaking in awkward Atrarian always made him feel he couldn’t fully express his charm. He didn’t expect Chloe to speak Korean so fluently.
Leo listened to their conversation in Korean, feeling somewhat isolated.
Even though he couldn’t understand their conversation, Leo could sense Ramiro’s excitement sitting beside him.
Initially, Ramiro was only attracted to Chloe’s beauty and wanted to flirt with her. But after discovering she spoke Korean, his intentions changed.
Missing out on such an intelligent and beautiful woman would be a lifelong regret for him. Such a well-read and graceful woman deserved to be his wife.
“Leo, what are you going to eat?” Chloe asked after chatting with Ramiro in Korean for a while, noticing Leo hadn’t ordered yet.
“Oh, I’ll have the same as you,” Leo replied.
Chloe turned to the waiter and gave the order.
The waiter bowed and left.
Ramiro was annoyed that Leo had interrupted his conversation and quickly pulled Chloe back into it, speaking in Korean so Leo couldn’t join in.
Seeing Ramiro and Chloe engrossed in their conversation, Leo began to observe the surroundings.
The restaurant’s decor was classic, but the geomancy seemed off, lacking vitality. Especially the staircase corners were poorly designed in terms of geomancy, indicating financial loss. No wonder there were few customers even at mealtime; only another table with four middle-aged men occasionally glanced over.
Soon, three bowls of steaming black bean noodles arrived.
Chloe couldn’t wait any longer. Ignoring the steam, she lifted her long hair and started eating.
Ramiro’s eyes flickered. Chloe’s small gesture tugged at his heart. Earlier, Chloe had her hair in a bun. Now, she had changed into casual clothes with her hair loosely draped behind her. When she lifted her hair, revealing her fair neck, she tilted her head to avoid getting hair in her bowl.
“Why aren’t you two eating?” Chloe asked halfway through her meal, seeing Leo and Ramiro hadn’t touched their chopsticks.
Ramiro then started eating.
Leo took a bite, expecting ordinary black bean noodles but was surprised by the melt-in-your-mouth texture, making him doubt if it was really black bean noodles.
For a moment, Leo forgot about Ramiro’s constant glances at Chloe and focused on his noodles.
At this moment, a voice speaking in Korean reached his ears. Leo looked up to see a middle-aged man approaching and handing Chloe a business card.
Chloe was momentarily stunned and repeatedly shook her head to refuse.
The middle-aged man persisted in having Chloe take the card.
“What’s going on?” Leo asked Chloe.
Chloe smiled. “He said I have star quality and that he’s an agent. He wants me to take the card and visit his company sometime.”
Leo found it amusing. “Just tell him you’ve debuted in Atraria and signed with Bloomer Entertainment.”
Chloe burst out laughing. “What Bloomer Entertainment? Even if it existed, do you think I’d sign with them?”
Chloe knew Leo had made up the name and turned to tell the middle-aged man something.
The man was surprised to hear Chloe speaking Atrarian with Leo and quickly asked if she was Atrarian.
The man’s presence disrupted Ramiro’s meal with Chloe, so he stood up and gestured for the man to leave.
The man’s face changed but he still walked away, muttering something under his breath as he went back.
“Miss Chloe, if you’re really interested, our company has good relations with many entertainment companies. There will be many big stars at the exhibition. I can help you sign a contract,” Ramiro said in Atrarian this time.
Chloe didn’t respond but shook her head.
Ramiro became anxious, thinking Chloe took him as a joke. “If you’ve really signed with that Bloomer Entertainment, I can pay your penalty fee.”
Chloe shook her head and smiled. “No need.”
She kept smiling at Leo as she said this, making his heart skip a beat, unsure of what she meant by it.
Ramiro lowered his head in frustration. What he thought was an irresistible offer didn’t interest Chloe much.
After their meal, they went shopping around Myeong-dong again.
Leo didn’t particularly hate shopping but didn’t enjoy it either.
Chloe was excited by all the fashionable items on display and dragged Leo around by the hand.
Ramiro followed behind, his face turning red with anger at seeing their hands clasped together.
Sometimes Leo glanced at Ramiro and felt a bit sorry for him. Not because of his hostility towards Leo but because he liked a woman like Chloe. Perhaps due to her appearance, Chloe could give off an impression of an elegant lady when she wasn’t talking much-a trait highly valued in Goryeo’s Confucian culture-but deep down, she was a modern woman full of rebellious spirit.
“Do you think this looks good?” Chloe asked Leo while trying on a silver earring.
“Not bad,” Leo replied with a smile.
“Not bad! Not bad! I’ve asked you several times, and all you say is ‘not bad’!” Chloe said angrily.
Leo could only helplessly spread his hands. “It is not bad! What do you want me to say?”
“Alright then, stunningly beautiful, breathtakingly gorgeous…” Leo helplessly listed a series of idioms praising a woman’s beauty.
Chloe burst into laughter.