After a week of internship assessment, both Ino and Yakumo officially transitioned to secretaries.
Among them, Ino was appointed as the Left Secretary due to her excellent intelligence analysis skills. Her main responsibilities included handling foreign affairs, such as liaising with envoys from various countries, analyzing international situations, and coordinating diplomatic cooperation.
Yakumo, on the other hand, was appointed as the Right Secretary due to her meticulous document processing abilities. Her main responsibilities covered domestic affairs, including organizing government documents, compiling people's livelihood data, and coordinating tasks.
Within just a few days, they quickly adapted to the pace of secretarial work.
One evening, Ino pulled Yakumo along to binge-watch the recently popular TV series, 'The Domineering Lord Fell in Love With Me.'
The drama told a romantic love story, where the male protagonist was a domineering yet deeply affectionate Lord.
Ino and Yakumo were deeply engrossed in the plot, completely immersed in the story.
They would watch TV and discuss the plot's development, full of curiosity and anticipation for the characters' fates.
Ino pointed at the screen, at the male protagonist dressed in brocade robes and possessing a calm demeanor.
"Yakumo, the prototype for this male lead must be Shun-sama. Look, even the style of his clothes and the way he handles government affairs are imitated perfectly."
Yakumo leaned closer to the screen and upon closer inspection, the male protagonist's appearance and his composed manner when handling affairs were indeed strikingly similar to Shun.
In the story, the male protagonist was a young and promising Lord, while the female protagonist was his secretary. The two gradually developed feelings for each other through their work, enacting a sweet yet tumultuous love story.
Soon, the plot reached the confession scene, where the female protagonist, in the office, bravely confessed her feelings to the Lord.
Ino stared intently at the TV screen, her eyes full of expectation. "Yakumo, do you think if I confess to Shun-sama like this tomorrow, will he accept me?"
Yakumo was slightly stunned for a moment, then quickly shook her head. "Ino, that way of confessing is too embarrassing. And... Shun-sama is a real Lord, wouldn't that be too rash?"
Just imagining the scene made her cheeks flush, let alone actually doing it.
Ino, however, waved her hand indifferently, arguing, "Yakumo, this is what's romantic. Look at the female lead in the show, she only caught the male lead's attention because of her bold confession. Besides, liking Shun-sama isn't something to be ashamed of, and he's just a big pervert, he won't get angry."
As she spoke, she imitated the female lead's posture from the show, sitting on Yakumo's lap and deliberately hooking her chin.
"Shun-sama, am I beautiful? I've liked you for a long time, and I want to be yours."
Yakumo's ears instantly turned crimson, and in a panic, she reached up to cover her warming, reddening cheeks. Even her neck showed a faint blush.
"Ino, don't... don't mess around..."
The next morning, as the palace hall just opened.
Ino specially changed into a light purple V-neck secretary uniform, similar to the female lead in the drama. She carried a thick diplomatic document and walked towards the office with a smile.
She walked to the desk, but instead of bending down to hand over the document as usual, she quietly circled around Shun.
Under Shun's questioning gaze, she gently sat on his lap, her hands naturally hooking around his neck.
She leaned slightly forward, her bright eyes holding a hint of mischief. "Shun-sama, do you feel like I'm different today?"
Looking at Ino so close, Shun was drawn by a expanse of white in front of him.
He tried to maintain his composure on the surface, secretly sighing to himself, 'Are young girls these days so bold? Not only do they dare to sit on a man's lap, but they also dare to confess like this.'
He cleared his throat and gently patted her thigh. "Ino, you look very beautiful today. But it's not good to be so mischievous during office hours."
Hearing the words "very beautiful," Ino not only didn't restrain herself but leaned in even closer. She gently touched his cheek with the tip of her nose, letting him feel her warm breath.
"Shun-sama, I've liked you for a long time. I want to be yours, just like Shizune-nee."
Yakumo, hiding at the door, saw this scene. She instantly covered her mouth, her cheeks turning extremely red.
She secretly gasped in her heart, 'Ino is too bold. How does she have the courage to tease Shun-sama like that?'
She quickly shrank back, only daring to peek through the crack in the door, her heart pounding as if it would burst from her chest.
Ino was, after all, just a young girl. Although she was very brave, her movements were a bit clumsy.
This made Shun a little uncomfortable, he gently patted her back.
"Ino, it's office hours now, you need to focus on work."
Ino gently shook his neck, pouting. "Shun-sama, I don't want to only talk about work. Shizune-nee used to be your secretary and later became a consort, so since I'm your secretary now, can I become your consort in the future?"
She deliberately rubbed her cheek against his chest, like a clingy cat.
Feeling the soft touch on his chest, Shun reached out and gently pressed Ino's shoulder, not allowing her to get any closer.
"Ino, I know your feelings. But emotions aren't just a momentary impulse, we need time to get to know each other. You are currently the Left Secretary, and your primary task is to handle foreign affairs well. You can't let personal feelings affect your work, right?"
Although she didn't get a clear answer, Shun didn't directly refuse, which made Ino breathe a sigh of relief.
She nodded lightly, picked up the diplomatic document she had brought earlier, and returned to her serious work demeanor.
"Shun-sama, I understand. This is today's diplomatic correspondence, regarding the trade cooperation details with the Land of Lightning. I've summarized the key points on the last page, you can look there first."
Shun took the document, his gaze falling upon it, instantly switching to work mode. His fingers quickly flipped through the pages, gradually calming the earlier flutter in his heart.
"Very good, it's organized very clearly. Leave it here for now. I'll give you my approval after I've read it."
Ino nodded. Then she turned and walked towards the door. She looked at Yakumo hiding behind the door crack, mischievously winking, a triumphant smile on her lips.
Yakumo quickly pulled her and hurried out of the office, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
"Ino, you were too bold just now. How can you tease Shun-sama? I was almost dying of nervousness. Shun-sama didn't get angry, did he?"
Ino calmly sat down in a chair and took a sip of water. "He's a notorious big pervert. With a beautiful girl like me delivering myself to him, how could he get angry? He's probably secretly happy about it right now."