Chapter 59 – Her Blatant Ignorance (1) In the quiet study, the air stood still. Except for the ruffling of pages, there was nary a sound. There were only two people in the study, yet it was more suffocating than a crowded room full of clamour.

As he flicked through the pages of the ledger, every now and then, Ruth pressed the middle of his forehead with his forefinger as if trying to pin down his emotions. As he went through line after line, word after word, his thoughts dared not reflect on his face.

Nearby, a sullen Max stood still, like a child who had been reprimanded for wrongdoings. Her gaze was fixed on the ledger as well as if it held authoritarian power over her future. Every time a page turned, her heart paused. Every fleeting second, she’d steal a glimpse of the vacant visage before her, trying to gauge the other’s mood.

She could, however, glean nothing and could only go back to feeling more sullen.

After what felt like forever, his wordless audit had finally drawn to a close. The party in charge of the rising tension in the room, let out a deep sigh and roughly rubbed his face out of habit. Then, he turned to the only other person in the room, and without preamble, looked her straight in the eyes.

“I don’t know what to talk about first,” he said impassively.

Max, who was by now a bundle of nerves, felt like crawling into a hole. She had little courage to face what was to come.

“Are you sure you have all the purchase bills in here?” His face did not betray his thoughts even now.

“Y-yes! The b-bundle of p-papers there...”

He narrowed his eyes at the pile of parchment paper she was referring to, then closed the ledger with a smack that reverberated in the silent room. Max quivered ever so slightly.

“We can start tomorrow as it’s quite late already.” He solemnly suggested.

“Yo-you ca-can t-tell me no-now...” She had been on the edge for far too long, the sooner she was done with the better it would be. If she had to go through this for a minute longer, she was afraid of an imminent nervous breakdown. However...

“This ledger isn’t something that we can fix in a couple of days.”

Max immediately pursed her lips, silenced by the sharp words. What did she have to say? Ultimately, all she could do was quietly nod, burning in silent shame.