Chapter 10
Amid the guests’ quiet gasps, Kade let out a faint laugh.
“Perhaps it’s because Your Highness is the kind of person who sends invitations through children. This version of you feels much more natural.”
Even while a royal princess was practically threatening his life, his attitude seemed to say, Go ahead and try if you dare.
The atmosphere in the banquet hall became even more tense.
At some point, guards had surrounded both the Third Princess and Kade, yet none of them dared make the first move.
The Imperial Palace has nothing to gain from openly antagonizing the Magic Tower any further.
The mages of the Magic Tower were one of the Empire’s most powerful emergency forces.
Yet the Imperial Family had never once succeeded in bringing the Magic Tower under its control.
Unable to subdue the Magic Tower.
Unable to maintain friendly relations with it either.
That was the one flaw of the Gaiana Imperial Family.
That’s probably why the Third Princess kept sending invitations to Kade.
The Princess looked as though she wanted nothing more than to slap him across the face.
In the end, however, all she could do was grip her fan so tightly it creaked.
“Today is a joyous occasion, so I shall show mercy. But I will not forget this insult.”
“It is an honor.”
Kade didn’t even glance at the shattered glass on the floor.
Instead, he pulled out a watch and checked the time.
“If Your Highness ever visits Melgot again, please invite me once more. Banquets are far more entertaining than I expected.”
With that, he offered a brief bow and turned away.
For the briefest instant, it felt as though our eyes met.
Only dark crimson footprints remained in his wake.
The Third Princess’s elegant, graceful face had turned bright red from suppressing her rage.
She clearly wasn’t over it.
“Resume the music. And those bloodstains—remove every trace of them.”
Her voice trembled with restrained fury.
The musicians immediately began playing again, and maids hurried to scrub the floor.
Guests covered their mouths with fans as whispers spread through the greenhouse.
“I had no idea Her Highness was still sending invitations to the Magic Tower.”
“Did she hold her birthday banquet in Melgot because she wanted to meet the Magic Tower Lord?”
“I heard from one of the maids that the Grand Duchess of Melgot generously offered this magical greenhouse because she wanted the Princess to see it.”
“Well, perhaps she simply wanted to see the face of that famous genius everyone keeps talking about. Especially since he stubbornly refuses to leave Melgot.”
Apparently no longer in the mood to enjoy her own celebration, the Third Princess departed for the terrace with her attendants.
The moment she left, the guests became even more enthusiastic in discussing both her and the Magic Tower Lord.
I stared blankly around the greenhouse, which looked as though a storm had just swept through it.
What exactly is wrong with that idiot Kade?
I knew the position of Magic Tower Lord carried immense authority, but was it really acceptable to behave like that toward a princess?
Come to think of it, even before I learned Kade was the Magic Tower Lord, I had heard countless shocking rumors about him.
There was even that story about him sending monster corpses to the Imperial Palace as tribute.
Then why had he done that just now?
I looked down at the large, dark handprint staining my sleeve.
The sensation of Kade gripping my arm was still vivid.
In the brief instant before I fell, he had teleported over, caught me, and moved away again with such smoothness and speed that it all felt completely natural.
So natural that I couldn’t tell whether he had come to catch me—
Or whether he had only wanted to grab the drink.
…Obviously he just wanted the drink. What’s wrong with me? Stop having weird thoughts.
Trying to shake off my embarrassment, I took a sip of water.
Then the very person I’d been looking for appeared on her own.
“Vivian! So it really was you? I was wondering who would show up to a banquet dressed in a government uniform.”
“There was also someone who showed up covered in monster blood.”
“Ahaha. The Magic Tower Lord was hilarious.”
Senior Simona took a sip of water herself before glancing at my arm.
“By the way, are you okay? You looked completely frozen earlier.”
“Ah, yes. I was just a little startled.”
“I already knew he was crazy, but after seeing him today? He’s on an entirely different level. The Grand Duchess must be upset too. She even opened up her magical greenhouse for her beloved younger sister, and now the banquet’s been ruined.”
The ruler of Melgot was the Second Princess, who had become the Grand Duchess of Melgot a year ago.
Since the Magic Tower was located in Melgot, there was no way Kade could completely avoid interacting with her.
I had no idea how he planned to handle that.
“Didn’t Her Highness—the Grand Duchess—attend today’s banquet?”
“Apparently she’s been away from the ducal castle because of the monster situation. Considering how poor her relationship with the Magic Tower is, they probably aren’t working together.”
That made sense.
The Magic Tower couldn’t possibly protect every coastline on the Northern Continent by itself.
I had once seen the Second Princess from afar while working in the Imperial Palace.
Draped in a thin white robe over a beautiful gown, she had looked like a figure straight out of mythology.
Remembering that mysterious and elegant appearance, I murmured softly:
“I thought she would become the new Magic Tower Lord.”
“Most people did. They said it was the first time the Imperial Family had ever produced a mage that powerful.”
Senior Simona nodded as though it were obvious.
For generations, the Imperial Palace and the Magic Tower had engaged in an endless tug-of-war.
If a royal had become Magic Tower Lord, that struggle might finally have ended.
The Imperial Family wanted to keep the Magic Tower under its authority like a vassal, using it to protect the Empire and strengthen imperial power.
The mages, however, generally had no interest in palace affairs.
Long ago, magic had been viewed with suspicion.
Mages were often persecuted, and many people both inside and outside the palace sought to exploit them.
According to history, a great archmage founded the Magic Tower and gathered mages there for their protection.
Over time, those mages became increasingly isolated.
Now they cared for little beyond magical power and magical research.
Though the increase in monsters has forced them out into the world.
Nowadays, the Imperial Palace seemed to monitor mages through laws requiring them all to register with the Magic Tower.
The Magic Tower Lords had traditionally served as the bridge between the palace and the mages.
But if Kade is already being called a troublemaker, then he’s clearly very different from previous Magic Tower Lords. If the Second Princess had become Magic Tower Lord instead, transferring departments would probably have been much easier…
The moment that thought crossed my mind, I lost interest.
No. If that had happened, I probably never would have gotten the Magic Tower Lord’s seal and the opportunity to transfer departments in the first place.
I checked the time and decided to tell Senior Simona why I had come before it got any later.
“More importantly, Senior. Administrator Yukel said you should report to the docks tomorrow instead of the observatory.”
“Hm? I already know. I spoke with Yukel earlier.”
“…What?”
What was she talking about?
I stood there frozen like a broken machine.
Then Senior Simona burst out laughing.
“Wait. Don’t tell me you came all the way here just to tell me that? Wearing your government uniform?”
As I blinked blankly, disbelief gradually gave way to irritation.
He made me do something this pointless just to mess with me? I’m already exhausted…!
Since we worked together anyway, if I was too tired to do my job properly, it would only make things more inconvenient for him too.
I honestly couldn’t understand why he bothered.
Perhaps my displeasure was obvious.
Senior Simona laughed loudly and threw an arm around my shoulders.
The action didn’t suit her elegant attire at all.
“Want to head back? I doubt anything more entertaining than the Magic Tower Lord’s appearance is going to happen tonight.”
Despite saying that, she kept glancing around hopefully at groups of people as we left, clearly hoping some new drama would break out.
As I practically dragged her toward the exit, one of the guards looked thoroughly miserable.
Sticky bloodstains covered his shoulder and gloves.
Apparently Kade had greeted him rather enthusiastically.
Is Kade actually insane…?
Feeling drained, I continued walking when a coachman approached and bowed.
“Investigator Vivian Soling, correct? Your carriage has arrived.”
I almost told him he must have the wrong person.
Then I stopped.
The coachman looked familiar.
And so did the carriage he was pointing to.
It was the very same carriage I had ridden from the Magic Tower.
“You actually called a carriage in advance? Typical Imperial Capital snob.”
“I forgot about it too. Just get in.”
After putting Senior Simona into another carriage and sending her off first, I followed the coachman.
“I never called for a carriage.”
“Yes, I know.”
The coachman chuckled.
“Someone else did.”
As he opened the carriage door, an invisible force suddenly seized my body and yanked me inside.
“…!”
The door slammed shut.
The carriage immediately began moving.
A finger snapped.
The dark interior brightened.
Sitting across from me with one leg crossed over the other was Kade.
Not a single trace of blood remained on him.
