TYHL 38

~Chapter 38~

Clang.

The knife that had fallen to the ground spun sharply.

“Gasp….”

— Clink!

Ugh, what was that!

I tried to calm my pounding heart.

Everyone except Uncle Leviathan and the knife looked shocked like startled rabbits.

“Child, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

Ah, Grandpa too, patting me gently.

“Wha… wha…!”

Delmon, suddenly grabbed by the back of the neck, gaped like a fish.

“Ah, sorry.”

Khalid finally seemed to come to his senses and let him go.

“Because I felt killing intent.”

“You… felt killing intent… and used me as a shield?”

Delmon collapsed onto the ground, his face blank.

Senior Oberon rushed over, demanding where Khalid had been hiding a knife. Khalid just looked away.

Uncle Leviathan, who had been watching everything, let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his temple.

“A troublesome one has come in.”

“Sir, sorry for stepping in.”

“It’s fine.”

I glanced around nervously, only rolling my eyes.

Uncle rose from his seat and gestured.

“Enough. That’s all.”

Oberon, who had been ranting, immediately shut his mouth.

“Wrap it up and show the three of them around the Order.”

“Y-yes…”

Oberon quickly moved to settle things.

I accidentally locked eyes with Khalid, who was brushing dirt off his shoes with a calm face.

‘Sorry,’ his lips moved faintly.

Thanks to his flashy move earlier, the white powder covering him had blown away completely.

‘Really… sigh.’

I slid back into my seat.

“Uncle, Khalid is…”

“Yeah. Seems he isn’t used to mock battles.”

“…Mhm.”

Khalid was a child raised on real battlefields.

He had grown strong wandering places where life and death were at stake. Graceful duels and staged mock fights were completely foreign to him.

How could he fight ‘pretend’ without killing or harming?

He clearly didn’t understand that at all.

My mouth tasted bitter when I realized it.

“That’s right, mercenary boy.”

A big hand rested on my head. I looked up slightly at Uncle.

“But Ruby.”

“Hm?”

“Are you close with him?”

Blinking at the sudden question, I answered quietly.

“I mean… yeah, kind of? But why?”

“Because when he sensed killing intent, the first person that brat checked on was you.”

“Oh… I see.”

I awkwardly turned my head, pretending to eat my walnut pie.

‘I can’t exactly say it’s because he’s just a dumb puppy.’

Sigh. I raised my hand to cover my burning cheek under Uncle’s stare.

“Our youngest’s friendships are anything but ordinary.”

Of course, I couldn’t deny it.

Though there was a small incident… the Jebert Order, known for not stopping those who come but never letting go of those who join, smoothly accepted all three as junior members.

I felt a little wronged because…

“Why? Why am I still the youngest? Since when is it decided by age!”

“It’s not that, Ruby.”

Uncle pointed at Khalid’s application with his stern face. In the career section, Khalid had boldly written.

“He has experience.”

“….”

“And you don’t.”

“Wow, so he’s a career hire.”

I could only lament hiding my own “glorious” career.

Either way, Khalid Riork proudly donned the Jebert Order’s cloak.

Not only that, he even received a room in the Order’s building.

The mage boy, the Part 2 male lead, had suddenly planted himself in the North.

“I like it.”

Khalid said indifferently as he glanced around my room.

“Of course you do.”

I muttered sulkily, lying sideways on the sofa.

“Are you mad?”

“Nooo. How could I be mad? I’ve already gotten used to you acting on your own without talking to me first.”

Still, I couldn’t hide the sharp tone of my words.

Khalid, watching quietly, gently touched my pinky finger with his own.

A cool magic carefully flowed into me.

“Don’t be mad.”

“Trying to act cute while sending me magic won’t work.”

“Seems like it is working.”

“…”

Face. Cheeks. Smile.

These two… seriously?

Awkwardly, I sat up and sighed deeply.

“Do you really need to go this far? Even if we’re apart, we can still talk through this.”

I tapped the small magic circle engraved behind my ear.

Khalid gave a vague smile.

“That’s the problem, master.”

“What’s the problem! As long as you don’t block me, there’s nothing wrong!”

“You’ll just rely on it and then leave me behind if something happens again, won’t you?”

“I didn’t abandon you, seriously…”

“Never again.”

His tone was firm. Then, with a small smirk, he added the final blow.

“And I’ve decided to walk the path of a swordsman now. I won’t even glance at magic anymore.”

“Then what’s this, huh?”

I jerked my chin at the magic flooding into me.

“Mm… personal feelings?”

“What?”

“Devotion. You’re my master, after all.”

Seeing Khalid smile softly, I realized there was no turning back.

“Sigh. How am I supposed to stop you.”

“Exactly.”

I side-eyed the boy who looked oddly pleased. He was as stubborn as I was.

With a resigned sigh, I grumbled.

“…If you’re going to stay here, you should fix how you address me first.”

“Yeah, I was going to.”

“….”

“Ruby.”

Bathed in the fading glow of sunset, the boy looked… too beautiful for words.

‘I give up, I don’t even know anymore.’

I shoved a handful of cookies into my mouth. Khalid, jangling his bracelet, watched me with an amused look.

“I know what you’re worried about, Ruby.”

“Mffh… wha…”

“Swallow first. Good. Anyway, don’t worry. I’m better at pretending not to be a mage than you.”

That was true. Khalid had spent his whole life pretending not to be one.

Though he did have a bad habit of using magic too freely.

‘Well… maybe this could be a good thing.’

I tried to think positively.

After all, Jebert was the strongest knight order.

‘Khalid is still just a rookie in swordsmanship.’

Even if he’d toughened himself in real battles, self-study had limits.

And who knew?

He was the Part 2 male lead. Maybe when Uncle Leviathan went to kill the Magic King, Khalid could help at least a little.

“Alright then… since you’re training strength anyway, do your best to grow stronger.”

“Until the day Duke Jebert goes to cut off the Magic King’s head?”

“Yes… wait, what?”

I froze mid-bite.

“You… did you just read my mind?”

There was no such magic.

“Guess I was right.”

Khalid stroked his chin, muttering.

“I kept thinking about it. Why you’re here.”

The sun quickly sank. The boy’s smooth face was soon covered by the shadows of night.

“You plan to use Duke Jebert to kill the Magic King, don’t you?”

“…”

“Because of that damn brand, you can’t do it yourself.”

I instinctively stirred my magic. A soundproof spell spread like a white veil into the air.

Khalid clicked his tongue and once again infused me with his magic.

“Your great magic vault is still searching for a way to erase the brand, right?”

“It’s… Wizeria.”

My voice faltered.

Damn. How sharp could he be?

Honestly, I was shocked. With just the scraps of info he had, Khalid had almost pieced together the truth.

“For that reason, I’ve already said five hundred times that I’ll do it instead.”

His bluish-gray eyes gleamed with an unfamiliar light.