HMWD 09

Chapter 9

Who is that bastard?

Ente tilted her head at a slanted angle and stared fixedly at Anna.

Anna, having failed to find a single usable handkerchief in the scorched bag, met her gaze with a tearful, miserable expression.

In the meantime, the man who had dismounted from his horse walked slowly toward them.

The sword hanging at his waist had a well-maintained, razor-sharp blade, and his tethered horse, thoroughly trained, followed obediently right behind him. Though dressed in casual attire, the luxurious fabric and immaculate condition of his clothes spoke volumes about his high status. At a single glance, it was easy to tell he was a knight of at least count rank or higher.

Her gaze drifted upward to the man’s face.

His features were impeccably handsome. Even from Ente’s perspective—having rubbed shoulders with all sorts of striking men over three hundred years—he was a stunner worthy of being counted on one hand.

Bright brown hair and clear, honey-brown eyes. A flawlessly straight, elegant nose and lips that looked just a touch stubborn. His neat, ascetic appearance made him look far more like a temple priest than a rough-and-tumble knight.

The capital guards, who had been on edge ever since the stranger appeared, murmured among themselves before suddenly dropping to their knees.

Baffled by this bizarre spectacle, Ente looked around in confusion.

Anna had both hands clamped tightly over her mouth, her eyes darting back and forth between the man and Ente.

Could this jerk possibly be………………?

“Lorenzo……………… Olivier?”

The man approached Ente, his brow furrowed in a deep frown.

The carriage was shattered as brutally as if it had been struck by lightning, Melissa Tiony looked an absolute mess, and the capital guard members were swarming around her. Taking in the entire situation with a single sweep of his eyes, Lorenzo let out a heavy sigh.

“I had no idea you could be so reckless.”

Lorenzo spoke in a heavy, burdened tone, as if he still couldn’t quite believe his eyes.

“I heard your body hadn’t fully recovered yet, and yet……………… what on earth is this state?”

What’s wrong with my state?

Just as she was about to snap back a retort, Ente caught sight of her dress riddled with gaping holes and silently clamped her mouth shut.

“Just where in the world do you think you’re going, chasing after me like this?”

Because she failed to grasp the meaning of his words right away, Ente missed her window to reply. Thanks to that delay, Lorenzo’s misunderstanding only dug deeper roots.

Brushing back his wind-tossed hair with a hand, he let out a self-deprecating remark.

“I know you took it quite hard because of me. But to go so far as pulling a stunt like this… I simply can’t believe it. Have you completely lost all regard for the Marquisate’s honor? What were you thinking, committing such a reckless act!”

A stunt like this? The Marquisate’s honor? Wait, does this guy currently think…… that I chased after him?

“It’s not like that……..”

Ente stammered as she tried to open her mouth.

However, to Lorenzo, whose suspicions had already hardened into absolute certainty, every word just sounded like a flimsy excuse.

“Did I not explain it clearly enough so you could understand? I said I simply don’t have the room in my life to accept you. And yet, here you are, waiting for me right along the path to Castium…… Just how long do you intend to keep pulling this?”

Look here, I don’t even know who you are, okay?

Right as she was about to protest the utter absurdity of it all, Anna, standing right beside her, suddenly burst out shouting.

“This is truly going too far, Your Grace! You know how deeply our young lady feels, don’t you? She’s enduring all this hardship just so she can take the Magic Academy exam and prove helpful to you, and yet—”

No, wait, it’s not like that at all!

Ente frantically waved her hands to shut her up, but it was already too late.

Looking as though he viewed himself as the very root of all evil, Lorenzo clutched his head with a face twisted in world-class agony.

Overcome with sudden remorse at Anna’s words, Lorenzo reached a hand out toward her.

What does he want me to hand over?

As she stared blankly at his outstretched hand, Lorenzo let out an awkward, dry cough. The fiery, imposing aura he had carried a moment ago had softened considerably.

“Get up.”

Ah, he wants me to take it.

Realizing his meaning belatedly, Ente cast a quick, furtive glance around her.

Pairs of hopeful, expectation-filled eyes were glancing back and forth in their direction.

Vivi told me to uphold the dignity of a noble lady.

Recalling the bird’s earnest warning, Ente resolutely hauled herself up from the ground all on her own. Lorenzo pulled his hand back with an embarrassed look on his face.

An atmosphere thick and suffocating with awkwardness settled over them.

What should I do? Ente looked over at Anna, silently signaling for rescue.

Catching her silent cue, Anna immediately gave a sharp hand signal to the capital guard members.

The guards, hastily reading the room, scrambled away backward until they were standing a good distance off.

It seemed she had completely misinterpreted the signal.

The mood grew ten times more awkward than it had been just a moment ago.

Why is this jerk just standing around instead of leaving?

Ente fidgeted restlessly, her fingers wringing the edge of her dress. The petticoat underneath peeked out slightly.

With his face flushing crimson, Lorenzo deliberately averted his eyes from her and strode over to the shattered, scattered wreckage of the carriage.

“Why is the carriage in this state?”

“Had a bit of a minor accident.”

She replied unhelpfully.

Instead of pressing for details, Lorenzo knelt and meticulously inspected the carriage.

He wasn’t even going to fix it for her, yet he had to poke his nose into everything just to prove he was a true knight of the Repello Order.

Ente crossed her arms and watched him from a distance.

“Magic?”

Oh? How did he figure that out?

Ente looked over at Lorenzo, a spark of intrigue lighting up her eyes.

It wasn’t ordinary for an everyday person to pick up on lingering traces of magic. True to his pedigree as a knight of the Repello Order, this guy had remarkably sharp instincts.

Meeting her curious gaze—which silently asked how he knew magic was involved—with a faint smile, Ente simply offered a careless shrug.

“Whatever could you mean?”

Though she could have told him the plain truth and tossed George Tiony straight into a prison cell, Ente chose not to.

If George Tiony’s vicious misdeeds came to light, it might deal a blow not just to him, but to the entire Marquisate as well. If word got out that black magic had been utilized under the sponsorship of a Marquisate bound by contract to the Wizard’s Tower, there was a worst-case scenario where the notoriously stubborn mages might sever business ties entirely.

A gentleman never pries too closely into a lady’s private affairs, and in that regard, Lorenzo Olivier was the textbook definition of a perfect gentleman.

Lorenzo completely misunderstood Ente’s evasiveness.

Choosing not to press her for the exact circumstances of the incident, he instead stepped forward and offered assistance. Of course, it was an offer Ente found entirely unwelcome.

“Judging by the look of things, it appears you are in need of help.”

“No, not really, I can manage on my…………….”

“Thank you so much, Your Grace! As you can see, the young lady is not feeling well at all, and she was so terribly shaken up that I was beside myself with worry. If Your Grace is willing to lend a hand, the Marquis will surely be overjoyed!”

“Very well. It is, after all, partly my fault that the young lady is enduring this hardship.”

Looking as though he had just made a solemn, life-altering resolve, Lorenzo cast a heavy look in her direction and led his tethered horse forward.

“Mount the horse. I will escort you back to the Tiony household.”

“Pardon?” “She is a gentle creature, so you needn’t be afraid. If you grant permission, I will support you by the waist.”

Whether you grab my waist or my neck, it’s all the same to me, Ente thought, waving her hand dismissively.

“Escort me back to the Tiony household? I was on my way to take the Magic Academy entrance exam.”

Here she goes again.

Such fierce, unyielding obsession. Thinking it was enough to make one’s skin crawl, Lorenzo hardened his expression.

“Did you happen not to receive my letter?”

“Letter?”

Ah, the letter……………… had indeed arrived.

She had completely forgotten its contents, but she remembered it had been a helpful piece of correspondence that conveniently sparked her memory on how to deal with Callisto.

“I received it.”

At her nonchalant reply, Lorenzo pressed a hand against his forehead in sheer frustration.

So she had read his letter and still deliberately chose to pull a stunt like this.

“Did I not explain myself thoroughly enough through that letter? Please, I beg of you, do not make me out to be the villain here.”

Lorenzo Olivier pleaded with a face of profound, soul-crushing torment.

“A villain? Who’s making who out to be a villain?”

“Ha……………”

Faced with her innocent, blank questioning, Lorenzo let out a long, weary sigh.

He had received the passionate pursuit of countless women in his life, but he had never encountered anyone as sticky, persistent, and terrifyingly fixated as Melissa Tiony. Had she not literally tried to poison herself not too long ago in a bid to die?

It was a miracle the Tiony household had managed to sweep that incident under the rug; otherwise, he would have found himself dragged into a truly scandalous mess.

Deciding to try one last time, Lorenzo attempted a calm, rational persuasion.

“Castium is not some romantic, picturesque city of your imagination, my lady. It is a harsh, brutal place filled with barbaric knights who draw their swords at the slightest provocation and ignorant mages hurling stray fireballs wherever they please.”

Ignorant mages, she thought. This punk?

“The Magic Academy is even worse. Greenhorn apprentices who haven’t even mastered the basics routinely burn down entire dormitories or occasionally singe their own hair off under the guise of ‘training’.”

Well, that much was true. Back in the Wizard’s Tower, there were plenty of absolute idiots who routinely incinerated entire bedchambers instead of just beds.

Ente nodded in agreement. Mistaking her nod for an indication that she was finally starting to understand, Lorenzo raised his voice a notch.

“In Castium, the living quarters for mages and knights are strictly separated so they rarely cross paths, and an academy trainee would practically never lay eyes on a formal knight. So please, abandon this foolish notion and turn back now.”

Look here, I want to take the Magic Academy exam regardless of you, you idiot!

Tilting her head at a stubborn angle, Ente fired back.

“I intend to become a mage. I’m not doing this to look at you.”

That was the exact moment Lorenzo’s patience snapped cleanly in two. A mirthless, dry chuckle laced his previously dignified voice.

“Do you honestly believe anyone can just become a mage? With a frail, delicate constitution like yours, it’s out of the question. Claiming you’ll become a mage when you don’t even have a mana core—are you playing children’s games?”

At his mocking tone, the outer corners of Ente’s eyes lifted sharply.

“Don’t speak to me so carelessly. I happen to have a mana core, and I know how to use magic, too. I don’t know what makes you think you’re so high and mighty to look down on me, but I am going to be the one to cut off Callisto’s breath!”

“You? Callisto? Ah, hahahaha.”

Bursting into laughter as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world, Lorenzo reined in his emotions and shot back.

“Do you even have the faintest idea what kind of monster Callisto is? Have you ever laid eyes on him even once? That wicked dragon is not a name that should roll so lightly off your tongue!”

Ente found it utterly preposterous that this punk was standing right in front of her, acting like an expert on Callisto.

A fledgling whose blood hasn’t even dried behind his ears yet dares to act like this!

Ente retorted with a scathing edge in her voice.

“You speak as though you’ve actually fought Callisto yourself?”

Flames flickered in the depths of Lorenzo’s eyes.

With his voice turning razor-sharp, he spat out words without pause.

“Do you intend to insult the Repello Order right now? How utterly disappointing. You couldn’t possibly fathom how desperate and brutal the battle against Callisto truly was.”

As if the mere memory choked him, Lorenzo’s Adam’s apple bobbed heavily.

“In that last battle, we suffered a total, absolute defeat at that monster’s hands! Even Lord Magnus lost his life, and the bravest knights of the Repello Order were slaughtered without exception!”

I honestly don’t know how many times I have to hear about my own death ever since I moved into this body, Ente thought.

Suppressing the sudden urge to dig her pinky finger into her ear, Ente gave a polite, measured nod.

“I managed to preserve my life only because I was stationed in the rear guard, but countless comrades were sacrificed to that creature. That kind of profound tragedy is not something an outsider who saw nothing can speak of so lightly.”

Ente, who had witnessed tragedies like that more than ten times over, had to forcibly swallow a massive yawn.

Fine, whatever you say. I lost my parents, my mentor, and even my own life to that damn scaled serpent, but I suppose I can play along and pretend you’re the real victim here.

Noticing Ente biting her lower lip tightly—which he mistook as an effort to keep from showing boredom—Lorenzo completely misread the situation, assuming she had finally grasped the gravity of his words.

“I spoke too harshly out of turn; I apologize for losing my temper. Please don’t take it to heart.”

“It’s quite alright.”

Ente replied with a bright, sweet smile, shaking her head.

“If the casualties were truly that severe in the last battle, doesn’t Castium find itself severely short on personnel right now?”

“That is correct. Both the Repello Order and the Wizard’s Tower were practically annihilated, so………………”

“Then shouldn’t every single extra pair of hands go over there to lend support?”

Ente asked with an innocent, wide-eyed expression.

For a brief, terrifying second, Lorenzo thought that he—for the very first time in his life—wanted to twist a delicate woman’s wrist until it snapped, and he was genuinely horrified by his own ugly impulse.

Then she drove the point home without hesitation.

“Take me to Castium.”

While Lorenzo was holding forth with impassioned eloquence, waxing poetic about solemn and noble sacrifices, Ente’s mind was racing.

If I use this punk, I can easily get into Castium.

With a formal guarantee from the Repello Order, entering Castium without an entry permit would be a breeze. And on top of that, he was the Duke of Olivier, a man whose name echoed with towering prestige throughout the entire empire.

Traveling alongside him meant getting past Castium’s gates would be as effortless as eating pie.

From that exact second onward, Ente’s eyes stopped seeing a man and started seeing a walking, breathing entry pass.

“Just drop me off there. That’s all I’m asking.”

“You truly have no intention of listening to reason, do you?”

Muttering as if to himself, Lorenzo let out a twisted, exasperated laugh and sneered.

“And just what makes you so confident you can pass the Magic Academy entrance exam if I do take you?”

“Are you assuming I’ll fail?”

No reply came, but his face clearly said he didn’t even need to reply.

“What if I pass?”

“If you manage to pass that exam, I will gift you every single magical artifact sold in Castium.”

A single high-grade magical artifact cost enough to rival a year’s salary of low-ranking imperial officials. Even for the Duke of Olivier, buying out every single artifact sold in Castium would mean biting the bullet and sacrificing an entire year’s worth of his estate’s revenue.

However, the Tiony Marquisate possessed more than enough wealth to cover that sort of sum. But more importantly—

Shoddy little trinkets sold in Castium are the least of my concerns right now.

Magnus’s private chambers, located at the very pinnacle of the Wizard’s Tower—everything belonging to Ente was locked away inside that room. The grimoires overflowing from her laboratory, her magical artifacts, and even the legacy left behind by Elixers.

Regardless of who had taken over as the new head of the Wizard’s Tower, Ente’s personal quarters would remain untouched, sealed tight by high-level security magic that could never, ever be unlocked by anyone else unless it was her.

And there isn’t a soul left alive capable of nullifying my magic.

She gave a firm, resolute shake of her head.

“You think you can brush me off with just a few trinkets? Do you really take the Tiony household for being that pathetic?”

“Then name whatever it is you truly desire.”

Lorenzo asked with a composed, leisurely expression, fully convinced she was about to use this as leverage to demand marriage or something equally burdensome.

“I want to go to the Wizard’s Tower.”