Chapter 128

“I’ve actually been thinking about this the whole time.”

 

Enria, who had followed a serious-looking Roseanne to a more private spot, widened her eyes at the revelation that Roseanne had been contemplating becoming Hayden’s magic teacher for quite a while.

 

“Now that the God of Evil has been defeated and there are no longer any major threats to the empire, Lord Caldeon will surely proceed with your wedding soon.”

 

At the mention of a wedding, Enria’s face instantly flushed deep red.

 

Roseanne looked at her and smiled tenderly.

 

“It will be a grand wedding, making the long wait worth it. I’m already looking forward to seeing how beautiful you’ll look in a wedding dress.”

 

She added with a small laugh that while she had secretly wanted a joint wedding to further strengthen her bond with Enria, she had let go of that ambition since there had been no significant progress in her own relationship with Tearen.

 

“In any case, once the wedding is over, you will become the formal Grand Duchess Jupiter. That means I, who have been acting as the surrogate Grand Duchess, will have to return to my own home. So, I’ve been thinking of various ways to continue staying here with you and Hayden.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“As of now, there’s only one thing I can do. That’s being Hayden’s magic teacher.”

 

Roseanne continued, explaining that the holy power and black mana Hayden possessed were far beyond the level taught at the Academy, and that Hayden would likely struggle in many ways if he were to study alone. She believed she could teach him the magic he truly needed.

 

“Of course, I will study tirelessly to teach him. Only by never stopping my own learning can I increase the magical knowledge I pass on to him. So, as for any doubts about whether I am qualified to be Hayden’s teacher…”

 

“No, I don’t have a single doubt that you would be a wonderful teacher for him,” Enria said, shaking her head quickly.

 

“I also think it would be so reassuring and lovely to have you continue staying at the castle.”

 

“Really? Thank you for saying that.”

 

Roseanne confessed that she had been a bit anxious, fearing that if she left, Enria might only grow close to Belona.

 

Though Belona had come to stay at the Grand Duchy because of the black mage, even now that the God of Evil was sealed, there wasn’t really any other place for Belona to go.

 

The Magic Tower was currently in a state of internal strife due to the absence of the Tower Master and his successor; thus, it was better for Belona, who couldn’t take a side, to sever ties with the Tower altogether.

 

This was something Rahar was actively working on; thanks to him, Belona would later stay on as a mage affiliated with the Imperial Palace.

 

Though “affiliated with the Palace” was the title, she was essentially a mage who, like Rahar and Roseanne, lived apart from the Tower and worked personally for the Emperor.

 

“Actually, that’s not the only reason… Truthfully, if I return to the Count’s estate, I might not be able to meet Lord Tearen as easily as I do now.”

 

Roseanne gave a bitter smile as she continued.

 

“And my mother would surely bring me matchmaking proposals from every noble son in the empire to get me married off.”

 

“What about dating Lord Tearen with the intention of marriage?” Enria asked cautiously.

 

She felt that rather than just avoiding her parents’ pressure, it might be better if Roseanne and Tearen, who now shared feelings, dated openly with marriage in mind.

 

However, Roseanne shook her head and let out a short sigh.

 

“The household would be turned upside down.”

 

“Because Rahar would oppose it?”

 

In truth, Rahar currently had no idea that Tearen and Roseanne’s feelings were mutual, so it wasn’t as if he was actively rolling up his sleeves to stop them.

 

“It’s not just a problem with my brother.”

 

“Then what? Are your parents dissatisfied with him?”

 

It was understandable that parents with an exceptionally talented daughter might dislike Tearen’s dry view on romance—the type who never chased those who left nor blocked those who came.

 

Furthermore, Roseanne’s parents had spared no effort in trying to make her the Grand Duchess.

 

Of course, considering Tearen held the rank of Marquess and the value of being the empire’s only illusionist, there wasn’t much to find fault with, but it seemed Roseanne’s parents viewed him quite unfavorably.

 

“It’s not so much that they dislike Lord Tearen himself, but rather they dislike illusion magic.”

 

Another short sigh escaped Roseanne’s lips.

 

“Illusion magic?”

 

At Enria’s question, Roseanne nodded.

 

“Yes. They both dislike it, calling it an ability designed to deceive people’s eyes.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“It’s not quite as bad as black magic, which uses human souls as ingredients, but they believe illusion magic is an ability that ought to disappear from the empire.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

“In any case, I plan to persuade them eventually, but right now, my relationship with Lord Tearen hasn’t been clearly defined yet…”

 

Roseanne trailed off with an awkward smile.

 

Come to think of it, even though they both knew they liked each other, they hadn’t officially started dating or told Rahar about their relationship.

 

On the day Roseanne confessed and Tearen reciprocated, they had agreed to put their heads together to figure out how to tell Rahar, but Enria wondered why they had been procrastinating until now.

 

Of course, with the black mage running rampant and the God of Evil being resurrected, they hadn’t exactly had the leisure for such conversations.

 

Enria felt it would be best to talk to Rahar first and take things step by step.

 

“The God of Evil is sealed, and as you said, there won’t be any more dangerous incidents in the empire. Why don’t you talk to Rahar about your relationship first?”

 

“I will. But before I talk to my brother, I need to establish my right to stay at the Grand Duchy.”

 

Roseanne explained that she had to consider a situation where Rahar might resolutely oppose them or tell their parents to separate her from Tearen.

 

If such a situation arose, she needed to be in a position where she couldn’t leave the Grand Duchy because she was Hayden’s magic teacher. Roseanne reiterated that this was why becoming his teacher had to happen first.

 

Hearing this, Enria nodded in full understanding.

 

“Then let’s go to Lord Caldeon and Hayden right now and decide.”

 

Enria urged her to hurry, noting that staying at the castle as a magic teacher required a certificate stamped with the Imperial seal and various other preparations. However, she became flustered when Roseanne looked at her with tearful eyes, expressing both gratitude and apology.

 

“I should be the one thanking you for offering to be Hayden’s teacher. And why are you sorry…?”

 

“Because my reasons for wanting to be Hayden’s teacher aren’t entirely transparent. While my desire to teach him magic is true, the bigger reason is that I want to stay here so I won’t be prevented from seeing Lord Tearen.”

 

Interrupting Enria, Roseanne bowed her head and apologized again, though she vowed she would never neglect her duty to teach Hayden.

 

Enria nodded and told her not to worry about that at all. She stood up and grabbed Roseanne’s wrist.

 

“Let’s go quickly. Strike while the iron is hot.”

 

“Huh? The iron?”

 

Roseanne asked back with a puzzled expression as she was pulled along by Enria’s hand.

 

 

***

 

 

“I don’t particularly mind, but I don’t exactly want to give my blessing either.”

 

After hearing the whole story from Enria, Caldeon spoke with a dissatisfied arch of his brow.

 

“Why not? Hayden needs a magic teacher to learn magic systematically anyway.”

 

“He probably does.”

 

Caldeon agreed that even if Hayden was a fragment of a god, there was a difference between raw power and magic drawn through human-made formulas.

 

“Then why don’t you want to agree?”

 

Roseanne cut in abruptly as soon as Caldeon finished speaking.

 

Caldeon glanced at Roseanne before turning his gaze back to Enria.

 

“Because I feel like the Young Lady of Kaznaren will steal you away from me for too long.”

 

At that, both Enria and Roseanne’s faces contorted in the exact same expression of disbelief.

 

Even Hayden, who had been leaning against Windel on the window sofa playing with Panz’s tail, glanced over at Caldeon’s words.

 

“What on earth…”

 

“Make a promise here first. Then I will gladly give my consent.”

 

“A promise?”

 

“What kind of promise?”

 

While Roseanne asked with an arched brow, Enria also looked at Caldeon with curiosity.

 

Caldeon stared intently at Enria as he began to deliver his answer.

 

“If you promise to limit your meetings with the Young Lady of Kaznaren to once a day, and for exactly two hours, I will gladly put all my effort into making her Hayden’s magic teacher.”

 

“…What?”

 

“No, once a day? And two hours? Where on earth did you get ‘two hours’ from?”

 

Roseanne asked, sounding twice as dumbfounded as Enria. Caldeon replied without the slightest change in expression, his eyes still fixed on Enria.

 

“That is the minimum amount of time I must be away from Enria while attending to urgent business.”

 

“Good heavens, are you saying you intend to be stuck to Enria for the rest of the day?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“How is that ‘of course’? Don’t you have duties? Doesn’t Enri have the work of a Grand Duchess? Do you think the position of Grand Duchess is some child’s play?”

 

Roseanne unleashed a rapid-fire barrage of words, bristling at Caldeon for trying to restrict her time with Enria to just two hours once a day.

 

Caldeon ignored Roseanne entirely and spoke calmly to Enria.

 

“Choose. Either set the meeting times with the Young Lady of Kaznaren as I said and devote all other time to me, or give up on my support.”

 

“Wow, that is truly cold-hearted.”

 

Roseanne let out a hollow laugh, glaring overtly at Caldeon.

 

Enria looked at Roseanne and then back at Caldeon.

 

Seeing his expression—looking as if he might throw a tantrum because he felt she was being taken away—felt strangely fresh and cute to her.

 

She was slightly flustered by the fact that she actually liked his extreme obsession and possessiveness.

 

‘I’ve been tamed too much. Far too much.’

 

Enria suppressed a dry laugh.

 

However, she didn’t hate it, as Caldeon’s obsidian eyes seemed to say that every word he spoke was the absolute truth.

 

After staring at him for a moment, Enria let out a short sigh and spoke.

 

“Alright. Please see to it that Rose becomes Hayden’s magic teacher, Lord Caldeon.”

 

At those words, the corners of Caldeon’s mouth instantly curled into a wide grin.

 

“Leave it to me.”