I couldn't take my eyes off Peril’s face for a moment. Then he gave a small laugh and waved his hand in front of me.
“Still feels like a dream? We said we’d meet again here.”
“……”
“I came to keep the promise.”
Only then did the surrounding scenery come into view. Inside the auction house, I could see people who still hadn’t woken up from sleep.
I glanced absentmindedly at Ricardo sitting beside me. His forehead was drenched in cold sweat, as if he were having a nightmare.
…This is why I told him to go ahead first.
“There’s a magic circle installed around the auction house.”
“Yeah, Lily went through quite a bit of trouble. Thanks to that, I had a hard time too.”
His voice was laced with sarcasm.
“L-Lady Lily is……”
I was about to take his side, thinking it was for his sake, but closed my mouth. No matter how I thought about it, it felt like a pointless act.
Just as my lips moved for no reason, Peril quietly began to speak.
“Still, thanks to that, I found the answer.”
I just blinked at the cryptic words. Then he playfully pinched my cheek.
What a treatment to receive from the magpie I helped.
I sighed inwardly.
“Is this in place of a thank you?”
“I like how quick-witted you are.”
Peril smiled as he let go of my cheek. Rubbing my tingling cheek, I stood up following him.
“Aren’t you going to wake the others?”
I couldn’t just leave Ricardo like this.
No sooner had I spoken than Peril shot a cold glare at him.
Not even an enemy would be looked at like that!
“C-Could you ease up a little with your eyes?”
“No.”
So firm.
Intimidated by his decisiveness, I chose to rephrase.
“……Everyone will wake up soon anyway, is it really okay to stay here?”
“You should worry about yourself first.”
A chiding voice came back. His eyes looking at me flickered with an unreadable heat.
When I tilted my head, he avoided my gaze.
Moments later, Peril flicked his fingers lightly. Then, crumbling light poured into the once dark interior of the auction house.
“……!”
Startled, I grabbed Peril, but he merely brushed off my hand as if to say not to worry.
“I don’t intend to ask you to take care of the aftermath.”
What on earth is he thinking?
Peril’s gaze passed me and went to the back.
“Why don’t you sleep a bit more.”
For some reason, I grew uneasy, and when I turned around, I saw Ricardo frozen stiffly.
“There’s no need to get up unnecessarily.”
But Ricardo brushed off Peril’s words.
“We should head back now.”
Contrary to his words, his gaze scanned me thoroughly. It was intense enough to make me uncomfortable.
“You might be hurt somewhere, so first……”
“When do you plan on using your great mage, then.”
Peril pulled me toward him. Warmth spread from the spot where we touched. Then, light began to seep from his hand as it moved to my forehead.
“Have a peaceful night.”
“Th-Thank you.”
Feeling oddly awkward, I hesitated, and Peril gave a soft smile with his eyes. His demeanor felt different from usual, and my eyes darted nervously.
“Earlier, you made a promise.”
“Y-Yes?”
“Keep it.”
I nodded cautiously. Only then did Peril smile with satisfaction.
“I am your mage.”
His hand moved from my forehead to my hair. It was a delicate touch, as if handling something precious.
My hair slipped through his fingers.
Just as Peril leaned in to kiss the ends—
“……!”
Ricardo stepped in between us.
“Isn’t that a bit much for a treatment?”
“What does a man who only knows how to swing a sword know about magic……”
Peril’s words were laced with mockery.
“How dare you block the way of a great mage.”
“I remember that ‘great’ mage once asked if we looked like lovers. Seems he’s too old to remember that now.”
Peril was smiling, but anyone could see he was furious. But only for a moment—he let out a small laugh.
“If not for me, this child wouldn’t have even thought of meeting you.”
Ricardo’s eyes dimmed. But I was just as shaken by those words.
“At the ball, I had no intention of meeting the duke.”
“Ah, so that’s why you weren’t feeling great that day.”
Ricardo tried hard to maintain his composure.
I never expected to confront that forbidden day like this!
“Oh no, my head……”
At that moment, those who had collapsed in the auction house began to regain consciousness.
“Huh, Tower Master……?”
Then, one by one, they seemed to recognize Peril and began saying his name. Ricardo covered my face with his robe and quickly led me out of the auction house.
Feeling uneasy, I glanced back, only for Ricardo to mischievously press the robe down tighter.
“It was true! The Tower Master really woke up!”
The place buzzed with commotion. Somehow, it felt like I could hear Peril’s mocking laughter from behind.
* * *
“Stop……!”
“……”
“Please stop it already!”
Even though I finally let out the anger I had barely held in, Ricardo still wouldn’t give up.
As if he couldn’t hear me, he kept busy wiping my face with a handkerchief.
“Geez, I said stop it!”
Was he thinking the skin Peril had touched was dirty? He wiped it so thoroughly with the handkerchief.
That wasn’t enough—now even my hair!
“You’re causing static electricity!”
At this rate, I was bound to turn into a lion.
“It’s still not enough.”
Watching his serious rebuttal made me feel like I was the strange one.
“I was treated by a mage, what’s the problem?”
“There are many.”
“Like what.”
“……”
“Huh.”
Even though he was busy avoiding an answer, he grabbed the handkerchief again. When I glared at him, Ricardo reluctantly lowered his hand with a regretful look.
I let out a sigh and stopped walking in front of the Roygin Estate, which we had somehow reached.
‘Come to think of it, after today, I probably won’t see Ricardo anymore.’
Unless it was an official event, we had no further ties.
With that thought, I handed the robe to Ricardo.
“Thanks for today.”
But he didn’t take the robe. After hesitating briefly, he spoke after long deliberation.
“Return it next time.”
I blinked blankly. In that moment, as if he had decided to be shameless, Ricardo spoke more firmly than before.
“As you can see, I don’t have a free hand.”
Though, he couldn’t hide the awkwardness of the hand he was hiding behind his back.
As the silence dragged on, tension overtook his face.
“…Then I’ll come by sometime soon.”
I opened my mouth hesitantly.
“I’ll be waiting.”
His face, once filled with fear, turned bright red.
In that moment, something stirred in a corner of my heart.
* * *
Peril was definitely a great mage.
I had already known that, but I was reminded again through this incident.
‘My body feels too comfortable.’
I had rested well for the past few days. Truly, without dreaming at all.
Before the second auction took place, the necklace had safely been delivered to the Moon’s Shop, and Penny had returned to the underground alley, seemingly busy.
‘Thanks to Peril, even the social circles have been stirred up.’
The imperial family didn’t seem too pleased about Peril’s unannounced appearance.
I stretched and yawned, shaking off the stiffness in my body.
“Young lady, should I bring some tea?”
“No, it’s fine.”
Still, what should I do about that?
Looking at the stack of letters piled up, I couldn’t help but sigh. Seeing that, Emily gave a small smile.
“You’ll want tea after all, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I know you better than anyone! I’ll be right back.”
Hiding my embarrassment, I rummaged through the invitations. Then I spotted one emblem that caught my eye.
As if drawn by something, I picked up the invitation.
…Cardiff Social Club?
On the surface, it imitated a proper social gathering, but it was actually composed of children from families closely connected to the temple.
Like Leon.
Even in the original work, it wasn’t a major presence, and within the social circles, it wasn’t particularly loud or notable, so not much was known about it.
That’s why receiving an invitation from them was surprising.
‘Why would they send me an invitation?’
It’s not like word had spread that I met Brandon.
And the Roygin family isn’t one that traditionally produces priests.
“I’m coming in.”
At that moment, Cedric’s voice came from outside the door.