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Chapter 18
At a time when there were barely any magic-users left in the Kingdom of Diares, the Ministry of Magic made a strict announcement:
- Starting today, all magic-users in the kingdom must register.
- Anyone suspected of having magic powers must report to the Ministry within 24 hours.
- Anyone who had shown powers before today must register within a week.
- Anyone who breaks these rules will be fined 200 gold coins.
Of course, Riana didn’t register.
If she got caught, there would be no excuse. She would have to pay the fine.
And there was no way she was going to give up 200 hard-earned gold coins to a country that hadn’t done anything for her.
“…Anyway.”
As long as she didn’t get caught, it was fine.
“Congrats on breaking the lock, but are you going to just stand there?”
A pair of red eyes blinked under a mess of curly black hair. The boy was still tied up.
“Ah…”
Riana hesitated for a moment.
Honestly, this guy was destined to escape even without her help. Helping him now might even slow down his growth.
‘But I need to survive first.’
She couldn’t afford to become his enemy right now.
“I’ll free you, so help me out a bit.”
His eyes narrowed. He looked annoyed at her hesitation but didn’t argue.
Riana lifted her chin confidently like a stage director.
“I need you to help make it look like we didn’t escape on our own.”
“Why?”
“Well…”
She didn’t want to say, “Because I’m a secret magic-user,” so she just mumbled.
The boy smirked like he’d figured something out.
“You’re hiding your powers, right?”
“…”
“Nobody knows you’re a magic-user. Am I right?”
Of course he figured it out. Typical male lead—his instincts were scary sharp.
‘Whatever. I won’t see him again anyway.’
Riana sighed and gave in.
“Yeah. So help me, okay?”
But instead of agreeing, the boy went silent. Riana started to get nervous under his quiet stare.
“You will help me, right? We’re on the same side now.”
Still no answer. Worried he’d lost his social skills from being locked up too long, she tried coaxing him.
“If I free you, you help me cover things up. Because we’re partners now. Whatever I’m hiding, you’re also—”
“There’s no reason for me to hide anything, though.”
His uncooperative tone made Riana snap a little.
“What, so I’m the only one who has to hide? You’re…”
A bastard child of a duke and a human experiment—he had way more to hide!
‘But I can’t say that out loud. What if he asks how I know?’
Just then, the boy spoke with a testing tone.
“I’m what?”
“Well… you know, it’s just… maybe you should hide too?”
“Hide what, exactly?”
As she fumbled for an excuse, Riana’s quick thinking kicked in.
“Like… that messy outfit of yours!”
The boy looked down at himself.
“Doesn’t look like there’s much to hide.”
“That’s the problem. There’s not enough of it!”
He wore worn-down shorts and a thin vest that didn’t even have buttons. It didn’t do anything to cover him.
The prison was dark, so it wasn’t too bad, but if he went outside where a noble party was going on, people would definitely freak out.
‘Hey, that’s actually a good excuse!’
Riana got bold.
“If you walk out looking like that, people will lose it. This is a noble’s castle, and there’s a party going on.”
“So… if I agree to hide?”
“You help me lock up the three desert people and that maid over there. But try not to kill them.”
“…Fine.”
Once he agreed, Riana carefully stepped behind him. His wrists were torn and bloody from being tied up so long.
Swoosh—
As soon as her magic touched the cuffs, the metal ripped like paper.
“Ah… Finally.”
He stood up tall, stretching his body.
Those two red eyes that had looked up at her before were now looking down from high above. His stare felt dangerous.
Riana’s heart pounded as she nervously asked,
“…You didn’t forget our deal, right?”
“I’m not so dumb I’d forget something from five minutes ago.”
Grumbling, the male lead from the neighboring kingdom left the prison.
Riana quickly followed—but he blocked the doorway with his arm.
“What?”
He frowned at her.
“Hold on.”
“Why?”
He gave her a look and pointed at her clothes.
“This is a noble’s castle, there’s a party going on, and unlike me, you’re dressed for it.”
“…Huh?”
“You’re a noble. Don’t think I didn’t notice.”
“Me?”
…Wow. That’s a new misunderstanding.
‘Well… he’s not wrong.’
She was wearing the dress Killian Droche had gifted her.
‘Say what you want, the duke’s fashion taste is top-tier.’
No need to explain. Once they escaped, she wouldn’t see him again anyway.
So she casually grabbed his arm and stepped forward.
“Surprisingly polite, aren’t you?”
With her other hand, she lifted her dress and stepped over the threshold.
She had no idea just how much trouble that little move would cause.
Later…
As Riana had asked, the boy beat up the three desert people.
Under Riana’s careful guidance, the damage looked perfectly staged.
The leader had a broken spine, and one had a broken foot. The maid had torn-out hair wrapped around her fingers.
One had a broken jaw, and another had a shattered hand.
It all looked like they had fought each other.
‘I still have to report this to the duke…’
Riana quietly slipped out the back of the mansion and looked up at the now-dark sky.
She hadn’t realized how much time had passed.
The party was over.
‘Ugh. I really have to report this properly.’
She could already imagine the questions she’d be asked.
Gulp. Riana swallowed her nerves.
She was alone now. The boy had said, “Good job, later,” and just vanished.
‘You can do this. Just act like it’s a play.’
She fixed her hair and dress and walked forward.
“…So what you’re saying, Miss Riana, is…”
Kim sighed and rubbed his temples.
“You twisted your ankle in the hallway, fell against the wall, and that opened a secret entrance—”
Riana nodded eagerly.
“I’m still not used to high heels!”
“—Then you found this secret place and saw them already there—”
“With weapons! It was so scary!”
“—And then they attacked you and locked you up?”
That part was mostly true.
Still, Riana made her eyes water and added a dramatic touch.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t help more… I passed out right after that.”
She looked into the air with teary eyes, as if she really remembered nothing.
“When I woke up, they were all beaten up like that.”
She pointed to the four unconscious bodies on the floor.
One was the maid who betrayed the duke. The other three were desert smugglers who betrayed their own merchant group.
“Luckily, a key had fallen within my reach. I used it to escape.”
Was the story a bit too dramatic? Time to distract.
Riana casually rubbed the back of her neck.
“Miss Riana, are you hurt?”
Kim gasped as he saw the scratch left by the knife.
And he wasn’t the only one who reacted.
Even Killian, who had been frozen like a statue, widened his eyes when he saw her injury.
He quickly stepped toward her.
As his eyes came closer, Riana looked away just enough to avoid his gaze—and nervously swallowed.
