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Chapter 14
Miti rolled her eyes around and avoided answering.
But the Count stubbornly waited for her reply, so she reluctantly opened her mouth.
“N-No.”
“Then please endure the discomfort for a little longer. The bleeding still hasn’t stopped properly.”
“……”
Instead of answering, Miti gave a small nod.
At that, the Count’s hand pressed a little more firmly.
“I’m glad it didn’t stain your clothes. If a lady returned home covered in blood, the whole household would have caused an uproar.”
“Is that supposed to be a joke?”
Miti’s gaze wandered as she tried to figure out the Count’s intention.
She could not tell whether he was trying to ease the awkward atmosphere or whether he was genuinely relieved.
Without realizing it, she wiped her sweaty palms against her skirt and swallowed nervously.
Even while avoiding his eyes, she could still feel the Count staring directly at her.
“I apologize.”
“Huh……?”
At the sudden apology, Miti finally gathered enough courage to look at him.
She felt like she needed to see his face directly to understand what he was feeling.
But the Count still wore the same unreadable expression.
“I didn’t think you would get angry enough to have a nosebleed.”
“What?”
Miti’s face twisted instantly at his words.
Seeing her reaction, the corner of the Count’s lips loosened slightly.
“Is he picking a fight again even now?”
Without thinking, Miti aimed her tightly clenched fist at the Count’s side.
But once again, the Count was faster.
He simply moved his elbow and blocked her punch.
Her fist missed its target and dropped helplessly downward.
“The nosebleed stopped.”
“……”
“And your attack failed too.”
A smooth curve formed on the Count’s lips.
Miti’s trembling lips pressed tightly together.
It seemed the Count had already mastered the art of teasing people.
“Seriously, he’s so annoying!”
The Count removed the handkerchief stained with blood and returned to his seat.
Then he crossed his long legs on purpose and calmly drank his tea.
“I’ve been thinking carefully about something.”
“About what? About how to annoy me?”
“Well… I won’t deny it. Teasing you is rather entertaining.”
The Count smiled brightly.
He seemed fully aware that his smile irritated her.
“Although continuing to joke around with you like this is entertaining in its own way, we’re both busy people. Wouldn’t it be better for both of us if we got to the main point quickly and parted ways?”
“If you didn’t keep provoking people and talking in circles, we could’ve parted ways long ago.”
“The thing you mentioned before, about never learning magic.”
Ignoring Miti’s complaint, the Count suddenly brought up the main topic.
The sudden change in subject was abrupt, but Miti decided to quietly listen first.
“Yes, so what about it?”
“I don’t think your family was completely unaware of your mana.”
The Count spoke while hooking a long finger through the handle of his teacup.
“Society does not look kindly upon female mages. So I thought perhaps they intentionally chose not to teach you magic.”
Unfortunately, the Count’s deduction was wrong.
But it was understandable. Who would ever think someone’s soul had changed?
It was much more reasonable to assume her family had intentionally suppressed her talent.
“They probably wouldn’t suddenly allow something they had opposed for years. Especially Mrs. Sestol seems to prefer very traditional and old-fashioned ideals for women. I noticed your freedom is quite restricted.”
“……How do you know that?”
she asked flatly.
“I heard it from a maid of the Sestol family. I bought the information with money.”
“What?”
“Ah. Don’t worry. I didn’t ask anything strange.”
The Count spoke as though comforting a child.
“How am I supposed not to worry when people spill secrets for just a little money?”
More than anything, Miti was shocked that he had bribed a maid just to investigate the atmosphere of her household.
Her feelings clearly showed on her face.
Of course, the Count did not care in the slightest.
“So, I thought I might specially offer you a little help in joining the Magic Tower.”
“Then why not just help me? Why keep picking fights with people?”
“Hmm… just because?”
The Count smiled shamelessly and shrugged.
Miti became so speechless at the ridiculous answer that she forgot what to say.
“I seriously want to punch him.”
She glared fiercely at the Count.
But the Count calmly continued sipping his tea as though he could not even see her burning gaze.
After drinking enough tea, the Count set down his cup.
Then he reached inside his coat and pulled out a square card.
“Take this.”
“What is it?”
“It’s the business card of someone who can help you.”
She flipped the card back and forth.
On the front of the thick white paper was a simple name and address.
It was so plain it could barely even be called a business card. Even the surname had been omitted.
Quietly, she read the name aloud.
“……Andelson.”
“He’s a trainee from the Magic Tower whom I sponsor.”
“How is a trainee supposed to help me?”
“You need the right to freely enter the Magic Tower, don’t you? If you want to qualify for special admission, you’ll need access to the enormous amount of materials the Magic Tower possesses.”
“Ah.”
A short sound of realization escaped her lips.
The Count was right.
Having a way to freely enter the Magic Tower would make everything much easier.
“Before visiting, send a letter to that address. The Magic Tower has a system that automatically delivers letters inside its grounds, so anyone can send one at any time. Once you contact him, he’ll help you enter the Tower.”
“……Alright.”
It felt like the conversation was already over, yet the Count continued staring at her instead of leaving.
“……?”
Miti waited for a moment, wondering if he still had something else to say.
But he remained silent.
“What is it? Why are you staring at me like that?”
“Do you perhaps have something to say to me?”
“Something to say?”
“Yes.”
Count Kirchhoff’s eyes briefly glanced toward the card in her hand.
Naturally, her own gaze followed.
“Ah.”
Miti finally realized why the Count had not stood up yet.
He was waiting for her to thank him.
“Well… I did receive help from him after all.”
A simple thank-you was not difficult.
Thinking it would be best to thank him quickly and just go home, she opened her lips.
“Th…….”
“Th-This is the least you should do for me anyway!”
At that moment, her eyes met the Count’s in midair.
Her face instantly turned red, and instead of thanking him, she shouted loudly and jumped to her feet.
Even after Minachelti stormed away angrily, Renern remained seated for quite a while.
“This is the least you should do for me anyway!”
The memory of her stammering before suddenly shouting made the corners of his lips relax.
Her tone had been shameless, yet her face had been red enough to explode.
“She really looks like a bad-tempered sparrow someone stretched out by hand.”
After casually finishing his lukewarm tea, he stood up.
Right then, Renern’s aide came up to the second floor.
“I escorted Miss Sestol safely.”
“Good work.”
“Shall we return to the estate?”
“No.”
“To the Imperial Palace?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll immediately send notice of your arrival.”
His capable and quick subordinate disappeared downstairs again.
Renern slowly left the café without rushing.
The weather was pleasantly bright.
The moment he climbed into the prepared carriage, he crossed his arms and lightly leaned his head against the window.
“I suppose it’s time to pressure them about permission to enter the restricted area.”
Against the clear blue sky, the image of a blackened and ruined territory overlapped in his mind.
The mansion collapsing like crushed cake.
The warmth pressing heavily down on his body.
And the horrible screams that could never be compared to any living creature.
That day that had left him completely alone in the world—a nightmare in the truest sense.
Vile hyenas had crowded around, eager to tear apart a fallen young bird.
He had struggled desperately not to let them take anything from him.
And yet, in the end, there were still many things he had lost.
“That woman can do it.”
Minachelti was the fastest hope for getting those things back.
“She’s smart, talented, and even entertaining.”
As Renern replayed every conversation he had shared with Minachelti, a smile appeared on his lips.
“Now that I think about it, I forgot to set a deadline for when she should join.”
Renern thought he should send a letter to the Sestol family as soon as he returned home.
Just imagining how angry Minachelti would become after receiving another one-sided notice from him was amusing enough.
“It would be nice if she even sent a reply.”
Tap. Tap.
His fingers tapped rhythmically against the carriage window.
“Maybe I should tell her to send a reply too.”
Thinking about the letter he would send her, Renern quietly closed his eyes.
