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Chapter 9
“Serphine Mirabel.”
“……”
“You actually dared to run away while I was gone?”
A cold, mocking smile curled across Roakin’s lips.
His deep violet eyes, burning with anger, locked onto me.
The murderous look in them sent a chill down my spine.
“I didn’t run away…”
As I frantically searched for an excuse, I suddenly remembered the letter I’d left in the Tower Master’s office.
“I left you a letter saying I was taking a vacation. Didn’t you read it?”
“Oh? So it wasn’t running away—it was a vacation?”
“Of course. What kind of person do you think I am…?”
“Hah.”
Roakin let out an incredulous laugh.
“So? Did you enjoy your vacation? Judging by how peacefully you were sleeping, I’d say life has been treating you well.”
Absolutely. I slept wonderfully.
It would have been the perfect vacation… if not for you.
Of course, I wasn’t brave enough to actually say that to the Tower Master.
“What about the Valdeas expedition? Why are you here?”
“It ended, so I came.”
“And how did you find this place?”
“That’s a secret.”
How Roakin had discovered my location was an important issue.
If he could find me, someone else might have as well.
…Do I need to move again?
I’d worked so hard cleaning this house.
I didn’t want to leave it so soon.
As if unaware of my despair, Roakin lightly jumped down from the windowsill and landed gracefully on the floor.
Then he held out his hand.
…And what am I supposed to do with that?
When I simply stared at it, Roakin smiled brightly.
“Now that you’ve enjoyed your vacation, come back with me.”
Just moments ago he’d looked furious.
Now he was smiling like an innocent boy.
Don’t use your handsome face as a weapon.
I wasn’t going to be fooled by a smile like that.
This man was my former boss—the one I never wanted to see again, not even in my dreams!
…Even so, against my better judgment, I found myself admiring just how ridiculously handsome he was.
I barely managed to pull myself together.
Then, all of a sudden, a magic circle began forming beneath our feet.
I recognized it immediately.
A teleportation circle.
Judging by its size, it definitely wasn’t meant for just one person.
His intentions couldn’t have been more obvious.
“Roakin. I’m not going.”
At that moment, a tiny crack appeared in his perfectly composed expression.
Ignoring it, I continued firmly.
Come to think of it, this wasn’t even my workplace.
It was my house.
There was no reason for me to give in.
“Please leave. It’s rude to break into someone’s house in the middle of the night.”
“Rude? You’re really going to say that? You’re the one who threw me a single letter and disappeared.”
The smile had vanished completely from Roakin’s face.
“That’s no way to repay someone who’s helped you, Serphine.”
The curtains suddenly began flapping so violently they looked ready to tear off the rod.
There was no way the wind outside had suddenly become that strong.
The obvious culprit was the sulking man standing in front of me.
Ah… I worked so hard putting those curtains up…
At this rate he’d destroy everything in my house.
When the fierce wind finally died down, I spoke again.
“Of course I’m grateful. But I’ve done more than enough already.”
“With only three years?”
He scoffed.
“Not even close.”
“It may have been three years on the calendar, but considering how much work I did, it felt more like ten.”
I wasn’t denying everything the Magic Tower had done for Serphine.
It had been the only place willing to accept someone whose magic was considered too weak.
But that was one thing.
I had my own life to live.
Only by leaving the Magic Tower could I even try to change my fate.
“Serphine… I still need you.”
Roakin looked at me with pleading eyes.
Just how much more does he plan to make me work?
“Roakin… I’m not coming back.”
My firm refusal drew a slow sigh from him.
He dismissed the teleportation circle, then casually walked into the room and sat on the sofa with one leg crossed over the other.
A snap of his fingers echoed through the room.
Immediately, everything became as bright as daylight.
A floating orb of yellow light hovered in the air.
The sudden brightness made me squint.
He had barged into my house in the middle of the night and was now turning on the lights without permission.
The nerve of this man…
Just calm him down and send him home.
Suppressing my irritation, I climbed out of bed, wrapped a shawl around my shoulders, and stood before him.
“I’ve been thinking about it.”
Roakin absentmindedly tapped his fingers against the table as he spoke.
“I really don’t understand why you’re leaving me.”
He paused.
“…Is it because there’s too much work?”
I had thought he’d never cared.
Apparently he’d been thinking about it quite seriously.
Well… even if his personality is awful, he isn’t the type to completely ignore other people.
To be fair, I had insisted on quitting without giving him a proper reason.
Maybe I was partly responsible for this situation.
“That’s part of it. The workload has been overwhelming, and I think I really need a break.”
I was simply telling the truth.
Both I, who had literally worked myself to death in my previous life…
…and Serphine, who had been buried under endless work at the Magic Tower…
Needed rest.
“You should’ve said so.”
Roakin answered without hesitation.
“From now on, only work as much as you want.”
“…What?”
“What about my salary?”
“I’ll keep paying you the same.”
He shrugged.
“Does that solve the problem?”
That’s an amazing dea—
No! What kind of ridiculous proposal is that?!
For a split second, I was genuinely tempted.
Honestly…
Aside from the impossible workload, the job wasn’t bad.
The pay was excellent.
Room and board were included.
I even had my own private office.
Sure, my boss had a terrible personality…
But he was away most of the time anyway.
…He’s actually good at negotiating.
Feeling myself getting pulled into his pace, I quickly came up with another excuse.
“A-And… the food is terrible.”
It was a rather weak excuse.
But it wasn’t exactly false.
Good employee benefits always started with good meals.
Unfortunately, the Magic Tower’s food was genuinely awful.
Mages overflowing with mana rarely felt hungry.
As a result, no one at the Magic Tower cared much about meals.
The food was always disappointing.
“That’s… an interesting perspective.”
Roakin, a perfect example of someone who never experienced hunger because of his enormous magical power, nodded thoughtfully.
“Perhaps I should replace the head chef.”
Please don’t take this seriously…
“If you’d like, I can hire chefs from the Imperial Palace.”
“No! That’s not necessary!”
Seeing him sincerely consider such an absurd excuse, I hurried to stop him.
“Roakin. You can just hire another secretary, can’t you? There are countless mages far more capable than me. I’m sure you’ll find the right person.”
“Not yet.”
His expression grew strangely serious.
“Not yet.”
Then explain why!
I was getting so frustrated I could scream.
My original plan had been simple.
Leave the Magic Tower.
Live quietly.
Spend my days experimenting with potions.
Who could have guessed the Tower Master would react like this?
Thankfully I’d escaped before it was too late.
If I’d stayed long enough to receive the Empress’s request…
…I didn’t even want to imagine it.
“Why does it have to be me? Tower Master… why are you doing this to me?”
I finally blurted it out.
At least I wanted an explanation.
Roakin flinched slightly at my raised voice.
After a long silence, he finally answered.
“My familiar only eats the food you make.”
“…What?”
…That’s it? That’s the reason?
The corners of my mouth twitched as I struggled to keep myself from saying something I’d regret.
“You should see Lucifer.”
Roakin looked completely serious.
“He’s gotten so thin because he won’t eat. It’s pitiful.”
Now even the cat was joining in.
Honestly.
Would it really kill him to eat food from someone else?
I’d always thought Lucifer and his master worked together suspiciously well.
I suppose that was why they were master and familiar.
“Just leave him alone.”
I crossed my arms.
“If he gets hungry enough, he’ll eat.”
“I’m disappointed, Serphine.”
Roakin sighed dramatically.
“I never thought you were this heartless.”
I couldn’t believe I was arguing about cat food.
At this rate, the stubborn Tower Master wasn’t going to leave anytime soon.
Which meant…
I had no choice but to use my last card.
“Fine.”
I took a deep breath.
“I’ll tell you the real reason I want to quit.”
Roakin looked at me.
“I want to find my parents.”
“…Your parents?”
He blinked blankly.
It was exactly the same expression he’d worn when I first handed him my resignation letter.
“So… that’s why you wanted to leave?”
“Yes.”
Of course, I had absolutely no intention of searching for my parents.
They had never been part of my life.
I didn’t miss them.
And I seriously doubted some insignificant villain’s side character secretly had an incredible birth mystery.
Besides…
How was I supposed to find people I had no memories or information about?
I hadn’t wanted to use this excuse because I hated receiving pity.
But with a reason like this…
Surely even Roakin wouldn’t continue forcing me to stay.
“…I see.”
Knowing part of Serphine’s past, he spoke quietly.
…Did it work?
I felt a little guilty.
Still…
If he’d accepted it this easily, maybe I should’ve used this excuse from the beginning.
“If you find your parents…”
He looked straight into my eyes.
“Will you come back then?”
I hesitated for a moment.
Then I nodded.
“Yes.”
Right now, my priority was simply convincing him to leave.
Besides…
I had no intention of searching for my parents.
That meant I could keep using that excuse to buy myself time.
“But…”
Roakin asked carefully,
“What if you can’t find them?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll do your best, of course.”
His voice was unusually gentle.
“But… what if, in the end, you never meet them? Would you still come back?”
For a moment, I worried he’d use that against me and insist I return immediately.
The reason I couldn’t dismiss the possibility was simple.
Roakin was more serious than I’d ever seen him.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of his usual teasing.
Feeling uneasy, I slowly nodded.
“…I will.”
“Good.”
At last, Roakin smiled with satisfaction.
“Then I’ll leave for today.”
He stood up.
“But don’t forget your promise.”
The moment he rose to his feet…
Darkness swallowed my vision.
When I opened my eyes again…
Roakin was already gone.
