ITHTJ 28

Chapter : 28

A Relationship That Bothers You (3)

“Then you really wouldn’t have any wishes, would you?”

I answered with a faint, shy smile.

Ash, who had been quietly watching me, reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring.

“This is something my older brother gave me.”

“Your brother?”

“Yes.”

Ash’s face looked a little bitter as he spoke.

‘Now that I think about it, Ash is the second son of Baron Heart.’

What kind of person must his brother be to give such an extraordinary ring?
A ring that seemed like a monstrous object, infused with a huge amount of magical and divine power.

“Actually, I made a huge mistake some time ago,” Ash said, staring at the ring with a contemplative expression.
He gazed for a long time at the ruby inlay that looked exactly like his own red eyes.

“A mistake…?”

It seemed to be a story from when he was a ‘reckless youth.’

‘I’m curious, but should I ask about this?’

Before I could decide, Ash spoke first.

“Yes. Back then, everyone called me a reckless youth. Even I think I wasn’t in my right mind at the time… Now, it’s a memory I’m really ashamed of.”

“I see.”

To think that someone who once was clearly out of control had now become a respectable etiquette teacher—he was a proper example of turning over a new leaf.

“My brother gave me this ring. He told me not to forget the mistakes I had made, to live my life atoning for them, always reflecting on them…”

Ash finished speaking and closed his eyes tightly.

“Of course, it can’t completely erase past wrongs. I never expected it to. It couldn’t, anyway.”

Listening to him confess his past, I felt an unexplainable sense of kinship.
I, too, had once tried to deceive Eclipse.
I had ill intentions before, yes, and now I live properly, regretting past mistakes—just like Ash.

‘Ash and I have a lot in common, in many ways.’

The main difference was that I was employed by my intended target, whereas Ash was not.

“My brother resides at the Temple of Peace. Whenever I see this ring, I remember his stern face scolding me—it’s hard, but…”

Ash said this as he slipped the ring onto the index finger of his right hand.

“It can’t be helped. It’s all my fault.”

It seemed Ash’s brother was a clergyman.
And one with very powerful divine magic.

‘So that’s why the energy from the ring felt so strong.’

It seemed he had infused the ring with his divine power as a way to admonish his younger brother.
Whenever Ash looked at the ring, he would naturally remember the mistakes of his past.

‘With that level of divine power, he must be a high-ranking priest.’

Clearing up that question cleared my head. I asked the last thing I was curious about.

“So, do you always carry that ring with you?”

“Yes. Most of the time I keep it in my pocket rather than wear it. That’s why I sometimes lose it. From now on, I should wear it more often.”

Ash smiled faintly as he showed his right hand. His expression brightened considerably.

“You could have had a servant deliver it, but thank you for bringing it personally. It must have been inconvenient.”

“Nothing to thank me for. With something valuable like this, it’s just more comfortable to deliver it personally.”

“Bloomhier is really kind.”

After a few more brief exchanges with Ash, I returned to my room.
That night, I dreamed of holding a giant “Wallflower” cookie and running around the courtyard in playful competition.

Eclipse slowly unfolded a letter bearing the emblem of the Hearn Mountain Mage Tower.
The long-awaited results of his analysis had finally arrived.

“…What is this…”

Eclipse’s expression gradually grew serious as he skimmed the letter.
The letter only contained a few short lines of text.

[I’ll tell you the results in person. Look in 10 seconds.]

“Jade…”

Silvern, noticing Eclipse’s increasingly dark expression, asked urgently.

“What is it, Your Grace? Is there something wrong with the results?”

“No, nothing like that. It’s just…”

Eclipse’s gaze fell on the magical circle engraved at the bottom of the letter.
He knew very well what this circle meant.

“A guest is coming soon.”

“Excuse me? A guest, you say… Ah.”

At that moment, a magical circle appeared on the floor of the office.
It was identical to the one drawn in the letter.

“Are… you talking about Jade? That he’s coming without notice?”

Unlike the flustered Silvern, Eclipse remained calm.

‘He’s always been like that.’

A moment later, a man appeared at the center of the magic circle, wearing a loose robe carelessly draped over him.
It was Jade, Master of the Hearn Mountain Mage Tower.

“Long time no see. How have you been?”

The man, with snow-white hair, greeted warmly.
Eclipse deliberately did not answer.

“You haven’t changed a bit.”

Jade, as if accustomed to this situation, casually looked around the office.

“How long has it been since I last came here? Quite a while, yet nothing’s changed. And Your Grace is still as stern as ever.”

The sight of his cheeky face made fatigue hit me immediately.
Eclipse exhaled and frowned.

“What brings the Master of the Hearn Mountain Mage Tower here?”

“Honestly, I didn’t plan to come myself… but the results were too interesting to ignore.”

Jade shook a small glass vial in his hand lightly.
The violet powder inside rippled softly.

“I was curious who created such an interesting object. So, I came to see it for myself.”

“…”

The only thing capable of catching this reckless and unpredictable master’s interest was one thing:
an utterly unpredictable research subject.

Jade had always been a carefree idler who lived as he pleased.
The reason he became Master of the Mage Tower was his obsessive dedication to research subjects.

‘And of all things, the subject is Bloomhier.’

It gave me a bad feeling.
I had to find a way to redirect his attention…

“Jade, no matter who you are, showing up unannounced like this is unacceptable.”

“Huh? Unannounced?”

Jade looked genuinely surprised.

“I told you in advance. Right there.”

He flicked his fingers lightly, and the letter in Eclipse’s hand fluttered.

“I said I’d arrive in 10 seconds.”

Where did he get that shameless audacity? Eclipse couldn’t figure it out.
Looking at that slick face made my stomach churn.

‘If only he weren’t so reckless, his reputation would be much better.’

“You survived among those idiotic nobles because of your flexible personality, didn’t you?”

Eclipse had always disliked Jade’s slippery behavior.
Those who hold power should be cautious in all matters, yet such caution was nowhere to be found in him.

“You’re far too stiff, Your Grace.”

Jade chuckled and greeted the stiff-standing Silvern.

“Hello, butler.”

“Greetings, Master Jade.”

Silvern bowed respectfully.
Jade watched him for a moment and shrugged.

“You’re still stiff as ever. The people here never change. Well, I like that.”

He then plopped onto the guest sofa and stretched.

“By the way, where is Miss Lynette? I’d like to see her while I’m here.”

“Miss Lynette… hmm, her history class has just ended.”

Silvern checked Lynette’s schedule and answered promptly.
Jade’s dark violet eyes brightened.

“Is that so? Then ask her to come to the office for a moment…”

At that moment, a knock sounded, and someone entered the office.
It was none other than Lynette.

“Our young lady is something else, really.”

“What? Isn’t that the Mage Tower Master?”

Lynette’s disgusted reaction made Jade’s voice tremble slightly.

“’Master’? You can’t call a man who’s just crossed three digits in age that.”

“Consider yourself lucky I didn’t call you grandfather, Master. Anyway, what brings you here?”

Lynette sat opposite Jade.
Jade tossed the glass vial in his hand into the air and replied.

“I came on some business.”

“Business… with my brother?”

“No.”

Lynette’s gaze fixed on the floating vial in midair.

“What’s that? There’s some sparkling powder inside.”