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Chapter 17
“What is this laurel wreath?”
“His Majesty the Emperor bestowed it upon you, saying he has great expectations for you!”
“…Pardon?”
Beneath the wreath was written:
[Congratulations on the Appointment of Lord Aldehyde’s Exclusive Mage!]
It wasn’t like handing out congratulatory towels for a shop opening or anything…
“Right now, I mean—”
“Lord Aldehyde has appointed Lady Lirier as his exclusive mage!”
At that moment, Namia—who had been grinding her teeth quietly beside us, trying to erase her presence—shouted in a shrill voice.
“You said there would never be an exclusive appointment!”
“Hm? Well, one just happened.”
I said it quite seriously, but her face crumpled as if she’d bitten into something foul.
“Tch. Damn unlucky.”
Leaving behind a line worthy of a third-rate villain, Namia stormed off.
Paul and Rend looked at me and spoke gravely.
“You defeated Miss Namia with such clear eyes.”
“Seriously impressive. Is this what it takes to become an exclusive?”
Thinking that I’d like to defeat Aldehyde as well, I blurted out a question.
“…But what exactly do you mean by ‘exclusive’?”
“You didn’t expect it either! You’re officially his exclusive now! He’s given his approval!”
After that, still dazed, I found myself seated on a golden chair inside the Ability Stabilization Office’s Exclusive Mage Room.
Watching Paul and Rend—both practically vibrating with excitement—I sank into deep dismay.
What? If I’m exclusive, doesn’t that mean we’re way too close?
My goal had been to observe from a distance, but Aldehyde had suddenly closed the gap in one big stride.
What if my identity gets exposed at this rate?
My face turned pale as countless complicated thoughts swirled through my mind.
But they seemed to interpret my expression differently.
“Ah, are you disappointed you couldn’t form an imprint?”
“……”
No. If I formed an imprint, I’d be completely screwed.
“It’s a shame your resonance rate isn’t high enough for imprinting, but it’s still a great thing!”
“You’re the very first exclusive of that Lord Aldehyde, after all!”
“And His Majesty’s expectations are sky-high!”
With Rend and Paul murmuring on either side of me like surround sound, my thoughts began to feel numb.
Well, if I change my perspective… maybe this really is a good thing.
An exclusive who can’t imprint due to a mere 5% resonance rate—that might not mean we’re that close.
At the very least, I can observe him more closely than others. And if Aldehyde ever does something bad, I can quietly stop it.
Nodding, I looped the laurel wreath over my arm.
“Then, before I start working in earnest, I’d like to learn more about Lord Aldehyde…”
I smiled brightly, my eyes curving. Asking about one’s superior is the most basic thing a newcomer does—no one would find it suspicious.
All right, Aldehyde.
Now let’s calmly listen to the rumors about you from those closest to you.
* * *
“Oh? You want to know about Lord Aldehyde? Sure, why not! I’ll give you a nice, clean summary.”
“Yes.”
I swallowed hard and pulled out my notepad and quill.
The Imperial Knights’ cafeteria.
A place filled with knights and stabilization mages.
“In a word, Lord Aldehyde is a mad dog. Once he bites, he never lets go.”
Yeah. He really was a complete lunatic.
“So… you’re saying he slaughtered a thousand monsters at once?”
“Yep. He completely lost it when he heard they’d laid a hand on a little girl.”
“Huh…”
I could understand the trigger for his rage, yet somehow not understand it at the same time.
“If I had to be precise, he’s a righteous mad dog? Something like that.”
Since when did righteous mad dog even make sense as a phrase?
Still, with so many eyes on the Knights, he probably mostly acted in the name of justice.
Feeling uneasy, I changed the subject.
“Then does he have any other activities in his daily life? Hobbies, maybe?”
“Hobbies? Hmm… honestly, it feels like monster extermination is his hobby.”
A mad dog who grows killer flowers and massacres monsters as a hobby—yet, astonishingly, with a side of positive influence.
No matter how I thought about it, this was far beyond the bounds of my common sense.
Then Paul grinned.
“I think we’ve learned enough about Lord Aldehyde for now.”
It felt more like I’d simply reconfirmed that Aldehyde was insane.
I looked at Paul with a strange expression, but he didn’t seem to catch the meaning behind my gaze and casually changed the topic.
“Now, let me explain the work you’ll be doing alongside Lord Aldehyde.”
“Yes.”
“Lord Aldehyde doesn’t work in the afternoons. His schedule is completely empty then.”
“Oh, I see.”
“So your duties are basically mornings only. You can rest in the afternoons.”
“Understood. But what does Lord Aldehyde do in the afternoons that—”
“Ah, that? I don’t know either. He just requests that his schedule be cleared.”
“I see.”
I answered obediently, but my doubts only grew.
What is it? What on earth does he do that his schedule is cleared at the same time every day?
Something smells off. Extremely off!
* * *
That afternoon.
While everyone wondered what Aldehyde did with his time, he left the palace with military precision.
An undertaking just as important as investigating whether Lirier was his sister or not.
That was—
Enrolling in <Lady Dalia Blair’s Perfect Aegyo Class>!
I absolutely can’t be late.
The motivation behind all of Aldehyde’s actions is astonishingly simple.
Naturally, it’s to gain the favor of his sister, who loves cute things.
Because the class was so popular that it usually filled up within a minute of opening, he completed his registration through blood, sweat, and tears.
Thus, he arrived at Laric Academy, where <Lady Dalia Blair’s Perfect Aegyo Class> was being held.
The moment he stepped inside, the atmosphere—normally warm and gentle—turned icy, as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over it.
“Um, welcome, everyone, to the aegyo class for becoming a perfectly charming lady—ah…?”
Madam Dalia’s voice faltered mid-sentence.
No wonder—the person who had come to take lessons was anything but ordinary.
A 190-centimeter-tall, heavily muscled knight: Aldehyde.
Without even hiding his face, Aldehyde attended the class of Dalia, author of the bestseller <Aegyo Lessons>.
Since his exploits were frequently covered in the newspapers, the students recognized him at a glance.
“Am I seeing things? That’s… Lord Aldehyde, right?”
“Why on earth is he here…?!”
Meanwhile, he sat in the very front row, staring at Dalia with a demeanor that suggested he knew no such thing as embarrassment.
“Aren’t you starting the class?”
At that, everyone fell silent.
After more than thirty seconds of silence, Miss Dalia finally asked the question no one else dared to voice.
“Um…”
“What.”
“M-May I ask why you’re… here?”
“To become a true man.”
“…?”
The students glanced at Aldehyde, seated on a frilly pink chair, with baffled expressions.
The capital’s indifferent killing reaper.
A man who could cut down even the strongest monsters in a single strike.
The demon who manipulated the puppet emperor…
A man burdened with countless eerie and terrifying titles had come in all seriousness to attend an aegyo class.
Miss Dalia unconsciously voiced a rebuttal.
“If your goal is to become a true man, wouldn’t it be better to attend a different class? Knights usually say aegyo is beneath their dignity—”
“My dignity won’t die over something as trivial as aegyo. If a lady wants it, then I should perform cute antics and act charming.”
“G-Gasp…”
At Aldehyde’s firm reply, the atmosphere among the ladies—who had never once considered such a notion—fell instantly silent.
“Why? A man who can’t do what a lady wants isn’t a true man.”
