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~Chapter 60~
Aisha came in with her hair completely tangled and not even fixed, standing in the bedroom doorway and looking inside.
But the emperor was nowhere to be seen, and the head lady-in-waiting blocked her way.
Having seen this kind of rudeness from Aisha more than once, the head lady-in-waiting looked utterly fed up.
“His Majesty is asleep. Please come back another time.”
“It’s urgent.”
“I know it’s not urgent.”
“Listen—The Grand Duke is monopolizing all the talent!”
“So it’s not urgent.”
“It is urgent! At this rate, my disciple will die!”
At that, the previously indifferent head lady-in-waiting’s expression shifted in surprise.
“You have a disciple?”
Who was Aisha Eblain?
She was born a commoner but earned the emperor’s favor through her own skill, rising to the rank of countess.
Naturally, she had great pride in her magical abilities. But unlike other high-ranking mages who trained successors, she had never taken a single disciple.
Was it because no one wanted to be her disciple? No—quite the opposite.
Many mages hoped to be chosen by Aisha, but…
[Don’t act up when you have no skill. If you go around calling yourself a genius, I’ll kill you myself.]
[Did you think I’d praise you just because you can throw a few fireballs? There are dozens like you.]
[I told you, you have to spread your mana like this! How many times do I have to explain? It’d be easier to turn a frog into a mage than teach you!]
No matter who it was—whether they were called a once-in-a-century genius—she would insult them and drive them away.
And now suddenly she had a disciple?
‘What kind of monster did she pick up, and why would the Grand Duke be the one to take them?’
It was all nonsense, but—
“Then, if you tell me your disciple’s name, I can…”
Even if the situation didn’t make sense, the response was obvious: pass the information to His Majesty later.
But before the head lady-in-waiting could finish, she suddenly spun around in alarm.
“What, His Majesty isn’t here?”
Aisha was already inside the bedroom, rudely rummaging through the empty bedding.
“His Majesty left on official business.”
“You know it’s the middle of the night, right?”
“….”
The head lady-in-waiting shut her mouth tight.
“Where did he go? If it’s official, you should know.”
Aisha’s blunt questioning hit right at the sore spot.
“So you don’t know either, right? Well, what reason would he have to go out alone at night, leaving behind even his most loyal aide?”
Aisha chuckled and held up a letter in her hand.
“Unless he ran away from home.”
I will go clean up the Empire. That is all you need to know.
An hour ago, the emperor had secretly tossed that letter into his bedroom before leaving.
Realizing that she now held evidence of the emperor’s “runaway” that would be disastrous if revealed, the head lady-in-waiting reached to snatch it away, but failed.
“Give that here!”
“Don’t be stingy. You want him back quickly too, right?”
Since His Majesty’s health wasn’t good—
When the head lady-in-waiting fell quiet again, Aisha smoothed the slightly crumpled paper.
“Don’t worry. For now, I’m on your side. I have something to say to His Majesty too. So I’ll bring him here. You just… watch.”
Magic spread from Aisha’s fingertips, sweeping over the letter and the lingering aura of the emperor in the room.
Following the traces like footsteps, she soon found a concentrated point of energy.
“So here you are, Your Majesty.”
Aisha opened her eyes and smiled.
A swordswoman and a mage—just the two of us—took down all the guards at the slave auction and seized it.
‘When she said there were 200 enemies, I thought it was insane. I thought it was impossible.’
But it worked.
Isabel had done exactly as she boasted—fighting like a one-person army. Each swing of her sword dropped enemies left and right, knocking out dozens more.
It wasn’t just her sword skill that impressed me—it was the way she understood my abilities after only seeing them today and gave precise support instructions.
[See that? Archers on the right building roof. If we don’t take them out first, it’ll be trouble. I’ll cover the front, so you take them out.]
[Hit the one diagonally left—he’s about to pull a dagger.]
[I saw earlier you can freeze any water, right? There’s a puddle over there, ankle-deep. It’s shallow, but you could freeze all their feet if you time it right. Can you do it?]
We divided our roles, trusted each other, and did our parts.
It was my first time in life cooperating with someone—especially a stranger—and I had to admit, it was different… even a little interesting.
‘But exhausting.’
I had never used this much magic in one night before.
It felt like my limits were being tested. I was forcing myself to stay standing, my legs shaking.
‘It can’t just be me feeling like this.’
I looked at Isabel.
Her hair was plastered to her face with sweat and blood. She was breathing hard, but her eyes still scanned the surroundings without missing anything.
Even in exhaustion, she kept her composure.
“Be careful. Some of them might be faking being unconscious.”
“Right. Have you done this kind of thing a lot?”
“Pretty often. I liked playing hero since I was a kid.”
“That’s a very unproductive game. Your parents must have hated it.”
“Hahaha!”
She stopped walking and laughed.
“Sorry to disappoint, but they liked it. Taking down bad guys is pretty honorable—it even counts as military merit.”
“Were you a noble, by any chance?”
“Do I seem like one? I’ll take that as a compliment.”
I shook my head.
“So you weren’t.”
“Right. Hey, instead of leaving, help me tie these guys up.”
“That’ll take forever. Wouldn’t it be better to run before they wake up?”
“Better help. If I tie them alone, they’ll wake up halfway, and then they’ll tell everyone what you look like.”
“Damn.”
It was the pettiest kind of blackmail I’d ever heard, but annoyingly, it was also true.
So I picked up a rope and stood beside her.
“You seem used to working with mages. Have you met many besides me?”
“It comes with the job. Ah, done. Told you it’d be quick.”
“Uh… congratulations?”
“Thanks. But leaving already?”
As I was untying the horses from the carriage, she suddenly spoke urgently.
“Stay a while. At least tell me your name.”
Every word was laced with heavy breathing—not the kind from earlier fighting.
“Why all of a sudden?”
She had been fine moments ago, but now she was sitting on the ground, breathing hard.
The darkness hid her face, but I could see her hunched body trembling.
“Stay… please. If I saved your life, then value mine too…”
“I don’t know how to save people.”
“I know. Healing mages are rare. They shorten their own life to heal others, so they don’t show up often. Just wait until my companions arrive. That’s all.”
“…You have companions?”
Then why keep me here?
Feeling like I’d been tricked, I glared at her. She gave a weak laugh.
“They’re… coming to catch me.”
…Should I even be here?
“Don’t worry. They’re not coming to hurt me. They’re just overprotective. If I so much as cough, they make a fuss. But listen—It’s a waste of national power for someone as skilled as me not to work for the Empire. A cold will go away with a few days in bed.”
“To me, it doesn’t seem like a cold—”
“Your Majesty!”
Just then, a loud voice shouted from far away.
‘Your Majesty?’
