Meanwhile, Audrey detected danger.

‘…Why is he looking at me like that?’

It was because a strange madness was swirling in his weakly unfocused pupils, so incongruous with his stern appearance.

Like the expression of a starved beast that has prey right before its eyes.

In short, he wasn’t in his right mind.

‘Come on, how much more do I need to do!’

Audrey was about to go crazy with frustration.

People say that watching someone eat voraciously makes even existing affection disappear.

Yet somehow this man seemed to become more intensely entangled with her as time passed.

‘…I can’t give up like this.’

Audrey, feeling unnecessarily stubborn, tried gobbling down the salad too.

Not knowing that even this behavior looked as cute as a rabbit to Derek.

Ding.

Suddenly, Duke Frith rang the bell. A middle-aged man who had been waiting rushed over immediately.

“Is there something unsatisfactory…?”

“I like the salad.”

“Ah! Y-yes, you have exceptional taste indeed. Our restaurant uses only the freshest vegetables harvested from our greenhouse that very day!”

“I see. Bring twenty more plates.”

“T-twenty more plates…? Yes, I’ll prepare them right away!”

“…!”

Audrey’s fork dropped with a clatter.

‘What did I just hear?’

In the world, where would you find someone who orders twenty plates of salad?

It would have made sense if there were a pet elephant tethered among the plants.

But no matter how she looked around, there were only Duke Frith and she herself in this place.

“I’ve ordered plenty, so you can eat slowly.”

“…What?”

“I had no idea you liked salad this much.”

“…!”

Audrey turned pale as if someone were strangling her. She kept clearing her throat involuntarily.

‘D-don’t tell me these are for me?’

Clatter clatter.

“Thank you for waiting. Here are the twenty plates of organic salad you ordered.”

“Perfect timing. This way.”

“Urk…!”

Sure enough. Every single plate of salad was served in front of Audrey without exception.

It seemed that she was the elephant Duke Frith was raising.

***

“Oh, I had this too.”

Arnold had been secluded in the magic tower for a week since his return.

The only thing he did was take out all the letters he had received and read them again.

The small cell was so filled with boxes and letters that there was no room to step.

Knock knock.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me, senior.”

“Kelly?”

“Please open the door. It feels like I haven’t seen you for a billion years.”

“……”

“I brought your favorite cake too.”

Gulp.

Arnold unconsciously swallowed.

Then belatedly came to his senses.

‘Hah! I shouldn’t do this!’

He almost opened the door, tempted by the chocolate cake.

Seclusion was harder than he thought.

“Hmm, I-I don’t need to eat.”

“What?”

“You eat a lot.”

“……”

Kelly’s brow furrowed mercilessly.

‘Refusing chocolate cake? Him?’

She couldn’t understand why he was being so stubborn.

Adding his vacation time, it had been three weeks since she’d seen his face, which was a very serious problem for Kelly.

Even when she couldn’t see him, Arnold must have been handsome every day!

At this rate, she would start experiencing withdrawal symptoms.

“Did Milena pester you for an autograph again?”

“No.”

“Ah! Is it that stupid octopus-head’s doing? Did he praise you three times? I clearly warned him to stop at two…”

“It’s not that either.”

“Then why are you acting like this? It’s been a week and you haven’t come out.”

“Hmm, just. It’s something. A secret.”

“Sigh.”

Kelly was frustrated to the point of going crazy.

She had even brought chocolate cake as her trump card.

‘Tch.’

Today, too, she failed to get him to open the door.

Even when those annoying magicians pestered him, he had never holed up in his room like this.

Just wait until she finds out who’s doing this was.

She absolutely wouldn’t let them get away with it.

“…Are you really not coming out?”

“I said I’m not. Stop coming by. It’s just annoying.”

“You’re being too much. Do you know I can’t concentrate these days because of you?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m saying if my research fails, it’s all your fault!”

“What? Why!”

“If you don’t want to come out, fine. I’ll be going now.”

Feeling hurt, Kelly immediately turned around.

But she stopped after barely five steps.

“…Hah.”

The cake box in her hand was weighing on her mind.

Reluctantly, she turned back and headed to Arnold’s door again.

“At least eat the cake. I’ll leave it in front of the door.”

“……”

“I miss you, so please come out tomorrow. Now I’m really leaving.”

Kelly’s shoulders were visibly drooping.

Her trudging footsteps toward the research wing were equally lacking in energy.

Not only that, but her neatly tied-up hair seemed unusually heavy today.

‘This is all because I can’t see senior’s face.’

It had been three weeks since she lost the meaning of life. Kelly was going through hell.

“Kelly!”

“Mr. Bark.”

“Could it be, could it be! Wahah!”

A magician who had been dispatched from Duke Frith’s castle covered his mouth and made a fuss.

His eyes, darting between her and the dormitory, were clearly not in their right mind.

‘…Here we go again.’

It was a very familiar scene in the magic tower.

“Did you, by any chance, just meet Arnold?”

“Yes. More precisely, I left without even seeing his face. Just talked-.”

“My goodness! Aaaaah! To think I could meet Arnold! Waaah!”

“……”

Bark couldn’t contain his joy and stomped his feet.

Though Bark was two years older, age didn’t matter to magicians.

‘He’s going to be the next tower master! To think I could research with such a person, my goodness!’

He had heard rumors about the next tower master.

Though somewhat eccentric, his skills were said to be the best in history.

It was rare for the typically reclusive magicians to show such interest and enthusiasm for someone.

‘Your Grace, thank you! Thank you!’

Bark felt renewed gratitude toward his lord, who had willingly sent him to the magic tower.

He finally felt like he had returned to his spiritual home.

He could stay up all night researching for a month straight, or have five-day non-stop discussions with fellow magicians.

That alone was enough to make his blood boil, and now he might even meet Arnold!

‘This must be heaven…’

He could die without regrets now.

“I can’t just stand here, I should at least go and introduce myself!”

“He won’t come out of his room anyway. And you don’t even know which room is Arnold’s, do you?”

“It’s room 1004, isn’t it?”

“…How do you know that?”

“I have my ways.”

He was glad he had purchased the underground “Arnold Information Booklet” in advance.

Looking at Bark, Kelly warned him with an uncomfortable expression.

“There will be a cake box placed in front of the door.”

“Oh, a welcome gift?”

“As if.”

“Why so serious?”

“You’ll regret it if you touch it.”

“Why, is it chocolate cake? I heard that’s Arnold’s favorite.”

“…How did you know that, too?”

“I told you, I have my ways.”

“……”

“Anyway, thanks!”

Bark entered the dormitory with excited steps.

Though it was nine years ago, he had lived there for nearly ten years, so it felt as natural as entering his own home.

He looked around the lobby in admiration.

“Wow, it’s improved this much?”

It was because portals arranged by floor were densely lined up.

Passing through a portal to reach the 10th floor took only an instant.

But then.

“Lulu-, huh?”

Bark, just turning the corner, paused.

A suspicious person wearing a dark purple hood was standing in front of room 1004.

His gaze naturally sharpened.

‘That’s strange. That’s Arnold’s room.’

Bark hid himself and observed the situation.

This was the moment when his nine years of experience as the chief magician at the Duke’s castle shone.

“You’re not coming out today either?”

“……”

“…This kid, so stubborn. Are you still angry at this old man?”

Bark immediately recognized the identity of the suspicious person.

‘It’s Master Gregory!’

It was Gregory, the current tower master.

But before Bark could feel suspicious, he was already filled with admiration.

‘My goodness. The future tower master is indeed different! Already meeting with Master Gregory!’

Although Gregory seemed to be pleading with Arnold, anyway.

“Arnold. It’s not too late even now.”

“……”

“If you don’t want it, we can always reverse it.”

“……”

“I feel heavy-hearted, thinking I might have burdened you with something too big.”

Due to the distance, the response from behind the door couldn’t be heard.

But Bark wondered why a magician who had lived for over 400 years was lingering in front of a door.

‘When you could easily open it and enter.’

Didn’t the tower master always have a bunch of keys at his waist?

But Gregory didn’t even touch the keys.

He just waited for Arnold to open the door himself.

“…Well, not today it seems.”

“……”

“Come out whenever you’re ready.”

“……”

“See you tomorrow.”

After waiting for a long time, the tower master turned around with no results.

“Cough, cough.”

“…!”

His body, shaking with dry coughs, looked unusually frail today.

Bark watched the scene with surprised eyes. Somehow, the situation didn’t seem normal.

***

Swoosh.

The sound of the boat cutting through the waves was refreshing.

Audrey, who had come out on deck, held onto the railing and took in the night view of Pelios.

‘It’s like a completely different city.’

Shops and houses with lights were lined up along the coast.

It was a different scene from the barren-feeling downtown area.

At a glance, one might mistake it for a different city.

However, having been trapped on the boat for several hours already, she was feeling seasick.

At that moment.

‘This is not a dream.’

Derek was trying not to lose his sense of reality, even pinching his hand.

He couldn’t afford to mistake this for a dream and commit an impure, lustful, and terribly rude mistake.

For example, like a kiss.

‘Damn it…!’

It wasn’t even surprising anymore.

Since meeting Dodori, his face had been constantly flushed with a rosy blush.

Derek cooled his cheeks in the breeze, recalling the battlefield where a fierce struggle between life and death had taken place.

There was nothing better to suppress the smoldering heat.