Chapter 2 (Part 2)

“Wow….”

The machines were so old and worn that they required frequent magic recharges, and each time they consumed a lot of magic.

But what took her at least an hour, Eden accomplished in just a few minutes. Seeing the magical machines spinning brightly with a more radiant light than when she infused them, Sienna looked at Eden with admiration, beaming.

“You’re truly amazing!”

While Eden, with a bored expression, gathered his magic, Sienna carefully placed the Mandrago’s Sigh she had brought from the dormitory on the table and began pouring a mysterious black liquid.

“What is that potion? I’ve never seen it before.”

“Ah, this is a magical plant growth accelerator I made! When applied, plants grow dozens of times faster.”

The homemade growth accelerator was much more effective than those sold on the market. As a secret weapon, it was something she planned to sell through the Onyx Trading Company later.

“All the growth accelerators on the market have side effects. They either fail to bear fruit, or the embryo inside the seed disappears. But mine is several times more effective than other growth accelerators without any side effects.”

Sienna, too excited, proudly spilled information Eden hadn’t even asked for. Montague, being a fool who only used a sword, didn’t seem to understand how innovative this item was, but she expected the Duke would recognize it immediately.

And as she hoped, Eden was holding the potion bottle with the black liquid sloshing around, turning it this way and that, his eyes shining.

“A growth accelerator without side effects. If what you say is true, this is….”

It would be worth a fortune. It could infinitely cultivate the herbs used in making recovery potions. This would dramatically increase the supply of potions, which was always lacking compared to the demand.

“If you must graduate this semester, this option alone seems enough to earn you a doctorate.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

Sienna scratched her nose awkwardly. If her only goal was to graduate, she would have submitted a thesis on this growth accelerator. But Sienna had greater ambitions than that.

“If only there wasn’t a clause stating that the ownership of results produced during the academy’s doctoral program partially belongs to the academy, I would have done so.”

“You know this is worth money too.”

“Yes. This is for my retirement.”

Unless Montague ruins the Onyx Trading Company, there wouldn’t be a need to prepare for retirement, but you never know. Didn’t the 300 million Er she scraped together as pocket money just vanish in an instant? Indeed, the more money, the better.

Meanwhile, as she said, the petals of the plant that had been sighing ‘Phew- Phew-‘ suddenly began to fall one by one. The plant, now ready to bear fruit in an instant, was only letting out a weak sigh through the hole in the middle of the flower.

“Once this hole is sealed, the fruit will form.”

“…Impressive.”

It was the moment when the first impression of her as a strange woman who only made absurd remarks was revised. Recently, even the magicians of the Magic Tower had all fallen into ennui, and it had been a long time since he had seen such remarkable results. He became quietly curious about the graduation thesis Sienna was researching.

“Thank you!”

Sienna looked up at the Duke with sparkling eyes, overwhelmed with emotion. How long had it been since she heard such pure praise?

Recognizing the true value of the growth accelerator at a glance, indeed, the great magician was different. Moreover, even though she was alone in a confined space with Duke Felice, the Iron-Blooded Duke, the epitome of emotionlessness, it wasn’t as frightening as she thought. Contrary to the rumors, he didn’t seem like a scary person when she actually met him.

Until the day before, she was despairing over how she could possibly use the Duke as a Slave Mate, but now she even felt a slight sense of familiarity with Eden. It was thanks to her innate adaptability, though she attributed her courage to the familiarity of the place.

‘Or maybe, the old saying that doctoral students are slightly off might be true.’

Sienna briefly contemplated her mental state, then shook her head and clasped her hands politely towards Eden once more.

“Have you ever pruned a Gnome Tree branch?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Oh, you haven’t.”

Since she was going to make him do it anyway, perhaps she could be a bit more brazen. Having confirmed the effect of the magical contract, her anxiety that he wouldn’t do it had lessened. Looking up at his handsome face confidently, she blushed slightly as she continued.

“I’d like to ask you to prune the Gnome Tree branch, but it requires a bit of skill. It’s technical, and you need to use your body quite a bit.”

And upon hearing her words, Eden nodded slightly as if it were no big deal.

“I’m good at anything that involves using my body.”

“Uh-huh.”

Sienna didn’t even realize that the interjection she meant to think internally slipped out of her mouth. Her gaze subtly swept over his thick arms. Whether her brain had gone haywire since yesterday, her thoughts kept veering off in strange directions.

And seeing her actions, blushing while looking at him earlier and now showing an irreverent gaze again, a small furrow appeared on Eden’s brow. 

What bizarre thoughts could she be having in her head, wearing such an innocent face?

He tried to ignore it but couldn’t help himself and blurted out a comment.

“…Young Lady, are you a pervert?”

“…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Sienna, suddenly coming to her senses, quickly denied it, her ears turning red.

You’re not in your right mind, Sienna Onyx! Was the shock of losing 300 million so great that your reason flew away with it? 

Eden let out a breath as if he couldn’t believe it. Sienna, trying to hide her shame, quickly changed the topic.

“Um, Duke. If you think about it, I’m not a noble lady. I’m of commoner origin.”

Because she wasn’t the daughter of a noble family, everyone called her Miss Onyx or just Sienna.

Having often mingled with nobles from a young age, she encountered many who mistakenly assumed she was of the same status.

Among those who presumptuously called her Young Lady Onyx, there were some who, upon learning she was a commoner, blushed with anger or ignored and mocked her. Since then, it became a habit to inform others of her status in advance to prevent misunderstandings.

However, the reaction of Duke Felice, Eden, the highest-ranking noble she had ever met, was unexpected.

“I heard that upon completing the academy’s doctoral program, a single-rank title is granted, so it doesn’t matter since you’ll receive a title anyway, right?”

“Well, that’s true, but.”

Sienna couldn’t hide her confusion and stammered. She had never heard such logic before. If you think about it, it’s true, but that’s assuming she graduates safely and receives the title, isn’t it?

As Sienna hesitated, Eden spoke with a look of disbelief.

“If you want to be called Baroness Onyx in advance…”

“No! I just wanted to say you can call me by my name!”

“…If that’s more comfortable for you, then we’ll do that. How do you prune the Gnome Tree?”

Since they had to be together for half a month, it seemed right to call her as she wished. If he commanded to call her by name, she couldn’t refuse. Eden nodded obediently in agreement.

Sienna, who had a mysterious expression, shifted her eyes and soon gathered the branches and handed them to him.

“You have to break these. Just applying force won’t break them, so you need to peel off the outer skin first. Please wait a moment. Where’s the knife…”

She pressed her flushed cheeks with the back of her hand and looked around.

It was when she found a knife near the greenhouse and was about to move towards it. It was unlikely, but the sound of something breaking made her doubt her ears. Hearing the regular snapping sound, Sienna slowly turned around and covered her mouth with both hands.

“Is this how you do it?”

With one of his thick, straight black eyebrows raised, Eden was effortlessly breaking the Gnome Tree branches. The task that usually took half a day to peel and break the branches, he solved in just a few seconds.

Sienna hurriedly ran to Eden’s side and gazed in awe at the veins popping on his hands. Not only was he handsome, but his impressive physique was not hidden even under a neatly buttoned shirt, and he had incredible strength to match. He was a man who naturally made one’s heart flutter, a man of many sins.

It felt like the male protagonist described in a novel had jumped out into reality, and it was hard to stop herself from swallowing her saliva. She was plagued by the impertinent thought of whether the body hidden under that shirt was as splendid and fierce as the male lead in a novel.

Anyway, putting aside her lewd and rude imagination, the resentment she felt about having bought him was gradually fading. To think he was so helpful to her research!

Duke Felice was the best slave, no, Slave Mate, who refreshed both her eyes and mind.