Chapter 30

Helio bent his index finger and chewed on it. The more he thought about it, the less it seemed Ashton was acting meticulously. That man was dangerous, but he didn’t hide his danger from Helio. That was careless.

‘Whether he can seal my lips or not, whether he did or didn’t.’

Helio would have chosen to pretend not to know anything, rather than a complicated method of telling and then sealing his lips.

Something felt off.

‘What does he gain by earning my hostility that way?’

Because of the information gap between Ashton and Helio, Helio couldn’t answer that question. Maybe Ashton was simply ignoring him……

His chest felt tight.

A suspicious and dangerous man was openly approaching Sabina.

To achieve ‘a certain goal that must not be revealed,’ he was ‘using Sabina’ without seeking ‘her agreement.’ To Helio, it seemed Sabina was caught in a dangerous plot.

People with too many secrets cannot be trusted.

He vaguely thought he had to stop Ashton, but with Sabina friendly toward him and himself powerless, he couldn’t figure out what to do. He didn’t even change clothes, lost in thought, until it was nearly eleven when he thought of the king’s twins.

Reyes Brinita called Helio a friend.

Maybe Reyes would help him.

But at the same time, he remembered how much Sabina disliked Reyes. Should he ask her why……

Helio washed his face with lukewarm water and changed clothes. The room where Sabina stayed was just ten steps away. He knocked politely.

“Come in.”

The master’s voice both calmed and unsettled him.

Sabina sat neatly with her hair down, dressed for going out. She seemed to have been up for a while. She smiled subtly at Helio.

“Did you sleep well?”

Helio nodded.

“That’s good. Are you hungry?”

Helio shook his head.

Sabina gestured to the stool opposite her. Helio obediently sat where she indicated. As Sabina studied Helio’s complexion, her eyebrows drew together slightly.

“You don’t look well.”

Helio almost replied sarcastically, ‘You noticed,’ but he was a polite boy before Sabina, so he simply shook his head without rebellion.

“I’m fine. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. Let’s have lunch and then go home.”

At the mention of lunch, Helio’s face openly showed discomfort.

“With the owner as well?”

“No. Ashton went out.”

Hearing this, Helio’s expression relaxed in relief. Sabina wondered why Helio was so uncomfortable with Ashton. Not knowing what happened at the last carnival or the conversation between Ashton and Helio yesterday, it was a natural question.

But she couldn’t ask Helio about Ashton.

She didn’t find the right timing before they went down for the meal, and after returning home, when they were finally alone, it was Helio—deep in thought—who asked first.

“Um, how did you know I was a mage?”

At those words, a light sigh escaped Sabina’s lips. It wasn’t surprise, but rather a feeling of ‘here it comes.’ She had told him he was a special mage from the first day he came to the house, so it was only natural he was curious.

“Did you know from the moment you saw me?”

“I knew before we met.”

“How?”

Explaining the circumstances was ‘forbidden.’ She couldn’t casually tell Helio about the complex stories intertwined with that, or the fact that she had twice performed large-scale magic. Sabina simply shook her head.

“I’m sorry. I’d like to tell you, but this is all I can say.”

“Is it forbidden?”

Helio felt a sense of déjà vu from Sabina’s attitude.

Sabina nodded calmly. Helio sighed. Even after returning home, he was in a bad mood.

He felt the shadow of ‘that man’ lingering, never lifting. With Helio so openly downcast, Sabina lost the chance to probe why he disliked Ashton. Naturally, she also missed the timing to tell him she had decided to make a contract with Ashton as her lover.

* * *

While Sabina and Helio spent a somewhat awkward time, Ashton Bryant was at the royal palace.

Summoned from the morning, King Kenneth welcomed Ashton simply. Ashton expressed his gratitude for the great honor with a suitably modest attitude.

The two chatted while playing chess. When Ashton claimed not to be good at chess, Kenneth graciously gave him the white pieces. After a few moves, Ashton realized he had played this exact game before.

‘Haha.’

He remembered how he had been cornered and how his opponent had claimed victory. Once the moves began to come to mind, the entire game replayed clearly in his head. Thus, Ashton Bryant stood at a crossroads. Should he gamble for a strong impression by winning? Or should he lose gracefully?

He moved his knight.

It was the same move as when he had lost before. As soon as he played it, his opponent responded just as he remembered.

‘Since the other party already likes me, there’s no need to take unnecessary risks.’

As the game progressed, a deep smile slowly appeared on Kenneth’s lips.

“Checkmate.”

After only a few more moves, Kenneth declared it. It was chess played with the kindness of a teacher. The king’s dignity was evident in how he never pressed his opponent recklessly. Kenneth Brinita might seem thoughtless and simple compared to Reyes Brinita, but he was truly fit to be king.

Between the two, as they tidied up the chess pieces, there wasn’t much of a common ground for conversation. So naturally, the topic shifted to the new carnival Ashton had hosted yesterday, and Helio came up.

“That boy became a celebrity in Ridblon, so I was looking forward to him, but he’s not as bold as I expected, so it wasn’t interesting.”

“Haha. Your Majesty, perhaps you’re mistaken about something?”

At the provocative remark, Kenneth raised his chin with a ‘let’s hear it’ look. Ashton bowed his head slightly in a deliberately polite manner and smiled.

“The one who made that carnival fun wasn’t the slave boy, but the businessman who bid fifty-four million.”

“Hahaha!”

Kenneth laughed heartily. It was a laugh hard to imagine from his delicate appearance.

The King of Brinita liked bold people. He immediately began to show Ashton a friendly curiosity.

“Right. Maybe that’s why I’m showing such interest in you?”

“To me, it can only be a joy. I hope I can continue to bring you enjoyment, Your Majesty.”

“Let’s drop the clichés.”

Ashton consciously smiled, dimples showing. When he’s sharp, he’s just like his brother.

“To entertain you, Your Majesty, I didn’t even see my partner off and came straight to the palace. Isn’t that a bit much?”

“Ah, you mean Miss D’Vialis. She’s not the type to care about things like that.”

“You know her well.”

“She’s quite famous.”

“For her wealth, beauty, and intelligence?”

“For her romantic affairs.”

“Oh, my.”

Ashton exaggerated a look of disappointment. Kenneth found it even more amusing. The man before him was, if anything, his brother’s rival. Everyone knew how obsessed Reyes was with Sabina.

As for Kenneth, he didn’t really mind if a meddler stirred up trouble in his brother’s ‘romantic business.’ He certainly cherished Reyes, but he wasn’t the sort to always side with family.

“Do you like Miss D’Vialis that much?”

“Yes, I do.”

Ashton replied in the straightforward, refreshing manner Kenneth liked.

“I want to give her only good things if possible.”

“Oh? Like what?”

“Like the opportunity to do joint research with you, King Kenneth Brinita, the Lord of Radiance and ‘Mage of Records,’ at the late summer research achievement conference.”

Kenneth’s lips curved into a smile at the unexpected words. He leaned slightly toward Ashton.

The greatest asset of the Kingdom of Brinita is its mages.

It’s only natural that there are many projects to promote magic.

The Certanon Mage Academy, where all costs are completely free regardless of status, the vast Brinita Grand Library…

But the highlight of the promotion projects is the annual ‘Magic Research Achievement Conference’ held every August.

Every academy graduate mage must submit at least a short thesis, and the amount of research funding given is proportional to the added value the report can create.

In rare cases, mages without titles could be awarded a title and land if they achieved outstanding results here. Sabina’s grandfather, Walter, was a prime example.

But unless one is a genius like Walter D’Vialis, it’s difficult to produce meaningful new research results every year. So most mages conduct research on a three-to-four-year cycle, submitting somewhat perfunctory short papers during the conference season in between.

Those papers are usually written in a last-minute rush.

So roughly, starting about a month and a half before the achievement conference—exactly now.

On the other hand, Sabina, who inherited the name of genius Walter, was different. Every year since graduating from the academy, she produced a new thesis, wrapping up her research by early July. Then people would rush to her with ideas for reports to write in a hurry.

Joint research was allowed at the achievement conference.

Sabina, who received many requests for help, would choose the most interesting proposal and join as a co-researcher. Whoever received ‘Sabina’s choice’ would marvel at her erudition and brilliance, thinking, ‘This year’s conference will be much easier—even if it’s not the main research presentation, I’ll get some research funding,’ and breathe a sigh of relief.

Unfortunately, even the King was not exempt from these tedious procedures. He could submit a much simpler report than other mages, and people would just turn a blind eye. Everyone acknowledged that a king had many duties.

“I’m not sure.”

Kenneth, who seemed briefly interested, wrinkled his nose and frowned.

“I don’t think she’d consider that opportunity an honor.”

“Why is that?”

“Because she’s a great and arrogant scholar.”

“Haha.”

“If I suggest joint research, she’ll just stare at me, eyes asking, ‘Where’s the proposal?’”

Ashton couldn’t help but agree. Sabina had a rebellious streak inherited from Walter.

But he hadn’t spoken out of ignorance. As he busily moved his hands, the crystal chess pieces were packed neatly into the velvet box. When the box snapped shut, he felt a subtle sense of satisfaction.

“Actually, I have an idea.”

Kenneth was sharp. He sensed that Ashton had an idea that might tempt Sabina.

Now, only one obstacle remained.

“Well, Rey will hate it.”

“You’re joking, right?”

Ashton laughed off the absurdity, but that was exactly what he wanted.

To drive Reyes into another source of stress.