Chapter 46. Summoning

A little while ago.

In the Empire of Elmon. Imperial Palace.

Johann, having finished his daily routine and refreshed from a bath, trudged out of the bathroom connected to his bedroom. His n*ked body, perfectly muscled without an ounce of excess, was close to a work of art.

“I hope everything’s alright in Sahar.”

His thoughts constantly drifted to Seraphina whenever he had a moment.

Johann looked up at the night sky with complicated eyes.

Although it was an area where hordes of high-level undead like durahans appeared, it would still be a hundred, no, a thousand times better than the Grodes Mountains.

At least there shouldn’t be any life-threatening danger.

That’s enough.

As long as she’s alive and breathing well somewhere, even if I can’t see her.

“This is a serious condition.”

I’m so desperate to create a melodrama.

Ha.

Johann sighed self-deprecatingly as he ran his fingers through his damp hair. Once he became aware of his feelings for her, they swelled uncontrollably.

When did it start, I wonder.

When did I start falling for Seraphina?

He could only say it happened gradually… He liked every piece of her that he came to know slowly. Liking one thing after another, he ended up liking everything about her.

“I guess it started when she was lost trying to find Sarnade Hall.”

His blue eyes sank deeply as if reminiscing about that day.

<Beautiful…>

<What?>

<No, why did such nonsense come out of my mouth.>

<…Nonsense?>

<No, I mean, it’s not that you’re not beautiful.>

<Not beautiful?>

<……>

The corners of his mouth lifted almost to his ears.

“Haha. This is really driving me crazy. To think she could reduce Marseus to this state! What an incredible woman! Hahaha!”

If someone saw him laughing n*ked by himself, they might think he was truly insane.

But there were no eyes watching.

So what did it matter?

Having barely held onto his composure all day while dealing with grueling work, Johann decided to let himself go completely for now.

He decided to think about Seraphina to his heart’s content.

“……!”

That’s when it happened.

When he felt something strange,

Johann reflexively checked the position of the moon.

He could have looked at a clock, but he was already gazing at the night sky, so he just shifted his gaze slightly. It was a habit he had developed during his fierce battles with the undead, using the night sky as his roof.

“…At this hour?”

His body was being summoned.

It meant Seraphina had used the magic scroll.

In a brief moment, all sorts of thoughts flooded his mind.

Is she on a desert expedition? Did undead appear at this hour? Mihail should be there, so why did she use it? I thought if she ever tore the summoning scroll, it would be somewhere in the Grodes Mountains…

But he soon realized.

This was no time to be idly thinking such thoughts.

“Ah, no!”

It felt like all the blood in his body was rushing down from the crown of his head like a waterfall.

Johann desperately threw himself towards the bed. More precisely, he reached for the robe lying on it.

Whoosh…!

His physical body was fading from reality.

Flash!

And in an instant, Johann vanished without a trace.

In the Emperor’s bedroom, only a faint mist of steam from the bathroom lingered.

* * *

The time allowed was but a fleeting moment.

He only had a few seconds to put on the robe and tie it at the waist.

‘Damn it, Marseus can’t be humiliated in front of Mihail.’

He thought he would be standing in the middle of a desert.

He thought hordes of durahans would be swarming.

There was no time to grab a sword, so he thought he’d have to quickly create a mana sword.

But…

“Kyaaaaaah!”

Johann, finding himself in an unfamiliar place, couldn’t hide his bewilderment. The hand that was about to form a mana sword hung awkwardly in the air.

His blue eyes shook violently.

“You… What, what is this…”

Johann stammered badly, which was rare for him. If someone had seen, they might have wondered if the Emperor had suddenly turned into a fool.

Blood rushed to his head.

Seraphina was right in front of him in an incredibly provocative state.

“What are you looking at…!”

At her sharp yell, Johann barely regained his senses. No, he tried to. But even shaking his head didn’t change the fact that she was still provocative.

Her translucent skin glistening with moisture,her slightly darker brown hair flowing down past her shoulders. Trembling orange-tinged brown eyes. A body barely covered by a towel.

Unable to take his eyes off that sight, Johann managed to open his mouth.

“Didn’t you call me?”

“I didn’t!”

Anyone watching might think he was trying to do something untoward her.

Seeing her crouching in the corner, shrinking even more, Johann twitched his eyebrow.

“The magic scroll. You used it, didn’t you?”

He gestured with his eyes towards the scroll she was holding.

Only then did Seraphina look back and forth between what she was holding and Johann, and realizing something, she muttered in a deflated voice.

“The thing I was told to use when I needed help… Oh no.”

“Oh no?”

“No, I mean, if I had known this was that kind of summoning scroll, I wouldn’t have used it.”

“Why not?”

“Because this wasn’t something worth calling you for!”

“That’s why I told you, didn’t I? To use it in moments of crisis.”

“When did you… Oh… Did you?”

“Did I?”

Johann let out a disbelieving laugh.

To think she would remember their conversation so carelessly after he had gone out of his way to provide it.

Seraphina was staring at the ceiling, straining her eyes as if trying to recall the memory. Soon, she muttered in an uncertain voice.

“I think you said something about firing an attack…”

At those words, Johann narrowed his eyes slightly.

While he remembered every detail of that day’s conversation, this woman seemed to remember nothing correctly.

“I never said that. I said it was something similar to an attack.”

“How is this similar?”

“Because now that Marseus is here, there’s nothing we can’t overcome?”

“……”

Johann replied shamelessly without changing his expression.

But the next moment, his face turned red. Seraphina had suddenly stood up, glaring at him with wide eyes as if to challenge his statement.

The curves of her body, wrapped in the towel, were clearly revealed.

This woman, really.

Isn’t she too oblivious in front of a man?

In front of a healthy man…

Johann unconsciously watched a droplet of water sliding between her collarbones and swallowed hard. Unfortunately for him, Seraphina noticed his obvious gulp.

“W-What are you looking at!”

She crossed her arms in an X to cover her chest, glaring at the emperor as if he were a pervert.

Normally, he would have scolded her for such disrespectful behavior, but even the great Johann was at a loss this time, his eyes wandering like a broken wooden doll, unable to find a safe place to look.

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

His voice, trying to deny it, sounded as awkward as if he were reading from a book.

It was then that urgent footsteps were heard from outside. The sound echoing down the corridor stopped only when the door burst open.

“What’s the matter?”

Mihail barged in without warning.

“I heard a scream… Your Majesty?”

Mihail’s brow furrowed upon discovering Johann. Then his eyes swept from top to bottom with a disrespectful gaze that was hard to believe was directed at the emperor.

“It’s been a while, Sir Andantino.”

Johann smiled brazenly.

“How are you here? And in such a state of undress?”

“Your words are too exaggerated. I’m properly clothed, you know.”

Mihail glanced at Seraphina before replying.

“I see. Compared to her, at least.”

With that, he blatantly ignored Johann and turned towards Seraphina.

“Miss Sera.”

Johann’s eyebrow twitched at that form of address.

“You too. I gave you a belt as a gift, and yet.”

“Haha. About that…”

“It’s not advisable to use a summoning scroll in such attire.”

“I didn’t know it was a summoning scroll. Ahaha…”

Seraphina laughed awkwardly. Her hands were still clutching the towel tightly to her chest.

Mihail’s gaze swept over her body briefly. This made Seraphina shrink even more.

Being in a room with two strapping men was a very heart-pounding experience.

Couldn’t you both just leave?

She prayed fervently in her heart.

“Sera…”

“……?”

At that moment, Johann muttered in a low voice.

Having one’s name called in such a chilling tone was not a pleasant experience. Seraphina, her spine tingling, turned her head with an uneasy look. Wondering why the emperor was acting this way.

“…phina.”

“……?”

Seeing him belatedly finish calling her name, Seraphina’s brow furrowed strangely.

Why… is he… like this…?

Whether he read the question on her face or not, Johann’s expression became complicated.

From the side, the sound of Mihail snickering could be heard.

What’s wrong with him now?

Seraphina turned her head the other way this time.

For reasons unknown to her, he was looking at Johann with a provocative gaze, languidly. And for a moment, Seraphina thought she saw Johann’s face contort.

But when she turned back again,

He was simply wearing that cold, lowered expression he sometimes showed.