“Um, about that……”

Kana let out an awkward laugh and trailed off. Even though Kiriel had openly shown his interest, she couldn’t bring herself to directly acknowledge it. Olivia responded with a sly smile on her behalf.

“It’s true. I saw it directly from right beside him, he showed it quite boldly.”

“While it’s true that the Tower Master welcomed me at the tea party, I’m sure he didn’t attend just for that one reason.”

Kana neatly summarized the situation. Evie, who had been quiet, spoke up to help her troubled friend.

“Of course. Miss Kana spent time socializing with us.”

“Well, if the person herself and Lady Reas say so……”

“That must be right indeed.”

Fortunately, the ladies didn’t press further or probe deeper. In the end, contrary to their goal, they only heard plenty of good stories about Letie before leaving with Olivia.

Kana covered her mouth with her fan and whispered secretly to Evie.

“Miss Evie, thank you for helping.”

“Don’t mention it. It was mutually beneficial, wasn’t it?”

The two looked at each other and shared small smiles.

* * *

The day of her appointment with Kiriel arrived. Kana came out of the mansion carrying documents she had meticulously prepared about spirit summoner guilds.

He was already waiting, as if it was natural, and the sunlight falling on his fine golden hair created an especially radiant atmosphere.

Kiriel waved with a smiling face as soon as he sensed her presence.

“Miss Kana, you’re out early.”

“Yes, I finished preparing faster than expected.”

“You’re really beautiful today too.”

“What? Saying such things suddenly……”

Kana blinked, slightly flustered by his sudden comment. Kiriel responded with a bright smile and a glib answer.

“Ah, since it’s what I always think, it just came out naturally.”

“……Ahem, let’s get going for now.”

“Alright.”

Kana boarded the Round family’s carriage with the smiling Kiriel.

Since Kana was the main actor today and their final destination was the magic tower, they decided to travel together in her carriage.

While the carriage moved, Kiriel gazed at her with serious eyes and extended his hand.

“Miss Kana, you mentioned earlier that you had already sorted through the list. Could you show me the detailed documents if you have them?”

“Yes, here you go.”

Kana unhesitatingly took out a rolled scroll from her ring’s subspace and handed it to him.

“I thought so. You’re thorough as always.”

Kiriel smiled contentedly, slightly bowed his head to unfold the scroll, and carefully examined the contents as if it were his own business. Kana suddenly remembered the original Kiriel while watching him.

‘If he suddenly returns to his setting and his attitude becomes cold in an instant, I might be a bit bitter.’

She unconsciously gave a bitter smile. Kiriel, who had finished reviewing the materials, looked up and was surprised to see her melancholic expression.

“Miss Kana, is there something wrong with my face?”

“No. That’s absolutely impossible.”

“……Yeah, thank you.”

Though it was a simple statement because it was true, Kiriel felt his heart flutter and fidgeted with the ends of his hair needlessly.

Kana, feeling fuzzy, changed the subject to dispel the awkward atmosphere.

“What did you think of the document’s contents?”

“As expected of the thorough Miss Kana, you sorted it well. Let’s judge the remaining factors by seeing them directly. We’ll get a feel for it when we look around.”

“Yes.”

Kana received the scroll back from him and put it in her ring’s subspace.

As they occasionally exchanged small talk, the carriage entered the outskirts of the capital. When they went further in, signs for spirit summoner guilds started catching their eye.

While magic tower and mage-related facilities were slightly separated from the center and spread over a wide area, spirit summoner guilds were clustered narrowly in a much more remote area.

Kana first visited the nearby Wind Step Guild with Kiriel, who had pulled his hood down deep to hide his identity.

Kiriel stuck close to her like a guard and scrutinized the interior meticulously. The guild master ignored him and enthusiastically spoke to her.

“……So if you join our Wind Step Guild, we plan to actively support the magic tools needed for training in connection with the magic tower.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Kiriel pulled back his hood and frowned.

“Strange, I don’t remember making any contracts with this guild?”

“T-Tower Master?”

“Gasp!”

The Wind Step Guild master and the guild’s spirit summoners were startled.

They couldn’t help but be shocked when the head of the magic tower suddenly appeared before them while they were trying to sweet-talk what seemed to be an innocent noble lady.

Kana had already noticed the guild master was bluffing from her experience dealing with various people. She tapped her folded fan-shaped auxiliary magic tool against her palm and spoke cynically.

“Is that so. How can I trust a guild that lies from our first meeting?”

“This is outrageous. You dare use the magic tower’s name to try to deceive the gentle and thoughtful Miss Kana?”

Unlike her relatively calm demeanor, Kiriel was furiously angry. In the end, the guild’s spirit summoners couldn’t make excuses and apologized while bowing to them.

“We’re sorry, Lady Round, Tower Master.”

“Wind Step Guild, I’ll remember this.”

While Kana brushed it off with a slight nod, Kiriel remained cold. Given his personality, he would definitely cause them disadvantages unless the guild brought significant benefits.

The spirit summoners’ faces turned pale as they realized the gravity of the situation. Ignoring their reactions, he whispered tenderly in her ear.

“Miss Kana, let’s go to the next place.”

“Yes.”

As Kana left the Wind Step Guild with Kiriel, she recalled her memories of running around busy as a supporting character.

‘As a background supporting character, I always had to run around working hard no matter what I did. It’s definitely much easier to get things done when you have a main character with you. It feels reassuring.’

Kiriel carefully glanced sideways at her expressionless face. Anyone would lose motivation if they saw such a thing right from the start after preparing so diligently, even making a list.

“Miss Kana, are you okay?”

“Of course.”

Contrary to his concern, Kana wasn’t particularly bothered. Kiriel hesitated a bit before gently comforting her.

“We had bad luck with the first one…… but the next ones will be better.”

“Yes, thank you for comforting me.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Only after confirming that she wore a faint smile did he feel relieved.

They continued moving to other guilds one after another.

However, none of the guilds completely satisfied her. It would have been fine if she could overlook the disadvantages by focusing on the advantages, but whenever something seemed good, there was always one fatal flaw.

Kana drew lines through the guild names written on the document and let out an awkward laugh.

“……Well, only the Four-Colored Leaf Guild remains.”

“After avoiding the disadvantages, only that guild is left, huh.”

“Yes, I feel ashamed. You took time out of your busy schedule to accompany me, but at this rate, we might not find any suitable place……”

Kana made a troubled expression and trailed off. Kiriel gently patted her back.

“It’s okay. It’s natural to be picky when choosing a guild to join.”

“Hmm, should I perhaps compromise a bit?”

“No, there’s no need to lower your standards and insist on a guild with clear disadvantages. If none of them satisfy you after seeing them all, we can look for other options.”

Kiriel’s eyes shone seriously. His will to guide her in a better direction was palpable. Kana regained her motivation and nodded vigorously.

“You’re right. Let’s go to the Four-Colored Leaf Guild for now.”

“Alright.”

When they visited the Four-Colored Leaf Guild last, the guild master and spirit summoners they had seen at the founding ceremony welcomed them warmly.

A woman with deep purple hair and purple eyes greeted them respectfully.

“Hello. I’m Denia, guild master of the Four-Colored Leaf Guild.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kana Round.”

Even though she responded with a business-like smile, Denia’s eyes lit up with delight.

“Yes, Lady Round. Though we already received your letter, you really came!”

“Yes, of course, since I promised.”

When Kana responded matter-of-factly, Denia scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed smile.

“Ah, well…… Some people don’t show up or cancel without notice even after promising. Besides, Lady Round, you have nothing to be dissatisfied with in many ways.”

“That’s not wrong.”

Kana readily agreed.

Meanwhile, a female spirit summoner with tightly tied dark red hair, fierce brown eyes, and a faint burn scar on her cheek clapped her hands while looking at the hooded Kiriel.

“Wow, looking at it now, the Tower Master came too?”

“How did you know?”

“I could tell right away. The aura was different, and your presence was completely different from the guards I’ve seen while working as a mercenary.”

She answered good-naturedly with a smile. The guild master tactfully added.

“Ah, Tower Master, you’re welcome to listen to the explanation and look around with Lady Round.”

“I will.”

Kiriel immediately removed his hood once his identity was revealed. There was a brief commotion, but Denia quickly calmed it down.

Denia summoned a highest-grade water spirit to offer them cool water and gave lengthy explanations while showing them the facilities.

Kana listened carefully to the guild master’s words while thoroughly examining the interior with her eyes.

After finishing all explanations, Denia glanced nervously at her composed guest’s face. Though she had a gentle impression and was indeed gracious and polite as rumored, it was hard to read her true thoughts.

“That concludes the explanation of our guild’s facilities and other details. What do you think?”

“It’s good.”

Kana smiled softly. For one thing, the guild master’s overall abilities and training facilities were good.

Internal regulations were also well established without any elements that uncomfortably invaded private matters.

Looking at the relieved Denia, she calmly added.

“May I ask a few questions?”