Chapter 2 (Part 1)

Meia spoke politely to the man with black hair.

“I’m sorry. He is someone who protects me. He becomes very edgy whenever a stranger approaches me. I would appreciate your understanding.”

“It’s fine.”

Meia felt that the man who looked down at Juan, who neither blinked nor dodged Juan’s swift sword, was not an ordinary person.

The man, unaware of Meia’s inner thoughts, began to introduce himself with a smile.

“Please accept my apologies. I am Theodore of the Florence family from the Sirius Empire, Mage.”

The Florence family was the surname of the Grand Duke’s family in the Sirius Empire.

She had thought he must have a high rank since he had spoken informally to Viscount Mahurava, but his rank was even higher than she had expected.

“From your expression, it seems you know who I am.”

“Who wouldn’t know the name of the Florence family of the Sirius Empire?”

“Then I will get straight to the point.”

The man’s face, smiling mischievously, made Meia curious about what he would say.

“I would like you to come with me.”

Her heart sank.

“I want you.”

Meia felt her eyes waver. As she tried to understand the man’s intentions, she exhaled quietly to regain her composure. The man smiled again and spoke.

“Please accept my apologies. I am Theodore of the Florence family from the Sirius Empire, Mage.”

Meia blinked and stared at Theodore without answering.

A moment of silence passed. Theodore waited with a bright smile, but Meia could not respond.

A man she had just met had confessed to her. It was a sudden confession that left her bewildered.

Moreover, the man was the Grand Duke of Sirius! She had to decline his confession carefully.

Had there ever been a more awkward moment in my life? Certainly not.

As Meia smiled and thought about how to refuse, Theodore cautiously spoke.

“By any chance… have you already made a contract with another place?”

‘What contract is he talking about?’

“If you have a contract, we will compensate the other party greatly and meet all the conditions you desire.”

Theodore’s words were different from what she had expected. He was not confessing; he was offering to scout her as a mage.

She suppressed a laugh. Relieved that it wasn’t a confession, she spoke brightly to him.

“I will refuse.”

Seeing his disappointed expression, Meia stood up.

As soon as Meia stepped outside, Theodore followed her.

Even though she deliberately wandered through the alleys, he persistently followed her.

At first, she thought they were going in the same direction, but it became clear that he was following her on purpose.

“Stop following me.”

Meia spoke to Theodore, who was trailing her.

“You noticed I was following you.”

“You’re following me so obviously. How could I not notice?”

“I was trying to keep my distance and follow you.”

Theodore smiled brightly.

Seeing him smile, Meia thought he was handsome.

Is he about 190 cm tall?

“Please don’t avoid answering while smiling.”

“I was worried you might encounter trouble like before, so I followed you.”

“Even if I face danger, I can take care of myself, so you don’t need to follow me.”

At Meia’s haughty words, Theodore’s eyes darted around.

“The reason I followed you, Mage, was because I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again. I apologize if it made you uncomfortable.”

Meia did not take his answer badly.

He could have just said they were heading in the same direction, but Theodore spoke honestly.

She doesn’t see honest people in a bad light.

“Mage, are you staying at the hotel above the restaurant where you were eating?”

Should I tell him? Should I not? 

She was conflicted.

For now, Theodore wasn’t as rude as Viscount Mahurava, whom she had just blown away earlier, but she had to be cautious.

“I can’t answer that.”

As soon as she avoided the answer, he exclaimed.

“I am staying there.”

“Pardon.”

“Would you give me the opportunity to have a cup of tea with you?”

Seeing Theodore blushing and speaking with all his might, Meia glanced at him slightly.

“If we meet by chance, then I’ll tell you my name and have a cup of coffee.”

Theodore looked very disappointed at her words.

“Then, goodbye.”

*   *   *

A few hours earlier, Theodore felt hungry as soon as he arrived at Elrn Port.

“I’m hungry, Aethon.”

Theodore looked down at Aethon, who was slightly shorter than him.

“There’s a hotel right in front of us. Let’s eat at the restaurant there.”

“Okay. What about using teleportation?”

“We’ll use it right after we eat.”

“Then let’s eat and move.”

Aethon nodded.

Theodore was satisfied with the restaurant’s interior, which matched the hotel’s exterior, and the staff’s kindness. And the window seat they sat at had a beautiful view of the sea, and he liked the seafood dishes.

“I want to scout the chef here to the Grand Duke’s family.”

As he smiled at the sweet juices of the meat and lobster, he was distracted by the people’s murmurs.

‘What’s going on?’

Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the entrance. He also looked at where the people’s eyes were focused.

A proud beauty with dazzling silver hair and blue eyes was being guided by the manager.

The way she held the hem of her fluttering dress and walked in was the image of a noble young lady.

She exuded an elegant dignity that made it hard to take his eyes off her. Her beauty was overwhelming.

Looking around, he saw that everyone, regardless of age or gender, was staring at the beautiful silver-haired lady in a daze.

Despite receiving the attention of everyone in the restaurant, the silver-haired lady remained calm.

It seemed she was used to being watched.

The beauty, who sat not far from him, caught his eye, and he resumed cutting and eating the delicious food on his table.

But his eyes kept returning to the lady in front of him.

‘Is it because she’s sitting in front of me…?’

The way her silver hair shimmered in the light looked like starlight pouring down like a waterfall.

Theodore found himself glancing at her repeatedly.

He had been satisfied with the delicious food, but at some point, he was so distracted by the silver-haired lady in front of him that he couldn’t taste the food anymore.

Then it happened.

“Ahem, young lady.”

A nobleman, who seemed heavily drunk, approached the silver-haired beauty and started talking to her, and her tone, filled with annoyance, interrupted her meal.

‘How can he call himself a noble. Tsk tsk.’

Without realizing it, Theodore intervened.

“Is it common for nobles from Zentas to persistently bother a lady who has already said no?”

Hearing his voice, she turned her head, and their blue eyes met.

Suddenly, he felt his heart drop.

‘What’s happening?’

He felt embarrassed to meet her gaze. His heart, which had dropped, rose back up, only to fall again.

His heart kept pounding irregularly, making it hard for Theodore to focus.

So he broke eye contact with her and deliberately looked at the Zentas noble as he spoke.

Then something amazing happened.

The Zentas noble was suddenly swept away by a wind and crashed at the entrance.

‘Magic?’

“A mage?”

To meet a Mage here, of all places!

Theodore’s heart, which had been pounding, started to beat even faster.

And then he heard her clear and beautiful voice.

“Thank you for stepping in like a knight of justice.”

Her proud words drew his gaze to her cherry-like plump lips.

Her voice was also very pretty.

He felt a rising embarrassment creeping up his body.

Feeling the need to say something, he blurted out a question.

“Are you a mage?”

“As you can see, yes.”

When their eyes met again, his heart pounded strangely.

“Then.”

As she turned away from him, he felt an overwhelming need to hold onto her and courageously approached.

At the same time, an intense killing intent was directed at him.

A figure emerged from her shadow and pointed a knife at his neck. Theodore stopped approaching Meia.

“Juan, put down your knife. This person helped me.”

Juan immediately lowered his knife and glared at Theodore with a menacing aura.

“I’m sorry. He is someone who protects me. He becomes very edgy whenever a stranger approaches me. I would appreciate your understanding.”

“It’s fine.”

She apologized on behalf of her subordinate.

Even in that, she seemed responsible and kind.

“I am Theodore of the Florence family from the Sirius Empire, Mage.”

After hearing his name, her expression became slightly enigmatic.

It was as if she was drawing a line.

Still, he kept smiling brightly to make a good impression on her.

She left the restaurant without even telling him her name.

‘She didn’t pay for her meal…’

That meant she was a guest staying at the hotel.

Theodore’s lips curved into a smile.

Even if he knew where she stayed, he didn’t know when she might leave the hotel!

So, in a rush, he followed her. He was rejected. He asked her for a cup of tea, but he was rejected again.

She said that if they met again, they would have coffee and she would tell him her name.

His heart pounded irregularly.