Chapter 98
“What Happened at the Wheat Break (1)”
Calliere crossed the distance with long strides and reached where Lafer and I were.
He raised a brow at Lafer—who was smiling playfully—and asked,
“How did you get this far?”
“How else? Of course I— Argh!”
Lafer’s voice, which had sounded casual, jumped in irritation. He glared at Calliere, who was looking at him coolly.
“Cal, you spread magic-blocking stones across the whole territory, didn’t you? Do you know how hard it was for me to get here because of that?”
“I don’t really care.”
“…What?”
“I heard there was a kidnapper using magic to abduct people. I put them in as a precaution.”
Calliere’s eyes were sharp as he spoke. Lafer flinched, then put on a brazen smile.
“Haha, kidnapping? More like a gentleman who couldn’t ignore a lady asking for help.”
“A kidnapper, a gentleman? Did becoming Tower Master make you lose your conscience too?”
“What was that?”
The air between them crackled.
Caught in the middle, I darted my eyes back and forth, trying to read the mood.
Because, honestly—
‘This is all basically about me!’
I wanted them to stop this very awkward conversation, but Lafer, still stung by Calliere’s jab, spoke again.
“Hey, Cal. I talked to Zenber last time—he worries about you a lot. Maybe do some actual territory management instead of wasting time here?”
“As you can see, the territory is doing fine. Maybe you should worry about yourself. Allen looked half-dead.”
“Uh, um?”
If I left them alone, I was afraid they’d destroy the whole town like they almost wrecked the room last time. I mustered my courage and squeezed between them.
Both men turned to me at once, all that growling gone as if it had been fake.
“Why?”
“What is it, Rebellia?”
“Sh-should I kneel?”
“What?”
“What?”
They answered in perfect sync, then frowned as if equally displeased.
Their synchronized reactions almost made me laugh. I coughed and tried again.
“Ahem… Listening to you two, it feels like it’s mostly my fault. So maybe the person who should kneel here with hands up is me…”
“La— the lady has no fault.”
“Right. If we really have to pick who’s guilty…”
They looked straight at each other, like they’d rehearsed it.
I couldn’t help it—I burst out laughing.
“Why are you laughing, my lady?”
“Why laugh?”
‘Ah… they’re not going to like this.’
“You two… get along really well—!”
Snap! Lafer flicked his fingers, and at the same time Calliere lifted his hand and covered my mouth.
Startled, I looked up at him. His face was very serious.
“Words like that… better not say them—”
“Argh!”
Lafer snapped his fingers again in frustration.
“I’ve never felt so humiliated. Did you see? My magic didn’t work!”
“…?”
“I tried to seal the lady’s mouth with magic just now, and it didn’t work!”
At his stomping and fussing, I glanced up at Calliere. After meeting my eyes for a moment, he removed the hand covering my mouth.
‘Hmm… I didn’t want him to take his hand away, exactly…’
I missed the arm around my shoulders and peeked at him shyly, but Lafer’s angry voice cut in.
“Hey, Cal. I know you’re rich, but is this kind of waste really necessary? Do you know how much it costs to ring this huge territory with magic-blocking stones?”
“Using Remstones keeps the cost reasonable.”
“Remstones are even more expensive!”
Calliere only shrugged at Lafer’s trembling outrage.
“In Esperos, Remstone is something we have to spare.”
“You… you—!”
Lafer’s face flushed bright red.
I glanced up at Calliere; unlike the fuming Lafer, he looked perfectly relaxed.
Lafer inhaled hard, then spoke clearly to Calliere.
“Fine, fine. But you do know that banning magic in this day and age is a very outdated idea, right?”
“I had a chance to live in a place that ‘outdated,’ and it was more livable than you’d think.”
‘He means that one week we spent together in Babylon Forest, doesn’t he…?’
It felt like somehow my story kept getting dragged into their conversation. I swallowed dryly and kept my head down so no sparks would land on me.
After glaring at Calliere a moment longer, Lafer forced a smile and turned to me.
“My lady, it’s not too late. How about changing your mind?”
“…Pardon?”
“Instead of putting someone in a coma—!”
“Aaah!”
I slapped a hand over Lafer’s mouth and hissed under my breath.
“We said we wouldn’t talk about that yet!”
“Mz zisik-i yelbage hajana. (That guy is making me mad.)”
“I’m not the one making you mad!”
The retort slipped out before I could stop it. Seeing Lafer’s shocked face, I felt bad and slowly took my hand away.
“T-that wasn’t what I— I meant something else…”
“I like you even less, my lady.”
Squawking, Lafer snapped his fingers again, then stomped his feet.
“You— you— you fossils!”
I watched him huff off, then glanced at Calliere.
“Sh-should we stop him?”
“No. He’ll come back when he gets bored.”
I blinked at Calliere’s casual answer. He pointed toward Mei, who was coming back with chicken skewers in both hands.
“Let’s eat first and look around.”
He grinned playfully. I couldn’t help smiling back—then wondered:
Is this friendship… really okay like this?
“Wow! Did you see that?”
I pointed at a giant soap bubble as tall as an adult and shouted to Calliere.
He wiped sauce from the corner of my lips and said, “I’m watching.”
Embarrassed at the stain on his handkerchief, I murmured, “If you’d told me, I would’ve wiped it myself.”
“I act faster than I talk.”
The line felt oddly familiar. He smiled and asked:
“It didn’t put you in a difficult spot, did it?”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“If you’d told me, I would’ve wiped it myself.”
“I act faster than I talk. If my actions put you in a difficult spot, I apologize.”
Remembering that old exchange, I pouted.
“…Not difficult—just embarrassing.”
“I’ll try to do better.”
He answered with a teasing look, and I gave a prim little stare—then burst into a laugh.
“Let’s go over there too.”
We adjusted our hoods and strolled past the guilds’ stalls. Nearby, a man seemed to be arguing with a knight. I followed behind as Calliere hurried toward them, frowning. As we got closer, their voices grew clearer.
“In this day and age, how can magic be blocked? It makes no sense!”
“That is the lord’s decision. Telling me won’t change anything.”
“I know that! I’m asking you to at least say something! In times like these, banning magic makes no sense!”
“I’ve told you many times—”
“Look, defense of the territory would be easier with magi-tools! And if the lord were away and had to rush back, scrolls or transfer stones are faster than a horse! So why ban magic? Why?!”
I watched the man thump his chest in frustration, then peeked at Calliere’s face.
He clearly disliked the scene, but he didn’t seem like he could simply ignore the man’s point either.
And then a random thought popped into my head, making me snort with laughter before I could stop it:
If we sold the magic-blocking stones secondhand… how much would they fetch?
