Chapter 51
“Arden!”
“Huff, huff…!”
I barely made it in time.
Just as the bell announcing midnight rang for the twelfth time, I managed to return to the ballroom.
To hide the fact that my right heel was broken, I slowed my pace and went to stand beside Arden.
“Did you get back safely? Did you put out the fire?”
“Yes. But…”
“Hm?”
“It wasn’t me. The Magic Saintess put it out.”
“The Magic Saintess?”
I asked, pretending to be surprised.
“The Magic Saintess appeared?”
“Yes.”
Though his tone sounded thoroughly displeased, Arden admitted it without hesitation.
“What kind of perverted magic was that…”
He muttered to himself, then pulled out a handkerchief and scrubbed my hands vigorously.
Then suddenly, he froze.
Stopping mid-motion, Arden studied my face closely.
“Why—why?”
“…….”
“What’s wrong?”
“…Come to think of it, senior.”
“Why….”
Why are you being so scary…?
“You look similar.”
Huh…?
“M-me? I do?”
I stammered, stepping back.
“Me? W-who do I look like?”
“…….”
“Me, me, me—who do I resemble? Haha! I don’t look like anyone! I really don’t want to know! Hahaha!”
“I didn’t say a person.”
“…….”
“You resemble an animal I saw earlier.”
“…….”
The animal Arden had seen earlier was a heron.
I went through all that trouble putting out the fire, and this brat?
Forcing a smile while suppressing my rotting inner thoughts, I imagined flapping wings smacking straight into Arden’s head.
Unaware of my thoughts, Arden asked,
“Did you drink the strawberry lemon smoothie?”
“Yeah. It was sweet and good. Totally my taste.”
“I figured it would be.”
“An appointment-ceremony commemorative sky lantern event will begin shortly! Everyone, please come out to the garden!”
Though it was past midnight, the ball was still in full swing. Amid the drunken chatter, a servant shouted.
“Once again! The sky lantern event commemorating the appointment ceremony will begin shortly! Everyone, please come out to the garden!”
“Let’s go too.”
“Okay.”
I glanced briefly at Arden—who had returned with Sir Chase—and Marian Devotion, who was waiting for him, chatting together, then stood before the door leading to the garden.
After confirming that everyone had gathered, two servants threw the doors open.
And then—
“Oh!”
“My goodness!”
Gasps burst out from the people standing in front.
Beyond the doors stood a stone wall.
A white wall said to have been carved directly from the southern sea cliffs—and someone had etched words into it with something sharp.
**“Duke Big Nose, Count Welshico… (omitted)
A list of nobles who were busy enjoying a ball while fires ravaged the homes of imperial citizens.
Such proud names deserve to be preserved on the imperial palace wall for generations to come.
If you’re truly proud of your actions, there’s no reason to feel ashamed about having your name carved here, right?
May today be a day your name goes down in history!
– Magic Saintess Sena 💫 –”**
**“Oh, right. The coats you’re wearing? I scraped them all up and donated them to Plank Street.
On your way home, trembling in the cold, take a moment to think about how it feels for the residents of Plank Street who lost their homes in late winter!”**
**“Plank Street didn’t even have a fire brigade!
His Majesty the Emperor should reflect as well!”**
“…….”
“…….”
Everyone froze.
“Th-this is…?”
“On the palace wall…!”
“Someone erase that right now!”
“Servants! Do something!”
Amid the chaos—
“Just a moment.”
After asking my permission, Arden strode forward.
He picked up something glittering that had fallen near the wall.
It was a broken shoe heel.
A fragment of a shoe that shimmered milky-white, matching the color of my dress.
Oh, damn it!
That was there?!
I hid my panic and pulled my right foot—missing its heel—as far back as possible.
He’s not going to line everyone up and check their shoes, right…? Arden totally would do that!
As I stared nervously at the heel resting in his hand, which looked smaller than it really was—
Arden took out a handkerchief, wrapped it carefully, and slipped it into his pocket.
“Huh?”
I stared at him blankly.
Ignoring me, Arden examined the Magic Saintess’s message carved well below his height and went, “Hmm.”
Then he pulled out a quill.
Flipping it over, he gripped the hard end—
And added something beside my message.
“Two people are missing.”
He added the names of some marquis and a viscount who should be included.
“Hey! You! You there!”
“Who the hell is that guy?!”
Angry shouts erupted from the gathered nobles.
Unbothered, Arden handed the quill to an elderly man who had rushed over—likely the head palace steward—and walked back to me.
Watching the steward accept the quill with strange politeness, I called out softly,
“Arden…”
Are you okay? You don’t even have money.
What if this blocks your future?
He cut off my worried words.
“Let’s go wash our hands.”
“Huh?”
“Didn’t you see? I touched the stone wall with my bare hands.”
“…….”
“There’s stone dust on them. Ugh.”
“…Yeah. Let’s scrub them clean.”
[A Righteous Day ☆ Magic Saintess Extinguishes Fire in District 10]
[Why Did the Magic Saintess Have to Put Out the Fire? The Reality of the Luare Fire Brigade]
[Arson in Plank Street… Culprit Still Unknown]
[‘May Your Name Go Down in History’ — Magic Saintess’s Message on the Palace Wall]
[Defacing the Imperial Palace: Treason?]
“Carving nobles’ names into the palace wall?!”
“Is that even allowed?!”
“No way!”
“She’d be done for if she’s caught!”
“That’s not just ‘done for’!”
“But she did it?!”
“How big are her guts?!”
“Seraphina, how was it?! Did you see the Magic Saintess’s message?!”
“Kuhhh…”
“Oh, there’s another knight here!”
[His Majesty the Emperor stated, ‘The courage to call wrong what is wrong is proof of youth,’ and ordered the wall preserved.]
[Luare Fire Brigade Chief Dismissed]
[Count WelXX Arrested While Attempting to Damage the Wall]
[Count XsiX: “I have nothing to say”]
[Count XXco, Recently Entangled in Divorce Proceedings…]
“Anyway, the Magic Saintess has to be a noble.”
“Right. Otherwise how could she enter the palace?”
“The only non-noble who entered the palace that day was Seraphina, though…”
“…….”
“…….”
“Kuhhh…”
“Seraphina, wake up!”
Smack!
“What?!”
I jolted upright.
Before morning duty, my coworkers had been chatting while reading newspapers—and were now snickering at me.
“Looks like the ball was fun. You’re completely out of it.”
“How did you even graduate the academy when you sleep all the time?”
“I didn’t graduate…”
I’m still only certified…
“Unni, then did you see the Magic Saintess?” Ellie asked.
“No. By the time I arrived, she was already gone.”
“That’s a shame! You could’ve seen her in person.”
“It’s fine.”
You can just look in the mirror.
I comforted my disappointed coworkers.
Everyone was thrilled by the news of nobles being humiliated for partying while citizens’ homes burned.
Angry nobles rushed to place bounties, and within days, my bounty climbed to fifty million gold.
I almost wanted to turn myself in.
But instead of people trying to catch the Magic Saintess, everyone was scrambling to hide her.
I was definitely trying to lie low at first. How did this happen?
If I get caught and thrown in prison, there’s no one who’ll save me.
And yet… I don’t feel that anxious or upset.
Maybe I’m more bold than I thought?
“Unni, then what about these people?”
Ellie held up a weekly magazine, Morning of the Social Scene, instead of the Imperial Daily.
[Shock! Marian Devotion and Count Shortrek Welshico Divorce!]
[Marian Devotion to Publish Memoir About Her Marriage: Titled A Divorcee Like Me]
[Count Welshico Hospitalized After Claiming Severe Humiliation]
[Bonus: Where Is the Missing Pink-Haired Heiress?]
“Oh! These people I did see.”
I could describe this one vividly.
The more this story spread, the more furious Count Welshico would become.
“Gather around!”
I’ve got a fun story to tell!
As my coworkers’ eyes sparkled with anticipation—
“Oh.”
“Huh?”
“I need the bathroom.”
“Unni!”
“Seraphina!”
“Kyahaha!”
Laughing, I ran to the restroom.
I need to wake up.
Let’s wash my face. Just as I was closing the door—
Someone creaked it open.
“What the—”
Who barges into the bathroom? Do I get no privacy?
“Seraphina…”
It was Tofu.
Squeezed into the doorframe, his small body stuck, his face all scrunched up, Tofu looked up at me.
