CHAPTER 114………………………………
At the sharp remark, Cordelia flinched for a moment before answering honestly.
“…A little.”
Even in happiness, to say she wasn’t anxious would be a lie. It wasn’t as if she was completely oblivious to reality.
She knew how much courage it must have taken for Noah to reach out and hold her hand. Even while trying to find realistic ways to be with her, he must have feared that there might not be a perfect answer that would let them keep everything intact.
“Of course, I know he likes me! The problem is he likes me too much. If he ever thinks I’m in danger, I feel like he’d just let go of everything without hesitation.”
She was afraid of that — that if such a moment came, he might try to give her up again.
“To be honest, I don’t think it’s something we can solve just by giving advice. Why don’t you just talk to him directly?”
Jasmine sighed and spoke reason. Cordelia shook her head firmly.
“I want to, but we promised not to bring it up unless he mentioned it first. Ugh, I don’t know what I was thinking back then. I should’ve just asked! I hate feeling this frustrated.”
Even as she said that, she knew she’d make the same choice again if she went back. That annoyed her a bit — but she didn’t really dislike that part of herself either. She didn’t want to trouble Noah any more than necessary.
“I’ve been pulling too much on my end anyway. I think I should take it easy for a while. He’s just so scared of everything — that’s the problem.”
Despite her grumbling, Cordelia’s eyes were full of affection as she spoke of him. The other three exchanged quiet glances. Owen stroked his chin and smiled.
“It’s something only the two of you can work out, but… speaking as someone who’s been married…”
Here it comes.
“Thinking things through is important, yes, but you’d be surprised how often problems turn out to be trivial once you actually talk about them.”
His gaze softened with the weight of experience.
“I agree with Miss Jasmine. I think a little more communication would do you both good. Judging by your expression, Miss Eliza seems to think the same, doesn’t she?”
“It’s not really my business, so I hesitated to say anything, but… yes.”
When even Eliza agreed, Cordelia could only nod helplessly. Her large blue eyes blinked, shimmering with tangled emotions.
“Wow… this is really hard.”
“It always looks simple from the outside. But when it’s your own heart, everything gets complicated.”
“When I wrote about it, it never felt this real.”
Cordelia fiddled with her now short hair, smiling mischievously as she changed the topic.
“By the way, how are things going with Lord Joshua?”
As Viscount Owen had said, other people’s love stories were always easier. Chosen as the sacrifice to lighten the mood, Jasmine sighed and set down her teacup.
“There’s nothing going on. We just exchange letters from time to time.”
“Oh, but I heard that the young Viscount Francis paid a visit to the Count of Robin. Did I hear wrong?”
“…Where on earth did you pick up that rumor, Miss Eliza?”
“Well, considering the kind of family I’m from — information is as good as money, isn’t it?”
Everyone gleefully pounced on the blushing Jasmine. Cordelia, no longer sulking, sparkled with curiosity.
“So, did you go on a walk together?”
“If he visited your estate, that sounds like progress to me. Did you at least hold hands?”
“Heh, such a sweet time of life. Ah, though it is winter now.”
When even Owen joined in, Jasmine glared at them all.
“You’re all having fun teasing me, aren’t you?”
“Oh, not at all,” Eliza replied innocently.
“It’s not just teasing — I’ve been running out of material lately.”
“…What?”
“So it’d be best if you cooperate, Miss Jasmine. Unless, of course, you don’t want to appear in my next novel!”
Seeing Eliza brandish her pen like a weapon, Jasmine chose silence. Considering the type of stories Eliza wrote, appearing in one of them was the last thing she wanted.
“Anyway, how about everyone else? Any news about new books?”
Eliza rested her chin on her hands, her smile bright and lively — so different from when she’d first met them, quietly debating with a calm voice.
Ah, the confidence of being twenty-one.
“I’m aiming for late spring. I’ve been busy lately.”
“Because of wedding preparations, right?”
“Say that one more time, Miss Eliza.”
Ignoring Jasmine’s low growl, Eliza feigned innocence. Cordelia, mentally counting dates, shook her head.
“Hm… I think mine will be after summer.”
As Lawrence Blanc, that is.
“That’s quite a long break for you. Don’t you usually publish twice a year?”
“Well, I’ve had a lot on my mind, and the writing’s not coming easily.”
The sharp observation made her flinch inside, but Cordelia played it off smoothly. Luckily, after the earlier talk about romance, no one seemed suspicious.
Maybe I really should talk to Noah about it.
She still hadn’t told him about the play, or what she was planning with the royal family. Not because she hadn’t had the chance — but because she didn’t want to ruin the tender, happy early days of their relationship.
She knew she couldn’t put it off forever… but couldn’t she delay it just a little longer? They’d only just started dating, and there was still so much to do! They’d barely gone out together at all, thanks to her ridiculous deadlines.
Even though she knew it was her own fault, Cordelia grumbled inwardly.
I’ll finish this quickly, and then go on a proper date with Noah.
Thinking that talking could wait until then, she picked up her teacup with a composed smile.
“Here — shouldn’t we use this symbol in this section?”
“Since it’s supposed to suppress magic, wouldn’t this one fit better? It stabilizes existence, apparently.”
“That’s true according to the texts, but the other symbol is more common. Still, considering the nature of the spell, your argument makes sense.”
“Then let’s try both versions and see what happens.”
Dozens of sheets of paper were scattered before Lines and Silekion as they exchanged ideas energetically. The large sheet fixed in the center of the table, with an enormous circle drawn across it, immediately caught the eye.
“It’s finally coming together.”
Designing a new magic circle from scratch was far harder than reusing an existing one — and reconstructing a circle to perfectly match a spell that had already been cast was even more complex.
Trying to recreate something from fragments — it was like reconstructing an entire object from only a few pieces, with no room for error. It required not just skill but deep understanding and precise judgment.
Just as Cordelia had said, the mage called Silekion was a tremendous help in this regard.
How old is he, really?
Lines squinted at him, and Silekion spoke up.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I’m just curious about what kind of life you’ve led.”
For someone like this to hold an important position in another nation — that alone was threatening enough.
“The Duchy maintains strict neutrality. At least under my master’s rule, that policy will not be broken.”
His smooth reply suggested he’d caught her unspoken thought. Quick, this one.
“At this rate, we’ll be done by tomorrow. Then we can move right on to constructing the sealing circle.”
The papers scattered around them were filled with the marks of countless experiments and failures. Matching a magical flow “approximately” was nothing like reproducing it exactly — caution was inevitable.
Normally, even small-scale work like this required at least five mages. That the two of them were handling it alone naturally slowed things down.
“Still, faster than I expected. I thought it’d take half a month longer.”
“That’s thanks to that.”
They both glanced at a crumpled sheet lying beside the circle — the one Noah had handed them not long ago. Seeing the half-finished magic circle covered in tiny, precise notes had stunned them.
“You look deep in thought.”
Lines cleared her throat softly.
“Well… it’s just surprising. For someone to make notes that accurate after seeing only half a completed circle.”
Thanks to that, their reconstruction had sped up significantly. Normally, they would have needed repeated library visits to decode unknown symbols, but the notes clearly identified each one.
“Do you think all mages in Herita are trained to analyze like this?”
If even a passing mage could display that level of ability, what kind of place was it, really?
“It is the most magically advanced region on the continent.”
“Have you ever been there yourself?”
Silekion was silent for a moment. Just when Lines began to find the stillness strange, he finally answered in a calm voice.
