Chapter 46
Laria borrowed a jewel from Solike and cast a teleportation spell.
As soon as she returned from the broker’s office to her bedroom, she changed clothes.
Once she put on her nightgown, her hands felt strangely empty.
“I left everything behind…”
She suddenly remembered that she had left all her shopping in Isuel’s carriage.
‘Not that I’ll need them anymore anyway.’
Since Zenox had returned to his human form, the things she bought for the wolf pup were now useless.
Laria turned her head and gazed at the bed.
It was completely empty.
Having spent the last few days with the wolf pup, its absence left an empty spot in her heart.
She had left with two, but come back alone.
‘It wasn’t even a real wolf pup anyway.’
At least it was fortunate that Zenox’s side effects had disappeared.
Now wasn’t the time to dwell on him.
She needed to worry about herself.
For the moment Zenox returned to being human, Laria had turned into a fox.
And unlike Zenox, she hadn’t even suffered side effects from the potion.
‘What if I suddenly transform into a fox again like this?’
Just imagining it happening in front of Zenox sent chills down her spine.
There had to be a reason she had transformed.
Laria retraced the events of the day.
The only difference from usual was…
“Could it be because I used too much magic power at once…?”
She had cast multiple spells in succession to stop the suspicious figure earlier.
Never before had she drawn on so much power all at once, and it left her utterly drained.
If that was the reason, she would need to restrain herself from overusing magic in the future.
Knock, knock.
The sound at the door startled Laria, making her leap out of bed.
“Miss? Are you awake?”
“Mhm, I’m awake.”
Any later and she might’ve been discovered…
Laria let out a sigh of relief.
“Would you like dinner…?”
“I’ll eat in my room.”
Having eaten in her room so often lately because of Zenox, the words slipped out of habit.
But the servant outside didn’t immediately respond.
Instead, Laria heard them hesitating, shuffling nervously.
“Yes, I’ll bring it right away…”
The weary reply trailed off as the servant left.
Puzzled at their demeanor, Laria soon heard a faint thunk by the door.
“?”
She noticed a slip of paper shoved under the door.
Opening it, she read:
[I was wrong…]
The stiff, blocky handwriting was Herdin’s.
Throwing open the door, she found no one in the corridor.
Just as she was about to step back inside, she spotted her father peeking from the end of the hall.
Silently, he mouthed the words:
I’m sorry…
Then he disappeared.
Dumbfounded, Laria remembered that she hadn’t dined with her family in a while.
Not since the incident where they had secretly given Zenox the potion.
Though she had been disappointed in them, the real reason she avoided meals was Zenox.
After a moment’s hesitation, she turned to the servant who had just brought in her food.
“Actually, I’ll go to the dining room.”
The servant’s gloomy face immediately lit up.
“Excellent choice, miss! Everyone’s waiting, shall we go now?”
“I should at least change clothes first…”
“You look beautiful as you are!”
In a nightgown, for dinner?
“…I’ll change quickly.”
After switching into light indoor clothes, Laria went down to the dining room.
Theodore, Semela, and Herdin sat side by side.
They usually sat in pairs, so the seating arrangement struck her as odd.
She was about to take the empty seat across from them when she froze.
All three were staring at her with tearful eyes.
“…Feels like it’s been a long time.”
“It hasn’t been that lon—… never mind…”
Theodore sulked into silence.
As Laria sat down, a servant behind her placed a dish in front of her.
On the white plate lay a single baked apple.
Perplexed, Laria blinked at it until Semela raised her head to meet her gaze.
Like the other two, her eyes glistened with tears.
Her normally cold expression had vanished, leaving only tenderness.
Flabbergasted, Laria glanced between the apple and her family.
“So this is your way of saying you’re sorry?”
“…Yes.”
The pitiful look in their eyes almost made her laugh.
It seemed they truly regretted what they had done. Perhaps she should forgive them.
As her expression softened, hope sparked across their faces.
“Ahem.”
She cleared her throat, and their faces immediately grew solemn again, eyes welling once more.
She did want to forgive them, but this was something worth addressing at least once, to ensure it never happened again.
“You have to promise never to do that again.”
At least none of them asked, ‘Do what?’
“You won’t harm His Grace the Duke, right?”
“I promise.”
“I swear.”
“Yes.”
None of them promised not to interfere, only not to harm him—something Laria overlooked.
Satisfied, she let her expression ease.
“Alright. I’ll trust you.”
Their faces lit up at once.
The servants in the background even clapped.
The heavy air in the dining hall dispersed, replaced by warmth.
“We thought you were avoiding us, and it hurt so much…”
Theodore sniffled, letting out his pent-up grief.
“All because of the Duke… ah, sorry.”
Realizing his slip, Herdin smacked his own mouth and went quiet.
Soon, dishes of food were laid out across the table, more lavish than usual—like a celebration.
‘Zenox must be eating dinner somewhere too, right now.’
As Laria thought of him, Semela put down her knife and spoke carefully.
“Laria, about the engagement…”
When Laria looked up, Semela continued gently.
“It’s not that we oppose it, but since you’ve only known each other a short while, isn’t an engagement too soon?”
“…”
“Of course, we could never allow such an important event to be treated lightly either.”
Her words made sense, and Laria nodded.
They had yielded enough; she could compromise as well.
She could discuss the engagement timing with Zenox.
‘But how will the imperial family respond?’
They had been so impatient, they’d even sent a congratulatory letter before confirming with her.
The Crown Prince, feigning foolishness, had cleverly pushed the engagement forward.
For now, she’d need to consult Zenox.
“I understand. I’ll try to delay it as much as possible.”
Hearing her agreement, the three exhaled in relief.
Exchanging secret glances, they silently reaffirmed their plan:
There would be no engagement ceremony.
The two would be separated, without fail.
***
A week had passed since the illegal auction.
Zenox had sent no word.
Laria had written him an apologetic letter, explaining why she left early, but no reply ever came.
The longer his silence dragged on, the more anxious she became.
In the meantime, a letter arrived from the Crown Prince.
It was nothing serious—just a light greeting.
Laria replied that she had hurried home due to curfew, and asked him to keep her whereabouts that day a secret.
If he mentioned seeing her to Herdin, she’d be in trouble, since she had gone out without her family’s knowledge.
‘So what about the prophecy?’
The Crown Prince had said Zenox would embrace a white fox.
Judging by Zenox’s reaction, it seemed he hadn’t found one at the auction.
Instead, he had encountered her—transformed into a fox.
‘Maybe it’ll happen someday, but not this time?’
Frustrated by the endless possibilities, Laria ruffled her hair.
“Ugh, I can’t make sense of this.”
With her chest tight, she suddenly jumped up.
“I’m going out right now.”
At her declaration, Rodite rushed over, tail wagging vigorously.
“Miss, did you manage to return the puppy to its owner?”
“Huh? Oh… yes, I did.”
“That’s a relief! I was a little worried.”
She couldn’t bring herself to tell the truth—that it wasn’t a puppy, but a wolf, and in fact Zenox himself.
Laria and Rodite headed to a materials shop at the corner of 17th Street.
“Welcome!”
The shopkeeper greeted them brightly.
Laria began searching for what she needed.
‘First, blue horn coral… ah, there it is.’
Only one piece remained.
Relieved, she reached for it—only for another hand to shoot out at the same time.
Their fingers brushed, and both instantly looked up.
“Laria Rohan…?”
Siena Hashr…?
“To think we’d meet here—what a surprising coincidence.”
Siena quickly composed herself and greeted Laria gracefully.
Having completely forgotten about Siena, Laria only blinked.
Thinking herself ignored, Siena’s eyes narrowed briefly before she tilted her head.
“Since I touched it first, you’ll give it up, won’t you?”
Give it up?
Laria was about to ask the shopkeeper if there was more stock, but Rodite jumped in.
“Our young lady reached for it first!!!”
