~Chapter 11~
When Lorienne lifted her head, her eyes met Kaire’s, who had been watching her.
“Why aren’t you eating?”
“Cough… I’m not really in the mood right now.”
Lorienne had generously given him the Enyu fruit she had been saving, but Kaire was only holding it without eating. She looked at him with a confused expression.
However, Kaire himself was momentarily flustered—too distracted by the absurd thought he had just had.
He didn’t show it, but he couldn’t understand why he had been unable to take his eyes off this mage’s lips. Why those lips—clearly unpainted—had looked so red and tempting to him.
It was undoubtedly a useless and incorrect thought.
As if brushing it off, he shook his head slightly and began walking while fiddling with the Enyu in his hand.
“Anyway, I’ll send Pico next weekend.”
“You’re not coming yourself?”
Lorienne casually sucked the juice from her stained fingertips, savoring the sweetness more because it was limited.
When she looked up at Kaire, his expression was strange—shock mixed with confusion.
‘Did that look really that disgusting? Well, he’s probably a high-ranking noble. Maybe he thinks this is unclean. I don’t care.’
She had never really sucked fruit juice off her fingers like this before. It was just that the Enyu reminded her so strongly of the Kroitz estate’s garden that she had acted without thinking.
Still, she continued speaking without concern for what Kaire thought.
“What if that Pico guy swaps the potion with another one after buying it? Or what if he poisons the potion you ordered to turn into a dog? I usually only let the person who ordered the potion pick it up for that reason.”
She was explaining the danger of third-party potion collection.
From six years of selling magical potions, Lorienne had learned painfully well that the world had no one truly trustworthy—and that the worst outcomes happened easily when people became careless.
“Pico isn’t that kind of person.”
“That’s exactly what people always say after being betrayed. ‘He wouldn’t do that.’ A single careless judgment can cost you everything.”
Lorienne continued, seeing that Kaire still didn’t respond.
“As I said, if you drink that dog-transformation potion and die, you’ll just die as a dog. I warned you about the risks. If you still want someone else to pick it up, I won’t stop you.”
Her tone was blunt, but her concern was clear.
However, Kaire didn’t seem to hear it properly.
Instead, his attention drifted to her messy platinum-blonde hair, loosely braided but sticking out in uneven strands.
It was the first time he had ever felt such trivial curiosity toward someone.
He cleared his throat unnecessarily and spoke while tossing the Enyu up and catching it again.
“Did that guy from before come back?”
“That guy?”
“The one who talked about taste the other day.”
“Oh, that fake grand duke? Thanks to him being chased off, he hasn’t come back yet.”
Lorienne shrugged lightly, as if it was nothing.
To her, it seemed like a trivial incident—even though it had involved a much larger, intimidating man.
Kaire had not left immediately that day for a reason.
He had sensed something unsettling about the man’s presence and delayed his departure. Then he heard the crude and disgusting remarks directed at Lorienne.
From a man’s perspective, she was in a situation no woman should have had to face alone.
But even then, Lorienne had not asked for help—even though she knew Kaire and Pico were outside.
She had avoided even making eye contact.
It didn’t feel bold. It felt… pitiful.
As if she believed she should never rely on anyone, no matter the situation.
Perhaps it was a belief formed after six years of running “Lofis,” where asking for help might have always led to danger.
Kaire suppressed the rising questions again.
Leaning against the wall, he decided to ask something lighter.
“Do those iron spikes really chase people?”
“Why? Do you want to be chased by them?”
“I just find it interesting that you can do that kind of magic, not just make potions.”
Lorienne casually placed her hands behind her back and looked away.
There was no need to explain that it was illusion magic.
“It’s not easy to rely only on potions to protect myself. So I learned a secondary type of magic.”
Kaire had actually been surprised when she casually mentioned the iron spikes rumor.
A potion that turned people into dogs—and now illusion magic that could drive people away?
His green eyes briefly glinted.
A year ago, when Kaire received imperial authority from Tyr and restructured the palace mage system, he had replaced the outdated honorary positions with young and talented mages.
The Western Palace of Astum had become a research hub for palace mages, and their magical progress had already begun to show results within a year.
Kaire studied Lorienne carefully.
‘I should observe her more closely. The curiosity I feel is definitely because of her magic.’
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
Now the source of his strange emotions seemed clear.
Later that night, Kaire opened a drawer in his study and looked inside.
The dog-transformation potion Pico had retrieved was there.
On the desk above it lay the Enyu fruit Lorienne had given him—now shriveled and dried out.
‘Strangely… I keep thinking about her.’
Throughout the day, Lorienne kept appearing in his mind.
It wasn’t just curiosity about her magic—she would burst into his thoughts without warning.
Her calling him a fake grand duke.
Her hesitating in front of gold coins at Lofis.
Her chin lifted even in front of arrogant nobles.
Her flushed face when she realized he had overheard her.
And especially—
The way she had sucked juice from her fingers without caring about cleanliness.
Clack.
Kaire shut the drawer loudly and fell into thought, stroking his chin.
“Pico, go to Lofis immediately and commission a potion for yourself—to turn into a dog as well.”
“Pardon? Me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I need to confirm something.”
A few days later, after a late dinner, Kaire headed to his study.
Pico, walking beside him, rubbed his tired eyes and yawned.
“I’ll be heading home now. I’ll stop by the mage’s place on my way to pick up my potion. If I had known you’d stay in the study all day, I would’ve left earlier and gone to Lofis first. Yawn… even if I run now, I might still be late…”
Kaire suddenly stopped walking.
“Did I tell you to go today?”
“Yes. You said it should be ready around today and to come get it… why?”
Pico scratched his cheek, confused by Kaire’s intense gaze.
Kaire ignored him and strode ahead.
“I’ll go too.”
“You? Why? You don’t need to go just because of my potion…”
Kaire glared at him.
“Stop talking and just follow. I have another potion to request.”
“Another one?”
“Yes.”
Pico narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
Kaire ignored him completely and walked on.
Riding his horse toward Lofis, Kaire thought:
‘Why am I suddenly going there?’
He had no other potion to order.
He had simply reacted to the word “Lofis” from Pico without thinking.
Even he didn’t understand why, but his body was already heading out of the palace.
Carrying unanswered questions, he rode on.
And when he finally arrived at Lofis and stood before the door—
Kaire suddenly turned his head sharply.
‘This smell… it’s that smell!!’
