Chapter 57
The people of the Rohan family fell silent for a moment.
Their faces expressed disbelief, as if questioning whether what they were hearing was nonsense or a serious statement.
“You want me to spar with Siena?”
Laria instinctively glanced at Siena.
Siena, seemingly just as surprised, hadn’t been warned beforehand either.
After a brief pause, she nodded confidently.
“I don’t mind. It’ll be a good learning experience.”
Siena tilted her head, urging Laria for an answer.
“Right, Miss Rohan?”
“What nonsense is this!”
Herdin couldn’t contain himself and raised his voice.
“My younger sister has only recently manifested as a sorcerer.”
“It’s not even a formal match, just a sparring session. Why get so worked up?”
When Marquis Hashir made it sound trivial, Herdin’s expression turned cold.
It felt as though he might act rashly at any moment.
Theodor, who had been quiet for a while, lifted his head.
His hands shook uncontrollably, still unable to overcome his fear.
Even so, as if he couldn’t push Laria into danger, he made eye contact with the Marquis for the first time.
“Perhaps I should spar with the Marquis instead…”
“I don’t mind either.”
Laria interrupted Theodor, glancing at Siena, who was smiling like a doll, and smiled brightly herself.
“It’ll be a good chance to gauge our abilities.”
“Absolutely not.”
“What are you saying!”
“L-Laria!”
Even as her family shouted at her, Laria didn’t change her mind.
She already had a rough estimate of Siena’s skills.
She had seen Siena’s sorcery during the bank robbery incident.
“Siena is no match for me.”
Siena might have considered Laria a competitor, but reality was different.
After several incidents, Laria had learned to roughly gauge her own abilities.
“Her defensive wards, and that necklace meant to negate high-level sorcery—it all broke in one strike.”
Once Laria joined the Sorcery Bureau, she might even occupy a high position.
Siena had been so impressed watching the mercenary Lily, after all.
“A bit unfortunate for Siena, but…”
It was still better than having her father spar with the Marquis.
From what she could tell later, the Marquis seemed to have done something to her father.
Even now, her father wasn’t as powerful with magic as he used to be.
Though still formidable, he would be at a disadvantage in a direct confrontation.
The Marquis, apparently satisfied with Laria’s response, stroked his beard.
“My daughter wants to spar. Who are you to stop her?”
Herdin nearly blurted out a retort but swallowed it.
Semela’s neck flared with tiny scales, her anger barely restrained.
She shot the Marquis a glare that could kill on the spot.
Semela stepped behind Laria and spoke in her place:
“As her protector, I refuse to allow sparring.”
“A grown adult needing a protector? What is the Rohan family thinking…”
Before the Marquis could finish, Laria turned her gaze behind him.
The Rohan family followed her look, and the Marquis also turned his head.
Jenox was walking toward them.
“Wow, my skin feels like it’s burning. Is it because he’s a snake beastman? His eyes are so piercing.”
Ishuel, trying to escape Herdin, had fled to a corner of the banquet hall, wiping cold sweat from his brow.
“It’s been a while since our arranged meeting, but he still looks like he wants to kill me.”
Ishuel whined about having dreamed multiple times that Herdin strangled him to death.
“But no one compares to Herdin Rohan as a personal physician.”
Even though he was technically Ishuel’s own physician, he suddenly started praising him because Herdin took care of all the royals.
Born frail, Ishuel was once diagnosed as unlikely to survive long.
After trying all kinds of medicines to barely survive, his health miraculously stabilized once Herdin became his personal doctor.
It was as if he had never been sick in the first place.
Since then, Ishuel and the royals had complete faith in Herdin’s abilities.
“As long as he’s alive, Herdin keeps him alive, so you can’t just fire him!”
“……”
“No, if I threatened to fire him, he’d probably pack up and leave immediately.”
Jenox, tired of listening to unnecessary chatter, uncrossed his arms and lightly struck the wall with his armored fist.
Thud. The sound reverberated from wall to ceiling, silencing Ishuel.
That’s marble…
“So, what did you want to say?”
Jenox raised his eyebrows, urging Ishuel to speak quickly. Ishuel, flustered, blurted out:
“Did I make a mistake with Miss Rohan? I felt it at the auction too. It’s not paranoia—she really seems to dislike me, doesn’t she?”
Ishuel’s ears burned as he frowned, his eyes drooping in frustration.
“Honestly, I feel bad for suddenly arranging the meeting, but… it worked out, right? They’re engaged now!”
Still, he didn’t understand why she kept glaring at him, he complained.
Jenox remained silent for a moment.
Laria probably still misunderstood Ishuel, thinking he forced the engagement.
She probably assumed that today’s engagement announcement was solely Ishuel’s doing.
But Jenox had no reason to clear up their misunderstanding.
For now, he needed to keep Laria close until it was revealed that she was Hayang.
And he didn’t want her getting close to Ishuel.
“Hey. Could you look at me for a moment, cousin?”
Jenox glanced at Ishuel, clearly annoyed.
Even from a distance, he continued to watch Laria intently.
Ishuel, sensing the intensity of his gaze, half-jokingly said:
“I’ve heard rumors… you’re not forcing an engagement, right?”
Jenox let out a faint, dry laugh.
“Forcing an engagement?”
“Well… it feels like you’re watching me in case I run away.”
Jenox didn’t answer.
Could it be? Ishuel’s eyes widened.
Getting tired of dealing with him, Jenox threw out a casual comment:
“Perhaps the lady dislikes you because you talk too much.”
“…You mean Miss Rohan dislikes me because I talk too much?”
Ishuel looked shocked.
“If you stayed quiet, she might even like you.”
With that, Jenox’s eyes narrowed.
He noticed a red-haired middle-aged man and a woman, presumably his daughter, approaching Laria.
They were figures he had seen before.
Perhaps Marquis Hashir.
Even from a distance, the atmosphere around them felt tense.
Jenox scrutinized Laria carefully.
Her closed lips and raised eyes indicated she was angry.
Recalling the Rohan and Hashir families’ poor relations, Jenox spoke:
“I should take my leave now.”
“Y-yeah, sure…”
Ishuel, shocked by Jenox’s words, waved his hand weakly like a withering plant.
“Tell Miss Rohan to behave a little.”
He muttered to himself, sulking, thinking he’d have to shut his mouth next time they met.
As Jenox began to leave, Ishuel suddenly called out:
“Right, how should we handle the engagement announcement?”
“Do as you wish.”
“Do as I wish? It’s your engagement, you know?”
Jenox noticed Laria’s family, sticking close to her, in his line of sight.
Even children wouldn’t be that overprotective.
Perhaps an engagement was necessary to create distance.
He already knew her family wanted to separate him from Laria.
Understandable, considering Jenox was seen as an intruder.
But he had no intention of stepping aside quietly.
Since it came to this, he decided it was better to secure a definite relationship with Laria.
Considering the reason to engage, he answered:
“Shall we proceed with the announcement as planned?”
“Miss Rohan also agreed to it, right?”
Jenox didn’t answer and left immediately.
As he walked toward the chandelier-lit area, the armor on his hand sparkled.
Aside from the armor, his whole figure was dark, almost shadow-like, yet his presence was immense.
Perhaps because everyone else was dazzlingly decorated, he stood out even more.
As he walked to the center of the hall, those squabbling for space scattered like startled rabbits.
Jenox suddenly stopped.
Assessing the situation, he roughly understood what had happened.
It seemed that Marquis Hashir and his daughter had started the conflict.
Standing beside Laria, Jenox spoke:
“Marquis Hashir.”
Startled at being addressed, the Marquis flinched.
“I could smell the stench from afar.”
No one immediately understood what Jenox meant.
As he continued staring at the Marquis, the latter’s face flushed red.
“W-What!”
His well-groomed beard trembled in humiliation.
“To insult me like this, even though I am a Duke…!”
Before he could finish threatening, Jenox leaned toward him.
Inhaling as if smelling something, Jenox looked at the Marquis’s hand and said:
“For example… the scent of blood.”
In that instant, Laria noticed the flicker of unease in the Marquis’s eyes.
