Chapter 38
Clang-rattle.
The knife that had fallen to the ground spun sharply as it skidded.
“Wha—…”
Clap!
—Damn it!
What the heck was that!
I steadied my wildly beating heart.
Everyone except Leviathan-uncle and the swordsman had eyes wide like startled rabbits.
“Child, it’s okay. It’s okay.”
Ah, even the grandfather who was patting me was excluded from that group.
“Wha… what…!”
Delmon, who had suddenly been grabbed by the nape of his neck, gaped in shock, opening and closing his mouth like a fish.
“Oh, sorry.”
Khalid seemed to snap back to his senses and let him go.
“I sensed killing intent.”
“Killing intent… you mean… you used me as a shield?”
Delmon collapsed onto the ground, sitting there with a dazed expression.
Senior Obron rushed over and began interrogating him, asking where on earth he had hidden the knife. The swordsman quietly averted his gaze.
Watching all of this, Leviathan-uncle let out a sigh and scratched his temple.
“We’ve got ourselves a troublesome one.”
“Your Excellency, I apologize for stepping in.”
“It’s fine.”
For some reason, I felt self-conscious and rolled my eyes around cautiously.
The uncle stood up and gestured.
“That’s enough. We’re done here.”
Senior Obron, who had been about to explode in agitation, immediately shut his mouth.
“That’s enough—go ahead and guide the three of them through the knight order.”
“Ah, yes…”
Senior Obron quickly organized things.
My eyes met Khalid’s as he casually brushed the dirt off his shoes.
‘Sorry.’
His lips moved slightly.
Perhaps because he had cleaved through the wind so spectacularly, the white powder that had clung to his body had already been blown away.
‘Ugh. Seriously…’
I sat down with a slump.
“Uncle, Khalid is….”
“Yes. It seems he’s not used to mock combat.”
“…Yeah.”
Khalid was a child raised on battlefields.
Having honed his skills while moving from one life-threatening battlefield to another, refined duels and harmless mock battles were unfamiliar to him.
How to “pretend” to fight without killing or harming the opponent.
It was clear he didn’t truly understand that fundamental concept.
Realizing that made my mouth taste a little bitter.
“So he’s a mercenary kid, huh.”
A large hand landed on top of my head. I slightly lifted my gaze to look up at the uncle.
“Hey, Ruby.”
“Yeah?”
“How close are you with that kid?”
I blinked, wondering what he meant all of a sudden, then answered quietly.
“We’re… close? Why?”
“Because when he sensed the killing intent, the first person that kid checked was you.”
“Oh… I see.”
I awkwardly turned my head and pretended to continue eating my walnut pie.
‘I can’t even say it’s because he’s like a clingy puppy…’
Grumbling inwardly, I felt a burning gaze at the side of my head and slightly raised a hand to cover my cheek.
“Our youngest’s social relationships are quite unusual.”
Of course, that was lightly stopped.
Despite a minor incident… the three of them, as per the Zeveret Knight Order’s policy of not rejecting arrivals and firmly holding onto those who stay, were accepted into the lowest ranks of the knight order without issue.
I felt a little wronged, because…
“Why? Why am I still the youngest? What kind of system judges age like that!”
“It’s not that, Ruby.”
The uncle calmly pointed at Khalid’s application form. It was the section where his experience was written in large letters.
“He has experience.”
“….”
“You don’t.”
“Wow, a seasoned hire.”
It was just frustrating that I had to hide my own impressive credentials.
In any case, Khalid Liorc had proudly donned the cloak of the Zeveret Knight Order.
Not only that—he was even given lodging within the knight order building.
The magical boy and second male lead had suddenly planted himself in the northern region.
“I like it.”
Khalid, who had casually looked around my room, said indifferently.
“As you please.”
I lay sideways on the sofa and replied sulkily.
“You mad?”
“Ahh, how could I dare be mad? Especially after being dragged into solo decisions without consultation twice now, I’m quite used to it.”
Even so, I couldn’t quite suppress the sharp tone in my voice.
Khalid, who had been quietly watching me, lightly brought his pinky finger to mine.
A cool stream of mana gently flowed in.
“Don’t be angry.”
“Using mana while acting cute won’t work.”
“I think it is working.”
“….”
Cheekbones. The corners of his mouth.
Are you serious right now?
I awkwardly stood up and let out a long sigh.
“Do we really have to go this far? We can still contact each other even if we’re not glued together.”
I tapped the small magic circle engraved behind my ear.
Khalid smiled with a somewhat ambiguous expression.
“That’s exactly the problem, master.”
“What do you mean? As long as you don’t block me, there’s no problem!”
“And you’ll trust that and run away again if something comes up and leave me behind?”
“I didn’t abandon you, seriously…”
“Not anymore.”
His tone was firm. Khalid let out a faint chuckle and drove the point home.
“And I’ve decided to walk the path of a swordsman now. I won’t even glance at magic anymore.”
“Then what’s this?”
I gestured toward the mana that was still flowing in.
“Hm… personal feelings?”
“What?”
“Loyalty. You’re my master, after all.”
Seeing Khalid smile softly, I realized there was no turning back.
“Sigh. How am I supposed to stop you?”
“Exactly.”
I glanced sideways at the boy who looked oddly pleased. He was as stubborn as ever.
With a resigned sigh, I muttered sulkily:
“…If you’re staying here, at least figure out what to call me.”
“Yeah, I was planning to.”
“….”
“Ruby.”
Bathed in the sunset light, the boy… was so beautiful it was almost exhausting to describe.
‘Oh dear, I don’t even know anymore.’
I waved my hand lazily and grabbed a handful of cookies. Khalid, wearing a bracelet with a faint jingle, watched me with interest.
“I understand what you’re worried about, Ruby.”
“Wha—mmph…”
“Finish chewing first… good. Anyway, compared to you, I’m much more skilled at pretending not to be a mage, so don’t worry.”
He wasn’t wrong. Khalid had lived his entire life pretending not to be a mage.
Though that said, he had a tendency to use mana rather freely.
‘Still… maybe this is for the better.’
I forced myself to think positively.
After all, the Zeveret Knight Order was the strongest knight order.
Khalid is still just a novice when it comes to swordsmanship.
No matter how battle-hardened he was, there were limits to self-taught skills.
And… who knew?
Since Khalid was the second male lead, maybe he would be of help later when Leviathan-uncle goes to cut down the Mage King.
“Alright… then since you’re building strength anyway, make sure to train hard.”
“Until Duke Zeveret goes to take the Mage King’s head off?”
“Yeah… huh?”
I suddenly stopped mid-motion.
“You… read my mind?”
That kind of magic doesn’t exist.
“Looks like I was right.”
Khalid murmured, stroking his chin.
“I kept thinking about why you’re here.”
The sun had quickly set. Shadows of night began to cover the boy’s smooth face.
“You’re planning to use Duke Zeveret to kill the Mage King, aren’t you?”
“….”
“Because of that cursed mark, you can’t do it yourself.”
Without realizing it, I began to move my mana. A silencing spell formed like a white veil and seeped into the air.
Khalid clicked his tongue briefly and poured mana back into me again.
“Is your grand magic vault still searching for a way to remove the mark?”
“Vi…zeria.”
My voice came out slightly muffled.
Wow. Seriously. What kind of intuition is this?
Honestly, I was surprised. With just the information he had, Khalid had nearly arrived at the correct conclusion.
“I’ve already said it about five hundred times—I’ll do it.”
An unfamiliar glint flickered in his grayish-blue eyes.
