A Blend of Romance and Fantasy - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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32.
My Lord….
No. Elisia.
Please grant me the blessing to be a righteous deceiver once more today!
“I’m sorry, Aurora. Forgive me, Brother.”
I whispered quietly to myself as I adjusted my appearance before the mirror.
Yet I couldn’t simply sit idle.
From my experience altering the original story, villainous characters like that invariably strike on the first day.
Of course, being naturally modest, I intended only to slip into the Guest Palace where Camilla was staying and peek at what transpired before returning.
Erdan and Aurora would certainly say nothing to me about whatever occurred.
“Well then, let’s go.”
After fastening the magical dagger to my waist, I turned toward the window to make my descent.
“I knew it.”
“Kyaa—?!”
Leonard Blake was perched casually on the window frame, sitting as though it were his own room, leisurely munching on an apple.
“What, what is this? What are you doing?!”
“The Saint said you’d slip away somewhere at night, so she entrusted me with watching you.”
“Aurora did?!”
Blast it all—having a friend who knows you too well is its own curse.
She had sent me off so readily, claiming she trusted me, yet I could picture her in her room now, laughing wickedly. The back of my head throbbed.
Just then, Leonard Blake finished his apple, tossed the core outside, and walked toward me with long strides.
His smirk was both refreshing and sinister.
“If you don’t lie down and sleep at once, I’ll bind you to the bed.”
“Bind me? Are you a pervert?”
I jumped back, my face flushing crimson, and he regarded me with bewilderment.
“I simply meant to restrain you to the bed so you cannot move. What on earth are you imagining?”
“Then why not bind me somewhere other than the bed! Or have you bound multiple people to a bed before?”
Silence suddenly fell over my bedroom… and I realized what I had just said.
Yes, I had overreacted.
Mercifully, a third party broke the silence.
“Hey. I’m here.”
“Ignis?”
Apparently having succeeded in learning magic overnight, Ignis had transformed into a small crimson dragon and now perched upon Leonard Blake’s shoulder.
“You’re my summoned creature, so why are you sitting on Leonard Blake’s shoulder?”
“Hmph, where I go is my choice.”
“Children should be obediently in bed by midnight!”
“I suggested accompanying you because your summoner seemed to be in danger.”
He had come to help me. Emotion crashed over me like a tsunami.
I quickly snatched Ignis from Leonard Blake’s shoulder.
“So you came to help me, Ignis?”
“Hmph! Since you look as squishy as a goblin’s innards, I came here in my great wisdom to keep you from dying. If you perish, I might have to return to dealing with that wretched fellow again.”
“Goblin’s innards? I’ve never seen anything like that in my life.”
“Once you visit my Blackwood Territory, you’ll see them every day whether you like it or not.”
“Ugh, I absolutely hate that.”
As I grimaced, Leonard Blake burst into hearty laughter.
Would I really see them?
I suppressed the rising anxiety and opened my eyes to narrow slits.
“But Leonard, what are you really doing here? Did you come to stop me at Aurora’s request? Somehow… it doesn’t feel like that.”
“Ah. Actually, I intended to follow along as well.”
“What? Follow along to do what?”
Ignis answered swiftly to my question.
“What else would that bastard do? He’s going to kill the target.”
“Surely you don’t mean to kill Camilla? That won’t do! She came as part of a diplomatic delegation, and if we fail to protect her, Sincester could hold us accountable.”
Fortunately, Leonard Blake shook his head and tapped Ignis’s small head with his index finger.
“Why do you paint me as such a cruel man, Ignis?”
“Hmph, you are inherently cruel, so what’s the point?”
Watching Ignis scoff and cross his arms, Leonard Blake turned his gaze back to me.
“Demian’s subordinates move swiftly. The moment they arrive, that woman will certainly do something. I simply wish to observe what that is—much like what you were about to do.”
Good heavens, he’s caught me red-handed, and there’s nothing I can say in my defense.
As I groaned wordlessly, Leonard Blake smiled knowingly and spoke.
“If we remain here, Camilla will disappear. Will you stay awake all night?”
“…Fine. Let’s go together.”
“I shall escort you via teleportation, the great Princess of Sincester.”
His tongue moved with practiced smoothness, clearly pleased. I shot Leonard Blake a sideways glance and asked pointedly.
“You know where Camilla is staying? That’s why you’re offering to teleport there.”
“When I saw Camilla at the Royal Palace, I placed a tracking spell on her without her noticing. I should be able to teleport to the vicinity of her location.”
“What’s the probability that Camilla detected the spell?”
“Nearly zero, but even if she had, she would have left it alone.”
“Why is that?”
“My magic cannot be dispelled at her level of ability.”
What an irritatingly smug smile.
I sighed and stepped onto the teleportation circle he had created.
“Don’t get us lost, you directionally-challenged fool.”
* * *
The place we arrived at was far different from what I had anticipated.
“I thought it would be near the Guest Palace, but a grassland…?”
“I should have known.”
Leonard Blake uttered a brief curse and adjusted the hood he had been wearing.
“I never imagined Demian’s subordinate would be sleeping peacefully in a guest room at night. Your Brother may have also sent people to watch her.”
“Then there could be White Owls in the vicinity besides us right now?”
“Hmm.”
Leonard Blake closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again.
“Since I don’t sense any presence besides us, either they haven’t arrived, or Camilla has driven them all away.”
“Is Camilla skilled enough to drive away all of our Sincester Holy Knights?”
Remarkable.
Even though I had deliberately downplayed the White Owls’ swordsmanship to elevate the male lead Cedric and the secondary male lead Erdan, they were still skilled enough to slay house-sized monsters in just a few strikes.
If Erdan had sent White Owls, there would have been more than one, so the fact that she drove them all away meant her abilities were no joke.
Leonard Blake answered my reaction with a serious expression.
“To be frank, Holy Knights and Mages are fundamentally different races. Especially if you try to face a dark mage head-on, you’ll be in trouble. Your people fight with the rigidity of scholars.”
“What do you mean by fighting with the rigidity of scholars?”
“It means you don’t know how to fight dirty. Even when I sparred with Cedric last time….”
As Leonard Blake continued speaking, he suddenly pulled me into his embrace and dove into the shadow beneath the base of a tree.
I couldn’t even scream. His large hand had clamped over my mouth.
Looking up at him with startled eyes, I saw his gaze had turned sharp, fixed on a single point.
It was Camilla.
Leonard Blake gave me a look telling me to stay quiet. When I nodded obediently, his hands slowly withdrew from my mouth and waist.
“What is she doing here….”
A rough voice, like a veil, fell to the ground. An irritated expression accompanied it.
He didn’t bother to follow as Camilla moved away, but he watched her retreating figure with persistent intensity.
Until not even a shadow remained.
Though it was only a brief moment, I could sense that Leonard Blake harbored quite a deep grudge against Demian.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t direct such a dagger-like gaze even at his subordinate.
After a long silence, he suddenly came to his senses and laughed awkwardly.
“Ah, I apologize. I was startled suddenly.”
“No, but aren’t you going to follow her?”
“I can track her by her presence, so it doesn’t matter. Besides, with you in tow, there’s nothing I can do with that woman anyway. As I said before, I was simply curious about what Camilla was trying to do and wanted to keep watch.”
Then Leonard Blake pulled something from thin air.
“First, let’s figure out where we are. I brought the magical map, the Traces of Truth, just in case.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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