On Official Duty with My Tower Master Ex-Boyfriend - Chapter 13

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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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Episode 13
Four days after returning from the Monster Subjugation Unit operation, in the Magic Tower Underground Training Ground.
A sound like stone cracking echoed through the chamber, and smoke billowed upward.
At its center, a Wizard who had been sprawled across the floor staggered to his feet.
Seeing this, Cade flicked his hand toward a boundary line he’d drawn arbitrarily on the ground.
“Next.”
“Aaaaah!”
Another Wizard was yanked into the boundary line by the gesture, shoulders trembling.
At Cade’s commanding glance to begin, the Wizard drew up his Magical Power.
Bang! Whoosh—
Before the smoke even settled, he crashed into the ground and kicked up a new cloud of it.
The Wizard scrambled out past the boundary line, fighting to clear his dazed mind.
The Wizards waiting their turn caught him and helped him to his feet.
“At least try to dodge. Next.”
The Wizards felt their spines chill at the cold glint in Cade’s eyes.
The cycle of Monster Beast operations was growing shorter, and he couldn’t keep dragging the same handful of people on every mission.
It was necessary to rapidly develop the Combat Magic skills of the other Wizards as well.
Ben, who had been watching Cade spar directly with the Wizards, thought to himself.
‘He really has no talent for teaching, does he.’
It was true that geniuses were often like this, but Cade took it to extremes.
When someone had once asked him how he could cast Magic so quickly, his only answer had been that you needed to perform Magic Circle Calculation fast enough.
Now, with such a gap in ability, he couldn’t adjust to his opponents’ level, so there was nothing for them to see and learn.
And the ominous atmosphere that had hung over things for days had reached its peak today. It looked less like training and more like venting anger.
‘He seemed fine on the day of the banquet. The more he dwells on it, the more it must sting—being coerced into that kind of gathering. And he even used Rana.’
Just as Ben was swallowing a sigh while watching Cade’s violent training, one of the Wizards approached and spoke quietly.
“Counselor. That Civil Servant has come again.”
Ben turned with a stricken expression.
“Now?”
Of all the terrible timing, to show up when the Tower Master’s mood was thoroughly fouled. Even Rana wouldn’t be able to stop him today. This Civil Servant’s luck was extraordinarily bad.
“Who is it?”
“Ahhh!”
Ben let out a shriek like he’d seen a ghost when the Tower Master suddenly appeared, closing the distance in an instant.
“Who came.”
“I-it’s the Civil Servant who visited before. They’re looking for you, Tower Master.”
“Take them to the Office. Training ends here.”
Cade brushed the dust from his Robe and vanished with a flash of Teleportation.
The Wizards who saw this thought the same thing with pale faces.
‘Today he’s really going to kill someone.’
***
While I waited in the Lobby, a Wizard named Ben appeared and guided me to the Office.
He introduced himself as the Tower Master’s Counselor, but for some reason, he kept glancing back at me with restless anxiety.
“Ben? What’s wrong?”
“……Sigh. It’s nothing.”
“……?”
The way he stared at my face and then sighed felt deeply uncomfortable.
It was better than how the Wizards had treated me on my first visit to the Magic Tower—ignoring me and treating me as a spectacle—but it was still irritating.
Trying to stare pointedly at the back of his head, Ben suddenly spun around.
“Aren’t you afraid of the Tower Master? Isn’t there a chance you’ll die?”
“What? What do you mean by that……?”
“You were lucky enough to leave in one piece, so why come back to the Magic Tower again?”
In his eyes, it seemed I appeared to be someone who couldn’t read the situation, a thoughtless fool.
Well, he wasn’t wrong. If it hadn’t been for my department transfer, I never would have set foot in a place where that reckless Tower Master lurked.
Especially since that Tower Master was my ex, the one who’d dumped me.
“I don’t know the Tower Master well, but I trust that he won’t kill me. The atmosphere wasn’t bad last time either, so don’t worry.”
“…….”
Ben looked at me with a hopeless expression, then clicked his tongue like I was hopeless too.
What was that reaction?
I rubbed my tired eyes as I followed him up the stairs.
‘Do I look that haggard? Like I’ll die if the Tower Master just gets angry?’
The darkened skin around my eyes that I hadn’t quite managed to hide bothered me, but I soon forgot about it.
Each step up the stairs reminded me of the exhaustion piling up inside me.
‘I must be crazy. Why did I even think of that…….’
I had thought about working overtime to avoid coming to the Magic Tower.
‘But I never imagined I’d end up working overtime for three days straight. Even over the weekend.’
When the Monster Subjugation Unit returned from the distant sea, the Marine Observatory seemed busier than usual.
First, I had to mark the locations of the Abnormal Climate that the Wizards had found roughly on the map and then cross-reference it with the observation records.
After that, comparing with the Magical Beast observation records and updating the Demon Beast Distribution Map was my job. And that wasn’t all.
‘Overtime is better than the Magic Tower? What kind of horrible thing to say? The Magic Tower is absolutely better than overtime.’
I was grateful they’d let me off today because of the weekend overtime. I felt like I was about to collapse.
Of course, right now my head was throbbing from sleep deprivation and accumulated exhaustion.
I couldn’t sleep properly yesterday either because I was trying to parse Official Documents that had nothing to do with the Imperial Family.
‘But the hard work has paid off. Cade should accept this much.’
Knock, knock.
“Tower Master. I’ve brought the Inspector.”
As Ben knocked on the Office door, an answer came from inside telling us to enter.
When the door opened, I saw Cade’s back as he stood before the window with his hands clasped behind him.
Ben, who had entered the Office with me, paused.
“When did he change clothes?”
At his murmur, I felt a twinge of embarrassment and muttered under my breath.
‘You’re only noticing the clothes are different from last time now? And why say it while looking directly at Cade like that? Are you trying to point out how I look?’
Today I was wearing a Dress, not the Civil Servant Uniform I’d worn in the Banquet Hall.
Cade, who had turned around indifferently, paused. I felt another twinge and hastily straightened my clothes.
‘……It probably looks inappropriately formal after all.’
Since visiting the Magic Tower was part of my work duties, I was supposed to wear my uniform properly even on days off, but with late nights leaving and early mornings arriving, I didn’t have time to get it laundered.
Wearing a simple, refined Dress had made me feel both physically and mentally at ease, but it made me feel like I wasn’t here for work.
It seemed like Cade’s eyes saw me as someone here to visit, not work, and I couldn’t help it.
“It’s been a while. I wanted to visit sooner, but I’ve had a lot on my plate.”
I pretended not to know Cade, mindful of Ben’s presence.
“…….”
I hoped he’d criticize my clothes and quickly send the Counselor out, but Cade still just stared at me in silence.
As the air in the Office became increasingly tense and strange, he began to raise his hand slightly.
“Tower Master!”
Just then, Ben suddenly called out urgently to Cade. He even subtly stepped in front of me.
“Ha, haha. This Inspector seems quite different from the other Civil Servants who’ve visited before. Wouldn’t you say?”
“……?”
I looked at Ben in confusion.
“From what I’ve heard, unlike the other Civil Servants, she doesn’t seem to have any ambition to get close to the Imperial Family, and she apparently only brings documents that won’t harm us…….”
Ben was embellishing the things I’d said to him on the way to the Office.
Though I didn’t know why he was doing this, as Cade’s expression hardened, he quickly quieted.
Cade chuckled, fingering his Ornate Cuffs.
“You seem to know a lot? Are you two meeting separately?”
“What?! That’s not possible! I’m the Tower Master’s Counselor! I would never do something as sneaky as leaking information from the Magic Tower or meeting Civil Servants separately!”
Faced with this unexpected turn of events, my clothes and the dark circles under my eyes no longer felt like issues.
‘Has someone leaked Magic Tower information to a Civil Servant before?’
If so, I understood why Cade was acting so on edge.
Ben pleaded his innocence, but there was no softening in Cade’s gaze.
With no other choice, I stepped forward in front of Ben to add weight to the explanation.
“C-Tower Master. This is the first time I’ve had a conversation with Ben. He has never spoken to me even a single word about the Magic Tower.”
“…….”
Cade stared at me for a moment, then let out a dry laugh.
“Get out.”
“Ah, b-but Tower Master……!”
Ben was pushed out through the door by Cade’s gesture. Even with his confused expression, there was nothing I could do for him.
The door slammed shut, and only Cade and I remained in the Office.
There was a question I had turned over in my mind many times while watching Cade during this period, but this time I couldn’t just swallow it.
“Are you insane?”

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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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