On Official Duty with My Tower Master Ex-Boyfriend - 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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Chapter 32
I tried to brush off the nagging feeling and continued up the stairs when Rana sidled up beside me and fell into step.
“Inspector, a few days ago when you mentioned needing Teleportation—did you manage to sort that out?”
“Oh, yes. I was rather abrupt that day, wasn’t I?”
“The Tower Master helped you, didn’t he?”
“That’s right.”
Rana’s eyes gleamed with intrigue as she tilted her head thoughtfully.
“Seems you’ve gotten quite close to the Tower Master.”
“…What?”
The unexpected question caught me off guard, and when I faltered, Rana laughed softly and nudged my arm with her shoulder.
“I told you—the two of you are perfectly matched!”
“W-what are you talking about?”
Flustered, I rubbed my heating face and shook my head firmly.
“There’s been some misunderstanding. The Tower Master and I have no such relationship.”
“Ah! Still in the cautious phase? I see, I see.”
“Where on earth are you picking this up? More importantly, why are you bringing this up all of a sudden?”
Rana giggled and narrowed her eyes conspiratorially.
“That magical beast staying in the Office now. The white fox—the one you rescued?”
“What about it?”
“The Tower Master doesn’t typically permit magical beasts to eat and sleep in his Office, even if they do wander through.”
“…”
“Out of all the beasts you’ve rescued, only that white fox is allowed to stay, and from the way it follows him around, he must dote on it terribly!”
I wanted to mention that the beast had always been docile and had taken to people easily, but Rana’s mouth kept moving relentlessly.
“And normally, once the Tower Master shuts himself away in the Study, he absolutely won’t come out until the next day.”
“So I’ve heard…”
“But then—miracles of miracles!—he emerged! He never came out even when the Grand Duke of Melgote visited!”
Rana punctuated her amazement with repeated exclamations and a sharp clap.
“That’s… something I’m genuinely grateful for.”
“But that’s not all!”
“…!”
“Most remarkably, not a single strand of that lustrous black hair has been singed!”
I was beginning to worry that Rana had somehow discovered the truth about Cade and me.
I’d only just cleared up the misunderstanding about Aster’s promotion being blocked. I didn’t want any record left of using connections to process a transfer between departments.
Perhaps from the moment I agreed to receive the Tower Master’s seal in exchange for a departmental transfer, I’d already called in old favors.
“I nearly burned the tips of my fingers a few days back when setting documents on fire.”
“My goodness, what a precious tale!”
That degree of danger was apparently negligible, for Rana merely covered her mouth and giggled knowingly.
“Regardless, it’s all been a misunderstanding. Every bit of it.”
Realizing it would be impossible to convince Rana otherwise, I hastily fled into the Office.
***
A shrill chirp greeted me the moment I stepped inside.
The white fox magical beast bounded toward me, fluffy tail swishing merrily.
It flopped onto its belly, exposing its underside, then tried to scramble up my legs—the sight was utterly endearing.
“Hello there. You’re really staying here, aren’t you?”
Chirp!
“Good. You look healthy. But you…?”
I stroked the beast’s soft fur, tilting my head in confusion.
The flow of its magical power had transformed completely from when I’d brought it to the Shelter just days ago.
“What happened? You’ve become a Contract Spirit.”
I lifted the beast in surprise, turning it this way and that for inspection. It was truly remarkable.
A Contract Spirit, at that.
I’d only read about magical beasts becoming Contract Spirits in books; seeing one in person was a first.
This beast possessed considerable magical power, and its master—the wizard—must be extraordinarily strong, for the beast’s very presence felt magnified.
“Whose Contract Spirit did you become?”
Chirp, chirp! Chirp!
“This Office? Its owner?”
I pressed the point several times, unable to believe the identity of its master, but the beast kept bounding toward the Tower Master’s desk in answer.
There was no doubt now—this magical beast had truly become Cade’s Contract Spirit.
“So you’re all alone here?”
I glanced around the Office. Cade was nowhere to be seen, leaving only traces of the beast’s play scattered about.
‘Nobody told me to wait in the Lobby today, so I just came up, but maybe I should have waited for a summons?’
Just as Rana had mentioned, I could faintly sense other magical beasts moving through the Office besides this white fox. Their traces lingered in the air.
I began to examine those traces one by one, recalling what emotions the beasts must have felt.
There was not the slightest hint of fear or anxiety among them.
The white fox itself, lounging on the carpet before padding over to me, showed no such signs either.
For all the unfamiliar magical presences in this space, the beast had already grown attached and adapted well—despite having every reason to feel daunted.
That could only mean one thing: Cade, the master of this Office, was not a threat to the beasts.
And a Contract Spirit, no less.
‘Is Cade only a tyrant around people?’
As I stroked the beast’s smooth, white fur, a whistle drifted from somewhere—a languid, humming melody.
Following the sound, my gaze shifted to a long corridor-like passage in one wall I hadn’t even realized existed.
Cade emerged from it at an unhurried pace.
When our eyes met—his gleaming bright blue even in the darkness—the whistle cut off abruptly.
As he stepped into the light, his eyes shifted to a clear, translucent water-blue.
That color and his gaze held such magic that I found myself staring, mesmerized.
“…”
“…”
How long we held that gaze, I couldn’t say.
Chirp!
The beast’s sudden delighted cry startled me into hastily looking away.
“C-Cade. I didn’t realize no one was here, so I just came up.”
“It’s fine.”
He passed by me, perched on the desk, then conjured a tea table and chair before me.
“Put the Official Documents you need burned there. I’ll check what each one contains, so it’ll take some time.”
“Right, okay.”
I retrieved the documents from the Magic Bag I’d borrowed from Simona and stacked them carefully.
There was enough to fill a whole cart, and it took me some time just to unload them all.
Cade lifted the papers above the table, scanning them rapidly as he spoke.
“That beast is a failed guardian. It doesn’t even know how to be alert—just lies there exposing its belly and wagging its tail at whoever walks in.”
“It seemed docile from the start at the Shelter. It was easy to trust people, even after… what happened to it.”
I stroked the beast as it nuzzled against my leg.
“I sent a new Official Document to the Imperial Government. I included all the conditions you requested, so you should hear back in a few days.”
“…That was quick.”
“I can’t guarantee how it’ll go, but the conditions aren’t particularly difficult, so it probably won’t be rejected. If it is rejected, though…”
I ventured a careful glance at Cade as I continued.
“I’ll have to find another way to get your seal.”
“…”
Cade nodded slowly in acknowledgment, then burned the documents he’d reviewed.
I’d informed the Imperial Government that the Tower Master had destroyed all their Official Documents on request, which gave us reason to send new ones.
If they were kept in the Observatory, it would be classified as document concealment; if I burned them, it would be destruction. We’d decided from the start that Cade would use magic to burn them instead.
That’s when Cade pointed at the beast with his chin and spoke.
“Isn’t that beast a bit strange? Ever since I poured my magical power into it, something feels odd.”
“Hmm?”
“It’s not quite an Empathic Connection, but… like the beast keeps holding onto a fragment of my magical power?”
Bewildered, I held the beast up for him to see.
“That’s because it’s your Contract Spirit. Of course it is.”
“A Contract Spirit? That can’t be. That’s something only Dark Wizards use.”
The color drained from Cade’s face in an instant. The papers hovering in midair fluttered to the ground.
It was strange that he looked surprised when he’d created the Contract Spirit himself, but I understood soon enough.
Cade had never seen a Contract Spirit before either.
“Did you accidentally create one? I’ve heard that happens sometimes.”
“Are you saying I accidentally used Dark Magic?”
Cade’s expression froze into something harder and colder.
Taken aback by his unexpected reaction, I shook my head.
“Many books describe Contract Spirits as inherently part of Dark Magic, but that’s not actually true.”
I carefully recalled what I’d read in books about magical beasts and explained.
“If a bond forms through pure magical power without a pact sealed in sacrifice, it can happen even without Dark Magic.”
“Is that possible?”
“The books say that when a wizard and beast connect through magical power, if their desires align or if the wizard holds genuine affection, it becomes possible. You felt affection for this beast.”
“Affection? That’s not it. And this white furball and I having aligned desires is…”
Cade scoffed dismissively, but as the beast burrowed into my embrace, something seemed to occur to him. His brow furrowed.

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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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