Sincerely, Vanessa [EN]: Chapter 75

So, Vanessa had her background thoroughly checked by Aberdeen Chara, the wizard who could stop storms.

There wasn’t much to find, but still, being interrogated like that didn’t feel great.

“There’s nothing to dig up, I see.”

Aberdeen Chara was still focused on making his mustache as pointy as possible.

“So, you’re Vanessa Rose from the Magic Department.”

“Yes. But I have a question.”

Vanessa was still sitting on the floor, quite rudely. Her head hurt too much to stand up without immediately needing to lie down, but thankfully, Aberdeen Chara didn’t seem to mind.

Or rather, he didn’t seem interested in anything at all.

“I was trying to move near the central gate, so why did I end up here?”

“You probably miscalculated your mana control. It’s a common occurrence… though I’ve never experienced it myself, of course.”

Aberdeen Chara said this with a tone that Vanessa found incredibly annoying.

A world full of show-offs. Muttering inwardly, Vanessa raised her hand again and spoke.

“Then how does everyone know how much mana to use when moving long distances?”

“You have to guess, roughly.”

“And if you mess up?”

“You end up dropping in the middle of enemy territory.”

*So, there’s no answer other than to do it a lot.*

Vanessa nodded vaguely and got up with a groan.

Aberdeen Chara didn’t offer a hand, just admired his sparkling ring. Then he asked primly,

“Surely, I don’t have to take you there, do I?”

“…It’s okay. Ah! I have one more question.”

“You have too many questions.”

Aberdeen Chara yawned dramatically on purpose. He clearly looked bored, but Vanessa ignored it.

“Is it possible to enter the Second Fortress at night?”

“If you haven’t left work at all, it’s possible, but to enter right now, you need permission from the Royal Court and the guards.”

Aberdeen Chara elegantly dusted off his cloak, which was adorned with gold embellishments.

He wanted to quickly report this wizard’s identity to the King and return to his original position. Aberdeen subtly backed away, trying to distance himself from this inquisitive wizard.

Vanessa pondered for a moment. She wanted to check Leta’s profile stored inside the palace, but she couldn’t enter now.

Besides, it was impossible to check it on her own anyway. Investigating an official’s background was something only the Intelligence Agency could do, and they wouldn’t move without evidence.

Vanessa shouted to Aberdeen Chara, who was already far away.

“Thank you for your kind answers!”

Then, looking around, she headed towards Valder Castle with brisk steps.

The sound of her footsteps echoed softly on the white path, following only the well-lit areas with many people.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

One of the King’s many offices was nicknamed the ‘Golden Room.’ That’s how extremely lavish the interior was.

The entire wall was covered in gold and red, so much that it hurt the eyes, but it wasn’t as vulgar as a *nouveau riche’s* [new money] room trying to flaunt wealth.

Even when hanging a small painting, they considered the perfect ratio, so it couldn’t be. The room itself was a work of art.

However, the King inside was sitting at the desk in very simple attire.

“Heh.”

The King was excited.

She had a tendency to rush towards talent, and this time, the talent even fell from the sky on their own. How could she not be happy!

*Found just the right wizard while walking down the street. Heh, I should write it down in my diary.*

“Hehehe, ehehe.”

Aberdeen Chara stared at the King, who was humming with a nonchalant look.

“They really didn’t know the conditions.”

“Even if they don’t, they’re still amazing. We’ve been having a hard time with the lack of Special Forces manpower these days! It would be a waste to use them at the edge of the Magic Department. Their reputation was good in the Magic Department too. The background check will be finished by tomorrow.”

King Vina Dom Friba was excited and began scribbling signatures on the documents.

Aberdeen sat rigidly in a chair with a gold backrest and red cushions, then scratched his nose.

“If they knew the conditions, they would be a very good wizard… How about giving them to the Boundary Force?”

*I’ll roll them around in dangerous places so they can learn the conditions.* As Aberdeen Chara spoke, showing no sincerity, the King scoffed.

“The ones I sent to you all came back crying. Get lost.”

“Yes….”

Aberdeen Chara leaned back against the backrest again with a sleepy expression.

Vina Dom Friba glanced at Aberdeen for a moment and then asked in a very businesslike tone.

“So, how are the borders these days?”

“Well, they’re peaceful…. The east is fine. It seems like the west and north are being raided….”

“If you have so much time, how about going to the north and helping out a bit?”

“It’s not that peaceful either.”

The King clicked her tongue.

Most of the wizards of the Boundary Force had that attitude. Having been born with powerful abilities, they greatly lacked passion for anything.

They were just working at the border to keep their contract with the King, and they had no intention of protecting anyone with that power.

The only exception the King knew was Gideon Sol Valder.

The King hesitated for a moment but soon opened her mouth.

“Did you stop by?”

“Yes. Your young sibling is healthy.”

Vina Dom Friba nodded. Her gaze was still fixed on the documents as she listened to the story, so Aberdeen Chara couldn’t tell how the King was feeling. Not that he particularly wanted to know.

“Good, go ahead and leave. Since we’ve renewed the contract, you don’t need to come for three years. I trust that the wizard of the east will continue to protect the borders of Friba wonderfully, as they have until now.”

Aberdeen Chara got up silently and gave a moderate bow. The King didn’t even look at him. Aberdeen Chara opened the door and left.

As soon as the wizard left, the King threw the pen aside and leaned comfortably in her chair.

*Young sibling, huh. I hope they can live peacefully there.*

But setting aside other thoughts for a moment, the King grabbed the documents about ‘Vanessa Rose’ and began drawing lines through them.

Sibling or not, what she needed right now were reliable workers.

Soon after, the King lightly rang the bell. The large door opened, and three attendants bowed deeply.

The King waved her hand and put the paper with the King’s handwriting into an envelope. Soon after, red wax hardened in the shape of Friba’s seal, decorating the top.

“Send it to the commander of the Special Forces. Ah, to the Special Forces office, not Valder Castle. Shouldn’t the Duke rest at night too?”

“Yes.”

One of the old attendants politely took the envelope and retreated backward. Only then could the King think about other things.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

It was already late at night. Magic stone lamps hanging high on the castle walls dyed the streets with a moderate color.

It would have looked beautiful at any other time, but today, the dry branches rustling in the wind felt eerie.

Vanessa’s injured knee was a little sore, but she didn’t use magic just in case.

*Who knows if there will be another escape? I need to save my mana.*

Valder Castle, located right next to Friba’s Royal Castle, was surrounded by a large garden in the front and a small forest in the back, so the site was large. Thanks to this, the structure required a long walk even after arriving at the castle gate.

The guards standing in front of the castle gate coldly scanned Vanessa up and down.

She was a neat beauty, but with sleeves dirtied by dust, a scraped knee, and a tired look, it didn’t seem like she had any business at Valder Castle.

“Do you have an appointment? It’s late at night.”

“No, I don’t. I have some business. Could you tell Perez or Ramona that Vanessa Rose from the Magic Department is here? And secretly!”

The guards glanced at each other after scrutinizing Vanessa, who knew the names of the managers accurately.

Then one of them slowly started walking inside.

Vanessa was getting sleepier and sleepier as a result of using strong magic. It might also be because she walked in the cold weather after that, but anyway, she wanted to lie down.

“How did you get so hurt?”

“I fell.”

The guard clicked his tongue and advised her to shake off the dirt on her white cloak. It must have looked like she was here to ask Duke Valder for a favor.

Vanessa felt a little embarrassed and used appropriate magic.

A cold winter wind blew, blowing away the dust from Vanessa. However, Vanessa’s body froze even more.

“You’re a wizard? You should have summoned a warm breeze.”

“I should have…”

Before long, several people could be seen running out from inside the castle. People holding small lanterns rushed out the door, and Perez hurriedly moved his legs.

From far away, he gestured frantically for Vanessa to be let through.

The guard tilted his head in confusion and offered Vanessa some words of blessing.

“Duke Valder is cold, but he is fair, so I hope you get good results.”

“Thank you.”

Vanessa smiled and walked diligently.

Perez soon stood beside Vanessa, panting. He quickly opened his mouth.

“The Duke has not returned from the Royal Castle. He’s been busy, so he’s been away from the castle often these days.”

“It’s okay. I came without contacting him, so I’m sorry.”

“Absolutely not. As I said, Miss Vanessa is welcome anytime. I will escort you inside.”

Perez made a gasping sound when he saw Vanessa’s messed-up knee.

“Oh, what happened!”

He was so surprised that Vanessa felt embarrassed. It felt like she looked like a little kid who fell while running around.

“I fell. It’s nothing. I can heal it.”

“What are you talking about? There is a resident doctor inside the castle, so leave it to him. Your cheeks are pale too.”

Perez immediately told the servants who came running to prepare a doctor and warm up the room. Vanessa stopped him, saying it was okay, but Perez was firm.

“We cannot treat the Duke’s guest inadequately. And not just any guest.”

Vanessa coughed awkwardly, and Perez laughed heartily.

Vanessa was guided to the guest room, which felt somehow familiar on her second visit.

The guest room, which was said to have the most beautiful view outside the window, was still elegant. The inside was so warm that it felt like her frozen body was melting.

Vanessa gratefully entered the bathwater, which even had various colors of salt added, and washed her body.

After that, a doctor came, carefully disinfected and examined her knee, and said that it was only a shallow scrape, so there was no need to use healing magic.

“It can lower your natural healing power a little, so I don’t recommend it for this kind of injury. Do you have severe pain?”

“No, not really. Thank you.”

As the doctor, who had applied plenty of ointment, left, Vanessa was left alone in the large space. She glanced at the room with the bed for a moment and shook her head.

Vanessa, who was thankfully wearing a comfortable gown that someone had prepared, hesitated for a moment, then brought a few blank sheets of paper, placed them on the table, and sat on the sofa.

She wanted to know why Leta had targeted her.

Vanessa wrote this and that on the paper with a pen for a while.

*Letima Kina, Ministry of Finance, wizard, talent?*

But her sleepy head wasn’t working very well, and there wasn’t much to write since she had hardly dug up any information.

Vanessa blinked and leaned her face on the sofa. She decided to organize what had happened today once again.

However, with the pouring fatigue, the tip of the pen gradually slowed down, and her eyelids drooped heavily.

After that, it was blackout.

How many hours had passed? Someone approached Vanessa, who was buried in her face and sleeping, and bent down.