What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 748

Omen (3)

Several hours later.

The annex of the Raso estate was bustling, practically at its peak. Our departure was confirmed for the next day.

“Duke Leopold, all the food that can be stored for a long time has been individually packaged and placed here. Your friends can take them as needed…”

Except for those involved in the estate’s restoration, most people were gathered in the annex, helping with departure preparations.

Since we decided to split into three groups, there were many things to manage.

I left the door wide open and busily finished packing. I had packed a bag in advance, but as departure neared, there were quite a few things to double-check.

Knowing I would be busy in the morning, I washed the Divine Beasts in advance, dried them, and groomed them neatly.

Lopi didn’t like water, so it was a bit of a struggle. I fed him Ether [a magical energy source] and scratched his chin to soothe him, and somehow I managed to get rid of the grime (that’s just a figure of speech; the Divine Beasts are actually quite clean).

“Sir Ross! Sir Ross, Sir Haines said…”

“Marquis Dhiem asked if there are any additional documents related to the ‘zoo’! If there is any information about the design and facilities, not just sales data…”

“Bring all those bundles here!”

People’s voices echoed back and forth like ping pong balls outside the open door.

Sir Johann was in charge of the afternoon escort today (for reference, Jibril Diop was scolded by Ms. Gain for about 150 minutes for being fifteen minutes late for my escort).

I checked Herrit’s father’s luggage from time to time and shared my opinions with him.

Sir Johann was the person we had to rely on the most when crossing the Memphis Mountains, so it was important to listen to his advice.

My friends were also busily walking around the hallway, finishing up various chores (“Angel, you’re doing a great job.” Leopold suddenly poked his head out to say hello and passed by. I waved back, happy to see him looking more like a leader these days).

“Oh, Princess and Lady Roseharder are looking for Isabel Rambouillet. Yes. They say the flowerpots keep withering no matter how much they water them…”

“As ordered by His Highness the Crown Prince, the best farriers were called to check the condition of the horses’ hooves, and the armors of the esteemed guests were all stored in the annex warehouse…”

“Angel. Angel!”

I flinched.

“Yes, yes!”

I had become so used to the title ‘Angel’ that I didn’t feel embarrassed or awkward anymore.

Well, if a person has several wings on their back, they’ll hear people call them an angel or a cicada.

I took out a small bundle from the corner of the closet and greeted the servant who was entering the room.

He gave a polite Shin-guk greeting [a formal greeting in this world] and said this.

“As you requested, I have brought His Highness the Crown Prince and Sir Rambouillet.”

“Ah, thank you. Would you two come this way for a moment?”

“Lady of the Palace, why are you calling us first for once?”

“What’s going on?”

Gain, who is specialized in attracting people wherever she goes, and Cedrick (although their vibes are very different), were standing beyond the doorway with puzzled expressions.

I quickly unpacked the luggage I had taken out of the closet. No, it’s nothing much.

“It’s really nothing much.”

It’s so embarrassing to give it to them, though.

I mumbled, explaining the situation as I opened the bundle.

“Well, I was searching through Maiker Raso’s panchoco, no, the ruins of the study… I found some valuable things. That person had quite a lot of treasures he had collected before he died. And when I saw them, I thought of you all…”

“…”

“Of course! I got permission and consent from the heir, Duke Leopold, and François verified that they were safe. Diop also helped me check. So there shouldn’t be any major problems for you to carry them around, and some of them are basically holy relics, so they won’t be an obstacle to your activities as holy knights at all―”

“So, now.”

Gain raised a hand to stop me. I instinctively shut my mouth. Yes?

“This.”

Circling the bundle with her finger.

“Us.”

Circling in front of my friends with her finger.

“Presents?”

And making a flower받침 [a Korean gesture of cupping her chin with her hands to appear cute] under her chin. So pretty.

“…Oh, to put it simply, yes?”

I answered with an awkward smile. Immediately, a bright smile appeared on Gain’s face!

“Awesome! Mine first! Mine first! I have to brag to the baby swallow for three days!”

“The Crown Prince won’t be very envious. The item for Gain is a necklace…”

“Thank you so much!”

I was now really a little embarrassed and took out the gift.

Honestly, can I even call this a ‘gift’?

No matter how I think about it, it’s closer to a spoils-sharing party.

“Put it on for me. Put it directly on my neck. I’m going to wear this like a tattoo from today.”

“Um. It’s a relic of Inecker Bass, a cardinal-level holy knight who was loved by the Venetian people for a long time. It’s called ‘Bass’s Wishing Water Mirror’.”

I put a beautiful silver necklace around Gain’s neck.

In the middle of the silver string, there was a round pendant dangling, and the place where a large jewel should have been placed in an ordinary accessory was empty.

Cedrick glared at his partner’s neck with the momentum to temper it whole, but I stubbornly pretended not to notice.

Meanwhile, Sir Johann complimented Gain, who asked how it was, saying, ‘It suits you like a painting, disciple,’ like a gentleman.

“‘Water Mirror’? Oh, is this water? I thought it was mother-of-pearl because the color is so pretty.”

Gain touched the surface of the pendant.

Then the water mirror, thinly covered like a film, rippled.

“Yes. According to the manual, it is the water that Bass left behind in his lifetime. To be exact, it is her Ether trace.”

“Wow. It’s literally a relic.”

“Yes. Bass was famous for being a great miser, and he always saved on himself. But when he had money in his hands, he would feed the poor children in the village and leave for another neighborhood. According to legend, the reason why this pendant is empty is because he gave the jewel to an old man who was taking care of sick orphans.”

“He’s a great man.”

“That’s right. And the reason why this is recognized as a holy relic is that this pendant acts as a mirror that reflects the wearer’s wishes. What you want right now, what you need most. Or it shows some result that you are desperately hoping for unconsciously…”

“Crazy, it’s real! Lady of the Palace, awesome. Look at this.”

Gain grabbed me with an excited face.

I was curious, so I looked over her shoulder.

Huh?

“It looks delicious, right? Stir-fried sundae [Korean blood sausage] with iron plate and plum wine. Kya… It sounds like it’s sizzling. Mix soju [Korean distilled liquor] with that and have a drink, bottoms up!”

“…I can’t see it, but it must be really delicious.”

I see, it seems that you can’t look into the mirror unless you’re the wearer.

While Gain was drooling while looking at the necklace, I hurriedly took out the second spoils (?) box.

“…Tada.”

“…”

However, Cedrick was still serious.

I felt guilty for some reason and stood in front of him hesitantly.

Is he going to hate it after all? Is he going to think it’s meddling?

“This, according to Diop… It seems to be something that came from the Empire or the feudal states hundreds of years ago. Long before the war era. Amazing, right?”

“…”

Oh well, I don’t know. Let’s just go straight. I opened the long box wide open!

-Click!

“…It’s a wonderful, high-end magic wand.”

I thought I was quite good at reading his expression, but today was definitely an exception.

I couldn’t get any meaning from his pupils, which had sunk into the dark sunset.

Should I not have put ‘wonderful’ in front?

“And on the certificate… It was written ‘Wand of Baron Jeremy Schu, 7th grade wizard’.”

“…”

“I know the name Schu, so I asked Diop just in case, and I also asked François. They said it was the right ‘Schu’ family. So…”

Did I commit a big mistake? Judging from the atmosphere, it certainly seems so.

I continued to speak in a very shrunken voice.

“He was the ancestor of Barbara Schu, the teacher of His Majesty Alexandre… To be exact, the first head of the Schu baronial family was a man named Jeremy Schu, and he was a very respected magician in his day. This is the wand he used to use during his lifetime, but his wife, who hated magic, put it up for auction after her husband’s death.”

“…”

Jeong Yeseo, you should have kept that to yourself. Only you!

“…Ahem. It was made by carving a ‘Osmanthus tree branch cut on the full moon’, which is said to be the most precious among imperial magicians, and the handle is decorated with the finest masok, Fire Opal. Coincidentally, this person was also left-handed, so the carving was done accordingly. Cool, right.”

“…”

Ah, it doesn’t seem cool. I closed the lid halfway with an insecure face.

My shoulders felt heavy and stiff, as if I hadn’t slept well last night.

“Well, I heard that you haven’t used a wand since you were young… François said that you lost it once and didn’t make it again after that.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Then my friends, including Cedrick, became quiet as if they had been splashed with cold water.

I immediately lowered my eyes.

I shouldn’t have brought something like this. For a moment, I sincerely felt that way. But…

“Because you like magic. I thought you could fight better if you had a wand…”

“…”

“Sometimes it seems like you like magic more than swords.”

“…”

And now I realized that my thinking was too short.

There must be a reason why you don’t use it.

Honestly, he’s a guy who can use magic freely without a wand… Maybe he’s deliberately avoiding the wand because of the pain about his deceased father.

I’m such an idiot. Why didn’t I think that far then?

-Click

I just closed the lid completely. Gain rolled her big eyes.

“…If you don’t like it, I’ll leave it here. Actually, François was quite interested in it. And Diop said that wands are very picky about people. If the owner and the tendency don’t match, it doesn’t listen no matter how high-end it is―”

“I like it.”

“I know. No matter how much you like it, huh?”

My head went up in a flash. Huh?

“…Left-handed wands are rare. Judging from the shape, it seems to have been carved by an excellent craftsman.”

“…”

That means, if you have to interpret the meaning…

“Oh, then! Of course! There’s a certificate here. There’s no way the Raso family, a collateral line of the royal family, wouldn’t be able to distinguish fakes and keep them precious, right?”

‘The mat underneath is also very pretty!’ I was so excited that I opened the box again.

I was feeling myself getting louder, but I was too happy to act like an adult.

Watching him hold the wand directly made me feel a little emotional.

It wasn’t something I got with great difficulty, and it wasn’t something I made myself, but I felt that way for no reason.

Besides, Cedrick wasn’t just pretending to like it because he was afraid I’d be upset. Really!

-Swish, swoosh, swirly!

His expression of estimating the weight of the wand and swinging it several times seemed somehow excited.

I couldn’t hide my smile and took out the last gift box from the bundle.

Then I carefully looked back at Sir Johann.

“Finally, this is a gift for Sir Johann.”

“Did you have something for me too?”

‘I didn’t know at all.’ In front of the cardinal who answered with a soft smile, I slowly opened the velvet box.

“Tada! It’s a ring. Pretty…”

“Wow, damn! Lady of the Palace! Wait a minute―!”

-Kwaaaang!

“Ugh!”

And again! This time, the annex was almost destroyed!