Chapter 118
Cassius and Eki naturally froze. They creaked as they turned to look at Giyote. Eki stared blankly at her friend, who had turned into a stone statue, then let out a short scream and shoved Cassius away. Cassius too, even if he didn’t cry out, clenched his teeth and moved away from Eki.
“Ah, uh, G-Giyote. You’re here? W-What did you say? The inspection’s all done?”
“…Pardon me.”
“Hey! Don’t go! No, I’ll go out instead. M-Master, I’ll be right back.”
Cassius silently nodded. He crossed his arms and deliberately looked out the window. The tips of his ears sticking out from his white hair were bright red.
Why did things like this keep happening?
‘The association head, the fairies, and now even Giyote…’
Eki followed Giyote down to the lower floor, but she couldn’t stand the way her friend kept shooting her glances, so she snapped loudly.
“Yeah. Everything you’re thinking is right, so stop giving me that weird look!”
“…What exactly do you think I’m thinking?”
“You must’ve heard everything from Milla.”
“Milla doesn’t tell me secrets like that. Even if I danced naked in front of the association building, she’d keep her mouth shut.”
“Really? Milla…”
Eki’s eyes sparkled with emotion for her best friend, but she quickly came back to her senses and stopped at the landing. After taking a deep breath, Eki whispered to Giyote.
“Listen carefully. Me and my Master… it just happened.”
“You skipped way too much.”
“You get the gist.”
“You’re really something. Just when did you curse like that at the tavern…”
“Hey. Forget about that.”
“Sheesh.”
Giyote wasn’t as sharp as Milla, so he seemed extremely flustered by the situation. Still, based on the worries Eki had shared back in Mansandro, he barely managed to accept the current circumstances.
“It’s because of that thing back then, right? You said you touched him wrong by accident.”
“Keep your voice down. What if Master hears you.”
“We’re already this far away. How would he hear.”
But Giyote also needed to wrap up the inspection and had something else to tell Eki, so he quickly changed the subject.
“More importantly, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Did something happen between you and Babel?”
“…Babel?”
Something had happened. After that guy got a thorough scolding from her master, she’d never seen him again, so she’d forgotten. Eki tilted her head, then replied.
“He was pestering me and saying stupid things, then he picked the wrong person and got kicked out by Master. That’s all.”
“Ahh. So that’s why he suddenly got exiled to the Longhirs region?”
“Longhirs? That’s a total backwater with no magical tools, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. So he was crying and complaining that it was all your fault.”
Naturally, Giyote didn’t listen to him. Wasn’t he Eki’s friend.
“And he said something else too. That you seduced Archmage Cassius and got him to threaten him for no reason…”
“What?”
“He said he happened to be in Mansandro and overheard you and Milla talking. That you were worried about your relationship with Archmage Cassius.”
Ah.
This, damn it.
So Babel had been there? He was such a nonentity she hadn’t even realized he was around.
She hadn’t even spoken that loudly in the first place, so what was with eavesdropping on other people’s conversation? In a crowded, noisy place like Mansandro, hearing the voices from the next table over was like plucking a star from the sky.
‘That creepy bastard.’
No sooner had she thought it than Giyote cursed Babel in the same way.
“Creepy bastard. Anyway, he did run his mouth like that, but who does he think your master is? Archmage Cassius. Of course no one believed him. Me included.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Mm, well. In the end, it turned into a story that was half right and half wrong.”
But as if that wasn’t the main point, Giyote continued grumpily.
“So about you. You met Milla without me? I told you not to hang out alone.”
“What are you talking about. Milla’s my best friend.”
“Even so. Why did you drink together without inviting me!”
He clung to Eki and whined for quite a while, saying she should call him next time too. Only when Eki, fed up with him, placated him and agreed did the two finally continue on their way.
And from the window at the stair landing where they had been standing, two fairies slowly peeked out.
【 Wow, I’ve never seen another human before. 】
【 They must be Eki’s friend. But Cassius and Eki’s relationship has become a rumor somewhere else? 】
The two fairies, having been born not long ago, didn’t know much about humans, but they instinctively understood how bad it was for unwanted rumors to spread.
Venta swallowed dryly, then tugged Tys along and headed back upstairs.
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