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Chapter 148:

Translator: MarcTempest

Proofreader: naturallyInconsistent

Chapter 148: First kiss April’s eyes widened.?“…”?She couldn’t easily comprehend the situation unfolding before her eyes, so she mulled over it several times.?She had never imagined seeing Trixie with a fiancé by her side.?Now that Isaac, the head of the family, had collapsed, she thought Trixie’s marriage talk was just nonsense to buy some time. But who was this man standing next to her as if to show off??‘More than that…’?The reason why April felt displeased at the moment was not simply because her prediction was wrong.?The appearance of the fiancé.?It was a rather unpleasant feeling to see a man who could elicit admiration and envy from anyone at a glance standing next to Trixie.

“Who are you?”

April tried to sound as calm as possible.?But the response she got was very cold.

“What about you?”?“…”?A reaction that seemed to imply that it didn’t matter what April had asked.

A composed face.

An attitude that could be described as arrogant.?‘Is he bluffing?’?If he had been in the mansion all along, he must have felt April’s flame that heated the building in an instant. Then he wouldn’t be able to act like this.?No.?It was an attitude that a mere criminal could never have, his sharp gaze seemed to cut anything in an instant.?Arrogance becomes dignity when it is backed by evidence.

So maybe, April felt some dignity from him.?While April was confused, Trixie opened her lips to the man.

“You. Stay inside.”?“The heating was not very good, so I just came out to say that.”?“I know. Flan, this is a problem that I have to solve.”?She could just laugh off his remark that belittled his own flame by saying that the heating was not very good.

He wouldn’t say that after seeing her true power.?But what bothered her was the name of the man.?“Flan?”?April couldn’t hide her bewilderment this time.?“Flan. Flan as in… the representative of the magic department?”?Recently, a storm had swept through the magic world.?A person who had won consecutively in the Sword and Magic Tournament and started to receive the admiration and expectation of young mages.

Recently, he had visited the royal palace and even announced that he would build a magic tower.?As much as there were people who supported him, there were also people who were dissatisfied with him, but there was no disagreement that he had completely stolen the attention of the people.?“Flan, you say…?”?It was a very familiar name now, but there was a huge difference between seeing it in print and seeing it in person.?She didn’t expect him to be so ruthless and sharp.?…Or rather, she didn’t expect him to be so tempting.?“Are you really Flan?”?She wouldn’t bother with him if he was just a freshman.

April deliberately asked him in a casual tone.

“How rude.”?But at his answer, she furrowed her brows.

“…Did you just call me rude? To me?”

“Do I have to find out who you are one by one? Introduce yourself first.”?“…”?But oddly enough, the emotion that rose in April’s heart was not anger.?What if I had a man like this by my side?

What if he made me pour out sarcasm to others for me…??She felt more interested.

She felt more greedy.?“A relative. My name is April.”

“A relative.”?Flan clicked his tongue.

“Did you throw away your consideration as relatives? Von Fritz is not receiving any guests right now.”?“This is von Fritz’s place.”?April’s voice became more generous.?She had visited von Fritz’s mansion to find the head of the family’s seat, but she felt happy to find another tempting thing.?“You have to follow von Fritz’s rules here. Now that the head of the family is in a very bad condition, don’t you think we have to verify Trixie quickly so that everybody can rest assured?”

Trixie, who was listening from the side, frowned.?She wanted to question her one by one, but it wouldn’t mean anything.

April would make up any excuse or reason for the verification.?In other words, the verification was inevitable.?April handed Trixie a token.

It was a metal ornament engraved with von Fritz’s emblem, a jasmine.?“The verification is in two days, Trixie. I’ll leave for today.”?“Make it three days.”?The voice that cut off her words belonged to Flan.?Trixie pulled Flan back slightly, surprised.

And she whispered softly so that April couldn’t hear.

“You. What are you thinking?”

“Two days are not enough. But three days are sufficient.”

“Sufficient…? No, what is this husband act in the first place?”

“It’s just a deal with the head of the family.”

Flan only answered like that.

April stared at the two of them with curiosity, and Flan stepped forward again.

“What are you two talking about so much? You’re a couple, right?”

“It’s none of your business.”

“You keep answering so arrogantly… Well, fine.”

April nodded.

“I’ll give you one more day for the verification, but I’ll also attach some conditions. There are two of them, what do you think, Flan?”

“Let me hear them first.”

Then April spread her index finger.

“First, if Trixie fails the verification, put me in the representative position.”

And then she spread her middle finger.

“Second, prove that you’re a couple here.”

“Prove?”

“Yes. I need to know if this is a play or not.”

April crossed her arms and smirked.

“Kiss each other. In front of me.”

Silence fell. Everyone stopped moving.

April’s second condition was outrageous. Trixie immediately frowned and asked.

“Do you know how ridiculous your request is?”

“Why is it ridiculous? It’s weird to marry a man with no family. This is all a play, isn’t it?”

Before April could finish her sentence.

A strong force grabbed Trixie’s waist.

The next moment, her chin was seized.

At the same time, a luxurious scent hooked her nose.

“…?”

Trixie opened her eyes wide and shivered as she tried to understand the situation. But it was too late.

Without a sound. Just like a flower falling.

Something landed on Trixie’s lips.

Trixie trembled a beat late.

“─!”

…It was her first kiss in her life.

?

Two days later.

The world was very noisy.

It was revealed that Aurora approved and supported the construction of a new magic tower.

Of course, everyone’s reactions were different.

Some cheered, while others were uncomfortable and reluctant.

And now, in the free debate hall of the palace.

“They’re building a new tower? Are they crazy?”

“How much have the knights done, and the mages get support with just this little achievement?”

Currently, the ‘uncomfortable and reluctant’ noble families’ knights were gathered here and having a heated discussion.

The reason why the power structure had solidified was simple.

The mages gathered and laid the foundation of civilization, and the knights used their powerful martial arts to protect the world.

Vampires, witches, something of unknown origin… The continent was full of beings that threatened the history of mankind, so naturally the knights took the upper part of the power.

But.

“What the hell is he doing? I’m talking about Flan.”

“If it weren’t for that bastard…”

The foundation of the power structure was shaking from the root, and the cause was a single mage.

Flan.

He seemed to surpass his innate ability with his magic use, and he also dealt with external forces like vampires with his own power.

Flan planted the possibility and hope that mages no longer had to depend on and bow to knights in the edge of the mages’ hearts.

“When is the next sword and magic tournament? We have to hurry. We have to step on him without regard for the means and methods, so there’s no backlash.”

“There’s no need to rush like that.”

It was an unprecedented event, so the knights’ reactions were divided.

They split into ‘moderate’ and ‘hardline’ factions according to their own thoughts, and the free debate hall of the palace was also naturally burning.

“Then are you saying we should just watch? The fire has to be suppressed early to minimize the damage!”

“I’m not saying we should just watch. We need a reason that won’t be criticized! A reason!”

In this place where constructive discussions should have taken place, only anxiety and anger were dotted.

But then.

“Everyone, stop.”

The head of the Cloud family.

Who is at the same time, the father of Kian, whom is the leader of the Azure Knights, the owner of the innate ability ‘smoke’.

Conrad uttered a voice without a hint of emotion.

Silence fell, and everyone’s eyes turned to him.

Conrad quietly fiddled with his cigar.

Under his eyes, there was a cross-shaped scar instead of a wrinkle.

“But! Conrad, sir!”

Someone shouted with courage.

“Despite the fact that the knights have done so much more, the magic department has received a huge investment! Are you going to just watch this happen?”

“I lost my son because of Flan.”

The debate hall became solemn at that remark.

The truth was that Conrad’s son Kian had chosen to become a demon and lost his life, but none of the knights here knew the details.

To them, Conrad was a knight who could maintain his composure even after his son’s death, and Conrad understood that very well.

“Also, if the princess knew that we were making such a fuss, she would be disappointed. Wouldn’t she?”

The free debate hall finally regained its calmness.

Conrad unfolded a scroll on the desk.

A royal decree.

It was about competing for the collection of dawn butterflies at Reheln Hill.

“Everyone, do you understand what this means?”

“I know.”

Someone answered first. Conrad gave him a cold stare.

“That’s why you had a heated debate.”

“…”

The rebuked knight bowed his head deeply, and then Conrad spoke.

“We just have to act like knights. As you can see, the palace is openly recruiting participants.”

“Then…”

“Yeah. If you think of it as one of the events of the Sword and Magic Tournament, it’s not that complicated. The skilled knights just have to compete and win. That’s all there is to it.”

There was nothing wrong with that, so the knights didn’t argue. No, they couldn’t.

The opponent was none other than Conrad, the lord of Cloud.

“I understand. Then I’ll take your word for it…”

“See you again.”

The knights who had been arguing left the scene one by one, and Conrad finally lit a cigarette in his mouth.

At last, only Conrad and his daughter were left.

“Dad.”

His daughter spoke in a cautious voice.

“What if the knights can’t beat Flan there either? With all the recent events, I’m more worried now.”

“I know what you’re worried about.”

“Yes. Then the mages will be very smug. And people will start to think that knights are nothing special.”

“Elphis.”

The man quietly muttered his daughter’s name.

“Yes, dad.”

“Do you still not know me?”

Conrad snapped coldly.

Elphis couldn’t bear his sharp gaze that flashed over the cross scar.

Elphis quickly lowered her head.

“I’m sorry.”

“This event is only open to students. I’ll plant some guys next to you who look like students. Don’t worry. They’re all well-trained.” 𝑓𝓇𝘦𝘦𝔀𝓮𝒷𝘯𝓸𝓋𝓮𝘭.𝓬𝓸𝘮

“Then what should I do…”

“Elphis. You just have to remember one thing.”

Conrad hit the sword at Elphis’s waist.

“Your brother died because of Flan.”

“…”

“Not only did he kill him, but he also defiled his corpse. You just have to remember that one fact.”

“Really, really? He did such a horrible thing to Kian…”

“Yeah. I saw it with my own eyes.”

There was a moment of silence.

Elphis clenched her fist, and finally seemed to make up her mind.

“…Yes. I’ll remember.”

She spat out bitterly.