Chapter 25

Chapter 25

“Well… Count Dratius-nim. I’m sorry I’m late.”

Hizen, who was organizing the pile of documents, raised his eyes. The red-haired girl’s shoulders were drooping. She looked more depressed than usual.

As she had said yesterday, she came back the day after. It was obvious that she had helped at Liduré. Hizen already knew, but he still asked.

“Why?”

“I was caught in a robbery at my previous job yesterday, but then they were short-handed, so I stayed to help… I’m sorry.”

Hizen organized the pile of documents with a clapping sound. In fact, she had nothing to be sorry about. Rather, her absence made him feel comfortable. He ate macarons leisurely last night and even emptied the wooden box. He spoke in an insignificant way.

“Be careful not to be late from now on.”

“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Strangely, when she opened her eyes, she smiled as if she had never been sad in the first place. Anyway, she was a strange woman. Mumbling inside, he quickly picked himself up after organizing mountain of documents.

Was he going to the bathroom? Leasis guessed. But he walked to the hanger in the corner of the Commander’s office. There was a long straight rod full of clothes. They were uniforms and coats that were pressed firmly.

Long fingers swept through the clothes. He caught a thick coat in his hand that did not match the weather. Hizen’s knee-length black coat was made of high-end cashmere. The faintly engraved grid pattern was clearly a specialty of the Kessen Empire. Perhaps it was as light as a feather and warmer than a magic stove.

Hizen threw her the coat. She caught it reflexively and thought that this noble coat seemed to go well with Hizen.

“We have a schedule for the afternoon.”

“What?”

“The destination is the Ichrissen Museum of Art.”

Her red eyes sparkled with anticipation. She had heard of the Ichrissen Museum of Art in a book saying ‘Before you die, you must go to the art museum!’

It was a luxury museum run by the Ichrissen family, which was one of the three major families in the Empire, like the Dratius family. It was said that there were piles of cold ice everywhere, and that it was full of expensive art that one could not dare imagine. However, it was a difficult place to enter, not only for commoners but also for ordinary nobles.

But she could not be happy. The reason why she received just one coat was probably that Hizen would enter the museum alone. She fiddled with the coat and felt sorry for it.

Hizen opened the door of the Commander’s office and glanced at her.

“What are you doing not coming?”

“Ah… yes.”

Four people boarded the carriage heading to the museum. Hizen slightly closed his eyes leaning against the backrest, Leasis was enjoying the view over the carriage window, Max was yawning and Taker had an expressionless face. Since they had already received the content of the mission, they had nothing to say.

Max rubbed his sleepy eyes and looked at Hizen and Leasis alternately. Clearly, they both looked calm compared to before.

‘Something happened while I was gone.’

Max looked at the two with a sly smile. He had heard the rumor about Hizen before riding the carriage. It was so hot that he could not avoid it. He had asked Jason to hire his own maid at the restaurant. He had revealed his unwillingness to lose Leasis.

Max pondered while looking at Taker sitting across from him. He could not believe Taker was chosen instead of Jason, who was outstanding in such top-level missions. Jason’s animal-like senses were an expected choice because he would have excelled in this mission. He thought it was really not like Hizen. Of course Hizen could handle all the mission by himself, but it was still surprising. It seemed nothing but jealousy. He whistled at the exciting situation.

Max kept falling into high levels of illusion.

Hizen did not put personal feelings into the mission. Taking Taker with them instead of Jason was a protective measure for Jason, who had injured his leg during a training session recently.

‘As expected, I’m quick to notice.’

Max was in a good mood. He hummed excitedly.

“Is there a good thing that happened to you, Max-nim?”

“A good thing…”

At Leasis’ question, Max started to smile. He stroked her hair and smiled to her slightly.

“Yes, there is.”

“What happened?”

“Ah, am I not going to the art museum with Miss Leasis? There’s nothing more pleasant than that.”

“Hehe. Thank you for your kind words.”

“Well, it’s true.”

They were playing. One of Hizen’s eyebrows went up subtly. Max, looking sly, seemed to be playing tricks on a stupid maid. He turned his head on purpose.

The more he did, the more active Max was. He seemed to be relieving stress. Max asked in a friendly voice.

“Have you ever been to an art museum, Miss Leasis?”

“No. It’s my first time.”

“Whoa, you’ll be going to a lot of them in the future. Our missions include protecting the properties of these high-ranking nobles.”

“Oh… I see.”

Leasis prayed, looking at the scabbard tied to Max’s waist. She hoped the day would come when she could step in a museum as a knight, not as a maid.

The atmosphere inside the carriage became more and more friendly. Until Hizen became annoyed and said ‘It’s noisy’.

After a while, the carriage stopped. Leaving the carriage, Leasis looked around. She heard something in her ear.

[@[email protected][email protected]$]

Following the sound, she saw a small rat on a nearby tree. Leasis was pleased to see the magic rat. It was the same kind of magic rat she had seen at Ramashter’s mansion before. She reached out her hand and patted the little guy on the head.

Meanwhile, Hizen looked around first. His sharp blue eyes moved quickly. No one was suspicious. Reaching this conclusion, he approached the entrance. In the meantime, the rest of the group got off with a coat in their hands.

Leasis opened her mouth and admired. The Ichrissen Museum of Art was like an ice castle from a fairy tale. A faint smoke flowed from the huge mansion densely stacked with transparent ice bricks, and the gothic pointed roof was like an ice pick.

The huge gate blocking the entrance was also made of ice. In front of it were soldiers wearing armors with the blue emblem of the Ichrissen family. As soon as they saw Hizen, they saluted him modestly.

“I see Count Dratius-nim!”

“Good work.”

Hizen gave them a slight nod. By his side, Max and Taker wore coats. Leasis also approached Hizen and put a black coat on him.

But one of Hizen’s eyebrows went up.

“What are you doing?”

“What?”

Leasis looked up at Hizen with curious eyes. The eyes of the two were entangled.

It was Hizen who understood the situation first. Was she taking care of others and not herself? At this point, she was stupid if she did not have a clue. With a small sigh, he took off the coat and put it on Leasis’ shoulders. Soft clothes wrapped around her.

The clothes were quite big. It was made for Hizen’s size, so it was wide and had and long sleeves, and did not fit her perfectly. However, the scent on the hem of the clothes was sweeter than macarons.

‘I brought it for you, Count-nim. Why am I wearing it?’

Leasis stared blankly at the coat. Then, a cool voice rang her ears.

“Leasis.”

As she looked up, Hizen and the group were standing in front of the open door. It was as if they were waiting for someone.

She stared at Hizen. He had such beautiful eyes. Shining as if to bewitch people, there were cold and intense at the same time.

She opened her mouth slightly in admiration. The eyes that were filled with confidence were so pretty and special. So she had the illusion that even herself had become a special main character.

“What are you doing?”

“…What?”

“Follow me.”

Hizen spat out the words, turned around and went in. Standing blankly, she shouted.

“Uh uh… Count-nim, I’m coming with you!”

Inside the museum was a world constantly in winter. Every time she breathed, a white steam appeared in front of her. From the ceiling, something fine and white came down little by little.

Leasis, following Hizen, looked around while wearing the coat. Starting with ice murals everywhere, there were ice sculptures modeled after a goddess with long hair, and paintings showing off vivid colors. It was full of expensive art that she had only seen in books.

Leasis asked softly to Max, who was walking next to her.

“Max-nim, this is all really expensive, right?”

“How much do you think it is?”

“Well… Wouldn’t I be able to buy at least one piece if I worked my whole life?”

“Ding. You wouldn’t be able to buy anything.”

“What? That’s mean!”

She could not believe she could not buy a single piece even after working all her life. Leasis was in despair. Max laughed at her pure appearance.

At that time, a cool voice was heard.

“Max.”

“I’m sorry.”

He apologized reflexively, but Hizen looked unhappy.

“Be quiet in the gallery.”

“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Answering like a fox, Max once again smiled significantly. There were times when the Commander was jealous, too.

Of course, Hizen was warning him to focus on their mission. But in Max’s head, the sentence ‘Hizen has a crush on Leasis!’ was already deeply embedded. In both his eyes and ears, Hizen’s actions were only felt as a man who was clumsy in love. It was cute.

Even though Max’s eyes were on him, Hizen only cared about the mission. He looked around.

“Where’s Count Ichrissen?”

The owner of the museum did not even show his nose. Count Ichrissen, the owner of the Hagisa Museum and heir to the family, was famous for his free spirit.

The Ichrissen family was one of the three greatest families of the Empire. It was a family that produced the best wizards. When one enjoyed magic or tricks, sometimes…

“Hey, Count Dratius!”

Like this, he liked to play tricks, surprising him with teleportation magic. As soon as Hizen saw the blue-haired young man in front of him, he pulled out a sword.

Swish.

“Ahhhh!”

The blue-haired young man faltered as he heard the harsh sound made by the blade. He smiled awkwardly and slowly stepped back.

“Well, you still don’t like pranks.”

“You also remain the same.”

“Haha… before we greet each other and talk, can you put that sword down?”

“Tell me what’s going on.”

The blue-haired young man sweated as if he were being interrogated like a criminal. Leasis, who was standing behind him, peeked at Count Ichrissen.

The back of his hand, engraved with a pattern she had never seen before, shone mysteriously. Looking at the situation, he seemed to be the head of the family, but his speech and behavior were as good as children’s.

He was wearing a white velvet robe, indicating he was a wizard, had long straight blue hair, and sky blue eyes shining like beads.

Leasis shone in his eyes. He shouted exaggeratedly.

“Ah, this girl is the rumored maid?”

Count Ichrissen, who was standing in front of Hizen, quickly disappeared.

“Good morning?”

“Ah… good morning.”

Teleportation magic? Leasis opened her mouth when she saw the blue-haired young man in front of her. He unfolded his arms gracefully and greeted her.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Tatar Hen Ichrissen. I’m the owner of this art museum.”

“N-nice to meet you. It’s an honor!”

Leasis rejoiced with a red face. She was truly honored. Since ancient times, Count Ichrissen had been a noble man dedicated to the Empire by destroying monsters who invaded the Empire with explosive ice magic. Recently, he had a big business, and was the second richest man on the continent. She could not believe she was shaking hands with the head of such a family.

“I’m more honored.”

Tatar smiled after shaking her hand once. Leasis was more excited than usual and asked him to spare her a moment after the mission. When Tatar was puzzled, she even said she had something to tell him. Hizen looked at the scene with a cool look. He was ready to kill.

“Anyway. I’m glad we have so many guests today.”

Many guests? It was strangely annoying.

“Count-nim!”

When he turned his head, he saw someone running from far away. He saw a woman with dark hair, a big dress, and a thick coat on top of it.

Hizen, who took back his sword, stared at Tatar with fierce eyes. Tatar smiled awkwardly, hiding behind Leasis, who was slightly taller than him.

“Haha. Forgive me. Princess Ashley is always asking so much…”

“Count Dratius-nim!”

Hizen’s expression subtly hardened when Princess Ashley stood next to him. It was truly a sight. She had a brilliant leash in her hand, with at the end a small dog with red fur.

Princess Ashley untied the leash. Then a dog wrapped in high-end silk ran around the museum. After that, the imperial maids in thin clothes started trembling.

Max and Taker quietly took off their coats and handed them out to the maids. The tactless Princess Ashley chattered beside him.

“Count-nim, do you have a favorite piece here? I’ll buy it right away…”

In the meantime, the dog even pooed on the ice wall. Hizen could not stand it anymore.

“Princess Ashley.”

“Yes?”

Princess Ashley looked up at Hizen with an ecstatic face. But it was cold words that came down to her ears.

“Are you out of your mind?”

“…What?”

“Get that shit out of there right now.”

Her doll-like face turned red at the blunt message. Frustrated, she looked at Max with eager eyes. Max spoke in a rare, hard voice.

“Your Highness, please don’t cause any more trouble and leave.”

“Well, but…”

“We’re here on a mission today. Don’t bother others, and leave.”

Princess Ashley did not budge. Eventually, when Hizen asked, ‘Do you want a fair punishment?’ she gritted her teeth and went out.

After a moment of observation, Leasis took out some cloth from her apron. Hizen frowned when she tried to clean up the dog poop. He strode up to her.

“Don’t.”

“What?”

“Shouldn’t the person cleaning be the one who messed up? It is fair for Princess Ashley to clean up the dog’s poop.”

“Her Highness is already gone. It’s dirty if no one cleans it, so I can just clean it up.”

Leasis anwered back as if it was obvious. Frustrated, Hizen pulled the cloth from her hand. It was faster to deal with it directly than to make her understand.

“Eh? Count-nim?”

Instead of answering, Hizen cleaned it up. Then Tatar, who was watching from afar, coughed.

“Hmmm. We can call our cleaners here, and we have servants… I can’t keep watching you do this.”

“I don’t think you called us just to clean up dog poop.”

Hizen, who had finished cleaning, retorted with a scary face. Tatar sighed and took them to the reception room.

The reception room was also an ice paradise. The doors, walls, and sofas were all made of ice. Leasis looked around, fiddling with her hand on the wall.

Hizen, who sat on the sofa and crossed his legs, stared at Tatar. His mood had already fallen to the lowest point, so he could not say any good words.

“If you don’t want to die, tell me straight.”

“Sigh. Actually, there’s a guy who’s after the Ice Unicorn.”

Hizen’s blue eyes darkened. The Ice Unicorn was a heirloom of the Ichrissen family. More sophisticated and more beautiful than a living unicorn, its value was priceless. It was almost the size of a commoner’s house, and its weight was considerable, so no one could move it except for the three major families.

But what kind of idiot was after the Ice Unicorn? Taker and Max exchanged embarrassed glances.

“The legendary thief Ross… he came out.”

“Didn’t I arrest him a few years ago?”

“It’s… a secret from the Imperial Family, so I haven’t revealed it to the world yet. Anyway, he’s out of prison. He said he’d challenge you again.”

It was understandable. Ross, the legendary thief who liked to be loud. He had been captured by Hizen two years ago and sent to an imperial prison.

“Choosing one of the three major families’ property as a stage to provoke the Commander-nim… He has a lot of nerve.”

Max clicked his tongue. Hizen got up from the sofa and said, looking down at Tatar.

“I’ll catch him myself. Take me to the Ice Unicorn.”