CH 10

“Dame Joan. Miss Annette. I’ll be right back. It’ll take a little while, so don’t wait for me and go do your business.”

I looked back and smiled softly.

Although the Magic Tower was transformed into a commercial facility, there was still a tradition within it that continued to persist…

One-on-one counseling is always required!

Dame Joan doesn’t like it when I go off on my own, but she didn’t object this time. 

The Magic Tower was an impregnable fortress. It was a crime-free area where not a single theft occurred. So Dame Joan could only be relieved when I’m here.

“Welcome, my name is Rozeline Mayer, a second-degree wizard who will help you with your consultation today!”

Another wizard greeted me when I entered the counseling room. I quickly got to the point. I did not have any time to lose.

“You sell not only magic tools and scrolls, but also magic potion ashes, right?”

“Of course, Customer. What ingredients do you need?”

“I’d like to get the roots of the Red Hemut Flower, Boyer Tulips, Cakulta Extract and Orbyi Fruit.”

Rozeline, who quickly took down my order, smiled. 

“Fortunately, most of the ingredients are readily available. Only for one thing!”

“What? One thing?”

“Cakulta extract containing narcotic ingredients is designated as a restricted item due to the current drug control period. I apologise that I couldn’t help you, Customer.”

Thud.

It felt like lightning struck my mind.

‘A drug?! I’ve never heard of such a thing!’

This was not mentioned in the novel at all. The heroine only had to make the medicine with the ingredients provided by Rizello, the Master of the Magic Tower.

‘This is the difference between me and the heroine who was born with a golden spoon!’

“How can I… can’t I find it? I have a very urgent situation.”

“I am very sorry, Customer. I don’t think I can help you until the crackdown period is over. Please forgive me, Customer.”

My fingertips were cold. The time-limited curse could be detoxified by ingesting a potion made of specific materials for a certain period of time.

Of course, Rizello created this antidote formula specifically for the heroine, and it was not widely known. The problem was that it must be consumed ‘over the course of time’.

The exact time period was not specified in the book, but the crackdown appeared to have been taken steadily for more than months 

“Could you tell me how long the crackdown will last? Will it take more than half a year?”

“Let’s see, it seems like there is about a month left. I would have been able to help you right away if it had been after the crackdown ended, but that’s too bad.”

A month! That’s soon enough to wait. I sighed in relief and nodded quickly.

“I see! Thank you for your answer. Then I will buy the rest of the ingredients first.” 

“I will ring you up right away, Customer.” 

I took out my wallet and spent a total of 23 Mars. Ian wisely paid 1,000 Mars in cash first when the contract was signed yesterday.

The rest of the money was going to be deposited after I opened an account. 

“Thank you for the transaction, Customer. Do you need anything else?”

“Where should I go to get to the lab floor? I heard they provide an admission counseling service for the Magic Academy, and my friend asked me to find out.”

I hastened to ask Roseline before she could finish her sentence.

I didn’t have enough time to move without purpose. Before Dame Joan thought I was taking too long, I had to stop by the lab.

“You can go to the lab floor through the other tower, Customer. The Twin Towers are right next door, so you’ll be able to find them right away.”

“I see! Thank you. Is it alright if I leave through that door?” I asked, pointing to a door that was different from the one I came in.

“Sure, please use the door that is convenient for you.”

“Thank you! Goodbye then!”

“Have a good day, Customer. This was your counselor, Rozeline Mayer!”

I hurriedly left the door without hearing Rozeline’s parting words. Dame Joan was nowhere to be seen because I had exited through the door opposite the one I had entered.

‘Let’s finish within ten minutes and come back!’

I came to the Magic Tower for two purposes. First, to get the ingredients of the antidote to break the time-limited curse. Secondly, and more urgent, was to devise a way to falsify the Saintess verification process. Surprisingly, this method also appeared in the original story 『A Saintess Doesn’t Know About Love』.

Of course, it wasn’t easy, because it involved deceiving the church. I was planning to meet face-to-face with Rizello, The Master of the Magic Tower. 

In the original story, the heroine was in a situation where she had to go through the process of verifying a Saintess by cheating. It was also Rizello who helped at that time.

‘Of course, I will have to pay, unlike the heroine who received Rizello’s affection.’

That would have to cost a lot of money too. But I’ve learned that I need to be bold in what I need to invest. The first expenditure of the 10 million Mars from Ian was to be made here.

I carefully walked out of the Magic Tower, in case I might run into Dame Joan. There were a lot of people on the street crossing the tower on the other side. It looked like there was a festival going on nearby.

I heard a familiar voice from somewhere as I was walking through the crowd.

“Please do-don’t do this…!”

“No, we’re not bad people.”

“Let’s play for a minute. Why are you doing this? It’s embarrassing.”

“I have to go back quickly! Ge-get out of my way!”

That was Annette’s voice. I could see Annette at the entrance of the alley over there. Annette was surrounded by bullies with her back against the wall.

“I’ll show you a fun time. I’ve never seen a church girl before.”

“Is it because you’re from the church? You’re very old-fashioned.”

“You pray after you eat, but your shoulders are as thin as a sheet of paper.”

One of the men tried to grab Annette’s shoulder. I screamed loudly into the alley without further thought.

“Who the hell are you?”

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong with this little girl?”

The bullies turned to me at once. It’s okay. I comforted myself.

It was a busy street with so many people. Everyone seems to avoid butting in because it looks like a quarrel now, but if it becomes more dangerous, someone will at least report it.

“Miss Annette, come here.”

“Oh, Lady Irene…”

“Oh, was this girl’s name Annette? Her name is cute.”

“The name of the new girl is cute too. Lady Irene, let’s play together.”

The bullies, who I thought would be embarrassed to intervene, did not hesitate and pushed me as well. I hid my embarrassment and glanced out from the alleyway.

However, some passersby only glanced down the alley once or twice, and most of them were busy looking ahead and walking forward.

“Can you show me your face, Lady Irene?”

“Yes, take off your hood. It’s dark and I can’t see your face well.”

They approached me quietly after saying that. One of them came close to my face and squinted his eyes.

“Wa…wait a minute. Isn’t this the face we saw in the newspaper?”

“What newspaper?… hold on. It’s very similar, now that I think about it.”

“Your face is just like the woman who’s dating the Holy Knight Commander!”

Surprisingly, the bullies seemed to be gossip readers. They recognized that I was the ‘Ian’s lover’ in the newspaper and caused a commotion amongst themselves.

“Sh-she she’s really the lover of the Holy Knight Commander.”

‘Maybe this is a good thing.’ 

Now that they knew that I was Ian’s ‘woman’, the bullies wouldn’t be able to touch me easily. Unless they were big guys.

“Hey, hey, let’s let her go.”

“Yes, I think I picked the wrong person.”

The bullies took a stealthy step back, as expected. It was time to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Wait, wait.”

Then the biggest bully stepped in.

“Aren’t you curious? She’s the woman who made the Commander of the Holy Knights throw away his virginity.”

“…”

He narrowed the distance with a big smile.

“How great is she? Huh?”

…Here you go, big bastard.

When he looked at me closely, my eyes widened. I smelled something dangerous and looked around the street. It was time to shout for help.

I looked around.

‘Huh?’

Something resembling a purple curtain was blocking the border where the street and the alleyway met.

It seemed that at some point, one of the bad guys had put a magic barrier on the alley.

“You won’t be able to see inside from the outside anymore. Let’s start with a friendly introduction, shall we?”

“Now that I see you, I am a little curious. What trick did you use to seduce the Commander?”

“I just want to take a look, lady. Just a look.”

‘…Crazy people. Are you doing this to harass women?’

“Do-don’t touch her!”

Annette shouted and stepped forward. Annette’s arm was shaking in front of me.

“Oh, church lady, are you going to play with me first?”

The bullies approached with giggles. 

Damn it. I chewed my lips and gently slipped my right hand into my arms.

“Miss Annette.”

“Yes?”

“Run! Now!”

With a warrior cry, I threw and scattered all the pointed fruits from my arms. 

Let’s do that. 

Bang! Bang!

The fruits that were thrown into the air exploded with a loud noise as soon as they hit the bullies.

“Ugh! What the hell!”

“Ah! Ouch! It stings!”

“Miss Annette! Run!”

I grabbed Annette’s wrist and ran out of the alley. But we crashed into the purple curtain and fell backwards.

‘What is this barrier? It doesn’t just block your view?!’

“It’s a low-level barrier, Lady Irene! If you hit it hard enough, it will eventually break!”

“Ooh, it stings!”

“I can’t see!”

The bullies yelled in a state of panic while we continued to pound on the barrier. With a crackling sound, cracks began to form through the barrier.

‘We did it!’

The moment when we broke the barrier, I was filled with euphoria.

“Oh!”

The tangible barrier that had been broken with our fists had disappeared. The sudden unhindered momentum of my attack caused me to fall forward. My body leaned over, and the ground drew nearer in an instant.

I’ll hit it. I instinctively closed my eyes tightly. But there was no subsequent shock.

‘Huh?’

Something firm yet warm held me up.

“Oh, thank you…”

I raised my head to see who helped me, thanking them reflexively. Then, as it was, my body hardened like a stone.

“Ah, now I can see a little bit ahead.”

“These are real! I was going to let you go and play, but you dare do something like this… huh?”

“Wa-wait. That person, don’t tell me…”

The bullies also slowly grasped the situation and stiffened just like me. I gave a cut-off greeting with a very awkward smile.

“I-I see you’re here.”

Ian didn’t smile back. He just stared at me with his blue eyes. 

“I believe I asked you to stay calm until the date of the engagement, my future wife.” Ian said in a slow tone. 

I felt a cold sweat seeping out and laughed awkwardly again.

“I’m sorry, haha. I was taking a short break, but things got a little twisted.”

“It must have been very stuffy inside the church.”

“Haha, it’s an unfamiliar place, so…”

“Therefore.”

Ian cut me off and smiled coldly.

“Would you please explain to me what happened to you personally at the Magic Tower. My future wife.”

Gulp, I swallowed my saliva.

It was the first time that name made me hesitate with chills.