Chapter 23: Sharp-Tongued Woman
—REN—
I had known Lady Aria for two days, and this is my second day with her.
And yet since yesterday, I had already witnessed enough strange events to permanently alter my understanding of noble society.
First, she rescued from the streets without hesitation.
Then she brought into the Valen Estate as though adopting holess people was an ordinary afternoon activity.
Afterward, she declared war against proper sleeping posture.
And now, she was actively ignoring the kingdom’s archmage to his face.
I stood quietly beside the table, attempting very hard to maintain proper composure while observing them.
Lady Aria sat stiffly in her chair with a large book raised directly in front of her face like a shield protecting her from the man.
anwhile, across from her stood Archmage Ezekiel Rowe himself.
The Ezekiel Rowe.
Even I knew who he was.
Every person within the kingdom knew his na. The youngest archmage in recorded history. The king’s closest magical advisor. A genius feared even among scholars.
And currently, he was trying very hard to speak to my lady while she pretended he did not exist.
Honestly, I no longer understood anything anymore.
I had thought that entering Libracia would simply be a matter of accompanying my lady, assisting her with books, and ensuring she did not accidentally summon sothing that would cause a national incident. That was already a high enough expectation given her personality, but at least it was a predictable kind of chaos.
What I did not anticipate was the arrival of a man who looked like he had stepped directly out of the upper circles of magic itself, carrying with him both authority and an inexplicable hostility directed entirely at Lady Aria.
"Ren... Ren!"
I flinched slightly at the urgency in her tone. "Yes, my lady?"
She did not look at . Her eyes were still fixed stubbornly on the book in front of her, though I could tell she was no longer reading a single word of it.
"Why are you not listening?" she asked quickly, as if I had sohow failed a task I was not even aware I had been assigned.
"I apologize." I said, lowering my head slightly out of instinct.
"That is not helpful right now," she muttered under her breath.
I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could say anything further, another voice interrupted.
"So this is the man you are dating?"
I stiffened.
Slowly, I turned my head.
Archmage Ezekiel Rowe had stepped closer without either of us noticing. His gaze was now fixed directly on with an expression that could only be described as irritated disbelief.
"I beg your pardon?" I asked carefully.
But he ignored completely.
Instead, his attention went back to Lady Aria, who had now decisively chosen the most strategic possible response to confrontation.
She kept reading.
She turned a page in her book with extre concentration, as though the secrets of the universe were hiding within beginner-level mana theory.
I stared at her.
Ezekiel let out a short, unimpressed breath. "To stoop so low," he continued, his voice growing colder. "I could not believe you ended up with a commoner just because I rejected you back in our academy days."
I blinked and looked at Lady Aria.
But she did not react, not even a flicker.
If anything, she turned another page, as though the book had suddenly beco the most fascinating object in existence.
I turned back to Ezekiel.
"...I believe there has been a misunderstanding," I said carefully.
He did not look at . "And now I hear you are attempting to cancel your engagent with my friend, Duke Sebastian. What is ever so wrong with you?"
"My personal matters are not yours, Archmage," she replied imdiately, without even a hint of hesitation. Her tone was calm in a way that felt almost insulting in itself.
Then, as if she had decided the conversation required a sharper edge, she added, "Keep your distance or I might scream and call you a pervert."
I froze.
That was not a sentence one casually directed at the kingdom’s Archmage.
Not even in private. Not even in theory.
Ezekiel, however, blinked, then slowly narrowed his eyes as though recalculating the entire existence of the woman in front of him.
"You..." he began, his voice lowering slightly. "You sharp-tongued woman. Do you think you are even worthy to be in my presence?"
I tensed imdiately and was ready to preotect lady Aria.
And yet...
Lady Aria Valen simply stared at him, unimpressed.
Then she stood up so abruptly that even I took a small step back in reflex.
Her chair scraped lightly against the marble floor, and she turned fully toward him. For a mont, I thought she might actually bow properly or attempt to apologize.
Instead, she pointed directly at the Archmage.
I blinked.
Ezekiel blinked.
The entire library felt like it blinked.
"When will you shut your freaking mouth?!" she said.
Even the floating books nearby seed to stop midair.
Ezekiel, however, did not imdiately respond. Instead, his eyes narrowed further, as if he could not decide whether to be offended or fascinated.
"You dare–" he began.
"I do dare," she cut in instantly. "In fact, I have been daring for quite so ti now, and I assure you, nothing has exploded yet."
Ezekiel finally leaned forward slightly, his voice sharpening. "Do you not understand who I am?"
Lady Aria tilted her head.
For a brief mont, I thought she might actually hesitate.
Then she looked him up and down slowly.
"I understand perfectly," she said.
"You are the man who looks like he has not slept properly in ten years and sohow decided that makes him intimidating."
I almost choked.
Ezekiel went still.
But lady Aria did not stop.
"And you are standing in a library insulting a woman because she does not wish to entertain your nostalgia problem."
Ezekiel’s expression darkened. "You are as insolent as you were back then."
"Oh?" she said lightly, as if she had been complinted instead of insulted.
Then she tilted her head, her tone turning almost sweet in a way that was clearly not sweet at all.
"So forget then. Please, I am begging you, forget , for dear life. I do not want to see you ever again. Sebastian was better than you. Good thing I chose him. Hmph!"
I felt my entire body lock up.
Ezekiel went still.
The Archmage did not imdiately respond. His usual sharp composure faltered, as if the words had struck sowhere unexpected rather than rely offending him.
"...Sebastian?" he repeated slowly, almost as if testing the na.
Lady Aria did not give him the satisfaction of further explanation.
Instead, she calmly gathered her books. Then she turned toward .
Her expression changed instantly.
She leaned slightly closer and mouthed silently, nervously.
"Walk."
Then, more urgently.
"Fast."
I did not ask questions.
At this point, asking questions felt like a mistake one should only make once per lifeti.
So I nodded imdiately.
"Yes, my lady."
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