episode_0004

On the way to the reception room of the Pervace Zodiac Mansion. The man introduced himself.

“My name is Enrique. I am the Duke’s assistant.”

“As you may already know, I am Johan Harsen, the third son of the Harsen family.”

After hearing the introduction, Enrique drew a line with his eyes and said.

“This may be rude of me to say, but there is something I must say.”

John tilted his head at his words.

“What is it?”

“The Duke was very indignant.”

Enrique continued speaking.

“Be careful with your words and actions. I will try my best to mediate, but if the Duke is more indignant than this, I will not be able to protect him.”

In short, it was saying that if you do something that goes against the will of the Lord, your balls will fly off.

‘I expected it.’

Francia’s father, Frost Perbache, is a famous father figure in the story. No wonder Frost Perbache was the number one pick for female readers.

John spent the night with his daughter who had such a father. He had to be thankful that the Duke didn’t come running out and take his head.

“Arrived.”

Finally, they arrived at the reception room. As soon as Enrique opened the door, he looked at Johan and gave him a look.

It was a look that told me to get down on my knees right away.

But John smiled lightly and passed it off, then confidently walked into the reception room.

“… You’re here.”

The air changed as soon as I entered the reception room. It was heavy. No, there was a complex, indescribable murderous energy flowing through it.

It feels like a cold blade is slicing through my entire body, and cold oxygen is entering my lungs, slowly freezing my body from the inside out.

In that office, where such a murderous atmosphere flowed, John stood with his neck held high, without flinching, without a trace.

“… … .”

The Duke’s eyebrows twitched as he observed Johan’s expression. He was a guy who had been arrogant and irritating from the moment he appeared…

‘Your spirit is worthy of praise.’

Rather, that point was appealing to the Duke. There was no one who could stand up properly after seeing his own murderous intent.

but.

‘That doesn’t mean we can have Francia.’

As the Duke’s killing intent grew stronger, John greeted him politely.

“The third son of the Harsen family, Johann─”

“I’ve been introduced. I already know.”

Red eyes glared at John.

“Do you know what you did?”

“I know.”

“Then I don’t need to explain what happens after this.”

The peacock sat on the sofa in the living room and stood up. With each step he took, blue frost rose where he landed.

“Don’t feel bad. You brought this upon yourself.”

John opened his eyes shallowly as he watched the peacock approaching.

‘Are you planning to kill me as soon as I come in?’

Certainly, if it were Duke Pervace, it wouldn’t be a big deal to kill himself. He could just say that he died somewhere.

John spoke quickly.

“Your Majesty, I beg you, but will you please listen to me?”

“I have no intention of listening to that fucking fox.”

“You won’t be harmed by listening.”

“… … .”

The Duke’s gaze became sharper. His eyes were filled with suspicion. Johan thought now was the time to quickly add his words.

“I am planning to enter the Imperial Civil Service as a special wizard.”

“You want to become a top-class wizard? I heard you graduated from social studies and never learned magic or swordsmanship.”

Are you done investigating? A cold sweat ran down John’s spine.

But you can’t back down here. Your life is at stake.

“I have never formally studied magic. I am self-taught.”

John chose to give an honest answer rather than mix in lies here.

It could be seen as an excellent choice because if you get caught lying, you will end up with nothing.

“Ha, self-taught. You taught yourself magic? That’s ridiculous. Are you talking nonsense when your life is at stake?”

Frost. Blue frost began to spread under his feet and spread to the objects around him.

The air feels chillingly frozen and the cold murderous aura hovering in the air seems to cut through my skin.

Ready to kill at any moment.

If I bow my head right now and pray that I will work hard for my family since I graduated at the top of my class in social studies, wouldn’t they let me have a chance?

‘no.’

That won’t do. What I need now is not mercy, but the Duke’s recognition and the right to be with Francia.

“I think you’ll find it hard to believe just by hearing it, so I’ll show you.”

Exactly. John snapped his fingers. Blue magic began to surge from his hand.

“What now─”

Snowflakes filled the air, each snowflake like a tiny work of art.

The delicate hexagonal crystals sparkled in the light, like delicate pieces of lace.

A fantastic sight, as if sprinkled with diamond dust.

Countless snowflakes slowly descended as if dancing, creating a waterfall of white petals.

The snowflakes floating in the air changed the very flow that existed in the living room.

“This is… … .”

The peacock’s eyes opened shallowly. This was not a simple manifestation of attribute magic.

‘Opening the gate of the mind? No, it’s not that high a level of magic. It’s just changing the environment with magic power.’

It is generally nearly impossible to change the environment without using magic.

No, even if you use magic, changing the environment itself is not an easy task.

It is something that requires tremendous magical affinity, unless it is a mental portal that projects one’s own image into the world.

however…….

‘I did that.’

The Duke couldn’t understand. How could his affinity for and ability to use magic be so great that he could change the environment with just basic methods?

“… Not ordinary.”

The peacock’s face was still cold, but the murderous look from before had long since disappeared.

John sighed in relief.

‘Fortunately, it seems to have piqued your interest.’

To be honest, I was half in doubt. Isn’t the Duke’s eyesight a bit crazy? I couldn’t rule out the possibility that it would be useless to talk about his ambitions and show that he had the talent needed to do so.

‘But it worked out well.’

John said, relaxing his tense body as much as possible.

“If it were me, I could become a special magician at the Imperial Official within a month. I would be the best there.”

He continued speaking.

“Francia- No. I will work hard to become a position worthy of Princess Perbache. I have talent. I have ambition. Please allow me to associate with your daughter.”

John said this and bowed his head.

“… … .”

At this point, the duke’s boiling blood had cooled down. Seeing his outstanding talent, he began to think rationally about the title of duke.

‘Surely, with this level of talent… … .’

A person with the talent to change the surrounding environment with just magic power. It would be a great blow to the empire to lose someone like this.

I wondered why he had never properly learned magic until now… … .

‘At this point, it’s worth watching a little longer.’

Didn’t he even show any talent for ice attribute magic?

‘And that talent for ice magic will be of great help to the Perbache Dukes. We are in charge of the ice attribute of the Four Great Houses.’

As his senses returned, he naturally began to calculate. If this talented person were to develop his talents properly and become a member of the family… … .

‘No. No. I almost fell for that damn fox.’

This is not the issue right now. The family’s status and recruiting talented people are important, but if it has to do with my daughter, I can throw it all away.

“You piece of shit. Are you trying to make a deal with me now?”

The peacock put a thorn in his horse’s mouth and asked.

“How dare you make such a presumptuous offer. This is not a deal. I just want you to give me a chance to prove my relationship with Princess Perbache.”

“… … .”

Duke Perbache stroked his chin. With such spirit and ability to conduct himself, and with such overwhelming talent for magic… … .

‘If you think about it rationally, she’s not a bad match for Francia.’

The duke asked.

“When you reach a certain age, your magical power hardens and it becomes difficult to learn magic. How do you plan on solving that?”

If you don’t train the magical power inside your body consistently, it will harden and not grow further.

That’s also why it’s not easy to learn magic as you get older.

After investigating, the damn fox in front of me… … no, Johan Harsen is twenty-one years old.

Even if you learn magic now, the chances of becoming a top-class magician in the royal civil service are slim.

Still, I decided to listen to the story. Didn’t he change the surrounding environment just by using his magic power?

“The amount of magical power I have is already large, so it’s fine. Look. Even though I changed the environment with just basic magical power usage, it still stands up fine, right?”

Interacting with the environment itself consumes a significant amount of magical power. It is enough to cause a mediocre wizard to collapse from magical power exhaustion.

But what if you change the properties of the environment just by using basic magic power? It wouldn’t be strange if you were on the verge of death.

His talent for magic goes without saying.

“… … .”

The peacock opened his eyes shallowly and sat deep in thought.

Rationally speaking, there is no better groom than this. He will not have to get involved in the infighting between other families, and since the Harsen Viscounts are weak, he can swing his power around as he pleases.

‘This fox-like guy… … .’

In the end, the Duke was forced to compromise.

The bastard who took my daughter! That damn fox!

“Hoo.”

The Duke sighed.

“One month.”

“Yes. I will keep that in mind.”

“I think I understood what you were talking about right away.”

John answered with a grin.

“I will join the Imperial Official’s Special Magician within one month. If I fail to keep my promise, you may take my head.”

One of the peacock’s eyebrows rose.

“I’m sure there’s a reason for such boasting.”

He waved his hands.

“Let’s go now. I have something to talk to my daughter about.”

“Yes. Thank you for your kindness. I will try to live up to your expectations.”

Enrique added.

“The servant at the door will guide you to the guest room. Stay for today.”

“Thank you for your kindness.”

Johan came out of the living room and sighed.

‘Is this the first checkpoint that we’ve passed?’

Although it is not yet a breakthrough, it has succeeded in drawing out the Duke’s reason and creating an opportunity.

‘What’s left is… … .’

All he needs to do is learn magic to gain his approval and to gain his friendship with Francia.

It’s not that difficult.

It’s not that hard to interpret and manifest the runes.

* * *

“I hope you like it.”

Slurp. Enrique smiled and filled the Duke’s cup. The cold air that had settled down caused white steam to rise.

“Enrique, you’ve been joking around a lot. How could I possibly like that foxy guy?”

Tsk, the peacock clicked his tongue and quickly turned his head away.

“But you still didn’t give me a chance.”

“He has that much ability, so let’s just watch.”

Enrique smiled happily.

I was planning to intervene and listen to the princess’s words, but Johan Harsen handled it better than I expected.

Anyway, I managed to pique the Duke’s interest and bring him back to his senses, thus buying him some time.

“The man chosen by the Princess. He must be extraordinary, right?”

“… That’s true. Since you grew up watching me, you wouldn’t be satisfied with a mediocre man.”

Enrique suppressed a laugh as he looked at the Duke who nodded.

This man, who was known as a cold-blooded battlefield demon during his prime, always softens up when it comes to his daughter.

Just then, knock. Someone knocked on the door to the living room and it opened. It was Francia, who had come in after changing her clothes.

“What about John?”

“Went back to the guest room.”

“Is that so? It seems like you finished the story well.”

Francia chuckled as she read the Duke’s expression.

“I gave you one month. If you don’t prove your worth within that time, I don’t know what will happen to me.”

Francia smiled and answered him.

“You will definitely prove it.”

Because he is the most trustworthy person of all.

‘As it was before.’