The faint bitter taste that the moon flower couldn’t remove was a clue, but the two excited people were unlikely to notice.

“So, have you ever dated outside?”

“If you mention that one more time, I’m going in.”

“Ah, don’t! Can’t friends talk about these things?”

“Who’s friends? I’m your benefactor.”

Grumbling, Jade decided to change the subject. There were plenty of other topics anyway. They shared their lifestyle and living space after all.

But since there were so many things she was really curious about, she planned to slip in questions here and there from now on.

One sip of alcohol, one question. A very good idea.

Jade took a sip, drinking it down.

“You know.”

Axel quietly met her gaze.

At some point, his gaze had changed to match the description of gentle rather than indifferent. Even if it wasn’t as hot as direct sunlight, it was at least like butter softened to room temperature.

Encouraged by that softness, Jade carefully asked.

“I saw it while cleaning up the ashes near the fireplace, there were pieces of paper scattered around. The writing on them looked just like fragments of letters.”

Axel affirmed without much reaction.

“There’s something the merchants bring quarterly.”

“Really? I see. Who are they from?”

“Is there any reason I should tell you?”

Only his gaze was soft, his tone not at all. It was still rough like sandpaper.

That way of speaking. Jade grumbled.

“You don’t have to tell me, but I’m curious.”

“You’re curious about too many things.”

“That’s what magicians do. Being curious.”

Spells are prayers offered to the gods, granted according to their earnestness.

The fact that they are granted means magicians are children of the gods, so their curiosity about the world is rationalized in itself.

It’s natural to want to know about the world their parent created.

Of course, Axel wasn’t persuaded by such words at all.

“Those kinds of people just become magicians. Children of gods, what nonsense. I’ve even thought magicians have a disease where they’ll die if there isn’t a question mark at the end of their sentences.”

Jade burst out laughing at that merciless assessment.

Axel might not believe it, but among magicians, Jade really asked fewer questions, so she could thoroughly agree with this statement.

Most magicians, especially those who devoted their lives to research, seemed to not know how to use a period.

“Ah, Axel. That’s so true! But isn’t that too harsh? Did you get dumped by a magician in the past?”

Axel snorted.

“Me? Dumped?”

Jade looked at his face in the darkness, shadows flickering from the flames, and agreed on her own. Yeah, you’re so great.

“Then were you beaten up by a magician?”

“Magicians can’t even cast a proper attack spell without a knight, so how?”

“Well, a magician with a pair could have ordered another knight to do it.”

“What an interesting conversation. I’m enjoying it.”

“Then why do you hate magicians so much? Ah, of course excluding me, why do you hate other magicians?”

“Why exclude you?”

“Ah, I don’t know, just exclude me. Anyway, why do you hate them!”

Axel glanced at her briefly. Jade raised her eyebrows playfully, waiting for an answer.

Looking at that sight, Axel tilted his head crookedly and said indifferently.

“Because I’ve been through a lot.”

“What? Who did that to you? Just tell me! I won’t let them get away with it.”

At his disbelieving look, Jade exclaimed resolutely.

“Even if I’m not very useful here, you know. Outside, I’m quite a successful magician! Just say the word, just say it! I have to repay my debt!”

“Didn’t you say you had to work hard outside because you had nothing? A successful magician who has nothing.”

“Oh my, because I had little, I worked hard and became a successful magician.”

She almost got caught by the lies of the past but skillfully avoided it.

At Jade’s confident answer, Axel smiled briefly, almost imperceptibly.

“Why? Which magician bullied you? Did they ask to form a pair with you and then exploit you? Or did they try to force you when you refused?”

“You’re too naturally expressing me as a knight.”

This time Jade could mock him.

“Axel, don’t you remember when we defeated the monster in the lake together recently? When I set your sword on fire?”

Axel looked up at the sky, feigning ignorance.

“I know the word knight is used in many contexts, but the fact that a magician can enchant that sword itself means you’re a knight. People who received the body of the gods, you know.”

“Okay, fine. I got it.”

Jade glared at Axel, who was trying to wrap up the conversation quickly, then quickly changed her expression and asked.

“Anyway, what is it? So who bullied you?”

“Come to think of it, don’t you have a contracted knight?”

The question came back to her instead. Jade frowned just like Axel. Furrowing her brow and wrinkling her eyebrows.

“Can you please follow the order? I asked first, you know?”

“You’ve already exceeded your question limit. It’s my turn today.”

That was true too. She poured out at least ten questions a day.

Jade rolled her eyes, trying to avoid answering, but his obvious gaze didn’t falter.

She finally gave in reluctantly and admitted.

“Well… I don’t have one.”

“Why? You said you’re doing well outside. Then it shouldn’t have been difficult to choose a good knight and form a pair. There are far fewer magicians, after all.”

She tried to avoid the question by burying her nose in the wine glass, but Axel didn’t leave her alone. He even took away the glass she was pouring into her mouth repeatedly.

It was unfamiliar for him to be this curious about her for the first time. She had always felt disappointed that he wasn’t interested in her, but now she thought she shouldn’t have felt that way.

Cold sweat ran down her back under his obvious gaze.

“Hey.”

“Don’t talk to me, please? I’m busy.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. What’s so busy about just drinking? Answer quickly.”

“We, we arranged this place to drink, so I’m busy. You should drink quickly too!”

Axel chuckled and moved even the wine bottle away.

“You’ve already emptied half a bottle. You should drink slowly, Jade Brown. You’ll be gone in a flash like that.”

Jade grumbled inwardly. Brown… that’s not right. Every time she heard it, her conscience pricked her.

“So, why don’t you have a knight?”

Jade glared at him briefly and mumbled an answer.

“That’s a very, very personal matter.”

“Okay. So what’s that circumstance? Consider half of your many debts repaid with this answer.”

That was tempting. Half the price of her life? Not a bad deal.

“An opportunity like this doesn’t come easily. You’re not going to refuse, are you? Unless you want to repay it big later, it’s better to take the chance now.”

Looking at the sky once, then at the ground once.

After contemplating for a while, Jade scratched her cheek and made up her mind.

Well, what harm could a little gossip about her family do? Axel wouldn’t even know who they were anyway.

And how long has it been since Axel showed curiosity? It’s been two and a half months since we’ve been together, and he’s only asking now. If I open up first, maybe he’ll feel comfortable talking too.

Jade didn’t know that she mumbled nonsense during her nightmares, so she had no idea what Axel might already know.

Finally, after clearing her throat, Jade spoke in a voice as if reading a book to children.

“Once upon a time, there lived a very kind girl.”

“A fairy tale? Starting with a lie…”

“Be quiet.”

When she glared at him, Axel calmly closed his mouth.

“Anyway, this girl was surrounded by nagging and greedy adults.”

“Oh my. That’s the worst.”

“That’s right. Those adults were very mean to the girl, but she grew up without caring much about it.”

“Yeah, it seems like that…”

Jade conveyed her meaning with a rude hand gesture she learned from a magician in the outer guild. ‘Shut up.’

Axel replied with a gesture too. ‘I don’t want to.’

“Those adults ignored and belittled what the girl had, and the girl really hated it and got annoyed. Because she knew her own weaknesses well!”

Jade pointed to the blazing flames with her hand.

“The girl had talent in magic, but unfortunately, it was only focused on fire attribute magic.”

“Hmm.”

“As everyone knows, magicians often form contracts with knights to perform supporting roles like defense, or conduct research that helps in daily life, but fire attribute magic doesn’t really apply to either!”

“Well, there are still a few useful things, aren’t there?”

“Not really. There’s a bit more in research though. Anyway, the girl’s spirits were a little dampened from being belittled every day.”

“Just a little, I’m sure.”

“Can you stop interrupting? Despite that, the girl who grew up steadfastly one day received a request and set off for a monster habitat. What she realized there was…”

Jade said with a solemn face, enunciating each word.

“Surprisingly, the girl had relatively high efficiency in attack magic! She could even defeat monsters alone.”

Axel now looked truly amused.

“Hmm. I wondered about that.”

“So the girl, no, the grown magician couldn’t understand why she needed a pair knight. She could do well on her own.”

“Aha.”

“But the adults around her had a lot to say. Follow the customs, don’t act different, do as you’re told. That’s the way for this family!”

“Already disliking the adults, their words must have made her even more twisted.”

“That’s right. Moreover, she hated the idea of pairing with knights she had never properly talked to. So she ran away saying she wouldn’t make any contracts, and when she fell alone in the Athanase Forest, she regretted it for a moment. The end.”

As she roughly concluded the fairy tale, Axel finally burst into laughter. Jade looked at him with surprised eyes.