Nigel thought she had built up immunity to ordinary beauties while attending the academy and seeing Primrose’s dazzling smile, but she was still helpless.

Though she could assert that Yenika would have seen Calein in her actions, she could not control her heart.

In the end, it took several minutes before she could gather her emotions.

Belatedly lifting her head, she saw Allen and Noah muttering with serious faces.

Thud.

“Why are they like that when they’ve blocked all the doors?”

Nigel lightly jabbed Sid’s side with her elbow.

“I don’t know either. Are they gossiping about you, Ars?”

“……”

Nigel fell into serious contemplation, unable to refute.

There were too many past mistakes that came to mind to deny it.

“Why do you take jokes so seriously?”

Sid crossed his arms as if dumbfounded.

“……Well said. How could there be anything to gossip about when Nigel is so perfect?”

Yenika, who hadn’t left Nigel’s side for a moment since the sudden confession, tightly gripped Nigel’s arm and spoke coyly.

“This guy…… perfect?”

Sid, who had been pointing at Nigel, was about to eagerly refute but saw the ring Yenika was wearing and immediately came to his senses, curling his finger to give a thumbs up.

The other was the Crown Prince’s fiancée. There was nothing to gain from getting on the bad side of his future boss’s wife.

“……Yes, that’s right. She is perfect. She’s never lost the top rank since entering school.”

“Is that really true?”

Yenika said with sparkling eyes.

And so Sid, swallowing his distaste, listed out how great Nigel was.

Meanwhile, Allen and Noah.

Completely forgetting their purpose of investigating the auction house, the two entered emergency meeting mode in a corner of the room.

“……This is bad. You have one more rival to keep in check.”

Allen muttered in a low voice.

“It’s understandable. Though she seems aloof on the outside, Nigel’s charm of being kinder than anyone can captivate anyone regardless of age or gender.”

Contrary to Allen’s expectation that Noah would sigh deeply, Noah somehow looked proud.

Well, seeing Nigel after a month was a huge stimulus for Noah.

Noah endlessly listed Nigel’s charms in front of Allen.

Among them were things like being directionally challenged, which even Allen couldn’t possibly count as “charms”.

“Noah, please, I’m begging you, don’t just praise Nigel in front of me, can’t you say such things in front of her? I think that could help narrow the distance.”

“That won’t do. If Nigel becomes aware of her strengths, she might become even more charming and attract even more people.”

“Ha, haha. Right, right. What luxury was I hoping for by asking such a question? Haha, ha.”

Allen laughed dryly without the slightest change in his facial muscles.

“And if she finds out I have such thoughts, she’ll think I’m disgusting. So I’m satisfied with maintaining the status quo.”

Noah smiled gently while gazing at Nigel in the distance.

“But you two haven’t made up yet and are still fighting, right?”

Flinch.

Noah, who had been hit squarely where it hurt, made a pained expression before quickly composing himself.

“That’s… true.”

“And there’s no point in pretending to be fine now, I saw your stiff expression earlier when Nigel went to Yenika first instead of you and me.”

“I can always wait for Nigel, ……but the hurt can’t be hidden.”

Noah replied listlessly as Nigel smiled kindly towards Yenika. Meanwhile, Noah’s lips curled up slightly at the sight of Nigel’s smile.

Despite being bigger and stronger than Allen, Noah couldn’t exert any strength in front of Nigel, less than an ant on the street.

“Aren’t you going to get lovesick at this rate?”

“Ah, if you mean lovesickness, I suffered greatly from it once when I was 14.”

“That’s bragging.”

Noah smiled, unperturbed by Allen’s sarcasm.

“Anyway, that’s the end of this conversation! I’ll help you make up with Nigel as much as I can, so do your best.”

Allen, still harboring bucket list item number 15 in his heart, smirked as if he had no choice.

Allen and Noah finished their brief conversation and joined Nigel.

Nigel, who had kept in mind Sid’s words about them gossiping, looked glumly back and forth between Allen and Noah before opening his mouth.

“That…… nevermind.”

“What! Why are you stopping mid-sentence, leaving us hanging?”

“It’s too trivial. I’ll tell you when this is over.”

“Yes.”

Noah calmly replied. Allen clicked his tongue at his friend’s attitude change, as sudden as flipping a coin.

Nigel would never know. That when they were alone in the dorm, Noah would endlessly sing Nigel’s praises.

“Anyway, the situation is urgent so I’ll get straight to the point. It’s praiseworthy that you made it this far, but could we move to your room? I messed up controlling my mana, so the guides won’t be able to wake up today.”

Allen, Yenika, and Noah looked at each other simultaneously at Nigel’s voice, tinged with embarrassment and apology.

And Yenika took the lead.

“Um, Nigel. Actually, we came looking for you for the same reason.”

“……”

Nigel’s eyes instantly lost their light, like rotten fish.

“Huh, like friends, doing the exact same thi……”

Sid, who was about to criticize the fools’ antics with his arms crossed and chin raised arrogantly, immediately put on a humble demeanor when he noticed Yenika among them.

“……made this wise decision. Uh, haha. It was a very good judgment. We can’t involve Her Highness the Princess in such illegal activities.”

Nigel ignored Sid and spoke again.

“Then this method is out. You managed to come without being caught, huh?”

Nigel said, lightly stroking Yenika’s hair.

“Yes! It was as easy as eating cold soup when we combined everyone’s strengths.”

“Was there anything unusual on the way here?”

“I’m not sure how helpful this is, but there were employees walking around in the hallway and a few rooms where no mana could be felt at all.”

“That’s it.”

“There it is.”

Sid and Nigel answered simultaneously.

“Sid, do you want to explain?”

Sid, who had been looking for a chance to score points in front of Yenika, quickly opened his mouth without missing the opportunity.

“The reason for inefficiently placing each auction item in a separate room must be for security, and to obtain those ridiculous documents. On the surface, that is.”

“What do you mean?”

Allen asked.

“Our hypothesis that there’s another space hidden in this auction house could have been wrong. If it weren’t for your words, Allen.”

“I… see.”

Noah caught on to Sid’s words.

“No, don’t just keep it between yourselves, explain it, Sid!”

Sid frowned at Allen’s urging and continued.

“Evans, you said it yourself. There were only employees in the hallway and rooms where no mana could be detected at all. That means there’s some sort of design connected to a deeper place inside this room.”

“Ah, aah!”

“Then if we search this room, we’ll find the answer, right?”

Yenika quickly scanned the fairly large room.

“Then Sid, Yenika, and I will search the upper part! Nigel and Noah, take the lower part.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Allen dragged Sid and Yenika away. Yenika desperately reached out to Nigel, but she was already swept away by Allen.

“……Well then, you search the right side. I’ll search the left.”

Nigel said awkwardly before immediately turning around and heading to the far left. Noah hid his disappointment and walked to the opposite side.

As they rummaged through the display cases lined up neatly with only superficially fancy ornaments, and the odds and ends of unknown origin placed in corners, Nigel and Noah’s distance gradually narrowed without them realizing.

At a distance close enough to reach out and touch Nigel, Noah carefully opened his mouth.

“Um, Nigel.”

“What.”

Fortunately, a curt reply came from Nigel, who was examining a bookshelf. Noah’s heart fluttered just from that small response from Nigel.

“How did you spend your vacation?”

As soon as he heard Noah’s hesitant voice, Nigel realized it was a sign of reconciliation.

Normally, he would have readily accepted Noah’s apology. However, as long as there was even a slight possibility that Noah had revealed his secret to Widrun, he couldn’t accept that apology.

“I was busy. With family matters, paperwork, cleaning up after the little ones. I didn’t have a moment to think about anything else.”

Nigel said in a roundabout noble way, meaning he didn’t have time to think about someone like Noah, so be quiet.

“You must have had a hard time. But it must have been enjoyable to go to Tillin after so long.”

“Yeah.”

Thanks to Noah, born of nobility, quickly grasping the hidden meaning, the conversation was swiftly concluded.

“Nigel! Did you find anything?”

At that moment, Sid called out from the opposite side.

“No, nothing particularly noticeab……”

In an instant, a suspicious book caught Nigel’s eye.

It was a book written in ancient language, alone among others similar in appearance and thickness, which is why he hadn’t noticed it until now.

Nigel reached for that book as if entranced.

Suddenly, the book began to emit light.

“……Nigel?”

Soon, the light began to engulf Nigel.

Noah quickly reached out and grabbed Nigel’s shoulder.

……Thud.

When the dazzling light faded and the group opened their eyes, Noah and Nigel had disappeared, leaving only the book fallen on the floor.