“Alicia, hello. I was surprised. You came so suddenly.”
“I came just in case. It’s always hard to make appointments.”
“I’m sorry. I was busy with follow-up work. Oh, and thanks for your cooperation. It was a lot of help during the on-site investigation. Thank you.”
“I could only do what I could. I’m glad it was helpful.”
Noah seemed relieved as Alicia’s attitude towards him was more favorable than last time, smiling faintly.
“So, what brings you here today?”
“You mentioned before that you could sense magic from me, that I’m being protected. That’s why I came.”
“Ah.”
Noah looked at Alicia’s hand with a hesitant expression.
In fact, Noah was curious too. Moreover, the pattern he briefly saw then became more concerning.
The curiosity of being a wizard prompted him, but at the same time, his experience as a wizard warned him not to reveal too much.
However, since she had come all the way here and was personally requesting, Noah hesitated to refuse.
After a moment of hesitation, Noah spoke up.
“Shall we take a look?”
“I would appreciate that.”
“Place your hand here. Turn your palm up.”
Alicia nodded, extending her hand to Noah.
“We’re just checking, so there’s no need to be nervous.”
“Yes.”
Noah focused his magic on Alicia’s upturned palm.
“?
For a very brief moment, a black pattern appeared and disappeared.
Alicia, unable to see her palm due to Noah’s hand, awaited his serious expression to speak.
“Right now, it’s beyond my ability.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll have a senior wizard check it when they come. It’s nothing serious.”
“Is it serious?”
“No? Not at all.”
Noah tried to reassure Alicia with a smile.
“As I mentioned last time, you’re being protected. It’s stronger than I thought. So, it’s not a bad thing. It’s actually good.”
“I see.”
The power protecting Alicia wasn’t, as Noah felt last time, divine magic but rather magic.
Moreover, piercing through that protective magic to verify the pattern was challenging even for Noah’s magic.
Noah, hiding his serious expression with a smile, spoke.
“Of course, I thought it wouldn’t be ordinary, but what is this woman?”
“Hello.”
“Oh, come on in.”
The Deputy welcomed Eric warmly.
“So, where should we look?”
The Deputy smiled as he examined Eric.
“You can relax now. You look fine. You don’t need to come for treatment anymore.”
“Thank you. You’ve been through a lot because of me.”
“What’s the trouble? That’s naturally my duty. Is Alicia okay?”
“Oh, yes.”
Though Eric found it odd that the Deputy addressed Alicia so friendly, he simply nodded in response.
“So, when do you plan to get married?”
“Pardon?”
“Nevertheless, I should officiate your marriage. My schedule is incredibly tight, so we need to plan it in advance.”
“Um, thank you for your consideration, but we haven’t even had an engagement ceremony yet, so we haven’t discussed that far.”
In a bit of a bind, Eric tried to decline, but the Deputy didn’t pay attention, getting up from his seat and fetching a notebook from the desk.
“Let’s see…”
The Deputy flipped through the notebook and grinned.
“The earliest available date is next fall.”
“What? We still have a whole year?”
“Oh, come on. Look at this. Do I seem like a grandpa roaming around with nothing to do? Sorry about that.”
“Ah, I apologize.”
“In a hurry, I understand, but there are procedures to follow. Anyway, let’s consider next fall for now.”
“…Yes.”
Eric reluctantly agreed.
Even though he was not a direct noble, just a relative, he couldn’t refuse the Deputy’s decision to lead the wedding ceremony in front of him.
“Oh, by the way, is Count Lancaster still away?”
“Yes. I’ve heard he’ll be back soon.”
“Really? Hm. Where have you been wandering around like that?”
The Deputy Commissioner, looking momentarily displeased, stroked his long beard.
“Do you know?”
“I do. Actually, there’s a connection with the former Count Lancaster.”
“Ah.”
No matter how you think about it, the former Count Lancaster seems to be quite an extraordinary person.
The Deputy Commissioner is well aware of that, considering the relationship with the former emperor.
But the current Count Lancaster, who has severed all those connections and is now gallivanting outside, is undoubtedly not an ordinary person.
“Anyway, through this incident, we’ve formed a deeper connection, and what you’re saying about liking her, Russell Count.”
“Yes.”
“I hope you won’t be too hurt by Count Lancaster.”
“Pardon?”
Eric was puzzled by the Deputy’s sudden concern.
As if the Deputy sensed it, he smiled reassuringly.
“That guy is a real doting father. Since Alicia was born, she has been weak, and there was a big accident in the middle, so if he has a daughter, he’d dote on her to death.”
“I see.”
“For now, from the moment you announced your engagement with Alicia, the favorability has dropped more than half, so don’t expect too much.”
At the Deputy’s words, Eric smiled awkwardly.
“That guy also has done something wrong, so he probably can’t be too harsh.”
“?”
“There are no perfect parents to their children. And that guy knows it well.”
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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