It's Annoying Because My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage

Chapter 12

I stared blankly at the smiling mage.

The next thing I knew, he was sitting across from me instead of Phoebe, and the carriage was slowly rolling towards the Imperial Palace.

Huh?

“Princess Kaerun, are you on your way to meet His Highness?”

The mage sitting across me chuckled lightly and smiled.

Rather than answering me, I asked back as I was still wary of him.

“How’d you know?”

It was a direct question. I couldn't help it, even if the tone was rude.

‘He seems like a dangerous man for some reason.’

This was the result of hearing the thoughts of many people.

There was something subtle about looking at his face, smiling friendly.

He certainly has a handsome face, his smile looked purely innocent.

But somehow, there seemed to be something sinister lurking beneath his beautiful appearance.

Above all.

‘I want to make her mine.’

It's not easy to trust someone who said this.

I rolled my eyes and stared at the mage, who responded with a gentle smile.

“The Princess’ coachman said so. He said ‘Would you take responsibility if the Duke’s carriage breaks and my lady can’t meet the Crown Prince?’”

Ah.

Come to think of it, Ticef did say that when arguing with the other coachman.

He has a good memory. I was a little impressed.

The mage took advantage of the crack and asked another question.

“Do you meet up a lot with the Crown Prince?”

“No, more than that,”

I didn't want to talk about my business, so I asked him a question to change the subject.

“Why are you going to the palace?”

But instead of simply answering my question, the mage uttered.

“Ketniff.”

“What’d you say?”

“Ketniff Artisina, that's my name. Don't be formal and call me Viscount, just call me Ketniff.”

He said so while sitting with his legs crossed.

I could tell from a glance that he was lying.

Because I heard what he was thinking.

‘I'm a new noble after all, so even Princess Kaerun won't know my real name.’

Oho, so you're saying Ketniff isn't your actual name?

I feel exhilarated since I've caught the suspicious mage in the act.

“Ketniff is an unusual name, are you sure that's your real name?”

I asked, taunting him.

Startled by my surprise question, the mage flinched slightly for a moment.

He regained his composure as if he wasn't caught.

“Haha, the Princess makes good jokes.”

“I didn't say that to be funny.”

I crossed my arms and coldly replied.

“Viscount Artisina, are we close enough to joke around with each other?”

“Huh…?”

“Or am I, the successor of a duchy, close enough to you, a mere viscount, to make jokes?”

“...”

He seemed at a loss for words.

His lips, which had been chattering tactfully non-stop, suddenly stopped like a broken clock.

Now, that's something worth seeing.

I feel more exhilarated now that I had given him a proper blow after he tried to unnecessarily fool me.

But it only lasted briefly.

‘...That's pretty good, Princess Kaerun.’

The mage’s thoughts were heard again.

‘As expected of the so-called grim reaper of society, she really doesn't give me a break.’

The grim reaper of society?

I felt like the hair on the back of my head was being pulled.

The grim reaper of society… you mean me?

The grim reaper of society? What's with this stupid second grade title? I'd rather be called a two-faced bastard!

I was grinding my teeth inwardly when the mage smiled again.

“You may find my name unusual since I'm originally not from this empire.”

‘Yeah, I'm gonna say my name is unusual because I'm from the Empire of Hebnia. It's not a lie anyway.’

I spoke with ease after hearing his thoughts.

“Are you from the Empire of Hebnia?”

“Yes, that's right.”

“Then you must be a noble of that empire.”

I asked, glancing at the mage.

He flinched in bewilderment.

“What do you mean by that…”

“Isn't that correct? I thought the nobles there were born with magic powers.”

“...Y-You know a lot about my empire.”

“I do. I've always wanted to go there since I’m very interested in magic.”

I declared proudly.

Only then did the relaxed mage crumble like a melting iceberg.

It was fascinating to watch the man who had been so casually targeting me break down.

I inwardly cursed the wizard and continued.

“So, did you used to be a noble of the Empire of Hebnia, then somehow got exiled and inherited the Viscount title of another country?”

‘...This ***** is sharper than a surgical knife.’

I heard the mage swear at me inwardly, but I didn't feel bad, because it was sophisticated swearing.

‘I thought Princess Kaerun would be easy, she's not called the grim reaper for nothing.’

Please do something about that foul nickname.

“So, what's your answer?”

“...Yes, I was once a noble there.”

The mage slowly spoke.

Of course, it’s a lie. He was telling a completely different story in his mind.

‘****. I'm not even a noble in the first place, I'm only able to use magic because my grandmother was a witch who served the devil…’

That's a very shocking fact.

“... A witch?”

I unconsciously recited it.

By the time I came to my senses, it was too late. The words were already out of my mouth.

And the face of the mage sitting across me hardened.

“...”

A cold silence fell over the carriage.

I couldn't say anything for a while, still shocked by the mage’s thoughts I just heard.

A descendant of a witch, how did that happen…

Didn't all witches of the cursed clan were wiped out in demonic extermination?

But a descendant who inherited a witch's blood is still alive?

“...What?”

Before I could finish thinking, the mage’s mouth, which had been tightly closed, slowly opened.

“What did you say, Princess?”

“What do you-”

“Answer me straight.”

He glared at me.

“Depending on your answer, my magic may reach the Princess.”

Fierce flames burned on his hands as he spoke.

“...”

In the sudden crisis, I stared at the fire without a word.

Now, let's think about this objectively.

We’re in a closed carriage.

In a small space of just us.

A strange mage sitting across from me is threatening to attack with fire if I don't answer correctly.

What should I do?

If I was an ordinary person, I would've screamed and jumped, or been in a panic and couldn't think properly.

But I'm not an ordinary person.

“Why are you being rude, Viscount?”

Instead of screaming or jumping at the threat, I glared at him with my eyes wide open.

Unfortunately, I was undeniably a noble to the bone, naturally born to be one from birth.

These petty threats are nothing to me.

Was I a noble for no reason?

There's a saying that hardship is accompanied by power.

That’s right. Since ancient times, nobles have always been subjected to the scrutiny and wrath of opposing parties.

So most of the nobles’ carriages were equipped with devices to prevent assassinations.

That's why there's a defensive magic spell underneath my seat.

The moment the fire attacks me, the spell will activate and protect me.

The mage seemed momentarily taken aback by my unexpectedly confident attitude.

His thoughts were heard clearly.

‘Ugh, this isn't it.’

He soon made the flame stronger as if he had made up his mind.

“I said, if you don't answer me straight out who exactly you are and how you know my origins, I'll have no choice but to use my hands, Princess.”

“What do you mean by using your hands?”

I asked leisurely, keeping a straight face.

“Are you going to kill me? I don't know what the Empire of Hebnia was like, but do know if you were to injure a noble in this empire, you’d be severely punished.”

“Well, that's..!”

“Plus, if you kill me, the only daughter of the Kaerun Duchy, search parties from all over the empire would be aiming for your head. We’re not close enough to be in the same graveyard, Viscount Artisina.”

“...”

The flames on his hand quietly died down.

‘Whoa, I didn't mean to kill you in the first place…’

He seemed to be able to think rationally now.

I looked at him pitifully with my arms folded.

“Tell me, Viscount. If I didn't answer straight, what were you going to do?”

“Well, I was just…”

“Just?”

“I was just… going to burn the Princess’ dress.”

“...”

Silence.

A cold silence settled over the carriage.