It's Annoying Because My Childhood Friend Is An Archmage

"What, do you want me to go around talking about it?"

"It's not that..!"

A complicated expression washed over the Viscount's face. It was a mixture of indescribable emotions.

Furthermore, his current thoughts were all jumbled up, so it made it hard for me to understand.

"The Princess... is very kind." It took a while for the words to come out of his mouth.

I couldn't understand why he would say that.

"I don't think you should use the word 'kind' in this situation."

"No, I should. You knew my weakness and you wouldn't exploit it. What would that be if not a 'kind' doing?"

"I was just doing what was natural." I pointed out to him, "I don't know what kind of people you've met before, Viscount, but it's normal to be aware of other people's weaknesses and not take advantage of them."

I mean it. Everyone has an Achilles heel, we all have secrets we don't want to be exposed to, so I thought it would be mean to use someone's weakness against them.

"...Thank you, Princess." Another word of gratitude was spoken by him.

I turned my head toward him. "Don't thank me. I haven't done anything to deserve it."

With that, I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall of the balcony.

I had nothing more to say to him. Now I just wanted to get some air.

It was already dark out here, tiny stars shone in the dark sky, sprinkled together like powdered sugar on bread.

Beyond the walls of the palace, I could see the streets of the capital lit up with lanterns.

It's night already.

I had only danced once with the Crown Prince and dodged a few people, but I was already tired.

I'm not extroverted enough for this.

I closed my eyes and felt the chill in the air until I felt the warmth of a body next to me.

When I opened my eyes, the Viscount was standing next to me.

He really does have a knack for annoying people.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

I asked him softly, my arms still crossed.

"..." An answer did not come easily from him.

The darkness made it difficult to see his face. The dim light from the ballroom only partially illuminated it.

"...It seems that I've misunderstood the Princess all this time." Just as the silence between us was beginning to feel a little awkward, the Viscount spoke softly.

I blinked. "Oh?"

"In the past, without really knowing you, I judged you based on the rumours surrounding you, but now that I've met you, those rumours and I were wrong."

What the hell was he judging about me?

I stared at him, not knowing what to say.

After a moment's hesitation, he looked down at me, one hand scratching his nape.

"I've always found... the Princess to have a little cold impression and a little rough in her speech, which is why I thought she was a bad person."

"I admit I have a bad personality." I poured cold water on the Viscount's sudden confession, but he shook his head.

"No, that's not what I think. I don't understand why someone as upright and righteous as you is so notorious in society."

"..."

Surprised, I glanced at him.

Why is he denying it when it's true I'm as cold and abrasive as he says?

Let's just admit it and move on.

I'm well aware of my own eccentricities, and I don't try to hide it, of course, that doesn't mean I'm proud of my meanness, either.

"And I am truly sorry about the other day."

The Viscount opened his mouth to speak again.

"For what?"

"That day when we first met, you were kind enough to give me a ride in your carriage, yet I committed the shameless act of threatening you. It's inexcusable, but... will you please forgive me?"

"Since you opened the palace gates for me earlier, I'll pretend it never happened." I immediately said without any hesitation.

To be honest, I hadn't been too fond of him for what he did to me before, and if I had to label my feelings for him, they were more like 'dislike' than 'like'.

But a few hours ago, I was grateful for his help when Lady Aronia stole my invitation and prevented me from entering the palace.

Whether he knew this or not, the Viscount began to ramble on,

"In my defence, I was greatly disturbed to learn that the Princess knew that I was the descendant of a witch, and I was worried that if she knew, others might know, and was worried it would reach the ears of the Crown Prince or even the Emperor. I was so flustered that I unwittingly did such a thing..."

"I've accepted your apology, so stop that, it's pathetic."

His mouth dropped open at my sharp criticism and stared at me with a puzzled expression.

'...I don't know if she's good or bad, I'm so confused.'

He doesn't know if I'm a good person or a bad person? Why does he have such black-and-white thinking?

Wondering why, I noticed that Viscount Artisina's eyes were golden.

The last time I had met him, I had been so wary of him that I didn't have the chance to observe his eyes properly.

How fascinating.

Intrigued by the golden colour of his eyes which were a rare sight in this Empire, I focused on them.

Just as I began to see myself reflected in his eyes, he spoke out of nowhere,

'Why is she staring at me like that? No way… is she interested in me?'

What are you talking about, man.

But as I thought about it, he had a point. This is a deserted balcony, and balconies are usually a sacred place for lovers.

Taking the Viscount's inner thoughts as a warning sign, I immediately withdrew my gaze from him.

I knew he was attracted to me, but I didn't like him enough to accept his feelings.

"Don't get me wrong. I was just staring since I've never seen golden eyes before."

If I were to hear this, I would back up, but the Viscount didn't know how to do that.

"Is that so? Well, gold eyes aren't common in this empire, so I don't mind if you take a closer look."

Rather, he took a step forward by saying that.

It was a different reaction than Lancer. If he had been Lancer, he would've been sulking at my words.

But he didn't look hurt at all. Instead, he looked down at me with a smirk.

"Are there many people with gold eyes in the Hebnia Kingdom?"

"Well, let's just say there are."

'Though the truth is, only my mother and those from her family of origin, and a few noble families on the outskirts, have golden eyes.'

Oh.

I felt like I had reaped an unexpected harvest after overhearing that.

What the hell did he do in his own country before becoming an imperial mage here?

I've gotten a hint on which family he came from, but what had he done in his homeland to warrant his exile to this empire, where he was content to serve as a mere viscount and imperial mage?

I can't help but be curious, so later, when I have a chance, I'll try to find out more about this mysterious mage.

As I was collecting my thoughts, the Viscount spoke again.

"Come to think of it, I haven't told the Princess this yet."

"What do you mean?"

"Has the Princess heard of Hebnia's holy relic, the Witch's Ode?"

I nodded at his question.

Of course, I had heard of it. The other day, Lancer talked about stealing it and making it into a necklace for me.

"Then you must've heard of the legend that if you have that magic stone, you can have the person you love requite you."

"And?"

"I feel as if you have that magic stone right now."

Taking a step closer to me, the viscount looked me straight in the eye.

"..." I couldn't bear to speak yet.

The bridge of our noses was nearly touching, if he tilted his head even slightly toward me now, they would be able to.

"Viscount."

"You may call me Ketniff." His even breathing rang clear in my ears.

"Princess," his hair glistened under the night sky, making his golden eyes look all the more noble, "May I kiss you?"

His smile, which usually seemed adorable, felt exceptionally seductive at this moment.

If I'd let my guard down for a moment, I might have been swept off my feet by him.

But.

'Even the heavenly Princess Skyla wouldn't be able to resist this temptation, wouldn't she?'

I could hear his inner thoughts from beginning to end, and I knew that his every move was calculated.

Thus, "Viscount Artisina."

"Yes, my lady."

"Don't be so petty."

"..."

The Viscount's face, which had been at the height of its greasiness from how smooth it is, cracked uncontrollably.

Now that's a look.

I turned away, leaving him frozen in place.

"If that's all, then I'll be going."

"Uh, where are you going?"

"Home."

With that, I turned to leave the balcony but was stopped as he rushed to my side.

"Are you sure you want to go back to that ballroom?"

"You can't jump off the balcony, can you?"

"But if you go back to the ballroom, people will be crowding you again, Princess, and how will you deal with that?"

"Well..."

The Viscount looked at me blankly, then as if he'd been hit with a hammer, he blurted out these words.

"Princess, leave it to me. I will send you directly from here to where your carriage is."

By what means will he do that?

I glanced sceptically at him. He puffed out his chest and spoke proudly,

"You seem to have forgotten that I'm a mage. Please feel free to make use of me."

"Very well, then send me back to the Kaerun Duchy without returning to the carriage right now."

"Huh?!" The Viscount's face was painted with bewilderment.

My eyebrow rose, "Why, is there a problem?"

"Princess… the imperial palace has a strong protective magic spell to prevent invasion, so it's impossible to break through that spell and send you to the Kaerun Duchy."

'The Princess can't use magic, she doesn't even know much about it… Is there anyone in this world who can use such high-level teleportation magic…'

"Lancer can."

I snapped when I heard his inner thoughts.

"I suppose there's no need to ask the Viscount for help when I can just ask Lancer, so I'll get going-"

"Wait!"

As I was about to leave, he grabbed me again and shouted. The urgency in his voice was palpable. 

What else does he have to say?

I sighed and turned to face him, and as I did, he took a step forward and exclaimed,

"I-I can send the Princess home in a cute way!"