IATAOTHKG | CHAPTER 25

CHAPTER 25

“Where were you yesterday…! I was worried… you know!”

“I’m sorry, Magia. …yeah.”

Early morning.

A familiar voice pulled Caliph’s hazy mind back to reality.

This time, it was unmistakably Meyna’s voice.

It wasn’t an illusion or a dream.

‘Of course.’

A gleam of triumph flickered in Caliph’s bright blue eyes.

No matter how stubbornly she played her little tricks, she always came back within a day.

The truth was, Caliph knew Meyna far too well.

She was more responsible than anyone he had ever met.

She could only stay away from work for half a day at most.

“What happened to you?”

Magia’s voice came through the closed door.

“It’s nothing.”

Meyna answered quietly, adding something else he couldn’t quite make out.

But it was obvious the conversation was about him and Meyna.

And once she finished speaking with Magia, she’d open that door and come in.

He suddenly took in the chaos around him.

Broken chairs, splintered furniture, shards of glass glinting in the morning sun.

Only then did Caliph realize he had collapsed and fallen asleep right there on the floor.

He quickly stood and faced the tall mirror by the wall.

“Ha.”

A dry, hollow laugh slipped between his cracked lips.

His hair was a mess, his shirt wrinkled beyond repair, his bloodshot eyes shadowed underneath.

The back of his hand, cut from breaking things, showed raw flesh, and his clothes were stained with dried brown blood.

He looked utterly ruined.

All of this had happened in just one night.

“I can’t believe this.”

His head throbbed at the sight, but he couldn’t afford to waste time.

Thankfully, Meyna was still talking to Magia in the hall.

He needed to tidy the room and himself before she came in.

She couldn’t see him like this.

Ripping open the buttons of his ruined shirt, Caliph grabbed a clean one and kicked debris into a corner.

He buttoned it with his left hand while combing his hair back with his right.

After piling the broken items together, he picked up the four bankbooks she had left behind.

He planned to return them to her the moment she walked in—and demand an explanation.

What on earth did she mean by giving him these?

Just then, the sound of voices outside stopped.

The fading footsteps must have been Magia’s.

Moments later—

Knock, knock.

Someone—no, Meyna—knocked on the door.

The color returned to Caliph’s pale face.

“Sir Lennox.”

But the voice that followed wasn’t Meyna’s.

“This is Hodge. May I come in for a moment?”

Caliph’s brief smile vanished.

“Come in.”

The door opened carefully.

Holding a large tray, Hodge froze at the sight of the wrecked room.

“I brought breakfast and a message, sir.”

On the tray sat a well-prepared meal, as usual.

Caliph’s eyes flicked irritably over the dishes.

Then he saw it—the glass bottle of health juice.

“Meyna?”

“The Lady Secretary is currently in the drawing room…”

Caliph shot up from his seat.

“S-Sir Lennox—!”

Hodge stood frozen beside the table, helplessly watching him storm out.

***

Bang!

The drawing room door flew open as if it would come off its hinges.

Sunlight filled the wide, airy room.

A soft summer breeze blew through the open windows, making the white curtains flutter gently, casting leafy shadows across the table.

But the person sitting by the window wasn’t Meyna.

It was Banze Motenson.

Caliph frowned deeply and looked down at the table.

In front of her sat a cup of black coffee, and another cup sat opposite.

“Tough morning, huh.”

Banze broke into her trademark booming laugh.

Even though Caliph had barged in unannounced, she didn’t seem surprised in the least.

The sound grated on him like a rasp.

He barely swallowed a curse.

So you lured Meyna out, didn’t you?

I know you’ve met her several times already.

What did you plan together while I wasn’t around?

You sly old fox.

Where is she, damn it?

All those words burned inside him, trembling at the edge of his tongue.

“Haha.”

Banze smiled slyly, as if she’d understood every unspoken thought.

“Sit down first.”

Her tone sounded casual, but it carried the weight of command.

Caliph sat across from her.

The faint lip mark on the cup in front of him was clearly Meyna’s.

“Coffee?”

Banze asked lightly.

An absurd question.

“No, thank you.”

He forced the anger down and answered coldly.

“Until a new secretary is hired, the maids of Lennox Manor will manage things.”

“Bullshit.”

Caliph couldn’t hold it in any longer.

A new secretary?

That was the biggest nonsense he’d ever heard.

“Lady Winslet has been appointed as the new aide to an S-rank Holy Knight recently recruited by Ocean Agency.”

“…”

It felt like his insides were boiling and his bones melting—utter nonsense.