Chapter 5
No way.
There can’t possibly be any deeper meaning behind it.
After desperately trying to make sense of the situation, Agnes recalled the strange things Kesenor had said yesterday.
About how she was supposedly the World Tree’s Partner.
Maybe that’s why he’s curious about me?
More importantly, her little sister—who was only six years old—had somehow escaped the Rift, stormed into the Magic Tower, and claimed that her older sister was someone extraordinary.
To Agnes, it all sounded like a fairy tale.
It didn’t feel real.
It was the sort of story that belonged inside a novel.
No matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t imagine what someone like Kesenor would find interesting about her.
She was just an ordinary woman with plain looks and no remarkable talents.
He, on the other hand, was the master of Celestial, the greatest Magic Tower in the world.
Agnes knew almost nothing about magic, but she had read books describing what an Archmage could do.
They could transport not only objects but even people across great distances.
They could set empty plains ablaze, summon thunder from the heavens, and create waterfalls where none had existed before.
In other words…
He was someone a common person like her would never normally have the chance to meet.
While she was lost in thought, the twins only half-listened to Kesenor’s request before becoming excited.
“Ob-observe our lesson?”
“Why?”
“Do we have magical talent?”
“How do you even use magic?”
Naturally, magical aptitude was hereditary.
Since neither of the twins’ parents had any connection to magic, there was no reason for Kesenor to take an interest in them.
Or…
Is he curious about my lessons?
Even then, she was only teaching young children.
Everything she taught was nothing more than basic knowledge from textbooks.
Compared to someone who researched the deepest mysteries of magic, her lessons must seem painfully childish.
Perhaps interpreting her silence as permission, Kesenor entered the room and sat down on the sofa.
Not long afterward, several maids arrived with tea and refreshments, despite no one having summoned them.
It seemed the Countess had ordered them to treat the marquis with the utmost hospitality.
Although Agnes felt uncomfortable, she couldn’t show it.
Doing her best to ignore Kesenor’s presence, she resumed the lesson.
“As I explained earlier, after the Non-Aggression Treaty was signed, each race’s territory was formally divided.”
“Humans occupied the central continent.”
“The Elves settled in Naupa Forest to the east.”
“The Giants lived beyond the western Flame Mountains.”
“And on the southern islands, the Dark Elf craftsmen established their homeland.”
“What about the north?”
Leonard asked.
Agnes instinctively glanced toward Kesenor.
The north belonged to Celesta.
Ironically, Kesenor himself appeared lost in thought as he quietly sipped his tea.
He wasn’t watching the lesson.
Nor did he seem particularly interested in listening.
Then why did he insist on observing?
Wondering that herself, Agnes answered Leonard’s question.
“The north is the land of magicians.”
“Ah!”
“It is a land where monsters frequently appear, and the magicians protect it.”
“They eliminate monsters from the Magic Towers established throughout the region.”
“Among them, Celestial, the Magic Tower within House Celesta’s territory, is especially famous because of the exceptional strength of its magicians.”
Only then did Kesenor lower his gaze and smile faintly.
The children, however, had absolutely no interest in the fact that the owner of Celestial was sitting directly behind them.
“Teacher, have you ever seen another race?”
The illustrations in their history book were remarkably vivid.
The Giants, in particular, looked like terrifying monsters.
Agnes shook her head.
“Since the Non-Aggression Treaty, each race has agreed not to trespass into another’s territory.”
“There is some limited interaction.”
“But ordinary people rarely have the chance to meet them.”
“Then what about the Marquis?”
“Have you seen them before?”
Despite speaking to someone of such high status, the children showed no hesitation.
Kesenor let out a quiet sigh before nodding.
For a brief moment, his brows knitted together.
Perhaps he was remembering something unpleasant.
The children, of course, noticed none of it.
“Wow!”
“Really?”
“What are they like?”
“Do Giants really have horns?”
“Are Dark Elves actually dark-skinned?”
“Are Elves really unbelievably beautiful?”
It seemed like a good time for a break.
With a quiet sigh, Agnes pulled the bell cord.
“It’s snack time.”
“Don’t bother the Marquis.”
Soon, the maids returned carrying desserts and freshly brewed tea.
While the twins happily devoured their sweets, Agnes sat across from Kesenor and poured him another cup of tea.
She couldn’t simply leave a guest sitting alone after he had come to observe her lesson.
But…
She had no idea what to say.
As she awkwardly traced the warm teacup with her fingertips, Kesenor seemed to notice her discomfort and spoke first.
“May I ask how you became a governess?”
“Oh… it wasn’t anything remarkable.”
“My mother passed away when I was still young.”
“So when Amy was just a baby, I took care of her almost all the time.”
“I suppose the Countess thought well of that.”
“This morning, the Countess showed me the children’s schoolwork.”
Agnes instinctively tightened her grip on her teacup.
Countless thoughts raced through her mind.
Does she no longer trust me?
Now that the twins were older…
Perhaps she intended to hire a more qualified tutor.
Unlike the nervous Agnes, Kesenor gave an incredulous laugh.
“I was rather surprised.”
“The Countess seemed quite anxious to ask me such a thing.”
“She said the children are terribly unruly and that you’ve had a difficult time managing them.”
“Above all, she wanted to know whether they were progressing appropriately.”
He wasn’t wrong.
Magicians studied nothing less than the world itself.
Magic meant altering the fundamental laws governing reality.
Because of that, they devoted themselves to every field of knowledge that existed.
An Archmage was, in many ways…
A living library.
And yet…
The Countess had asked someone like him whether two nine-year-old boys were studying properly.
Agnes lowered her head in embarrassment.
It felt as though she had been stripped bare before him.
In other words…
The Countess had asked him to evaluate her ability as a teacher.
Thinking back on everything that had happened today…
How incompetent…
How pathetic I must have looked.
A governess who climbed trees alongside her students…
After hesitating for a long moment, Agnes quietly confessed what she was feeling.
“I’m embarrassed.”
“The Countess only asked because she’s worried about me.”
“She pitied my circumstances…”
“And kindly took me in.”
“Just a moment, Miss Agnes.”
“I believe I should apologize first.”
“What?”
His sudden words caught her completely off guard.
Smiling gently, he explained.
“You asked me not to touch you without your permission.”
“You said it made you uncomfortable.”
“Ah…”
She couldn’t very well admit that it had bothered her because no man had ever held her that way before.
For some reason…
She kept finding herself embarrassed whenever she was around him.
The sharp lines of his eyes softened as he smiled.
“To be honest…”
“I was rather surprised.”
Resting his chin against one hand, he glanced toward the twins, who were enthusiastically eating dessert behind them.
“When the Countess asked me to evaluate them, I thought the request was absurd.”
“But seeing you manage children as wild as those two…”
“Perhaps you’re more talented as a teacher than you realize.”
“You’re giving me far too much credit.”
She answered modestly.
But…
The truth was…
She was genuinely happy.
This praise came from someone who barely knew her.
Which meant…
It was probably an objective opinion.
She struggled to suppress the smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
Kesenor continued,
“They’re studying language, mathematics…”
“And at only nine years old, they’re already learning imperial history.”
“Compared to children from other noble houses, they aren’t behind at all.”
“More importantly…”
“Teaching students who don’t want to learn is an exceptionally difficult task.”
Having said that, he straightened his previously relaxed posture.
Drawing his long legs together, he leaned slightly closer toward Agnes.
“You should take pride in your accomplishments.”
“And yet you say you’re embarrassed.”
“Thank you.”
Agnes replied absentmindedly.
She was still too stunned to fully appreciate the compliment.
Watching her expression, Kesenor spoke again.
“That’s why I became curious.”
“How did you become a governess?”
“And how were you educated when you were a child?”
“When I was little…”
“I was quite the tomboy.”
“As you saw earlier…”
“I climbed trees almost every day.”
“Did your parents simply allow that?”
“Of course not.”
“I was always scolded.”
“So I just snuck out instead.”
Her father had always been busy with matters outside the estate.
Her mother had devoted herself to caring for the younger children.
So almost every day…
Agnes had slipped outside the manor with Rupert to play.
She could still vividly remember the estate residents smiling whenever they spotted them.
“Out playing again?”
And the voices warning them to be careful because climbing trees and running across the fields was dangerous.
They were precious memories.
Kesenor seemed about to ask another question.
But before he could…
The twins finished their desserts and immediately began making noise again.
After that…
Agnes no longer felt embarrassed teaching in front of him.
Instead…
She became curious about him.
Why would someone like him care about insignificant things like how I spent my childhood?
Those questions had nothing to do with the strange conversation they’d had yesterday.
As she searched for an explanation…
She suddenly remembered how Kesenor had introduced himself.
“My name is Kesenor Celesta.”
“I am your prospective Partner.”
“To put it simply…”
“You can think of me as a candidate to become your husband.”
Agnes froze.
Have I completely lost my mind?!
How could I forget something like that?
She had been so overwhelmed by the news that Amy was alive.
And everything Kesenor had said had been so confusing that she hadn’t been able to process any of it.
Don’t tell me…
Choosing a “Seed”…
Actually means choosing a husband?
Me…?
Choosing the Marquis?
How?
Unable to focus on the lesson any longer, Agnes finally instructed the twins to copy passages from the textbook instead.
By the time she had barely managed to calm their loud complaints…
A maid arrived with a message.
The Countess wished to invite both Agnes and Kesenor…
To join her for dinner.
