25. What Does It Matter, When We’re Going to Marry
The man looked like a beggar.
And his speech matched his appearance—crude, coarse, and extremely low-class. Swearing was basic for him; he was hot-tempered, rough in his actions, and frequently displayed wildly fluctuating emotions.
Fuming with anger, he shouted Givnen’s name at the top of his lungs. To his surprise, it wasn’t Givnen who appeared, but his representative, Sak.
“Lord Arpeggio, the master has sent a message requesting you keep your voice down as a distinguished guest is visiting.”
“Why are you here? I said bring that bastard Givnen here immediately!”
“The master is currently receiving an important guest at Horizon. There’s also a party scheduled afterward. If you wish to meet the master, you’ll need to schedule an appointment separately.”
“That bastard is deliberately avoiding me! Leaving this squirt here instead and expecting me to deal with it? Are you kidding me?”
Sak looked at Riley, who was terrified, and patted her shoulder as if to calm her down.
“He has a harsh tongue, but he’s not a bad person.”
“Hey, are you ignoring me?”
“Lord Arpeggio, this isn’t a squirt. She is Lord Raiston’s daughter.”
At that, the furious man—Arpeggio—froze.
He then stepped closer to Riley, clearly flustered, and began inspecting her face intently.
“The daughter of that unlucky bastard?”
“Yes, according to the master.”
“…She’s alive?”
“That’s what he said.”
“I can’t believe it. How… How do you even see it? She’s his kid?”
“Even if you deny it, it’s an unchanging truth.”
Arpeggio blinked a few times, then pressed his index finger to Riley’s forehead. He furrowed his brow.
“Does she have magic? Her circulation doesn’t seem to be working at all. What is this anomaly? How is she even alive standing here?”
“The master is also puzzled by that.”
“She’s at a normal person’s level at best. Is she really a mage?”
“The master confirms she is a mage.”
“And she intends to enroll in Horizon Academy in this state?”
“That’s why the master requested your assistance, Lord Arpeggio.”
“These fools, every last one of them, are insane.”
“From what I can see, Lord Arpeggio, you’re the craziest of them all.”
Ignoring Sak’s remark, Arpeggio helped Riley to her feet.
“Alright, let’s go. I need to see if you’re actually useful.”
“The master instructed you not to handle her roughly. Even minor injuries could get her expelled from Horizon, so please keep that in mind.”
“Hmph, so I can rough up someone else, but not this one, huh?”
“Then let’s proceed.”
Riley looked at Sak with pleading eyes. Her silent wish to be let out was lightly ignored as Sak left.
Arpeggio then dragged Riley somewhere and immediately began drawing a magic circle beneath her feet.
“Stand here.”
Riley wanted to run, but no exit was visible. And if she resisted, she feared she would be hit. So she reluctantly stood in the center of the magic circle as instructed.
“If you’re truly Raiston’s child, prove it yourself. Show whether you’re worth raising or not.”
“…How do I prove that?”
“You’ll see soon. And the answer isn’t given to you—it’s something you must find yourself.”
He began muttering under his breath. At that moment, the magic circle glowed, and a massive pillar of light shot upward, engulfing the circle.
Her vision went black, and darkness enveloped her.
Where am I…?
She looked around, but there was nothing. Even when she waved her hands, only complete darkness met her gaze. The realization that she was utterly alone in a space completely cut off from light made breathing uncomfortable.
Not only that, but it felt like she was trapped in a confined space—her movements were restricted, and she felt suffocated.
A sealed chamber, limited oxygen, darkness without a single ray of light.
All these elements combined, bringing extreme fear and confusion.
“Huff… huff… huff…”
Instinctively, Riley grabbed her throat. Whether it was her airway narrowing or lack of oxygen, she felt her lungs expand and contract rapidly, each breath a struggle.
I’m going to die… if this continues, I will die.
She cried out for help, for release from the pain. Yet no sound came out, and her movements grew sluggish. The more she struggled, the heavier her body felt, as if weighed down by lead.
Her organs twisted, nausea churned in her stomach. Her heartbeat slowed, and a chilling cold crept over her. Cold. Scared.
Her body trembled violently, each bone aching.
The helplessness of doing nothing, the overwhelming fear of death.
She was engulfed in despair.
‘I… I hate this… It hurts… I don’t want to die… No… no, no, no!’
Riley screamed in desperation.
Yet no sound escaped her lips. As her body reached its limit, her fear and despair transformed into rage.
“Let go of me! Right now! Leave me alone! Just leave me… disappear… die! No!”
Riley wished for three things:
First, for the darkness to disappear.
Second, to be able to breathe.
Third, for this uncomfortable space to vanish entirely.
“…Disappear.”
This time, the words escaped her lips.
Crash!
The space cracked and began to shatter. Light seeped through the broken gaps, and her blocked airway finally cleared. Cold blood began to flow rapidly.
Thump, thump, thump! Her heart pounded, and the rush of blood, though cold, felt refreshing like ice water on a summer day.
The heavy, leaden sensation in her body lifted; she felt light as a feather.
Bang!
The shattered space expanded fully and then exploded, flooding everything with brilliant light. Riley shielded her eyes. As the brightness dimmed, she slowly opened them and saw Arpeggio leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, watching her.
“Huff… huff…”
Arpeggio checked his watch.
“Exactly one minute.”
“….”
“Now you finally look like a mage. Your magical circulation, or ‘ma-blood,’ had been blocked, so you were no different from a normal person. That you survived despite this shows what your father must have done. Not surprising, though, given the outrageous magic he used.”
Riley couldn’t fully comprehend his words—or even catch her breath after the ordeal. One minute alone had left her in utter confusion.
“Your magic is now open, and instinctively handling that immense power shows potential. It’s still unstable, but usable.”
Arpeggio held out his hand to the seated Riley.
“How does it feel to be reborn?”
Riley took his hand, and he helped her to her feet.
“It feels amazing. My body is so light, I feel like I could fly.”
“Indeed. Maintaining a body weighed down by sealed magic for over twenty years… just thinking about it is horrifying.”
“…What exactly happened?”
“Nothing much. I just drove you to the brink of death to forcefully release your magic.”
“….”
“For some reason, your magical circulation was completely blocked. Normally, the accumulated mana would have exploded inside your body, destroying it. But you survived—either your body is a mutation, or Raiston did something to it. Likely the latter, which makes sense why your magic couldn’t be exposed.”
Riley shivered at the thought that her body could have exploded.
“So… can I use magic now?”
“How would I know? That’s up to you.”
“…Then the proof… am I proven?”
Arpeggio had told her to prove herself. He said she would find the answer, but even now, nothing was clear.
“Come here every day at 6 PM. Don’t come before then. That’s my sleep time.”
“Are you taking me on as your disciple?”
“Disciples? I’m too young for that. And do you think only one or two people are dying to be my disciple? Someone like you aiming for such a rare position? Forget it.”
“Then…”
“I’ll help you cross the threshold of Horizon Academy. That’s the extent of our agreement.”
“Oh, I see. Thank you.”
Riley bowed in gratitude, and Arpeggio waved his hand dismissively.
“Done here. Now go. And start coming from tomorrow.”
Though harsh in tone, he didn’t seem a bad person.
Riley left the magic storage with a sigh of relief.
He seems to know a lot about my father… yet I was too scared to ask about him.
This was an unexpected gain. But she couldn’t ask about her father yet; he was too hot-tempered, and their relationship was still awkward. It would be better to wait until they became closer.
“Looking cheerful, aren’t you?”
A familiar voice made Riley stop. As she turned, something swept her off her feet. Pinned against the wall, she looked up at the person holding her.
“Givnen?”
“It’d be a problem if I saw you enjoying yourself with another man.”
Givnen removed Riley from his embrace, meeting her gaze.
“…What are you doing here? Sak said you were entertaining a guest.”
“The guest left a moment ago. I waited to escort you.”
“Oh, I can go alone.”
“Don’t want to go with me?”
“No, it’s not that… you’re busy.”
“I have time to escort you. Plus, I have something to say.”
Trapped between the wall and Givnen, Riley glanced around, worried someone might see.
“Who would see…”
“I already told you, not just anyone can come here.”
“But what if they do?”
“What does it matter? We’re going to marry anyway.”
His expression was as usual, but somehow slightly sulky. Riley, momentarily confused, reached out to pat his back. Givnen stared at her.
“You seemed upset.”
He chuckled, shoulders shaking.
Riley tilted her head, puzzled. Givnen intertwined their fingers.
“I’m not upset. Feeling better now.”
“…Suddenly?”
“Let’s go. I’ll escort you.”
Reassured by his cheerful demeanor, Riley nodded.
It turned out that “escorting” meant walking. The normally cavalier Givnen had chosen to walk today.
“If we arrive early, we’d have to separate quickly.”
Simply put, he didn’t want to return to work, so he chose legwork.
Thus, Riley walked hand-in-hand with Givnen through the crowded streets.
“Why are you so conscious of others?”
“…It’s my first time walking in such a crowded place. And…”
“And?”
“You stand out too much.”
“I stand out? I don’t notice.”
“You don’t, but everyone else does.”
Of course, it was exaggerated. Not everyone in the empire would know him, but even those who didn’t know him would notice his appearance and height—it made him impossible to ignore.
“The day of the reception…”
“….”
“I only had eyes for you.”
A fact with no exaggeration, but perhaps Givnen interpreted it differently. He stopped walking.
“Why?”
“Was I really the only one you noticed?”
“Yes. You seemed to live in a world of your own. Maybe others saw it that way too.”
“I don’t care what others think, but that’s flattering.”
“Anyway, walking with someone so conspicuous makes you aware of your surroundings.”
“So you don’t like it?”
“I don’t dislike it.”
“I like walking like this, just the two of us.”
“….”
“It’s my first time walking side by side with someone.”
Riley tilted her head at his words.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“Why not?”
“We’ve gone on countless dates, but never walked side by side.”
Givnen frowned.
“Why assume countless dates?”
“Well…”
Because of all the rumors.
Riley didn’t finish her sentence, watching his reaction. Givnen squinted knowingly.
“So, a fool believed all those rumors.”
“Not all, but you said before—most were false, some were true.”
“The true ones are very few, and those were brief. Actual dates were even fewer.”
“I see.”
“Why am I explaining all this? This isn’t the conversation I wanted to have with you.”
“Oh, right. You said you had something to tell me. What is it?”
“I have good news and bad news. Which first?”
Riley hesitated.
“Bad news.”
“Baron Ryan’s family arrived in Blestige today.”
“…They wasted no time. So, what’s the good news?”
Givnen smiled.
“The marriage meeting date is set.”
“!”
