“Hello, old…”
Even the usually calm and collected Hilvia couldn’t help but blurt out a genuine complaint. It seemed Autelanz’s performance was really terrible.
“How so? Beautiful flowers—don’t the two ladies like them?”
“Not exactly fond of them. Flowers bloom and wither in due time. They’re fleeting and ephemeral, unlike something you can eat or drink that’s far more practical.”
“Didn’t expect you two to be so down-to-earth, but food is definitely no problem.”
With that, Autelanz casually plucked off his hat and tossed it into the air.
The hat landed steadily in his hand, and then he stuffed the flowers into the brim, spun it a few times—and just like that, the flowers vanished.
“A classic hat trick…” Hilvia had seen plenty of those.
“Not just that…”
Autelanz easily refuted Hilvia’s dismissal, then plunged his right hand into the hat. Moments later, he pulled out several skewers of tantalizingly grilled meat.
“Ah? That can’t be real, right?”
Sairi had never seen a magic show before; she only vaguely knew that magic relied on quick hand movements to deceive the eye.
But seeing Autelanz produce several large skewers of meat right before her and Hilvia genuinely excited her.
“Whether it’s real or not, Miss Caili can judge for herself. Here you go~”
Sairi reached out and took the skewers Autelanz produced, her eyes wide with curiosity. She could even feel that the meat was still warm.
“Can this really be eaten?”
“Try it and find out.”
“Wait, Sairi, don’t eat so fast. What if he’s added something to it?”
“Yeah! What if you’ve spiked it? Don’t think you can fool me so easily!”
But even as she said that, Sairi wavered. Looking at the delicious meat, she really wanted to take a big bite and enjoy it.
“Hahaha, don’t worry. I’ll lead by example.”
Autelanz took a skewer and began eating it without hesitation. After finishing, he snapped his fingers and the empty skewer disappeared.
Then, as if by magic, he pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the grease from his mouth.
“Gulp… Alright, I’ll trust you this once!”
Sairi eagerly bit into the skewer, eating happily and ignoring Hilvia’s cautious words.
“Miss Hilvia, won’t you have some?”
Autelanz warmly invited Hilvia to try the delicious meat.
“No, I don’t eat food from strangers. Don’t think too much of it, but thank you.”
Though Sairi was already lost in enjoyment, Hilvia remained alert, refusing to let her guard down.
“Alright, alright.”
“Mm~ it’s actually quite tasty.”
Sairi devoured the meat quickly, finishing it in no time.
“So? I didn’t lie, did I? We magicians are trustworthy too.”
“Hmph! Just because you gave me food doesn’t mean I think you’re a good person. We’ll still be wary of you!”
“Pfft…”
Sairi’s ungrateful attitude after eating amused Autelanz.
“Alright, alright, ladies, you can be wary of me if you want. I have no intention of harming you—I just want to travel together to the Bloodspirit Empire.”
Though he ate heartily, it seemed Autelanz hadn’t really thought through his idea of traveling together.
“Sis Hilvia, what do you think? Is it okay?”
Sairi decisively tossed the decision to Hilvia, since she wasn’t good at making choices herself.
“Actually, I’d quite like to bring Autelanz along. After all, there’s no harm done, and it might be fun, hehe~”
Without any sense of fairness, Sairi not only shifted the responsibility to Hilvia but also openly expressed her own opinion. This put Hilvia in an awkward spot.
To be honest, Sairi was still thinking in old terms, ignoring that both she and Hilvia were girls. Was it really alright to let a stranger man join them?
Moreover, Hilvia’s feelings were overlooked. She wanted to refuse Autelanz’s request and continue living a sort of “two-person world” with Sairi. Having a third wheel wasn’t something she welcomed.
Hilvia fretted, turning to look at Sairi’s innocent smile, which betrayed no other intention.
Sairi loved food so much that she probably thought bringing Autelanz along meant a long-term free meal ticket.
Hilvia then glanced at Autelanz.
Autelanz was obediently silent, his expression sincere as he waited for Hilvia’s decision.
“This… this is really difficult… Sairi, you’re only thinking about the benefits of bringing Autelanz, but have you considered the extra burden?”
Sairi hadn’t thought of that at all.
At that moment, Autelanz finally spoke.
“Miss Hilvia, there’s no need to worry. I am strong enough to protect myself and have survival skills. I can help ease many burdens in your daily life, not add to them. Plus, I have a few other tricks.”
“Other tricks?”
“I, as a magician, will reluctantly perform for you.”
With that, Autelanz shook out a silver-cased pocket watch in his hand, a long silver chain attached to it.
Holding the chain, he wound the watch and then handed it to Sairi.
“Why are you showing me this? We have clocks to tell the time ourselves,” Sairi said, puzzled.
“No, no, this is only part of the performance~” At the same time, Autelanz cheekily glanced at Hilvia and pressed a finger to his lips, making a shushing gesture.
Hilvia’s curiosity was piqued; she wanted to see what kind of trick Autelanz was planning.
The next second, Autelanz swung the pocket watch in his hand, clasped his hands around it, and brought it to his mouth.
Then he blew out a breath, opened his hands—and the watch was gone.
This trick… Hilvia started doubting Autelanz’s ability.
“Don’t be so quick to judge~” Autelanz reassured her.
“Miss Caili, listen carefully.”
“Huh?”
Sairi focused her attention and indeed heard the ticking of a clock near her head.
“It really is making noise, but where did the watch go?”
“Right here!”
Autelanz stepped forward, reached close to Sairi’s ear, gently tugged—and pulled the silver pocket watch out from the strands of her golden hair.
“That’s pretty amazing.” Sairi was quite fond of Autelanz’s performance.
“There’s more.”
Autelanz held the watch, suddenly spun it in front of Sairi’s eyes, turning it halfway around. The next moment, Sairi froze in place, dazed.
“Ah… aba aba aba…”
Sairi suddenly began babbling nonsense. Seeing this, Hilvia panicked.
She quickly stepped forward to stand between Sairi and Autelanz, glaring furiously at the magician.
“What did you do? What’s wrong with Sairi?”
“Nothing serious, just a simple magic trick that temporarily puts someone in a trance state… and then…”
“And then what?”
Hilvia was completely frantic. She had never fully trusted Autelanz, and now he was pulling this stunt. She had no idea what had happened to Sairi.
“Then the hypnotized person will express their true feelings from the heart!!”
Hypnosis? Express feelings? From the heart?
“This trick helps many shy and reserved people express their inner feelings properly. You see, people tend to bottle up their emotions and pain, and that can be harmful over time.”
“But what you’re doing is wrong! You’re not respecting others’ consent!”
Hilvia argued firmly. In her eyes, this wasn’t a good thing—Autelanz hadn’t considered the feelings of both parties.
“Don’t be so rigid. Let’s see how Miss Caili feels about you first.”
Before Hilvia could finish speaking, a voice came from behind.
“Hehe… Sis… Hilvia!”
Sairi suddenly hugged Hilvia from behind, making Hilvia shiver.
“Sairi, what’s wrong? Cheer up!”
But Sairi was still acting lovestruck.
“It’s useless. This is her true nature. These words come from her heartfelt feelings—no one can stop that.” Autelanz was adding fuel to the fire.
“Tch!” Hilvia didn’t buy it. She turned sideways, wrapped an arm around Sairi, put away her Holy Sword, and gently tapped Sairi’s cheeks.
“Hey! Pull yourself together, Sairi. Don’t get lost in this. Wake up!”
Hilvia continued patting and shaking Sairi wildly, trying to revive her familiar energy.
Unexpectedly, the next second, Sairi suddenly burst into tears.
“What’s wrong, Sairi!”
Hilvia didn’t understand what was happening. Seeing Sairi cry pained her deeply.
Anyone would feel bad seeing someone they cared about cry, but for Sairi’s tears, Hilvia could clearly feel the pain and distress inside herself.
“What did you do?! Why is Sairi crying?!”
Hilvia angrily confronted Autelanz.
“Don’t rush, Miss Hilvia. Miss Caili is about to open her heart.”
Before he finished, Sairi reacted.
“Sis Hilvia…………”
“I’m here!” Hearing Sairi’s voice, Hilvia’s attention was completely drawn. She wiped away the tears on Sairi’s cheeks and listened carefully.
“Sis Hilvia, do you dislike me?”
“No, not at all. I like you very much, Sairi. I’ve never disliked you.”
“Then why… why did you hide so much from me…?”
“Hide what?”
“Lies… Sis Hilvia, you’ve been lying, saying you’re just a traveler but hiding your identity and past!”
Seeing Sairi’s tearful, pitiful face, Hilvia’s heart broke.
Though Autelanz claimed this was all about opening one’s heart, it didn’t stop Hilvia from wanting to cut the magician into pieces and feed him to the fish right now.
Hilvia shot a murderous glare at Autelanz, so fierce it made others uneasy.
Seeing Hilvia’s expression, Autelanz finally realized he’d been reckless.
“I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful next time. This time I overstepped…”
Autelanz wisely admitted his mistake before Hilvia could explode, slightly calming her anger.
Before Hilvia could reply, Sairi continued.
“I’ve always liked Sis Hilvia! You’re the best friend I’ve met in this world! You saved me, bought me clothes, helped me bathe, slept with me, went shopping, ate meals, and did quests together!”
“I know, I know. Sairi, calm down first…”
Hilvia tried to push Sairi away gently, taking out a handkerchief to wipe her face and suggesting they rest under the shade to recover.
“No! Since I found out your identity that day, I’ve been worried about you! Your past probably wasn’t happy, but when I’m with you, I don’t see that. I see you happy.”
“I want to be with you always, to keep seeing you smile! But Sis Hilvia seemed to want to hide this from me from the very start, not wanting me to know.”
“I was worried you’d get involved. After all, no one knows what those nobles might do. The ambush against you yesterday was an example, wasn’t it?”
“I’m not afraid of those bad people. In the end, I defeated them. As long as I’m with Sis Hilvia, I’m not afraid of anyone! Not even nobles, knights, or ministers can stop me!!!”
Hearing Sairi’s heartfelt confession, Hilvia was speechless for a moment, taking several deep breaths. So… Sairi had always cared for her this much…