There was absolutely nothing wrong with Lavia’s train of thought.
It was, after all, a settled matter; the Magic Contract she had signed could not be faked.
If he were to simply lift his right hand, others could see Lavia’s Insignia belonging to her.
Whether by the laws of the kingdom or in a magical sense, he belonged to her.
“Yes, Eldest Miss,” Harvey responded in a low voice.
It was an ordinary response, yet at this moment, it felt like cold water, dousing the joy he felt from mastering magic.
He couldn’t quite describe the emotions in his heart; he wasn’t exactly sad, but he wasn’t happy either.
When the maids began to dress Lavia, Harvey withdrew to one side of the room, just as he always did.
His gaze fell upon his left hand.
That hand looked as slender and thin as ever, though his skin appeared somewhat pale.
But as long as he closed his eyes, Harvey could still recall the sensation of vitality surging through his veins the night before.
The temptation born from the depths of his blood seemed to still exist, continuing to entice him slowly and persistently at this very moment.
Harvey took a breath, casting those complicated thoughts aside.
He tentatively called out in his mind.
‘Lord God of the Underworld?’
“…”
There was no response.
Not even a retort like ‘boring little fellow.’
For a moment, Harvey wondered — could the God of the Underworld be busy with work?
Wait, do gods work just like humans?
Managing so many lives didn’t sound like an easy task.
“Harvey.”
Lavia’s voice pulled him back to reality.
“Hmm?”
“You’re spacing out.”
She looked at him, a hint of dissatisfaction in her azure pupils.
Harvey snapped out of it and bowed slightly toward Lavia.
“My apologies.”
Lavia stared at him for two breaths.
“Last night…”
Her tone was casual, yet she did not look away. “I think I remember waking up once.”
Harvey’s breathing hitched for an imperceptible moment.
“You remember incorrectly.”
He turned to look at the Head Maid standing nearby, but the latter kept her eyes straight ahead, maintaining an attitude of indifference.
Harvey could only find a way to be vague. “You slept very well last night.”
Lavia frowned.
“Is that so?”
She tilted her head and thought about it before finally shaking her head.
“Never mind.”
The final hair ornament was secured.
The maids took half a step back, smoothing out the intricate palace gown.
Her water-blue hair cascaded over her shoulders, and the gold-inlaid rubies reflected fragmented light in the morning sun.
Today, the Duke’s Daughter was as radiant and moving as ever.
The surname Astarea already signified power and glory within the Kingdom of Rune.
And Lavia’s beauty made that name shine even brighter.
The Duke’s Daughter, who was dignified and polite to the outside world, could walk briskly toward her private property while holding her skirt at home, even reaching out to grab Harvey’s sleeve.
Such unladylike behavior caused the maids to look over involuntarily before quickly lowering their gazes.
The Eldest Miss’s posture was a bit too familiar; it was no longer the distance that should exist between a typical master and servant.
Quite a few people peeked at the Head Maid, only to see that she had no reaction to it whatsoever.
Lavia didn’t care about the gazes of others and flashed a smile at Harvey.
Her azure eyes reflected the morning light, as if they had captured the entire sky within them.
“Accompany me to the garden today. I didn’t get a chance to show you the new magic I learned yesterday.”
As she spoke, her fingertips still held his sleeve, showing no intention of letting go.
The sudden intimacy caused Harvey’s heart to skip a beat.
His blood was stirred by her.
The palpitations he had experienced last night seemed to be reviving at this moment.
He subconsciously tightened his knuckles before quickly relaxing them.
“Yes.”
Harvey kept his head lowered, showing no emotion.
***
Although Lavia’s heart was set on going to the garden, as the Duke’s Daughter, she had many more things to accomplish.
For instance, she had to go to the dining room for breakfast at a set time.
During the meal, maids would stand on both sides to serve at any moment. Talking and laughing were prohibited during the meal, and one could not get up at will.
After breakfast, Lavia would return to the small drawing room.
The morning lessons focused on kingdom history and the legal code.
She had to memorize the lineages of the nobility, the division of territories, and the latest regulations issued by the royal family.
As the Duke’s Daughter, these were far more important than magic.
Following that was a review of magic theory before her Academy enrollment, including explanations of basic spell structures and elemental principles.
In the afternoon, Lavia even had to listen to reports; the butler would give a brief briefing on family affairs.
It wasn’t about auditing accounts, but simply explaining the estate’s earnings and the situation of the territories over the past few months.
The daughter of the Duke’s Mansion not only had to be beautiful but also had to know how to manage — though in reality, it was because the Duke himself was unwilling to manage these matters and dumped them all onto his daughter.
When the morning lectures ended, Lavia stood up almost immediately.
“Can we go now?”
She looked at Harvey, her eyes bright, as if the several hours of tedious explanations had merely been a long wait.
The teacher sighed silently but didn’t say much.
Harvey closed his notebook and gave a respectful bow to the aristocratic teacher.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
Then, he followed Lavia out of the drawing room.
He could sense the gaze the teacher cast toward him — clearly disapproving of the Eldest Miss ending her lessons so urgently.
He wasn’t sure if the other party would think it was him, the personal attendant, who was “instigating” the Eldest Miss to play.
If possible, he would have preferred to stay and continue listening; it was a rare opportunity to learn.
The grass in the garden wasn’t completely dry yet, carrying the unique coolness of early spring.
“Lady Lavia, you still have lunch in a moment,” Harvey reminded the enthusiastic Lavia.
“I know, but I can’t exactly perform magic in the dining room, can I?”
Since she had said yesterday that she would perform her newly prepared magic for him, Lavia couldn’t possibly give up now.
She let go of Harvey’s sleeve and took a few steps forward while holding her skirt.
“Watch closely.”
As she spoke, she raised her right hand, and pale blue light patterns erupted from her fingertips.
Complex magical runes formed in mid-air, and the Ice Element began to become active.
A look of envy surfaced in Harvey’s eyes.
Ice was the magical element he had once longed for the most.
Pure, without a single mottled or stray color.
But he could not feel the fluctuations of the magical elements; he could only appreciate this magical scene with his eyes.
The temperature gradually dropped, until even the edges of the blades of grass were frosted with fine white rime.
A moment later, the magic was complete.
A massive amount of ice crystals suddenly grew beneath Lavia’s feet, blooming like snow-colored flowers.
Countless tiny ice butterflies circled around her, their thin wings reflecting fragmented light.
Standing in the center of the ice crystals, she slowly turned around.
In this moment, she looked like a goddess of ice.
“How is it?”
Lavia’s unbridled pride made this sacred sense of distance become vivid.
Facing the expectant Eldest Miss, Harvey gave a gentle smile.
“It is very beautiful.”
“And, it suits your style perfectly, Eldest Miss.”
Lavia explained proudly, “I modified the rune arrangement of the Ice Thorn Halo, changing the original defensive spell into this.”
“Teacher Meli said it was flashy but useless.”
Being able to modify a magic rune array was a powerful magical talent in itself, even if Lavia had used it for such a strange purpose.
Lavia raised her chin. “But I like it.”
She liked beautiful things.
Since she thought it looked good, then Harvey would surely think it looked good too.
The sunlight fell upon the garden grass.
Standing in the light, Harvey was quiet and thin, looking just as good as the magic she had meticulously prepared.
Harvey, who was also watching her, felt a flicker of confusion in his eyes.
The thing that made him feel “pure” seemed to be more than just the ice-attribute magic; it was also the girl’s smiling eyes.
The azure color of her pupils was as clear as the sky, making it impossible to look away.
He wanted to say something.
Suddenly, steady footsteps echoed from the stone steps.
Evelyn approached with several maids, stopping at the garden entrance and bowing respectfully.
“Eldest Miss.”
Her expression was as calm and serious as ever. “Lunch has been prepared.”
The smile on Lavia’s face vanished almost instantly.
“So soon?”
“Yes.”
Evelyn reminded her in a cold tone, “Furthermore, there are less than 7 days until the Academy opens, and your coursework is still unfinished.”
Lavia gave a soft ‘tsk,’ an impolite gesture that made Evelyn’s brow furrow slightly.
She glanced at Harvey beside Lavia before quickly lowering her gaze.
“I understand… I’ll finish writing it today.”
Lavia turned to Harvey, her eyes filled with obvious reluctance.
“Then let’s go back.”
Harvey, however, did not follow immediately.
“Eldest Miss, I still have some matters to handle and cannot accompany you back.”
“What matters?” Lavia frowned. “Is it more important than staying by my side?”
Harvey paused.
“It concerns your return to the Academy.”
He didn’t state it explicitly.
Half of her previous coursework remained unfinished, and her performance in non-magical courses had always been her weak point.
As the daughter of the Duke, Lavia’s academic record had to be among the best.
But relying solely on a home tutor, it was difficult for her to maintain her grades in non-magical subjects.
At times like these, Harvey would be responsible for arranging different lectures.
Lavia naturally understood.
Her expression darkened slightly, but she didn’t lash out.
“…I understand.”
She raised her chin and turned to leave.
The maids followed behind her, leaving the garden together.
Only Harvey remained.
And the Head Maid, Evelyn, who stayed behind, the two of them staring at each other.
The atmosphere was slightly awkward.
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