Chapter 125

I eventually visited the mage tower, recalling some of the plans Isaac had explained to me during our last three-way meeting with Dominic.

The operation to make Lennox impatient would surely have succeeded by now, given his personality. And after that...

Lennox will be busy negotiating with the Magic Kingdom, so he'll be wary of me. That's why Isaac asked me to infiltrate by disguising myself as the Marquis of Padel, who will be at the negotiating table, right?

But was this operation truly going on with the Padels' permission?

What price did Isaac pay the Padels?

I had many questions, and I was going to ask Isaac about them today. I was worried that they might get in trouble with magic for no reason.

"Isaac, about Padel and Hain."

As if he could sense my thoughts, Isaac looked at me. "Yes."

"This operation is being carried out with the couple's permission, right?"

"That's right."

"What price did you pay to get their help?"

Isaac smiled faintly. "You don't have to worry about that. We just need to act our parts well."

He grinned as he spoke to me. His eyes were focused on the bridge of my nose, and all I could see was his languid mouth.

Isn't it a real foul to be so handsome? My heart is racing.

Did he know that seducing me with his handsome face was very harmful to my heart? He must have, which is why he was smiling like that!

I coughed awkwardly, trying to recall what he had said. "I think you said it before... The couple is very close."

"Mel? Are you listening?"

"Oh, yes! So the two of them are a loving couple, what about that...?"

Isaac saw my red earlobes and burst into silent laughter. "Yes, that's right." He grinned.

I bit my lip tightly.

I know I'm weak to temptation, but I didn't expect it to be this much.

This man wasn't my type, but I didn't know why he kept getting me flustered. Was being handsome an immutable truth, after all?

I pressed my temples and tried to focus on the main topic. "But it would be difficult for me to play the part of a loving couple."

The only lovers I had seen recently were a couple who were having a strange affair. Besides, I'd never been in a relationship, so playing a married couple felt a bit... strange.

"It's okay. You can learn."

"Yes? How?"

Learn? Acting?

Seeing my bewildered expression, Isaac smiled briefly as if to reassure me. "Padel and Hain are here."

Padel and Hain are here? I hurriedly looked around. However, the laboratory was full of experimental tools and crayfish, and it was just me and Isaac here.

"Huh...? There's no one here."

"Padel, Hain, and the Marquis of the Demon Kingdom have a secret that is completely unknown to the world..." Isaac took out his handkerchief and placed it on the table. Come to think of it, he wasn't wearing his usual cravat and tunic, but a formal suit.

What does this mean?

I stared at the handkerchief he held out, a puzzled expression on my face. Something was wriggling inside it.

"What is this...?"

"Hello!"

"Hello, Mr. Meldenik?"

A tiny humanoid with only two black eyes crawled out of the handkerchief.

What are these people?

I widened my eyes and froze. I had seen dragons and people who lived for a thousand years, but it was the first time in my life I had seen such a small person. I was taken aback, but I greeted them cautiously. "Oh, hello?"

Padel and Hain bent down on one knee and greeted me politely. They had blonde and silver hair, but they both looked alike, perhaps because their eyes were on the sides of their heads.

They're really small...

Seeing them made me feel amazed. Isaac calmly concluded, "Actually, these couples have a relationship with me. And these are dwarves who specialize in camouflage magic."

Dwarves?

Unlike me, who was looking down at them in astonishment, Isaac seemed calm. The two glanced at the handkerchiefs they were holding and immediately held each other's hands tightly.

"Oh my God! What a beautiful young lady!" Mrs. Hain, who wore a corsage with only her face on her head, looked at me and smiled widely. "You really look good with Isaac."

Her admiring husband, the Marquis of Padel, immediately introduced themselves and began to chatter. They were from the Marquis, and even in the Magic Kingdom, it was a secret that they were dwarves. They said they wanted to meet me and held on to my fingers in unison. There was a wizard who was hiding his identity at Malton Academy, and he went in and out of the Imperial stationery store so much that his feet were worn out. In addition, every letter he sent gave me a compliment from a stationery store so that it would dry his mouth. I felt proud for no reason.

"I came to see a stationery store. How did the great giants know about our existence, but a man named Duke Hesman secretly approached us!"

"Still, my kingdom was thinking of exporting magic tools these days."

"Oh, yes."

"Thanks to Duke Hesman's very good conditions, I thought about signing a negotiation with his superiors!"

"We were blinded by this empire, so we went to Isaac, the only person we knew in the empire, and asked him what kind of person Duke Hesman was. Whoa."

"Then he said he was a very bad person, and that we needed the help of our demon kingdom to kill him!"

The two couples continued to speak as if they were one. The couple's eyes, full of a sense of justice, were on fire. I was genuinely impressed when they pointed out the details of this plan.

If people want to work together well, it can be like this.

This was really bad for Lennox. He must have had high hopes for the Magic Kingdom, but what could he do? Because of his consistently bad behavior, he ruined all his last remaining hopes. I smiled happily and asked them, "So that's how it happened... So how did you get to know Isaac?"

The Marquis of Padel, who was next to him, coughed and continued proudly. "Isaac, who had been wandering in the Magic Kingdom for a while, helped us when we were in trouble."

I looked at Isaac with a curious expression, and then looked at Marquis Padel again. This man certainly didn't seem to care about anyone in trouble just by looking at his face, but I kept realizing that he was a good person who helped others and loved small children. Moreover, he didn't have any pride about his good deeds. Even now, he was just staring at me as if it wasn't a big deal.

He's a good person, after all.

Isaac, who received my attention, naturally changed the subject. "Now the Marquis of Padel and Mrs. Hain will help Mel act."

As soon as Isaac finished speaking, Hain replied as if singing. "He's digging up our information here and there. Because we are the most well-known aristocrats in the Magic Kingdom... You've probably heard quite a few stories."

The Magic Kingdom was a secretive place, but the Marquis of Padel and Marquis of Hain seemed to be a famous couple among them. I nodded, and they whispered earnestly to me, "I'll coach you so you don't get caught, not even the slightest habit!" He continued speaking quickly without me saying anything.

"Whoa, it's an honor to help you with a wonderful love business!"

When I said that I would coach my habits, this was the main point. They looked at Isaac with a sparkling gaze. It was like a heart popping out of their eyes.

"Ha, oh my God... Isn't it so cool, honey?"

"We will become the Bridge of Love, right?"

They put their hands together and began to hum the melody of the wedding march. I coughed, and my eyes sparkled like an enthusiastic student. "Then please tell me more about your usual habits."

"Oh, we kiss on the forehead every day."

"Kiss... forehead?"

"Yes, everyone who knows us knows that. We kiss each other's cheeks every day!"

What kind of weirdness is this?

No, no. Don't say you're weird about other people's habits! I touched my red earlobe and cast my gaze on Isaac. Strange. It seemed that his red lips had swollen even redder... I took my eyes off his lips with difficulty.

However, Isaac spoke first. "They kiss me on the forehead."

"...Aren't you teasing me too openly?"

"You promised to flirt with me. I'm keeping my promise, Mel."

A playful gaze landed on my cheek. It was a clear act of seduction, but I didn't know why I didn't dislike it. On the contrary, I felt subtly excited.

I do a lot of goodnight kisses on the forehead.

I nodded as I struggled to keep my mouth from smiling. "Okay, let's start the operation."

Isaac, who was sitting across from me with the table in between, leaned forward slowly. His face came closer. The dwarf couple standing at the table was looking at us with their eyes covered.

"Oh my God!"

"I think they fit so well. Right, honey?"

No... Isn't this the audience, not the coach?

But I could no longer listen to their voices. It was because Isaac's face was so close to mine.

"Close your eyes, Mel."

I slowly closed my eyes. My lips were dry, and my heart started pounding. I felt the touch of soft and warm lips on my cold forehead. After a while, Isaac parted his lips more lightly than I thought. The couple, who were like spectators, sighed as if they felt sorry for them.

...Why is it a pity? Come to your senses, Meldenik.

I opened my eyes, touching my forehead where his lips had been. And I was surprised. I thought he had just kissed my forehead and moved away, but it didn't seem to be like that.

"Why..."

Isaac's face was still close to mine. He kissed me again as briefly as a bird, pecking at my hand that was covering my forehead. He stared at me and whispered softly, "You're lovely today, Mel."

It was difficult to see her eyes full of affection as acting.