Dragged into the pitch-black back room, Isabella let go of her grip and said impatiently, “Alright, there’s no one here now. Speak up are you coming with me on your own, or do I have to…”
Her words came to an abrupt halt.
Because in the darkness, she heard a faint sigh.
In that sigh, there was no fear, no pleading only…calm.
Tulia slowly straightened up, the tearful expression on her face vanishing without a trace.
She adjusted her collar, which had been wrinkled from being grabbed, then spoke in a flat tone.
“Miss, forcibly taking a civilian woman is a serious crime.” She said, “You still have time to stop now. Otherwise, I’ll have to report you to the Royal Knight Order.”
It was the most straightforward and effective threat she could come up with.
“Royal Knight Order?” Isabella snorted stiffly at that, as if she’d just heard a ridiculous joke. To complete her mission, she had to play the “villain” to the end. “You think they can do anything to me?”
She took another step closer, lowering her voice. “I advise you to be obedient.
After all, you wouldn’t want your pretty daughter to have an ‘accident’ on her way home from school, would you?”
In that instant, the temperature inside the shop seemed to plummet.
A pure and almost tangible killing intent flashed from Tulia’s slender body!
As an Imperial Knight, Isabella’s sensitivity to murderous intent was extremely keen.
For that split second, she felt as if she’d been targeted by some ancient behemoth from the abyss; every hair on her body stood on end, her heart nearly stopped!
It’s her! It really is her!
Isabella was ecstatic inside her test had succeeded! But outwardly, she had to keep up the act. Forcing down her own excitement, she made her expression even more arrogant and smug: “What’s wrong? Did I hit a sore spot? Looks like your daughter is your weakness, after all.”
But that terrifying killing intent had come and gone in a flash.
Tulia took a deep breath, forcing down the surging violence within her.
Looking at the woman before her, she considered the odd tones that sometimes surfaced in her words.
Tulia rubbed her chin.
She no longer pretended to be afraid, instead sizing Isabella up from head to toe with a scrutinizing, even slightly odd look.
Wait a minute, something’s off.
Tulia started muttering inwardly.
—–This delinquent woman… her acting is terrible, isn’t it?
Look at her face, she can’t do anything but glare?
And that wall slam earlier, nearly knocked the plaster off the wall.
When she’s making threats, her eyes keep darting everywhere, looking all guilty… most importantly, she’s had that dazed, like-she’s-rehearsing-lines look the whole time.
A ridiculous thought surfaced: Could this cool lady…be faking it?
“Who exactly are you?” Tulia’s tone was no longer pleading, but held a trace of probing.
Isabella froze at the question, not expecting her to suddenly switch tactics. Her mind raced, and seeing that her earlier identity wouldn’t fly, she made something up on the spot that sounded equally impressive: “Me? I’m from the Royal Academy of Magic.”
“Royal Academy of Magic?”
What a coincidence!
Tulia’s eyes lit up instantly. She’d been worrying about how to gather information, and here it was delivered right to her!
Her wariness vanished at once, replaced by an almost eager curiosity: “That’s perfect! Can I ask, is it still possible to register at the Royal Academy of Magic? What are the requirements for enrollment? How much is the tuition?”
A barrage of questions left Isabella completely dumbfounded.
—This wasn’t in the script at all?!
Why wasn’t she scared anymore?
Why was she suddenly asking about serious business?
But it had come to this, so she could only grit her teeth and keep playing the “villain.”
“Hmph, registration has long been closed.” Isabella crossed her arms and forced herself to look disdainful. “But…if you’re willing to listen to me, I might consider giving your daughter a little ‘backdoor’ opportunity.”
She recalled some rumors she’d heard: “The Academy just happens to have a special recruitment right now—they require a hundred Magic Beast Wolf Fangs as experimental material for magic. Also, annual tuition is one hundred Coins. Judging by how simply you’re dressed, I doubt you could even come up with it.”
She hooked Tulia’s chin in a deliberately suggestive way and said with fake intimacy, “As long as you serve me well tonight, this little thing—I just might help you out.”
A hundred Wolf Fangs, a hundred Coins…
Tulia silently memorized these key points.
Her objective achieved, she lost all interest in playing along.
She even began to wonder if this cool lady had something wrong with her head.
But for now, getting rid of this troublemaker was more important.
She gently brushed Isabella’s hand away, stepped back, and put on a “sincere” smile. Casually, she pulled a plain Transmission Crystal from under the counter—the one she usually used to contact Lisbeth.
“I see, thank you for the information.” Tulia said politely, then shook the crystal in her hand. “But there’s no need to trouble yourself. After all, while you were busy smashing my things just now, I quietly crushed another crystal to report to the City Guards. Listen…”
She tilted her head, making a show of listening intently: “By my calculation, they should be arriving any moment now.”
Of course, she was making all of this up. Transmission Crystals didn’t have such advanced functions, and she would never actually report to the authorities. She just wanted to bluff this seemingly-not-so-bright “delinquent woman.”
“What?!”
Unexpectedly, Isabella actually bought it!
She couldn’t keep up the act any longer. The City Guards?! If anyone saw her—the Empire’s purest and most noble “Lily Knight,” Isabella Morningstar—playing the villain in a widow’s shop late at night…she’d never be able to lift her head again!
“Ahem! Well!” Isabella’s face instantly flushed red, her previous arrogance vanishing without a trace. “I… I just remembered! My soup at home… Yes! The soup’s about to boil dry! I need to hurry back and turn off the stove! Farewell!”
With an almost desperate dash, she rushed for the door, fumbling with the bolt for a long while before finally opening it, then vanished into the night without looking back.
Tulia stared blankly at the embarrassed retreat, then finally couldn’t hold it in—she burst out laughing.
She walked to the door, peeked out at the empty street. There wasn’t a City Guard in sight.
“No way…she actually ran off just like that?” She shook her head in amusement, closing the shop door in high spirits.
“What a strange cool sister, seems like her brain’s not working too well.”
“Trying to act like a spoiled young master, but her skills are a mess.”
Just as she was about to put the “bluffing tool” Transmission Crystal back on the counter, it suddenly began to buzz and glow softly.
“Mom? Are you looking for me? Did something happen?”
Lisbeth’s clear, slightly confused voice came from the crystal.
Tulia’s smile froze on her face.
—Crap! I got so caught up bluffing, I forgot this thing actually works!
Her mind raced. A mischievous—or rather, wicked—thought popped up immediately.
—Hehe, perfect. Let’s see how my little knight reacts when she hears her mom got bullied.
She immediately put on a straight face, cleared her throat, and spoke into the crystal with a voice tinged with fear and a slight tremor, “Ah, Lizzy dear…”
She first let out a long sigh, playing up the “victim” mood to the fullest.
“Just now, a really strange person came into the shop…” Tulia began embellishing her story with acting skills worthy of an award, “She…she backed your mother into a corner without a word, and said all kinds of inappropriate things… I was so scared, just wanted her to leave, but then she smashed the spice we worked so hard to grind…”
She even added a touch of sobbing to sound utterly aggrieved.
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then Lisbeth’s voice came back, clearly tense: “Where is that person? Did she hurt you?”
“Luckily… Luckily your mother was quick-witted and tricked her by saying I’d called the City Guards, that’s how I scared her off…” Tulia continued, voice weak and pitiful, “She’s gone now, but… my heart is still thumping so hard, I was so scared…”
As soon as she finished, there was a flurry of paper flipping, followed by the harsh scrape of a chair being pushed back.
“What did that person look like? What was she wearing? Pink hair?!” Lisbeth’s voice suddenly turned cold and urgent, “Don’t move, Mom! Just stay in the shop! I’m coming back right now!”
Hearing her daughter’s frantic voice through the crystal, Tulia couldn’t help it any longer.
She pictured Lisbeth rushing back in a panic, and the thought made her smile uncontrollably.
“Oh come on, I was just teasing you!” she laughed cheerfully, instantly breaking the pitiful mood she’d built.
There was another silence on the other end, as if Lisbeth was stunned by the sudden turn of events.
“She’s gone already, not a single hair on my head’s missing. Just a not-so-bright young lady, scared off in a few words.” Tulia explained happily, “Relax and read your book, no need to hurry back.”
“…Oh.” Lisbeth replied sullenly, but immediately added in a tone with a stubborn little edge, “I’m coming home anyway.”
“Beep—”
The transmission was cut off unilaterally.
Holding the now dark crystal, Tulia shook her head, helpless and doting at once.
“Really now, can’t even take a joke…”
Though she complained, there was a warm smile on her lips, one she didn’t even notice herself.
“But…that worried look is really cute.”
What a wicked little lady.