Chapter 27 : Duel Invitation

“Stop, stop, stop!”

Lorin cried out in panic, her sharp voice slicing through the otherwise quiet air.

A flush of embarrassment bloomed on her cheeks, and her eyes darted around in a frenzy of confusion and urgency.

Beside her, Phyllis had been enthusiastically reaching out to get a little closer.

Her hands now froze awkwardly in mid-air.

Like she had been burned, Lorin suddenly recoiled, crossing her arms tightly in front of her chest—as if that would somehow stop Phyllis from advancing further.

Her blood-red eyes flitted about like a startled fawn’s, flicking from Phyllis to the surrounding room in panic.

“Phyllis, do you dare to duel me at the same level?”

“And why should I?”

Phyllis raised a brow, then slowly stepped forward, closing the distance between them.

If her sister didn’t have time to discipline the brat, then she might as well do it herself.

“If you beat me, I’ll grant you one request—anything!”

Lorin threw out a condition Phyllis couldn’t possibly refuse.

At that, Phyllis paused, then gave a thoughtful smile, as if a certain idea had just clicked into place.

“Deal!”

The moment Phyllis agreed, Lorin let out a cold chuckle.

Phyllis, oh Phyllis… you’re still so naïve.

Let’s see if you’ve actually improved all these years.

Phyllis, noticing Lorin’s ever-shifting expressions, quickly lost interest in teasing her further.

Without warning, she grabbed Lorin and casually tossed her out the door.

“Phyllis! Just you wait! How dare you throw your elder si—uh, brother like that?!”

To everyone’s surprise, the thrown Lorin collided with someone coming from the hallway—none other than Grace.

“Ah—ouch~”

Lorin, still dizzy from being hurled, was surprised to find that… it didn’t actually hurt.

In fact…

“Huh? Why does the floor feel so soft?”

Driven by curiosity, she gently pinched the oddly uneven “floor” beneath her.

The squishy texture beneath her fingertips was far softer than she expected, deepening her confusion.

Compelled by this strange sensation, she lowered her head to get a better look—completely forgetting her quarrel with Phyllis.

But when her gaze met a pair of teary, flushed eyes, she froze.

Grace’s cheeks were scarlet, her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

She bit her lip, trembling with suppressed anger as she glared at Lorin.

And Lorin’s hand… was very clearly grabbing—

“AHHH!”

With a yelp, Lorin sprang to her feet like a startled cat, then lowered her head and silently shuffled off to the side.

“Grace-sis… I-I’m so sorry!”

Grace sighed, patting the wrinkles out of her maid outfit as she stood up.

She scanned Lorin up and down, hoping to find an excuse to exact revenge—but ultimately gave up with another sigh.

“It’s fine…”

“It’s all her fault!”

Lorin shouted in embarrassment, her face glowing red with fury as she threw a death glare toward Phyllis, who was still standing smugly in the doorway, arms crossed and enjoying the show.

Phyllis raised a mocking brow and let out a cold chuckle.

“Heh… and who was it that lost and is now looking for excuses, throwing a tantrum like a child?”

Lorin winced as the jab hit her pride dead-on.

Her eyes darted nervously, and all she could think about was running far, far away from this humiliating scene.

Turning stiffly, she forced a twisted smile at Grace—one that looked more painful than pleasant.

“Grace-sis, I just remembered something urgent at home! I’ll be going now, haha. Let’s hang out sometime soon, okay?”

Before Grace could even respond, Lorin had already turned and bolted like a startled rabbit, disappearing down the hall.

Still… Grace-sis felt amazing…

No! No! I’m a Grand Mage! I can’t be seduced by something like that!

***

“Your Majesty.”

Grace bowed respectfully.

Phyllis nodded and gestured for her to speak.

Even after becoming Phyllis’s trusted aide, Grace continued to wear her maid outfit.

It was her way of staying grounded—never forgetting where she came from.

This deeply moved Phyllis.

As a result, she decided to entrust Grace with even more responsibilities, a gesture of absolute trust.

“Your Majesty, there have been at least five disappearances in the city. The most recent one involves the Duke of Wilson’s beloved granddaughter…”

Grace gave a brief report.

Phyllis nodded, her expression serious.

“I understand.”

Seeing that, Grace was about to take her leave but then hesitated.

Finally, she spoke up.

“Your Majesty… I’m not sure my diploma qualifies me to be an assistant…”

“Don’t worry, Grace.”

Phyllis solemnly patted her on the shoulder.

Grace’s eyes lit up—was Her Majesty finally going to acknowledge her as a—

“You can rest easy. As long as I’m around, no one will question your position as my assistant!”

“Wait—no, Your Majesty, I—”

“Grace, if you keep saying things like that, I’ll get mad. Just accept it and be my assistant.”

Phyllis didn’t give her a chance to argue further.

She moved behind Grace and began pushing her out of the room.

Grace: “…”

“Alright, Grace! I’ve got a disappearance case to look into.”

With that, Phyllis slammed the door shut, leaving a stunned Grace behind.

“Your Majesty, I really graduated from a maid academy… You have to believe in my skills…”

***

After Grace left, Lorin slowly emerged from her hiding spot, deep in thought.

“Missing persons cases… this might be my chance to break through to Tier Four Mage!”

Well… more like a chance to make some extra cash.

Lorin had been eavesdropping the entire time.

She’d even looked it up on her phone.

The reward had already reached a whopping 100,000 gold coins.

As someone who totally acts out of heroism (and definitely not for money), Lorin couldn’t let this go.

But before she could do anything about it, one little problem stood in her way—

She couldn’t even get out of the palace.

That’s why she kept pestering Phyllis all the time.

With a long sigh, Lorin turned to leave. There’s always a way forward…

***

“Heehee~ Looks like I won’t even need to lift a finger.”

Back in her room, Phyllis watched Lorin’s departing figure through a magical scrying spell.

“Perfect. One problem is already taking care of itself.”