Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Protecting the Magic Circle
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Billy brought up the topic of Please Don't Eat Me, Mr. Wolf as soon as he stepped into the study.
"Nick still hasn't found that novel Lady Morton mentioned."
I had clearly come out of my room just to find Jack and play with him. How had I ended up hearing such a troublesome story first thing in the morning?
I was already itching to bolt out of there, but there was no escaping Billy in this mansion, so I just sat still.
"Oh, really?"
I tried my best not to show any agitation at his words, but my voice came out completely lifeless.
Because of that, Billy's gaze shifted from Jack, whom he had been petting after bringing him into the study, straight to me.
"I could've sworn I saw it in the library... How strange."
I did my utmost to play innocent. Trying to cover up my soulless tone from moments ago, I added a few more words, and Billy tilted his head.
"If even the Magic Tower can't find it despite putting in the effort... maybe it was the only copy in existence. It must be gone now."
Billy furrowed his brow deeply, seriously piecing together the book's whereabouts.
For some reason, it felt better to let Billy chase this completely wrong theory than to keep up my pointless lies.
"But why is Nick so desperate to find that book anyway?"
I finally voiced the question that had been nagging at me ever since I heard Nick had personally visited the Morton mansion.
I just couldn't figure out what reason he could have for searching so aggressively.
"That magic circle was just sitting unused because no beastkin ever activated it. But since Lady Morton did, Nick figured it might cause headaches for the Magic Tower if someone else knew about it too."
It seemed reasonable to worry about an unused magic circle suddenly activating after all this time. I nodded, listening intently to Billy.
"He's looking for the book so he can examine the descriptions of the magic circle himself before destroying it."
I was so shocked by this unexpected news that I blurted out a question as I processed Billy's explanation.
"Destroying the magic circle?"
In the original story, that magic circle had remained intact right up until Ed became the Magic Tower Lord.
Thanks to it, Ed had been able to make the Magic Tower feel more approachable across the continent than before, fully utilizing it.
But now, something that had stayed perfectly fine in the original might disappear—and because I had used it!
What do I do about this?
After Ed became Magic Tower Lord, he had announced the circle's existence to the continent and encouraged its active use. That was how he improved the intimidating image of the Magic Tower, so the circle was pretty important.
I had possessed this body, and now Ed's future could veer toward the bad ending route.
Fine if it's a good change, but a bad one? No way.
As those thoughts raced through my mind, the quest window from when I first met Jack reappeared after a long absence.
Protect the Magic Circle
— Persuade Magic Tower Lord Nick not to destroy the magic circle and protect it.
⏰ Reward on Success: Choice System appearance frequency reduced by 10%.
⚠️ Warning: Failure removes the most effective means of improving the Magic Tower's image.
A 10% reduction in Choice System appearances!
If I nailed this quest, the system would only pop up about six out of every ten times from now on.
My motivation ignited instantly. I'd been annoyed by the Choice System so many times that this quest felt like a godsend.
Billy eyed me curiously as my eyes blazed with determination. I quickly schooled my expression and looked away from the quest window.
"Does Nick visit the Rub mansion often, by any chance?"
Whether it was the quest fueling me or not, I felt more proactive than ever.
Ever since hearing Billy's scary rumors, I'd been unconsciously avoiding him or keeping my distance, but the sweet reward had temporarily erased my fear of carnivore beastkin.
Billy paused mid-pet on Jack and asked when I suddenly brought up Nick.
"No. Why do you ask?"
I hit a snag right from the start. I had no particular reason to go to the Magic Tower, and apparently Nick didn't visit the Rub mansion much either...
I had to create some opportunity to meet Nick and persuade him somehow.
"It's just a shame if the magic circle disappears. I'd like to talk it over with him."
To think I could express my intentions so clearly in front of Billy, without a single stutter or hesitation.
Days when I'd tensed up even for short conversations, stammering or trembling, flashed through my mind.
I consciously suppressed the proud smile tugging at my lips.
"Ah, in that case, I'll have Nick come to the mansion."
Now that he understood my intent, Billy's tone softened considerably from before.
With that weight off my shoulders, I started wondering if I could finally slip out of the study. My original goal, Jack, was with Billy anyway, so heading back to my room alone seemed best.
"Is there anything else you need?"
Just as I was about to rise from the sofa, his voice stopped me.
"I'd also like to hear how life in the Rub mansion has been treating you."
Billy flashed a dazzling smile as bright as the sunlight pouring in. He had never asked about my life here before, so now I couldn't just up and leave the study.
I settled my slightly lifted hips back onto the sofa and pondered for a moment.
What should I say?
He'd suddenly asked if I needed anything, but nothing came to mind. I was also unsure how to describe life in the Rub mansion.
Then, a recent thought about Ed that had crossed my mind every time I saw him suddenly sparked.
"Oh, Ed seems really busy these days..."
All my efforts back at the Morton mansion to keep him from overworking and let him rest had gone to waste here—Ed had more than a handful of duties.
There were lessons with his tutor, and handling both magic and sword training at once couldn't be easy.
"If it's okay, could I give Ed some breaks now and then?"
It had always tugged at my heart that Ed, who had only known hardship growing up, had no time to play like a kid his age amid all the classes and training.
I'd brought it up cautiously, without much expectation.
The Rub family's traditional education methods left me no right to interfere.
"If it's just occasionally, no problem at all."
But he agreed more readily than I'd imagined. Blinking at him in wide-eyed surprise, I saw him grin.
"I asked what you needed, and you bring up Ed—shows how much you care about him."
He seemed convinced that bringing me on as Ed's guardian had been the right call.
I hadn't done anything particularly special, yet here I was being treated like a great guardian. It was embarrassing.
"Well, I am Ed's guardian. And he follows me around a lot too."
I scratched my head with an awkward smile, and Billy looked at me warmly, expressing his gratitude.
"It couldn't have been an easy decision, but thank you for coming to the Rub mansion and looking after Ed."
I didn't want to nitpick such sincere words, but a retort I couldn't voice swirled in my head.
You pushed so hard for me to come along—how could I say no...?
Sure, the quest window had swayed my choice decisively, but it was also true that I couldn't easily refuse when he said he wanted me to come too.
Come to think of it, why did Billy want me to come along in the first place?
I'd vaguely assumed it was because I was Ed's guardian, but I suddenly wondered how he could trust me enough to make that offer on first meeting.
"Um, I have one question."
Just then, a knock echoed from outside.
"Family Head, it's Devon."
"Come in."
Devon entered with a light bow and strode over to whisper something to Billy. I pretended disinterest since I couldn't hear well, but Billy looked at me regretfully.
"Sorry, looks like we'll have to continue this later. Something's come up."
Devon left the study first, and as Billy stood to follow, I rose too. Billy headed for the door but suddenly turned back, approaching me.
He leaned down slightly to meet my eyes, curling his lips seductively as he asked,
"So, when are you going to call me by my name?"
His face loomed suddenly, and the tricky question left me speechless.
Ever since Ed hinted that he wished I would use casual names for Billy too, calling him "Family Head" had become practically taboo.
But calling him by name like he wanted still felt too daunting, so I'd been deliberately avoiding it.
He had keenly noticed that I was intentionally skipping his name and only saying what needed to be said.
"Uh, um..."
Meeting his gently curved eyes felt strangely hard.
Avoiding his gaze, I rolled my eyes around, unable to answer hastily, when he straightened up and looked down at me.
"If it's hard, you can just use my name in front of Ed for now."
I was about to eagerly agree to the welcome compromise when,
"Guess I'll have to work hard to hear it more often from now on."
Billy murmured his final words like a whisper and gracefully exited the room.