Luther and I knelt down in front of thedy. White robes hung from her shoulders, reaching the floor as they grazed against the lc carpet. The faint lighting in through the windows of intricate carvings highlighted the shadows of the rosewood furniture. Next to thedy in full armor was a tall brown-haired knight with a stoic face.


    Thedy''s voice echoed.


    "The meddlers are here," she spoke. I couldn''t hear the ''tone'' of her voice, yet the echoes held in it were filled with iparable authority. "So, who is this?"


    I ced my hand on my chest and answered. "Mydy. I am Adventurer Dusk, I have been stationed as your guard—"


    Thedy tapped her desk and I quietened down. She slowly turned her gaze toward me, her veil waving with her movements.


    "How bothersome. I already have a knight protecting me for thest 9 years," thedy sighed and said. "I believe a sudden change in thesest few days would be riveting."


    With a snap of her fingers, the knight standing behind stepped forward.


    "You''re fired," thedy told the knight. I stared in surprise as somethingpletely unexpected yed out. "Luther, give him some money. I don''t want to see you around again, go."


    The knight bowed deeper before walking away from thedy.


    "Did he just walk away..." Titania spoke, awed.


    Even I was surprised by the knight''s nonchnce, but noticed that his hands were trembling just the slightest amount. Was he afraid?


    Why did she fire her knight in the first ce—


    "—Mister adventurer," thedy said, walking back to her desk where a tall mountain of papers and documents sat. She pointed at me and gestured for me to walk over with her fingers.


    Thedy grabbed my shirt and pulled me down to her face. In a whisper that barely reached past her veil, she spoke. "You are now my guard. I have dismissed my knight, so only you will protect me."


    Her voice softer, she continued.


    "Put your life on the line to protect me. Whether it is a duke or a king that threatens me, is not of your concern. And if you can''t do your job, kill yourself."


    What in the fuck was all this about?


    For as much as I wanted to dismiss it as a youngdy''s ramblings, the way her voice curled around my heart like a snake and hermand dug into it like its fangs were something that I couldn''t brush off.


    "She''s scary..." Titania said from the side.


    "I understand," I said in the same low voice.


    "Good," she said. Thedy whose name I still didn''t know sat back on her chair and turned back to the papers. Just like her knight had earlier, I walked up to the window without making a sound and stood behind her.


    "Luther, get lost."


    "Yes, mydy."


    Luther rushed out of the room. As the door closed behind him, thedy''s office was covered with a nket of silence.


    Only the sound of the fluttering curtains leaked inside the room, and along with it, the sounds of her quill scribbling over the stack of documents and papers came together in an etude of silence.


    The person said to have a hold over the underworld of the empire. It was intriguing to think just what she was working on, but I refrained from taking a look.


    A guard didn''t have to bother with those things. That, and I was confident that she would notice if I did take a look. She didn''t exude the aura of a strong person, but I still believed she would notice such a transgression.


    "Boring~" Titania hummed while standing on my head.


    "Shush."


    Both I and my fairy turned to the side in surprise as thedy hissed. She didn''t look away from the papers but still noticed our gaze.


    "Fairy, be quiet or get out."


    How was she...


    It wasn''t possible for people to see a fairy since they were closer to spirits than a physical entities. In a way, Titania''s existence was not that different from the ethereal form of Mana or Ki. I could see her since I summoned her. Kai and the Death Queen probably noticed her since they were strong enough to be in-tune with such spiritual beings.


    Then how did she...


    Neither of us said anything but remained quiet.


    We had tons of questions, but there was no space to address them.


    Morning breezed past us. The light of the sun grew stronger and eventually weakened as afternoon crept away as well.


    Thedy hadn''t moved from her seat as she continued working. Therge pile of papers was eventually sorted away as only a small stack was left on her table.


    The entire time, she hadn''t said a word to me beyond her initial talk.


    Eventually, when the sun started going down, thedy stood up. Not even a nce came my way as she walked away from her desk and toward the door. I followed behind her past the office and through the beautiful gray-lined castle walls and its pink-tinted wooden embellishments.


    After a short walk, we ran into a young maid. The maid noticed thedy and performed a deep bow.


    "Send me something to eat," thedy muttered to the maid. The young maid performed another bow and walked away immediately toward the kitchen.


    I thought we would go elsewhere, but thedy turned back and went toward her office. Though confused, I followed her without saying a word.


    We entered the room, its purple tint now gleaming with a slight orange.


    Thedy sat down on her desk and I returned to my spot. The entire time, Titania was rolling around on my head.


    Not long after, the maid we had seen earlier entered the room with a cart full of snacks and left as quickly as she had entered.


    Thedy pulled up a cookie and chomped down on it.


    Watching her eat, I spoke up.


    "You could have told me to fetch some food, mydy."


    The sounds of crows returned in the orange-tinted skies.


    She stopped.


    The rays of the setting sun fell on her pure white hair, a shade the same as mine.


    "This is thest time I''ll hear you speak out of turn," said thedy. "Stay quiet."


    Her hair was beautiful.