Even after Hong Yeonhwa came out of the inner world, they stayed dazed for quite a while.

Getting utterly overwhelmed by someone stronger must have left a serious sense of helplessness.

But it also seemed like there was another big reason.

Looks like they realized something.

If that was the case, the best move was not to interrupt.

So I quietly waited, and before long, clarity returned to Hong Yeonhwa’s eyes.

They turned to me and asked,

“How much time... passed?”

“Barely any. The flow of time is different.”

“Ah...! So that’s what you meant.”

“That’s what I meant. How was it?”

“I... watched well....”

Still half-dazed again, Hong Yeonhwa began describing what had happened inside the inner world.

As expected, the one who came out to receive them had been the Ruby Mage Tower master.

Judging by the appearance and attire, there was a high chance it had been Hong Hyeona.

Following her instructions, Hong Yeonhwa had shown the best move they could produce, and apparently it had felt like they’d been acknowledged to some degree.

And then it had been Hong Hyeona’s turn—and the magic that unfolded afterward had shocked them tremendously.

“There were a lot of things I had learned too... but it was different.”

“How?”

“The spells were more concise, and the way they unfolded... it was like they were actually alive...?”

“You really got a lot out of it. Good thing I invited you.”

I nodded in satisfaction.

Hong Yeonhwa carefully spoke up again.

“So...”

“Yeah?”

“I want to... try copying it once....”

“You want to spar?”

“Yeah.”

Magic training was naturally different depending on whether you were casting into empty space, at a dummy, or against a ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) living opponent who actually moved.

I agreed immediately.

“Sure. While we’re at it, let’s do this too.”

[‘Austerity’ will be used.]

[The target is granted ‘Stage 25 Austerity’.]

[Cooldown 5 days 23:59:57]

Since they had just gained a fair amount of insight, there was a high chance the quest objective would be related to that.

And it was better to get the cooldown running as early as possible.

“...!”

As expected, heat flared in Hong Yeonhwa’s eyes as they stared at the quest window.

Then I held out the “red book.”

“Want to try this too?”

“Challenge... Book?”

“If you want to make it more serious.”

Hong Yeonhwa didn’t hesitate long before nodding.

“I’ll try it...!”

“Excellent.”

They had motivation, and they had direction. From my perspective, that made things easy.

After adding the Challenge on top of everything else, we faced each other and readied for battle.

“......”

Hong Yeonhwa gripped their staff and began chanting a spell.

Large and small magic circles rose one after another, then transformed into all kinds of flames and came pouring down like rain.

In response, I linked [Featherstep] and [Sailboat], weaving through the gaps.

*****

A long while passed, with both of us half lost in a trance.

Then I suddenly sensed someone’s presence, and we stopped sparring.

When I turned my head, the first thing I noticed was a red-haired middle-aged man.

It was Hong Yeombaek—the Ruby Mage Tower master, and the Hong sisters’ father.

He approached with the others, then shouted brightly,

“My daughter—! Young man—!”

“Ah, seriously! Dad! Your voice!”

Hong Yeonhwa snapped irritably, covering their ears.

Whether they did or not, Hong Yeombaek only laughed loudly and said what he wanted to say.

“Thank you for coming! Truly!”

“It’s been a while, sir.”

“The tower already feels livelier just because you’re here! That one’s even training again for the first time in ages!”

Hong Yeonhwa hurriedly protested.

“It hasn’t been that long...! It hasn’t!”

“Haven’t you been holed up in your room lately? Do you know how worried everyone was—!”

“Wh-why, why are you exaggerating it like that? It’s not like I was just stuck in my room!”

“See? Now that this friend is here! You must feel like doing something again—!”

“No, Dad, come on!”

Hong Yeonhwa floundered and tried to cover their father’s mouth, but of course that was never going to work.

The one who stopped the runaway locomotive that was Hong Yeombaek was the woman standing beside him.

Lightly taking his arm, she said,

“That’s enough. The child doesn’t like it.”

“...Ahem, did I get too excited?”

“It’d be better if you lowered your voice a little too. You’re the Ruby Mage Tower master. It won’t do for you to look undignified.”

“...Understood. I’ll be careful.”

The thunderous shouting vanished, and Hong Yeombaek abruptly turned dignified.

It said quite a lot about the relationship between the two.

She looked to be around thirty, and she resembled the Hong sisters so much that at first I thought she might be the eldest sister.

But the atmosphere around her was subtly different, and her hair was black.

Which meant she didn’t carry the fiery energy of the Ruby Mage Tower.

Which also means she belongs somewhere else.

At the same time, she seemed even stronger than Hong Yeombaek, the tower master.

Almost certainly S-rank.

The woman studied me closely as well, then spoke.

“I heard Yeonhwa formed a [Bond] with a first-year, so I wasn’t sure whether to believe it. But you really are a sovereign.”

“It’s just a title. I’m still lacking in many ways.”

“That’s excessive humility. At your age, that level of achievement would be something to take pride in anywhere.”

I dipped my head with a faint smile.

“My greetings are late. I’m Kim Ho.”

“I’m Yeonhwa’s mother. I can speak comfortably, right?”

“Of course.”

Hong Yeonhwa’s mother jerked her chin lightly, then glanced around at everyone.

“It’s almost dinner. We can talk while we eat.”

*****

After taking a short break, I followed Hong Yeonhwa to the dining area.

A large table was covered in all kinds of dishes.

There were especially many roasted dishes among them, probably because this was the Ruby Mage Tower and they handled fire well.

Also, about half of them were coated in spicy seasoning.

Magma. Inferno. Hellfire...

From Seo Ye-in’s perspective, this would be a minefield, and even I looked like I’d need to choose carefully.

Though for the Hong family, this was probably everyday life.

Once everyone had gathered around the table, Hong Yeombaek offered a formal greeting.

“There isn’t much, but please enjoy.”

“Thank you for the meal.”

Then everyone began serving themselves a little onto their side plates.

Meanwhile, Hong Yeonhwa glanced sideways at me, then cautiously pointed to a few spots on the table.

“This one and this one... are good.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I like them too....”

“I’ll try them.”

Beautifully roasted chicken, and fried fish.

The problem was that both were bright red, as if they’d been smothered in Hellfire sauce.

Still, considering the thought behind it, I could at least taste them.

So I placed the recommended dishes on my side plate and took a bite of each.

An instantly tongue-searing spiciness flooded my mouth.

...So it really was Hellfire.

Hong Yeonhwa was watching me with visible anxiety.

Then they cautiously asked,

“Does it... suit your taste...?”

“Yeah, it’s good.”

“These and these aren’t spicy at all. Give me your plate.”

They took my side plate, then served me a few dishes that didn’t have any spicy seasoning.

After that, they even poured me a glass of something to drink.

“Try... this too.”

“Thanks.”

“Yeah...!”

Hong Yeonhwa smiled with deep satisfaction.

Then they noticed their older sister staring with an utterly speechless expression.

“...Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You seriously can’t take your eyes off him.”

“I’m just checking whether he’s eating well. He’s a guest.”

“You never cared when other guests came.”

“When? I did.”

“The last time I saw you, you were so focused on your plate your nose was practically in it.”

“What do you mean, my nose was in it? Stop saying weird things.”

The sisters’ bickering was about to escalate when Hong Yeonhwa’s mother said one short sentence.

“Eat.”

“......”

“......”

The two sisters immediately quieted down.

Just as I’d guessed from how easily she controlled Hong Yeombaek, the true power in this household seemed to be the mother.

For a while, the only sounds in the room were utensils lightly clinking together. Then Hong Yeonhwa’s mother looked at me and said,

“You seem to have a lot you want to ask.”

“Just a bit of curiosity.”

“Go ahead.”

“I’ve been assuming you’re an unaligned mage. Might you have ties to the Mage Tower Council?”

“I held the seat of council head for a short time.”

Most of the clubs at Dragonslayer Academy were miniature reflections of outside factions.

Just as the Swordsmanship Club was closely tied to the Murim Alliance,

the White Magic Club was deeply connected to the Mage Tower Council.

And it seemed Hong Yeonhwa’s mother had once stood at the top of that council.

Gracefully handling her utensils, she asked in return,

“Curious why I stepped down from the position?”

“If it wouldn’t be rude.”

“It wasn’t for any grand reason. I simply thought family was more important.”

The Hong couple exchanged faint smiles as they looked at each other.

Then she continued,

“Whenever I answer like that, people always seem surprised.”

“It is unexpected. It’s very different from the impression I’ve gotten so far.”

“That’s how people are. You can rarely know what’s really in someone’s heart. Not until you speak openly like this.”

“I agree.”

I slowly nodded.

“I wanted to meet and speak with you as well. I heard you were the [Bond] partner of my precious daughter.”

“I figured you would.”

“And... I heard she was number three.”

The atmosphere, which had been fairly warm, seemed to turn cold very quickly.

Hong Yeonhwa’s eyes lost all direction and wandered helplessly, while Hong Yeombaek and Hong Yehwa both looked like, Well, here it comes.

This turned into a pressure interview all of a sudden.

Usually, when a situation like this hit, your stomach would twist and you’d lose all appetite.

But I was greedy, and my skin was thick to match.

I picked up another piece from one of Hong Yeonhwa’s recommended dishes and answered calmly,

“Does the order matter that much?”

“I think it matters quite a bit. You wouldn’t have formed a [Bond] with just anyone.”

“It’s true I chose carefully. But I didn’t assign ranks among them. And I have no intention of doing so.”

“You say that, but when there are three of them, someone is bound to be neglected.”

A soft smile touched the corners of my mouth.

“Isn’t that just a matter of capacity? At the very least, I have room to spare.”

“...You’re full of confidence.”

“If I didn’t have that much, I wouldn’t have started in the first place.”

“......”

Hong Yeonhwa’s mother fixed her gaze on me and fell into thought.

Of course, the answer had been decided from the start.

“...I’ll keep watching. If, even by some chance, things turn out the way I expect... I’ll find a way to sever it. No matter what it takes.”

“That won’t happen.”

Since it had come to this, I decided to act.

She was worried that being number three meant Hong Yeonhwa would be neglected?

Then I just had to show her closeness up close.

I picked up a piece of Hellfire chicken and held it out in front of Hong Yeonhwa’s mouth.

“Here, say ah.”

“...!?”

Hong Yeonhwa’s eyes shook wildly again.

They had realized my action was the kind of thing lovers naturally did.

“R-right now...? Here...?”

“Why not?”

“It’s not that we can’t....”

Hong Yeonhwa trailed off and looked around cautiously.

In response, the Hong family started pretending not to notice, doing things like serving themselves more food onto their side plates, but it was painfully obvious that all their attention had sharpened.

Hong Yeonhwa must have sensed that too, because they hesitated—so I put on an exaggerated act and urged them on.

“My arm hurts. At this rate I’m going to drop it. Hurry. Ah—”

“Ah, ahh...?”

Still looking dazed, Hong Yeonhwa opened their mouth a little.

I slipped the Hellfire chicken right in.

“......!”

Hong Yeonhwa’s face turned as red as their hair.

Head lowered, they chewed in silence.

After taking in the sight, I looked over at the Hong family and silently asked for their score.

“......”

Hong Yehwa wore the expression of someone who had just seen something they shouldn’t have.

Hong Yeombaek, meanwhile, had the corners of his mouth practically hooked to his ears.

He looked seconds away from bursting into a booming laugh.

Hong Yeonhwa’s mother remained close to expressionless, but I could sense at least a bit of satisfaction from her.

Looks like I passed the first interview.