Clatter.
The pen she had been clutching like a dagger fell to the floor.
Ansel quietly observed the girl's appearance... her face now lacked much of the pampered softness it once had; though still fair and delicate, both her look and the spirit in her eyes had gained an untamable wildness.
However, her current stiff deanor was sowhat amusing.
"An—"
She almost jumped several ters high in place. If the office ceiling weren't high enough, she might have bumped her head against it.
Just as she joyfully called out the first character of his na, Anser coughed lightly.
This cough halted the wolf girl, who was about to leap towards Anser and cling to him like a koala, in her tracks.
The girl, full of strength and wild beauty, pouted slightly, looking a bit aggrieved and sad.
But only for a mont. She quickly moved past these feelings, and just by eting Anser's eyes, the lonely soul of the lone wolf felt imnsely satisfied and comforted.
"Ahem... ahem."
She slightly raised her chin and coughed. "I am Fenrir. Who-who are you, and what do you want from ?"
The girl spoke with her hands clasped behind her back, her body swaying slightly with a lighthearted rhythm, one foot tracing circles on the ground. She could not manage to appear imposing at all.
"My na is Faust," Ansel responded with a smile. "I have a small matter that requires your assistance, Miss Fenrir."
"..."
His concise words seed to hold so earth-shattering secret, a truth of the world, leaving Seraphina standing there, as if contemplating the aning of life.
After about half a minute, she cautiously asked again, "...Assistance?"
"Yes."
"From ?"
"Yes."
"You need... my assistance?"
Ansel suppressed his laughter, nodding patiently, unable to maintain his Faust persona for a mont.
"You need my assistance!!!"
Miss Fenrir's voice rose several octaves, nearly breaching the soundproof barrier Ansel had set up after entering. She clenched her fists excitedly, her eyes shining so brightly they seed to emit light.
"I didn't mishear, right? An... Faust, you need my assistance, right?"
Ansel nodded slightly. "I will provide appropriate compensation, rest assured."
"It's not about the compensation! No, I an... I, I won't help you for free! Yes! Because... because I don't know you!
So I definitely won't help you for free!"
The flustered girl gesticulated wildly. "What I an is, uh, you want my help... I'll help you... but not for free! Just, uh, first, you... you..."
The wolf girl, her brain overloaded, blurted out, "You have to beg first!"
"..."
Ansel tilted his head slightly. Ravenna, who had never revealed her presence before Seraphina, was stunned, and even Marlina's mouth opened slightly.
"You want to..." A smile gradually appeared on the dark-haired young man's face. "Beg you?"
Seraphina was also taken aback. She initially covered her mouth with her hands, seemingly wanting to deny her earlier words, but in the subtle silence, she rolled her eyes and slowly lowered her hands.
"...Hmph! Yes, I want you to beg first. So what!"
She placed her hands on her hips and raised her chin. "I am now the administrator of this Lower District! The sole administrator! Whatever you need, I can settle it with a single word!"
Then she added, "I am the administrator, you know!"
Her proud deanor was just like wagging a tail before Ansel.
Praise , praise !
"Can you handle everything?" Ansel queried.
At this, Seraphina, glancing at the pile of docunts, shivered slightly, whispering guiltily, "Well, not necessarily everything, but... in, in general... I'm quite competent!"
Faust's lips twitched slightly. "So, you insist that I must beg you, is that it?"
Seraphina hesitated briefly, then, as if fearing to miss a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity, raised her head and huffed:
"Yes! You must beg , and... and also change your face!"
"..."
Ansel, who had been suppressing his amusent, was montarily stunned. He heard the girl mumble, "I don't want you begging with soone else's face. This one isn't good-looking at all! Just... change back! Change back!"
As she spoke, a hint of a coquettish tone slipped into her voice.
That was when a certain silent scholar finally erupted in anger.
"Enough!"
Gray particles coalesced into the form of a petite woman standing beside Ansel, her expression icy.
"You're quite large, yet you still act like this… Have you no sha!"
"You... you!"
Seraphina was taken aback. "Shorty! How are you with An... how are you with him!"
She glanced between Ravenna and Ansel, at Ansel, and then at Ravenna, growing increasingly indignant. "You shaless! You snuck out!"
"Are you insane? Did I force you to go out alone?"
Ravenna's eyebrows shot up, looking very angry.
As Seraphina's overloaded brain began to recover, she realized her mistake but couldn't help retorting, "I... I thought you were the type to hide in a corner reading books all day! You're not as much of a bookworm as I imagined!"
"Hmph," the scholar scoffed coldly. "I thought you were just a simple-minded mutt, but it turns out you've learned to act coquettish. Is this your new skill? Staring in the mirror every day, thinking about how to get Ansel—"
"Ahem."
In the escalating tension, the young Hydral cleared his throat. "I don't know what you two are talking about, but there's no Mr. Ansel here."
Continue reading on empire
"..."
The tall, wild-spirited girl and the petite, charming scholar exchanged glances, then simultaneously averted their eyes, both wearing expressions of displeasure.
"Well then, do I still need to beg you, Miss Fenrir?" Ansel asked with a smile.
"...No, you don't."
Seraphina muttered gloomily, "With irrelevant people around, it's no fun anymore."
Ravenna's eyebrows furrowed, ready to confront her, but she held back, deciding not to stoop to this foolish dog's level.
"I'm looking for a missing boy... You should be aware of this, Miss Fenrir. Given the limited clues, I need your help to find those who were involved with the Speckled Spider in the human trafficking ring."
Upon hearing Ansel's request, Seraphina imdiately agreed without a second thought: "Finding a missing child... of course, that's no problem!"
"Good. Then my paynt is—"
"I don't want any paynt!"
The girl shook her head. "This ti, it's not because of An... because of you. For finding a missing child, how could I ask for paynt?"
She gazed at the boy before her, whose face was unfamiliar but whose essence was deeply reassuring and familiar to her. Her eyes softened.
Ansel... truly is the best!
Although she didn't know why Ansel was here, the re fact of what he was doing now filled Seraphina with imnse happiness.
Even in a foreign place, under a different identity, Ansel was still thinking of helping others!
Ansel looked at Seraphina for a mont, then smiled and shook his head.
"Paynt is necessary. It's the rule."
"It's not! I just don't—"
"You need this paynt, Miss Fenrir."
Ansel gently interrupted her. "Because as the newly appointed administrator, you're probably... very short-handed, aren't you?"
"I—"
Seraphina instinctively tried to put on a brave front, but seeing the scattered docunts on the table, she imdiately deflated.
She lowered her head, swaying awkwardly. "Indeed, I do... need so help."
"Well then, it works out perfectly. You lend a hand, and I'll provide the help you need most."
Faust smiled. "That's a fair trade, isn't it..."
"Margarate?"
Under Seraphina's slightly bewildered gaze, the slender adventurer, who had seed out of place during the ssy interaction, took a step forward, removed the beret from her head, and bowed slightly as Seraphina's mouth gradually ford an O.
"According to Mr. Faust's wishes, I will assist you with so matters for the ti being."
The girl raised her head, her eyes devoid of emotion.
"My na is Margarate, Margarate 'Gretchen' Müller. Just call Margarate, Miss Fenrir."
*
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