Chapter 484: Selmore's Invitation (2)
Rudger and Casey stared at each other.
'Suddenly appearing before .'
And she secretly followed him, avoiding others' gazes.
However, it felt awkward to call it tailing.
'If she had intended to hide properly, she could have gone undetected for longer. It seems she wanted to notice her.'
From this, Rudger could tell that Casey Selmore wanted to et him sowhere away from others' eyes.
However, not wanting to go along with the other party's intentions, the words that escaped Rudger's lips were completely different.
"Have you co to arrest this ti?"
"What? What are you talking about?"
"I said that because you look like you ca with all sorts of determination. So I wondered if you were finally going to put an end to this tireso relationship."
"I wasn't thinking of..."
Casey realized from Rudger's comnt that she was quite tense.
She let out a small sigh, relaxed her shoulders, and rubbed her cheeks with both hands.
Seeming a bit calr now, Casey looked directly at Rudger with eyes as clear and blue as water.
"The reason I ca looking for you is that I have a favor to ask."
"A favor?"
Since it ca from soone who seed like they would never utter such words, Rudger was surprised and simultaneously curious.
'A favor, huh. Better than before when she would just rush in trying to catch , but approaching like this now is just as strange.'
Casey, who used to be full of hostility whenever she saw him, seed to have softened quite a bit as she didn't show as much antagonism as before.
Perhaps what contributed most to changing this relationship was his visit to check on her when she was ill after their fight in the capital.
However,
'Let's not jump to conclusions. You never know when she might suddenly change her mind and try to catch . Maybe even this current behavior is ant to lower my guard.'
Rudger had beco quite sensitive due to various recent events.
The biggest reason was that even this city couldn't be considered safe.
Not only was there the incident of elves kidnapping Sedina, but it was also true that the Lunsis Order secretly helped them.
"What a strange thing indeed. Do you think it makes sense that you would ask for a favor?"
Therefore, even if it was just a verbal favor, he couldn't unconditionally trust Casey's words without properly examining the contents.
"...Right. I know it sounds strange. But you're the only one I can ask for help right now."
"..."
Casey's voice revealed an undeniable gloominess.
Just as he was thinking how even this genius lady who used to be full of confidence and fearlessness could be this passive.
The fact that Casey would show such a reaction made him not just curious but sowhat afraid of what kind of situation this might be.
"Just what happened? If you're trying to contact while avoiding others' eyes to this extent, it must be sothing very serious."
"That's right. It's very serious."
Casey answered in a resolute voice.
Rudger wracked his brain.
What could be serious enough for genius detective Casey Selmore to take it this seriously?
Could a war be breaking out sowhere else?
Or is the Black Dawn Society up to sothing again?
Maybe the Lunsis Order had made so kind of move.
While various unsettling possibilities swirled in Rudger's mind.
"If you say it's that serious, what exactly is it? What do you want from ?"
"That's..."
After hesitation, Casey finally voiced her reason.
With her face turning red as a flower and in a crawling voice.
"...Beco my fiancé."
"...?"
A silence so quiet you could hear breathing circled between the two people.
Rudger stood still in his spot.
For a mont, he couldn't understand what Casey Selmore had just said.
What did she just say? Did I hear sothing wrong?
'This is strange. The celestial seal is definitely working properly though?'
Rudger slightly lifted his head to check above.
There was neither a black halo nor a hole through it.
Then that ans what he heard wasn't an auditory hallucination.
"Why, why aren't you answering?"
The person who spoke asked with a reddened face, seemingly aware of her own embarrassnt.
At that sight, Rudger realized that what he heard was really the truth as it was.
"...Casey Selmore."
"What?”
"Are you still suffering from the aftereffects of the demon's attack? You should rest more."
"What?"
"Your current state is...serious."
"Se, serious?"
"Yes. Very serious. You should go see a psychiatrist for an examination right away."
Casey flared up at those words.
"What nonsense are you talking about!"
"What do you an? Weren't you the one talking nonsense?"
"No! I, I ant what I said! Seriously!"
"Seriously...you say?"
Rudger's eyes widened.
It was an exceptionally rare display of intense emotion.
"Why are you so surprised!"
Casey was genuinely angry at that reaction.
That man who usually never changed his expression, Rudger who maintained his poker face to a shaless degree no matter what she did, showed surprise on his face.
She was being sincere, but he was genuinely surprised, so by this point it almost felt like he was mocking her.
"Is it that strange for to say such things?"
"Isn't it ridiculous for such words to suddenly co up between us in the first place? Or, ah."
Rudger finally figured out the answer.
"That must be it. A confession to teach a lesson. To ntally shake ..."
"That's not it!"
Casey shouted with a red face.
"Wh-why would I propose an engagent to you!"
"...Didn't you just ask to beco your fiancé earlier?"
"Ah, well I did... but, that's, that is! I ant to beco my fake fiancé!"
"Fake?"
"Yes. I'm just asking you to pretend to be my fiancé."
"What?"
Rudger let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew. What a relief."
"...Why are you genuinely relieved?"
Seeing Rudger showing a reaction like he had been freed from a great burden, Casey seriously considered throwing away the favor and fighting him instead.
But realizing that the man before her was the only one she could ask for help right now, Casey had to tip the scales of her heart to one side while holding back tears.
"More importantly, this is strange. Why are you asking to play the role of your fiancé?"
"...Because I got a ssage from the family."
"By family, you an the Selmores?"
The magical noble house of Selmore, true to that na, Selmore had produced mages who held [Colour] titles.
The Azure Mage, Casey Selmore.
However, Casey Selmore herself was not the heir to succeed the family.
"Are the family elders pressuring you? That's unexpected. I thought you just lived however you wanted without caring about such things."
"It's not like I don't care about the family at all, you know? And that statent was wrong."
"Which part?"
"The part about the family elders pressuring . There's actually no one among the elders who would nag in the first place. Because I'm a more excellent mage than them. Even if they did, I wouldn't listen anyway."
"You say that quite proudly."
"But even soone like doesn't completely ignore the family's wishes. Of course there are people whose opinions I have to consider. You could say there's soone I'm absolutely weak against in terms of human relationships."
For the great Casey Selmore to show weakness.
Rudger suddenly beca curious about who this natural enemy in terms of relationships could be.
"Are you talking about the current head of the family?"
"That's right. The current head of the Selmore family, my sister."
"Sister?"
"Our father has already stepped down. By his own choice, of course. His two daughters were quite extraordinary after all."
At Casey's words, Rudger suddenly recalled that she had a sister.
"Wait. If she's the current head of the Selmore family and your sister..."
"You should know her since she's famous, right? Marias Selmore."
Rudger nodded.
Marias Selmore, the head of the magical noble house of Selmore and an unparalleled genius who possessed outstanding capability and magical skill despite her young age.
While Casey Selmore is also called a genius, her genius lies in 'deduction'.
Of course, being excellent at deduction doesn't an her magical abilities are lacking.
The title of Azure isn't given for nothing after all but Casey Selmore's sister is far more outstanding than her, at least as a mage because she is.
"The Blue Mage."
Casey nodded at Rudger's words.
"That's right. My sister is also a single-attribute elental user like , and a mage who received a color title."
Young, the head of the family, and on top of that her magic absolutely doesn't lose to her own.
Thanks to having such an outstanding sister, Casey was able to live freely as a detective without being bound by the family, but.
Conversely, it ant that when it ca to her sister who was the head of the family, she had definitive authority to restrict Casey's freedom that she thought no one could suppress.
"That sister...sent a ssage."
"What kind of ssage?"
"To stop playing detective and co ho now. And to prepare for marriage."
"A political marriage?"
It's a common thing for daughters of noble families.
Strengthening relationships between families and securing social status by forming blood ties with other families.
"There are many nobles desperate to marry a daughter of the Selmore family after all, since we're a magical noble house to begin with. I guess all sorts of families will be sending love calls. Geez. Soone's going to choose for , they say."
"Looks like you don't have the right to refuse. Can't you avoid political marriage?"
"If I could avoid it, why would I put the word 'favor' in my mouth? My sister may be the head of the family, but she's not that inflexible and narrow-minded. Though she is a bit ntally unstable. Rather crazy, actually."
You're not really one to talk.
Rudger swallowed those words as he didn't want to fight with Casey right now.
"Anyway, my sister gave a choice. If I find soone I truly love, she said she would support regardless of family or status."
"Isn't that an extrely generous condition?"
It essentially ans giving Casey the freedom to choose.
Considering how won from other noble families are forced into marriage under pressure from their fathers, this treatnt could be called revolutionary.
"If that's the case, couldn't you just bring anyone suitable rather than specifically?"
"Th-that..."
Casey seed to be aware of this too as she slightly avoided Rudger's gaze.
Rudger's eyebrow twitched slightly.
It seed there was still sothing Casey wasn't telling him.
"There's more to it."
"W-well, it's true that my sister made such a revolutionary proposal to . But at the ti, I really wasn't thinking about marriage at all."
Rudger recalled when he first t Casey Selmore.
An arrogant, self-conscious modern woman with a strong tendency to do things her own way.
No matter how you looked at it, she seed far from marriage.
"Though she gave the right to choose, she arbitrarily set a deadline. She said if I didn't find a man by then, she would handle it as she saw fit."
"Even so, couldn't you still bring just anyone?"
"...At the ti, I had so pride, so I talked back to my sister. I told her I would bring soone truly amazing, so she should absolutely not interfere in this matter."
Although it was words spoken out of rebelliousness in the heat of the mont, Casey Selmore's sister, Marias Selmore, rembered that fact clearly.
"So...bringing soone diocre in this situation? My sister would imdiately see that I set up a stand-in just to get out of the current situation. Then I won't be able to defy my sister's words!"
"So..."
When Rudger pointed to himself, Casey nodded with a disgruntled expression.
"...At least among the n I know, there's no one as outstanding as you."
"Well, I'm so grateful I don't know what to do with myself. To receive such high praise from the great Casey Selmore."
"So what's your answer?"
Rudger frowned deeply.
"Did you really think I would agree to such a request in the first place?"
"Oh why! Just, just help out, what's the harm?"
"We're not even on terms to help each other in the first place, are we?"
At Rudger's words, Casey took a breath and then spoke while lowering her eyes.
"W-we apologized, didn't we?"
"...What?"
"Y-you ca to visit in the hospital and apologized!"
Rudger was dumbfounded at Casey's words.
She was actually rembering that?
Even if that was the case, surely she wasn't going to say they should get along well now unlike before just because he apologized?
Surely not. No matter what, he was a forr cri lord and she was a detective.
Rudger's thoughts were denied the mont he saw Casey's expression full of embarrassnt.
"...You're serious."
"W-well yeah! We had misunderstandings and stuff, that can happen, right?"
"Just because misunderstandings were cleared up doesn't an I have to help you."
"If-if you help, I can help you too! My sister! She's an extrely outstanding person! If you get on her good side, you could wake up to find bread has appeared!"
"Still, isn't she just the head of a magical noble house?"
"...The position of head of a magical noble house is amazing, you know? Besides, my sister's excellence doesn't simply end there. Though she may not look it, my sister is also affiliated with the magical information processing agency."
"Sitting in so high position, I suppose?"
Casey shook her head.
"It's not just any high position. Though my sister has never directly told , from what I know I can roughly deduce. There are no restrictions on my sister when it cos to accessing information about magic and mysteries."
Casey looked straight at Rudger and said.
"All information about magic passes through my sister's hands."
At those words, a scene Rudger had seen recently suddenly flashed through his mind.
Perhaps Casey's sister might know the whereabouts of the place with the strange background where the last fragnt of the relic was.
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