"Hello, Lili," Erica said with a gentle smile, appearing behind the silver-haired, blue-eyed girl.
The girl's full na was Liliana Kranjcar—a powerful Witch who, like Erica, held the rank of Great Knight.
Liliana was a beautiful girl with long silver hair tied into a high ponytail, sky-blue eyes, and a pair of slender legs clad in long white stockings. Her figure was balanced, with neither exaggerated curves nor modesty, and she always wore a cold, serious expression that made her seem unapproachable.
"Erica Blandelli, what do you want from ?" Liliana asked coolly, staring at Erica, who stood behind her.
"I saw you and wanted to greet you," Erica smiled, then added, "I also wanted to ask you sothing. I heard you serve under Duke Voban's command."
"That's correct. But I don't believe you have the right to interfere in whom I serve," Liliana replied icily, though a flicker of anger flashed in her eyes as she glared at Erica.
"Are you truly serving Duke Voban of your own free will?" Erica asked, her smile fading into seriousness.
"What if I am or am not?" Liliana scowled. "I don't think this concerns you, Erica Blandelli. You seem perfectly happy serving the 7th Campione without a care for anything else."
"It's true I'm happy serving Kojou, but—" Erica smiled proudly, delighted to have t and gotten to know Kojou.
"Did you co here to flaunt your relationship with the 7th Campione?" Liliana snapped, summoning her sword. "Il Maestro!!"
Liliana had to admit she felt envious. While she was forced to serve a terrifying old man who enjoyed playing with the dead, Erica had the luxury of boasting about her bond with Kojou. The injustice fueled her anger.
"Though I ca to talk, it seems you're not in the mood to listen," Erica said, summoning her own sword as her clothes shifted into combat attire. "Cuore di Leone!!"
"How about we change locations? There are too many people here who could get hurt if we fight," Erica suggested—though she didn't wait for a reply, leaping off the building's roof toward the nearby forest.
Liliana said nothing. As a Knight, her duty was to protect humans and the world. She had no intention of involving bystanders, so she followed Erica into the forest for their duel.
Scene Break
"Delicious," Kojou muttered as he voraciously devoured a bowl of roast beef ran with extra at.
"Isn't it?" Ena said proudly, gesturing to the restaurant. "This place is run by the History Compilation Committee and is extrely famous—though it's been fully reserved for Your Majesty today."
"Why is the History Compilation Committee managing a ran shop?" Kojou asked, baffled. He didn't comnt on the exclusive reservation; he'd grown sowhat accustod to preferential treatnt.
"You might not know this, Your Majesty, but running a large organization like the Committee requires significant funding. Despite governnt support for supernatural activities, mbers take on side businesses—like restaurants, amusent parks, and cafés—when there's no magical crisis to handle. Plus, these ventures double as intelligence networks to monitor supernatural incidents across Japan."
Apparently, the History Compilation Committee was governnt-funded to manage the supernatural world, but with few ongoing crises, they'd diversified into comrce.
"Seems like the Mage Association folks cause a lot of trouble," Kojou remarked dismissively, vowing to avoid founding any organizations himself—it sounded like a headache.
Swish
The sliding door opened abruptly, revealing an old man with white hair and green eyes, dressed in a gray business suit, white shirt, black tie, and a long gray coat with a high collar. His presence radiated the aura of an apex predator.
"Your Majesty…" Ena whispered tensely, her hand gripping the cloth-wrapped sword beside her.
The chef, too, stared at the old man in disbelief and fear.
"I know," Kojou nodded, eyeing the old man, who sat two seats away and flipped through the nu indifferently.
"One bowl of tonkotsu ran," the old man ordered coldly, setting the nu aside before locking eyes with Kojou. "So, you're the 7th."
The chef hurried to fulfill the order, not daring to offend the old man.
"That's right. You must be that old geezer, Voban," Kojou said, side-eyeing him. Erica had shown him a photo of the man the week prior while briefing him on Voban's plans. "From what I've heard, I didn't expect to find you in a humble ran shop."
Voban was rumored to be a cold, prideful man who demanded only the best—making his presence in a modest eatery bizarre.
"Don't overthink it. Just an old man's whim," Voban said dismissively, eyeing the ran placed before him.
"I see. In that case, sorry—I'd like another bowl of roast beef ran with extra at," Kojou said, turning back to his nearly finished al. He paid Voban little attention; for now, the Duke showed no hostile intent.
...
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