Duke, please let go of my ankle!

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

“Huh?”

Audrey woke up in the middle of the night and looked around in confusion.

“Isn’t this my room?”

She must have passed out in the Duke’s secret warehouse, but when she opened her eyes, she saw a familiar room. It was empty of magic as if it had been stolen.

Audrey realized that all of this had happened because of the magic and immediately became terrified.

“What should I do?

Duke Fritz had discovered she was a magic wielder. Hans was an old friend and had kept her secret at his peril, but Duke Frit had no reason to. It wasn’t Naboorin, the blackmailer, who tore her apart anyway.

‘He must have snitched!

Tomorrow morning, the imperial knights would descend on the ducal castle. And she will be taken away in a wooden cart built by the Duke of Frit.

“No…….”

I burst into tears as I imagined the faces of my father and brother. Claude would be shocked, and Hans would be terrified that I would be taken too.

Audrey slept through the night.

The next morning.

Once again, Audrey was pushed on a trolley and delivered to her office on the fourth floor.

“It can’t be that bad,” she thought.

“…….”

It was the contract that had been shoved in her face.

“A contract for a chief wizard?

Duke Frit had offered her the position of chief wizard of the duchy in exchange for ratting her out to the imperial court. She was surprised.

“But the duchy already has a chief wizard-”

“As of yesterday, he has gone missing.”

“……!”

What kind of coincidence is this? I suddenly understood why the blackmailer had offered the position of Chief Wizard. It must have bothered Duke Frit to leave the position vacant, and while it was unfortunate for him, it was a golden opportunity for Audrey.

“Stand, I’ve signed!”

Still, he’s a useful wizard, so we can’t kill him as a blackmailer. Besides, he’s in the same boat, so he won’t be able to push the imperial family.

“What kind of windfall is this?

In a way, Audrey has won the right to survive. It was uncomfortable to have to work alongside him as the chief mage, but it was better to be in the shit than out of it. Plus, she gets to see Claude every day, so it’s a win-win situation!

“I’ll tell the others an apprentice assistant, so be careful not to drop the ‘m’ in mage.”

“Yes!”

Of course!

Audrey had nothing to fear. Hounds are frightening when they’re about to attack you, but when they realize you have a leash, they’re just ‘fierce-looking dogs’. This was the case with the Duke of Pritt.

‘Oh, he loves it.’

Naturally, Derek’s heart sank. His ears perked up at the sight of the most excited dodo he’d seen since they’d met. Derek felt like he was some kind of big deal. All he had done was make the dodo smile.

The corners of Derek’s mouth began to twitch in response. Somehow, his heart seems to be growing more like her cheeks.

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

After work, Audrey met Charlotte for the first time in a long time to catch up on some long-overdue relationship advice.

“Charlotte!”

“Oh, oh, Audrey!”

“How are you?”

“Mmm, I’m fine…… but are you?”

“Sure!”

Charlotte looked Audrey up and down awkwardly.

There were no visible wounds, and she didn’t look as if her mobility was impaired. Her face was as bright as ever.

“Phew, thank God.

I regretted yelling my friend out that day, but a man cannot live with his sins.

“I’ll take it from here.”

“What? But-”

“It’s just that I want to buy it!”

Charlotte felt sorry for herself and tried to force herself to speak. What on earth was she going to do with Audrey? Besides, it wasn’t enough to calculate.

I’m sorry, Mr Claude Emilton, but you’re done , no matter what.

Charlotte, the love doctor, was about to do her penance with her talents.

“Are you sure it’s over?”

“No……. How could I forget my brother?”

“You’re right, it’s too early to give up.”

But the situation was more serious than she thought.

Mr Claude Emilton, who was supposed to be Audrey’s man, had a crush on her.

“Well, no one knows what happens between a man and a woman until they walk down the aisle.

Charlotte quickly regained her composure. Even the most unlikely of lovers break up when they die, so a solitary crush is nothing to worry about.

“It was so painful, it was like my heart was just breaking…….”

Unless the person is as desperate as Audrey.

“Audrey. The point is, he’s starting to see you as a grown woman.”

“……Yes.”

“But it shouldn’t end there. We need to make him feel like you’re a ‘love object’.”

“How?”

“You know when sparks fly between a man and a woman?”

Charlotte smiled demandingly.

“When there’s tension.”

“……!”

“And when, for some reason, the other person seems unfamiliar.”

Her fingertips slowly circled the rim of her wine glass.

Audrey’s fist balled into a fist as she drank.

“So, Sue, Sue, let’s drink!”

“…….”

Do you want to go into the kennels, not the honeymooners’ house? Her voice was stilted with excitement. Well, it was cute in a way.

Charlotte gave Audrey’s hand a reassuring squeeze.

“You have a meeting.”

“With who? With Claude?”

“No. With Hot Guy.”

“……?”

Hot Guy? A meeting? Is that something I can do on my own volition?

But the next day.

Charlotte was right on the money when she said to pay attention to your surroundings in case there’s a good opportunity.

“Ugh, it’s been a while since we’ve had a meeting, and we’re short-handed.”

“……!”

I heard the unexpected meeting announcement from the finance department, where I’d stopped to pack up my things.

“You’ve been singing about this meeting for days. What happened?”

“They said the female organizer suddenly dropped out. It’s a total disaster.”

“Why, because one of the female seats is empty?”

“Yeah. It’s an even number if you leave me out, but I’d love to do it…….”

“Well, then we’ll get a girl. You just have to be an even number.”

“How’s that easy?”

Audrey blurted out in front of Robert’s anguished face.

“Me! There’s a girl here!

Then his gaze finally settled on her.

“Uh, Audrey, when did you get here? Oh, by the way, are you coming over this weekend-”

“Great!”

“What?”

“I’ll do it, meeting!”

Robert and Audrey’s problems were solved at once.

“I’m sure you’ll like them, Audrey! They’re my mates from the Academy, and they’re from the South Kingdom, so they’re killer!”

Killer friends……! They must be the ‘hot guys’ Charlotte had been talking about. Audrey’s heart swelled with anticipation.

But as she thought about doing something nice for herself, her eyes began to wander to her brother, who had been waiting for her all day.

‘He must be bored, too…….’

It was Arnold, not her, who needed the meeting. Next Thursday, he’ll be back at the pagoda again, so he won’t have a chance to meet her.

Pondering this, Audrey cautiously rattled off her rhyme.

“I, Robert, I was wondering if you might.”

“What?”

“Do you think my brother could join us? If we’re one woman short, I’d like to invite my friend-”

“Oh, you mean Arnold? Oh, my God, yes, that would be great, my sister is a huge Arnold fan!”

Robert reassured Audrey, saying, “Don’t worry about the head count, my sister will make a fuss to get out anyway.

News of the youths’ meeting spread quickly around the Ministry of Finance. Claude, who had been out of town, heard about it late and came to see Audrey.

“Audrey, I’ve heard some strange rumors.”

“Oh, a meeting? I’m supposed to meet someone nice and have a relationship now that I’m an ‘adult’. Hehe.”

Audrey’s mouth quivered, unwilling to give him up. This was all Charlotte’s plan.

“……I see.”

Claude laughed out of habit.

But somehow it was different, a little forced, the corners of his mouth quirking up as if he were struggling to keep them from drooping.

“Do we have to do this?”

“What?”

“No, because I don’t know him.

.

“You have to do this, right?”

“What?”

“No, because I don’t know what he’s like, and he could be dangerous.”

“……!”

He was trying to talk me out of it.

“Tell the neighbors about the meeting.

“What? And if Claude gets the wrong idea!

“This is what I call Operation Jealousy. The girl who’s been following me around all this time suddenly gets a meeting? It’s human nature to not want to share. It’s a waste.

Audrey marveled at Charlotte’s accuracy. It felt good, somehow.

But there was one thing Audrey had overlooked: rumors spread to unexpected people.

Such as the castle’s owner, Derek, or Duke Frit.

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

‘Dodo can’t do this to me. He can’t do this to me.’

Derek felt like his fortune was crumbling.

He knew what the meeting was about. A gathering of those with the most impure of intentions, to lure innocent people like Dodol into their traps!

‘How could you go to such a dangerous place…….

It was obvious. You’re going to be asked all sorts of nasty, personal questions like what your favorite food is and what your favorite color is. I’m sure they’ll pair up and play a very unhealthy game of rock-paper-scissors. Just thinking about it made my stomach turn and I couldn’t stand it.

“Going, Mr President?”

“…….”

Enraged, Derek stormed into the Treasury and shot Robert a long, hard glare, as if he were watching a great ruffian.

“I will never forget your face for the rest of my life.

When he returned to his office, he gazed at Dodoi with a very earnest look. Her eyes were unusually bright today, and she begged him not to go to such a place.

But the fierce Dodol did not look up. He was deep in his list of repairs.

“Your Excellency, with all due respect, there is no time for that-”

“I am aware.”

“I also have paperwork to attend to today-”

“Go away.”

Derek sighed involuntarily.

Love, romance, and dodo were too difficult for him, and he felt like a helpless lion in front of a tiny chick.

The Duke of Fritz’s sighing continued after the dodo had retired to his sword.

Then he had an idea.

“Is there a Robert at the Treasury, still there?”

“I just saw him in the corridor, so yes.”

“I’ll go to the Treasury.”

If Dodo couldn’t go alone, maybe Derek could go with her.

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊