Silent Witch

After the play was over, Felix went backstage and was talking with the person in charge with a grim face. He was probably inquiring about the incident that happened on the stage. As for Monica, she was not sure why Eliane had attacked Glenn but concluded that it was not related to the assassins who were trying to kill Felix, and so she left it at that.

A small yellow bird landed from the sky and perched on Monica's shoulder. It was Lynn, who had been watching from the top of the tree.

"Excellent work on the firefighting."

"Um, you did notice…?"

"Yes. I debated whether I should lend my assistance, but I'm not very good at settling things quietly."

Considering all the things she had done so far, including the dynamic landing method of flight magic, she had done the right thing by not asking Lynn for help. Above all, with Felix sitting next to her, Monica couldn't give Lynn any verbal instructions.

Without coordination, working alone would be easier to keep things quiet.

"While you were working to extinguish the fire, I was keeping an eye out to see if anyone would try to take advantage of the turmoil and harm the second prince, but no one made any suspicious movements."

"… I see. Thanks."

Nonetheless, she could not afford to let her guard down. The school festival was not over yet.

As Monica was telling this to herself, she heard a flurry of noisy footsteps. She turned around and saw Glenn rushing towards her in some kind of desperate manner.

What happened to the stage crew who had just surrounded him and praised him for a brilliant performance?

"…what's the matter, Glenn?"

"Monica! Please give me some shelter!"

"S-Shelter!?"

The not so peaceful word made Monica flinch.

Glenn was unusually pale and trembling. What had happened to the man who had just been applauded on stage?

"Um… who are you running from?"

"W-Well, actually, I saw my master watching the play…"

When she heard Glenn mention his master, Monica recalled Felix's words. According to him, Glenn was an apprentice of a renowned magician.

"He found out that I broke the "no flight magic without supervision" rule. I'm totally screwed up this time, he's definitely mad at me…"

"Is your master… that scary?"

"That person's so scary! He would even grab me by the head and throw me out the window without a second thought!"

"B-But your master… is a magician, right?"

Among his peers, Glenn was a very tall young man. What kind of magician who could grab him and throw him around like that?

As Monica imagined his big and muscular master, Glenn looked behind Monica and opened his eyes to the limit.

"Aaaaahh! Ma-Ma-Ma…"

Then a thud sound was heard.

It was the sound of a compressed mass of air being slammed into Glenn's head.

As Glen let out a muffled scream and crawled to the ground, a familiar voice sounded from behind Monica.

"Well, well, well, Glenn. How dare you run away when you see your master's face?"

Could it be, could it be, no way… thought Monica as she turned her head and, as expected, the person she saw standing there was one of the Seven Sages, Louis Miller the [Barrier Magician].

Smiling elegantly, Louis grabbed the groveling Glenn's head with one hand then dragged him to his feet. What he's doing is almost exactly what a thug would do.

The disparity between his beautiful appearance and his behavior was quite a sight to behold.

No wonder Glenn was so frightened. If it was Louis, he had the strength to grab and throw him with one hand, moreover, he would not hesitate when doing so. Monica, who understood directly how powerful his grip and arm were and how merciless he was, could not help but shudderingly agreed.

Glenn, who had been grabbed in the head, was teary-eyed and rattling off excuses.

"That flight magic back there was an unavoidable action! If I hadn't used it, I would have been in serious trouble…"

"Sure, of course. I don't blame you for your actions on the stage."

In contrast to Glenn, who was screaming and crying, Louis had a very elegant tone. That in turn made things feel rather chilly.

"Glenn, I heard that you… often use flight magic when going to school from home."

"*flinch* H-How did you!?"

"I heard about it when I paid my greetings to your parents a while ago. Well, I guess your magic skills must have grown a lot. Putting aside your empty head."

"Aaaaagh! Owowowowow!"

"Have you forgotten about what you did every single day to the wall of my house when using flight magic? Hah?"

The last part ‘hah?' voiced it in a low tone, and it sounded particularly scary.

Monica backed away, watching the exchange between the master and disciple, which was very far from heartwarming.

Then, she whispered to the little bird that perched on her shoulder.

"I-I didn't know Glenn was Louis' disciple…"

"You're not aware of the master-disciple relationship between Sir Louis and Sir Glenn?"

Responding to Lynn's words with nods, Monica then realized one possibility.

"Um, did Glenn aware… of my identity?"

Monica and Glenn were both transferred to Serendia Academy at about the same time. Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that the one who'd sent Glenn to this academy was Louis.

"Did he send Glenn to enroll in this academy was to support me…?"

"If I may be so bold. Do you think that Sir Glenn is capable of supporting you behind the scenes or performing covert missions?"

"I don't think so…"

For better or for worse, Glenn Dudley is completely honest and cheerful.

"According to Sir Louis, he had made Sir Glenn enrolled in this academy to camouflage your infiltration."

And that action had made Felix put his guard up because he think that he was a spy that Louis Miller put that spy in his surrounding. If Monica enrolled alone, he might have suspected her as Louis' spy.

That's why Louis sent Glenn to enroll in the academy at the same time as Monica.

Naturally, if his disciple, Glenn enrolled in the academy, Felix would put more attention to him, leaving Monica's enrollment less suspicious.

"In this matter, Sir Glenn doesn't know anything."

"………"

In other words, Louis Miller used his disciple as a decoy for a top-secret mission. How heartless he can be.

"I doubt Sir Glenn can keep your identity and the mission a secret if he's aware of it. So, it's safer to leave out the information for him."

"…I figured."

Out of the corner of Monica's eye, Glenn, who had been tortured by Louis, was crying out "Mrs. Miller!" to ask for help from Louis' wife, and was about to get a tongue lashing from Louis.

If Monica kept staying here, people would think Louis and her were known to each other. So she apologized to Glenn in her mind and decided to pretend to be a stranger and leave the place.

At any rate, she hoped that Glenn won't be punished that badly.

The fact Louis and Glenn were master and disciple had surprised her, but inwardly, Monica was so relieved when knowing that Glenn did not know Monica's true identity.

He did speak friendly to her was not because of her mission, but because he's that kind person he chatted so friendly with her even when he's unaware of her true identity.

You're my friend! Monica's been wondering if his words were a lie, but relieved when realized it's not.

If possible, she would like to remain friends with him.

…I'd better keep my identity secret from him.

To her own surprise, Monica found it difficult to let go of her current life.