Someone had laced the punch with poison and fed it to her. They had taken advantage of the chaos of the ball to carry out their plan.
‘Ugh... Seriously, who was it? If I catch them, they’re dead...’
Even as her consciousness began to fade, Penelope ground her teeth in fury.
At that moment, Rianel scooped her up in his arms.
"Lean on me for now. I’ll take you to the physician."
Penelope was startled. Even in her dazed state, she was acutely aware of the eyes on her.
‘Is he seriously carrying me like a princess...? Everyone’s watching! He should’ve just carried me on his back...’
Her lips moved as if to protest, but no sound came out.
And then it happened.
The lively air of the ballroom changed abruptly. It felt as though a massive presence was pressing down from above, suffocating everyone.
Penelope tilted her head slightly and saw that the nobles were all staring in one direction, frozen in place. The air in that part of the room felt entirely different.
From the center of everyone’s gaze, Ahwin walked in.
“...!”
“...”
The nobles remained motionless, paralyzed like prey before the apex predator.
Through her half-closed eyes, Penelope watched as Ahwin approached. His golden hair glistened under the light, his mysterious green eyes standing out against his white robe adorned with intricate magical inscriptions.
Ahwin crouched to peer directly into Penelope’s face, frowning as he examined her.
"Sigh... What on earth did you eat?" he muttered, his cold gaze shifting to Rianel.
"Put her down. Don’t do anything unnecessary."
"She’s been poisoned," Rianel said evenly.
"I know."
Without argument, Rianel carefully set Penelope on the floor. Ahwin swiped a finger through the blood on her hand and brought it to his lips.
His face twisted in disgust.
"Felox... yellow aconite... and yu-do flowers. A deadly poison that can kill a whale with a single drop. And someone cowardly mixed it into the drink. Even one glass would’ve had an effect, but you foolishly drank two."
"Then her condition is critical, isn’t it?" Rianel asked, his tone sharp.
Ahwin didn’t bother responding. Instead, he moved his left hand slowly, releasing a soft green glow. Magical symbols formed in the air and then flowed into Penelope’s body.
At the same time, Ahwin stretched out his right hand, tracing the residual magic of the poison’s maker.
"Aah! Spare me...!"
A scream erupted from one side of the ballroom moments later.
A seemingly ordinary servant flew through the air toward Ahwin, who caught him effortlessly by the throat. The servant, revealed to be a disguised assassin, struggled frantically before losing consciousness.
Even while neutralizing the assassin, Ahwin continued detoxifying Penelope with his other hand.
‘Truly a monster,’ Rianel thought with a wry smile.
Ahwin was casting three different spells simultaneously without breaking a sweat. Not just in the empire, but across the entire continent, there had never been a mage as unparalleled and overwhelming as Ahwin.
Without a second thought, Ahwin hurled the unconscious assassin toward Rianel.
"Take him and find out who’s behind this."
"Of course. And I’ll handle them as I see fit."
"Do as you like," Ahwin replied coldly.
‘They’ll find out who did this... and I’ll make sure they pay. Thank you... everyone...’
Penelope smiled faintly before her consciousness finally faded.
"You have to be kidding me. She’s poisoned, yet she’s smiling?"
Ahwin grumbled with a dry laugh. Despite his curt words, he gently picked up the limp Penelope.
A glowing blue magical circle formed around them, radiating energy. In an instant, the two of them vanished from the ballroom.
"...!"
The nobles couldn’t hide their shock at witnessing such powerful magic.
Meanwhile, Grand Duke Lahinsel strode toward Countess Hinas, dragging the unconscious assassin by the hair. The assassin’s body trailed lifelessly behind him.
"My goodness..." gasped the Countess.
Countess Hinas stared at the grim scene before her with trembling eyes and swallowed nervously.
The Grand Duke of Lahinsel spoke in an expressionless tone.
"A regrettable incident has occurred. I will personally handle this individual."
"Ah, y-yes, please do so," she stammered.
"Thank you for your cooperation. Then, if you’ll excuse me."
The Grand Duke bowed politely before turning away. At his signal, his subordinates lifted the assassin and disappeared from the estate without a trace.
Countess Hinas felt lightheaded.
‘Why on earth did such a disaster have to happen at my estate of all places?!’
An assassin disguised as a servant had attempted to poison a noble. That such a heinous event had unfolded at her ball was unthinkable.
If things went awry, even she, as the hostess, would not escape blame.
‘If the Lady of Halo were to die, it would be catastrophic...’
Biting her lower lip anxiously, the countess tried to calm herself. Just then, the voice of Viscountess Elrn reached her ears.
"Was that... the Tower Master just now?"
"Indeed. I had heard he had secluded himself in the Tower for new magical research. I had no idea he was in the capital."
"There were rumors about him visiting Lirot’s boutique recently, and I suppose they weren’t baseless after all."
The nobles exchanged curious whispers, their expressions filled with intrigue. In the capital, the Tower Master’s presence was as significant as, if not more than, the emperor’s.
Countess Hinas felt a spark of hope amid the chaos.
‘Yes! If the Tower Master himself is treating her, the Lady of Halo surely won’t die.’
What a relief it was.
But then, another thought struck her.
‘Why is the Tower Master taking care of the Lady of Halo? And why does the Grand Duke of Lahinsel seem so concerned about her?’
It was a question on the minds of everyone in the ballroom.
Elsewhere in the Magic Tower
"The Tower Master has disappeared."
"Where could he have gone?"
A senior mage, his beard thick and unkempt, sighed deeply. The younger mages around him broke into a commotion.
"The Tower Master is gone? But what about my new magic formula?"
"Mine should be addressed first!"
"No, mine is the priority! The Tower Master personally said he’d review my achievements!"
The mages raised their voices, each vying to claim the Tower Master’s attention.
The truth was, the Tower Master had promised none of them anything. He had simply thrown out vague reassurances to escape their relentless pestering.
But the mages, hearing only what they wanted to, had taken his words as a promise for immediate review. Such self-serving interpretations were a hallmark of magicians.
The mages of the Tower were obsessively focused on advancing their magical prowess, desperate to grasp even the hem of the Tower Master’s robes.
The senior mage barked angrily, "You fools clinging to him like parasites are the reason this happened! Now he’s likely hiding somewhere so thoroughly that not even a strand of his hair will be found!"
A young mage, flustered, asked hesitantly, "Then... what do we do now?"
"What else? You’ll just have to improve your magic on your own, won’t you?"
***
Meanwhile, at Ahwin’s Residenc.
Penelope opened her eyes.
Above her was a familiar ceiling—it was her room in Ahwin’s home.
‘Was I dreaming about the original story?’
Blinking slowly, Penelope tried to recall the dream. It had been a scene where the Tower Master, heartbroken after being rejected by the heroine, suddenly disappeared, leaving the Tower mages in shock.
‘Just a nonsense dream.’
She dismissed it after brief contemplation.
Then she tried to piece together why she was lying in bed. She remembered attending Countess Hinas’s ball the previous night...
"Ah!"
‘I drank poisoned punch! And then... Rianel carried me... and Ahwin appeared?’
Penelope strained to clarify her fragmented memories, gasping as something came back to her.
‘Did I... dance with Rianel?’
She remembered now.
Her first dance had been an awkward shuffle with the young Viscount of Elrn. The second dance, however, had been with Rianel.
She hadn’t refused the viscount’s invitation, partly because Countess Hinas, the hostess of the ball, had subtly encouraged her, and partly because declining outright would have been seen as impolite in noble society.
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