Estelle faced her own reflection in the mirror.
Her hair was tousled, still messy from an afternoon nap.
"I'll make myself presentable quickly and then head down."
"Yes, Madam. I'll guide the guest to the drawing room."
Outside the window, she spotted Glesia and Duren happily enjoying their walk.
They had already been playing for an hour, which meant they would likely keep running about for another.
"Ah, that's right. His Grace is still out, isn't he?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Lennox, who had gone out, wasn't expected back until late that evening.
A perfect setting for a private conversation with the Tower Master.
After carefully straightening her attire, Estelle went to meet the man who had come to her—
the one who, just as she had predicted, had taken the bait in a single day.
An hour before Estelle's meeting with the Tower Master—
There was someone else sitting across from him. Lennox.
The examination results, which were supposed to come out in a week, had arrived earlier than expected.
"What? You were on your way to meet my wife?"
"Mm. I said I would go, didn't I?"
"Why?"
"Because she offered money!"
Truly, he was a man obsessed with wealth.
Every cause and effect in his life seemed tied to money.
"She didn't mention anything like that to me today."
"Well, just because you're married doesn't mean you share every last word, right? It happens."
Claude gave a casual shrug of his shoulders.
But unlike Claude, who treated it as nothing, Lennox felt something was off.
"What exactly do you mean, you're going because she offered money?"
Claude explained the situation.
"No one knows magical tools as well as I do. There's no way someone else will figure it out before me. Still, I'd better get there quickly and secure the payment."
"…The test results are right here. No, actually—since you'll be meeting her anyway, it might be better if I just tell her directly. Hm-hm!"
Claude spoke cheerfully, humming under his breath at the thought of money.
That was, until Lennox made a certain proposal.
"Wait. Can I also be present to hear the conversation?"
"As her husband, I suppose you could?"
"No. Not as her husband—under a false identity, in secret."
"What?! Do you even realize how much this job is worth?! If you're planning to interfere, then get lost!"
Sensing trouble, the Tower Master shouted.
"Proceed with the deal as it stands. All I want is to know what the two of them talk about."
"Without you being there yourself?"
Lennox nodded.
"This involves the trust between me and my client. But… you're a premium customer. If I give you this much, I suppose I could make an exception and even provide a recording."
It was only a matter of examining the magic tool, after all.
Claude clicked his abacus beads and made the offer with a lighthearted tone—
though the sum he named was anything but light.
"How do I know you won't tamper with the recording?"
The problem was that the other man was just as steeped in distrust of people.
"I can set it up for live eavesdropping, too."
"No. I'll be there myself. I'll hear it with my own ears."
"Hmm… Well, I could introduce you as my assistant. That wouldn't be impossible."
"That will do."
"Hold on a moment."
Claude rummaged through a desk drawer and pulled out a black robe and a ring.
"Here!"
Lennox slipped the ring on.
Not only his eyes and hair, but even his facial features transformed.
Once he put on the black robe, he should have looked exactly like a mage from the Tower.
"Customer, you don't exactly look like an ordinary assistant. Try turning down the sense of intimidation."
"...?"
And how exactly was he supposed to do that?
Lennox looked back blankly, not understanding in the slightest.
Even with his appearance altered, his natural aura made it obvious at a glance: an extraordinary man, concealing his true identity.
"At this rate, she'll see through you instantly!"
Claude swapped the rings several times, but nothing worked.
"How do I look, then?"
"Like someone who would never work under another person."
Ugh.
After thinking it over, Claude finally offered a solution.
"Then why don't you just pretend to be me? It'd be strange for an assistant to radiate such presence, but if it's the Tower Master himself, people will just accept it."
Perhaps because the sum Lennox was going to pay wasn't small, the Tower Master was being unusually thorough.
"To make sure nothing interferes with your wife's deal, you must follow my instructions to the letter."
Claude kept talking beside him, but Lennox wasn't really listening anymore.
On the day Estelle received that letter from Count Bellonsa—
the very moment he saw her burst into such pleasant laughter—
a suspicion that had lain dormant began to sprout within him.
There had certainly been a chance for her to meet the Tower Master directly.
If she had submitted to a blood test, she could have used the examination as an excuse to meet him. But Estelle had refused outright.
And now, all of a sudden, she herself had arranged a meeting with the Tower Master. It was suspicious.
It's very likely she's hiding something beyond a health issue.
And with that letter from the Count arriving just recently, the chance of Bellonsa's involvement was all the higher.
Some secret—a scheme—that a mere contract husband like himself wasn't meant to know.
From this moment on, Lennox resolved to uncover it.
In the end, Estelle was…
…a daughter of Bellonsa.
The kind of person who cherished Vera—the one he despised so bitterly—and who loved her family.
An unease swept over Lennox, the dread that he might be forced to face the reality he had long denied.
And now, here they were—
Estelle sat across from Lennox, disguised as the Tower Master.
"I'd like you to examine this item."
Estelle produced what looked like an ordinary ring.
Though his face was half hidden beneath the black hood, the towering build of the false Tower Master was impossible to conceal. He reached out his hand to take the ring.
"Don't touch it."
"…?"
"Just look at it and tell me what kind of magic tool it is. If you're truly the Tower Master, that much should be nothing for you."
Her words deliberately prodded at the Tower Master's pride.
Then Estelle pulled out a large pouch.
Clatter—!
Gold coins spilled out—
enough to build a tower with.
"This will be your reward if you can guess what kind of magic tool it is."
Gulp.
Claude, pretending to be the assistant standing behind, swallowed his drool.
"Of course… the payment decreases by the second."
Estelle drew a portion of the coins toward herself.
"The longer you take, the less you'll receive."
Time had been ticking away from the very moment she brought out the ring.
Estelle didn't bother counting the seconds. She only reached out quietly to reclaim another handful of coins.
At that moment—
"A magic tool that changes eye color."
The quick reply came from Lennox, disguised as the Tower Master—and he stiffened.
Because the magic tool he wore had altered even his voice.
Estelle fixed her gaze on him, scrutinizing.
Did she realize…?
A cold sweat broke out beneath Lennox's skin.
"That's correct. But only half correct."
When Estelle reached to reclaim more coins, Lennox hastily spoke up.
"It's a magic tool that's been around nearly twenty years. Practically an ancient relic—astonishing that it still functions properly."
"..."
"Not an officially released product, but clearly crafted by a rather clever magitech engineer. Still, that makes it illegal."
"Illegal?"
"Ah—any magic tool not authorized by me, the Tower Master, is illegal. No matter who made it, how, or why."
"Can you find out who created it?"
"Give me some time, and I'll track it down. This is a private commission, isn't it?"
"Yes."
Even before the word left her lips, Lennox pulled the pile of gold coins toward himself.
Fumbling hurriedly, he hunched protectively over them, as though someone might try to snatch them away.
He was imitating the Tower Master perfectly.
"Since I've solved the problem, I'll be taking my leave."
Lennox rose, clutching every last coin without letting a single piece slip through his fingers.
She summoned me here just for this?
Could it really have been nothing more than another eccentric whim, like donating a fortune to some dreamer?
The moment he thought Estelle's true intentions were beyond his grasp—
"No. Just a moment, please."
Lennox froze mid-step.
"I have something else I want to discuss."
"What is it?"
"I recently had blood drawn… have the results come in? Since this is personal information, I'd prefer to speak with you alone, without your assistant."
Estelle slid a single gold coin toward him as she asked.
Lennox dismissed the so-called 'assistant' and sat back down as if it were only natural.
He pocketed the coin and gave a small nod.
"Does anyone besides you, Tower Master, know about my condition?"
Another coin slid across the table.
Lennox claimed it, then shook his head.
"Of course. It's only been a day since the blood was drawn—there's no way my husband could've inquired already."
A sharp pang.
He had gone to inquire.
Fortunately, he hadn't told Estelle he was going to the Tower today.
"I'll wager this coin on the fact that Duke Winterren knows nothing of it."
Flustered, Lennox quickly pushed the gold coin he had just taken back across to Estelle.
By the Tower Master's standards, no oath could be truer than that.
Convinced now that the man before her was truly the Tower Master, Estelle went straight to the heart of the matter.
"What exactly is my condition? I'd like to hear a professional opinion directly from you."
She had received a written report from Claude, but she hadn't yet looked at it.
Only then did Lennox pull out the report he himself hadn't opened and had simply tucked into his pocket.
As he unfolded it and read, for a moment he was struck speechless.
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