Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 79: Winter’s Kiss
The person who came was none other than Magnolia Karns, Salaar’s nominal cousin.
There was no need for introductions. Just by looking at that face, Myss could be certain of their blood relation.
Cousin Mag had a full figure and neat shoulder-length hair, glossy and black. On that pretty round face were two large lapis-lazuli eyes with lashes as thick as Salaar’s.
She wore a common gray scholar’s shirt, paired with a simple black pearl brooch that was clearly expensive at a glance.
Cousin Mag’s gaze first caught on Myss, sweeping him over from head to toe. Then her gaze suddenly shifted to Salaar, and the coldness and anger in her expression were almost equal.
“Must you make a spectacle of yourself for the entire city to gawk at?” Her voice was low and gravelly, each word grounded out from between her teeth.
The irritating words text the sky vanished. Salaar gave Myss a look and nodded cheerfully.
“I need to get to the United Library as soon as possible.”
He spoke in an obnoxiously flamboyant tone, deliberately letting everyone hear him clearly. “That’s why I sought you out, cousin. I don’t know how to get to the United Library. Look, this is a letter of introduction. I have a guarantor.”
As he spoke, Salaar openly took out Professor Gentry’s letter of introduction and waved it in front of Magnolia.
Magnolia sneered. She didn’t believe a single word, her face clearly screaming, “This brat is acting up again.”
She indifferently snatched the letter, roughly opened it, and swept her gaze down line by line. As she read, her eyes moved more and more slowly, and her brows furrowed tighter and tighter.
After reading it, she glanced at Salaar as if she wanted to speak, then looked at the enthusiastic crowd of spectators. In the end, she didn’t question them on the spot.
“Please follow me.” She carefully put away the letter, her tone harder than a stale crust of bread.
The moment they left the crowd’s line of sight, Magnolia immediately stopped.
She turned to Salaar, her face expressionless. “Say it plainly, Kendrick. What trick are you playing this time? …What are you going to the United Library for?”
“To hide from assassination, obviously.”
Salaar innocently spread his hands. “If I wander around outside, I’ll die under an assassin’s blade in the blink of an eye. The old man put out a kill order on me. It’s not like I don’t know.”
“I came this time only because I want to resolve this nuisance. I don’t want to be killed by some assassin who appears out of nowhere while I’m traveling the world.”
“Don’t tell me you think saying a few soft words now will make Grandfather let you off.” Magnolia’s tone was soaked in mockery. “Of course, of course. For Professor Gentry’s sake, I’ll take you to the United Library. But don’t expect me to help you. You’ve already caused quite enough ridiculous trouble as it is.”
“Ah, as you like.” Salaar smiled in an exasperating manner. “As I said, I only need you to lead the way.”
Mag snorted. “You’d better mean that. Right now, I’m too lazy to do anything to you. You’d better not force me to change my mind.”
After saying this, she strode forward and led the way without looking back.
Myss’s curiosity toward Cousin Mag didn’t last long. After walking a few steps, his attention gradually shifted to the Dragon Fae.
Ever since they had approached Serpentia, Tass hadn’t returned to the pocket watch. At the moment, he was alertly hiding in Myss’s hair, watching out for any assassin who might approach.
However, that didn’t stop him from incessantly muttering into Myss’s ear.
“Lady Mag really has no interest in killing her cousin. But that doesn’t mean she has any fondness for her youngest cousin. She simply doesn’t lack that share of the inheritance.”
Tass’s tone was quite solemn.
“In other words, even if Salaar dies, she won’t care. You’d better not lower your guard. I mean it.”
Myss couldn’t tolerate the Abnormal Fruit in the pot being stolen, and he could tolerate someone else killing Salaar in his bowl even less. For once, he listened seriously. “Tell me about those four people who want to kill Salaar.”
“The oldest twins, eldest son Roskart and eldest daughter Rosbeth.”
“The former is a royal diplomat, and the latter manages the Karns family’s industries. These siblings firmly believe Kendrick Karns is a stain on the family and should preferably be erased as soon as possible.”
Oh, the Radish Twins*. Myss made a mental note.
*Clarity: Myss refers to them as the “radish twins” because both Roskart’s and Rosbeth’s name starts with [luo] (罗), which is a homophone for radish (萝). To make it flow more English-wise, it can be translated as the “Ross twins”, though the joke would lose quite of a bit of its humor, unless you know what Ross refers to (though it’d be too OOC given the setting of this world).
“Nicholas, an elite knight of the Knights of Candance.”
“He’s exceptionally talented and a man of integrity. At only twenty-four, he already has hopes of being promoted to Branch Commander. If he wants to kill Kendrick Karns, it’s probably to rid society of a menace.”
And Sir Mud*. Myss continued earnestly recording.
*Clarity: While not exactly homophones, Myss is associating the first part of Nicholas’ name [Nicola] (尼古拉) to mud [niba] (泥巴) which sounds similar (the first characters, [ni], are homophones).
“Last is Owen, the one I mentioned before, the guy who hired me.”
“That kid’s aptitude is utterly mediocre, and he has nothing to his name except two wineries. If Kendrick is toxic trash, he’s harmless waste. He’s desperate to be the first to kill Kendrick Karns and get more inheritance.”
Tass spoke without any politeness, apparently not having a high opinion of his former employer.
Of course, there was also Mr. Useless, who had hired Tass. Myss completed his watch list and reviewed it several times in his heart to make sure nothing was missing.
When he encountered these people, he had to keep Salaar firmly tucked at his side, just to prevent Salaar from accidentally getting himself killed.
Tass: “Also…”
“Also?” Myss held his breath and focused.
“That.”
The Dragon Fae pointed to a certain shop they passed, his tone becoming even more serious. “The ice cream in that shop is pretty good. The vanilla flavor is a little lacking, but its jam is excellent.”
In other words, ice cream with raspberry jam had to be good.
This, was indeed a truly serious matter. Myss immediately changed direction and rushed toward the shop with a black signboard stamped in gold.
He walked so openly that Cousin Mag immediately noticed something was wrong. “Hey! Wait—”
“What’s wrong, Myss?” Salaar interrupted her.
The astonishment on Mag’s face almost immediately turned into concern, concern for Myss.
In her impression, Kendrick was quite capricious.
In his teenage years, Kendrick’s appearance hadn’t yet become so gloomy. He had been kept clean and neat, groomed by a host of servants. Because his parents had died early, Kendrick had clung obsessively to his wet nurse.
The problem was that his “affection” had always been deeply unsettling.
As long as Kendrick’s wishes were obeyed, Kendrick could be considered well-behaved and adorable, and he would occasionally even act coquettish. But if his desires weren’t satisfied, such as when his wet nurse failed to provide the toy he wanted, he could stab through the back of her hand with a table fork without hesitation.
After discovering he would never obtain the most interesting toy under heaven, a “Magibase,” Kendrick’s distortion worsened by the day, and his behavior grew increasingly extreme.
Mag loathed this cousin. Fortunately, she spent most of her time living at the United Library and didn’t need to deal with that little monster.
Seeing Myss actually not greet Kendrick and simply act as he pleased, Mag’s heart abruptly jumped. Her mind flashed back to the image of the wet nurse’s bloody, gaping wound.
“—Where are you going?” Salaar’s question was still continuing.
“I want ice cream,” Myss said. “Tass said this shop is good.”
“Got it. We’ll go together.” Salaar said calmly, “Don’t buy too much. Be careful you don’t upset your stomach.”
Myss immediately hummed in dissatisfaction. “Even if I ate you raw, I wouldn’t upset my stomach.”
“Yes, yes.” Salaar replied without much temper. “Mag, wait for us here.”
Magnolia: “?”
Magnolia: “…Fine.”
What the hell? What was with this subtle atmosphere?
Myss paid no mind to the turbulent thoughts swirling in Cousin Mag’s head. He strode into the shop named “Winter’s Kiss” and headed straight for the ice cream counter.
This shop was decorated with a great deal of bright white stone, along with many fresh flowers, melons, and fruits. The moment they entered, a gentle, cool fragrance wrapped around them, making the body and mind feel refreshed.
The weather had turned cold, so there weren’t many customers inside, and they were mostly young women. The first second Myss entered, the ice cream shop fell into a sweet silence. After the customers saw Salaar following him, the silence gained a few uneasy ripples.
The young women covered their mouths with fingers or fans and whispered in extremely soft voices.
“I want this, the extra-large berry milk waffle bowl boat.”
Myss pointed at a line on the menu. “Replace all the strawberries and blueberries inside with raspberries. Add extra honey.”
The young clerk opposite him blushed slightly and nodded briskly.
“Come, pay.” Myss moved Salaar from behind him to the front.
The moment the clerk saw those lapis-lazuli eyes clearly, the color on her face quickly faded, turning pale.
She pressed her lips together and prepared Myss’s order at an extremely fast speed, never raising her head again.
A few minutes later, Myss had to use both hands to accept the colossal ice cream creation.
This shop had made the crispy waffle into a bowl shape, and it was filled with dense milk ice cream. They had certainly been generous with the raspberries and honey, making it look interwoven with gold and red that looked utterly tantalizing.
The shop even provided a small polished wooden spoon—a thoughtful touch, to be sure.
However, Myss’s interest had already shifted. He looked straight at the pale-faced clerk. “You know him?”
The real Kendrick Karns had still been a minor when he left. Was his influence really this great?
“Everyone recognizes people from the Karns family.” The clerk stammered, “Their family doesn’t allow illegitimate children into the capital, and, and just now—”
Her gaze passed through the display window and looked toward Mag, who was waiting outside.
So that was it. It was because of “Your Dearest Cousin☆.” Myss understood.
“Hehe. Looks like around here, ‘Kendrick’s’ reputation is even worse than the ‘Chaos Archdemon’s’.” Myss gloated.
Salaar was expressionless. He lowered his head toward Myss and bit off the perfectly formed creamy peak, along with a couple of raspberries for good measure.
Myss’s heart clenched hard. “—!!!”
Damn it, this guy really is wicked. Such a rotten reputation suited him perfectly!
Myss stopped making sarcastic comments, grabbed the wooden spoon, and rapidly stuffed ice cream into his mouth. Salaar hooked a finger through the leather strap of Myss’s ranger outfit and promptly dragged him away.
The clerk and customers turned their heads together, watching the two disappear outside the door.
……
By the time they were nearly at the United Library, Myss had finally eaten the last bite of the ice cream boat.
The Dragon Fae’s intelligence was correct. The ice cream from that shop was indeed quite delicious. It was just that he had eaten too quickly, and his tongue had gone numb and tingly from the cold. His entire mouth felt a little wooden.
Myss didn’t like this feeling. He wanted to use his hand to warm his tongue, but he disliked how unclean his hand was.
“Shawaar, come here,” Myss mumbled incoherently.
Salaar held back a laugh and leaned closer, using his fingers to wipe the cream marks on Myss’s face. “What is it now?”
Myss grabbed his collar and yanked Salaar down, then kissed him.
It was broad daylight, and there were plenty of pedestrians on the street. This brazen display drew many sidelong looks. Myss, however, couldn’t care less. He shoved his frozen-numb tongue into his enemy’s warm mouth, plundering Salaar’s body heat.
Salaar froze for two seconds, then supported the back of Myss’s head and openly deepened the kiss. He angled his body slightly, and the two avoided the brilliant morning light, hiding in the shadow of the building.
Mag: “???”
When Kendrick had left, he had undoubtedly been a gloomy little devil. As a result, after four years, he had returned as a debauched dandy sunk in lust? What exactly had happened during these four years?
Even more absurdly, Professor Gentry had actually written a letter of introduction for someone like this. It was impossible for that Kingdom’s Archmage to be completely ignorant of the outrageous things Kendrick had done.
Magnolia couldn’t help doing a double take of Myss. Myss’s lips were still somewhat red and swollen, but his expression was very calm, as if what they had done just now was the most ordinary thing in the world.
Could it be that he had tamed that lunatic? With true love?
…Unfortunately, even if Mag were ten years younger, she wouldn’t believe such a childish possibility.
She had to keep a close eye on Kendrick, she sighed irritably.
Damn it, she already had enough worries recently. Hopefully this disturbance would settle soon, allowing her to focus on dealing with another problem—another even more urgent and terrifying problem.
However, things always had a tendency to develop in the worst possible direction.
Before the group even reached the United Library, a young man rushed out and directly blocked Mag’s path.
“Lady Magnolia, why, why did you suddenly run out?”
The young man was gasping for breath, his voice trembling. “‘It’ has appeared again. You have to hurry back…”
His body trembled fiercely, and he twisted his fingers in extreme terror, looking as if he wanted nothing more than to grab Mag’s sleeve.
Mag clenched her teeth with a crack, and the color quickly vanished from her face.
In the end, she closed her eyes, let out a long breath, and turned toward the curious gaze of Salaar and the others. “You want refuge, don’t you? As you wish, I will arrange everything for you.”
“Listen, I only have one requirement. Stay obediently where you are, and don’t cause me any trouble.”
The author has something to say:
Salaar: Then we simply must see what all the fuss is about. [okay]
Myss: Then we simply must cause some trouble. [cat paw]
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