Chapter 321: There She Go (1)

After checking on Ao's swordsmanship progress, Theo sent Ao ahead to Aisha's room.

Then, he headed to the fourth floor where he would stay with Isabella.

Softly, quietly.

Their steps were as secretive as the ninjas of the Eastern Empire.

Theo whispered to Isabella in a very low voice.

"Stay here for a moment. I'll go and check."

Isabella nodded her head with a tense expression.

Theo went up to the fourth floor first to see if anyone was in the lobby.

'No one's around.'

While keeping his gaze on the fourth-floor lobby, Theo signaled Isabella to come up.

Isabella carefully climbed the stairs, making no sound.

Once Isabella was beside him, Theo pointed to a door with his finger.

Without needing to speak, the two understood each other perfectly.

Creak─

Isabella immediately opened the door and entered.

Theo waited for a moment.

'Phew, we weren't caught.'

After a while, Theo entered the room where Isabella had gone.

Irene was seething with anger, extremely infuriated.

The source of her rage was a precocious child.

Despite her young age, her swordsmanship was alarmingly advanced.

"You looked strong, but you're surprisingly weak. Is this what you've learned in 10 years?"

"Wouldn't it be more efficient to move like this instead of that? Oh, humans can't move that way? I see. That makes sense, I guess."

The child, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Theo, was named Ao.

What exacerbated her frustration was the undeniable logic in her words, leaving her without a comeback.

Although Irene later discovered Ao was a robot, not a human, her anger persisted.

'I won't let this go,' she vowed, determined to train diligently and avenge this insult.

After settling in, Irene borrowed a spare practice longsword from her friend Mina, who stayed on the third floor.

'It's been a while since I've seen Theo; I should ask for instruction.'

With thoughts like 'We've seen all there is to see, and we're engaged, so it wouldn't be odd to practice swordsmanship together late into the night,' Irene ascended the stairs, her face bright with a smile.

Yet, in an instant, her smile morphed into terror.

'Why is Theo entering the room Saint Isabella went into?'

Irene hastily covered her mouth with both hands, afraid she might inadvertently speak.

But there was no mistake in what she saw: Theo discreetly entering the room Saint Isabella had entered, an unmistakably suspicious aura surrounding the scene.

Her mind went blank, as if ceasing to function.

It felt as though her brain was starved of oxygen.

Initially, she refused to accept the truth.

'Yeah, I must have seen it wrong. I'm just too upset today, so my mind isn't clear.'

Thus, she rubbed her eyes and slapped her cheeks.

It was painful.

This was the harsh reality.

Only then did Irene's mind kick back into gear.

Thump, thump, thump.

Her heart raced unusually fast.

'What exactly is the relationship between Theo and the Saintess...?'

Common sense might suggest a man courting a woman.

However, to Irene, blinded by love and in a vulnerable state, it appeared as though the Saintess was the one pursuing Theo.

'Absolutely not.'

Irene's rage intensified.

She was several times, no, a hundred times more enraged than before.

'I will not let this go.'

Stomp, stomp, stomp.

Irene walked towards Theo's room with heavy steps.

Once inside the room, Theo cast a soundproofing magic [Sound Proof] throughout.

Theo calmly said, "You can breathe now, senior."

"Haaah, haah. Haaah, haah─"

Isabella let out the breath she had been holding. She had been holding her breath so that no one in other rooms could hear her breathing.

It could have been seen as an overreaction, but Theo viewed it positively.

'She's thorough. I like that.'

Theo smiled slightly.

Seeing this, Isabella's face flushed for some reason.

Whoosh, whoosh~

Fanning her face with her hand, Isabella said,

"Ah... it's a bit hot in here. Don't you think so, Theo?"

"I actually feel a bit cold. It's the middle of winter, and you're hot? Senior, you must have a warm body type. Even your face is all red."

Theo stared straight at Isabella.

Under his gaze, Isabella's face grew even hotter.

She fanned her face excessively and said,

"Ah... yeah, right. That's it. My body tends to be warm. You're quick to notice."

Isabella has a naturally cold body type.

Theo opened his mouth.

"Hmm, if you're feeling hot, perhaps you should take off your coat."

Isabella's eyes widened even more.

"Eh, what?"

Gulp.

She swallowed her saliva, an instinctive reaction she couldn't stop with her willpower.

Theo immediately responded,

"It's strange for someone who says they're hot to be wearing that thick fur coat. Anyone would feel hot wearing that kind of thick clothing indoors."

"..."

Isabella just stared at Theo without saying a word.

His gaze was steady, as if he truly believed what he was saying.

But it's said that you can know the depths of the sea but not the heart of a person.

Isabella bit her lip.

'I've never wanted to understand someone's heart this much before.'

Isabella was anxious.

So far, she had read the minds of hundreds of thousands of men.

Their thoughts were always the same.

Except for a very few homosexuals and asexuals, while they outwardly praised her as the 'noble and high Saintess!', inwardly, they harbored lustful thoughts.

Although she didn't want to know, she had realized from a young age that her body stirred men's desires.

Now, she and Theo were in a soundproofed, sealed room.

Whatever happened here, people outside wouldn't know...

As Isabella's thoughts drifted, Theo asked her,

"Are you feeling unwell, senior? Even your neck is red."

Theo placed his palm on Isabella's forehead.

"You have a fever. Maybe the long journey has tired you out."

"Uh, uh-uh..."

Isabella couldn't gather her thoughts. She could clearly hear Theo's breathing.

Theo suggested as he laid out a bedroll,

"You should probably go to sleep early. I'll bring you your meal."

Isabella responded in a meek voice,

"It's not that."

"Hm?"

"I'm not sick."

Theo looked puzzled.

"Is that so? It's unusual to have such a fever without being sick... Hmm..."

Theo stroked his chin, lost in thought.

Isabella was driven to frustration.

'He's totally messing with me! How dare he...!'

To Isabella, it was clear that Theo was teasing her, seeing her embarrassment.

'This bastard...!'

Isabella had been paving her own way in life since she started walking.

As much as she was lenient towards Theo, this was a difficult situation for her to endure.

Perhaps it was a mix of shame and a surge of competitiveness.

Isabella's true feelings slipped out.

"I'll act as you want then!"

Theo asked,

"Hm? What do you mean by that, senior?"

"Uh, ah, um, uh..."

Isabella stuttered as if broken.

She blurted out whatever came to mind.

"Ah, right. Right. I think I might be a bit sick. You're observant, Theo, hahaha..."

"If that's the case, then rest. I'll be quietly training, so you shouldn't be disturbed."

Internally screaming 'as if that would happen!', Isabella hurried to the bathroom. She needed a space to collect her thoughts alone.

"I'll, I'll go take a shower first."

"You can just go lie down."

"I can't just lie in bed without showering. Right... don't you think?"

Theo nodded.

"That's true. Even when I'm exhausted, I make sure to shower before getting into bed."

"Right? So, I'll go shower! It won't take too long!"

"Understood."

Isabella hurried into the bathroom.

Fortunately, the bathroom was stocked with various bathing products and a robe to cover herself.

'I guess I have to shower before going out.'

Ssshhhh──

For some reason, embarrassed by the sound of undressing, Isabella turned on the shower before taking off her clothes.

Then, she took a cold shower in the middle of winter.

Anyone else might think she was crazy, but it was quite helpful at the moment. The cold water felt like it was cooling her heated body down.

'Sigh, that's right. Since we ended up sharing a room... I was a bit prepared for this.'

After showering for a while, Isabella wrapped herself in the robe.

'I'm, I'm so nervous.'

Was it because of the long cold shower, or the anticipation of what was to come?

Isabella came out of the bathroom, trembling.

Keeping her eyes on the floor, she said hesitantly,

"I'm, I'm out."

But there was no response.

Feeling something was off, Isabella looked up.

"?!?"

What she saw was Irene standing with her arms crossed, a demonic expression on her face, and Theo, who looked unusually tense.