Taming The Villainesses

(EP-330.1) #3
330 – Time Problem #3

“It’s a dish I often ate as a child. Snow crab. It lives in the snow of the north, and their meat is as soft as silk. They’re incredibly delicious.”

Thanks to Countess Redni’s thoughtful hospitality, Aira’s mood seemed noticeably brighter.

As a result, lunch proceeded in a warm and cheerful atmosphere, allowing me to relax a bit.

The moment Aira arrived, my life was filled with tension.

Of course, the noose around my neck had loosened slightly, but the danger was far from over.

Rustle, rustle.

I felt something nudging my knee under the table. It wasn’t hard to guess who it was—Lady Elga Lioness, sitting across from me.

“Excuse me, I need to take care of something. I’ll step out for a moment.”

With that, I pushed my chair back and stood up. I knew exactly why Elga nudged me with her foot.

Clink, clink.

Aira, who was slicing crab meat with her fork and knife, lightly glanced at me.

“Go ahead. Also, Theo, I wanted to let you know in advance, just in case your schedule change—I have a lot to talk about, so keep tonight free.”

“… Tonight?”

I subtly studied Aira’s expression. She nonchalantly swallowed a piece of white crab meat between her lips, while the murmuring around us had already started.

━Keep tonight free…? Could the rumors be true? That Sir Theo is actually the Queen’s lover?

━They say he earned his court mage position with his… body.

Great, more nasty rumors are going to spread.

At that moment, Mirna, who had been mostly silent, set down her cutlery and softly said.

“If you don’t want to lose your tongue, I suggest you stop spouting stories you can’t handle.”

Her words were cold and sharp.

The maids who had been gossiping exchanged uneasy glances, then quickly grabbed the empty plates and scurried out of the room.

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.

Of course, the person responsible for creating this situation, Aira, simply blinked as if she was completely unaware. Most likely she really didn’t know anything.

Lately, I’ve often wondered if Aira really knew nothing or if she’s simply acting that way.

Then Countess Redni spoke up, as if trying to dissolve the awkwardness.

“My apologies. I will make sure to educate the maids more thoroughly… The mood has become a bit gloomy, no? Shall we call in some musicians?”

Aira let out a soft chuckle at her suggestion.

“If it’s entertainment, we have our court entertainment officer. Theo always finds a way to amuse and entertain me. Theo, show us what you can do.”

Me, suddenly?

This felt like a new employee being told by their boss, “Hey, show us your skills!”

As everyone’s eyes focused on me, a wave of embarrassment hit. Still, I couldn’t just back out with, “I don’t have anything prepared.”

“Then, could I get a piece of waterproof paper? Something like parchment made in Palladar would be ideal. Do we have any on hand?”

I made the request and soon received a piece of paper. Taking it, I placed it in my mouth and began chewing on it. The people watching were naturally confused.

━What’s he doing now?

━… I don’t know. He’s eating paper!

━No, no, look closely! He’s folding the paper… inside his mouth!

Someone figured it out.

Indeed, I was folding the paper inside my mouth using my tongue, teeth, and lips flexibly.

When training for spell incantations, I often practiced controlling my mouth. My skill in folding paper with my mouth was so impressive that even Archmage Hynax was amazed.

I think I’m pretty good at it too.

“Ah.”

Finally, I opened my mouth wide, revealing the finished product to everyone.

━He folded a paper crane with his mouth!

━Is that magic?

━It’s magic! The Demon Monk’s magic!

The reaction was better than I expected. Just then, someone shouted.

━Make a turtle next!

A turtle?

“A turtle would take a bit more time, but before that, I need to step out for a moment. Please excuse me.”

I had a feeling Elga’s patience was about to run out.

* * *

I stood on the deserted balcony, letting the breeze cool me for a moment. The mood in the banquet hall seemed to have lightened considerably, thanks to my earlier efforts.

━Look at that! The tail is glowing! I’ve never seen an imp with a glowing tail before!

━Everyone, give a round of applause for Best Comrade Marmar…!

It seemed the imps were putting on some kind of performance. I was curious about what Marmar and her friends were up to, but I couldn’t go and check.

“Hey, Theo.”

Elga was approaching from a distance.

She probably also made some excuse to step out for a while.

Once she reached me, she gazed at the glowing flowers and the garden below the balcony.

“Hey, explain what’s going on. Why are the Draco twins split into what looks like two actual twins? Was that another one of your magic? I can’t even tell which one’s Mirna and which one’s Narmi.”

“It will take a while to explain. But anyway, Elga-nim, I’m really glad and happy to see you again.”

I gently held the tip of Elga’s left pinky finger. The warmth of her touch, felt for the first time in so long, was slightly higher than what I had imagined during those countless nights.

That subtle warmth made our meeting feel more real. Of course, Elga quickly pulled her hand away.

“Hmph. Your words flow so smoothly. It seems like you’ve been doing just fine without me. You look like you’re having a good time.”

“……”

“When did things get like that with Professor Stella? You, you did it with Professor Stella, didn’t you?”

A full-force verbal fastball came straight at me. Staggered by the impact, my mind went blank for a moment. As always, Elga never holds back or sugarcoat things.

I wanted to answer right away, but…

I saw Mirna approaching us from a distance.

“I figured I shouldn’t leave you two alone for too long. So, what were you two talking about?”

In response to Mirna’s calm voice, Elga spoke up.

“We were talking about Professor Stella. I was asking whether he and Professor Stella did it together. He was about to answer, but then you showed up. So, go ahead and answer. I have a right to know.”

Well, everyone has the right to know.

So I answered honestly.

“Yes, we did. We do it everyday.”

Elga’s expression twisted in a deep frown hearing my reply.

With her face scrunched up as if she had a headache, she closed her eyes and then pressed her temples with her thumb.