Chapter 73: A Rom-Com Style Development

Ever since Moers had revealed his peculiar inclinations in front of Magiona, she hadn’t spoken a single word to him. The poor little black dragon could only drown his sorrows in drink, clutching a bottle and languishing in some corner of the manor every day. As for this lovelorn soul, Ruby had nothing more to say—he could only blame Dragoon for being too playful.

“Ruby, do you think there’s anything else that needs to be added?”

Recently, Tinasha had been spending more time with Ruby. Although the launch of the Duel King card game was still some time away, the necessary preparations could not be neglected. The allure of rare cards would inevitably incite crime, so it was vital to stipulate in the law what kind of offense it was to seize another’s cards.

“There’s nothing else to add. Let me summarize: First, any cards obtained from purchased packs are ownerless and may be bought, sold, or traded. To use them, you must imprint them with your own magical signature using a resident’s stone. Stolen or robbed cards cannot be used. Anyone caught will face a prison term of at least three years, and in particularly serious cases, the death penalty. If you want to acquire a card from someone else, it must be through a duel at a battleground provided by the Royal Magical Society. The winner may select one card from the loser, but the challenged party may refuse. The final right of interpretation belongs to the royal authorities.”

Ruby had never imagined that one day he would be drafting a legal template for an empire, but he took the task seriously. To deter would-be criminals at the outset, he made the laws especially stringent. After all, who would risk three years in prison for stealing a useless common card? As for truly rare cards, ordinary people were unlikely to obtain them. If someone did manage to draw one, they’d either sell it or lose it in a duel, and the card would eventually end up in the hands of the elite.

“Alright, let’s go with that for now.”

As Tinasha listened to Ruby, she quickly jotted down his words on a sheet of magic-infused paper. She couldn’t help but think that Ruby was truly wicked—his last remark was blatantly oppressive. But if that clause were omitted, countless troubles would arise.

“Huh? Where’s my magic paper?”

The green-haired princess had intended to formalize these regulations, but upon leaving the room, she suddenly felt she was missing something. She realized she’d forgotten to take the paper after entering her notes—most likely distracted by the refreshments Ruby had prepared for her.

As she turned to retrace her steps, she saw Ruby approaching, holding the item she’d left behind. Ruby’s thoughtfulness filled Tinasha with warmth, and she quickened her pace unconsciously—without noticing the object lying across the corridor floor.

“Ah!”

Just as she was about to reach Ruby, Tinasha tripped and, losing her balance, toppled onto him, knocking him to the ground. Her head, propelled by inertia, pressed downward, and her soft lips landed squarely on Ruby’s cheek.

“Waaah!”

It took Tinasha a couple of seconds on the floor to realize what had happened. Seeing her lips still pressed to Ruby’s face, she shrieked and leapt up. Glancing back in annoyance, she saw that the culprit was indeed the drunken little black dragon, sprawled on the floor, clutching his bottle and muttering to himself, oblivious to the chaos he’d caused. Tinasha could have strangled him on the spot.

“Are you alright?”

Though Ruby was the victim here, it seemed Tinasha had fared worse. Thankfully, she hadn’t worn her dreadfully heavy armor today—otherwise, Ruby might not have survived the encounter.

“I’m… I’m fine. Did you dodge just now?”

Tinasha recalled the image she’d glimpsed before falling—after she’d landed on Ruby, his first reaction had been to turn his face aside. Otherwise, she was certain she would have kissed him on the lips. For some reason, this made her feel a little indignant. Was Ruby repulsed by her? Unable to conceal her feelings, she blurted out the question.

“Would it have been better if I hadn’t dodged?”

Ruby asked in confusion, quite pleased with his quick thinking. In more open countries, friends often greeted each other with a kiss on the cheek; it was nothing. If it had been on the lips, now that would have been a real problem.

“No, no, of course not! I’m leaving.”

Though Ruby saw it as no big deal, it was different for Tinasha. The poor princess had never experienced such intimate contact with a man—not even with her two brothers. After all, this was a kiss, an act with special significance. But she had no idea how to explain this to Ruby, nor could she bring herself to try. Since they were just ordinary friends, she supposed that must be why losing her first kiss didn’t disgust her—she only wanted to flee as quickly as possible.

In the days that followed, though Tinasha didn’t deliberately avoid Ruby, she would always look away whenever their eyes met. At meals, she kept her head down. Magiona and Feloxis weren’t fools; anyone could see from Tinasha’s behavior that something had happened between her and Ruby.

To make matters worse, Dragoon would occasionally float over Magiona’s head, glowing green, making the mage girl even more irritable.

“Did you sleep with Ruby?”

Magiona finally lost her patience. Taking advantage of Ruby’s absence, she dragged Tinasha into her room and questioned her directly, not mincing words.

“N-no, I didn’t!”

Tinasha was so startled she could barely speak, hastily denying any wrongdoing.

“Did Ruby sleep with you, then?”

Now Magiona reversed the roles and continued her interrogation. Honestly, if Ruby were willing to sleep with an airhead like the green-haired princess, Magiona would have been grateful. But she doubted Ruby would do such a thing, which is why she’d saved this question for last.

“No, it’s not that either!”

“Then why have you been acting like this the past few days?”

“Nana, please, don’t ask anymore…”

Tinasha was on the verge of tears. Even though she’d tried (or thought she’d tried) to hide it, she had still given herself away. Now, being questioned by her beloved Nana, she felt as if she were the unfaithful heroine in some melodramatic novel—racked with guilt and shame.

“Spit it out!”

The mage girl had no patience to comfort a fool. She grabbed Tinasha’s cheeks with both hands, forcing a confession.

“All right, it’s just that…”

Driven to her wits’ end, Tinasha finally surrendered and recounted how she had accidentally kissed Ruby the other day.

“What? You’re making such a fuss over that?”

Magiona looked at her with utter disdain. This was hardly even worthy of idle gossip, yet Tinasha had been brooding over it all this time.

“A fuss? That was my first kiss!”

“Oh, please. How much is a first kiss worth? Besides, it wasn’t even on the lips. You’re still single, so I don’t see why you care so much. Look at Ruby—he doesn’t.”

“Well, of course he doesn’t. He was the one being kissed. I’m the one who lost out, right?”

“You really are… Here, did I lose out?”

With that, Magiona planted a kiss on Tinasha’s cheek and then asked the question. But the green-haired princess was too stunned to reply, her mind reeling from the realization that Magiona had kissed her. She stood there in a daze.

“Hey, come on, really?”

Seeing that Tinasha had fainted on her feet, Magiona could only shake her head. Was her own charm really that overwhelming? Or was Tinasha just hopelessly naïve?

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