Ronan…

I'm sure Sol is setting me up for something—she's not the type to give up. When she pulled that dirty trick with Mary's ribbon, she threatened my family. She goes after the people closest to me, the ones who'd hurt me the most. Given that those are Vincent, Mary, and Ronan (and I'm sure she'd include my siblings and parents too), her malicious schemes will most likely target Mary or Ronan. She wants Vincent for herself, she wouldn't hurt him or try to ruin his reputation. And I want to believe my family is out of her reach thanks to having the crown and the headmaster on my side.

Ronan…

I don't see him at the building entrance.

I search through all the small parlors. In one of them, I find Sol with several other nobles, including what I assume are her parents, based on the family resemblance. She sees me looking and, before I can retreat, turns her head toward me and says:

"Bianca, how rude! You approach and then you're going to leave without even greeting us?"

"Sorry, I'm in a bit of a hurry. Your Graces, if you'll excuse me..."

I bow and try to leave.

"Is this Bianca, the one who's been beating you in the trials?" asks a young woman a few years older than Sol but otherwise very similar in appearance.

She must be Sol's sister, the crown prince's fiancée.

"Not for much longer. Who are you looking for?" Sol asks me with a smug smile that doesn't bode well.

I don't answer. I can't think of a polite way to tell her it's none of her business or that if she's allied herself with Damien again and done something to Ronan, she's a dead villainess.

"If it's your friend, I think he left with Count Bloodwynne. Someone sent him a letter telling him all about what happened to his poor son—how his roommate threw him out the window—and, you know, the count is the dueling champion at court. They call him the Black Death, because his curse magic includes a rare spell capable of nullifying a rival's magic."

You bitch, I think while clenching my fists, digging my nails into my palms to control myself.

I'm in the presence of her parents and the future queen. I can't lose my temper. That's exactly what she wants so the headmaster will expel me. It takes everything I have, but I don't scream at her, don't insult her, don't wrap my hands around her hateful neck and squeeze until she passes out.

(Wow, that thought sounded really visceral. Really violent. Why does Sol get under my skin so much?)

Instead, after several heartbeats, I manage to slow my racing pulse and answer with a fake smile:

"No, I'm looking for Prince Vincent."

And I leave.

I know that must have left a bitter taste in her mouth but what's killing me is not breaking into a run to check the remaining rooms.

Ronan, listen, I say mentally.

He doesn't answer.

I check another room.

He's not there.

Ronan?

He doesn't answer.

While I keep calling to him through our lord-vassal bond, I finish checking the remaining chambers.

Nothing.

Ronan isn't here and I can't locate him.

I stop in the hallway, near the last parlor I checked, and lean against the wall. I close my eyes.

I'm not afraid of what someone at a higher level might do to my friend (because Count Bloodwynne is an adult and a noble, he should have more levels). I didn't see that magic-nullifying spell in the otome game. If it really exists, we'll see if it can make the magic animating an undead troll disappear. Or ten of them. Or a zombie naga.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

No… what I fear is that Sol has achieved her goal and they'll expel Ronan. Damn. Because if they try to kill him in a duel, he's capable of defending himself with equal or greater force.

I need to find out exactly what the dueling rules are. I'll ask Darius, since he's dueling precisely for Ronan's honor.

"Are you all right?" a concerned voice pulls me from my thoughts.

I open my eyes. It's Marco.

"Yes, don't worry. I just leaned against the wall for a moment to rest."

"I was looking for your parents to say goodbye."

"You're leaving?" I'm surprised. I hadn't expected that.

"Of course, there's no reason for me to be here anymore. I'm not going to stay and hear the announcement of your official engagement."

"No, no. I don't think I explained myself well earlier. We'll enter the ball together. I… it won't be anything official yet. I wouldn't do that to you—announce another engagement here. Stay, keep your house's dignity intact, and enjoy the evening."

"Enjoy?"

"Marco, when you saw me after the dungeon, you got the wrong idea about me: I'm not that interesting. Rejection hurts, I know, and that's why it's better not to go through it alone. There are dozens of guests at this ball. You have the opportunity to make new contacts for your barony and, if you don't close yourself off, to meet interesting people and enjoy the evening."

"I can't agree with the first part, but there's truth in your last words. I appreciate the advice."

"See you soon. For my part, I'll do what I can to make sure your trip wasn't in vain. I'll introduce you to some of my friends. They're children of high-ranking nobles."

Maybe some good political or commercial contacts for the future baron will come from that. And what I don't tell him is that I can also introduce him to a certain young woman without a partner.

"See you soon, Bianca."

I leave, but not because I have somewhere to go. I walk toward the gardens. I try again, but Ronan still doesn't answer me.

I don't know what could have happened. I even open the system window and confirm that yes, Ronan is in the vassals tab.

Vassals:

Included in direct vassal tree:

Ronan Velbrun, vassal sergeant level 10, soul weaver.

Galp, vassal soldier level 8, battle warden.

Bramp, vassal soldier level 7, spearman.

Lolp, vassal soldier level 7, hunter.

Scamp, vassal soldier level 7, spearman.

All vassals by race:

1 human.

29 goblins. 1 totem, 14 warriors, 9 pregnant females and 5 children.

8 bears. 3 females and 5 cubs.

1 fire salamander.

I'm doing such a bad job! I've been so caught up that I still don't have any of those forest wolves, or orcs, or ants. The dead don't count.

And by the way, I can't make the totem a sergeant until my kingdom levels up. I guess that's why I can't see that he's level 9. And I notice that Ronan, despite being able to have 10 vassal soldiers, hasn't appointed any more for now.

Also, his goblin soldiers have specialized. I imagine that, lacking a method to interact with the system, it chose for them based on what they did most or what suited them best. What's a battle warden? I don't investigate further because I'm worried about Ronan.

Since my friend is on the list, if he's not answering me, it's either because he doesn't want to (which I doubt), or because he's unconscious or dying, or because somehow something's preventing communication between us.

I see Vincent and Mary approaching. They're walking together and it looks like they just spotted me. I head toward them too.

"Hey, Bianca," they greet me.

"Vincent, Mary, how's it going?"

Initially, I wanted to see Vincent to tell him the Marco situation was handled, but I changed priorities as soon as I found out who Ronan had been seen talking to.

"Good. And you, Bianca?" Mary asks, staring at me.

She must have noticed something's wrong.

"It's Ronan. I can't find him."

"Ronan? Has something happened to him?" Vincent asks, and I notice his shoulders and posture tense up.

"I don't know. He was seen with Damien and his father. I'm worried the latter might have tried to confront him about his son's accident."

"You're right to worry," Vincent nods. "Come on, we'll help you look for him."

Mary nods.

It seems they're both taking this very seriously, even though they don't know I have telepathic communication with my vassal and it's not working. Am I missing something?

"I've searched the gardens and the rooms set up for the event—he's not there."

"Have you searched the rest of this building or the other building?" the prince asks me.

"No."

"Then let's go. You go with Mary to one building and I'll go to the other."

"Okay, thanks."

I head off with my friend to check the other building, and Vincent goes in the opposite direction. The two of us start with the classroom area and then we'll go up to the library.

We're in one of the empty classrooms when I can't hold back anymore and ask her:

"Would you rather look for Ronan than spend time with Theodore?"

I have to say she doesn't even blush a little. She must be really worried.

"I have the whole ball to be with Theodore, and Ronan must be going through a rough time. We need to find him before he does something he'll regret."

You can tell she's been dungeon diving with us, because the problem isn't that they'll hurt him or do something to him—no, the problem is that he might do something to the baron and his son.

"Ronan knows he has to be careful and stay in control," I clarify just in case. "I've already talked to him about this."

"Really? And will he listen to you?" she looks at me hopefully.

He better, since I'm his lady, I think.

"Yes. But that doesn't change the fact that they could provoke him too much or that the baron, experienced as he is, might have some prepared spell that could catch Ronan by surprise. I won't be at ease until I see that he's okay."

"Agreed."

We keep searching.

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