33 Chapter 33: The Jaunice House

As they kept walking, the tallest building in the capital was getting more and more visible. A small man-made island surrounded by a tranquil blue lake. A white castle stood mighty on top of it, encircled by flower bushes. A white bridge was the only path which connected the dream-like castle to the world outside.

Before they reached the end of the road, which was the royal palace, they saw someone was waiting for them in front of the nearby estate. A plump young man, with freckles on his face and caramel brown hair, greeted them.

"Are you Miss Serena?" He asked.

"Yes." Rena nodded.

"My name is Ian, a servant of this house. Young Master Jean instructed me to pick you up." He gave them a warm welcoming smile.

Ian opened the gate and let them in.

All the houses encircling the palace had a history as old as the royal palace itself. And the Jaunice House was one of the closest estates surrounding the lake, proving their significant influence in the Valia Kingdom.

Although it had hundreds of years of history, it was still well taken care of. The garden was freshly pruned and the plants were placed orderly in a geometric shape, displaying an intricate knot garden. The line of lavenders grew on both sides of the pathway that led to the building. A marble fountain in front of the mansion was glimmering with water, its sound was adding a peaceful atmosphere to its surrounding. The mansion Rena visited with Senka last night felt insignificant compared to this one. Jaunice's mansion looked older but three times bigger and far more grandiose, exuding elegance and grace.

So far, the Jaunice House was truly the depiction of a high aristocratic family, an estate closed to the royal palace with a large garden and a huge mansion. When they arrived in front of the mansion, Ian opened the double door that had the Jaunice family's symbol on it.

"Welcome to the Jaunice House." He said.

Rena frowned looking at the letters carved under the symbol, True Man Embraces Pink. She thought it was an unusual family motto... Not until she directed her gaze inside the building.

She was stunned.

(What are all these pink colors?!)

The maids who greeted them wore flamingo pink maid outfits, the carpets laid on the floor were shocking pink, the curtains were rosy pink, the flowers on the vase were pink, all the pictures of the previous heads of the house had them wearing many different shades of pink, and of course, they had pink hair color. Rena wouldn't be surprised if her eyes starting to bleed pink blood.

She looked at her side, to see Mirra's reaction; her eyebrows knitted. It was her first time entering a noble house, just like Rena, she shouldn't have any idea what a noble house supposed to be, but her face clearly showed that something was off with the view in front of her. Rena looked at Senka too, but he was calm. He might have come here before.

A little girl no older than five years old peeked behind one of the maids, her curly pigtails swayed when she tilted her head, looking at the visitors with curious eyes. It was obvious that she was Jean's relative, she had pink hair and ruby red eyes like him.

Rena smiled at her and the little girl hid behind the maid again.

"Lady Luna, don't act like that. You must greet them." The flamingo maid pushed the girl's back.

Having no place to hide anymore, the little girl stared at them suspiciously, and then she shouted, "I-I'm not letting you taking Uncle Jean!"

When she turned around, she tripped on her strawberry pink dress and fell. She cried and the maids quickly tried to help her get up.

Rena tried to approach her, but one of the maids blocked her path. "Please, don't worry about this. We can handle it."

The maid signaled Ian to continue his job, so he did. "Please, Young Master is waiting inside his study room. I'll guide you there."

Rena, Mirra, and Senka followed Ian to the left side corridor. The pink carpet swallowed the sound of their footsteps, not allowing them to disturb the peaceful atmosphere.

When they arrived at Jean's study room, the door was slightly opened. Ian pushed the door and went inside. "Young Master, your guests are here."

Ian opened the door for them, allowing them to enter. Rena stepped inside the room quickly noticed the difference between this particular place and the rest of the house. The walls were made of books... No, to be exact, the wall was covered with hundreds of books, reaching up to the high ceiling. There were still more books, stacking on the floor, on the sofa, on the table. Not a single trace of pink in the room, except the silky soft hair of the man who was sitting behind the desk. His hand was busy moving on top of the parchment, just like he usually did.

Jean stopped writing and lifted his head, looking at the three who just came.

"Excuse me, I'll leave you here." Ian said.

"Thanks for your help, Ian." Rena smiled at him.

Rena wasn't aware that the young man blushed slightly receiving her smile.

"You came here faster than what I expected."

That was the first words he said after they separated for a few days. Those words made the two girls' vein popped on their face, but Mirra reacted faster than Rena.

"You! Don't you know how much trouble you cause us?! We were almost die being surrounded by Valiant Bulls, denied access to enter the city, and wasted a lot of time just to be able to meet you!" Mirra's angry voice reverberated in the room.

"You followed them on your own account. I never told you to do that." Jean's sharp tongue didn't show any sign of rust in the time being.

"Really? I never told you to do that? Is that all you can say, Pinky?" Mirra's replied wasn't losing to Jean.

Jean's face twitched, hearing the nickname he was given. "I swear I'll make you regret if you dare to call me that again."

Rena broke into a sweat hearing Jean's words, this man would truly make someone regret having to know him, he didn't know middle ground. Her hands moved, trying to cover Mirra's mouth in panic, but Mirra had launched her provocation. "Oh, yeah? Pinky?"

Mirra never interacted with Jean during their time on the ship. Actually, Frei and Rena were the only ones who interacted with him since Jean always holed up in his cabin, just like a hikikomori. Mirra had no idea Jean was not someone to be provoked.

If there was one thing everyone around Jean must know was that he hated being associated with his family color. The forbidden color was the easiest way to provoke a sleeping lion. Even the mighty Valia King must be careful when talking with him.

The moment she said that word, Mirra's lips clamped shut. Jean cast a spell on her.

"Mmmmm!!!" She stared at Jean with a glowering look. Mirra tried to hit him, but he dodged. Surprisingly, he had a good reflex.

"If you don't want me to turn you into a statue, don't approach me." He warned her.

"Jean, stop! She is half your age! Be more of an adult!" Rena shouted angrily.

"Teaching kids how to behave is the job of an adult." Jean replied Rena while his eyes fixed on Mirra.

Mirra clenched her fists tight, but she stopped approaching Jean. When she calmed down, Jean released his spell. But, the angry Mirra continued ignoring him for the rest of their talk.

Jean, ignoring Mirra as well, and then he gave them surprising news.

"Senka, I have registered you to participate in The Silver Blade Tournament. Also, Frei will be coming this evening."

He explained all the problems on the port were just to make him returned to the capital. They tried to delay him to go to Ardia Kingdom.

"The Magician Guild had informed the palace about my transfer, and after some disputes, they agreed to let me go under certain conditions. One of them is Frei must win The Silver Blade Tournament."

"I don't understand. What does it have to do anything with Senka? And why The Silver Blade Tournament???" Rena was very confused.

"I told you before, we, Valians, prefer to settle a conflict with swords, remember? It's just that my sudden transfer happened right before The Silver Blade Tournament. His Majesty thought it was a good idea to include me as a winning prize."

"W-winning prize..." A bead of sweat fell from her forehead. She saw Jean's expression turned into disgust.

(The King seems to be an easy going person...) Rena didn't dare to mutter the words.

Jean continued speaking, "As for why Senka is selected, Frei could pick any champion for him, the only requirement to participate in the tournament is the contestant must be under 20 before summer ends."

"Oh..." She took a glance at Senka. He did look younger than Jean or Frei.

As she was starting to understand the situation, she became concerned.

This matter involved her. She was studying magic under Jean, and it was because of her that Jean came to Ardia Kingdom.

"What if Senka lose?" She asked.

"Then I'll work for whoever won the tournament. And you, I'll take you wherever I go." Jean replied.

"What?! No, no, no!" She shouted the moment he said that. It sounded like an invitation to hell.

(Am I 2-in-1 package with Jean now?!!)

"Then how are you going to study magic?" His sharp upturn eyes were looking at her.

"Err, err... I can study from magic books?" She looked around her surrounding that was filled with books. Since it was Jean, all of them must be related to magic.

"You are still a beginner, don't think of magic lightly."

"I'm sure Frei won't let me go with you!"

"Then he must win the tournament. Period."

"That sounds easier to say than done..." Rena spoke in a small voice so nobody heard her.

Jean looked at Senka. "Do you have any objection?"

Senka shook his head.

Rena took a glance at Senka. She sensed a fighting spirit in his gaze. Perhaps, he actually wanted to participate in the tournament.

After the issue about participating in the tournament was dealt, Jean asked Rena about her progress with her magic. She explained to Jean about her progress and what she found lacking.

"I can cast Fireball fast enough now, although the accuracy is bad when I am moving. I can't freeze a big monster like the Valiant Bull with Icebreath but I managed to do it with smaller monsters. As for Windblade, I only tried it once."

"I see. You still need a lot of practice. Next time, don't return until you master the spells."

"Next time?!" She shouted. As expected of her teacher, Jean would not hesitate to drop her into another den of monsters.

"Oh, by the way, I have something for you." Jean took out a box from under his desk.

Rena flinched suspecting it might be another potion. But, it wasn't. He gave her a round ruby in the size of a gumball.

"What is this?" She frowned.

"That's my communication gem. Use that to contact me next time. Place your finger on it and call my name, the gem I have will receive your call."

She observed the red stone on her palm; the function reminded her of a cell phone. Her curiosity was picked, she wanted to know how he made this, but there was another thing that she wanted to know more. "Why didn't you give it to me sooner?"

"I forgot." He said it lightly, like it was a third-rate problem.

Rena gripped the ruby stone tightly like she wanted to crush it. "Jeannn!!!"

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