Chapter 40: 2★ 'Ambitious' Charlotte Cavendish

I watched as Charlotte confidently climbed the stairs ahead of me.

Her lightweight robe clung tightly to her figure, accentuating the sway of her hips.

Seemingly aware of my gaze, she glanced back at me with a coy smile. The gentle storyteller who cared for children seemed to have vanished, replaced by a coquettish young noblewoman skilled in captivating the hearts of men.

As we ascended past the second floor, where Han Se-ah had received her mission, and reached the third floor, I noticed Charlotte's steady breaths and the ease of her movements.

With practiced grace, she opened the door to a laboratory.

Charlotte entered naturally while the maid, Mari, waited outside.

"Please come in. She won't be joining us," Charlotte invited me.

"Is this a private matter?" I asked.

"Yes, a very personal conversation. Not even my personal maid is privy to it."

Mari let out a small sigh, her blue hair bobbing slightly. She glanced at me, her cold gaze tinged with a hint of worry and curiosity.

I wonder what's on her mind.

I stepped into the laboratory.

The room, filled with papers and books, resembled more of a noble's private library than a mage's study.

A large, plush chair was pulled back, and Charlotte, now comfortably seated, gave me a playful wink.

"Sir Roland, your name seemed familiar. Although we just met, it turns out we weren't entirely strangers."

"Do you mean when your father came to see me?"

"No, it's a far more intimate connection. My etiquette instructor happens to be Lady Zoe from the capital."

Her words held a confident tone, as if she was sure I would understand.

She lazily leaned back in her chair, her foot gently pushing it back.

Then, she abruptly took off her shoes and lifted her legs onto the chair.

Zoe, Lady Zoe… A busty widow from the capital immediately came to mind.

There was an incident where a noble, overconfident and underprepared, led a small group of knights to subdue a monster.

The issue was, among the wandering monsters, there was an Ogre—a powerful creature.

The nobleman and his knights, having anticipated only goblins or orcs at most, returned as mush.

The ogre, of course, was reduced to a bloody mess like the knights by my hands, its body battered from ankles to skull.

As for the widowed lady who had lost her husband, she chose an adventurer soon to depart to comfort her in her grief.

"Ah, Lady Zoe, such a nostalgic name."

"Is it only the name you find nostalgic?"