The Prince Of Magic

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He had been close to give her a snark reply, but the mild warning look in Lord El-Melloi II's eyes dissuaded him from doing so.

Hadrian was not afraid of Reines, considering as his family was more influential and powerful than hers could ever be. There was bad blood between the El-Melloi and the Schweinorg, but the former would always cower to the command of his family, particularly due to his grandfather's presence.

But, Reines was different.

He had once traded words with her, and he was the one who was left uncomfortable most of the time. He does not like her, but he does not hate her either.

Rather, it was her personality that causes him to squirm. Not that he would openly show it.

All mages have their own bouts of eccentricity, even he was no exception.

The princess of El-Melloi, however, was quite eccentric.

He had seen her act around his former mentor, and she was prone to make weird expressions around the man, which somehow extended to Hadrian as well for some reason.

Coincidentally, just as he thought of that, the bright blonde young woman in blue began to speak.

"Hehe, still the same as ever." She grinned, causing Hadrian's eyes to narrow when she continued. "By the way, I hear you're still single?"

"And? What about it?" The Schweinorg scion asked in a low tone, slightly apprehensive where the topic was going.

"I'm looking for a husband, want to be engage to me?" Reines offered with a wide smile that implies that she was enjoying the situation too much.

"I'll have to politely decline." Hadrian said in a deadpan tone, used to the young woman's antics.

It was not the first time she proposed such a thing to him before, after all.

Curiously enough, he felt Arturia inched closer to him, their t.h.i.g.hs almost touching as she gently laid a hand on his right hand.

When he glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, he noticed that she was giving the El-Melloi heiress a stern glare. She was startled, however, when he gave her hand a soft squeeze, shifting her surprised gaze to him before looking down at her l.a.p after she met his curious eyes.

Her cheeks gaining a bit of a rosy color that he kind of found adorable.

There was something in her expression that made Hadrian feel something. He doesn't know what it was, but it was making his heart softened a bit at the sight of it.

Slowly, he reluctantly turned his gaze back to Reines and saw her looking at them with an amused expression.

Then, Reines sighed, but it was more of a show than genuine.

"Aw, such a shame. That face of yours is truly my type, you know." Reines bem.o.a.n.e.d, but the corner of her lips twitching upwards was telling of her enjoyment.

"Thank you, but I still decline. If you truly want to find a husband, I'm sure there are others who'll be more interesting for you." Hadrian said, closing his eyes briefly.

"Oh? Do you have someone in mind?" Reines asked, quirking one brow up in curiosity as she laid the teacup gently back on its saucer.

"Oh, I don't know. Perhaps Flat won't mind. He's the heir to the Escardos family, so wouldn't he be more suited for you?" Hadrian suggested in a nonchalant tone.

On the other side of the couch, Lord El-Melloi II sniggered when Reines made a face at his words, along with Charles, Caules and Svin as they were listening on the background.

"Flat? Absolutely not." Reines denied instantly, eyes half lidded as a blank expression quickly replace her earlier amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Why not?" Hadrian asked, slightly bemused by her reaction.

"It's Flat we're talking about. Do I need to say more?" Reines retorted, sending a skeptical look at his way.

From behind, a certain foolish blonde haired young man perked up at the mention of his name.

"What about me?" Flat asked from where he was seated, blue eyes wide and smiling.

"Nothing!" Reines answered before Hadrian could, giving Flat a glare.

The poor blonde to jerk back into his seat, wondering what he had done to deserve such a look.

"Go back to whatever it is you're doing." She ordered with a wave of her hand.

Hadrian smiled thinly, knowing that he was the one that won their trade-offs, something that Reines was well aware of as she turned her gaze back to him after dealing with Flat. The squinting of her eyes told him that she was dissatisfied with the outcome of their 'match'.

Knowing her, Hadrian wouldn't dream that Reines would simply end it there.

And just as he expected, the pale haired heiress's lips slowly curled into a Cheshire grin.

"Hmm… catty Schweinorg, I like it. You know, you should show this side of yourself more often. It makes you a lot more interesting than dear older brother over there, whose face is always set in a perpetual scowl." Reines commented almost absentmindedly, staring at him in fascination, as if he was a strange specimen that she wants to poke and prod with a scalpel.

The odd glint in her eyes reminded him of how a first-class scientist would appear when faced with a strange specimen that one would want to poke and prod with a scalpel.

Suppressing the urge to frown, Hadrian met her fixated gaze with a calm, stoic expression.

The slight tension as their gazes met can be felt by most observers (except Flat, who had returned to stuffing his face with pastries), but neither of their bodyguards were tense.

The retainers from both sides were already used to their behaviors towards one another.

Therefore, neither felt the need to be alert for any possible signs of danger.

Fortunately, Lord El-Melloi II interrupted before he could reply as he cleared his throat, gaining their attention as he had intended.

"As amusing as it is to see you two snipe each other, you can both continue this later on, so why don't we return to the main topic?" Lord El-Melloi II said, giving Hadrian a pointed look.

"You're no fun, brother." Reines pouted, lifting the porcelain cup to her lips.

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