Chapter 53 : Chapter 53
Chapter 53. Utter Humiliation
Logaris woke in the midst of a splitting headache that felt as though it were about to crack his skull apart.
He opened his eyes to see an unfamiliar, luxurious ceiling above him.
A finely carved crystal chandelier. A gilded dome painted with elaborate murals. Those intricate patterns twisted into a tangled mess inside his not-yet-fully-awake mind.
This was not his laboratory. It was not his room either.
Logaris sat up. The movement disturbed the blankets, and it also disturbed the other person beside him.
He froze.
Sylvia.
She was sleeping on her side. Her silver-white long hair spread across the pillow, with a few strands draped over his arm.
Her sleeping posture was utterly defenseless. One of her hands was even resting on Logaris’s waist, and her body was almost pressed against his.
Logaris’s brain stopped working.
His eyes widened as he stared at the scene before him. His expression went from dazed, to shocked, to horrified in the span of three seconds.
What exactly had happened last night?
He desperately tried to recall it, but his mind held only broken fragments.
Wine.
A great deal of wine.
Sylvia forcing wine down his throat.
And then… they seemed to have argued?
What had they argued about again?
Whether mages or knights were stronger?
Logaris closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Calm down.
He had to stay calm.
He forced himself to analyze the situation rationally.
Step one: check his clothes.
He looked down.
His black research robe was still on him. Although it was wrinkled like a dried, shriveled vegetable, every button was still in place.
His necktie was crooked, but it had not been torn off.
Then he carefully shifted his eyes to observe Sylvia.
Her riding jacket had been removed and set aside. The white shirt beneath it was slightly disheveled, but the buttons were still intact.
Logaris let out a breath of relief.
He felt as if he had just survived the bombardment of a seventh-tier forbidden spell.
But immediately afterward, an even greater wave of embarrassment swept over him.
He and Sylvia had slept in the same bed, and in an extremely improper position at that. If anyone saw this…
Countless scenes of utter social ruin flashed through Logaris’s mind in an instant.
No.
He had to leave immediately.
He began to move, every action incredibly gentle, afraid of waking Sylvia beside him.
First, he slowly lifted the hand she had resting on his waist and moved it aside little by little.
Then he started inching toward the edge of the bed, each movement cautious to the extreme.
At last, he reached the bedside.
He drew a deep breath and prepared to get off the bed.
But at that very moment, Sylvia turned over.
Logaris instantly stiffened. His entire body became motionless, as though he had been struck by a petrification spell.
Holding his breath, he stared fixedly at Sylvia.
Fortunately, she had merely changed positions and showed no sign of waking. Logaris resumed moving.
He climbed off the bed with both hands and feet, looking exactly like a guilty thief sneaking away from the scene of a crime.
His glasses had even slipped crookedly to one side of his nose, but he did not dare spare the effort to straighten them.
Finally, both his feet touched the floor.
He stood up and looked back once at Sylvia lying on the bed.
Then he turned and rushed for the door at the fastest speed of his life.
Open the door. Rush out. Shut it again.
The entire sequence was completed in one smooth motion, and his retreating figure radiated haste and misery.
The moment the door closed, Sylvia slowly opened her eyes on the bed.
The tips of her ears were tinged with a suspicious red, and her silver-gray eyes were full of complicated emotions.
She had actually been awake for quite some time already. As a fifth-tier knight, her constitution far surpassed Logaris’s.
But she had not opened her eyes, because she had not known how to face this situation either.
So she had no choice but to pretend to be asleep and let Logaris flee the scene in a flustered panic.
Sylvia sat up and looked at the now-empty doorway, the blush still not faded from her face.
“Esmeralda.” She spoke through gritted teeth.
The shadow in the corner twisted.
Esmeralda’s figure slowly emerged. Her arms were folded, and a knowing smile hung on her face.
“Good morning, Your Highness.”
“After I got drunk…” Sylvia’s voice carried a dangerous edge. “What exactly happened? Why was Logaris in my bed?”
Esmeralda’s smile widened.
She strolled slowly to the bedside, her eyes full of amusement.
“What else could have happened? Your Highness, you and Professor West… naturally did what drunk people are supposed to do.”
She deliberately drew out her words, her tone full of suggestive ambiguity.
“What?!”
Sylvia was struck as if by lightning.
Her whole body froze.
Her mind immediately began conjuring all kinds of chaotic images beyond her control.
Those scenes had never happened, but her imagination had already spiraled completely out of control.
Sylvia’s cheeks instantly flushed so red they looked ready to drip blood. Pressing a hand to her forehead, she let out a despairing groan.
“I… how could I…”
She felt as though all the dignity she possessed as the Governor of the Northern Territory had shattered into powder.
If that kind of thing had really happened…
How was she supposed to face Logaris? How was she supposed to face herself?
Seeing that her princess was truly on the verge of collapse, Esmeralda finally stepped forward with a laugh.
She gently patted Sylvia on the back, the movement as tender as it had been when Sylvia was a child.
“All right, all right. I was teasing you.”
Sylvia jerked her head up, her eyes filled with disbelief.
“Last night, the two of you just had an argument, and then you both fell asleep together.” Esmeralda explained with a smile. “I was the one who threw both of you onto the bed. None of your clothes were removed. It was all perfectly innocent.”
Sylvia let out a long breath of relief. She felt as though her soul had finally returned to her body.
But immediately afterward, from the deepest corner of her heart, there arose the faintest trace of disappointment, so slight that even she did not want to acknowledge it.
She shot Esmeralda an annoyed glare.
“You… you did that on purpose? You were trying to scare me?”
“I could not help it.” Esmeralda shrugged. “Your Highness, I have watched this awkward tension between you and little Loga for years. If I did not tease the two of you once in a while, I would die of internal injuries from holding it in.”
Sylvia’s cheeks were still red.
She turned her head away, unwilling to let Esmeralda see her expression.
“Prepare the washing things.” she said coldly. “I am getting up.”
Esmeralda smiled and nodded, then melted back into the shadows and vanished.
Sylvia sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the empty room.
She raised a hand and gently pressed it against her chest.
Her heart was still beating very fast.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
“Sylvia, what are you even thinking?” she scolded herself inwardly.
Then she stood up and began straightening her clothes.
An hour later, Sylvia had changed into a neat white riding uniform and was sitting in her study, handling documents.
Her expression had returned to its usual calm and authority.
A servant stood before her, respectfully reporting the schedule for the rest of the day.
“Your Highness, this afternoon Miss Helena, the leader of the Holy Light Envoy investigation group, hopes to meet with you.”
Sylvia looked up, her gaze calm.
“Helena? That ‘Blade of Holy Judgment’?”
“Yes.” The servant nodded.
Sylvia fell silent for a moment. This meeting would probably not be a peaceful one.
“Arrange it.” she said flatly. “Two o’clock this afternoon, in the reception room.”
“Yes.”
The servant withdrew.
Sylvia remained seated in her chair, her gaze falling on the snow outside the window. Winter City was still buried beneath unending snowfall.
The thick snow covered the entire city, and she suddenly remembered the frantic, miserable commotion Logaris had made when he fled earlier.
That genius archmage, who was always so calm and self-possessed, had looked as flustered in that moment as a child who had done something wrong.
She could not help smiling.
Then she shook her head and drew back her thoughts.
“There is still real work to do,” she told herself.
Yet deep in her heart, that faint, nearly imperceptible disappointment never fully disappeared.