"Hold on…" I looked at Ren skeptically.
How could he just accept my offer so easily??
"Are you serious?"
"Sure, no cap." Ren replied with a nonchalant shrug.
"Hey, at least you should think or... Don't you feel kinda suspicious at all?"
"Why not?" he chuckled. "As a former player of Adventoria, I only know the world of Magaia beyond this kingdom. But I have zero background knowledge of the politics or how to deal with those highbrow nobles. Meanwhile, as a reader of the novel, you understand the plot and characters here better than anyone."
"Hmmm. That actually makes sense..."
"Besides," he continued, there was a hint of disgust in his voice, "with my status as the Marquess's illegitimate son, I'll probably end up being pawned off as a knight or married to some icky noble lady for appearances' sake."
"You bet!" I let out a laugh.
"Ugh! Just thinking about it makes me sick!" He cringed.
"Hey, my little sister, Chrisola, will grow into a very beautiful girl, you know!"
Ren cocked an eyebrow. "How old is she now?"
"Eight."
"Damn, gurl! Do you think I'm a pedophile, or what?" he snapped, his cheeks flushing.
"Heh! Who told you to go after my sister right now?"
"Grooming a kid until she's grown up? Nah. Hard pass." Ren shook his head hard. "Plus, from what you've said, your sister sounds like the typical pretty but boring damsel in distress. I prefer someone who is sexy, bold, and with a bit of a bite. You know, adult women."
I gave him a smirk. "Wow. I can't tell if you're normal or just a perv."
Well… honestly, I feel the same way. I'm more interested in mature, masculine, and powerful men… someone who could match me in wit and drive. But there's no way I will tell him LOL!
"Anyway, how did you manage to summon me here?" I asked Ren curiously.
"Don't ask me. I have no idea."
"What do you mean you have no idea? You were the one who did that summoning ritual, weren't you?" I pointed at the magic circle on the floor.
"Uhh… I was only attempting a summoning spell for a familiar. I didn't expect a human like you to show up." Ren admitted.
"A familiar? What kind of familiar were you trying to summon...?" I walked over to the opened book on the altar he'd created.
"H-Hey...! Wait!"
Ren tried to stop me, but it was too late as I had already seen the spellbook's contents.
"A succubus summoning spell...?" I looked at him, arching an eyebrow in disbelief.
Ren avoided my gaze, his ears turning red. "I-I was just... trying it out!"
"Are you insane? What would a kid like you even want with a succubus, let alone as a familiar?"
"I-I told you! It was just a test!" the boy sputtered defensively.
Oh, my… So he really is a perv!
"Ugh! Stop looking at me like I'm kind of a pervert!" Ren grumbled. "But... If my spell was failed, then why did you appear instead? Could it be that you have some kind of demon bloodline?"
"No way, moron!" I snapped. Though maybe, there might be a tiny bit of truth in his opinion, considering Shilien also known as the 'Demon Lady' in Twilight's Chronicle…
I scratched my neck in frustration then looked at the moonlight shining through the window curtains. "It's already late. I need to go back now."
"Relax. It's not like I kidnapped you," Ren chuckled.
"But my attendants are probably panicking and tearing the place apart looking for me. And if they report it to my father, things could get messier..."
Ren sighed and then took his spell book. He looked at the spell to find what was wrong with it.
After a while, I started to lose patience and asked him. "Have you found the problem?"
Ren closed his book and put it back at the altar. "I don't think so."
"Wait a minute… You're a FORCE EMBLEM user. Why don't you just teleport me back?"
Ren shook his head. "Not a chance. Teleportation spells are high-level magic and require a lot of mana. I can't do that yet."
"Can you try it? You said that you're a genius!" I crossed my arms, demanding responsibility.
"Well… I can try. But no guarantee it will work. What if I only teleport your clothes back?" he grinned.
I gritted my teeth.
Ugh! There's no way I'd let myself naked in front of him.
"Hmmm… Ah! I've got an idea!" Ren's expression brightened after thinking for a while.
The boy began to explain his plan to get me back to the palace, though his logic was... well, questionable.
"Are you insane? That's never going to work!" I said doubtfully after hearing his wild suggestion.
"Don't worry... This house is full of people who rely on their muscles more than their brains," he said confidently. "There's no harm in trying it. If we fail, it won't be a loss for you, but if it succeeds..." Ren gave me a mischievous smirk. "It could be something beneficial for both of us."
Against my better judgment, I nodded. "Fine." I then walked over to the magic circle in the center of the room and lay down, pretending to be unconscious.
As soon as I was ready, Ren dispelled the soundproof magic barrier in his room. The boy took a deep breath, then shouted as loud as possible, "Heeelp!! Heeeelp!!"
Within moments, his bedroom door burst open. Several servants and knights from the Marquess's mansion rushed in with alarmed expression.
"Young Master! What's wrong!?"
Acting as if terrified, Ren pointed at me who was lying motionless within the circle. "T-T-There...!"
The servants and knights glanced at each other in confusion when they saw me lying in the middle of the summoning circle, seemingly unconscious.
Not long after, Marquess and Marchioness Lazarro arrived and entered the room. "What's going on, William!? Why are you causing such a commotion?"
The Marquess was ready to yell at William, but the color of his face drained when he saw me on the floor. "P-Princess Luna!?" The man utterly shocked then rushed to Ren and gripped the boy's arm roughly. "William, what have you done!?"
"I-I was just trying out a spell, Father!"
I could hear Ren's voice sobbing slightly.
Whoa, I didn't expect the kid to be such a good actor! Interesting… I might need to learn a thing or two about acting from him.
"How many times I've told you not to use magic recklessly in this house!" the Marquess raged. He examined the magic circle that Ren had created. "This is… A summoning spell…?"
The old man turned to his subordinates with blazing eyes. "You fools! How could you leave this child alone to meddle with dangerous magic unsupervised??"
"M-M-My apologies, Sir!" One of the servants immediately bowed. "I-I heard some noises earlier, but it sounded like Young Master William was only reciting one of his incantations, as usual..."
Slap! The sharp sound of a slap echoed through the room.
Meanwhile, the Marchioness was frantically ordering the servants to check my condition. "Make sure the princess is unharmed! If anything happens to her... we'll face consequences beyond your comprehension!"
"William," the Marquess said, his voice a cold fury. "What kind of summoning spell could have possibly brought the princess here?"
Ren bit his lip, holding up the ritual book he'd used and pointing to a section labeled Forbidden Arts. "A-angel summoning spell," he lied.
Both the Marquess and Marchioness exchanged glances, clearly disturbed by the revelation. The Marquess eyed me again, looking utterly bewildered.
"An... angel...?" he murmured under his breath as if trying to make sense of it all.
The Marchioness clutched her husband's arm, her eyes glossy with unshed tears. "My dear... this is... this must be a sign!"
"Indeed," the Marquess replied, regaining his composure. "We must inform the King at once."
Just by hearing their conversation, I nearly broke character. It seemed Ren's plan was working, perhaps even better than we expected. For a moment, Ren and I exchanged a quick grin without anyone else noticing before returning to our roles.