The magic cards I made are absolutely flawless!

"Don't worry, A Lei, you can trust me."

Dekan put his hand on Clay's shoulder and looked at Clay intently as he spoke.

After thinking about it for a moment, Clay nodded with some skepticism.

After all, previous collaborations with Dekan had never gone wrong, although each time it was like a bunch of bugs collided and happened to work perfectly.

As the group chatted idly, the night view outside the window gradually became more and more familiar.

A light snow was falling from the sky; it was a late winter night in the capital of Norton.

After the final two weeks of their journey, they finally returned to the city.

Many landmarks have changed beyond recognition compared to what Decan remembered of Norton King two years ago.

This also gradually made him realize once again how long he had been away this time.

The streets were already decorated for the New Year, and of course, the celebratory spirit of the end of the war had not yet subsided.

The atmosphere was designed to help them get some rest tonight so they could get together again tomorrow and have fun.

Half an hour later.

The door to the Kaixin Group's mansion was pushed open by the returning group.

Since it was late at night, everyone moved around very quietly.

For some reason, a small light was on in the living room, and Judith was sitting on the sofa reading a book.

As soon as the group entered the hall, footsteps could be heard coming from upstairs.

Tata, who had grown quite a bit taller, appeared at the top of the stairs. She stared at Dekan with wide eyes, and then her eyes gradually filled with tears.

"elder brother……"

Listening to Tata's soft mutterings, Dekan felt a pang of sadness for some reason.

He smiled helplessly and waved to Tata:

"I'm back, and I'll never abandon you again."

Meanwhile, Icardinos, standing behind Dekan, stared at Tata with a look of astonishment, as if she had finally seen a long-lost relative.

Afterwards, apart from Dekan and Icardinos, the others all collapsed onto the sofa as soon as they returned to the mansion.

It wasn't because I was tired.

I just wanted to relax on this sofa for a while and experience the feeling of being home.

Dekan also wanted to collapse on the sofa.

But he knew that once he sat down, it would be difficult to get off the sofa for a short time.

He still had to show Icardinos around her new home before he could rest.

To avoid frightening Tata, Dekan only told Tata that Icardinos was his distant cousin.

Icardinos surveyed the interior of the mansion.

Having lived in that cold palace for so long, she was clearly looking forward to the leisurely life that was about to begin.

“This workshop originally belonged to me, but I gave it to Tata. Over there is Mier’s apothecary.”

Dekan pointed to each of the important rooms as he spoke.

Icardinos nodded repeatedly.

They quickly reached the top floor.

"As for the bedroom... you can stay in this one."

Dekan pointed to a door near the end of the corridor.

Unlike Sheen, Ikatinos was unfamiliar with the Norton Kingdom, and luckily, Happy Group had an empty room right next to Tata.

"If you have any questions, just ask Tata. Let Tata teach you the precautions to take next."

After speaking with Icardinos, Dekan looked at Tata.

“Sister Icardinos is very knowledgeable. Although she always calls me teacher, it doesn’t mean she’s weaker than me. You can learn a lot from her.”

Tata nodded seriously.

For some reason, she felt an instant connection with this first-level silver-haired woman.

It's as if they've been siblings for a long time.

So Icardinos stayed on the top floor and talked with Tata, while Dekan returned to the lobby on the first floor alone.

The lobby on the first floor was much livelier than when they had just returned.

At this moment, Clay had somehow produced a set of cards and started organizing everyone to play, creating a truly festive atmosphere reminiscent of Chinese New Year.

"call--"

Dekan sighed.

He could already foresee how unreliable his new secretary would be.

I hired you to help me with my work, not to have you lead everyone in having fun!

However, just as Dekan was preparing to join,

Sudden.

The sound of a door upstairs being opened drew everyone's attention.

"Waaaaah, it's so painful! Why did I have to learn to make cards... Waaaaah, I don't want to make magic cards anymore, I never want to again in this life, waaaaah..."

A series of heart-wrenching sobs, filled with uncontrollable emotion, came from the second floor.

Then, Ice Princess was seen carrying a wine bottle, swaying as she walked out of the karaoke room.

Dekan immediately frowned. He thought that Bingxue Ji, who had the most regular schedule, was already asleep. He didn't expect that she was upstairs drinking heavily, and her face was flushed!

It wasn't just Ice Princess drinking it.

Claire, Chloe's childhood friend, followed Ice Princess out, clearly having also drunk quite a bit.

The two were still babbling incoherently in ways that no one else could understand.

At this moment, Dekan finally understood why Judith was waiting in the living room.

It turned out that two people were drinking on the second floor, and she had to stay here to keep watch.

I was indeed gone for a long time; even the Ice Princess has changed like this.

Dekan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

And after two years apart, how did Ice Princess and Claire's relationship become so good?

Those wines must have been brought by Claire, after all, the Marquis of Pryn's family is famous for producing fine wines.

During Decan's entrance exam, Professor Arno lost a bottle of wine personally given to him by the Marquis of Prin because of a bet with the dean.

however.

Upon noticing Dekan, Ice Princess's somewhat dazed gaze seemed to lock onto her target instantly. She took steps that looked as if she might stumble at any moment, and rushed down the stairs as if she were swooping down.

She approached Dekan and observed him more closely.

Whether she became more lucid or more dazed, her eyes gradually began to redden as she looked at Dekan, who appeared before her like a dream.

"Miss Artemis..."

Dekan looked at the Ice Princess, who reeked of alcohol, and said, utterly bewildered,

"Although I don't know what you went through, I may be able to offer some insights into the psychological barriers you encountered during the card-making process."

He had heard on the way that Ice Princess had been under a lot of mental stress recently.

"..."

However, Dekan's earnest answer made Ice Princess's eyes even redder.

Her gaze at Dekan gradually turned into a glare at him, and in those silver pupils that had never shown any anger before, it seemed that she could no longer control the resentment that was about to surge out of her heart.

This inexplicable resentment made Dekan feel a little guilty.

He took a step back and glanced around at his friends on the sofa.

Everyone tacitly put down their cards and focused their attention on Dekan.

However, their expressions were all different, making it impossible to deduce the reason for Ice Princess's current state.

What Dekan saw in the expressions of a few people was sympathy for the Ice Princess and speechlessness towards him.

It's so similar to Dekan's mistake.

Dekan was completely bewildered.

He didn't do anything!

For a moment, Dekan subconsciously began to rack his brains, wondering if he owed Bingxueji money from two years ago, or if he had any outstanding wages, or if he had offended her in some way.

“Alright, Miss Artemis, I admit I was wrong.”

As everyone knows, Dekan is particularly easy to talk to when he is in the wrong.

"I shouldn't have laughed when I saw the ice dragon (slime) you made."

However, as Dekan finished speaking, Ice Princess was still staring at Dekan, her expression unchanged.

"Hmm? Isn't that the reason? Uh, I admit that the idol contract we initially signed was a bit too long. We should actually draft a new one, and the decision on whether to renew it after it expires should be on your side."

"..."

"Hmm? It's not because of that, is it? Let me think... Hmm, could it be that Teacher Cat joked last time that the letter you wrote to me sounded like a love letter, and it ended up reaching your ears...? But don't worry, I won't misunderstand. You hate me for all the things I did when I was young and reckless."

After Dekan finished speaking sincerely, he recalled how he had messed with Ice Princess's mindset after rescuing her in Tristine City. Although it felt satisfying at the time, it seemed a bit excessive now.

This time, the Ice Princess's expression finally became very strange.

Dekan was certain he had guessed correctly!

Someone leaked the information!

Seeing that the Ice Princess seemed to be in a rather bad mood, Dekan quickly added: