Kiaros usually called me Miss Namia, but referring to me as you wasn’t out of the ordinary. In fact, it wasn’t even the first time he’d done so.
And yet—this time, it felt oddly jarring.
“Jayden’s making the exact same face I did when I awakened my special ability.”
Kiaros’s unhurried, composed whisper tickled my ear.
He hadn’t let slip a secret about the Dragon’s ability out of carelessness.
It was all too deliberate—he had planned to back me into a corner from the start.
“Is there anything you’d like to say about that?”
Behind him, the giant hologram of Saint Cairo and his mother shimmered in the air, a masterpiece Jayden and the Empress had just finished crafting.
And between that glorious light, Kiaros’s quiet whisper continued.
“Namia.”
The condition for the awakening of a Dragon’s special ability—kept secret even from blood relatives, and usually realized only gradually—was trust in one’s parents.
If a child lacked emotional stability due to distrust in their parents, the Dragon power could prove dangerous to humans. That’s why the first emperor had placed a restriction on it.
As a result, some never awakened their ability at all, though such cases were never recorded.
Jayden didn’t awaken his ability until adulthood, I recalled. He only did so after discovering the Empress’s diary and interrogating the Education Minister—who’d sided with the enemy. It was only after learning the truth and realizing the Empress’s love that…
In Kiaros’s case, his mother had died giving birth to him, leaving no room for betrayal or mistrust. And his father, the emperor, had showered him with unconditional love. So naturally, he’d awakened his power early. What that power was—I still didn’t know.
I was sure Jayden would awaken his power through this event.
That had been my whole reason for planning it.
“Ah…”
I turned to look at the floating image of Cairo’s mother waving gently in the air. The event was drawing to a close.
The image, far more brilliant than what we’d practiced in the office, shimmered beautifully and then burst—pop!
***
Now’s the moment!
The Education Minister exhaled and crouched low. The final scroll—Cairo’s towering image—was going to strike the chandelier and cause a massive explosion.
It’s going to happen!
The crowd suddenly screamed.
“Waaaaaaaah!”
“Kyaaaaah!”
The roar of the audience nearly shook the entire banquet hall.
Just as planned!
The Education Minister rushed to leap away—
…Wait?
Something was wrong. No one else was running. The only one reacting was himself. Blinking, he looked back at the stage.
The final image had burst, and a cascade of beautiful fireworks now rained down like falling stars.
“Bravo! That was incredible!”
“Goodness! I’ve never seen an opening ceremony like this!”
What he’d thought were screams were actually cheers.
“Impossible!”
The Education Minister clenched his fists and cried out before he realized it. A fellow minister beside him nodded vigorously.
“I know, right? What an amazing opening! Simply unbelievable!”
Everyone laughed and clapped.
“Whew, I can see why the Tower Master would back her.”
“Has anyone else ever showcased the power of scrolls like this before?”
The Education Minister panted furiously, unable to accept what had just happened.
An accident-free, flawlessly executed event? It made no sense.
The final scroll was supposed to strike the chandelier, start a fire, cause chaos… It was supposed to go up in flames! That was the plan!
He had definitely switched the scrolls.
So why was everything intact?
Did something go wrong with the swap? No, why—
The banquet hall should’ve become a war zone, with numerous injuries. Namia, the Scroll Minister, was supposed to be dismissed immediately.
This can’t be happening… it just can’t…
His eyes darted wildly to the VIP section where Namia stood.
Brazen as ever, Kiaros had publicly asked her to be his partner, and now he was whispering sweetly to her over and over.
Completely insane. This is madness.
Just then—
…What?
Namia suddenly turned to look directly at the Education Minister. Their eyes locked—and her expression made it clear.
She knew everything.
***
It was a dazzling event—shockingly flawless in every way.
The Scroll Division’s reputation had skyrocketed overnight, and this opening ceremony would be talked about for years to come.
But despite the immense effort I’d poured into making it happen, that didn’t feel like the most important part.
“You pulled off the ceremony perfectly.”
Behind me, as fireworks sparkled, a man more stunning than the flames smiled gently, his eyes curving with warmth.
“I’ve been to countless banquets in my life, but I think this one will stay with me forever. It’s truly special.”
The light from the fireworks cast his face in a brilliant glow, enough to steal anyone’s breath.
“It’s my first banquet attending with a partner, and thanks to you, it’s now an unforgettable memory.”
Even though he’d just cornered me earlier, asking for an explanation, there was no fear—only the strange sense of being drawn in.
Of course, the reason he wasn’t pressuring me more was obvious. Someone like me? He could interrogate me whenever he wanted.
“And thank you again for what you did with the Empress and Jayden.”
His gentle voice and sincere gaze, combined with that now-familiar, clean fragrance that lingered near him, made my whole body tense up. I clutched my champagne glass tightly and took a deep breath.
“Yes…”
Trying to regain composure, I searched the room for Victor and Anastasia.
Far off, Anastasia—who’d been managing the event—was hugging other Scroll Division staff, her face full of genuine joy that the ceremony had gone smoothly.
Near me, Victor stood with the Finance Minister, surrounded by noblemen. He was laughing, saying, “See? I told you—this isn’t the old Scroll Administration anymore.” His smile was genuine.
Haa…
I tried to tamp down the conflicted feelings rising inside me.
I knew there was a mole from the start. This wasn’t unexpected.
I’d been almost certain the Education Minister would try something. So I used that assumption to set a trap.
[U-um… the banquet hall isn’t like the office, y-you know… If a scroll accidentally hits a chandelier or one of the light fixtures, it could be catastrophic…]
Using office scrolls in the banquet hall could easily result in disaster. And visually, scrolls were indistinguishable.
[I’ve moved all the office scrolls in the green box to the warehouse, so there’s no reason for confusion, right? But still, up until right before the event, keep checking the blue boxes marked for the event. A mix-up could be catastrophic.]
I had deliberately left the office scrolls in a storage room anyone could access. The event scrolls were placed in clearly marked blue boxes. If anything was swapped—it wasn’t a mistake. It would be intentional sabotage.
And just before the event, I called Victor and Anastasia to my office and gave them instructions:
[The office scrolls are in Warehouse 113. If the Empress or His Highness asks, fetch them from there.]
But after leaving the office, I told the other team members this:
[The office scrolls are in Warehouse 241. If the Empress or His Highness asks, fetch them from there.]
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