"Well, that was awkward..." Soul said as Selena finished her lunch.

After seeing Selena's empty room, instead of questioning, the maids quickly found an extra table and chair. It was not sure whether they did not care or they were frightened by the fireplace poker in Selena's hand.

Before they left, Selena assured them that the room will be back to normal in an hour and the maids simply accepted and left.

"I indeed have some good maids..." Selena thought as she brought out all the furniture and placed it back. The ability to not gossip about your superiors can be considered rare among maids and when they simply accepted and left, Soul checked them to see if they were lying and it seems that they were telling the truth.

"This doesn't count as scanning a beautiful lady, by the way...!!" Soul interjected Selena's thoughts.

Selena chose to ignore him and picked up the book, Gluttony again.

Through various experiments, she has grasped the general concept of how the book works.

Each page is capable of storing only one item. So counting the total pages except for the first page, Selena can store 499 things in the book.

However, there is a workaround around it. By keeping things inside the items and then absorbing the item also works. For example, she can put clothes inside a closet and put the closet in a page.

But it seems the book can't store living things. She tried placing a butterfly she caught in the book but the page didn't react at all.

So far, the book has been able to absorb any item regardless of its size and/or weight. Selena wanted to try putting the mansion in the book but quickly gave up the idea as it was as good as saying, "Look at me, I have a magic book that can store literally anything that isn't alive."

"I can just imagine some bad guy's expressions when he threatens you with a sword and you literally drop a house on them." Soul chuckled.

"Hmm... The Book is indeed amazing. I should make a special bag for it which will allow me to take it wherever I need it without drawing attention to myself." Selena replied.

"But it will draw attention..." Soul responded. "The book may be invisible but it still has weight and takes space. A bag with nothing inside but still holding weight and taking space will arise doubts."

"I know..." Selena rubbed her temple in thought. "If only there was a simpler way to carry the book around..." she thought. But before she could think deeply about it, the book glowed on its own.

"Eh? What the---" Selena was taken aback as the light from the book wrapped itself around her wrist.

After that, the book started shrinking at a visible pace until it was the size of half a thumb. Its bookmark, which is a platinum chain extended and wrapped around itself and wore itself on Selena's wrist.

"This... It transformed into a bracelet?" Selena was dumbfounded. The platinum chain bracelet had put itself on Selena's Left Wrist and the book hung at the bottom like a keychain.

"Okay... this book is pretty cool..." Soul was awed. It not only stored items but had the ability to disguise itself.

"Hmmm..." Selena had a thought. She put out her left arm and said, "Fireplace Poker...!!"

With a glow and a ringing sound, the Fireplace poker materialized above Selena's Left hand and she grabbed it as it fell.

"Store...!!" Selena commanded again and with the same method, the poker vanished from her hand, possibly going inside the book.

She then placed a finger on the table and commanded Store again. The table quickly vanished and the items kept on it clattered on the ground.

"DDUUUUDDDEEEE.....!!! THAT IS LIIITTTTT...!!" Soul yelled excitedly. He used to think that he was the most awesome weapon in the world but the Book did not pale in comparison at all.

Selena did not show it but there was excitement in her eyes too. Soul's mental storage capacity and Gluttony's Physical storage capacity had already turned her into an existence that would be feared by many.

"However, I still lack physically..." Selena muttered to herself. The world was a cruel place, she was one of the people who were very aware of that. Soul and Gluttony do make her formidable, but they don't provide any fighting prowess. In a Physical Confrontation, Soul can guide her at most but she would have to battle the enemy herself. Aristocrat women rarely learn combat arts unless their family is army oriented. However, in Selena's case, someone was after her. Though it did not get physical yet, there was no way of knowing whether that person would stoop to that level or not. The Red Bracelet incident made her first think that the entire Booker Manor was the target, but now, after Claire Walker's incident, she was confident that someone was targeting her personally and she still did not know who it is.

"Guard Rhys..." Selena suddenly thought, "Soul, it was your suggestion to have him as my personal guard. Do you also think that someone is after me personally?"

"Of Course, after that bitch's butchering of your mind, how can I not be sure?" Soul exclaimed and continued, "However, there was one more reason to have you hire him."

"Oh?" Selena raised her eyebrows.

"That guy may be old, but his physical abilities are no joke. Of all the guards and soldiers I have come across, that guy felt extremely dangerous." Soul replied.

"He's that strong?" Selena asked.

"Not just physically, I have yet to see magic in combat but I do know of the mist that surrounds magic items. The people of this world have the mist around them too. If my guess is correct after reading all those books from the library, the mist I refer to is actually Magic Aura." Soul continued.

"Magic Aura of each person differs from what I have seen. The Aura of each person has a different color depending on the elements they control. The weaker their magic is, the thinner the aura. Similarly, the color of each element has different shades depending on their potential in magic. For example, if a person has a thin red mist around him, his current capabilities are subpar, but if the shade if the mist is bright red, then he has the potential to become stronger. A Darker shade usually means low potential."

"What I have been describing so far is potential and overall magic capacity, but there is one more thing that tells me if a person is strong in magic, and is the movement of the Aura."

"Movement of the Aura?"

"The Aura is like a smoke that revolves outside a person's body in an erratic way. However, depending on how much one trained their magic, the aura can revolve at a more stable pace. The steadier the pace, the higher their magic was trained."

"What do you mean by steadier?" Selena asked.

"Think of it this way, try drawing circles on a paper. However, the first time doing it, you will realize that the circles are uneven and may differ in size. However, if you ask a trained artist to do the same, he would be able to draw the circles perfectly and without changing the size of the other circles. That is what I meant by steadier. The magic revolves around a person at a specific speed. However, I can't say more without actually witnessing Combat magic."

"So Guard Rhys's magic is...?"

"Extremely steady. Even more than your Father." Soul replied.

"More than my Father? That isn't right, didn't he say he was just an ex-soldier from the Stone Spears Squad, unless---" Selena suddenly paused.

"He... isn't from the Stone Spears..." Selena muttered under her breath.

"Really? Why would he lie?" Soul pondered.

"The only reason he would lie is to hide his true status and squad. If I have to guess, he must belong to... the Blood Sparrows."

"Blood Sparrows?"

"An extremely strong squad that once existed. It used to be one of the most influential sections of the army. However, its general was found colluding with the enemy so the Squad was disbanded and its soldiers transferred to other squads under different names to avoid distrust among them and normal soldiers."

"If that's true... then my decision was right. Make him your secret combat teacher." Soul replied.

"Combat Teacher?" Selena was shocked at Soul's proposal.

"You can't be expecting one guy to always protect you, right? You don't know the capabilities of your enemies and what they will reserve, to take you down. So, you need to get some combat experience. Plus, I am sorely lacking in Combat Magic information, so it would be great if we can experience it ourselves."

Selena nodded at that. He was right. She didn't want to depend on someone else entirely for her safety. Even though she did not have magic, she was healthy and had a fit body. With some combat experience and Soul's radar, she may stand a chance to at least defend herself in critical moments.

Knock, Knock...!!

Someone knocked on the door which brought Selena out of her thoughts.

"Yes...?"

"My lady, er... Young Master Grant has come here and he wishes to talk to you." A maid quivering voice could be heard from the opposite side of the door.

"Grant...?! Grant Johnson...?!" Selena narrowed her eyes in fury as the face of her ex-fiancé surfaced inside her head.

"Why is that asshole here?" Soul asked angrily.

"The Royal Court Case...!! It's in a few days. I think he is here to bargain..." Selena replied.

"My lady...?"

"Hmm... take our guest to the Drawing room and serve him tea. I will be there in a moment." Selena replied to the maid.

"That's... okay..." the maid replied and went away.

"Why are you meeting him? Just like that darn Baron Turner, he is visiting after making sure that your parents aren't here." Soul asked.

"I am curious..." Selena calmed down as she made sure she was proper and went out of the room.

"Curious?"

"Hmm... Considering everything that has happened, Grant should not have any cards left, and he definitely isn't here to beg to me after what happened with Baron Turner, so I am curious to see what he is bringing to the table to convince me." Selena replied as she called for Guard Rhys.

"My Lady..." Guard Rhys bowed after coming in. He was wearing the typical Guard Armor of the Booker Manor.

"I am meeting with someone. Stay by my side. I doubt things would get physical but I rather not take that risk." Selena replied as she motioned Rhys to follow her.

Ccreeaaakkk...

The door of the Drawing room was opened and what Selena saw upon entering was a restless Grant pacing back and forth in the room.

Selena looked down, and it seems he didn't even touch the tea. In fact, the teapot and cups were kept on a faraway table by Grant. It seems he had heard of Selena's Cup throwing skills.

Selena looked behind Grant and there was a guard with him. He was twice the size of a normal person and had a hardened face. He was wearing Johnson Manor's guard armor but it did not seem to fit him properly as if he was wearing an armor that was not made for him. This made Selena doubt whether he actually was a guard from the Johnson Manor.

"Meh... He's strong, but nowhere near Rhys. He's not a threat." Soul said after assessing the guard behind Grant with his Radar.

"Is there anything on them?" Selena asked.

"Umm... Oh? There's no record crystal or anything magical, but he does have a paper with something very interesting written on it." Soul replied.

"What is it?" Selena asked.

"Ha Ha...!! You better hear it from himself...!! It's the hidden card that you were curious about."

"Oh?" Selena raised her eyebrows. 'It seems we are in for another show', Selena thought.

She raised her head to face Grant who looked slightly disheveled and unkempt. It seems the stress of the Case was getting to him. She bowed slightly as she began talking.

"Greetings... Young Master Grant, how can I help----"

"I will marry you..." Grant suddenly interjected.

"Eh?" Selena froze. Of all the things she thought Grant would say, she did not expect him to say this.

...

...

Utter Silence.

"What... did you say?" Selena asked as she looked down at her feet, hiding her expressions.

"I..." Grant's eyes lit up. He thought Selena was looking down because she was either happy or embarrassed.

"I will marry you...! I admit I made a mistake and I will make a public announcement taking all the blame. I hope that you will let bygones be bygones and think about the future. I will never approach Patricia ever again and I promise I will never hurt you for the remainder of my life." Grant hastily made his stance.

He had no other choice. With Duke Rant teaming up with the Marquis and along with Princess Rose's report, Grant and the entire Johnson manor was doomed. After this, the Johnson manor would be ridiculed among the Aristocrats and not to mention, the financial devastation that threatened to even take the clothes from their backs. The only way around it was to re-establish the engagement. Once it was done, the Case would be meaningless. They would still have to face Duke Rant but with Marquis Booker on their side, things may ease up.

While Grant was having these thoughts, a sudden sound broke his concentration.

"He he he..."

Grant jolted and looked at Selena who was visibly shaking at this point.

"Lady Selena, are you..." Grant thought she was shivering with joy but what happened next, made him wish to die.

"AHH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA....!!"

Selena tilted her head up and laughed resoundingly. Her laughter echoed in the room and penetrated deep inside Grant's soul.

The laugh wasn't one of happiness but sounded more like mocking. She held on to her stomach as tears came down from her eyes as the ground shaking laughter continued.

Grant was enraged. He clenched his fists and shouted at Selena.

"WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING...!?"

Selena could barely control her laughter as she spat out the following words.

"Why... Haha ... Why shouldn't I laugh?" Selena replied as a never before seen smile was etched on her face. However, the smile did not reach her ice-cold eyes and it made her smile look threateningly frozen. She continued talking with that smile which made Grant almost vomit blood out of pure rage.

"Aren't jokes supposed to be laughed at, Grant?"

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