Hastora returned to Duke Trian's residence. Sera, who was sitting on the veranda, noticed Hastora's arrival. She quickly rose from her seat and approached him.
"Where have you been?" Sera asked, her curiosity evident in her voice.
"Just enjoying the cool night air," Hastora replied, trying to conceal the events that had just transpired.
Sera raised her eyebrows, her gaze sharp and suspicious. She held her chin, her mind working hard to unravel the secrets Hastora was hiding. She slowly circled him, her eyes never leaving the young man.
"You seem to be under suspicion," Zarafel said, his voice low but piercing.
"Huh... how can we get out of this situation?" Hastora asked, his anxiety evident in his tone. He was desperately trying to find a way out of this increasingly tense situation.
"I don't know," Zarafel replied briefly, his voice flat and devoid of any hint of hope.
The tension continued to rise. Sera still stared at Hastora with an unwavering gaze of suspicion. She even examined Hastora's clothes in detail, as if searching for evidence that could expose his lies.
Hastora began to feel uncomfortable. Sera wouldn't stop staring at him with that suspicious look. She even inspected every inch of his clothes meticulously.
"This is starting to get annoying," Hastora muttered with a flat expression. His flat expression had always been his strategy for concealing his true abilities and thoughts. Even though Sera was scrutinizing him so carefully, she didn't find anything suspicious. This was due to Hastora's flat expression, which effectively masked any trace of suspicion.
"That's enough, isn't it?" Hastora asked Sera, his voice calm but firm.
"Hmmm... you don't seem to be lying. Alright, let's go inside," Sera invited, pulling Hastora's arm to enter the residence.
"Hey Hastora... why don't you just stay at your uncle's house?" Zarafel asked, his curiosity resurfacing.
Zarafel's question piqued Hastora's curiosity. He sensed that Zarafel was thinking of an interesting idea.
"Just get to the point," Hastora requested, wanting to know the core of Zarafel's question.
"You're quick to understand, aren't you... I mean, why don't you stay at your uncle's house? If you stay there, you can act more freely because you won't be restricted by your parents."
Zarafel's idea was brilliant, an idea that had never crossed Hastora's mind before. By staying at his uncle's house, he would have greater freedom. Especially since his uncle's house was in the capital, he could freely go to the great forest and hunt the various monsters that lived there. He could also ask for the mana necklace that could maximize his mana usage and increase his magical energy by twice. He could even enter the gate using stealth magic.
"That's a good idea too... I'll take care of it later. For now, we just need to play our roles as low-ranking nobles. We'll start acting when I turn fifteen," Hastora replied, accepting Zarafel's brilliant idea.
After entering the mansion, Hastora sat in a corner of the room, observing everyone present. He had scrutinized everyone carefully, but he didn't see Baron Holmes. He suspected that Baron Holmes harbored a grudge against Duke Trian, evident from his attempt to hire someone to release monsters in the residence earlier.
"Huh... I want a cup of tea," Hastora said, rising from his seat.
"Crazy... you look so cool just now, damn!" Zarafel exclaimed, his voice filled with admiration. He thought Hastora looked incredibly cool when he stood up from his seat. He said this because Hastora looked like a very cold and authoritative man, even the noble girls who saw him seemed mesmerized.
Hastora didn't understand Zarafel's praise. He continued walking while asking about the meaning of the praise.
"What did you mean by your praise earlier, Zarafel?" he asked, his curiosity bubbling over.
"I mean, just look at the girls who—" Before Zarafel could finish his sentence, a group of noble girls who had witnessed Hastora's earlier appearance immediately approached him. They seemed to be the same age as Hastora.
"Hey, hey, hey! Will you dance with me?"
"No, no! Dance with me, I'm better at dancing than him!"
"Will you spend some time alone with me outside?"
Several of the noble girls immediately invited Hastora to join them. Not just one or two, but more than five girls approached him. Hastora realized his carelessness; he should have been more cautious in his actions.
"What are you going to do now?" Zarafel asked, as Hastora seemed to be in a predicament.
"I don't know," Hastora muttered.
Suddenly, Charlotte appeared beside Hastora, seemingly out of nowhere. Seeing this, Hastora felt that Charlotte wanted to save him from this difficult situation.
"Excuse me everyone... but Hastora has a prior engagement with me," Charlotte said to the girls, taking Hastora's arm and leading him away from the crowd.
"You've been saved by her, thank her," Zarafel said with a hint of annoyance. Zarafel was still annoyed by Hastora's plan to use Charlotte as a pawn in the future.
Charlotte led Hastora to the veranda. She seemed exhausted after running to get Hastora away from the group of noble girls.
"Are you... okay?" Charlotte asked, her breath slightly ragged.
"Yes," Hastora replied briefly.
"Hey, jerk! Don't be so short, damn it!" Zarafel shouted angrily.
"Let's sit over there," Charlotte invited, pulling Hastora's arm towards the garden chairs.
"The moon is beautiful, isn't it?" Charlotte asked, her sweet smile capable of melting the tense atmosphere.
"Yes, it is, just like you," Hastora replied with a flat expression. He said this because he wanted to manipulate Charlotte's emotions so that she would become a very useful pawn for him in the future. He had no other intention than that.
Hearing Hastora say that, Zarafel burst into laughter because he found it amusing.
"HAHAHAHAHA" Zarafel laughed heartily.
He had never seen a man as cold as Hastora say something so sweet. Meanwhile, Charlotte's face turned as red as a tomato with embarrassment. However, she didn't run away like before. She tried to fight her embarrassment. She even wanted to try flirting with Hastora with her own cheesy lines.
"Do you know what the difference is between you and the moon, Hastora?" Charlotte asked with a thin smile.
"No," Hastora replied briefly.
"The moon is cold and far away, but you... you're cold but close to my heart." Charlotte's cheesy line made her smile widen.
Hastora's cheeks suddenly flushed, and he immediately lowered his head. He was really embarrassed, even though he had never felt this way when Kelara flirted with him 20,000 years ago. But now, he felt so embarrassed by the flirting of an eight-year-old girl. Hastora kept wondering about it in his mind. Zarafel, hearing Charlotte's cheesy line, immediately shouted in glee and laughed hysterically at the sight of Hastora's embarrassment. He thought this was a rare moment that would never be forgotten.
"AAAAAAA that's so sweet! HAHAHAHA, look how funny this is. A great demon lord is embarrassed by the flirting of an eight-year-old girl?" Zarafel laughed hysterically at the sight of Hastora.
Charlotte realized that she had just uttered sweet words. Her face turned crimson, but she didn't lower her head. She stared at Hastora, who was embarrassed, with eyes that sparkled with hope. She hoped that Hastora liked her cheesy line.
Hastora was still very embarrassed to hear those words from Charlotte. He tried to fight his embarrassment, but he couldn't.
"Hey hey Hastora... give up, you've lost to her. Didn't you melt after hearing her cheesy line?" Zarafel said with a mischievous tone.
Hastora closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm his mind. After a minute of trying, he finally managed to calm his mind. He immediately turned back to Charlotte. Charlotte was staring at him with eyes that sparkled with hope.
"Praise her, damn it, why are you just standing there?" Zarafel said casually.
"That was good... not bad. That's a pretty good cheesy line," Hastora praised her.
Hearing this, Charlotte looked very happy and smiled widely.
"Thank goodness," Charlotte said, smiling broadly at him.
Hastora suddenly felt a very familiar energy from Charlotte. It was as if he had often interacted with this energy. He immediately told Zarafel to analyze Charlotte.
"Zarafel... analyze her, I want to see her information," Hastora commanded.
"Eh? What for?" Zarafel asked curiously.
"Don't ask so many questions, quickly analyze and see the information about her."
"Alright, wait a minute. €¥{¢$$$#¥{}€{}, Sorry, but I can't analyze her."
"What?"
Hastora was startled after hearing that. There was something strange about Charlotte; he could feel a very familiar energy from her. His curiosity grew even more after realizing that Zarafel couldn't see information about her. Hastora kept wondering in his mind.
"Who is she?"