Chapter 166: Love Expert Charli
“Although Charli has already found a teacher, I hope she won’t mind if I also give her some lessons when I’m free,” Peruth said with a gracious smile, one so gentle it could have been carved from a statue of a saint. “After all, I am rather proficient in light magic.”
Proficient was an understatement. If not for his genius-level talent in light magic, how could he have become a cardinal at such a young age?
In the past, if Charli had heard that Cardinal Peruth wanted to personally teach her light magic, she would have been thrilled. But now, after she had said something that felt almost like a challenge, the cardinal’s suggestion seemed more like a veiled threat of revenge.
Charli couldn’t help but hide behind her brother.
Her brother, who was cold and tyrannical when it came to teaching, pressed her back into her seat. “Alright, then. Thank you in advance, Your Excellency. Please make sure to teach Charli well.”
On the way back, Charli sat in the carriage and quietly asked her brother, “Does Cardinal Peruth know your real identity? Will he notice something unusual?”
“That’s not something you need to worry about, Charli,” Yu Mo replied. “All you need to do is focus on learning magic.”
Yu Mo had a clear plan for his sister’s future—when she should step into the spotlight, when she should gain the right status, and when she should earn fame and support…
On that bright yet inevitably difficult path, this time spent learning magic might have been the purest days of her life, when she could keep things simple and not worry about anything.
Charli looked serious. Her brother’s unconventional status was always a potential danger, and the cardinal certainly didn’t know about it.
She only had to work harder at learning magic. When she became stronger—perhaps as powerful as the cardinal—even if her brother’s identity were exposed, she could protect him!
But besides her worries about her brother’s identity, Charli had one more concern today.
She had closely observed the interaction between her brother and Cardinal Peruth, forming some suspicions about their relationship. She also felt her brother was lacking in conversational skills.
“Brother, I… I have some advice.”
“What kind of advice?”
“About your conversation with Cardinal Peruth.”
“Hmm?”
Charli’s expression was very serious. “The cardinal mentioned that you never personally told him about becoming a count. How could you just apologize like that when he complained?”
Yu Mo, seeing his sister’s increasingly animated expression—it was his first time seeing her so flustered—found it amusing and asked, “Then what should I have done?”
Charli, as if fully understanding, replied without hesitation, “Brother, you should have said, ‘I wanted to tell His Excellency in person, but I couldn’t see him. Perhaps, to His Excellency, such a small matter isn’t worth mentioning.’”
“And you could also say, ‘Since becoming a count, many people have sent me gifts, but I’ve been eagerly waiting for a gift from His Excellency. It was disappointing not to receive anything from him.’”
Yu Mo: “…”
Charli clenched her gloved hands into fists. “When the cardinal said, ‘I hear that the count is now a social figure and has caught the eye of many ladies,’ you should not have explained! You should have countered!”
She lifted her chin and, imitating her brother’s cool expression, said, “Brother should have said, ‘I can’t compare to His Excellency, who is so admired that countless ladies are willing to wait for him until dawn. In fact, the ladies always steer our conversations toward inquiries about His Excellency. But what do I know? I haven’t even been able to see His Excellency for so long.’”
Yu Mo: “…”
“Just like that,” Charli said, clearly disgruntled. “How can the cardinal blame you for not telling him about being named a count? He just doesn’t care about you!”
“It’s really unbelievable. He’s even jealous of you socializing with the ladies, as if he shouldn’t reflect on himself more!”
“Next time he brings it up, you should throw it back at him and ask why he’s complaining!”
“…Lesson learned,” Yu Mo replied. “Charli, where did you learn all this?”
Charli, snapping out of her excitement, realized she had gone a bit too far. She looked down, speaking softly, “I learned it while going to tea parties with my stepmother.”
Her stepmother flirted with her admirers in just this way.
Yu Mo seemed thoughtful. “I see.”
After a period when Peruth would vanish due to his busy schedule, he’d usually have some time off, and soon enough, Charli went to the temple with her brother to continue her magic studies.
Until her official teacher, Cardinal Croft, was available to teach her, she would receive instruction from Cardinal Peruth.
Feeling bolder with her brother by her side, Charli, carrying her study books, curiously observed the towering bookshelves in Peruth’s study.
Charli had a small desk in the corner, and the cardinal, robed, checked her progress with a visible smile. “Was it your brother teaching you before?”
It was all too familiar—most of it was the light magic he had taught someone else, only to have it taught to his sister later on.
He had once wondered why Eloren wanted to learn light magic. Unlike himself, Eloren possessed the innate magic of the night and moon, which made casting light magic more challenging and less effective for him.
He had assumed Eloren was merely curious, but it turned out he was learning it to teach his sister.
Even he couldn’t help feeling a bit envious of the care Eloren showed his sister.
“Eloren treats his sister really well,” Peruth said with a touch of admiration, glancing through Charli’s study plan, which contained notes written by Yu Mo. “But I’ve heard that you two aren’t actually related, right?”
Charli detected a subtle hint of suspicion in his words, and her hand clenched around her pen as she cautiously glanced at her brother, who was reading beside her.
Turning a page, Yu Mo noticed the different looks directed at him and spoke coolly, “Is it so strange that I care for my sister? Your Excellency seems to think I should be cold and unfeeling?”
Charli’s eyes sparkled, and she nearly cheered internally, ‘Well said!’
Peruth’s smile faltered, and he set down the notebook, his tone softer. “Of course, I didn’t mean it that way. I just feel a bit envious since Eloren has never shown such concern for me.”
Yu Mo noticed the cardinal’s feigned disappointment and also caught his sister’s excited, urging gaze. A slight smile appeared in his lowered eyes.
“Whenever Your Excellency appears, he’s surrounded by countless ladies and showered with endless words of care. I didn’t think you were lacking in concern.”
‘Well said! Exactly like that!’ Charli cheered silently for her brother, adding in a soft voice, “Brother always has to handle things on his own. No one cares for him, and I can do so little. He truly works so hard.”
The beautiful young girl’s display of pity was far more endearing than the cardinal’s act at six feet tall, surrounded by brilliant light.
Peruth observed the unrelated siblings silently, sensing something was off. Finally, he decided to keep quiet and start the lesson.
As he taught Charli, there was a hint of scrutiny in his gaze.
Was it because she was present that Eloren’s attitude toward him felt different?
This young girl, whom he’d barely considered, seemed capable of influencing Eloren. He’d need to control her, at least to prevent her from causing trouble and ruining the relationship he’d painstakingly built.
“Peruth,” Yu Mo called, closing his book and, unusually, addressing him directly by name.
Peruth met his gaze, sensing something piercingly direct in it.
“Please don’t use the same methods you employ with the ladies on Charli. Otherwise, we might face consequences neither of us wants.”
The air between them hung tense for a moment. Peruth finally took a step back, letting out a soft laugh. “Alright, of course.”
Yu Mo stood up and left. Watching him go, Peruth turned to Charli with a forced smile. “It seems Eloren is upset. I’ll just have to make up for it by giving you an excellent lesson.”
Charli quietly scooted back, putting some distance between them.
Peruth kept his smile fixed, though his eyes did not match it. “Charli, is something the matter?”
Unable to resist, Charli looked up and asked, “Since my brother is upset, why doesn’t Your Excellency try to console him?”
“….” Peruth snapped his fingers, reclining into a chair that appeared behind him. Stretching out his legs, he gave a mysterious, enigmatic smile.
Charli blinked. “Is it that you don’t know how?”
She recalled the noble ladies admiring him at tea parties with her stepmother, describing him as mature, gentle, and attentive. But seeing him now, he didn’t seem to know much of anything.
“Your Excellency, perhaps you could send my brother a small gift.”
Peruth replied, “Eloren doesn’t have any particular likes.”
Charli was surprised. “Just because you’re unsure of what he likes, you’ll send him nothing at all?”
Peruth glanced at her study plan. “What’s the point of giving him something he wouldn’t enjoy?”
“It’s about the thought!” Charli said earnestly. “My brother has a delicate appetite, and I’ve made him a variety of foods, many of which he didn’t particularly like, but he still tasted them and thanked me. My brother respects others’ intentions and understands their meaning.”
Peruth seemed to consider this, sitting up slightly. “Giving him something he doesn’t like could really ease his mood? From what I know of him, it’s usually better not to disturb him when he’s upset.”
Charli thought, ‘I’m the one who knows my brother best; I even know his secret identity!’
Gripping her quill with confidence, she insisted, “But from what I’ve read… in those relationships… when someone’s upset, and you don’t try to make it up to them, they’ll start thinking of ending the relationship once they’ve cooled off!”
…
Meanwhile, Yu Mo stood in the shaded courtyard, the cool air easing the discomfort of his headache and chest tightness.
After a few moments, he prepared to return to oversee the lesson, only to see Peruth approaching.
“Is the lesson over?”
“Charli is very bright. I taught her a simple spell, and she’s practicing on her own.”
Peruth scrutinized his face, then unexpectedly asked, “Is Eloren angry with me? Your tone was odd earlier—are you bothered by something?”
“No, it was just a bit of banter,” Yu Mo replied.
“But you left so abruptly and even gave me a warning. Are you suspecting me of ill intentions?” Peruth leaned closer, his voice almost a whisper.
Yu Mo pressed a hand to his forehead. “I’ve simply been busy lately, with hardly any rest. Just came out for a bit of fresh air.”
His complexion was always pale, and as someone who rarely revealed his emotions, any discomfort was hard to notice.
Peruth stopped asking questions, but Yu Mo felt warmth on his wrist as he was pulled into a secluded corner.
The hand pressing his forehead was gently pulled away, and Peruth’s fingers touched his brow.
“What have you been doing lately to drain so much magic?” Peruth asked, his tone mildly disapproving.
A cool sensation eased the subtle ache there.
Yu Mo had been preoccupied with networking within the noble circles, which required numerous magical potions, and overseeing matters with the Star Society, which had indeed taxed his magic reserves.
But he was accustomed to pushing his limits, and a bit of exhaustion was hardly worth noting.
“Eloren, don’t casually overdraw your magic. In this, you should listen to me.”
Peruth nearly whispered the words as he drew Yu Mo closer, holding him firmly.
Yu Mo felt an abundance of energy flowing into him where they touched.
The moon’s power was not warm—it was like the frost on leaves, like the chill of winter air.
Yet the feeling of magic filling his body was deeply soothing, like parched earth absorbing water.
So much so that Yu Mo closed his eyes slightly, letting his forehead rest lightly against Peruth’s shoulder.
The cardinal looked down at his softened expression, his arm steadying Yu Mo’s slender back as he ran a hand through his dark hair.
The shadows of plants swayed on the ground, but the two figures remained embraced in the shade, motionless for a long time.
…
By the time Charli had nearly finished her assigned work, her brother and the cardinal had yet to return. She glanced at the doorway several times, nearly setting out to look for them, when finally, she saw the cardinal carrying her brother back inside.
“Brother!” Charli nearly jumped up, but her exclamation was quickly silenced by a spell.
“Keep it down; he’s asleep.” Peruth set him on the sofa, and a blanket appeared in his hand.
“Alright, let your brother rest. We should continue studying.” Peruth sat back down in front of her.
At first, Charli struggled to focus, often glancing over at her brother sleeping on the sofa. But soon, she got absorbed in her magic practice, frowning as she worked hard to memorize the sequence of magic flow.
Finally, when she understood, she looked up and found her “teacher” wasn’t focused either; he was resting his chin on the magic book, staring at her brother’s sleeping face, lost in thought and not looking away for a long time.
