Chapter 982: Surprised Pythagoras
He shuffled toward Felicity, who was still seated at her desk with the most innocent expression she could muster.
He leaned over.
Examined the paper.
And his tired eyes slowly widened.
“… These look significantly more coherent than your previous attempts,” he said slowly, tapping the parchment. “The fractions are simplified correctly… The logic puzzle wasn’t butchered… And this triangle wasn’t labeled ’pointy bastard.’”
Felicity flushed and quickly muttered something completely incoherent under her breath.
He raised an eyebrow.
“I beg your pardon?”
“I said, I always study long and hard, Lord Pythagoras!” she declared with righteous innocence, straightening in her seat like a model student.
Pythagoras stared at her for a beat, clearly debating whether or not to believe his own ears.
“…Mmm. Well. Perhaps divine providence finally took pity on my nerves.”
He turned, rubbing his temples. “Very well. I shall retire to my chamber for a brief nap. I’ll grade these solutions of yours before lunch.”
And just like that, the most feared mathematical warlock in the nation shuffled out the door.
Felicity waited until the door clicked shut.
Then, moving with the careful precision of a seasoned conspirator, she reached down beneath her desk.
Her fingertips brushed the folds of her long, pleated skirt. From a hidden pocket stitched into the inner lining, she pulled free the artifact she’d concealed there.
It got illuminated in her grasp, and her eyes lit up to match the color.
Quinlan raised his cigar in a toast. “Congratulations, Lady Genius.”
“Hehehe! I know you’re being sarcastic with me right now, Lord Black, but I can’t even be angry right now! Thank you, everyone! You’re the best!!”
“How do you feel now that you’ve successfully cheated on your royal exam? Guilty?” Feng inquired with a big grin on her lips. She knew.
“Guilty?! I only feel a sense of relief that it’s over and immense pride that we pulled the heist of the century off without getting caught!”
“Good job, Felicity,” Vex chirped. “Pulling off what you just did is a cause for high praise. You might just be a natural at it. The fact you don’t feel any amount of guilt suggests you have a bright future ahead of you.”
Although the royal princess didn’t know it just yet, she’ds greatly impressed one of the nation’s top criminals.
“So… about your father’s birthday party, Felicity…” Quinlan spoke up once the merry chatting died down a bit.
“Oh, right! Lord Black, you must come! I’d die of boredom and frustration otherwise! All the ugly teenage boys keep pestering me for a chance to introduce themselves at these events while the girls try to one-up me! Sugarcoating every word of theirs as if they were praising me, while in reality, they’re putting themselves on a pedestal! Ugh, so annoying!”
Based on the many huffs and puffs, the princess truly hated these social events.
“Well, your father invited me and my wives, and we plan to be there. However, I’d just returned from a multiple-month-long dangerous outing, as you know-“
Quinlan was interrupted with an audible scoff, “A ’dangerous outing’ where you picked up two wives…”
“… As such, I’ve not kept up with court matters. I could send my servants to gather the information for me, but since I have you here, I thought I might as well ask you instead.”
“… Hmm…” Felicity mused, though why she was acting like this, Quinlan didn’t know. But soon, her chirpy tone returned. “Alright, you can make up to me when you get here!”
“Wait, wasn’t the help we gave you on the test the make-up event?” Feng asked.
“Shush!! And you, Jiai! You didn’t even help me solve a single problem!”
“So? Does that mean I gotta remain quiet around you because I didn’t help you cheat on your exam?”
“Saying it like that puts me in a rather bad light…” Felicity admitted reluctantly. “As for your question, it was only half of it! The other half of Lord Black’s make-up will have to happen in person!”
“… Young ladies, can we get on with the topic at hand?” Quinlan asked, giving Feng’s head a ’gentle’ rub. The oriental teen didn’t quite appreciate having her lush hair ruffled.
“Ah! Yes, Lord Black. The event will begin in a week’s time!”
“Alright. See you there then, Felicity.”
And just like that, the call with the princess ended. It took a lot longer than Quinlan had expected, but getting the royal princess to open up to him and his family was more than worth the trouble. Plus, it’s not like the chat was a drag. He and his girls needed the playful vibes after the prison invasion.
“We have a week to prepare,” he declared, examining each thoroughly.
“I don’t know if all of us should be present, though…” Ayame murmured with a sigh. As the ex-heir of the Fujimori clan, she was a very high-profile person.
She then glanced at Vex, who was arguably just as high profile as her. Lucille, as a legally dead woman from the Greenvale duke family, wasn’t an unknown nobody.
Then there were the non-humans who’d surely draw many eyes to them in the human kingdom, where they were legally required to be enslaved. The only truly safe bets were Serika, Feng, and Aurora. Though perhaps the alchemist girl was a risky bet as well, since her parents have been arrested for meddling with the kingdom’s affairs.
But… Quinlan didn’t want to leave them behind if possible.
“In the week leading up to the event, let’s try to solve the issue at hand. Maybe Lady Yoruha will be able to help us out, or we’ll find another solution. I feel like it’s going to be a party none of you want to miss,” Quinlan replied to Ayame’s concerns after a bit of inner deliberation.
But then, the girls received a first row seat to his amicable smile’s slow transformation, one that informed them he was feeling very strongly about something.
They just didn’t know what. Not until he parted his lips and shocked them all with what he had to say next.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter