Queen's Street, Magic Club.
"Yo, Ron, finally found time to come out and have some fun?" Soren André lounged on the sofa, a newly hooked noble lady in his arms, raising his glass in greeting as Ron André stepped into the room.
Ron greeted the others in the private room briefly, then sat down beside Soren André and ordered a glass of fruit wine. He glanced at the woman in Soren's arms before turning to him and asking, "Want some tea?"
Soren leaned closer and whispered, "Just give me some tea leaves directly."
Ron couldn't help but chuckle. He took a sip of fruit wine and was about to ask if anything interesting had happened recently in their circle when a maid entered the room and whispered something to Soren André.
Soren's expression changed immediately. He helplessly patted the beauty in his arms. "I've got something to deal with. Head back first."
The noble lady had clearly heard what the maid said and looked displeased. "Your Highness still hasn't settled things with that woman? We already made plans for tonight~."
"You said the same thing last time. I almost got caught by my father…"
"Relax, relax. I'll be more careful this time. We've got experience now, don't we?"
"Th-then Your Highness better not stand me up."
"Heh, go back and get nice and clean and wait for me." Soren lightly smacked her hip. She shot him a flirtatious glance before getting up and leaving.
Ron ignored their entire interaction. Only after she left did he ask, "Penny came again? The Soren André who claims he never slips up is finally having a headache?"
Soren sighed and shot him a look. "Don't just enjoy the show. If she comes in later, you've got to testify for me—I came here with you, and I didn't touch any women the whole time."
"…That really weighs on my conscience," Ron rolled his eyes.
"Don't refuse so quickly. Who knows? You might need me to cover for you someday."
"Me? Not a chance. Besides, if you testified for me, people would probably get even more suspicious."
"Damn!"
Soren cursed as he walked out of the room.
About half an hour later, he finally shook off Penny and returned, looking exhausted as he slumped back down beside Ron.
In just over half a month, Soren had already moved on from Penny and gotten involved with two new noble ladies.
But for some reason, this time he hadn't been able to completely cut ties with Penny. Instead, things had become even more tangled.
Ron couldn't be bothered with the mess. After all, it was said that Penny had found another partner, then came back to Soren only after another breakup.
At the time, Soren had just grown bored of his latest companion and figured he'd revisit an old flame for a one-night affair.
But Penny had taken it seriously—and ended up clinging to him ever since.
"No helping it. Outstanding men naturally attract beautiful women." Soren tossed his hair and sighed dramatically.
"Yeah, I can relate," Ron replied.
"But you're wasting such a great advantage!" Soren said with mock anguish, then relaxed. "Though it's a good thing you're not like me. Otherwise, we'd be rivals. I wouldn't just hand over beautiful ladies."
"Enjoy it yourself. I'm not interested." Ron shook his head and changed the subject. "Anything new in our circle lately? About Element Cards."
Soren grabbed a few grapes from a platter and popped them into his mouth. "I don't really pay attention to that."
"Some noble ladies seem to enjoy it quite a bit."
"As for anything else…" He thought for a moment, then suddenly remembered something. "There is one thing you might find interesting. Whether it's good news or not, though—that's hard to say."
Ron immediately perked up. "Let's hear it."
"Ahem…" Soren cleared his throat. "A few days ago, there was a fight at the Royal Capital First Military Academy. Supposedly, it started because of a Magic Duel with Element Cards."
"It seems the son of General Moen and the grandson of the Duke of the Eastern Territory got into a rivalry over a girl. In the end, they decided to use Magic Duel to compete for the right to date Leticia, the granddaughter of the Duke of the Northern Territory."
"Heh, honestly, girls from the North are really something. If Leticia weren't only fifteen—and backed by a duke—I might've tried my luck."
"Stay on topic," Ron said, speechless. "How did it turn into a fight?"
Soren dropped the teasing tone and continued:
"Wardson, the general's son, clearly didn't know how to play. He lost the first round cleanly."
"In the second round, he drew both Element God — Element and Magic God — Magico, but still got turned around in the end."
"So he probably got embarrassed and decided to win it back with his fists."
"Young people…"
"If you ask me, why get hung up on one person? Lose, then find a backup, act a little melancholic, have a few drinks—boom, you've got yourself a pleasant night."
"Enough!" Ron said, exasperated. "What happened after the fight?"
"What else could happen?" Soren shrugged. "A Tier 2 warrior getting ambushed by a Tier 3—how could he possibly win?"
"Rowell got beaten badly. If the academy instructors hadn't arrived in time, he probably would've been knocked unconscious."
Hearing this, Ron let out a small sigh of relief.
These fifteen- or sixteen-year-olds were at that hot-blooded, impulsive age—acting without thinking about consequences.
Especially when emotions ran high.
If the grandson of a Duke of the Eastern Territory had been beaten to death, it would've caused real trouble.
But as things stood… this might actually turn out to be a good thing.
Ron stroked his chin and smiled, downing the rest of his fruit wine in one go. He stood up and patted Soren on the shoulder.
"Not bad—this is good news. I've got something to take care of, so I'll be leaving."
"You're leaving already?" Soren asked, puzzled, quickly grabbing him. "I just spotted a girl in another room—I need you as my wingman!"
"You'd better prepare more 'ammunition' for tonight," Ron waved him off as he walked out. "And deal with Penny properly. Otherwise, you'll regret it sooner or later."
"Tch." Soren watched his back and muttered, "Underestimating me."
Then he suddenly realized something and rushed out, shouting:
"The tea leaves! You still haven't given me the tea leaves!"