The Heroines Who Framed Me Are Clinging to Me

Chapter 30 - Claire (3)

Yulia stared at Lloyd with a bewildered expression.

Magic involves a process—a context, so to speak.

This process refers to the steps taken before casting a spell.

You form the structure of the magic in your mind.

Gather mana.

Crystallize it within the mana circuit.

And then release it.

Since magic has this process, experienced mages or seasoned awakened individuals can often detect and counter magic.

A prime example is when the mage’s concentration shows visibly during the process of constructing a spell.

This is a common mistake among novice mages, where their pupils become unnaturally focused, and their movements stiffen. To anyone with a bit of experience, it’s no different from broadcasting, "I’m casting a spell."

At that point, the spell is unlikely to succeed. Since constructing the spell takes a considerable amount of time, the opponent has ample opportunity to escape or prepare a countermeasure.

‘I struggled to hide it myself back then.’

Yulia recalled her childhood experiences of being outwitted by the court mage, and a shiver ran down her spine.

That sly old man saw through every spell Yulia attempted.

‘How does he always know?’

She once asked, hoping for some profound secret technique, but this was his answer:

- Your Highness frowns and wrinkles her nose when you cast spells.

It was so anticlimactic.

Of course, after that, Yulia learned to conceal the process of preparing her spells.

In any case…

‘Most people get stuck at the second stage.’

The second stage of preparing a spell: gathering mana.

Mana doesn’t reside solely within the mage.

To be precise, there’s a small amount inside, but it’s insufficient for casting large-scale spells.

So, mages inevitably use a combination of refined internal mana and external mana.

They shape the spell with refined internal mana and fill it with external mana.

During this process, mages inevitably draw in external mana.

In other words, the opponent can sense the flow of mana.

If someone is standing still, and the flow of mana suddenly intensifies?

‘Someone is casting magic.’

Those who have reached a certain level, who can sense the flow of mana, can detect an opponent’s magic at this stage.

This is an area where even the most skilled mages can’t completely hide their actions.

It’s also where the capabilities of mages start to diverge.

How quickly can they absorb external mana and launch their spell?

How fast can the opponent read the flow of mana and prepare a defense?

The speed of absorption.

The ability to absorb without drawing attention.

Countermeasures.

Predicting the spell based on the type of absorbed mana and defending against it.

This realm depends on experience and quick reflexes, where skill levels are distinguished.

There are other ways to detect magic, but these are the most commonly used methods.

That’s why Yulia was shocked.

‘How… with no signs at all…’

Lloyd’s magic showed no signs.

The process of constructing the spell in his mind.

The gathering of mana.

Yulia couldn’t discern any of it.

No—rather than being uncertain, her awareness of it was faint.

For a brief moment, she felt an “Oh?” sensation, but before her mind could process it, the thug, Hector, was already twisting his wrist.

‘This is unbelievable…’

She couldn’t believe it.

The idea that such a way of casting magic could exist.

And so she focused.

To decipher how Lloyd was casting his spells.

When Lloyd cast his second spell—

“......”

Yulia felt dizzy.

The moment Lloyd cast his magic was like a single “dot.”

There was no time involved.

Just a fleeting instant.

Was it the calculation of the magic circuit—or was it the gathering of external mana? The trace of it zipped by in an instant.

As if nothing had happened.

What’s even more astonishing is that Lloyd didn’t cast a simple spell. He used a mid-level spell that restrained the opponent’s body. Not only that, it was precisely aimed at specific parts of the body.

This reduced the amount of mana needed, but it required an equally meticulous level of computation…

‘A monster.’

Yulia couldn’t find any other words to describe Lloyd.

He was a monster, beyond the realm of human capability.

Had Lloyd just been Lloyd, Yulia would’ve been purely amazed.

She would have been in awe of witnessing the spell of an impossibly brilliant genius.

But…

‘Ortega.’

With the spirit of that man dwelling within Lloyd.

“......”

Yulia couldn’t simply be impressed.

◆

After the thugs left.

“Phew.”

Lloyd rolled his shoulders.

It was still difficult to use magic suddenly like that.

It was probably due to his incomplete mana circuits.

“Oh, right.”

He should’ve asked those guys earlier.

Though they likely dealt in drugs, the difference between drugs and medicine isn’t that significant.

Medicine, when abused, becomes a drug, and drugs, when used properly, aren’t much different from medicine.

Most of them are stimulants, but there are likely some sedatives as well.

“I should find a pharmacy first.”

Maybe he spoke to himself too loudly.

Yulia gave him a suspicious look.

“Just so we’re clear…”

“If I get caught using drugs, you’ll cover for me, right? I’m your advisor, after all.”

“…Haa.”

Yulia looked at him like he was a complete headache.

Well, considering he almost tore a person’s hand off, it was indeed a shocking sight.

She’s a princess who’s only seen the best things within the palace.

Essentially, a flower sheltered in a greenhouse…

“Well, there wasn’t any blood, so that’s something. It’s the first time I’ve seen a bloodless form of torture. I’ll give you credit for that.”

The princess, whom Lloyd had thought was a mere sheltered flower, turned away.

She walked up to the second floor without another word.

Only then did Lloyd recall.

‘She’s the Princess of Rebellion.’

Perhaps what really surprised her was the technique behind the torture.

Indeed, there was no way the Third Princess, Yulia, could be a mere flower in a greenhouse. She was more like a weed that’s always on the verge of being uprooted. Weeds have a harder time surviving inside a greenhouse than they do outside.

“.......”

She’s really hard to figure out.

As he scratched his head, trying to decide how to define Yulia, Lloyd followed her upstairs.

It seemed to have once been a study, with a desk, bookshelves, and basic office furniture and tools.

This was the room they planned to use as the office.

And there, Yulia was seated.

The way she sat was already sharp and intellectual, as if she had claimed the office as her own.

It’s true, the bloodline of Estrid is noble…

…Or so Lloyd thought, until—

Cough!

Yulia suddenly coughed.

The dust on the desk scattered all at once.

Her face turned a shade of gray.

“Pfft.”

Lloyd couldn’t help but laugh, despite the impropriety.

Yulia’s face flushed red.

“A s-servant should help instead of laughing!”

“Yes ma’am.”

I’m not a servant; I’m an advisor, actually.

Unable to resist the urge to tease her, Lloyd smirked as he began tidying up.

He wiped the desk and swept away the dust on the floor.

These tasks had become rather familiar by now.

After washing her face, Yulia quietly said, “Thank you…” and then sat back at her desk.

Her breathing evened out.

The grin on Lloyd’s face faded as he suddenly realized.

Since he had been beheaded, this was the first time he had laughed like this.

It didn’t feel too bad.

◆

Claire’s *Harold Merchant Guild.

[*“Harold Trading Company” will be changed to “Harold Merchant Guild”]

Eastan Branch.

“You’ve arrived, Young Lady!”

The branch manager of Eastan wiped the sweat from his brow as he welcomed the increasingly frequent visits of the deputy head.

Unlike other guilds, the Harold Guild had a strong aristocratic lean.

After all, the guild head, Richmond Harold, was a Count, and the guild was merely their family business.

Unlike other guilds where executives hold significant power, the Harold Guild’s authority was overwhelmingly tied to the Harold name.

A red-haired girl stepped out of the carriage.

Everyone bowed their heads toward her in unison.

Not only was she the deputy head of the Harold Guild, but also one of the Three Heroes who defeated the Demon King and the traitor from another world.

Claire Harold.

The Eastan branch manager felt an overwhelming sense of tension at her visit.

‘Why has she been coming here so often lately?’

In the past few weeks, the deputy head’s visits had increased.

There were plausible reasons, but considering how rare her visits used to be, this was definitely unusual.

Moreover, most of these visits were conducted in secrecy, which was rather odd.

Of course, this was merely the intuition of a branch manager well-versed in social dynamics.

His instincts also warned him that it would be wise not to pry into whatever Claire was doing.

Thus, the branch manager carefully escorted Claire to the office.

“......”

The girl silently sat down and surveyed the room.

The branch manager hurriedly served some fine tea and nervously asked:

“What brings you here today?”

Depending on her answer, his day could either be busy or his night sleepless.

Gulp.

He swallowed involuntarily.

Claire’s lips parted.

“I’m looking for someone.”