The Possessor Mistook the Genre for 20 Years

80 – If There Is No Marriage Partner Even After a Year…

Franz faced Arian.

With her blushing cheeks, cherry-red lips, and a splendid sky-blue dress. Arian’s appearance, dressed up for the party, matched the snowy north perfectly.

She had been pretty enough when they went to the social gathering together, but now she was even more beautiful. In terms of appearance alone, there was nothing to criticize.

If he met her on the street without knowing her, his head might naturally turn.

“Is there something on my face?”

Seeing Arian staring blankly at his face, Franz asked.

She then, half a beat late, was startled and blurted out in a daze.

“Huh, huh?”

“I asked if there was something on my face.”

“Oh, no? There’s nothing on your face.”

So why was he staring blankly?

He had that question, but decided not to voice it.

It wasn’t important, and there was no need to pry.

After a moment of silence, Arian asked.

“Looking forward to the party, right?”

“Yeah, looking forward to it.”

When it comes to parties, it would be a bit more relaxed than a social gathering.

Probably, they would spend time enjoying food and wine comfortably.

When Justia said she went to play, he felt a bit unfair, but it didn’t seem entirely wrong.

But apart from that, another question arose.

“Arian, do you have a cold?”

Arian’s face was flushed, and the tips of his ears were red.

Franz, who had no way of knowing the reason, was just worried if he was not feeling well.

“A cold…? I didn’t particularly feel that way…?”

“Really? Your face is red.”

Franz tilted his head and reached out towards Arian’s forehead.

There was no special meaning behind it, just to check if he had a fever.

When Franz’s hand touched his forehead, Arian froze.

It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the meaning of the action, but just the fact that their bodies touched was enough to stop his thoughts.

“No fever…”

Somehow, his face seemed redder than before. Well, if he says he’s fine, then he must be fine.

Franz decided to think so and let it go.

The people of the Frigia duchy were watching the two with pleased smiles.

No matter how you looked at it, their relationship didn’t seem ordinary.

Especially Marcel felt immense trust in Franz.

He said he would do something, and he really was doing something.

Franz himself didn’t know anything, but among them, Franz was already half a family member.

As time passed, people started to gather at the party venue one by one.

Was it because the purpose of the party was Arian’s arranged marriage? Most of the arrivals were quite young.

Of course, the arranged marriage was canceled by Ballack, making it meaningless.

“Lady Arianne, it’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“Ah, Lady Ser. It’s really been a long time.”

Arianne, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Freesia who hosted the party, greeted quite a few people.

Judging by the familiar greetings, it seemed that most of them were acquaintances.

Well, it was only because she was a secretary that she was less aware of it, but it was natural that people would want to get close to the Duke’s family by any means.

Franz, holding a wine glass in one hand, was watching Arianne from a distance.

He didn’t particularly want to get closer, as he found large crowds uncomfortable.

He knew that taking advantage of such opportunities was how one made friends, but…

‘Do I really need friends…?’

What is the life of nobles like?

They take horseback riding and hunting as hobbies, and boast about how they acquired better things than others.

There might be some who are different, but most lived such lives, so there was no reason to get close to them.

But when does the world ever go as one wishes?

Even if Franz twisted his whole body to avoid them, it was all in vain if they came crashing in from the other side.

“Um, excuse me…”

A woman suddenly appeared in front of Franz, who had been sipping wine in a corner.

She looked much younger than Arianne.

She might have just turned 20. Perhaps even younger.

“Yes, what is it?”

“Are you by any chance… Mr. Franz?”

There was one thing Franz had overlooked, and that was that his face was more widely known than he thought. It was only natural, as he was one of the heroes who saved the world.

He didn’t feel particularly good about it, but since he was asked a question, he had to answer.

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“R-really?!”

The woman, seemingly startled, widened her eyes and raised her voice.

She belatedly covered her mouth, but once words are spoken, they cannot be taken back.

“Have I seen you somewhere before…?”

“Isn’t he the one? The wizard from the hero party…”

“Are you Mr. Franz…?”

The murmuring voices of the surrounding people could be heard as their attention gathered.

Some had already taken steps to approach.

I wanted to enjoy quietly if possible, but it seemed that was impossible.

“I-I’m sorry…!”

“It’s alright. Since you’ve come to the party, don’t worry and enjoy yourself.”

Franz replied with a smile to the woman’s apology.

Since the incident had already happened, blaming her wouldn’t change anything.

They weren’t close enough to express emotions anyway.

While talking with the woman, people had gathered around Franz.

“Franz…! I heard you saved my father from the evil cultist’s misdeeds…!”

“I-I’ve always admired you…!”

“I’d like to invite you to a social gathering at the Count of Luan’s next month!”

The voices from all directions made his mind go blank.

‘The others wouldn’t know about this…?’

One was stuck in the cathedral, one in the forest, and one in the countryside.

None of the members of the hero party would know his troubles.

Franz had to deal with people for a long time after that.

As the hero who saved the world and an unprecedented great mage, a living legend had appeared, so people of all ages and genders gathered around him.

Once the situation calmed down, most of those left around Franz were women.

“Franz, excuse me, but do you have someone you’ve promised your future to…?”

A woman with red hair and a red dress asked.

He was sure he had heard her name, but dealing with so many people at once made it hard to remember.

‘Someone I’ve promised my future to….’

In other words, a fiancée or lover.

Those were words far from Franz.

“I don’t…”

Franz was about to honestly say he didn’t have one.

Arian interrupted between Franz and the women.

“Excuse me. I need to talk to the Tower Master for a moment. There’s an urgent matter at the tower.”

Arian said to the women and started dragging Franz somewhere.

As he was being dragged by the wrist, Franz felt a flood of emotions.

Because there was a problem with the Magic Tower, worry came first.

Eventually, the place the two arrived at was the balcony.

Perhaps because it was quite cold outside, there was no one on the balcony.

“Arian, did you get a message from the Magic Tower? What problem did they mention?”

As Arian’s steps came to a halt, Franz immediately asked.

But whether it was fortunate or not, the answer that came back was far from Franz’s expectations.

“No, I didn’t.”

“Huh?”

“I didn’t get a message from the Magic Tower. The communication magic tool they use is connected to the Tower Master.”

That meant Arian had lied and dragged him here.

Thanks to that, he escaped a troublesome situation, but he couldn’t help but feel puzzled.

“Then why did you drag me here?”

“The Tower Master looked exhausted. You know he doesn’t like crowds.”

“That’s true, but…”

It was certainly true, but he felt a bit uneasy.

Maybe it was because being saved by someone was an unfamiliar experience.

“Well, I was also tired from greeting people, so I thought we could escape together for a while. Oh, would you like some wine?”

“Sure, I’ll have some.”

It was a bit disappointing that the conversation ended with just one drink.

“Wait a moment. I’ll bring it.”

Arian went inside the building and soon returned to the balcony with two glasses of wine.

She handed him a glass, and Franz naturally accepted it.

“What did the young ladies say earlier?”

Arian asked as she took a sip of wine.

“Well, we talked about this and that, and then they asked if I had a marriage partner.”

“So what did you say?”

“Before I could answer, you dragged me away.”

Hmm.

Arian made a peculiar nasal sound and took another sip of wine.

Then she shifted her gaze to a distant place and spoke.

“Master of the Tower, you said you were thinking about getting married, right?”

“Yeah, I am.”

“Then, can we make a promise?”

“What kind of promise?”

With the bright moon hanging in the sky, the snow-covered mountain range, and the intoxication of the wine, it was a truly peculiar atmosphere when Arian spoke.

“If neither of us has a marriage partner in a year, how about we just marry each other?”