Chapter 871: Did You Call My Husband A Fraud?

Just then, a single fairy detached herself from the group and flew toward them. She was slightly older than the others, with short curly hair, wire-rimmed spectacles perched on her nose, and an expression of intense academic focus.

Her lab coat was immaculate, and she carried herself with the quiet confidence of someone who was used to being the smartest person in any room.

"Commander Ragnora." She said, executing a precise mid-air bow. "I wasn’t expecting you today. Is this a surprise inspection?"

Before Ragnora could answer, the fairy puffed out her tiny chest with pride.

"If so, you have nothing to worry about! We’ve recently developed new runic combinations that can increase battle equipment efficiency by nearly thirty percentn!"

Other fairies flocked to her side, each eager to report their achievements.

"Commander! The Third Mandalhara Array is finally operational! We’ve increased its mana efficiency by nearly thirty percent!"

"I’ve finished the defensive rune system for the western sector! It can now detect hostile mana signatures autonomously!"

"The central sigil has been redesigned! It can distribute mana between twenty-four drones simultaneously without destabilizing!"

"The heat-conversion runes are complete! Weapons can now absorb ambient mana and convert it directly into thermal energy!"

"The armor enchantments are finished! Impact force is now distributed across the entire plate rather than concentrating at a single point!"

They weren’t showing off. Not really. They were seeking recognition—the same recognition every soldier in the Holyfield Mines craved from their Commander.

They wanted Ragnora to know they were doing good work. That they mattered.

Brenda scratched her head. "Can you...say that in a language I understand?"

The lead fairy who’s name was Sisi sighed with the long-suffering patience of a teacher dealing with a particularly slow student.

"Lieutenant Brenda, it’s not particularly complicated. If you simply applied yourself—"

"I don’t care about complicated things."

"..." Sisi’s eye twitched. "Very well. To summarize: we made powerful things. Strong things. Things that help everyone."

"Our enchantments will make the Holyfield Mines safer and our soldiers deadlier. Happy?"

Brenda’s face split into a grin. "Very happy! That’s amazing! You’re the best, Sisi!"

She then drew her axe and held it out hopefully.

"So...can you put some of those fancy things on my axe? All of them? At once?"

Sisi’s expression chilled. "What about the payment?"

"Can...I pay in installments?"

"Ha." Sisi turned away with a delicate harrumph, and Brenda deflated.

Ragnora cleared her throat.

"Actually, Sisi, we didn’t come for an inspection—though I must say, the work you’ve all been doing is excellent." The fairies glowed at the praise. "We came because I need your help with an evaluation."

Sisi perked up. "An evaluation? For what?"

Ragnora gestured toward Isabelle. "This is Lady Isabelle Sinclair. She—"

"ISABELLE SINCLAIR?!"

Sisi’s eyes went wide behind her spectacles. She zipped forward until she was hovering directly in front of Isabelle’s face, close enough that Isabelle could count the individual sparkles of fairy dust trailing from her wings.

"Isabelle Sinclair?! THE Isabelle Sinclair? The future Supreme Mage?!"

The other fairies immediately swarmed around Isabelle, their wings sparkling with excitement.

"Oh my goodness!"

"I can’t believe she’s actually here!"

"A future Supreme Mage in our laboratory!"

"This is the greatest day ever!"

Isabelle stared at them in bewilderment. "You...you know who I am?"

Sisi leaned closer, her tiny face bright with excitement.

"Of course! News travels fast in the tower!"

"Everyone’s been talking about the new guest—the one who eliminated an entire pack of monsters without any detectable mana signature! The soldiers who witnessed it said you didn’t even move!"

"Some said you used vector manipulation!" Another fairy chimed in eagerly.

"Or perhaps a hidden mana engine!?"

"Were those invisible attacks actually rune-based!?"

"Did you use spatial compression?"

"What about—"

"Enough!" Sisi raised a tiny hand, silencing her subordinates. "We shouldn’t overwhelm Lady Isabelle with questions. She’s our guest."

The other fairies reluctantly backed off, returning to their workstations. But their eyes kept darting toward Isabelle with undisguised curiosity.

"I apologize for the enthusiasm." Sisi bowed in midair. "Lady Isabelle, it’s an honor to meet you. I hope we can discuss your magical theories over tea sometime. I would love to exchange ideas."

"Of course." Isabelle said weakly, already planning to avoid that meeting at all costs.

Ragnora cleared her throat. "Anyway, as I was saying—"

But Sisi’s attention had already shifted. Her eyes narrowed as she floated toward Cassius with a distinctly frosty expression.

"White hair. Blue eyes. A certain...arrogant bearing."

She circled him slowly, like a predator sizing up its prey.

"You’re the man who called the Magic Tower a phallus!"

The temperature in the room seemed to drop.

Cassius had the decency to look slightly abashed.

"I may have made a casual observation—"

"A casual observation?!" Sisi’s voice rose to a pitch that should have been comical coming from someone her size. It wasn’t.

"You compared the Magic Tower—the center of all arcane operations in the Holyfield Mines to a reproductive organ!"

The other fairies were nodding vigorously, their expressions ranging from offended to outraged to personally insulted.

"I am not someone who angers easily." Sisi continued, her voice trembling with barely contained fury. "When my subordinate accidentally transformed everyone’s wings into cockroach wings for a week, I did not raise my voice. I simply helped her fix the mistake."

One of the fairies in the background ducked behind a beaker, her cheeks flushing crimson.

"But this—" Sisi’s wings buzzed with agitation. "—this is beyond the pale! The Magic Tower is our home! Our sanctuary! The place where we have dedicated our lives to protecting others!"

"And you dare to reduce it to crude humor?!"

The other fairies were glaring at him too, their tiny faces scrunched in outrage.

"I cannot accept such blatant disrespect!" Sisi declared. "I want this man removed from my laboratory immediately!"

Ragnora stepped between them.

"Calm yourself, Sisi. Sir Cassius was not in his right mind when he made those comments. He was affected by one of Lady Isabelle’s experimental spells."

Sisi’s eyes narrowed. "Even so, his subconscious must harbor such thoughts for them to emerge so readily. I don’t trust him."

Ragnora sighed. "You don’t have to. In fact, your skepticism may be useful." She straightened. "I need you to conduct an evaluation."

Sisi’s fury gave way to confusion. "An evaluation? Of what?"

Ragnora gestured toward Cassius.

"Sir Cassius isn’t just Isabelle’s husband. He’s a theoretical mana researcher. A specialist in magical theory and analysis."

"He’s here to investigate the mana beast infestation and to find the source of the problem and help us solve it permanently."

Sisi’s mouth fell open.

"Him?!"

She pointed at Cassius with a tiny, trembling finger.

"A mana researcher?! This man?! The one who compared our sacred tower to male anatomy?!"

"The very same."

"There is absolutely no way! No chance in any of the seven hells! This man—this vulgar, disrespectful, tower-slandering man—cannot possibly be the researcher you’ve been waiting for!"

"He’s a fraud, Commander! A scam artist! He’s trying to trick you into—"

"Did you just call my husband...a fraud?"

The voice cut through the laboratory like a blade of ice.

Everyone stopped. Even Ragnora turned her head.

Isabelle had stepped forward.

But the cheerful, enthusiastic, slightly flustered woman who had been fawning over Ragnora just moments ago was gone.

In her place stood someone whose blue eyes had turned to glacial ice and expression had hardened into something that promised consequences.

Sisi’s wings faltered. She suddenly felt very, very small.

"I asked you a question." Isabelle said, her voice dangerously quiet.

"Did you...call my husband a fraud?"

"I..." The fairy’s voice wavered. "I didn’t mean...I was simply..."

"You called him a fraud." Isabelle repeated, her voice soft as falling snow. "Without knowing him. Without hearing his thoughts. Without seeing a single piece of evidence."

She tilted her head slightly. "Is that how the Enchantment Department conducts its assessments? Through baseless accusations?!"

The other fairies had all stopped working. They were frozen in place, watching the scene unfold with wide, frightened eyes.

Even Ragnora seemed uncertain how to respond.

She had heard of Isabelle’s power on the battlefield, but this was different—this was the quiet, terrifying presence of someone who would not tolerate insults to the people she loved.

Cassius placed a gentle hand on Isabelle’s shoulder. "Isabelle. It’s alright—"

"My husband..." Isabelle ignored Cassius. "...is many things. Shameless, certainly."

Cassius’s lips twitched.

"Inappropriate at times, perhaps."

The fairies looked at him strangely.

"His also can’t help but keep on seducing every women he meets, even though he already has plenty of beautiful wives."

Cassius buried his face in his hands.

"But he is not a fraud!"

"My husband has saved more lives than you could possibly imagine and solved problems that mages twice your caliber couldn’t even identify!"

"And I will not stand here and listen to anyone—no matter how small or how accomplished—insult him in my presence!"

The silence stretched. No one moved. No one breathed.

And then, as suddenly as it had appeared, the coldness vanished. Isabelle’s warm smile returned, her eyes crinkling with genuine friendliness.

"But I understand why you might be skeptical. My husband’s comment about the tower was...unfortunate."

She laughed lightly. "Let’s put it behind us and focus on the evaluation, shall we? I’m sure you’ll be impressed by what he can do."

The whiplash was disorienting. The fairies stared at her with uncertain eyes whether they had imagined the terrifying presence that had just filled the room.

Sisi, who considered herself a rational and composed individual, found herself nodding dumbly.

"Y-Yes. Of course. The evaluation."

She cleared her throat, trying to regain her composure.

"I’ll...I’ll make the necessary preparations."