Hansel’s Enchanted Fairytale: Fill Me Up With Magic! - Chapter 100
“Where on earth has Dante gone?”
Hansel muttered as she sat on the garden swing chair. It had been three hours since her dress fitting ended, and Dante hadn’t shown even a single strand of hair.
Would he be back by dinner?
Probably not.
This wasn’t just today’s issue.
For the past few days, Dante had been disappearing whenever he found an opportunity.
It wasn’t that he completely shirked his responsibilities for the wedding preparations. Since the guest list was the same for both of them, and Margaret had been handling the smaller tasks at a terrifying pace, there wasn’t much left for Dante to do.
Still, his presence had been invaluable as a buffer whenever Margaret and Hansel clashed like dragons and tigers.
Once he wrapped up his part of the preparations, however, he would promptly vanish somewhere. And when asked where he’d been, his only response was,
“It’s a secret.”
Boom.
The first time Hansel heard those words, the shock nearly knocked her out.
Even now, as she sat idly swinging in the garden chair, she repeated the same phrase over and over.
Dante has secrets from me?
Dante, keeping secrets from me?
Of course, being honest about it rather than making up lies was preferable. But for someone as pure and lonely as Dante had been, with Hansel being the only person he knew, such behavior was unimaginable.
Maybe taking him out into the world wasn’t a good idea after all.
What if he ends up absorbing all the world’s corruption? Considering how quickly he mastered Madame Virginia’s books, he might pick up bad habits just as fast.
What if my sweet, innocent wildflower Dante becomes as tainted as those wretched mages…?
A shiver ran down her spine at the horrifying thought.
No, I can’t let this go on. I need to find Dante.
Hansel resolutely clenched her fist as she got off the swing.
Just then, a sickly sweet voice struck the back of her platinum head.
“Oh, I’m telling you, this is my area of expertise, not my sister’s. Brother-in-law~”
Hansel whipped her head around.
Her jaw dropped.
Gretel was grinning widely and clinging to Dante’s side like glue.
What… what is that little imp doing?
“You’re really handsome, Brother-in-law. Doesn’t my sister ever say so? Do you have any friends? Or brothers? Could you maybe introduce me to someone who’s handsome and fit, like you?”
“Too many questions.”
Dante replied indifferently, stepping forward with long strides.
As expected of Hansel’s sister, Gretel was every bit as chatty as Hansel, but much more annoying to deal with.
Hansel was cute—her sister was not.
In Dante’s eyes, Gretel’s face resembled a crudely sketched set of features on a pair of stacked circles, topped with scribbled hair.
Then again, that’s how most people appeared to Dante. The only exceptions were Hansel and, maybe, Margaret.
If not for the fact that Gretel was Hansel’s sister, he would’ve long since cast a spell to steal her voice.
Gretel, however, was undeterred by Dante’s clear annoyance and stuck to his side persistently.
“Then answer my questions one at a time! I’ve taught you so much, haven’t I? Give and take—that’s how the world works! You learn good information and repay it by introducing me to a handsome man. That’s the rule of nations, the rule of the world! Let’s call it the Handsome Rule.”
“I’m the handsome one.”
“…What?”
Hansel burst out laughing, while Gretel’s face contorted into a look of utter bewilderment.
Dante, hearing Hansel’s laughter, turned his head so quickly that his gaze seemed to physically snap to her. His previously dull eyes instantly brightened, sparkling with recognition.
“Hansel.”
The once hazy, fish-like look in his eyes disappeared, replaced by a sharp, lively focus.
—I’m handsome?
Hansel chuckled internally, recalling a conversation from long ago when she had rated Dante’s face a solid 9.5 out of 10.
“I don’t have friends. My family’s dead. I don’t know any other handsome men.”
His response was matter-of-fact, almost spat out. To Dante, that meant he’d already fulfilled any social obligations he might owe.
After delivering his answers, Dante strode purposefully toward Hansel.
The look on his face resembled that of a puppy spotting its owner—a tail wagging so vigorously it might as well have been visible. Hansel’s irritation melted away, as if sugar in warm water.
In a flash, Dante closed the distance between them, spreading his arms wide as if to scoop her up into a hug.
Hansel matched his gesture, ready to embrace him.
But Dante suddenly froze in place, stiff as a malfunctioning automaton.
“……?”
Standing awkwardly, he slowly lowered his arms, clasping them to his sides like a soldier at attention, and avoided Hansel’s gaze.
“I’m back, Hansel.”
“…….”
Do I need to give up my imaginary doctorate in Dante studies?
