Inside a private room on the second floor of the Rose Pavilion.
After casually ordering some coffee and desserts, Audrey quickly dismissed the waiter.
She then stood there, visibly conflicted, a faint blush on her face, looking completely at a loss as she faced Mozo, who was growing increasingly suspicious.
"Miss Hepburn… are you alright? You don't look so well."
Hearing this, Audrey finally made up her mind.
She took a deep breath.
Then, with a swift and decisive motion, she took off her outer coat.
The speed and suddenness of it caught Mozo completely off guard.
He ended up witnessing the entire scene, a beauty disrobing before him.
And what shocked him even more was that aside from her undergarment, she was wearing nothing else beneath the coat.
Looking at the magnificent curves wrapped in black lace, Mozo almost blurted out a heartfelt "Amazing."
But he snapped back to his senses and immediately turned his head away.
At the same time, he raised a hand and said,
"Miss Hepburn, please put your clothes back on. I have no intentions toward you whatsoever. What you're doing is an insult to both me and yourself."
Meanwhile, his eyes scanned the surroundings, and his ears were sharply tuned to any movement outside the door.
Mozo couldn't help but suspect this might be some kind of trap.
Though only partially.
For one, this era probably didn't even have the concept of a honey trap.
And secondly, he was flat broke.
Not exactly worth such an elaborate setup.
But if it wasn't a trap, then why on earth was she doing this?
As for Audrey, her face flushed red with embarrassment and indignation as she stared at Mozo.
He turned his head away.
Is my body really that unworthy of a look?
Instead of feeling relieved, she was actually annoyed that he refused to look.
Truly, the mind of a girl was hard to understand.
Still, she pulled her coat slightly over herself, just enough to reveal the mark on her chest.
Though it still exposed more than enough to showcase her stunning figure.
The Tulip of the Flower Faculty truly lived up to her name.
Whether in looks or figure, she was flawless.
Her voice trembled slightly as she said,
"Please turn back. I want to ask if you recognize this mark."
A mark?
Mozo paused for a moment before recalling that there was indeed a green mark.
It was just that certain other things had been a bit too eye-catching.
He glanced sideways and froze.
Then, without thinking, he stepped closer, carefully examining the mark on her chest.
As the man suddenly moved so close, Audrey felt dizzy.
The warmth of his breath made her chest itch faintly.
But since this might concern her life, she endured the embarrassment and discomfort, letting him inspect it.
Thankfully, he only looked.
He didn't touch.
Otherwise she doubted she could hold herself together.
Even so, after a while, she couldn't take it anymore and asked shyly,
"Are you done?"
Hearing that, Mozo quickly stepped back and blurted out,
"Thanks for the treat."
Silence fell.
A very awkward silence.
Mozo immediately wanted to slap himself.
Before Audrey could explode, he hurriedly changed the subject.
"So could you tell me what exactly happened to you?"
As expected, her anger that had just built up faded instantly.
After thinking for a moment, Audrey frowned slightly.
"I need to confirm that you actually know what this is. Or you need to show me your ability."
Having calmed down after leaving the ruins, Audrey had started to notice something odd.
Mozo didn't seem to be a Beyonder like her.
But she couldn't be sure.
He might just be one of those half baked individuals, people who knew some secret knowledge but lacked the potion to truly step into the supernatural world.
There were quite a few like that in her circles.
Well, quite a few meant a few dozen at most.
After a brief moment of thought, Mozo raised his hand.
Under Audrey's half wary, half permissive gaze, he said,
"Hide, the Mark of the Servant." (Ancient Elvish)
Then he stared at the green mark on her chest with anticipation.
But reality was disappointing.
Nothing happened.
He repeated it.
Still nothing.
That only made Audrey more suspicious and increasingly annoyed.
She realized something horrifying.
Had she made a complete fool of herself?
Because of this misunderstanding, not only had she failed to deal with the mark, she had also let a complete stranger take advantage of her.
And worst of all, her carefully maintained reputation over the past four years had just taken a massive hit.
That reputation was crucial for her future, her chance to marry into nobility and live comfortably.
Just thinking about how she had entered a private room in the Rose Pavilion with a strange man made her heart ache.
This would definitely be a major black mark in the eyes of noble families.
Damn it.
I want to strangle him.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
Finally, she put her coat back on and shoved Mozo aside, storming toward the door.
Seeing her about to leave, Mozo called out unwillingly,
"Miss Hepburn, why not try repeating what I said yourself?"
That only made things worse.
She spun around like an enraged cat.
"Repeat what? So you can stare at my body again? Do you have any idea how much my reputation is going to drop because of today? Do you know how much effort I put into maintaining it?"
The more she spoke, the closer she was to tears.
Her reputation ruined.
The mark still unresolved.
Her precious runes used up completely.
She had lost everything.
Of course, deep down, she knew this wasn't really Mozo's fault.
In fact, she should be thanking him.
That phrase had saved her life.
But understanding was one thing.
Accepting it emotionally was another.
Especially with her pride as a Beyonder and the fear for her life weighing on her.
After taking several deep breaths, she pressed a hand to her chest and said,
"I'll repay what I owe you. You don't need to know what it is, just know that I will."
"And one more thing, if you dare tell anyone about today, I swear you'll regret it."
Mozo looked completely baffled.
He still had no idea what was going on.
But he did realize something important.
For the first time, his dream world and reality had truly intersected.
He didn't want to let this chance slip away.
Gritting his teeth, he said,
"You don't need to let me look again. Just repeat it once. Didn't you say you owe me? Use that to repay it. Just say it once."
Audrey, hand already on the doorknob, turned back in irritation.
"You…!"
She wanted to hit him.
But held back.
After several deep breaths, she finally forced herself to calm down.
Even though she had no hope left, she still repeated,
"Hide, the Mark of the Servant." (Ancient Elvish)
Then she said coldly,
"Alright, I'm leaving. Same as before, you'll be repaid. And don't you dare speak of this."
Mid sentence, she froze.
Something felt off.
She quickly opened her coat again and looked down.
The mark was gone.
Gone.
Gone?
She snapped her head up to look at Mozo.
Then back down.
Then up again.
She repeated this several times.
Each time, her expression grew more awkward.
Finally, she clasped her hands in front of her chest, leaned forward slightly, and forced an awkward smile.
"Aha… um… classmate… could you maybe pretend you didn't see or hear anything just now?"
Mozo looked at her, this girl whose attitude had flipped multiple times in a single conversation, and rubbed his forehead.
"Miss Hepburn, your entire character setting just collapsed."
Audrey Hepburn, still smiling stiffly, felt like her heart was bleeding.
What had she just done?