Chapter 54
“I can’t believe he was using a magic tool I’ve never even heard of. If I’d known something like this existed, I would’ve given Gianna a ring instead of a bracelet. Tsk.”
Victor abruptly let go, and Karun’s body dropped to the floor and rolled away like discarded trash.
“Ugh…”
“I’ll be taking this ring. Ah, and Karun — you’re confined for the time being. Stay put and wait for my orders.”
Leaving Karun groaning on the floor, Victor picked up the ring and walked out of his house.
“Make sure not even a rat sneaks out of here.”
After giving orders to the men waiting nearby, he pondered his next move.
“Hmm… I’d like to meet the Tower Master.”
“Look at these flowers — aren’t they beautiful?”
Princess Arines pointed at the roses blooming wildly across the field, a radiant smile on her face.
“They certainly possess visually striking qualities. Their charm stimulates both sight and smell.”
“There you go analyzing again. This isn’t your laboratory, you know.”
Arines puffed her lips, annoyed at Tower Master Leo Blair’s answer.
“Can’t you just let everything go once in a while and look with your heart? Is that so hard?”
“Your Highness, hearts do not have eyes. You’re asking me to see with something that doesn’t have sight, so I’m not sure how to proceed.”
“Ugh, forget it.”
She feigned irritation, but her eyes were full of unmistakable affection for the Tower Master.
To ease her mood, Leo softened his voice.
“To my eyes, Your Highness is far more aesthetically pleasing than any flower here. You are rare, constantly changing with vivid expressions… and unlike flowers, you can communicate.”
“You have a talent for making romantic lines sound unbearably stiff.”
She said that, yet her bright smile betrayed how pleased she was by the compliment.
The two were quietly enjoying their date in a peaceful clearing near the Magic Tower.
It was the very place where, in the original story, Tower Master Leo had first met Princess Arines and fallen for her at first sight.
Although the timeline had been disrupted by the sudden transmigration event and Gianna’s arrival, after several months, their romance was sprouting again.
And this time, it wasn’t one-sided — they were falling for each other.
Leo gazed at the bright and fresh princess and politely asked,
“By the way, may I ask why you chose to meet here?”
“Ah? Well, of course—”
Arines almost blurted out “Because this is where you fell in love with me,” but quickly shut her mouth.
Even if he was the Tower Master, she couldn’t just reveal knowledge of the original novel.
“…Obviously because nowhere else has flowers blooming this beautifully! Seeing such lovely scenery might help your emotional sensibilities develop a little, don’t you think?”
“Sensitivity does not develop through external experience; it is largely innate. However, if it is your wish, I will make an effort.”
His speech was nothing like that of ordinary people, but Arines — blinded by love — didn’t mind in the least.
As they strolled through the flowers, Arines suddenly remembered something.
“Oh right, I have something to ask.”
“Please do.”
“It’s something I heard from Gianna not long ago…”
She recounted Gianna’s story about fighting pirates.
“She said she shot a black sphere at one of them, and it burned him away like it was absorbing him. The pirate left no trace behind. What kind of magic would that be?”
“Hah. To think someone still uses that kind of magic.”
Leo’s eyes abruptly turned icy blue as he listened.
That look alone was enough to tell Arines this wasn’t ordinary magic.
“It’s dark magic. It drains a person’s life force.”
He clenched his teeth.
“And what happened to the caster?”
“Unfortunately, they escaped. Gianna said the pirate took the Belletine crew hostage and fled, so she couldn’t catch him.”
“…I see.”
The angrier Leo became, the colder his demeanor grew.
A chilling fury wrapped around him.
“They should’ve caught him… A dark mage, appearing after so long.”
“Are they really that dangerous?”
Arines asked carefully. Leo forced his rage down as he explained:
“Very few people can handle dark magic. Most mages refuse to even study it — it is fueled by stealing another’s life force.”
Among Leo’s many research topics inside the Magic Tower was dark magic.
But since there were almost no dark mages in the world, and he refused to sacrifice his own life force for research, progress had stalled.
And now — one had finally appeared.
He bitterly regretted missing the chance to catch him.
Just then—
“Princess Arines!”
Her attendant rushed into the clearing, calling urgently.
Arines frowned slightly at the interruption — she didn’t want their date ruined — but her expression relaxed when she saw Victor behind him.
Victor bowed apologetically to the princess.
“My apologies. I went to the palace, but they told me you were here.”
After apologizing to Arines, he turned immediately to Leo, stopping him before he could slip away.
“You must be Tower Master Leo Blair. I am Victor Collins. I actually came here to find you. I thought you might be with Her Highness.”
Leo disliked meeting strangers, but Victor quickly extended something toward him.
“Please examine this.”
“What is it?”
Leo took the ring from Victor, studied it carefully, and his expression grew serious.
He asked quietly,
“Where did you acquire this?”
“I confiscated it from a suspicious broker. It seems to be a communication magic tool, but it’s not functioning now. Could you look into it?”
“Certainly.”
Today was shaping up to be an extraordinary day, Leo thought.
A date with Princess Arines, a clue related to the dark mage…
And now, an artifact created using dark magic landed directly in his hands.
Suppressing his trembling excitement, he spoke.
“This is indeed a communication artifact.”
“I thought so. Something this valuable should be on the market — why isn’t it?”
“Of course not. No artifact infused with dark magic could ever be legally sold.”
“What do you mean…?”
“It means ordinary people cannot use it. May I meet the person who had this?”
Upon hearing the word “dark magic,” Victor’s expression hardened. He immediately led them to Karun’s house.
When the Tower Master and princess suddenly barged in, Karun went pale, but Leo ignored his panic and interrogated him.
A few finger snaps — a subtle threat — and Karun confessed everything in fear.
“The man I met when I first started working with Pen-Sing Factory gave me that ring. I haven’t seen him since. We only communicated through the ring.”
“Five years, and you never saw his face?”
“It’s true! Why does nobody believe me…”
It wasn’t impossible.
Now that the ring’s secret was exposed, Karun slumped, devastated — Pen-Sing was finished with him now.
Leo ignored him and asked Victor,
“May I investigate this further?”
“As much as you need. Just share anything new you learn.”
“Of course.”
They parted ways, and Victor thought to himself:
This might become a tremendous gift for Gianna.
