Chapter 5
But of course.
It seemed like the worst possible timing.
The carriage that had been traveling smoothly suddenly got stuck in a muddy pit in a strange forest and could no longer move forward.
The wheel had sunk so deeply that there was no way to fix it.
In the end, the coachman would have to ride to the nearest village and bring back another carriage.
If I had known this would happen, I should have brought Becky with me, even if it was a little annoying.
Just like the original Ellinea, I hadn’t developed the habit of bringing a personal attendant everywhere. So today, I hadn’t brought Becky along.
“Coachman, you’ll have to go and bring another carriage.”
At my words, the coachman nodded.
“I’ll ride the horse and return quickly.”
The horse didn’t have a saddle, so it couldn’t carry me all the way to the baron’s estate.
He meant that he would ride it to the village and bring a new carriage back as fast as possible.
I nodded and told him I would wait.
After the coachman disappeared on horseback, I looked at the wheel stuck in the pit.
“How could something like this happen so perfectly?”
Honestly, it looked as if someone had deliberately dug a pit exactly where our carriage would pass.
But I quickly dismissed the thought.
The only person in the original story who hated me enough to kill me was Sister Pere.
And right now, she was actually friendly toward me.
If things continued like this, it was only natural that I would eventually become her subordinate.
So unless I betray her someday, she won’t try to kill me.
Thinking that, I lightly kicked the ridiculously expensive-looking wheel.
Then suddenly—
A strange rustling sound came from somewhere.
Instinctively, I turned my head.
A spider the size of the carriage I had been riding in was staring straight at me.
“What is that?”
My eyebrow twitched in irritation as I looked at it.
Ah. That’s definitely a monster.
I was certain.
This was a monster.
When I saw the black flowers earlier, I had only thought maybe.
But the enormous spider in front of me looked almost identical to the monsters from the world I originally lived in.
In my old world, monsters had been much more common than they were here.
They hid in forests and ruins, taking human lives.
And as a dark mage, I had been very used to dealing with them.
Though this one looks even more grotesque than the monsters from my world.
I clicked my tongue and quickly drew out the dark power that I had kept buried deep within my body.
At that moment, the spider monster shot several strands of web toward me.
“…!”
Before I could dodge, my entire body was wrapped tightly in the web.
Even when I had been a dark mage before, my magic had been powerful, but my physical strength had been weak.
My acquaintances had constantly told me to train my stamina.
And this body was no different.
If I had known this would happen, I should have started physical training the moment I possessed this body.
Still, I was lucky that I had brought my dark magic with me.
Using the dark power I had already gathered, I covered the web binding my body with black smoke.
The black smoke wrapped around the white web and instantly turned it into powder.
“Kiikiiiii!”
When the web disappeared because of my dark magic, the spider monster screeched grotesquely and shot more webs at me.
“Tsk.”
I released black smoke again, burning away the webs.
Then I bit my thumb hard enough to draw blood and traced a dark magic spell in the air.
The blood-drawn spell glowed brightly and transformed into a black shadow that flew toward the spider monster.
The shadow wrapped around the spider instantly, forming a round sphere.
I stretched my hand toward it and clenched my fist.
The black shadow suddenly compressed.
With a pop sound, the spider monster exploded inside the dark sphere.
“This spell is a little too grotesque, so I don’t like using it. But the formula is simple, so it’s useful in emergencies.”
I muttered while looking at the spider’s remains scattered horribly across the ground.
But then—
“Kiiikikik.”
“Kiiiiik.”
“Kiiikikikik.”
Grotesque sounds began echoing from multiple directions.
When I turned my head, I saw more than ten spider monsters crawling toward me, moving their disgusting front legs.
“…Damn it.”
I couldn’t help but curse.
Quickly, I bit my thumb harder to produce more blood.
But wait.
Did spiders even hunt in groups?
Why were there so many of them?
Anyway, if I responded carelessly, things might become dangerous.
So I prepared another spell with blood.
But then—
Whoosh! Shh!
Suddenly, dozens of sharp black boomerang-shaped blades flew in from somewhere.
In an instant, they sliced through the spiders’ necks and bodies.
More than ten spider monsters collapsed onto the ground almost immediately.
I turned my head to look for the one who had cast those black boomerangs.
A carriage stood a short distance away.
And in front of it stood a man with black hair and red eyes.
The empire’s only darkness-attribute user.
Theor Etherzan.
In the original novel Caroline’s Lover, he was the devoted second male lead who loved Caroline endlessly.
Why was he here?
For now, he had helped me out of a dangerous situation.
So I set aside my confusion and quickly bowed.
“Thank you, Your Grace.”
“Why are you alone in such a dangerous place without any escort?”
“Ah, the carriage wheel got stuck in a pit, so the coachman went to get another carriage.”
“You waited here alone even though monsters appear in this area?”
“…I didn’t know.”
I genuinely hadn’t.
The coachman probably hadn’t known either, or he wouldn’t have left me alone.
“I received reports of monster activity nearby and was patrolling. The report said there were many of them, so there are probably still several left.”
“I see.”
“If we stay here, other monsters will smell the blood and gather. We should move.”
“…Alright.”
“Where were you heading? I can escort you.”
When Theor asked that, I opened my mouth to say I was on my way to Caroline’s house.
But I stopped.
For some reason, I didn’t want to arrange a meeting between him and Caroline that didn’t exist in the original story.
After all, Caroline eventually chose Lloyd, even though she had Theor and the High Priest Graim competing for her.
Even if my presence twisted the story slightly, the ending where lovers ended up together probably wouldn’t change.
So he should start looking for another woman early.
It would be a waste of that handsome face.
While staring at Theor’s incredibly perfect appearance—like a work of art made by the gods—I shook my head.
“No, it’s fine. The coachman will return soon.”
“As I said earlier, monsters have appeared nearby. The monsters here move in groups. Even the forest entrance may not be safe.”
“Wait… spiders hunt in groups?!”
“All monsters hunt in groups. Didn’t you study monsterology—”
Theor stopped mid-sentence.
“…Ah.”
I knew what he had been about to say.
Commoners didn’t possess elemental attributes.
So unlike nobles, they didn’t study monsterology.
There was no point.
Because if commoners encountered monsters, they would die without being able to do anything.
Although I was now the daughter of a viscount, Ellinea had originally been a commoner.
And because she lacked an elemental attribute, Theor realized his words had been careless.
Instead of reassuring him, I used my dark power to heal the wound on my thumb.
I had done it impulsively.
A childish urge to show I have power too.
And that decision caused a problem.
“…That’s—!”
Theor’s face turned pale when he saw the black, smoke-like creatures healing my hand.
Realizing my mistake, I immediately dismissed the spell.
But he had already seen it.
“That ability just now.”
Theor strode toward me.
Instinctively, I stepped backward.
“S-Stop. What’s wrong with you? You’re being scary.”
“That ability just now.”
“Ability? What ability?”
“The one that healed the wound on your hand.”
“My hand was bleeding? Where?”
Realizing I was in serious trouble, I decided to pretend ignorance.
After all, Theor was the only person in the empire who could use the darkness attribute.
Anyone would be suspicious of an ability that looked similar.
“Miss.”
“Ah! My head!”
Seeing that he wouldn’t let go of his suspicion, I pretended to collapse.
Immediately, Thor rushed forward and caught me.
So he was not only handsome but also a gentleman.
I leaned against his chest, pretending to feel dizzy while thinking desperately about how to get out of this situation.
