Chapter~17
Sixth: Shattering Your Superior’s Misconceptions
Crack—!
Under the crushing weight, the bones of several black magicians broke.
“Who’s there?!”
“Sonnet!”
The moment the black magicians shouted in panic, Pierre rushed in after me.
“What on earth are you—”
“They’re black magicians! Capture them first!”
“Attack!”
Realizing things had gone wrong, the one who seemed to be the leader shouted.
He began chanting a spell, and in his hand was something about the size of an egg.
‘Is that the object?’
A small, pitch-black cube.
I didn’t know what it was, but it radiated a sinister aura.
“[Swamp of Shadows]!”
Someone completed their spell, and the ground caved in as shadows tried to grab my ankles.
“Whoa!”
I grabbed a nearby ceramic vase, infused it with mana, and swung it.
Crash—!
The vase cracked as it shattered the shadow magic.
I tossed it aside, and Pierre threw me a wooden plank.
He had picked it up from the broken door.
“Do we subdue them all?!”
“Yes! If possible, capture them! If not—kill them!”
The mana-infused wooden plank was sturdier than expected.
I immediately attacked a black magician who was trying to cast another spell.
“Shut up! [Silent]!”
“Mmph!”
“Mmmph!”
“Stay calm!”
Most of them weren’t even mid-level magicians—once I sealed their mouths, their spell accuracy dropped significantly.
I fired one at the leader too, but it didn’t work.
At least in magic, I was inferior.
Dodging the spells being fired at me, I knocked them out one by one and shouted:
“I’ll handle the underlings! Pierre, take that guy—the one holding the black thing!”
Judging by the energy, it was definitely a cursed item.
Normally, it’s hard to distinguish a black magician from a regular one unless they use black magic.
Without evidence, it’s difficult to arrest them.
But cursed items are strictly prohibited—and anyone can recognize them.
“That thing he’s holding! It’s a cursed item!”
“I know!”
If we secured that, we could arrest all of them red-handed.
I trust you! Sword Master! Hurry!
I placed my faith—perhaps a bit too generously—in Pierre’s abilities.
Still, he was among the strong.
“Ghk—!”
“Block it!”
As Pierre engaged the leader, the pressure on me noticeably lessened.
Thud—!
With a raw impact, I knocked out the last remaining one and turned toward the leader.
Thanks to the cursed item, he was firing magic wildly, but he was clearly being pushed back.
“You bastard!”
“Surrender!”
I gripped the long staff I had just taken, preparing to assist—
“I won’t die alone!”
“No!”
He crushed the item.
Shatter—!
Pierre’s aura sliced through him at that exact moment, but the item began emitting a strange light.
“Heh… hehehe…!”
Pitch-black darkness swallowed his body.
Soon, that darkness began engulfing Pierre as well.
“Sonnet! Run!”
“Pierre!”
Before I could react—
The black darkness swallowed everything.
* * *
“Sonnet, are you awake?”
Blinking, I opened my eyes to see deep violet eyes before me.
Who…?
Frowning, I soon realized the man in front of me was Pierre.
“Pierre?”
“Yes. It’s me.”
“Where… are we…?”
As I sat up and looked around, I saw a temple made of black stone.
I had seen this scene before—in the game.
“…The Cursed Temple?”
“‘Cursed,’ you say. It certainly looks the part. For a temple, the mana here feels unpleasant.”
This dungeon appeared in the game about two years later.
At the banquet celebrating the First Prince’s ascension to Crown Prince—
Black magicians launched a terrorist attack.
I recalled the cube the leader had been holding.
Could that have been related to this Cursed Temple?
“Is there anyone else here besides us?”
In the game, the Cursed Temple appeared as a mandatory stage depending on the route.
In the knight route, this was the stage where Mabel would take her first step toward becoming a formal knight.
Whether or not you cleared this temple determined the progression of that route.
“I didn’t have time to check thoroughly, but I don’t sense anyone nearby.”
Naturally, a stage meant to grant knightly recognition wouldn’t involve just one person.
In the original story, the temple pulled in princes and numerous nobles.
I recalled where the item had been activated—
The Cartier Marchioness’ estate.
“…Did you see anything that looked like an exit?”
“In cases like this, it’s usually inside.”
But we had been in a remote corner of the banquet hall.
Anyone else caught in it would likely have been dropped outside the temple.
Since no one was here, it seemed only we were pulled in.
“Let’s go inside and look for an exit.”
“That’s a good idea, but… are you alright?”
“I’m fine. My mana’s working properly. The only issue is that I don’t have a weapon… Are you okay?”
“Same. Let’s look around for anything we can use.”
I agreed—preparation was essential.
We explored the area outside the temple together.
Fortunately, there was no one else.
I snapped off a few branches from a dried tree nearby and held them.
“There’s nothing outside. No need to stay on guard.”
“Right.”
“But before that, there’s something I want to ask.”
He fiddled with a wooden stick as he spoke.
“What is it?”
“Back at the banquet—you ran off suddenly. Was it to catch the black magicians?”
“Yes. I saw someone I recognized as one…”
“Recognized?”
He raised an eyebrow.
“They didn’t look like wanted criminals. How did you identify them? It’s difficult to distinguish black magicians from regular ones before they use black magic.”
“…I happened to get some information.”
“From where? And from whom?”
“Does that matter?”
“It does. Information related to black magic is classified. Even the ducal house doesn’t have much. If possible, I’d like to know the source.”
Have you heard of the game “Lady Maker”?
You’re in it too.
If you play it, you’d understand everything.
…Obviously, I couldn’t say that.
“Well…”
Using Mephisto as an excuse wouldn’t work.
No one wants someone planting spies in their house.
If it was revealed that I was connected to an information guild—and further, that the guild was tied to the princess—who knew what would happen?
“You’re my knight, aren’t you? If there’s nothing suspicious, there should be nothing to hide. Speak.”
So being a knight means no privacy?
I hesitated, buying time—then reached a conclusion.
“…My parents,”
“Your parents?”
“My parents were killed while hunting black magicians.”
I decided to use Sonnet’s parents.
In my head, I pieced together the Eduke family’s background.
Count and Countess—died in an accident.
Sonnet Eduke—fell gravely ill afterward.
From now on, those two facts are connected.
“And what does that—”
“My father hated black magicians.”
Everything that happened to the Eduke family—was because of black magicians.
“Count Eduke?”
“Yes. So he secretly pursued them, seeking revenge.”
“Why secretly? Hunting black magicians is encouraged by the Empire…”
“He never told me why, but it seemed there was a reason. He always said the secret must be kept.”
“The official cause of their deaths was an accident. How can you be sure it was black magicians?”
“That’s… because I possess a special ability. One passed down in the Eduke family, skipping generations.”
“Such a thing existed?”
It didn’t.
I just made it up.
“Didn’t you find it strange? How a noble lady who had never held a sword could suddenly have such skill?”
“…Now that you mention it, yes. Your body shows no signs of training.”
Of course not. It’s system-based.
“When a certain person dies, I inherit their abilities.”
“A certain person?”
This world already has inherited powers and family curses.
He himself is proof of that.
“My father had different conditions than me. Each person’s condition varies—some require a lover, others a blood relative… For me, it was my parents.”
“Then… after their accident, you suddenly became strong because of that ability?”
“Yes. And this ability can only be interfered with by black magic.”
I lowered my head, as if suppressing sorrow.
“One day, while waiting for my parents to return, I felt their abilities being transferred to me.”
“……”
“First, I felt my mother’s connection. It gradually faded, and I cried. Then came my father’s—but with him, I felt something unnatural. A disgusting sensation, and the connection was abruptly cut off.”
“So that’s what convinced you?”
“You may not believe me. No—of course you wouldn’t. But…”
The only proof of this story was my sudden strength and decision to become a knight.
But he remembered how untrained I used to be.
And if he believed this story, then all his previous suspicions would naturally be erased.
He wouldn’t have to reject me—the person he had grown close to.
“…I see. I want to believe you. I saw how you swung your sword at the black magicians.”
He looked emotionally shaken.
Well, he himself was someone bound by a family legacy.
It made sense he’d empathize.
And when people resonate with something, they tend to rationalize it.
“But as the Young Duke and Knight Commander of the Edenrosa family, I need more concrete proof.”
“Proof?”
“Proof that you are truly my knight. Proof that I don’t need to doubt you.”
His violet eyes met mine.
Good. He doesn’t want to doubt me.
He’s almost convinced.
“There’s something that doesn’t add up. You want to hunt black magicians. Correct?”
“Yes.”
“Then why join the knight order? If it’s for revenge, it’s too passive. The direction doesn’t match your goal—you’d be bound by schedules.”
“That’s…”
“And you… seem to pay a lot of attention to me. Why?”
Pay attention? What does he mean?
I’ve dumped work on him before…
Either way, my mind spun desperately and found an answer.
I shook my head.
“Because black magicians are targeting you, Young Duke.”
