Chapter 63………………
“If you can’t even reveal your own identity, then you shouldn’t have stepped forward in the first place. The world is dangerous enough as it is.”
Those words I just spoke were once a line said by the real Elufe Inferna in the game.
Back then, I wasn’t some kindhearted person who sympathized with the character’s circumstances. I thought of it as nothing more than a throwaway line meant to stir things up a little.
But now—embarrassingly—I could understand at least a fraction of her heart.
The Inferna family has many enemies. It must have been difficult for her to open up so easily.
Not long ago, I was someone who accepted others’ goodwill without question.
But after living as Elufe, the villainess of a novel who could die at any moment, I’d grown cynical and suspicious of everything.
Even I—who once believed in absolute goodness—had now become someone who couldn’t easily trust others. That realization left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Though I put on a front of confidence, her eyes were wide with fear, as if terrified that I might have witnessed something I shouldn’t.
I hadn’t let go of my doubts, but I didn’t want to press her. Indulging in tragic imaginings only heightened unease; leaving things as they were was the wiser choice.
“Are you just going to leave?”
The woman called out to me urgently, but I had no time to spare. Even now, the stench of smoke and charred remains filled the air, blackened ashes scattering in the wind.
“Moving your lips like a goldfish doesn’t count as conversation.”
With a heavy heart, I turned away. I knew the path ahead was through hellish flames, yet my steps felt almost light.
Then, just when I thought she’d stay silent, the woman grabbed my arm tightly.
“My name is Cindy. I’ve told you my name—please, listen to my story.”
Even without words, I could sense it. This fire was no ordinary accident.
In a place drowning in grief and rage, someone asking me to simply stop and listen was suspicious in itself. Cindy could very well be a prime suspect.
But there were people in the flames who needed saving. Capturing someone like Cindy wasn’t my responsibility.
“You’d still talk to me, even knowing I’m a black magician?”
It was a waste to spill blood here, but unless I scared her off, she would cling to me endlessly.
So, with the intent to frighten her, I conjured an identical image of Cindy.
“Kyaaah!”
Seeing her own face before her, Cindy went pale and bolted in terror. Finally, I could focus on extinguishing the flames.
Even as I walked, my thoughts refused to stop.
In the story I remembered, this fire incident was concluded as a simple accident. Yet after meeting this woman, Cindy, my heart pounded uncontrollably, tightening with unease.
If this fire wasn’t an accident from the start… then what does that mean?
Even knowing it was an unlikely possibility, I couldn’t just let her go.
Remembering the promise I made long ago to Risma, I blinked three times, giving him permission to hear my inner thoughts.
[Risma, that woman seems suspicious.]
[“I think so too. I’ve never known a race that gave false names to be trustworthy.”]
[She could escape while we’re gone. Bind her to that tree with vines.]
[“Why go that far? What if she finds out who you really are?”]
He wasn’t wrong. If luck ran out, she could recognize my voice. But with my helmet on, I was certain she couldn’t possibly know me.
[This is a command from your contractor.]
I sent the duplicate I’d made into the crowd, while binding the fleeing Cindy to a tree with vines.
It didn’t matter whether I was the real Elufe or a false one. Cindy shrieked in terror, but no sympathy stirred in me.
“If you do anything suspicious, Cindy, you’ll never return to your place again.”
Afterward, with Risma’s help, I pushed forward into the building as quickly as possible.
The more I hurried, the heavier my chest grew—the inside was far more horrific than I had imagined.
[“The heat’s too strong. I can’t even keep my eyes open.”]
[Hold on a moment.]
I used the water I’d brought to suppress the worst of the flames. Slowly, the unlit room came into view.
The fire still burned, casting a flickering orange glow, as if garish lights had been strung across the room.
[“This must’ve been someone’s bedroom. It’s ruined, but I can still see the bed.”]
As Risma said, a massive bed remained unburned. Calming myself, I scanned the room again—and spotted details I’d missed.
What the fire hadn’t touched was excessively luxurious.
[“If not for the herbs on the windowsill, it would’ve been hard to get near.”]
Herbs? I tilted my head.
In my memory, the only mention of herbs in the Duke’s residence was from a line of Xeros.
The Duchess loved applemint, and young Xeros would often bring her some.
This is the Duchess’s bedroom!
By some twist of fate, the plants near the window had survived intact, leading me here.
“Cough—cough—please… someone, save my child….”
But luck was hardly the right word. The Duchess’s condition was clearly dire.
The once splendid bedroom was now beyond description, utterly devastated.
The chandelier, once radiant, had collapsed upon her.
Blood streamed down as her consciousness wavered. In her arms, clinging tightly to her waist, was young Xeros.
Is he unconscious?
I poured water around them, extinguishing the flames nearby.
Steam surged upward, stinging my eyes, as if forming an invisible wall between me and the Duchess.
“Please… just take my child… out of here….”
She was too far gone to ask for her own life.
Her frail shoulders, battered from shielding Xeros against the falling chandelier, were torn and ragged.
“Yes. I’ll do it.”
She must have thrown herself over him when the ceiling gave way.
Her breaths were shallow. I realized faintly that this was her final moment.
[Risma, they need ventilation. Don’t make the wind too strong—just enough oxygen for the Duchess and her child.]
Risma followed my command immediately.
I bit my tongue, spilling blood to fuel my magic, and lifted the massive chandelier pinning her down.
Crash!
“Th-thank you…”
Her faint voice was like a dying ember.
I was terrified of the inferno around me, but I could only ask Risma.
[Take them somewhere safe.]
[“No. If I leave your side, and you get into danger, I won’t forgive myself.”]
His voice burned with frustration, but I forced a laugh.
[I can call your name anytime now, remember? Don’t worry—please, take them.]
Unable to disobey his contractor’s order, Risma carried them away in vines and vanished.
I couldn’t watch them leave.
When I opened the door to the Duchess’s chamber, the world before me was nothing but a cruel, merciless hell.
What I had just witnessed of Xeros’s past was beyond “tragic.”
From the moment I left the Duchess’s room, I felt firsthand how easily life could become a living hell.
Thud!
In the raging fire, everything was terror itself.
Fine wooden furniture only fueled the blaze higher, and metal decorations glowed red-hot, threatening to melt flesh with a touch.
“…Haah.”
I recalled how lightly I had once laughed when skimming Xeros’s backstory in the lorebook. Now, the memory made my chest ache.
Had I been mocking their pain all along, using the suffering of these characters as cheap comfort and shallow satisfaction…?
Just as guilt threatened to crush me, faint voices reached my ears.
Grabbing the heated doorknob would’ve been idiotic—even with flame-resistant gloves, nothing could withstand such heat forever.
Bang!
So instead, I kicked the door open.
Inside, the room was unexpectedly intact, not yet consumed by flames.
In fact, my entrance seemed to let the heat spread further, and I felt a pang of guilt.
“…Ugh.”
Turning toward the sound of groaning, I spotted familiar faces. They were the brothers I had seen with Xeros back at the Imperial Palace.
