Chapter 58
It was a blade filled with murderous intent, a strike meant to kill.
But it could not reach Ariel.
Whoosh!
The wind stirred up by the blade left sharp marks on the wall.
Books and flasks that had been on the table rattled violently before crashing to the ground with a loud clatter.
Yet neither of them turned their eyes toward the noise; they only stared at each other.
With a light movement, Ariel dodged the blade and spoke to the figure before her.
“Never thought I’d see you here, Lady.”
The culprit, Elta, was glaring at Ariel with terrifying eyes—one hand clutching an unconscious Saren slung over her shoulder, the other gripping a sword.
“How did you know to come here?”
“What do you mean? I followed you, of course.”
Suspicion flickered across Elta’s face.
She knew Ariel was the martial arts tournament champion, but had assumed she was just a kid.
She hadn’t expected Ariel to have the skills to tail her undetected.
“But I’m shocked. Never imagined you’d be doing something like this inside a fortress meant to repel monsters.”
Ariel’s gaze dropped to the floor.
A magic circle, drawn in blood-red lines, writhed with sinister energy.
Even someone completely ignorant would sense the ominous nature of that sigil.
The crimson lines seemed almost alive, twisting and crawling.
Then the circle rattled violently, like a cage barely holding a savage beast.
The monsters beyond the door were clawing to get through.
Dark energy seeped from the magic circle, pressing heavily on the air.
An ordinary person would find it hard to breathe, but Ariel, who had grown up exposed to such power, was unbothered.
“Opening the Gate of Darkness, Lady? Truly shocking. If this gets out, you won’t just lose your head.”
Ariel’s calm eyes fixed on Elta.
Honestly, she hadn’t expected Elta to be the culprit.
After all, Elta was the one responsible for the fortress, fighting to keep monsters at bay.
The idea that such a person would summon monsters was hard to believe.
Then Elta murmured softly,
“What do you know?”
“?”
“What do you know! What do you know!”
Her voice rose into a furious scream.
“You think I wanted to open that thing? You think I didn’t know how dangerous it was?!”
Ariel said nothing, but Elta shouted as if struck by guilt.
“I had no choice! No choice at all! You wouldn’t understand! You, who lucked into becoming an heir—you’d never know!”
Elta still remembered that day.
The day she lost to her much younger sister.
Just once.
Just a single clash, and yet her sister had easily crushed her.
This gap is hopeless…
The young lady’s talent isn’t particularly impressive… Perhaps it would be best to change the heir, don’t you agree?
She had trained relentlessly since childhood to slay monsters.
Every single day, without fail.
Yet she could never catch up to raw talent.
Then, one day, she made a mistake.
A single misjudgment cost the lives of many knights guarding the fortress.
It was only one mistake. Just once.
But to those in the family eager to see her fall, it was the perfect excuse.
The Count summoned her.
Elta, we’ve decided to pass the heirship to your sister. You know the knights’ dissatisfaction after you failed to protect the fortress.
On that day, Elta conceded quietly.
It can’t be helped. My abilities were lacking. I trust she will lead the family well in my place.
But as she turned away, her eyes burned blue with rage.
She couldn’t just let them take her place.
Yet her strength alone was not enough.
So she reached for the power of darkness.
Dangerous, yes, but hadn’t the evil dragon shown just how overwhelming that power could be?
I just need to control it… As long as I control it…
Dark magic had been banned only thirty years ago.
There were still records hidden in noble family archives.
As the Count’s daughter and former heir, sneaking into the archives wasn’t difficult.
When she opened the Gate of Darkness, she felt power surge through her.
She used that power to kill her sister.
With the Gate’s power, she could command monsters. Protecting the fortress became much easier.
All she had to do was position the monsters and send in knights to fight them.
It was like solving a puzzle with the answer sheet in hand.
Everything was perfect.
This time, too, it was only one mistake.
Just one failure to control it… and the number of monsters grew…
If not for that lucky brat adopted into the Duke of Clasta’s family, there would have been no problem.
It’s unfair.
She had fought so desperately, just to keep her heirship.
And that girl, adopted by a duke and handed the heir’s seat, dared to judge her?
Ariel tilted her head slightly.
“An heir, huh… So you used the power of darkness just to become the Count’s heir?”
“Yes! And what’s wrong with that?!”
Bloodshot eyes glared at Ariel.
The elegant figure Ariel had always seen was gone.
“As long as I control the Gate, monsters are no problem! No matter how many come, I can send them back with a flick of my finger! There’s been no problem so far! What did I do wrong?!”
“In theory, nothing.”
In theory, that is.
If one could truly master the Gate of Darkness, it was possible to command monsters.
“But do you know the price you pay for that?”
The power of darkness was never free.
The Gate numbs reason, drains magic to feed its strength.
Sacrifices could slow the process, but only for so long.
Eventually, it would strip its wielder of all magic and devour them once it became strong enough.
Ariel’s red eyes flicked to the shuddering magic circle on the floor.
“The Gate isn’t listening to you anymore, is it? Monsters multiplying, slipping out on their own.”
Elta flinched.
As if to say—how do you know that?
“The Gate has outgrown you. You can barely keep up now… That’s why you kidnapped the prince, isn’t it? Because you knew how dangerous it was.”
“No! No!”
Elta shrieked hysterically.
“I can fix this! I can!”
Her eyes darted to Saren, limp in her arms.
“His blood will do it! With his blood, I can regain control! Close the Gate!”
“Oh, that? Sorry, but that was a lie.”
“W-what? A lie?”
“Yes. I said that to lure you out.”
“You… you little—!”
Then Elta’s expression twisted.
Her crazed eyes gleamed with madness.
“No… it’s not too late. If I add you to the offering along with royal blood…”
Grrrrrrr.
The magic circle growled like a beast begging to be fed.
“That’ll quiet it down for a while. Then I’ll have time…!”
Elta laid Saren atop the circle.
Unaware of what awaited him, his sleeping face was serene.
“I’ll make it all right again!”
Elta raised her dagger to plunge into his heart.
“Who said you could?”
Clang!
Ariel’s blade slammed into Elta’s, knocking it aside.
Elta’s wrist twisted painfully, and her weapon flew across the room.
She turned to Ariel with a chilling glare.
“Fine. Guess I should kill you first, brat.”
She staggered up and drew another blade.
“I’ve hated you since the moment we met. Arrogant little girl.”
“That’s a shame. I actually kind of liked you at first.”
Elta moved first.
The ground cracked under her feet as she lunged.
She leapt high into the air, bringing her blade down with crushing force.
Claaang!
“Ugh.”
Ariel blocked, boots digging into the ground under the sheer weight of the blow.
“Good. Saves me the trouble of figuring out how to kick you out.”
Clang! Clang!
Elta swung wildly, each slash pouring out all her magic.
It didn’t matter.
The Gate at her side refilled her in an instant.
Her body surged with strength; she felt like she could fight even the Duke of Clasta himself.
She cursed herself for holding back, afraid of being exposed.
Her fingertips blackened as the ground beneath her corroded like rotting metal.
“So the injury was a lie too?”
“Of course! How could I leave the Gate alone for days?”
Her once-neat hair came undone as she drowned in power, slashing like a madwoman.
“Lucky enough to be a duke’s daughter, blessed with talent, winning tournaments—you must’ve thought you were the best!”
Boom! Crash!
Every clash of their swords rang like thunder.
Ariel’s clothes were in tatters from Elta’s killing intent.
“But it ends today! Too bad your daddy isn’t here to save you!”
Dark power surged with every strike.
Nearby, Saren groaned faintly in his sleep, chest rising and falling shallowly.
Ariel deflected another blow and spoke.
“Ever consider this?”
Clang!
Her crimson eyes glimmered between the blades.
“Getting help might be worse for you.”
A crushing force constricted her chest as the mark of the evil dragon throbbed on her heart.
She knew this power too well—an old, hated companion.
What strangled others felt to her like crisp dawn air.
Her body, remade by the dragon, ached to draw on the darkness flooding the air.
But she resisted.
She knew what that power cost.
The more Elta drew on the darkness, the more violently the Gate raged.
If Ariel had been any later, the Gate would’ve devoured Elta and gone berserk, slaughtering everyone.
Her chest heaved, but her mind grew cold and sharp.
“Don’t tell me you think this is the end?”
Elta gathered blood-red magic on her sword.
The entire underground prison shook.
Walls trembled, the Gate howled to be unleashed.
Amid the chaos, Ariel focused only on her enemy.
For a heartbeat, everything slowed.
Water dripping from the ceiling fell in lazy motion.
Plink.
She heard the droplet hit the ground.
Her senses sharpened. Everything became clear.
Elta’s sword swung down.
At that instant—
As the blade rose, then fell, and the condensed magic surged to explode—
A tiny opening.
There.
Ariel struck, slicing into the weakest point in that fleeting gap.
