Chapter 12
It was hard to expect trust from a magician.
Better not to hope for silence at all.
“I’ll tell you. But you must make a vow with me.”
“A vow? Did you just say a vow?”
“Yes. I will swear not to speak any lies. In return, you must swear never to reveal anything to anyone.”
“…”
“Then I’ll tell you as much as you want.”
“You do know, if you break a vow like this, you’ll lose your life—or pay an equal price?”
“I know.”
“…So, this is truly a secret worth protecting at such risk.”
The old man looked me over carefully.
“Then I must add a condition. You must also tell me the results of using the testing reagent.”
I nodded.
“As long as you swear to keep that secret as well.”
Then I added,
“If Rohwinas asks, there’s no need to hide that I came here.”
“Of course. I serve House Canesion—that much is obvious.”
“But you must not hint at anything about what we swore.”
“That too goes without saying.”
For a magician, he was surprisingly reasonable.
After all, he had survived for so long as a retainer of House Canesion without major trouble.
“When will the reagent be ready?”
“Come back tomorrow or the day after. By then, I can give it to you.”
“Even if you start right away?”
“Even then, it won’t be ready until tomorrow. Go back, and I’ll send word…”
“I’ve heard it can be made in half a day.”
The old man stopped at my words and stared at me.
“Start now.”
“You were testing me.”
“Is that a problem? You didn’t lie, and I simply want the medicine as soon as possible.”
“…Very well. I’ll make it now.”
“I’ll wait here until it’s done.”
His eyes darkened.
He clicked his tongue and slowly pulled himself out from behind his piles of books.
Then he placed a large jar over the fire and began pulling ingredients from the shelves.
“Do you even know what these are?”
He asked, curious, when he noticed my eyes following every move of his hands.
“The fourth leg of a guwa beast, eggs of a yellow-spotted frog, petals and leaves of a phulantas plant, diluted tears of omlan… Shall I continue?”
“….”
“I know what goes into the reagent. I’m just not a magician, so I can’t make it.”
“You studied all this despite not being a magician?”
“It wasn’t that difficult.”
While the mixture brewed, the old man kept questioning me without pause.
He was known for his obsession with collecting “rare and secret knowledge.”
Rumor said that if even one of his secrets became public, the entire Empire would be thrown into chaos.
Maybe it was true, maybe not.
But one thing was clear—he loved other people’s secrets.
“Then, Baroness, you must also know how the love potion is made.”
I answered flatly.
“I do. Very well.”
“….”
“What? You’re dissatisfied even when I give the answer you wanted?”
“Of course not.”
And so the dull talk dragged on while time slipped away.
At last, dawn came.
The old man handed me three small bottles.
The faint morning sunlight filtered even through the thick tent, glowing at my feet.
Finally, we sealed our vows with the mark of oath.
I spoke three names.
“You should come back and tell me the results yourself.”
“If I die before then, you’ll never know the outcome, is that it?”
My question seemed to spark his obsession even more.
His sharp blue eyes gleamed, so I had to reassure him.
I tucked the bottles deep inside my cloak and pulled my hood low.
“See you next time.”
As I was about to leave, his voice stopped me.
“Why only now did you come to me?”
I gave a short laugh.
Then glanced back over my shoulder.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“Not waiting—curious. You must have had many questions for me.
And for you to come so late at night, in such a rush, it means you already knew where to find me long ago.”
I turned back to face him.
Sunlight streaming through the tent lit half his face.
His pale blue eyes shone as they fixed on me.
“Then why didn’t you come sooner?”
“Because I was searching not for the one who made the antidote… but for the one who made the potion.”
“And what if that person is me?”
“Why? Have you stopped claiming that I fed it to him?”
Even at my mocking tone, the old man only asked,
“So… have you found them?”
“….”
I stared at his wrinkled face, now stripped of every emotion but pure curiosity.
“No.”
And with that, I left the tent.
“Where were you all night? Julie was so worried.”
Zaka took my hooded cloak from me and asked.
“You weren’t worried?”
He blinked in surprise.
“Of course I was too.”
His eyes searched my face, trying to read my meaning.
“Julie’s still asleep, right?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Then come to the sitting room. I have something to say.”
“What about breakfast? Did you drink all night instead?”
He glanced at me while lowering the cloak in his hands.
“…No, you didn’t drink.”
“Sit.”
Zaka sat across from me in silence.
“What is it?”
I pulled one of the bottles from my cloak and set it on the table.
“Sorry, but I need some of your blood.”
He opened his mouth to ask something—but then closed it again.
Instead, he took a knife from his pocket and nicked his fingertip.
He looked far too practiced with it.
When I opened the bottle, he let drops of blood fall inside.
It wouldn’t take long now.
Just a little longer…
The glass warmed in my hand.
I gripped it tighter, my fingers turning white.
But soon the bottle grew unbearably hot, boiling in my hand.
I couldn’t stand the pain and dropped it.
It shattered on the floor, liquid spraying everywhere.
And then—
A stunning sight.
Golden water leapt up like a spray of sunlight.
The liquid floated in the air like a living creature.
It circled once around Zaka, then drifted back toward me.
The moment it touched my fingers, a dazzling rainbow light burst forth.
So bright, I had to shut my eyes.
When it finally faded, the glow, the whirl, the foam—everything vanished without a trace.
“…What was that?”
“A testing reagent.”
“Testing? Testing for what?”
For the first time, I saw confusion in Zaka’s eyes.
“Doesn’t it remind you of something?”
“….”
“You drank it.”
Zaka sat frozen.
“No.”
“You saw it yourself—the golden light.”
Even as I spoke, it didn’t feel real.
As if someone else was saying the words.
“If you hadn’t drunk it, nothing would have changed. It would have stayed a simple, clear liquid.”
“….”
“You took the love potion.”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
“Understand now?”
I almost believed it myself.
How could it be real?
But it was.
It was.
I stood, picked up my cloak.
“Your feelings for me are fake. So go back to your place.”
“Baroness!”
Zaka jumped up and grabbed my arm.
“Don’t worry. I’ll find a way to fix this. But you must—”
“Did you give it to me?”
“….”
“You didn’t, right?”
“….”
“Then don’t tell me to leave. Don’t run away from me.”
“Zaka.”
He looked almost terrified.
“And besides… it’s not even love. Not really. Just… a little interest. Nothing serious at all! So…”
“You really…”
Do you not understand what that means?
I held my tongue instead of asking.
I turned to go.
Then Zaka said,
“I have nowhere to go back to.”
“What do you mean? You can return to the palace—”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because I almost killed someone.”
“….”
“I nearly did. What place would take in an attendant with that kind of past?”
“And yet you expect me to take you?”
“…Yes. You’ll take me.”
He had no room left to even fear how I might see him.
All he wanted was to stay by my side.
Enough to confess a truth he would normally keep buried forever.
“…We’ll talk after I return.”
I couldn’t even be sure his story was true.
I pried his hand off my arm and left the mansion once more.
