Chapter 05
“So what if I am?”
Her voice asked the question as if she truly didn’t understand the problem.
At that, sparks practically flew in Thermion’s eyes.
“I’ll say it again. Bring me my niece.”
“Did I hurt your niece or something? Why are you barging into someone else’s home and causing trouble?”
“Don’t play dumb!”
Clang!
Thermion swung his arm lightly.
His strangely curved sword struck her ladle and sent it flying.
“My ladle!”
With a casual flick of her hand, the ladle stopped midair, spun around, and flew neatly back into her grasp—
then immediately began stirring the pot on its own.
A trick no ordinary mage could ever perform.
It was a skill worthy of someone called a witch.
And at the same time, the quiet lake began bubbling violently.
Noticing the disturbance, Thermion’s eyebrow twitched.
“What is that?”
“You’ve got to be kidding me! You scared my friend!”
Before she even finished speaking, the lake split open—
SPLAAAAASH!
“Y-your Grace, the Duke!”
“Everyone, form up!”
A gigantic white serpent—large enough to swallow a horse whole—rose from the water, staring straight at Thermion with its slit pupils.
“HSSSSSSS!”
It opened its jaws wide and lunged toward the ground.
The woman quickly thrust out her hand.
“Jörmu—STOP!”
“Hss?!”
Amazingly, the enormous serpent froze in midair—
barely two meters away from Thermion.
“What did I say about rushing out when guests arrive?!”
“HSSSS!!”
“Dangerous? What’s dangerous? Go find your snacks somewhere else!”
She scolded the massive creature sharply, then snapped her fingers and flicked its snout.
Smack!
“HSSK?!”
“Go back inside and behave! You’re way too excited!”
“Hssss…”
With sorrowful eyes, the serpent slowly slid back into the water.
When silence finally returned to the forest, the woman turned back with an awkward smile.
“Sorry, my friend gets overprotective. Now, where were we?”
“…I’m looking for my niece.”
Thermion’s voice was noticeably calmer than before.
The absurd scene he had just witnessed cooled his heated head.
Anyone who could control a monster like that was definitely not someone he should blindly provoke.
‘Until I find Ellie, I can’t afford reckless moves.’
Without knowing what he was thinking, the woman remained completely at ease.
“I heard that part already. So?”
“My niece’s pendant stopped emitting magic exactly here. Are you going to pretend you don’t know anything until the end?”
“Oh, the necklace Ellie was wearing?”
“Ellie? Did you just say Ellie?”
At the sound of his niece’s nickname, Thermion’s grip tightened on his sword.
“How do you know Eleanor’s nickname?”
“She asked me to call her that.”
The woman shamelessly deflected his glare, then casually looked up at the sky.
The sun was now high overhead. It was almost lunchtime.
“She should be back soon.”
Meanwhile, Aylesia—the “witch” he spoke of—was struggling internally to keep her expression neutral.
It’s really him. This is the real Thermion, not text, but the real deal!
Honestly, she wanted to cheer out loud.
She hadn’t even been able to greet him properly because Thermion looked half-frenzied and his knights were ready to slaughter someone.
The end of 500 years of waiting.
And the beginning of something new.
Looking back, it truly had been a long, lonely road.
So this is what he looked like…
Eleanor’s one and only uncle.
The ruler of the Northern Empire, Duke Retis.
Just as the original described—
“a living ice sculpture chiseled by the hands of a master artist”—
Thermion was breathtakingly beautiful.
He was still only seventeen, but he already had a striking, cool charm.
In the original’s prologue, Thermion discovered Eleanor and immediately fought a fierce battle with the witch.
Meaning—
Her encounter with Thermion signaled the official start of the original plot.
‘Who knows if the plan will work, but I made it this far.’
She steadied the excitement and anxiety pounding in her chest, then spoke calmly.
“Why don’t you lower your sword? You’re about to meet your niece for the first time in a while. Is this really the look you want to greet her with?”
“……”
He really was hopelessly devoted to his niece.
He slightly lowered his sword—just from that single comment.
‘Good thing I sent Ellie out to play.’
As long as Eleanor’s whereabouts weren’t obvious, Thermion wouldn’t attack rashly.
Exactly as she predicted.
Still—
The tension was thick.
Thermion stared at her without blinking, his hand still wrapped around the sword hilt.
The knights had completely surrounded the house, ready to charge at the slightest hint of danger.
“How long must I wait?”
“She’s almost here.”
No sooner were the words spoken than running footsteps echoed from the forest.
“Your Grace, something is approaching!”
“Everyone—prepare!”
Knights snapped into formation, all eyes focused on one direction.
Through the rustling bushes emerged a giant white wolf.
“Woof woof!”
“Teacher! I’m hungry!”
Eleanor slid down from the wolf’s back and shouted brightly.
Thermion released a breath that was half-shock, half-relief.
“…Eleanor…”
“Huh?”
Eleanor blinked in surprise.
“…Uncle?”
Thermion stared at her with trembling eyes.
She looked exactly the same as the day he last saw her.
Why had he yelled at her that day?
Regret burned in his throat as he spoke.
“I’m sorry, Ellie. I came too late, didn’t I?”
But Eleanor clung nervously to the wolf’s fur, unsure what was happening.
“Sweetheart, go to your uncle.”
Aylesia gestured gently—but Thermion misunderstood.
“Don’t you dare try anything, witch!”
He pointed his sword toward Aylesia again—
And that was when Eleanor finally reacted.
“Uncle!”
She ran straight toward him.
Thermion’s eyes reddened.
How scared she must have been…
A five-year-old suddenly dropped into a strange forest—it must have been terrifying.
“Eleanor.”
Thermion bent down and opened his arms.
But then—
THUD!
“Gugh!”
A sharp pain exploded in his stomach.
Eleanor had head-butted him with all her might.
“E-Ellie…?”
Why did his niece just ram into him like that?
The physical pain was nothing.
The emotional shock was devastating.
“Don’t bully Teacher!”
Ignoring his stunned expression, Eleanor yelled with tearful fury—her voice echoing through the trees.
“If you bully Teacher, I’ll hate you, Uncle!!”
After slamming her entire tiny body into him, Eleanor flung herself in front of Aylesia to shield her with her short arms.
“E-Ellie!”
The shock snapped Thermion back—
And that’s when he saw it.
The bright red bump swelling on his niece’s forehead.
He hurried forward, but someone moved faster.
“Sweetie, are you okay?”
“T-Teacher! Hic! It hurts right here! Uwaaah!”
“Oh dear, a bump…!”
“Hngh, it hurts!”
“Just hold on, okay?”
Aylesia, pale-faced with worry, gathered her magic.
Her golden-glowing hand gently rubbed Eleanor’s forehead, and the swelling faded instantly.
“There, good girl. It doesn’t hurt anymore. You’re okay, hm?”
“Hic… hic…”
Still holding Aylesia’s hand to her forehead, Eleanor glared at Thermion through watery eyes—
And suddenly burst into even louder cries.
“I hate you, Uncle!! Waaaah!”
“…Haah…”
What on earth was happening?
The tension drained out of Thermion as he lowered his sword in defeat.
For months, he had searched with a heart that felt like it was drying and cracking each day—
And now, after finally finding his niece, she slammed into him and cried her eyes out.
‘Who is this woman…?’
“A witch,” they said.
Had she bewitched Eleanor too?
Watching Aylesia sitting close and calming the sobbing child, Thermion bit his lip in frustration.
