Chapter 69
“…Eliaye.”
I called him slowly.
Amidst the storm of emotions raging inside me, seeing him—the guardian who was like a parent—made my throat tighten.
“I… I’m so angry.”
“I know.”
“I can’t hold it in.”
I muttered the words as if spitting them out.
“So, my daughter.”
A large hand rested gently on my head.
Then came a quiet voice.
“What is it you want from me?”
The Water Spirit King asked his contractor.
I met his gaze straight on and demanded,
“Bring this entire place down.”
He stared at me in silence.
I added calmly,
“And if Dante happens to be hiding here somewhere… make it so there won’t even be bones left to recover.”
So that he could never even dream of cursing Harnen again.
“…As you wish.”
With his low, melodious voice, a translucent blue barrier enveloped me.
At the same time, a deafening roar—on a completely different scale than before—exploded in every direction.
Everything that had barely been holding together shattered and collapsed, but I couldn’t see clearly through the translucent barrier protecting me.
The roar continued for quite some time before it finally faded away.
The barrier melted away from the top down.
Blinking once, I slowly surveyed my surroundings.
Collapsed walls, dust rolling thick across the ground.
Even the remnants of the building’s form had completely disappeared.
“As you wished, I brought the entire place down. Beyond recognition.”
“…”
“I hope it was a choice you won’t regret.”
“…Thank you, Eliaye.”
I whispered in reply.
Eliaye, who had been looking down at me intently, let out a quiet sigh.
“To think someone would make my daughter so furious, when even making you happy should never be enough… I truly don’t like it.”
With his dissatisfied muttering, blue light burst out around him.
I squeezed my eyes shut against the sudden brightness. When I opened them again, Eliaye and I were standing outside the mansion.
It was still pitch-black, since it was the middle of the night.
“Do you wish anything else of me?”
Eliaye’s voice came again.
I shook my head.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll take care of the rest myself.”
“Very well. If you need my power, call me anytime.”
Cool fingers brushed my hair back once, then fell away.
Just as he was about to return to the Spirit Realm, Eliaye paused.
“Ah, I forgot to tell you.”
“…?”
“The sorcerer who sealed off your affinity with nature—he’s regressed once.”
My eyes widened at the completely unexpected revelation.
“What? He… regressed?”
“I examined the mana lingering in the air from him. It carried mana from two timelines coexisting. There’s no other explanation but regression.”
He folded his arms and tilted his head slowly.
“That man now holds more mana than any human limit. His original mana overlapped with the mana he gained after regression.”
“…So that’s how it was possible.”
Why he had been able to block off all my natural affinity and purge every single spy inside the Grand Duke of Bahar’s mansion in a single day.
Now, at last, I understood.
“Not that he can do anything to the affinity I’ve inscribed my power into. Still, it’s useful for you to know.”
“Thank you for telling me, Eliaye. That helps a lot.”
I bowed politely to him.
He watched me for a moment, then spoke slowly.
“I see. …When we meet next time, I hope you’ll be smiling.”
Come to think of it, none of the times I’d seen Eliaye recently had been under good circumstances.
I nearly died pouring healing spells into a wounded As, got kidnapped thanks to Millon’s tricks right after my natural affinity had been sealed, and now I was tearing down a mansion in order to kill Dante.
Feeling oddly guilty, I averted my eyes.
As I fidgeted uncertainly, Eliaye chuckled softly and patted my head.
“But don’t you dare not call me when you need help.”
“Yes…”
With another small laugh, Eliaye returned to the Spirit Realm.
Once he disappeared, I spread my palm and lit a flame above it.
“Now then… shall we go find our little fugitive?”
Before he used the teleportation spell, Dante had been gravely injured.
Even if he did teleport in that condition, he wouldn’t have escaped far from the mansion grounds.
I asked the Quiels to search inside the mansion in case he was still there, and began walking with the flame lighting my path.
The sky was choked with clouds, leaving not a single star to shine.
I circled the ruins of the collapsed mansion.
It was completely and utterly demolished.
If Dante had been inside, there was no way he could’ve survived.
That would’ve been nice.
I had just picked up a piece of rubble from the debris when—
“Quiel?”
The Quiels who had searched inside returned.
Unfortunately, they reported Dante wasn’t there.
“Ah… I see.”
Seeing my disappointed expression, the Quiels hovered anxiously, clearly upset.
I patted their heads reassuringly and asked them to look for Dante outside the mansion instead.
Nodding vigorously, the Quiels melted into the air.
I lifted the flame in my hand higher.
“I really hoped he’d be in the mansion.”
It was disappointing—but fine.
If he wasn’t inside, I’d catch him outside.
I kept moving.
“Dante?”
I stepped into the large garden before the mansion.
With all the trees and plants, it was the perfect place to hide.
In contrast to the ruined, lifeless mansion, the garden still exuded a fresh, vibrant scent of life.
“Dante, are you here?”
Naturally, no answer came.
Plip. Plop.
Raindrops began to fall.
Everything around me grew wet, but I didn’t care and kept searching.
“Hm, not here either.”
“…”
“Where could you be, Dante~? Do you want to play hide-and-seek with me?”
The rain grew heavier, pouring down in sheets.
I wandered the garden aimlessly, letting it soak me.
I don’t know how long I walked like that, when—
“…”
Suddenly, no more rain fell on me.
Puzzled, I turned my head and saw As holding an umbrella over me.
“You don’t have to keep searching.”
“…”
“Dante is already gone.”
Between the raindrops drumming against the umbrella, his voice reached me.
A warm hand reached out, gently wiping the raindrops from my cheek.
I blinked blankly, then reacted a beat too late.
“…Ah.”
So he was already gone.
That’s why I couldn’t find him.
“I let him slip away.”
Maybe because of the rain, my thoughts felt sluggish.
I tilted my head, leaning into the warmth at my cheek.
When I rubbed my face against it, the hand paused briefly, then cupped my entire cheek tenderly.
“There’s news I need to tell Einra.”
“News?”
“Yesterday, a Bezelsty envoy arrived at the imperial palace.”
“…An envoy?”
I looked up at him in surprise at their early arrival.
His hand withdrew from my cheek.
As if reluctant, his fingers hovered before slowly pulling back.
“Duke Servante sent Marquis Hasseluna.”
Zerus la Hasseluna.
A man in his mid-forties with a dignified build—one of the three most powerful figures in Bezelsty, alongside Duke Servante himself.
I didn’t think Duke Servante would send such a heavyweight.
Then again, the Grand Duke of Bahar had placed a bounty on none other than the reincarnation of the Belarician Emperor. It made sense.
Of course, that target was about to disappear anyway.
…Wait.
“Come to think of it, when I brought down the mansion, I didn’t extract the Grand Duke, did I…?”
Even traitors couldn’t be executed on the spot—not when they were high-ranking nobles. That would go against the law.
As my face paled, As gave a quiet chuckle, clearly realizing what I was worrying about.
“You don’t need to worry about the Grand Duke. I already took care of it.”
“Oh…”
As my rage ebbed and clarity returned, I realized just how reckless and thoughtless I had been.
Groaning, I buried my face in my hands.
Shame and guilt heated my cheeks red.
“I’m sorry, As. I ruined your whole plan, didn’t I? I swear I just wanted to gather information, but I got so angry that I just…”
I mumbled my apology.
A soft laugh answered me.
When I peeked up, As was smiling at me.
“It’s fine. The only thing Einra can’t do of her own will… is leave me.”
“Uh…?”
Wait, did he just slip something outrageous in there?
As my eyes flickered nervously, As stepped closer.
“By the way, Einra. I waited patiently.”
His red eyes curved mischievously as they met mine.
“Don’t you owe me a reward?”
