Chapter 91
When I opened my mouth in disbelief at such an unimaginable period of time, Ska let out a snort.
<Normally, recovery is slow when one suffers from black magic. The victim has no choice but to recover on their own will and strength. That’s why everyone shudders at black magic.>
“Even so… several years?”
“If you lay him in a place with good mana flow, it might help with recovery.”
‘A place with good mana flow…’
I was pondering where such a place could be when Rien casually asked me, without expression,
“But does he really need to recover?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“He’s dangerous, so letting him go now wouldn’t be a bad choice. There isn’t really a reason to keep him, is there?”
‘Come to think of it, Rien disliked Blanche.’
Since he was in the form of a bird, he had been wary and didn’t want to keep Blanche close to me.
In truth, his words weren’t wrong. Blanche was both an unwelcome guest and a dangerous factor.
Keeping a demon around as a human wouldn’t bring any benefits. We could be misunderstood again, like “demon king” and all that nonsense.
‘But…’
I looked at Blanche, groaning in pain.
I had always thought of sending him away eventually.
But abandoning someone who was suffering like this didn’t sit right with me.
“He’s troublesome, but he has helped in some ways. Abandoning him now… I just can’t.”
I shrugged and looked at Blanche lying there.
“Besides, if I just toss him aside, he’ll probably come back after he recovers.”
Considering Blanche’s obsession—waiting 500 years to find me—it was entirely possible.
“So when we send him off, we need to properly persuade him. And I feel we should ask what happened to put him in this state in the first place.”
<I agree with what you’re saying. If there’s something wrong in the demon realm, it’s better to know.>
Ska nodded in agreement with me.
<I know how you feel about him, but… ugh—>
Before Ska could finish, Rien covered his mouth and sighed.
“Understood. I’ll do my best to help him recover as quickly as possible.”
<Ugh! Ugh!>
Even as Rien spoke, Ska flailed and shouted something incomprehensible.
“And you should return to your room before it gets too late. Dawn is already breaking.”
It was true.
When I glanced at the window, the early morning light was steadily brightening the horizon.
Since Marina was coming to check on me early in the morning, it was best to return immediately.
“Then, please take good care of Blanche.”
“Wait.”
Rien called me back as I was about to leave after giving my thanks.
Curious, I turned my head and saw Rien approaching—not looking at my face but at my back.
“There’s blood on your clothes.”
“Huh? Really?”
I couldn’t see my back directly, but I could guess the situation.
‘It must have gotten on me when I carried Blanche.’
My upper garment was soaked in blood, so it was natural that my back was stained while carrying him.
At the time, the situation was too urgent for me to think about such matters.
‘Ugh… now that I notice it, it’s so uncomfortable.’
Since removing the blood manually would be difficult, I’d need to quickly change clothes and burn the stained ones to erase any trace.
‘Marina would get suspicious if she saw it.’
Time was running short.
But as soon as I came to this conclusion, Rien snapped his fingers lightly, and a cool sensation swept across my back.
Blinking in surprise, I saw Rien faintly smiling.
“We can’t let even a little dirt remain.”
“Uh… did you just remove the blood?”
“Yes.”
‘No way! You can use magic like this!’
In my previous life, when I acted as a master, he never used such an ability once!
‘How much trouble I had with laundry!’
Seeing me gape in disbelief, Rien tilted his head, apparently puzzled by my reaction.
Because I stayed up until dawn, I woke up late today.
The first news I heard upon opening my eyes was that the Duke had returned to the Winter Mansion.
He had left the Coral Mansion early in the morning for his morning duties.
‘I didn’t expect him to leave so promptly.’
Apparently, Marina wasn’t exaggerating when she said the Duke only took one day off a year.
“Why didn’t you wake me up? Shouldn’t I have seen him off?”
“The Duke said not to wake you. He said, ‘What’s so important about seeing me off?’”
“Still…”
“Lucas did see him off, so don’t worry. And he watched over you sleeping, so it’s as good as seeing him off yourself.”
“Watching me sleep?”
‘My sleeping habits aren’t exactly graceful.’
Apparently, he saw me tossing and turning rather roughly, which was embarrassing.
‘Well, Marina already sees that every morning, so no big deal.’
After a relaxed morning, I went to the study.
Though it couldn’t compare to the vast library of the Winter Mansion, I thought the Coral Mansion’s study was excellent.
I never had trouble finding the books I wanted, and its quiet, cozy atmosphere was actually better than the Winter Mansion’s.
Opening the door, I was greeted by the peaceful silence.
‘Hmm, peaceful atmosphere.’
The paper-scented study always made me feel detached from the world.
I wasn’t particularly fond of reading, but I liked this atmosphere.
‘And today, I have a definite purpose.’
I had come to the study to look for books about black magic.
‘I could ask Rien or Ska…’
Rien would shut up citing rules, and Ska would probably make strange conditions, calling it a “give and take.”
‘It’s easier if I just figure it out myself.’
Ska had mentioned that black mages disappeared after the fall of the Liam Magic Kingdom long ago, but perhaps some knowledge remained.
‘There are still plenty of people interested in the occult, right?’
My guess was correct.
In the bookshelf for magic-themed books, I found a few dealing with black magic.
‘Exactly!’
I found a spot on the floor between the bookshelves and opened the book I had found.
The contents were disappointing.
‘Just the level of an occult enthusiast.’
The book didn’t provide a systematic theory of black magic, only entertaining tales and curses.
“This isn’t helpful at all.”
As I muttered in dissatisfaction, a familiar voice suddenly came from above.
“What kind of help do you need?”
Startled, I looked up to see Zedin leaning against the bookshelf, holding a small book.
“Zedin? During New Year’s break? What are you doing here?”
“I was resting, of course. For me, this is relaxation.”
Zedin lightly shook the book in his hands as he spoke.
“Reading even on your day off… scholars are different.”
“You’re reading here yourself, aren’t you?”
“Ah.”
True enough.
I opened my mouth in surprise at the unexpected observation. Zedin squatted down and leaned close to the book I was reading.
“You’re interested in this kind of thing? Unexpected taste.”
“Anyone could be interested in this.”
“That’s true, but I didn’t expect you to be interested in how to seduce women…”
“Huh?”
Looking down at the book in embarrassment, I realized the page open was titled ‘Black Magic to Seduce Beautiful Women.’
I hurriedly closed the book.
“No! That’s not it!”
“It’s fine. People have varied tastes. I understand completely.”
“That’s true, but I wasn’t interested in that! I’m interested in black magic itself! So not fake black magic like this, but real black magic.”
Zedin’s expression hardened slightly at my words.
“Why are you interested in that area?”
