~Chapter 100~
As Calix and I descended the stairs into the basement, my heart pounded wildly. I didn’t know what sight would greet me once we reached the end of this endless staircase, and the uncertainty made me tremble.
I wanted to hurry, but the more anxious I felt, the more I reminded myself to stay calm. Holding Calix’s hand, I carefully took each step.
“Rena, about what you said—that you’d cut the connection with the dragon.”
His voice came from beside me. I answered without turning my head.
“Yes.”
“Do you really have to do that? Can’t you… not?”
“…What?”
This time I couldn’t help but turn. He was already staring at me, and our eyes met directly.
“I thought we already settled this.”
“I know. But still…”
In the dim lantern light along the walls, his face looked heavy with concern. After hesitating, he spoke again.
“If we take care of everything here… if everyone who knows about the dragon disappears… then we can just leave it alone.”
It was the same argument as before—don’t touch the dragon, just leave it as it is.
Calix rarely brought up matters he’d already accepted. The fact that he did now showed how important this was to him.
“Rena.”
The way he called my name sounded almost like a plea. I hesitated before asking softly,
“…Are you worried?”
He paused, then admitted honestly,
“…Yes.”
If he had been a dog, I would have seen his ears and tail droop. Seeing Calix so downhearted gave me a pang of sadness.
He muttered quietly,
“I hate this place.”
“I don’t like it either. It’s too dark.”
“The first time I came here… it was…”
He trailed off, brushing at his temple as if unsettled by the memory. Then, he blurted out,
“When I was a child, this place terrified me.”
Step by step, he told me the story.
“It was pitch dark, the stairs went on forever, and the Count and Countess gave me no explanation. And since you weren’t supposed to know, they brought me in the middle of the night.”
He let out a dry laugh.
“I thought they were so angry with me, they were going to bury me down here where no one would find me.”
“……”
“But then when I reached the bottom, what I saw was…”
“…A dragon of insane size.”
He chuckled and nodded at my words.
“Exactly. A dragon of insane size. I’d never seen anything like it in my life.”
“Me too.”
“And as if that wasn’t scary enough, they told me that without it, you would die. I almost fainted right then.”
Though he said it lightly, his grip on my hand tightened.
My chest ached watching him, and I whispered hoarsely,
“After today, we’ll never have to come here again.”
“…I hope so.”
I wanted to say something more tender to comfort him.
“Calix…”
But just as I opened my mouth, a strange sound reached my ears.
“Shh.”
I immediately grabbed his arm and froze.
‘Something’s there.’
A noise echoed faintly through the walls…
“Listen.”
“……”
“……”
We stood still, straining our ears. Only seconds later—
—Uuuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaahhh!
“……!”
It wasn’t my imagination. We both clearly heard it this time. Startled, we exchanged shocked glances.
The sound came from below, deep in the basement. It was half a scream, half a groan of agony.
I whispered in disbelief,
“…The Emperor?”
Yes—it was her voice.
Something was happening.
My heart thudded faster, and without realizing it, I quickened my pace. I was almost running down the stairs when Calix caught my arm.
“Wait, Rena. We don’t know what’s happening yet.”
“……”
“Be careful, okay?”
The worried look on his face brought me back to my senses. His own expression was tense, but he was right—we had to move cautiously.
Still… that was easier said than done.
Before long, both of us were rushing, our steps almost racing each other. By the time the staircase ended, we were nearly sprinting.
And there, in the underground chamber—
“…Regiana Lohelo Troxia.”
Prenia glared at me with hatred.
“Aaaaarrrghhhh!”
And the Emperor clutched her head, screaming in torment.
The Emperor’s once neatly styled hair was now a tangled mess, hanging loose around her face. She muttered nonsense to herself like a madwoman—sometimes sobbing, sometimes screaming wildly, again and again.
Because of that, she didn’t even notice when two new figures entered the underground chamber.
Only Prenia, who had been standing with her arms crossed, watching the Emperor’s madness, raised her head at Regiana and Calix’s arrival.
“…Regiana Lohelo Troxia.”
Prenia hissed the name between clenched teeth. Regiana simply raised a hand and waved casually.
“Hello.”
Of course, Prenia attacked at once.
Clang!
Her arrow, launched faster than the eye could see, shattered uselessly against a translucent barrier. Regiana didn’t even flinch—her face, her hair, not a strand was touched.
Regiana narrowed her eyes, staring at the fading sparks.
“You really don’t learn, do you?”
“……”
“You should already know there’s no point in coming at me.”
Prenia paused, reassessing. No matter how she looked at it, the situation was against her. Regiana didn’t even bother letting go of Calix Hertorio’s hand, as if Prenia wasn’t worth noticing.
Then Regiana tilted her chin toward the Emperor.
“What’s wrong with her?”
Almost against her will, Prenia’s eyes flicked back to the Emperor.
The woman was still shrieking, unaware of the three people surrounding her. Her hollow eyes were empty, her mind shattered. Prenia’s lips twisted into a mocking smile.
“If an ordinary human without magic enters this place—and even touches the dragon—this is what happens.”
“…Ah.”
Realization flickered across Regiana’s face.
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
“……”
Prenia’s gaze shifted to Calix. By all logic, he should have been the same as the Emperor the moment he stepped into this place. Yet he stood steady, unaffected.
‘But I heard he had no magic…’
He wasn’t a sorcerer, as far as anyone knew.
And yet, here he was—completely fine.
‘So he isn’t just some lover she dragged along.’
For the first time, Prenia’s assumption—that Calix was nothing more than Regiana’s companion—began to crack.
It didn’t seem like they had prepared for this in advance, either. Regiana herself had only just realized what happened to ordinary humans here.
‘Then what is he?’
Would cutting him open reveal the answer? If she injected her magic into him, as she had with Prince Adrian, what would happen?
Her eyes gleamed with excitement.
“It would be fun to tear apart your mind with magic until you went insane.”
Her stare lingered hungrily on Calix.
“Eyes forward.”
Regiana’s icy glare pinned her. If not for Regiana watching like a hawk—and the injury Duke Hertorio had already dealt her—Prenia might have lunged for him right then.
Still, Regiana noticed where Prenia’s gaze had strayed and looked at her with murderous intent.
Prenia knew she should withdraw. There was nothing to gain from fighting here.
But just then, the entire cavern began to tremble with magic.
Woooom…
Prenia realized instantly—it was Regiana’s power. This wasn’t just intimidation. Regiana was truly stirring the magic around them.
The very air sharpened like countless blades, all responding to her will.
It wasn’t something Prenia could dodge, block, stop, or hide from. Because what was attacking her wasn’t just air—
It was the very magic saturating this place.
For the first time, Prenia felt true fear.
The air itself, the natural force of this place, had branded her an intruder—and was driving her out.
Her throat closed. Her face went pale. She gagged and choked, gasping for breath. Only when her eyes began to roll back did Regiana finally withdraw her power.
“Khhaahh! Cough, cough! Hhhuuugh—”
Like a drowning woman dragged from the water, Prenia clutched her throat, coughing violently.
Regiana looked down at her coolly and asked,
“So you’ve just been standing here, watching the Emperor lose her mind? Why?”
She wasn’t asking about Prenia’s interest in Calix. It was the most ordinary question—why hadn’t Prenia killed the Emperor yet?
Struggling to lift her upper body, Prenia braced herself on the floor and looked up.
“Why? To watch my enemy suffer, of course.”
“She’s too far gone to even feel pain.”
Prenia let out a hollow laugh through cracked lips.
“She’s trapped in her own mind. That doesn’t mean she isn’t suffering.”
