CHAPTER 130……………………………………………………………………………..
As dawn broke, the jet-black fur that had covered my entire body disappeared, gradually revealing my true form.
I let down the hair I had meticulously styled and ruffled it slightly so it looked messy.
Then I took off my dress and changed into pajamas.
A crow perched by the window watched me with its crimson eyes.
“Take your eyes off me. Don’t you know manners?”
From the crow’s beak came a deep, heavy male voice, eerie and solemn.
“You’re the only human who talks about manners to the Demon King.”
“You said you’d follow me until the wager ends. Wouldn’t it be troublesome if you ended up falling for me?”
“I’m not following you; I’m watching. And don’t flatter yourself thinking you’re some extraordinary beauty. Faces like yours are everywhere in the Underworld.”
“Then why do you look like that?”
“….”
We had briefly held hands before, but it was rare. We glared at each other for a moment, then sharply looked away.
I tugged the bell rope to call the maid.
“Good morning, Mistress.”
“Tell Ibella to have breakfast with me.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
When we entered the dining room, Piace froze on the spot.
“Ca-Ca… Camang…?”
The Demon King in front of her looked almost identical to me when I had transformed into a familiar beast—red eyes, black feathers with a violet sheen, even the size. No wonder Piace was confused.
“You woke up and ended up in my bedroom. Shall I take you along for some fun?”
[Playing with a saint… are you sane?]
Ignoring the angry voice of the Demon King in my head, I transferred the crow to my arm and held it out to Piace.
At that moment, Piace flinched and hid behind the butler.
“Piace?”
“Ca-Ca… Camang… I-I don’t think it’s Camang. It’s not…”
“…Really?”
“It’s different from our Camang. Scary… I don’t like it…”
Piace buried her face against the butler’s back as if she didn’t want to see it at all. The butler, clueless, just widened his eyes.
[Oh, so even after killing the familiar beast, her instincts still make her wary. Not bad.]
It had become difficult to trick Piace into thinking the Demon King was Camang.
I flung the crow out the open dining room window.
“Hey! You crazy… Aaaah!”
“Oh dear, the crow flew away.”
Piace peeked out the window, and when she saw the crow was gone, she clung to my waist.
“Mom, I’m so happy…”
Just then, Ibella ran into the dining room.
“Pant, pant! The bed was too soft, so I overslept… Sorry I’m late!”
“Oh? Pr-Professor Loren?”
“Piace!”
Ibella and Piace grabbed each other’s hands and jumped around excitedly.
It seemed Piace had grown close to Ibella while taking history classes. They really got along well.
“Alright, both of you sit down.”
“Yes!”
“Yesss!”
After the lively breakfast, Ibella and I escorted Piace to the carriage.
“Mom, I’m off to the Academy!”
“Don’t run.”
“Yes!”
The carriage carrying Piace slowly headed toward the Academy.
I watched the carriage leave before turning back. Ibella, rubbing her slightly rounded belly, smiled.
“This is the first time I’ve had such a lavish, delicious breakfast. I really enjoyed it.”
“Any classes today?”
“In the afternoon.”
“Then we’ll have time to visit the museum. Shall we go?”
“Really? You’ll show me around? That would be amazing!”
I sent the butler and maid ahead and went to the museum with Ibella alone.
In the underground museum, only our footsteps echoed. Ibella whispered.
“It’s really quiet. Where’s the security?”
“There isn’t any. No one needs to guard it.”
We passed through the silent lobby and stood at the museum entrance.
When I placed the seal I had received from the butler on the door, the massive door silently opened.
Hundreds of glass cases filled with ancient relics and treasures stretched before us.
It was my first time here too.
The museum, reflecting the entire history of the Ibrante family, felt overwhelming even just to look at.
Ibella’s mouth hung open.
“Wow…”
I followed her slowly as she wandered in awe.
“Oh! This is a thousand-year-old manuscript! I thought it was lost in the war, but it’s here… Ah! This is the Mermaid’s Tear given by the First Emperor! It is said to bless whoever possesses it with prosperity. It’s so beautiful!”
For Ibella, a history major, the museum was a paradise.
I quietly waited for her to finish exploring.
“Done looking around?”
“Yes… Could I quit being an Academy professor and work as the Duke’s maid? Then I could come here once a day, right?”
“That would be difficult. Not just anyone can enter. Maybe two people among the butler, me, and the maid?”
“Right… If it were public, all these treasures would cause chaos… But shouldn’t there still be guards?”
“You’d feel it too, being a dark sorcerer.”
“True… Who could even enter this place?”
Ibella nodded at the magical protection surrounding the museum.
“That’s why I brought you here.”
“Huh?”
“No one can enter here, and it’s protected by magic. It’s a suitable place to reveal secrets.”
Ibella tilted her head.
“You have something to tell me?”
“The task you received.”
“Ah… yes.”
“Tell the client.”
“What?”
“Duke Adrian Ibrante is a dark sorcerer.”
“…!”
Ibella froze. She stared at me, trembling, her voice muffled as she muttered.
“I-I don’t understand… That’s impossible. Why would the Duke become a dark sorcerer?”
I expected her disbelief. Even I had trouble believing it at first.
Sighing, I took out a necklace I had borrowed from Piace earlier.
I pricked my finger and dabbed blood on the butterfly-shaped pendant. It instantly turned jet black.
“See?”
Thud.
Ibella sank to the floor, her hands shaking.
“A… dark sorcerer…”
“The moment I saw you transform into a snake and invade Piace’s room, I knew. That was the familiar of a dark sorcerer.”
“….”
“I thought you would sense it too, but you didn’t.”
I realized then that a familiar’s cognition varies depending on the contracted demon.
Ibella’s contracted demon was probably a lower-rank one. It couldn’t compare to mine, contracted to the Demon King.
“Even though we were both dark sorcerers, I hid my secret and used you. I threatened and coerced you to reveal the truth.”
“….”
“You were oblivious and fell for it like a fool. So it’s fine if you want revenge.”
I whispered seductively into her stunned ear.
“Go tell the client. The Duke Ibrante is a dark sorcerer—”
Before I could finish, Ibella hugged me tightly.
“Comrade!!!”
“Co… what?”
“I thought I was the only dark sorcerer in the world, but there’s you! And it’s my favorite Duke! I’m so moved!”
“….”
Ibella wasn’t frozen in fear, but in awe.
She clung to my neck, cheering in delight, then lowered her voice conspiratorially.
“Alright, I’ll tell the client that the Duke is a dark sorcerer. But I’m not sure he’ll believe me. He may demand proof.”
“During the sports day at the Academy in a few days, have him investigate the lab while I’m gone. The proof is there.”
“The lab?”
“Yes, the red-brick building.”
“What’s there?”
“A summoning circle.”
Ibella blinked in astonishment.
“A s-summoning circle? A demon summoning circle?”
“Yes.”
“If it’s discovered, it’ll be irreversible! He’ll label you a dark sorcerer and have you executed!”
“I already have a plan.”
Ibella, biting her nails nervously, snapped her fingers.
“Ah! Could the circle in the lab be a fake?”
It was real.
“Exactly. The real summoning circle is hidden; the fake one lures them.”
“….”
“The client will see the circle in the lab and accuse you of being a dark sorcerer. But it’s fake, so all suspicion will be cleared.”
“Wha…?”
“Then here’s the twist! The Duke, proven not to be a dark sorcerer, was actually a dark sorcerer all along!”
Ibella, as if writing a novel, grabbed my hand, her eyes sparkling like a child meeting a hero.
“You’re truly a genius, Duke!”
I smiled calmly.
