~Chapter 23~
“That thing looked like something only a high-ranking aura user or mage could handle. I thought I was pretty familiar with all the monsters on the continent, but I’ve never seen one like that before. Even the way its mana waves moved was… off.”
The horse kept bouncing, making it hard to stay steady.
“Well, I’m not a god or anything. Of course, there are monsters I wouldn’t know about.”
Jin’s voice dropped even lower.
“Still… an obviously unnatural creature just roaming around in the forest near the Leton Church’s territory? Yeah, I can’t say I really understand what’s going on here.”
“…”
“Plus, in the area where that monster was lurking, there were rotting corpses—probably hunters or herb collectors. People die in the woods all the time, but it looked like anyone trying to get too close was deliberately killed. As proof, look over there.”
Jin pointed at a pile of boxes lying around.
“I’ve seen this scene before—more than once. Usually, when illegal slave traders get caught by the imperial army, they ditch their base just like this and run like hell.”
Crack.
Maximus stopped running.
Jin frowned like he’d noticed something.
“…Ah.”
He let out a small sigh, and I followed his gaze.
Beneath a half-destroyed building, right between puddles of that black goo…
“…Ha… damn it.”
Jin cursed under his breath, forgetting I was right there.
I squinted at whatever he was looking at.
It was a torn-up envelope. The only part left intact was the wax seal.
“Hahaha! Must be my eyes playing tricks on me. We should leave. Quickly.”
The problem? The wax seal was gold.
A chill ran down my spine. And before I could stop myself, I blurted something I definitely shouldn’t have:
“…Isn’t that the imperial seal?”
“…”
Crap.
—
“It’s time for your medicine.”
Damian lowered his head.
His thin legs moved stiffly, like they were being controlled. The cold stone floor seemed to be freezing his shins.
“Take it.”
Damian stared blankly at the medicine bottle in front of him, then glanced at the instructor.
“Hurry.”
He clutched the bottle and poured the contents into his mouth.
The light purple liquid slid down his throat.
It was a feeling he knew too well.
His eyes rolled back.
His insides twisted.
“Keep your mind clear. How many times do I have to say it, rookie?”
It felt like the liquid would shoot back up any second.
His breathing grew shallow.
A single phrase echoed in his head:
> “For the Empire’s glory and the Imperial family.”
His small hands turned pale. Despite the pain, Damian forced himself to speak.
“For the… Empire’s… glory… and… the Imperial family.”
The liquid rampaged through his body, bursting through every blocked vein.
Damian clutched his stomach and collapsed, dry-heaving over and over.
“What are you doing? Get up now!”
Rough hands yanked at his thin arms.
He thought he’d throw up, but there was nothing in his stomach.
> “The Empire does not tolerate weakness.Your parents are the Empire. Under Leton’s protection, you will die the most glorious death.Do not be weak. Weakness is defeat. Weakness is loss.”
Damian tried to stand, forcing strength into his legs.
> “Damian, you must keep this necklace with you, okay? Don’t lose it. Mommy… sniff… Mommy will come find you. So keep it close. Promise me, okay?”
> “My baby… my sweet baby… I’ll always be watching over you. You’re not alone.”
He clutched the little pendant around his neck.
He wanted to cry but held it in.
She promised to come back.
His mom would come rescue him from this nightmare.
He just had to hold on.
He wasn’t alone.
If he wanted to see her again—go back to the way things used to be—he had to survive.
It was a memory from two years ago, but Damian clung to it like his life depended on it.
Her face.
Her warmth.
Her touch.
> “I’m not like the others. I wasn’t abandoned. I wasn’t born alone.”
He brainwashed himself.
I’m not alone.
“What’s with that rebellious look? Didn’t I tell you to erase all emotion?”
Damian clenched his jaw.
Click, crack.
He heard the sickening sound of knuckles popping.
The familiar, heavy silence.
He raised his head and stared at the pale, lizard-like man in front of him.
“You’ve got extra training this afternoon.”
“…”
“Back to your place.”
—
I wanted to scream.
“Lady, let’s go,” Jin said, quickly raising a hand to shield his eyes.
“I didn’t see anything. Nothing at all. And even if I did trip and fall and saw something, I definitely did not see the Imperial family secretly teaming up with Leton Church to pull shady stuff. Nope. Don’t know a thing. Hahaha.”
Oh, please.
I groaned, pressing a hand to my forehead.
Why the hell did they leave something with the Imperial seal just lying around like that?!
My hands and legs were trembling.
Jin didn’t care—he was already kicking Maximus into a gallop again.
I felt like I was about to faint.
Seriously?! I cursed the original novel for being useless and not helping me find the male lead, and now it throws this nightmare at me?!
> Black monsters, thick like boiled pig skin, oozed across the floor.
Anyone who met their gaze froze in sheer terror.
Their bodies did not die.
They didn’t disappear.
Six tentacles wrapped around the commander’s body.
CRACK.
He collapsed like a rag doll.
The words from the book were crawling through my brain.
> A massive, unidentifiable creature stood before Damian and muttered:
“Power without cost is a lie.
Those who break the rules will be purged.
You will rot from within and be rejected from order.”
My head throbbed like it was going to explode.
You know that phrase “memories aching”? No? Of course not—I just made it up.
But that’s exactly what it felt like.
Every time something from the book popped into my head, it felt like someone stamped it into my brain with a hammer.
Like the world was trying to force me to feel it.
“Us getting involved with the Imperial family is already more than enough trouble, so let’s just pretend none of this happened. Right? Right.”
Jin gritted his teeth like he was trying to convince himself.
“Goddamn it, why won’t this damn fog go away?! What kind of twisted stuff were they doing here?! What the hell is all this—”
Jin was muttering furiously behind me, then suddenly went quiet and started breathing deeply, like he was trying to calm down.
“You’re still hurt, aren’t you?”
At my question, he replied with exaggerated cheer:
“Haha! What do you take me for? These minor wounds practically heal themselves. As you know, I’m one of the most elite mercenaries in the Empire. For someone this perfect and skilled, basic magic like this is a piece of cake! Isn’t that right, Lady?”
The fact he was rambling meant he was actually feeling better. Good.
“…We can get out of here, right?”
I asked, just to be sure.
Jin answered in his usual calm tone:
“Looks like this place was abandoned pretty recently. There’s still a lot of leftover mana here. They must’ve thought no one would come, so they didn’t bother cleaning up.”
He clicked his tongue and added:
“I swear, these Imperial researchers… If you’re gonna hide something, at least clean up after yourselves.”
He clicked his tongue again, clearly annoyed.
“I mean, what do you expect? Just because they’ve got the ‘Imperial Researcher’ title, they act all high and mighty. They slack off, get paid anyway, don’t work properly, and just shout orders around—”
Smack. Jin slapped a hand over his own mouth and forced a smile.
“Ahaha… excuse me. I misspoke. Must be the blood loss talking…”
