Chapter 39
“Everyone, stand back.”
Lady Jeria stepped forward.
“What happened here?”
Her composed tone left me speechless. Can’t she see what’s going on? Someone nearly died!
But even I couldn’t explain exactly what had happened.
Especially… the part that happened to me.
“Could it be… someone poisoned the princess’s cup?”
That seemed the most plausible theory…
Lady Jeria’s eyes scanned my appearance, then halted at the mark glowing on my palm.
“So you’ve awakened as a healing mage. Then you must have seen it with those eyes—what it was that harmed the princess.”
It was definitely… I recalled the moment and spoke.
“A symbol—shaped like a letter—was wrapped around Her Highness’s neck, choking her.”
“A symbol? That’s… sorcery. Who would dare target Her Highness?!”
Sir Hailed shouted.
People began murmuring and shifting in unrest.
Just then, the doors of the banquet hall burst open as Luca and his father, Marquis Reyes, rushed in.
“Sister!”
Luca ran to me and Rachel in one leap, and once he had grasped the situation, he spoke in a voice colder than ice.
“The one who dared to attempt assassination on the princess is here. Do not let anyone move until that person is found.”
The young crown prince’s fury burned in his eyes, and all the knights knelt and obeyed his command.
According to the breathless royal mage who arrived shortly after, the drinks we consumed may have been the medium for the curse.
Everyone who drank was potentially exposed, but the curse had been specifically directed at Rachel.
He had tested the drink himself and concluded it was true.
“Ria, you’re the only one who saw it directly. Do you sense where that energy is coming from?”
Just like Luca said, there was someone who had been bothering me since the moment I sensed the curse.
No one else could’ve known, but having seen the energy up close, I now recognized the same waves radiating almost perfectly from one person.
“Him. I’m sure of it.”
I pointed.
The man was a waiter, wiping sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief, clearly nervous.
He froze, completely stunned to be singled out. His pupils shook violently.
He had been the one who poured the drink earlier.
When I gestured for him to come forward, he trembled like he had sacks of rice tied to his legs.
Then suddenly, he turned pale, spun around, and bolted for the door.
As if that weren’t already a confession.
Luca’s expression remained unreadable, but his voice was colder than midwinter.
“You won’t make it out alive.”
He stretched his hand toward the fleeing man and clenched the air.
Immediately, the space around the waiter distorted—as if time and space themselves were being twisted.
“H-Haack!”
If Luca had targeted the waiter directly, he would’ve been crushed.
What Luca used wasn’t magic—it was sword energy (ki).
To control ki so precisely and with such force… was that even possible?
Distorting space with sword energy was thought to be purely theoretical.
Noble swordsmen around the hall were in utter shock.
Rumor had it the crown prince had lost his sword aura—but seeing it executed so flawlessly, they couldn’t believe their eyes.
The waiter stumbled a few more steps, then collapsed.
“Bring him.”
At Luca’s command, Sir Hailed dragged the man before us and forced him to his knees.
The waiter bowed repeatedly, begging for his life until his forehead bled.
“If you want to keep that pathetic life, speak. Who ordered you to do this?”
“T-That’s…”
He bit his lip and stayed silent—until Rachel, now fully recovered, stood up and kicked him in the head.
“Guh!”
Wow. That was worthy of a striker.
“Talk! Didn’t they say they’d spare you? You want to die?”
“B-Baron Louicon! He gave me the order, Your Highness!”
Huh? What’s that guy doing here?
Baron Louicon—the man who stole Miss Rayola’s heart and managed the Troy Orphanage?
I’d never seen his face, but judging by everyone’s eyes fixing in one direction, it was easy to spot him.
Miss Rayola sure had an interesting taste…
The moment the waiter was caught, the man seemed to realize what was happening and stepped out from among the murmuring crowd.
He glared at me, then at the waiter kneeling before me.
Then suddenly, blood spilled from his mouth.
He had bitten his tongue on the spot.
Thud. He collapsed, and someone screamed.
Baron Louicon was a vassal of Duke Cablos.
Now that he was dead, we had lost a potential connection that might have led us higher up the chain of command.
The duke had not attended the banquet, but it couldn’t be ruled out that he had ordered this.
Even if he hadn’t been involved, it was the master’s fault for keeping such a reckless servant.
“Send word to Duke Cablos. Tell him to come to the palace at once tomorrow.”
No one opposed Luca’s order.
Now that Baron Louicon was dead, and the waiter had spilled the truth, the latter looked up at Luca with hope.
But just then, a sword wound opened on his neck, and he crumpled where he stood.
Luca had drawn his blade.
Lady Jeria swallowed dryly, visibly overwhelmed by Luca’s commanding presence.
It was the long-awaited return of the crown prince—the one who had shaken the empire two years ago.
The banquet concluded.
Just before the end, the Empress stormed in, having somehow heard the news.
She hadn’t appeared in public in ages, and now she held Rachel, sobbing in relief.
Before boarding the carriage, I looked across to see Luca standing by the opposite door, staring at me.
Even as the carriage door closed, he didn’t look away.
He seemed to have a lot to say—but both of us needed time to collect ourselves after what happened.
As the sun set, I raised my hand and gazed at the glowing red mark on my palm.
“There have always been many healing mages in House Reyes,”
Father said, sitting across from me as he gently took my hand.
“You did wonderfully. You must be frightened—are you okay?”
I nodded.
If I hadn’t awakened back there, I would’ve lost my friend, Luca his sister, and the Empress her daughter.
The thought still made my skin crawl. But the warm glow on my hand reminded me that none of it had come to pass—Rachel was safe.
On the other hand, Drehan looked grim.
He was the only one here who knew about my condition.
He knew that my magic was gradually draining my life. I wondered what he thought of my awakening.
They say magic becomes stronger with use.
Like muscles growing with exercise. That’s why powerful mages are usually old.
Their mana has grown over many years of use.
For me, that was a red flag.
The training others did to become stronger would only poison me in the end.
Even just now—after using healing magic once—my body burned with fever, as if my insides were on fire.
My mana had already grown stronger from a single act.
Exhausted, I leaned my head on Miller’s shoulder and closed my eyes.
