Chapter 59
After some time had passed, I couldn’t believe my eyes at what the knight dragged in.
“A monster…?”
It looked much weaker than the one I’d encountered at the restaurant before, but still—
“H-head captain, are you telling me to fight a monster? No, more importantly, why is a monster in the basement…!”
To think such a creature existed beneath the peaceful duke’s mansion. My eyes trembled faintly.
Its appearance was shocking.
“This is already a dead monster. Its name is ‘Undead.’ Even after death, its flesh continues to move, driven by an instinctive will to kill humans. Because it is dead, it is comparatively weak. Since it cannot be destroyed by any means, the only way is to confine it like this.”
Hearing that, I looked again. Unlike the other monsters I’d seen before with their blazing red eyes, this one’s eyes were sunken black, as if lifeless.
“A few years ago, it was discovered in the forest near the Layece estate… Sadly, the first person who encountered it, a young maid, was attacked and killed.”
A young maid…
‘My younger sister worked with me at the duke’s estate, but when she went into the forest to fetch water, she unfortunately encountered a monster and was attacked.’
“No way… Garnet’s younger sister?”
Hute nodded. In that instant, strength filled my grip on the sword.
Even though it was already dead, as if killing Garnet’s sister wasn’t enough, it was still threatening the surrounding knights with its poisoned horn.
“It has monster restraints on, so it cannot cause harm. And perhaps… since you’re holding that sword, Lady, you’ll be fine.”
I lifted my gaze to the towering monster before me.
At a glance, the massive beast looked like a rhinoceros and seemed like it could charge me at any moment.
“If anything happens to you, I’ll step in first. So don’t worry, and try swinging that sword freely.”
It seemed Hute was placing his hopes on me and the cursed sword.
With the restraints binding the monster and Hute, a master of sword aura, watching over me, there should be no reason to hesitate. It wasn’t even a human opponent, but Garnet’s enemy. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to fully trust the sword.
Even so, I stood before the monster with the cursed sword in hand, deciding to take the chance.
In that fleeting moment, my hand moved into position on its own.
Not by my will—my body moved naturally, as if someone had corrected my grip, saying, “This is how you hold it.”
Finally freed from the knight’s hold, the monster charged at me at full speed.
Even with its horns restrained, that massive body colliding into me could cause serious injury.
Despite being dead, its killing intent overflowed.
I took a deep breath and whispered,
“I trust in the power of 100 gold.”
With the cursed sword in hand, I dashed forward to meet the monster.
My body felt strangely light, as though I could do anything.
I could feel power rising from my grip on the sword and from my legs pushing off the ground.
The cursed sword felt like a part of my body.
‘If you resonate with the sword, your own abilities will sharpen immensely.’
So that’s what he meant…
I leapt toward the monster, several times larger than me, and swung the blade.
The angle, the speed—everything was perfect.
My frail body had always placed limits on my swordsmanship, but with this blade, I felt as if I had surpassed those limits.
For a brief moment, a sharp crimson light gleamed from the cursed sword.
Slash—
With a clean sound, the ferocious monster collapsed beside me.
“What in the world…”
I stared in shock at the cursed sword in my hand.
That fleeting gleam I’d seen was unmistakable…
Silence fell over the training grounds. The ‘Undead’ squirmed and slowly began to regenerate its wounds, though this time it seemed it would take a long while.
As everyone stared open-mouthed, the sound of satisfied applause rang out.
“Congratulations. You’ve manifested the form of sword aura. It’s faint, but you’ve created a Sword Aura.”
Hute approached from behind with Ion, who stood frozen like a block of wood.
“Sword Aura…?”
I couldn’t believe it. From what I knew, there were only twenty knights in the entire Empire capable of manifesting sword aura.
Among them were Luka, my father, Miller, Sir Haeld, and the man before me—Hute.
To think I was in the same category as knights of such caliber! No… surely not.
I quickly reminded myself of reality.
There was no way the aura I’d seen from Luka with my own eyes could be on the same level as the tiny glimmer I had just produced.
“With continued training, you will no doubt grow stronger.”
Hute seemed pleased as he spoke. Beside him, Ion finally stammered, still stiff as stone.
“J-just earlier, I said I’d tie with you… does this mean I’ll never be able to beat you again?”
As Ion’s voice quavered, Hute gave him a light flick on the forehead.
“I took you in because I saw your talent with sword aura too. Don’t talk about ‘never.’ Don’t waste your gift. Train harder.”
Grinding his teeth, Ion shouted in frustration before running off into the training forest.
“Our lord and young master will be delighted when they hear.”
Miller, who had skipped training after we toured the grounds earlier, was absent. Apparently, he’d gone with Drehan to discuss the issue of another relative’s title again.
“I hope so.”
Just imagining my family celebrating with me filled me with joy.
Most of all, the cursed sword in my hand no longer felt uncomfortable.
“Look, Lady.”
Hute suddenly made his longsword vanish from his hand.
“Wow, how did you do that?”
“A blade that resonates to this degree will be imbued with summoning magic. Yours should be the same.”
At his words, I set the cursed sword on my palm and thought to myself:
Disappear!
The sword let out a low hum as if mocking me.
Y-you little…
Just as I thought of tossing it aside, the sword quickly vanished from my palm.
“Wow, it really disappeared!”
When I called for it again, the sword instantly reappeared.
As I marveled, the blade resonated smugly, as if to say, “Now you finally recognize my worth.”
“It seems the sword is a good match for you.”
“Haha, I don’t think so… it’s got a nasty temper. Ow, hot!”
That evening, when Father, Drehan, and Miller returned to the mansion, they heard the news and, after staring in disbelief at my frail arms, praised me warmly.
“Congratulations, Raberia.”
“You’ve worked so hard, and at last you’ve done it!”
Miller, though, gritted his teeth at Hute for making me face a monster, but even as he scolded, he patted my head with fatherly pride.
“A fourth swordsman to manifest aura has now appeared in Layece.”
Drehan’s calm voice carried weight.
Indeed, the Layece family had produced many gifted swordsmen. There were already three legendary ones… and now me, added at the very edge.
It felt embarrassing to be listed alongside such names.
Still, compared to the renowned Duke Claire family, we were nothing.
The Claire dukedom boasted seven swordsmen capable of aura—including the Duke himself and his eldest son.
Even Sir Haeld was a collateral relative of theirs.
First division captain Chensel, second division captain Eshil, fourth division captain Sir Haeld—all hailed from the same clan.
And above all, Luka would ascend as the Emperor of the Sword—one of only two Sword Masters recorded in history during wartime.
That was a whole different level.
I’ll have to duel Luka before then.
First roulette, now swordsmanship—was there anything in which I could ever beat him?
I popped a shrimp salad into my mouth, picturing his smug face.
At present, Luka was officially away from the capital for crown prince duties, though in truth he was seeking a cure for the Empress’s incurable disease.
Luka, let’s not give up. I’ll find a way in my own way, and you mustn’t give up either. It’s only called incurable because the cure hasn’t been found yet.
Even if death truly came, I wanted to leave behind no regrets.
Ria… do you know?
Luka had once cupped my cheek lightly, looking me in the eyes.
The gentle words from these lips…
His hand had brushed against my mouth.
They’ve saved me again and again. As you said, I won’t let go.
The memory burned so vividly that I clasped my flushed cheeks and sprang up from my seat.
After our warm dinner, I returned to my room. Soon, Garnet returned from her errand.
“I’ve come back, my Lady. This is the reply to the letter you sent.”
“Thank you, well done.”
Beside her, she set down a box with a prettily wrapped chiffon cake and handed me a silver tray with a letter stamped with an apple-shaped seal marked by a key.
I thought it was just a brand mark, but it was actually the symbol of Truaizen.
I opened it lightly to check.
[We await your visit.]
Below the short reply were the time and place.
At last, I would meet them.
The Empire’s greatest information broker, the one shrouded in mystery.
“My Lady, how could you turn me away after so long?”
“You always show up without warning. If you at least sent word ahead, I’d welcome you.”
At my scolding, Zen pretended to weep. True to his words, he had shown up after quite a while and had been sulking ever since noticing I was preparing to go out.
I couldn’t tell anymore if I was his ward or his plaything.
I opened the jewelry box and returned the artifact I’d borrowed.
“The amplification artifact was very useful.”
“Think nothing of it. If you need more, I’ll steal another from the Tower Master.”
“You… stole it?”
I suddenly remembered how, when handing it over, he’d muttered while rummaging through the air, “Where did that old man hide it…”
The Tower Master must be regretting ever taking Zen as his disciple.
Still.
“Thanks. Steal me another next time!”
For me, he was a reliable ally. If the Tower Master knew of this, he’d probably faint.
“Actually, since you’re here—could you dye my hair with magic for a while?”
“Again, having fun without me!”
Still, he asked what color I wanted.
“Your green eyes look good, so maybe green hair too? Or perhaps something simple like brown?”
“Hmm… maybe blue, like yours.”
“So you covet my hair, huh?”
Zen chuckled, snapping his fingers. My long silver hair began turning into a vivid blue, starting from the tips and spreading to the crown.
Looking in the mirror, I saw a completely different version of myself. Side by side with Zen, we looked like siblings.
“Thanks! How long will it last?”
“For ordinary mages, less than an hour. But since it’s my spell, it’ll last half a day.”
Zen boasted proudly, but from what I knew, it wasn’t just empty talk.
He was one of only three personal disciples of the Tower Master, ranked as a 79th-floor mage, second only to the Tower Master himself.
“By the way, Zen, I had something to ask you.”
I was about to ask about Senia’s strange magic, which I’d heard about at the Imperial Palace’s Magic Division, when a knock interrupted.
With my permission, Garnet entered.
“Master Zen, you’re here again.”
Her greeting was curt. Zen sighed dramatically.
“Yes, again. But it looks like my Lady’s heading out.”
Pretending to droop like a puppy, he spoke pitifully. Garnet gave a soulless “Oh dear” and turned to me.
“My Lady, the carriage is ready. As you requested, a driver has been hired through the guild.”
Nodding, I checked the time. To make the appointment, I had to leave now.
“Zen, come visit again soon. I have something to ask.”
“Leaving after saying that? That’s torture, my Lady.”
True enough—if someone told me they had something to ask but wouldn’t say until later, I wouldn’t sleep a wink.
“Call it punishment for abandoning me last time.”
Thanks to that, I’d earned the grand title of Black Flame Dragon. Really, I should be thanking him—so I counted this as payback.
