Chapter 50
“I’ll do it.”
Louis clenched both fists tightly, speaking with determined bravado. The sight was so adorable that Kazhar absentmindedly reached out and stroked his pink hair. Only when the soft strands slipped through his fingers did he snap back to his senses.
Kazhar quickly pulled his hand away and cleared his throat.
Louis, wide-eyed, asked,
“But why does it have to be the Duke? Can’t I just tell my sister?”
“Eluana doesn’t know what your constitution means. It’s better to talk to the Duke first. This isn’t something many people should know about. If word starts spreading around, it could be dangerous.”
“Mm. I don’t really get it, but I’ll do as you say, big brother.”
Meeting Louis’s bright, shimmering gaze, Kazhar let out a faint smile.
“When your sister wakes up, she’ll be worried. How about washing your face in the meantime?”
“Does it look like I cried?”
“It’s obvious.”
“Yes, Louis. Go freshen up a little,” added Ling, who had been standing behind.
Though she had spoken between a prince and the son of a duke, Kazhar didn’t scold her. She had said she had only been working as a maid for four days, which meant she must have joined their group on the way to Aden. She hadn’t been trained in much yet.
Not that she’ll need training anyway, Kazhar thought.
Even Ling’s hair carried tiny grains of light. With sensitivity to mana that strong, she’d be better off becoming a mage than a maid.
Louis will come to understand as he studies magic. He’ll figure it out himself.
Kazhar could have explained Louis’s constitution in detail to Eluana. But doing so would mean admitting his own secret—that he too was “a child blessed by mana.”
While Kazhar stepped back into the role of bystander, Louis stood up.
“I’ll be right back.”
As soon as Louis extended his hand, Ling took it. The two of them walked out, hand in hand, like siblings. Kazhar watched the light that followed them out before turning his head.
Leaning against the wall, Raine approached and asked,
“Don’t tell me, Young Master Spes—you’re blessed by mana too?”
“That’s right. The ambient mana was too thin last time, so I couldn’t recognize it.”
“And now? How did you notice?”
“There’s a faint gathering of mana around Louis. Since there’s none nearby, it must have followed him here all the way from Spes.”
“If the Duke of Spes hears that His Highness noticed this, he might suspect that you share the same constitution.”
“Maybe. But he won’t be sure. After all, I’m a swordsman.”
Raine gave a wry laugh. “Still, the Duke of Spes must be the luckiest man alive. A daughter with affinity for iron, and now a son blessed by mana?”
He murmured in awe, updating this new revelation in his mind. It had been twenty-seven years since a child blessed by mana had appeared openly.
Kazhar too was blessed by mana but had always kept it hidden. These days, he could only see mana; ever since he had become an Aura user, mana no longer gathered to him. It only lingered at a respectful distance.
If I’d chosen magic instead of the sword, would it have been different? he wondered—just as Raine said:
“She’s waking up.”
“Hm?”
Kazhar turned. Eluana was struggling to lift her eyelids. He leaned closer, his shadow falling across her face.
“Are you awake?”
Reacting to his voice, Eluana’s green eyes opened for the first time in a day. They found Kazhar.
“…Kazhar?”
“Yeah.”
Eluana gave a faint smile. Just seeing him there when she opened her eyes filled her with relief. The wallpaper over his shoulder belonged to Aden Castle. The soft blanket wrapped around her body added to her sense of safety.
She was alive. That simple fact overwhelmed her.
“What about Louis?”
“He went out briefly with that maid, Ling. He’ll be back soon. He’s safe.”
Eluana sighed with relief and tried to sit up halfway.
“Are you hurt anywhere? Did you get treated?”
“Thanks to you, I’m fine.”
“Thanks to me?”
Eluana blinked in confusion.
Kazhar found her expression odd. He had expected her to boast about her strength, or at least be pleased that she had found a way to grow stronger. But instead…
“Did the Spes knights arrive on time? When exactly did I collapse?”
Her reaction was as if—
Kazhar crossed his arms, his tone suddenly serious.
“Don’t tell me you don’t remember?”
“Remember? The assassins threw daggers, and… don’t tell me I was stabbed?”
Looking down at herself, muttering in disbelief, she heard Kazhar chuckle low.
“You deflected all of those daggers. And you disabled all their swords too. Thanks to you, we’re here alive.”
“Me?”
Eluana’s eyes widened in shock. Her memory had cut off at the moment the daggers flew.
Kazhar emphasized firmly,
“Yes. You did it. You saved us.”
Though she couldn’t remember, hearing that made her heart leap. At least she hadn’t been useless—she hadn’t been a burden.
“Thank goodness,” Eluana whispered, smiling through her eyes.
The warmth of that smile made Kazhar awkwardly scratch his nape.
Eluana, still mulling things over, asked,
“No one else was hurt?”
“Five soldiers were injured. Nothing serious.”
Only because Raine had struck too hard. There hadn’t been room to control his strength.
“That’s a relief. And the assassins?”
If none of her people had died or been seriously wounded, that meant the assassins had taken the full brunt instead. What she wanted to know was whether any witnesses remained.
“No survivors. Even if we had kept one alive, it would’ve been hard to trace their employer. The ‘Deep Night’ are professional killers.”
“So, no evidence?”
“There were probably infiltrators in the castle too. Some had disguised themselves as maids. Looked like they planned to lure Louis out through the servants’ quarters. But when we investigated later, nothing concrete turned up.”
“Even Louis?”
That confirmed it—there would be no living quietly now. It would be kill or be killed. And if it came to that, Eluana wanted to be the one doing the killing.
“I’ll make them regret it,” she murmured, clenching her fists with determination.
The pose was so similar to Louis’s earlier that Kazhar couldn’t help but smile.
At that moment, Raine stepped forward and bowed.
“I’m glad you’re safe, my lady.”
Eluana had thought him one of the knights when he stood behind them earlier, but now she realized he was someone new. Watching him closely, she recalled Kazhar’s words.
“You’re the friend he entrusted with handling Laplanpia, aren’t you?”
“Ah—yes. I’m Raine.”
He glanced sideways at Kazhar, realizing that he had introduced him as a “friend.” Raine’s eyes grew moist with emotion. Kazhar grimaced.
“Don’t look at me like that.”
Regardless, Eluana expressed her gratitude.
“Thank you for dealing with the monster.”
“Please, speak casually. I’m just a commoner. And actually, I should thank you. This sword has helped me a lot.”
Raine tapped his scabbard. Eluana’s eyes widened. She would never fail to recognize a sword she herself had forged.
“That’s…”
“Brilliant Mortal Night and Silent Black Sun. I bought them.”
Hearing their names spoken by someone else made her blush. She had come up with those grandiose names at fourteen, filled with adolescent sentiment.
Smiling sheepishly, Eluana said,
“I’m glad Father’s sword found a good owner.”
Then suddenly remembering something, she fumbled in her pocket—only to find it empty.
Her metal bead was gone. Perhaps she had dropped it amidst the chaos. Regret welled up inside her.
“My bead is missing.”
Kazhar pointed at her shoulder.
“If you mean the glowing one, it’s right there.”
“No way.”
How could a round bead stick to someone’s shoulder? Yet when she reached up, her fingers brushed cool metal.
Huh?
The bead twirled happily, rolling down her arm to rest in her palm. It had little eyes and a mouth drawn on it—her bead.
As Eluana stared, astonished, Kazhar explained,
“It wouldn’t fall off your shoulder. Must not have wanted to leave you.”
“Bead…”
Emotion overwhelmed her. Looking down at it in her palm, she felt an unexpected fondness, as if they had bonded through shared danger.
The bead spun once in her hand, as if to say it was glad to be reunited.
“I’m glad too.”
She hadn’t lost it after all.
Nearby, Raine’s jaw dropped.
“She’s already moving iron that easily?”
He gaped, incredulous. Kazhar said nothing—he too was astonished.
She had already bent iron bars and made the bead glow before. He thought he wouldn’t be surprised again. But now…
“Did you move it consciously just now?” Kazhar asked.
“Huh?”
She tilted her head.
“The bead,” he clarified.
“No. I was communicating with it. You said alchemy begins with communication.”
Kazhar scrubbed a hand down his face.
“Then try moving it consciously.”
“If I do, it only goes about a hand’s length.”
Still, she focused. The bead rolled up her arm to her fingertip—then floated into the air.
“Oh? It works.”
She still didn’t remember what she had done back in the forest, but now moving the bead felt much easier. It traced a circle in the air, then spun faster and faster, almost invisible, like it was celebrating.
When she held out her hand, the bead zipped straight into her palm, ignoring momentum and gravity, and settled gently there.
“It works.”
Eluana stared at it anew, while Raine swayed with regret.
I should have found her before the Duke of Spes did.
Visions of endless business ventures crumbled like illusions. If only I’d known earlier… I could have built a fortress out of gold coins. The thought nearly suffocated him.
While Raine dreamed futile dreams, Kazhar too couldn’t hide his admiration.
“For now, keep it secret. If people find out what you can do, they’ll swarm at you—like him.”
He pointed at Raine, who looked dazed beside him.
“What! Why! Do you realize how much money this could have made?”
“Does it really make that much money?”
Eluana’s emerald eyes sparkled, innocent and curious.
