Chapter 9 Part 2
Would he be sad that after saving me I just left? Or would he be happy that the troublesome woman was gone?
It seemed I still didn’t know much about him after all. However…
Hyle habitually furrowed his brows when he was flustered or in a difficult situation.
The courteous Hyle often showed that expression when conversing with me, who had the opposite personality, and I enjoyed observing his various faces.
I’m not some pervert, and I never thought I’d be interested in someone else’s expressions… but amusingly, that’s what happened at some point.
Before I realized it, Hyle had become the only thrill in my dull and dreary life.
Besides, Abel will also come to the party…
“Stay closer to His Highness the Crown Prince than to Feros. Only he can illuminate the darkness within you, Holy Maiden.”
…Isn’t that what he said? That strangely unpleasant Cardinal.
As I was thinking about various things while tilting my teacup, a familiar figure was reflected outside the window.
Soon, that which had perched on the windowsill flew to me, flapping its wings.
“Xenoph, you’re wrong.”
A light green parchment sent by Hyle was neatly tied to Raphla’s yellow heels.
As I carefully untied it, a peculiar scent that could only be experienced from Hyle faintly brushed the tip of my nose.
“The one who illuminated my darkness was this person.”
After calmly scattering those words into the empty air without a listener, I unfolded the paper tied to Raphla’s ankle.
There, in his usual neat handwriting, was a brief note saying he would pick me up on the day of the party, along with a nagging reminder to refrain from using black magic as much as possible until then.
…Of course, aside from illuminating my darkness, his constant nagging at all hours was quite irritating.
“How long is this man going to keep saying the same thing? Am I that untrustworthy?”
As soon as I became irritated, crumpling the end of the letter, all my past actions flashed through my mind like a panorama.
From peeking into the Cardinal’s mind with black magic to secretly sneaking into the temple, stopping time with black magic, and so on…
Ugh, why does it have to come back so vividly? This leaves me with nothing to say!
Now that my partner has been decided, I should handle the backlog of work until the party.
Putting down my empty teacup, I stretched and got up to move to my office.
The pain that had struck near my heart was gradually subsiding.
Fortunately, it seemed to stop at this level for now, as long as I didn’t use magic on a scale large enough to put the entire Feros knight brigade to sleep, as I had in the Black Forest.
* * *
“Hmm, this is…”
It was an exceptionally languid afternoon as the setting sun fully permeated through the window.
While busily shuffling through documents, a familiar proposal caught my eye.
It was the very document that had been giving me a headache not long ago.
“Isn’t this the Marquis Beffel matter? It’s been handled impressively well. I never expected to benefit from Fergio’s sister complex in this way.”
I had thoroughly scolded Fergio recently about the mining site issue with Marquis Beffel.
What did I say then? Probably something like, “An incompetent bloodline like you who’s swayed by emotions is unnecessary…”
I didn’t think I was particularly angry. Rather, I thought I spoke normally, following Mattio’s educational approach.
Since the Laté family recognized each other based on individual abilities under the name of ‘family,’ I considered it advice that would correct Fergio’s lax lifestyle.
But Fergio seemed to think I was angry with him. And that must have been quite shocking, as his temperament had dampened somewhat afterward.
Thanks to that, other tasks proceeded calmly within reasonable bounds.
This was probably due to Fergio’s sister complex setting that made him dote on me.
If that hadn’t existed, we would have either fought bitterly or ignored each other.
Knock knock
When I had processed about half of the documents piled on my desk, a knock sounded.
There shouldn’t be anyone visiting at this hour. Who could it be?
“My lady, it’s Lynn.”
“Come in.”
As permission was granted, the office door slowly opened a crack. Lynn’s troubled complexion was shadowed with darkness.
“Um… my lady, I wasn’t going to tell you because I was worried you’d be concerned, but the situation seems a bit unpleasant.”
Lynn, who had begun speaking hesitantly, approached me and glanced out the window.
There was only one place visible beyond my office window.
“Is there a problem with the breeding grounds?”
“Yes, they were fine until this morning… but since the afternoon, the condition of the magical beasts has become a bit strange.”
At Lynn’s words, the tension that had dissipated slowly rose again. Did it affect the magical beasts in the breeding grounds after Raphla?
I never thought the repercussions would reach that far. Above all, if there’s a problem with the breeding grounds, Fergio or Mattio would notice first.
That’s troublesome…
“How are they strange?”
Let’s hear the details first, and if it’s within a fixable range, try to correct it as much as possible. It’s probably just some restlessness, right?
“Among the five high-ranking magical beasts you tamed, one’s form has become slightly—but noticeably—faint. That’s causing the other magical beasts to be unsettled too. If this state continues…”
My brow inevitably furrowed at Lynn’s words as she trailed off while gauging my reaction.
The form becoming faint—the situation was more serious than I’d thought.
As expected, my frequent contact with Hyle lately seemed to have accelerated the purification of my heart.
It was certainly a good thing, but… problems arising in this manner were quite troublesome.
Moreover, high-ranking magical beasts had more distinct self-awareness compared to other specimens, making them sensitive to changes in their master’s condition.
It might be just one for now, but if the number increases in the future, the magical beasts could be automatically recalled regardless of my state.
“If that happens, they would be forcibly recalled to the demon realm.”
“…Yes, that’s likely. As high-ranking magical beasts, they would react sensitively to your magical power. Have you perhaps been overexerting yourself lately?”
The heart pain I felt after using Raphla earlier wasn’t just a groundless concern—it was real.
Since magical beasts are summoned to this land based on my magical power, if the demonic power of the summoner weakens, their existence also becomes blurred.
In the first place, their driving force is my magical power, so while it’s only one now, the number will increase in the future.
If eventually all the high-ranking magical beasts are recalled to the demon realm, I won’t be able to hide it from Fergio and Mattio anymore.
The two men would surely know more precisely and quickly than anyone that my power had weakened strangely.
Of course, this was an extreme assumption. Before that happens, I’ll need to break off my engagement with Abel as quickly as possible, finish the troublesome business, and put an end to my villainess strike as soon as my heart’s purification is complete.
“I understand for now. Make sure this doesn’t leak out. I’ll handle it.”
“Yes!”
Lynn, who had been showing a troubled expression, finally smiled gently with relief upon seeing my calm countenance.
After confirming Lynn had left the room, I took out a magic stone that Caligo had given me long ago.
“I never thought I’d use this in this way…”
Taking the magic stone, I headed to the breeding grounds and immediately approached the faded magical beast to have it absorb the stone.
Although it wasn’t my magical power, the power of a great demon like Caligo would certainly help.
Growl
Due to the unfamiliar magical power, different from what it usually consumed, the beast made a teeth-grinding sound with its nerves on edge.
It was fortunate that it stopped at that level, thanks to it being a great demon’s magic stone.
Since it’s the magical power of a being stronger than me, there shouldn’t be a problem with acceptance.
In any case, this would ensure there wouldn’t be any more fading of forms for the time being, which was reassuring.
Still, if I had known it would be used like this, I wouldn’t have refused and would have just accepted them on other occasions too.
Afterward, returning to my office, I immediately looked into houses in the Latan region.
