Chapter 72

Chapter 72

“Hide.”

Mercy waved her wand. It was the same spell that she used while we were crossing the forest last time.

Something started fluttering around my body. This was the sign that the ‘hide’ spell was working properly.

“Now, the only people who can see you are Duke Liam, Schubert and the mages.”

“It’s kinda like the cloak of invisibility—with a selective feature though.”

“It’s not a cloak, but I guess…?”

Mercy tilted her head to the side at my comparison.

“A cloak of invisibility, huh. That’s an interesting concept. It’s something that not just mages can wear. If I develop this later and use it for combat…”

It was just a small comment, but it’s amazing how she started building an idea from that. She really was the lord of the magic tower. Of course, there’s a reason why she attained that position at such a young age.

“Mercy, your magic really is so much greater. Illusion magic, wow. And against so many people like this too.”

“It’s my attribute magic. Mages are born with one each. You’ll be able to find out what’s yours later.”

“…Attribute magic.”

“I heard it’s also close to what you truly wish for. It’s a specialty that should suit you, and I’m sorta wondering what it is.”

I was taken aback a little after hearing Mercy’s explanation. She said that it would be close to one’s wishes, so the same should be true for Mercy.

What kind of wish did she have that she could control powerful illusions like this?

…It’s clear that there was a hidden side to Mercy that I didn’t know yet. Would there come a day when I’d be close enough to Mercy that I could find out?

Whenever I meet new people, I somehow feel a kind of atmosphere around them. And with Mercy, I do like her vibe.

Regardless of her age, her eyes showed a strong will, and her smile was so cool.

“Now then, I’ll teleport you there.”

Mercy led me to the middle of a magic circle. Blanc climbed on top of my head, then I tightened my grip on the wand.

“If His Highness finds out about this, he’ll definitely slash me half and kill me, but… Well, if that happens, be sure to help me out, okay? Tell His Highness that I was just wishing for him to complete his perfect revenge.”

“Of course.”

Hearing Mercy’s concerns, I nodded quickly in response. Mercy let out a sigh, but she soon waved her wand.

For a moment, my vision turned upside down.

Plink, plink. In that narrow underground passageway, I could hear water dripping down. The passageway’s width was just enough for two people side by side, and it was also very creepy.

This looked exactly like the kind of place where ghosts appeared. Still though, at least there were some light fixtures on the walls, enough to illuminate the surroundings.

There, I saw Liam and Schubert standing side by side. The two of them blinked back at me as though they couldn’t figure out what was going on. Shubert tilted his head to the side.

Liam was wearing armor. It was a brand new sight to me—it’s my first time seeing him armed like this.

Shubert’s armor was much thinner than Liam’s. It looked like he could move more nimbly in it than the duke, too.

“Long time no see, Duke. And Baron.”

I bowed to them and greeted them energetically. The graver the situation was, the better one’s manners should be.

While looking as if he couldn’t believe that I was here, Shubert wiped the sweat off his face with one hand then asked.

“…How did you get here? And on your head, isn’t that the dragon?”

“Yes, this is Blanc. And I’m here to undo the restraints as Mercy’s substitute. I’m a mage now, you see.”

“…Ah, right. You became a contractor.”

Schubert glanced at Blanc. I could feel Blanc moving as he gave a small bow to the baron.

At this, Shubert recoiled and flinched slightly.

…Oh yeah, he hates reptiles. I could feel Blanc feeling a little sad after seeing Schubert’s reaction. The little dragon’s emotions were conveyed to me.

“Yes, and as a mage, I’m here to sincerely help His Highness in his uprising.”

As though gauging me, Liam stared at me and asked.

“What we need right now isn’t a novice mage. Why couldn’t Mercy come here personally?”

“His Highness hasn’t returned from his battle with Rosteratu yet. We couldn’t possibly get in the way of the revenge he’s been looking forward to for a lifetime. And even if I’m just a beginner at this, I know what I need to do.”

While weakly pushing past Liam’s cold reception, I explained the situation to him.

My first spell was a complete success, and Mercy sent me here because she thought I could do it.

In times of urgency, people’s memories tended to sharpen.

I had one job here. And I could perfectly remember the ‘unlock’ spell to undo the restraints.

Perhaps hearing some credibility in my explanation, the look in Liam’s eyes loosened as though a thread taut with tension became relaxed.

“…So you’re doing this in consideration of His Highness.”

“The Prince has gone through enough all this time.”

Schubert responded to my words.

“…You’re a maid, but you really do have the right ideas, always.”

Schubert commended me. It was a benign compliment, but I wasn’t all that happy to hear it.

Was a maid not allowed to have ideas? At this moment, I became conscious of the fact that this was a class-based society.

But here with these two, there wasn’t any anger that I needed to coax them out of, and it’s not the right time to bring out humor and lift the atmosphere.

I endured it all when it came to Albert, too, so it’s not like I couldn’t take what Schubert was dishing. With the corners of my lips tugging up, I laughed away my concerns.

“It’s nothing big. Alright, I’ll get to work then.”

As I tiptoed around the matter, Liam and Schubert’s gazes looked away and towards the other side of the passageway.

“But where are the mages now though so that I can undo their restraints?”

However, as I said this, Liam remained silent. What’s this?

“…They’re not here.”

“Huh?”

“After I sent the message to Mercy, we got caught along the passageway. We barely escaped, but… It was impossible for the mages who were less agile.”

The sudden news came to me as a shock, but I could understand how this happened.

The mages were people who wielded magic, and they’re not like Liam and Schubert, who had trained their bodies. It was an adequate reason.

And they would have needed a mage to send another report to Mercy, but since they got separated, they couldn’t send word to her.

It would have been better if we could call Mercy right now and ask her how we should proceed, but I didn’t know the right spell or magic circle for sending messages.

I need to judge the situation here.

Soon enough, I moved on to the next question.

“Will the mages be executed right away?”

“No, they might want to reverse the mages’ powers and use them for themselves. Those two mages are both very powerful.”

“So then we’ll have to get them out as soon as possible.”

I stood still in the same spot, lost in my own thoughts. How should we go about this problem?

Then, with an innocent expression, Schubert raised one hand. He looked like he wanted to say something to me.

“Do you have a good suggestion?”

I asked him enthusiastically to try and hype him up. However, Schubert shook his head and mumbled.

“Ah, just FYI. We got intercepted by the knight order here in the passageways earlier. They’re coming after us right now.”

Hey, wait, what did you just say? The moment my mind registered what he just said, I felt a chill down my spine.

“Then are you saying that they’re right on our heels this very second…?”

“Yep. C’mon then, we gotta move.”

While stretching, Schubert started moving. No, but, I mean, you can’t just say that now!

Though surprised, I followed them because just as he said, we really had to move.

The path before us was so long, and it was like a maze.

There were so many forked roads, but despite it all, the passageways’ interior looked entirely uniform, so I couldn’t even tell whether we passed that place already or not.

The knights were following us, but I couldn’t imagine how they could find us.

“Where are we headed to?”

“The palace gardens. There’s another passageway at the fountain in the middle of the garden, and that one leads straight to the dungeon. That’s where we’re headed,” Schubert replied.

Liam took the lead while looking at the map in his hands. It was all thanks to magic that I could keep up the pace with them when they were going so fast.

Fortunately enough, when I was reading the book of magic circles, I memorized a simple one that could aid with running.

If it wasn’t for magic, I would have been left in the dust by now, unable to keep up with them.

Despite the narrow passageways, the soldiers on our side all followed Liam and Schubert without a word.

Judging by the fierce look in their eyes, they were clearly different from the soldiers I saw earlier at the tower.

I could conjure a small fire for a bit more light, but I decided to save my magic reserves.

We didn’t know when exactly the other knights would find us and attack. If that would happen, then I’d need to use all my strength then.

It didn’t occur to me that something could go wrong. Liam and Schubert moved calmly, and they were very thorough men.

…But then, I felt a throbbing pang in my heart. It was Blanc’s emotions. While I was running, Blanc got off the top of my head.

“Blanc, what’s wrong?”

“Did I do something wrong…? Why didn’t Shubert say hiii…”

Blanc’s voice was sullen when he asked. Then I remembered how Blanc and Schubert had a lot of fun hanging out together at Liam’s place.

I ran harder for a long time so that I could reach Schubert’s side, then when I was there, I spoke.

“Baron. Sorry, but… Just a minute, please hug Blanc.”

“No, I dislike reptiles so— uuaaAACK!”

He made a strange sound when I thrusted Blanc into his arms. Still though, he didn’t drop Blanc.

“I know that he doesn’t look like a dragon to you, Lord Schubert. Blanc is feeling upset because you’re suddenly treating him differently. Please look at him closely. Blanc hasn’t changed.”

He had a good relationship with Blanc, that’s why it’s a waste to just leave it like this as they were.

After me, I think he’s the next person who Blanc opened up to.

This, too, was an experience that made Blanc start feeling little by little that it was worth living in this world.

“Please look at Blanc’s inner side. Didn’t you guys have fun hanging out together before?”

Don’t people say that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover?

If Blanc, who was now in Schubert’s arms, really seemed like a reptile to him, the two of them wouldn’t have been able to bond this much.

In Schubert’s eyes, Blanc was just a cute cat.

Schubert was shocked by my words. Blanc raised his head and glanced up eagerly at the man.

Sighing, Shubert covered his face for a moment, but he soon placed Blanc on his head.

“…Let’s go like this.”

Feeling satisfied, I watched them make up. Alright, this side has been settled.

After whispering to Blanc a bit, I passed by Schubert and went to Liam’s side.

As he was running while looking at the map occasionally, he asked.

“What is it?”

“I have a question about His Highness.”

While I was talking to Blanc earlier, I recalled what I wanted to ask the moment I met Liam. We’ve yet to exit the passageways, so I think this is the right time to ask.

I thought about it, and thought about it again.

I know what Albert thinks of me, but I can’t figure out why he’s being so passive about teaching me magic. While we were still at the tower, I made a great effort in studying magic.

However, Albert showed very minimal effort in teaching me. It was so unlike his usual self.

So, I came to the only possible conclusion why he would act like that.

“Does His Highness know a way to change the contractor of a dragon?”

Liam stayed silent. Gradually looking my way, he glanced down at me. His green eyes sparkled like emeralds.

And his ambiguous reaction was enough to convince me.

Instead of me, Albert was trying to become Blanc’s contractor.

——

t/n: didn’t know how we could possibly swoon more for albert but?? here he is, secretly doing his best just to protect rosé from all the pain he doesn’t want her to feel while still respecting her wishes and also saving blanc in the process and im?? sir??? stop making us fall in love with you even more please???? ㅠㅠㅠㅠ