CH 119

‘Teacher…!’

Even if he suddenly fell, he wasn’t worried because he could land using the darkness.

In bewilderment, Lucion looked at Russell, who was getting farther and farther away.

‘He didn’t close the entrance…? Is that why Heint’s colleague, the warlock, was able to come here?’

“Young Master, I’m coming.”

Hume immediately climbed a rock and landed lightly on the floor with Lucion in his arms.

“Are you all right, Young Master?”

That didn’t mean that his heart wasn’t pounding.

Lucion slowly came down to the floor.

‘This wasn’t like Teacher at all. Did something urgent happen?’

As Lucion took a step forward, the dark hideout was lit up brightly, revealing what appeared to be a bedroom.

Even among the rocks, the incredibly elaborately carved places seemed to have been covered with wallpaper that made them look like it was made of rock materials.

Ting!

Lucion’s eyes, which were already wide open, widened even further at the sight of the red thread tightening.

‘Are you saying I managed to come before that warlock?’

It was what it meant.

Lucion followed the red thread.

It was connected to the notebook that was openly placed on the table.

“…Is this the notebook you were looking for?”

[Oh! That’s right!]

Russell welcomed the notebook with a big smile.

“…Ugh.”

Lucion grabbed his stomach at the belated pain.

Even if the cut was shallow, he had been stabbed.

Lucion sat on the sofa with Hume’s help.

‘…?’

His ass recognized the highest quality.

[That, Lucion.]

Russell was happy to find the notebook, but he belatedly felt his feet go numb when Lucion looked at him.

He couldn’t burn his notebook, and he hadn’d close the entrance either.

Honestly, he couldn’t believe that this happened because of his own behavior.

Whether it was out of carelessness or urgency, it was strange.

[Russell. Do you admit that Lord Lucion almost got into trouble because of your careless behavior?]

Even Bethel glared at Russell and raised her voice.

Russell nodded slightly.

[I agree.]

―Uaa!

Hume caught Ratta, who jumped from above.

There were still tears swelling up in her eyes, but Ratta smiled.

―Ratta has never jumped this high! It was a lot of fun!

“I’m glad you’re full of spirits.”

Hume patted Ratta, smiling broadly.

“Why don’t you close the entrance first?”

Lucion pointed his finger at the ceiling.

The entrance seemed so small that he couldn’t tell how deep this place was.

The warlock was injured when they bounced off a wall during their fall but managed to fall onto the couch and live.

In other words, it was a series of coincidences that led to an opportunity.

That also meant that it wouldn’t be strange if the warlock fell down in the midst of this.

[Hold on.]

After confirming that Lucion’s darkness had risen, Russell used the darkness to close the door.

[Can you explain first?]

Bethel finally spoke after everything had calmed down.

Why on earth did Lucion get hurt?

No matter how hard she thought about it, she didn’t understand.

―…Because of Ratta’s request.

Ratta, who had been smiling until just now, slowly curled up beside Lucion and cried.

―Ratta didn’t know it was a difficult request so Ratta asked Lucion.

“Ratta.”

Lucion called Ratta softly.

At his word, Ratta buried her face in the sofa and shook her head.

―It’s Ratta’s fault. Lucion got hurt because of Ratta.

“Ratta.”

Ratta glanced up as Lucion’s voice rose higher than before.

Lucion was smiling.

―…Aren’t you mad at Rata?

“Why would I be angry?”

Lucion held out his bloodstained hand to Hume.

Hume quickly took out his handkerchief and diligently wiped Lucion’s hands.

“Teacher tried to stop me, but it happened because of my stubbornness. I sent a large number of ghosts on the wall into the sky.”

[You mean… You sent off ghosts in Carson’s presence?]

“Yes.”

[…Really? Is that really what happened?]

Lucion’s answer to Bethel’s continued question was obvious.

“Really.”

Bethel couldn’t stop her expression from becoming increasingly stiff.

Even her voice rose.

[Lord Lucion, it was reckless. I know Lord Lucion is a quick learner, but you should have had the eyes to distinguish the strong from the weak. Carson is strong enough to swallow you.]

“I know. I know it was reckless. I know I’ve done something crazy. But it had to be done.”

Carson had stabbed him in the stomach, but Lucion had no regrets.

He’d stopped what the Hand of the Void was about to do.

[Did you have to do it?]

“Yes. I had to.”

―Ratta is…

Lucion grabbed Ratta’s mouth.

She knew he could hear her in his head, but Ratta stopped talking.

[…I’m sorry for raising my voice, Lord Lucion.]

Bethel bowed slightly to Lucion and smiled.

If Lucion thought it had to be done, then it had to be.

[But Lord Lucion. You only have one life. I want you to value your life more than what you have to do.]

“Yes. I’ll be careful.”

Lucion smiled bitterly.

[I have nothing to say if you let it all out like that, Bethel.]

[Russell, you don’t need to say anything.]

Bethel’s sharp gaze made Russell avert his eyes.

Even if he had something to say, that look made the words disappear.

“Well, then, Teacher. Let me borrow your wisdom.”

Lucion sighed for a moment.

Once the crisis of death was passed, and knowing that the notebook didn’t fall into the hands of the warlock, his body relaxed on its own.

[Ask me. I’ll tell you everything.]

Russell tightened his neck.

“What excuse should I make to Brother?”

[…]

At the difficult question that came out from the beginning, Russell closed his mouth shut.

As Lucion’s eyes turned to Bethel, she also licked the corners of her mouth with a puzzled expression.

[I don’t think you can hide this… ?]

Lucion quietly patted Ratta, who was right next to him.

“…Will spraying myself with perfume cover the smell?”

[No, it can’t erase the smell of blood.]

Bethel shook her head.

“Would it be strange to say that an unidentified assailant came?”

Hume asked.

“It’s strange. It’s very strange. An unidentified assailant came into a place more heavily guarded than Cronia’s mansion? And the unidentified assailant stabbed me and no one knew… I can use that excuse, but you will be reprimanded for not protecting me.”

For a moment, Lucion recalled the moment he sowed darkness to send the ghosts to the sky, and he changed his words.

Wouldn’t it be possible to say that Hume got distracted because of the warlock?

But that was strange, too.

“…No.”

Lucion soon rubbed his chin.

“If it’s black magic, Hume, you might not have known about it, so it’s possible.”

Didn’t they decide to convince the fact that the Neubra Kingdom had hired a warlock anyway?

He thought it wasn’t bad to be the victim of this.

[…You’ll throw yourself as bait?]

“Yes, Teacher. Don’t you think it’s fine?”

[Then, what about the trip to the South? Not only did you get attacked, you got injured as well, you think Novio will let you go?]

Lucion frowned at the words Russell threw out.

It suddenly became a situation where he couldn’t do this or that.

However, even so, he thought it would be better to explain the wound.

At least he should be able to figure out how to go on the trip.

“…I want to live, but for some reason, it’s so difficult.”

Lucion swept down his face.

If he didn’t do anything, he felt like he was going to die just like in the novel, so he took action, but for some reason, it was so difficult.

“Since Brother seems to be looking for me, it would be best to resolve the matter as soon as possible.”

Lucion got up from his seat, grabbing his stomach.

He’d taken painkillers, but the throbbing was still annoying.

[I’ll borrow some of your darkness.]

Russell looked at the notebook for a moment.

“Yes, please use it. Then I will follow Hume.”

[You’re just sitting here, right?]

“I’d like to take a short look.”

[Will it be okay?]

“It hurts a little.”

Lucion said, wiping away the cold sweat.

“But I want to see with my own eyes why Hume’s eyes have become like that, and where they’re going to guide me.”

[I’ll come back soon.]

Russell floated the notebook into the darkness.

“Yes, Teacher.”

Lucion also wondered what was written in that notebook, but he didn’t bother to ask.

[I’ll keep an eye on him, Russell. Focus on finding the memory you lost.]

Bethel comforted him in a warm voice as if she had never glared at Russell.

[Okay, I’ll take a look. Take care of Lucion so he doesn’t fool around.]

[All right.]

Bethel grinned.

“Hume.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Guide me.”

“Do you want me to give you a piggyback ride?”

“…”

Lucion thought for a moment and nodded.

“Let’s do that.”

It had nothing to do with dignity anyway.

In fact, he had no strength in his body, and he felt like he was going to collapse before he could take a look.

“Ratta, you come here, too.”

At Lucion’s touch, Ratta hesitated, then she reluctantly grabbed Lucion’s hand and clung onto him.

Being carried on Hume’s back, Lucion looked at the neatly built structure, just like the structure of a building.

“Hume.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Doesn’t your eyes hurt?”

“That’s all right. What’s with this structure anyway? It’s my first time seeing anything like this.”

[This is my first time too. When I was waiting for Lord Lucion, I should have gone into the underground.]

Come to think of it, didn’t Bethel say that she had wandered around the rocky area?

“Was there anyone looking around?”

At Lucion’s question, Bethel thought for a moment.

[There was.]

“Who?”

[It was a man, but he was coming exactly toward Russell’s hideout.]

“To the hideout…?”

As Lucion’s eyes widened, Bethel smiled as if to reassure him.

[Since he was a normal person, you don’t have to worry about him, Lord Lucion. I don’t know why he’s crossing this place, which is no different from a wasteland, when he could have gone through the Myronist Kingdom instead of this rocky area.]

Bethel scratched her cheek slightly.

‘…It’s him!’

Lucion tightened his body, then as he felt the throbbing pain, he only tightened his fists.

‘He was just passing through here.’

After contemplating for a moment whether or not to kill the warlock, Lucion unclenched his fists.

The entrance to the hideout was closed, and the notebook fell into Russell’s hands.

There was no reason for him to fall here, and he had no way of obtaining the notebook.

Even if Lucion left him alone, he might die at the hands of Broson, who protected the frontier from the warlock.

‘…Come to think of it, why didn’t Broson appear in the novel?’

Isn’t he a knight of death who received a black bead from the darkness?

He was supposed to be pretty important, but he didn’t show up.

‘Did he die because of that warlock? I don’t know why, but it was the warlock who did the mission instead of Broson.’

Whether he was a good warlock or a bad warlock, Lucion thought it was all the same and Broson would just shut him up and kill him because he was a warlock.

‘But now I’ll never know why.’

Lucion closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.

* * *

Swoosh. Swoosh.

Russell’s expression gradually hardened as he kept turning over the notebook.

[‘It’s not here.’]

Swoosh.

[‘…It’s not here either.’]

Research about black magic, its methods, and newly developed black magic were all related to black magic that he remembered clearly.

Then Russell’s hand stopped.

The last page.

It was planted with black magic, not letters.

[‘Here… I used black magic?’]

It was definitely his own darkness.

Startled, Russell tried to grab onto the notebook.

[‘Let’s calm down.’]

Russell took a deep breath and moved his fingers.

When he touched the black magic with Lucion’s darkness, a total of 49 appeared in the air, 7 on the left and right.

It was black magic that he created himself, and it was a coded magic that could be solved by putting darkness in the right place in the right order.

Russell used Lucion’s darkness to enter the code.

Dudududu.

When he finished sorting out the password, the notebook trembled.

From the notebook, a black mass fell to the floor as if it were vomiting black magic, and soon it flew into the air and became letters.

– Hey, Russell. You’re a genius even if you lost your memory!

At the mischievous words, Russell was sure he was the one who had written it down.

– You must have been surprised. You must have been bewildered. You’ve become a ghost and you lose your memory! But don’t worry. It’s part of the price.

[‘…My loss of memory is part of the price?’]

What price?

What did he mean with price?