After the Wicked Wife Leaves

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

Demian woke up around the afternoon.

 

“Where’s Mom?”

 

As soon as he woke up, he looked for Cornelia with a pouty face, and Sardin answered him in a way that wouldn’t make him feel uncomfortable.

 

“Young master, the master will be away for a few days due to important matters. The journey to the capital is quite perilous, so please understand.”

“I know.”

 

Demian was surprisingly calm and didn’t cry as he had expected.

 

“Mom is trying to protect me too much.”

 

He sat there with a look of resignation that was quite unbecoming for his age.

 

“Young master”

 

Concerned, Sardin called softly, and Demian let out a deep sigh.

 

“I figured this would happen, so I took precautions.”

 

He couldn’t understand what that meant, but Demian appeared very dejected.

 

‘This is the best way to handle this.’

 

Sardin sighed and took out his secret weapon, which he had kept hidden.

 

“Young master, it’s lemon candy.”

 

As he handed it over, Demian scrunched his brows and pouted.

 

“Does Sadi think I’m a baby?”

 

However, contrary to his words, Demian eagerly unwrapped the candy.

His small fingers struggled with it, causing him to make a frustrated expression.

 

“Tch, even though I look like this, I’ll be the one to lead this empire in the future… Anyway, now is not the time to be like this.”

 

Sardin silently took the candy, unwrapped it, and handed it back to Damian.

Then Demian stuffed the candy into his mouth, puffing his cheeks out.

 

“It’s not that I’m crying because I’m scared! I’m crying because I have no choice.”

 

His pronunciation was off, but Sardin understood that he was eating the candy because he was feeling down.

 

“Are you in pain? Should I call a doctor…?”

Then Demian took the candy out of his mouth, irritated.

 

“What are you talking about? I’m so healthy! I don’t need to take medicine!”

 

And Sardin guessed what he meant.

Cornelia didn’t know it, but Demian was careful not to even catch a cold because he didn’t want to take medicine.

 

‘Plus, he secretly throws away the potion that changes his eye color, which gives him a headache.’

 

At that moment,

Demian grabbed Sardin’s sleeve.

 

“Sadi, I want to go for a walk.”

 

With his eyes sparkling, Sardin couldn’t help but smile.

 

“Yes, then let’s get ready…”

 

Just as he was thinking about the knights to accompany them, Demian beamed and said,

 

“No, let’s just go for a walk, just the two of us. Sadi is strong!”

 

At those words, Sardin chuckled and nodded.

 

“Understood.”

“Then carry me!”

 

At Demian’s request, Sardin carried him on his back.

 

“That way! Hurry over there!”

 

Whenever there was a place he wanted to go, Demian would pull Sardin’s hair.

 

“Young master, if you could be a bit gentler…”

“Yeah! I got it, so hurry that way!”

 

Though he worried inwardly, Sardin was grateful for his thick hair.

 

“Sadi! Over there!”

‘Where is he leading me…’

 

Sardin’s face stiffened as he spotted someone.

The individual had a solid physique that stood out even under a cloak, brilliant blonde hair that was faintly visible beneath a hood, and a chiseled jawline with tightly closed lips.

And above all, Sardin recognized him because of his distinctive aura.

There was only one person who could blend into the crowd as if he had no presence at all.

 

‘Duke Blant, how did he get here…?’

“Sadi! Hurry!”

 

Sardin was certain.

For some reason, Demian was trying to follow Duke Blant.

 

‘Why is he…’

 

With his mind going blank, Sardin quickly scooped up Demian, who was squirming and calling for him.

 

“Sadi!”

 

Despite Demian’s struggles, Sardin ignored him and swiftly left the alley.

He kept having an ominous feeling.

Yes, the peace he had now might be shattered.

 

‘Hurry… I have to report that the duke has arrived in the territory!’

 

That was when.

 

“You haven’t come to your senses yet.”

 

At the clear yet bittersweet voice of the child, Sardin’s eyes widened.

And before he could process those words, the ground beneath him began to glow.

 

‘Could it be… magic?’

 

Unlike alchemists, who lived among people and offered practical help, magic could only be wielded by a select few.

So people admired and feared magicians, and for a long time, those who were persecuted and exploited by non-magicians chose to live isolated from the world, living in a tower.

 

‘But there’s a magician here?’

 

Sardin was rolling his eyes in confusion.

 

“Put it away.”

 

Demian, who was in his arms, touched his arm with a finger.

Tap!

It was clearly a weak force. So weak that even if he touched a dandelion seed, it would only scatter a few strands.

Yet in that moment, the arm that was firmly holding Demian went limp.

Startled, Sardin instinctively called out to Demian.

 

“Young master!”

 

But instead of falling out of his arms, Damien was floating in thin air.

He was covered in a bright, golden glow that was almost blinding.

 

‘How on earth is the young master…’

 

Just as Sardin was gaping in shock.

 

“Sardin Ishaka.”

 

Sardin flinched when he was called by his full name, which he had never told anyone.

 

‘What’s going on here?’

 

Demian, who was known for using words that were unusually advanced for a three-year-old, spoke up.

The little child radiated an aura that was both unsettling and awe-inspiring, like the presence of an absolute ruler, the emperor himself.

 

‘Yes, and that magical power is definitely Young Master’s.’

 

Faced with the incomprehensible unknown, Sardin came to a conclusion.

 

‘This is dangerous. I need to get away.’

 

Just as Sardin was about to move his legs quickly,

 

“Stay still!”

 

The golden magic shackled his body.

Now unable to move, Sardin looked at Demian. Anger was clearly visible on Demian’s young face.

 

“You were going to report again, weren’t you? To Archduke Tarrant, or rather, to the archduke’s heir.”

 

At those words, Sardin’s face turned pale.

Demian whispered to Sardin, who was trembling without saying anything.

 

“I know. You’re cooperating with him to take revenge on your father by killing the emperor. But, Sardin.”

 

Demian looked at Sardin with a face that seemed about to cry and spoke.

 

“You know it too. The Emperor didn’t kill your father. And you… you don’t want my mother to die either!”

 

Sardin wanted to ask what he meant by that.

After all, Reinhardt had said he would take Cornelia as his wife.

 

‘But is he saying he’s going to kill my master?’

 

Just as Sardin was feeling confused, the small child’s lips parted.

 

“It would be best to reflect here and gather your thoughts. If you don’t want to regret it for the rest of your life.”

 

Sardin looked surprised and asked.

 

“Why, even though you knew I was a spy, you didn’t kill me? With your power, you could easily do it.”

 

The child then pouted his lips and replied.

 

“Well, even though you received the command of Archduke Tarrant, you didn’t try to kill me, did you? Of course, Janet was watching, but you never intended to harm me in the first place. Right?”

“How do you know…?”

 

Just as a startled Sardin was about to ask, Demian smiled bashfully and smiled like cotton candy.

 

“Sardin, I believe in you. You will definitely become my knight commander, protecting me in the future!”

 

As soon as he finished speaking, Demian’s body was enveloped in light.

 

《Warp.》

 

With the child’s figure finally disappearing, Sardin wore a dazed expression.

The child, whom he had merely thought was cute, had not only seen through his identity but also knew how to use magic.

Moreover, he had even scolded him.

 

‘It feels like I was enchanted by a fairy and was dreaming.’

 

Sardin’s expression turned bitter.

 

‘Yes, I knew. The one who killed my father wasn’t the emperor, but a blind arrow from our own side.’

 

Yet, needing someone to blame, he sought revenge against the enemy’s leader.

Even though Emperor Schwanhild had merely ordered the subjugation of the general of Krithan, who invaded first.

 

‘In the end, this revenge was futile, and I was so caught up in my emotions that I volunteered to be used by the Archduke of Tarrant.’

 

At the same time, Sardin recalled another reason he couldn’t reveal his identity.

 

‘But I liked being with you… I thought I would have to leave if my identity was revealed, so I had no choice but to follow his words. And yet you…’

<Sardin, I believe in you.>

 

Remembering Cornelia and the child who had said the same thing, Sardin shed tears filled with regret.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

Meanwhile, Erich was wandering around the territory, investigating Countess Herde.

The more he investigated, the more he was filled with admiration.

 

‘Countess Herde is a remarkable strategist beyond what I expected.’

 

Although she was with the emperor, he couldn’t help but acknowledge her.

It was her achievement that the territory, which had been nothing more than a backwater for five years, had been transformed into a city.

 

‘To be honest, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he has talent surpassing that of the Emperor as a feudal lord.’

 

But the admiration was short-lived, and Erich’s eyes soon lit up.

 

‘I still can’t find any connection to the emperor.’

 

Erich narrowed his eyes as he stared at the mansion visible in the center of the territory.

 

‘It would be best to infiltrate there.’

 

Just as Erich was about to move, the hem of his cloak was grabbed.

 

‘What’s this?’

 

Erich’s blue eyes widened as he turned his head, surprised that the swordmaster hadn’t felt his presence.

 

“Daddy!”

 

The child has soft, chick-colored hair and a face that resembles fluffy white bread.

It was the child he’d seen in his dreams, smiling brightly at him.