It was a quiet night. Even after Stella lit incense in the bedroom and made a cup of clear herbal tea, I couldn’t easily fall asleep due to my complex thoughts. It was because of Linus’ words that never left my mind.
<You probably have magical powers.>
I felt so overwhelmed by the confusing feeling that I almost wished Linus had been a fraud.
Looking back, there were several strange incidents that I had casually overlooked at the time but that were difficult to explain. The mysterious sensation I felt when I jumped into the water to save Noah in the past, or the recent change in dry soil in the contaminated land, all seemed to be related to magic.
Without realizing it, I kept touching the necklace. The necklace that Lethenia had always worn since she was young turned out to be an ancient magic stone.
‘Could it be that her mother, Mary Bledel, gave this as a gift to hide Lethenia’s magic?’
Lethenia, a member of the Xenos royal family, has water magic. I never once wondered about Lethenia’s father. In the original story, only the fact that he was a wandering foreigner was mentioned, and his background was not detailed.
Coincidentally, this was a time when public opinion about Xenosian was more virulent than ever. If it were revealed that the blood of Xenosian flowed in the veins of Asha’s empress, it would be a tinderbox waiting to ignite.
Moreover, if the day came when it was exposed that I possessed the magic of water, I could be accused of being a witch and face disaster.
I cautiously removed the necklace. I thought it was odd that the gemstone, which had been a clear red for some time, seemed to have become strangely dull.
If Linus’s words were true, this necklace, like the healing stone, would crumble into dust once its purpose was fulfilled. If the necklace disappeared, it might mean that dangerous magic would flow freely from my body. At the very least, I needed to know how to control it.
I stared at my palm, imagining the flow of magic within. However, there was no apparent change.
‘Of course, suddenly becoming a mage, what nonsense.’
Even with such thoughts, the doubts that weighed heavily on my mind did not go away. Unconsciously, my gaze shifted to the teacup Stella had left. Inside, there was half-filled tea that had gone cold a while ago.
With a hopeful heart, I reached out my hand. And, concentrating all my mind, I pictured myself pouring magic into it.
That’s when it happened. I felt a strange energy emanating from my body. The energy that had been dispersed throughout my body began to move toward one place. Then, a bluish light began to emanate from my fingertips.
It resembled the light that came from the heart of the child, known as nectar. Subsequently, the light precisely flew towards the teacup I had chosen as the target.
Crash!
The cup that was on the table fell to the floor, creating a sharp noise as it met the blue light. It happened in the blink of an eye. The tea seeped into the carpet on the floor, creating a dark stain.
My heart began to beat abnormally as I saw with my own eyes the power inherent in Lethenia’s body.
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━
A neatly dressed woman, or rather, a man impersonating a woman, entered the Duke’s mansion. When the hostess of the duchy saw Henry, she put on a seductive smile.
“Well, you’re getting more beautiful by the minute. I’m jealous.”
“I am flattered to receive such a compliment from a woman like you.”
Rachel took his hand and led him down to the basement. It was the only space in the Duke’s mansion that even she, who was favored by the Duke, was allowed to enter.
She knew that her husband hated others coming to the basement, but she didn’t care.
The quite spacious basement under the Duke’s mansion was mainly a place where the Duke’s enemies faced torture. At the opposite end of the corridor was a staircase leading to a secret room.
Upon entering, Rachel took out the dawn’s sunset from inside his purse. As she did, the graceful lines of the woman’s face subtly became thicker.
Henry rubbed his thumb across his reddened lips. Then he took off his hat and gloves, letting down his hair like a proper lady.
As the bulky dress was thrown aside, well-balanced and sturdy muscles were revealed. Rachel wrapped her arms around her lover’s neck, and her warm breath touched his lips. Smiling mischievously, Rachel whispered softly.
“Sometimes I get confused. Are you really a man or a woman?”
Rachel’s hand explored Henry’s private area. As he responded eagerly to her lustful gaze, there was only one thing on his mind: an important item, tightly hidden, was somewhere in this house.
The Empress wanted to annul her marriage to the Emperor using the previous Emperor’s secret imperial order.
Henry didn’t want to contemplate political issues between the Duchy of Bledel and the Empress. The most important thing to him was his precious son.
Around the orphanage where he left his child, he discovered suspicious individuals monitoring all day. They were undoubtedly affiliated with the Empress.
He couldn’t secretly run away with his sick child, and there was no one he could openly seek help from. Above all, the thought of his existence being revealed to the child was terrifying.
Henry was always anxious that the child might learn about him, a man who sold his body for a living. His only desire was to leave Bledel Duchy as soon as possible.
He had comforted and persuaded Rachel, and searched all over the Duke’s mansion, but there was no sign of the item. No matter how much he thought about it, the underground cellar seemed to be the only plausible location.
He’d managed to lure Rachel into the chamber, but there was a problem.
He glanced surreptitiously at the door on the other side of the chamber’s entrance. It was there that all of Duke Bledel’s corruption and greed were gathered.
As his gaze shifted away from her, Rachel slightly tilted her head as if puzzled.
“Where are you looking? You’ve been acting a little strange lately.”
A momentary look of confusion flashed in Henry’s eyes, but he smoothly captured Rachel’s lips with his own.
Then he trailed kisses down from her lips to her chest. Her pearly white skin flushed crimson.
She let out a soft moan, smiling with satisfaction.
“I feel like I’d be more excited if we did it there.”
He gestured toward a plain wooden door that didn’t look like anything special. Rachel glanced in the direction he indicated and chuckled.
“Back then, just setting foot in this house made you almost faint. You’ve grown a lot.”
“Who made me like this?”
Biting Rachel’s lips slightly, he playfully replied. In retaliation, she raised the corner of her mouth and scratched his bare skin as if it were a playful attack.
“You know. That place is sealed with magic, so there’s absolutely no way to get in.”
“That’s why it’s more stimulating. Invading the sanctuary your husband created is really thrilling.”
He laughed lowly, roughly pulling down Rachel’s underwear.
“Well, there’s probably only one way to open it. Find the wizard who cast the spell here and either torture or bribe them. But I’d say that’s pretty much impossible.”
“Why?”
“Because the one who put the spell there is a black mage.”
When Rachel mentioned the black mage, he paused in what he was doing, showing a slightly surprised expression.
Most black mages, as followers of demons are called, were deranged individuals who killed for hire and trafficked in human beings just for fun.
The idea of an imperial nobleman associating with a vicious black mage, even if it was just for the sake of his safety, gave Henry a new sense of horror at the Duke of Bledel.
He looked at the place again. Thinking that the dilapidated door, which seemed to collapse with a single kick, had terrible black magic on it, sent shivers down his spine. Rachel spoke up.
“I don’t care what my husband does, but I’m a bit wary of black mages. I mean, there’s our Lucia… and I asked him about it once, and he looked at me like he was going to eat me and told me to pretend I don’t know anything. He’s a very nice man, but every time he flashes those red eyes, it’s like he’s a crazy person.”
Henry shuddered at her words, but with a nonchalant face, he kissed her forehead.
“It’s tough to endure living with such a person.”
“That’s why you should comfort me sincerely.”
With those words, the two melted into each other passionately. That’s when it happened.
Bang, bang-
A sound of knocking on the door echoed from somewhere. The faces of the two turned pale. She turned to Henry with frightened eyes.
“What, what is this sound?”
Henry swallowed hard and listened carefully to where the sound was coming from. It sounded like it was coming from beyond the mysterious door.
Carefully, Henry approached the source of the sound, leaving Rachel behind.
The presence of the dark magic hanging on the door made him uneasy. He got very close, but not close enough to touch it. Then he closed his eyes tightly and focused again on the mysterious sound.
Bang, bang, bang.
The sound of knocking on the door became even faster and louder.
