Episode 107

“Right now…?”

At my murmured words, Magnus looked puzzled.

Ismail glanced between me and him with a flustered expression before letting out a sigh of resignation.

“…High Priest Magnus.”

His voice, far too powerful for a child’s, echoed heavily throughout the library.

Magnus’ eyes widened in shock at the sound of Ismail’s voice, which had been silent all this time.

“I-Ismail? You can talk…?”

But his surprise lasted only for a moment.

Fwoosh—!

Suddenly, his eyes lost focus.

Ismail confirmed the vacant, doll-like emptiness in his gaze and then immediately turned to me with an outburst of frustration.

“Hey! You can’t just tell me to do it recklessly like that! What if it didn’t work?!”

“But… it worked…”

I mumbled sheepishly, feeling a bit guilty.

Ismail frowned even more.

“It didn’t work on you!”

“…….”

“Do you know how long I worried, thinking it wouldn’t work on people with divine power?!”

Ismail, nearly shouting, suddenly clamped his mouth shut, realizing he had said too much.

I felt a pang of guilt—he must have been agonizing over this for a long time, and I had been thoughtlessly dismissing his worries.

“…Sorry.”

I apologized sincerely.

Since it had worked too well on Marquis Barelotte last time, I had assumed controlling Magnus would be just as easy.

Looking back, Ismail had a point—there were times when his ability didn’t work.

“…But then, why didn’t it work on me?”

Maybe it was because I had just been beaten up by those kids at the time.

Though, honestly, I’m not much better off now…

I stared at Ismail, who still looked scruffy, before suddenly blurting out,

“Try using it on me right now.”

“I can only control one person at a time.”

“Lame.”

At my blunt response, Ismail shot me an exasperated glare.

“Maybe it doesn’t work on reckless people like you.”

“I’m not reckless! I think through everything before I act!”

“Whatever. What do you want me to make him do?”

Ignoring my protest, Ismail asked calmly.

I thought for a moment before answering.

“Hmm… Just have him stand outside and make sure no one comes in.”

There wasn’t any special reason for controlling Magnus—I just needed to talk to Ismail in private.

But, of course, Ismail, unaware of my grand intentions, scowled and grumbled.

“And you made me do all that just for this…”

“…….”

“Sigh… High Priest Magnus. Go stand outside and make sure no one comes in.”

Even so, he did as I asked.

At Ismail’s command, Magnus slowly stood up.

Without hesitation, he turned and walked straight toward the library entrance.

Creak—

The door opened, and he stepped out.

Click.

The door shut behind him.

The sight was just as fascinating as before.

As I stared at the door Magnus had disappeared through, Ismail spoke calmly.

“I can control someone for a maximum of one hour.”

That was more than enough.

I nodded quickly before blurting out,

“Hey, the headmaster is going to call you in for a talk. Probably by tomorrow at the latest.”

Ismail looked at me, puzzled.

“…How do you know that?”

“Because I beat someone up today.”

No matter how well we had silenced them, there was no way to shut the mouth of someone who had been knocked unconscious.

Besides, wasn’t that guy a noble’s illegitimate child?

Whenever orphanage kids caused trouble, they were always called in for a private meeting with the headmaster.

The previous headmaster might have brushed it under the rug, but Magnus had only just taken over.

If a baron came looking for his son, Magnus would undoubtedly make an effort to get a grasp on the situation.

“T-That…!”

Ismail’s face instantly paled.

“That was your doing!”

“I’m in the duke’s estate, so they won’t call me in.”

“B-But still… Why did you even get involved in the first place?!”

He huffed with frustration, looking like he had been deeply wronged.

But he quickly calmed down—perhaps resigning himself to the reality of the situation.

I knew all too well that he had endured everything without resistance to avoid exactly this outcome.

I felt a little guilty for making his life harder, but I didn’t regret it.

Even if the same situation happened again, I would still beat those bastards up.

‘And next time, I’ll be even crueler.’

It wouldn’t just end with bloody noses and pissing themselves.

‘If this keeps repeating, won’t they eventually get exhausted and give up first?’

As I entertained such violent thoughts,

Ismail, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke.

“…Forget about me. What about you?”

“Me…?”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

His unexpected concern made my eyes widen.

“…Won’t you get in trouble for using that teddy bear mask?”

Just moments ago, Ismail had been grumbling about how unfair this was.

Yet now, he was looking at me with worry in his eyes.

That warmth in his gaze made something in my chest sink.

‘Why… Why is he looking at me like that?’

No matter how things had played out, I was the one who dragged him into this mess.

So why was he worried about me?

His young face overlapped with a memory from my past life—

The Pope, coldly banishing me as I pleaded, on the verge of tears.

I still couldn’t forget.

The moment I had become a laughingstock, discarded without hesitation the instant the new Pope publicly supported Diana as the Saintess.

Those miserable, hollow days.

Honestly, after learning about Ismail’s ability, I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about how I could use it to my advantage.

What I was about to ask of him now was no different.

Even though I tried to avoid getting tangled up with the male leads, part of me was still relieved that I had met him before Diana did.

And deep down, I couldn’t deny that my emotions were colored by resentment toward the Ismail of my past life… and the desire for some sort of reparation.

‘I saved him, so it’s only fair for him to do at least this much for me… right?’

But when I saw those clear, worried eyes looking at me, completely unaware of all this…

“…Did I make things harder for you?”

“…No.”

At his cautious question, I slowly shook my head.

“The duke gave it to me to use in case of danger.”

Besides, I was certain that if the Duke heard about the bloodshed today, he would praise me rather than scold me.

So there was no need to worry about myself.

“That’s a relief.”

Ismail finally relaxed and smiled slightly.

I avoided his gaze, feeling a weight settle in my chest.

“…If you’re really scared, I’ll tell the Duke that they tried to beat me up.”

“Forget it. Just don’t worry about it anymore.”

“But still—”

“So, what’s next?”

Ismail quickly changed the subject.

“After the headmaster calls me in, what happens then?”

As expected of someone who had already mastered the fifteenth scripture,

he had immediately realized that my plan didn’t stop at just a simple meeting.

“That’s when you’ll control the headmaster again.”

I lowered my voice and continued,

“Make him send an urgent letter to Logan, requesting a meeting. And after that…”

I quietly laid out my plan to him.

“Alright.”

Ismail accepted with a slightly tense expression.

He didn’t try to negotiate, asking what was in it for him—something most people would do.

Instead, he simply pointed out the weaknesses of his ability, as if voicing his concerns.

“But you already know, the duration is only an hour. I can only control one person at a time, and I can’t repeatedly control the same person over and over.”

His innocent reaction was nothing like the calculating Pope from my past life, leaving me with an odd, uneasy feeling again.

“…Okay. Thanks!”

With our conversation finished, we left the library together.

As per Ismail’s command, High Priest Magnus stood motionless by the door.

Not much time had passed, so the corridor was still empty.

Following Ismail’s signal, I lightly tapped Magnus on the waist.

“Headmaster! The tea party’s over!”

Flash!

Slowly, life returned to his once vacant eyes.

“Huh… Oh…”

Coming back to his senses, he glanced around in confusion.

According to Ismail, those controlled by his ability had no memory of what had happened.

Taking advantage of his dazed state, I casually asked,

“Is something wrong?”

“Ah… Maybe I’m just a little tired these days. I must’ve dozed off for a second.”

Clearly unable to recall when he had left the library, Magnus gave an awkward smile.

To prevent him from overthinking, I quickly changed the subject.

“I should be heading back now!”

“Ah, of course. Let me escort you out.”

Just as he had done when I arrived, he swiftly summoned a priest to escort me.

“My lady! Did you have a fun time?”

As I stepped outside the orphanage, Tara, who had been waiting by the carriage, greeted me warmly.

After saying my farewells to the priests and children, I turned to Ismail one last time.

“Ismail, listen.”

“……”

“No matter what, I’ll find a way to see you again. Don’t forget that.”

Instead of a simple goodbye, I finally spoke what had been on my mind.

Last time, I had said it lightly.

This time, I meant it.

Ismail’s deep brown eyes wavered slightly.

Without saying a word, he took my hand and lifted it.

Then, with his finger, he wrote something on my palm.

— Stop talking so informally.

* * *

The next day.

Just as expected, shortly after noon, Logan hurriedly left the duke’s estate.

 

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