“Who do you think you are lecturing? I saved you from begging on the streets, and now you mock me?”
A rough hand grabbed the woman’s collar and slammed her against the wall. Sensing danger, Diana sprinted towards them. The man’s voice grew increasingly murderous.
“Do you really want to die by my hand? You’re just a vice guild master, so know your place!”
“Even if I die, if it makes you stop this, I will…!”
“I’ve had enough!”
Unable to contain his anger, the man grabbed a vase and hurled it at the woman. Rattle. Just then, a violet line sliced through the air, and the man’s head flew off.
The woman, drenched in blood, stood with her mouth agape, then belatedly screamed. “Uaaaahhh!” She fell back, her scream echoing as the guild master’s large body and head rolled in a pool of blood.
Diana, reacting quickly, used her power and approached the woman. “Are you alright?”
“Uh, Uh….”
The woman, pale and trembling from witnessing the beheading, staggered back. Her elbow hit a picture frame on the wall.
“Wait, stop…!”
The woman flinched and moved her arm, but it was too late. The hidden trap behind the frame activated, releasing a volley of poison needles and arrows aimed at Diana.
I’m going to die!
The woman saw Diana’s wide eyes as she anticipated death and squeezed her own shut. Fear gave way to guilt. This stranger had saved her life from that b*stard guild master, but the trap was too much for even a mid-level elementalist to handle.
Judging by the fact that she killed the leader, she seemed to be an elementalist as well, but how common were intermediate or higher spirit masters? Due to her foolish mistake, she almost lost her benefactor…
“Excuse me.”
Killed… huh?
The woman, Mizel, opened her eyes wide, wondering if she was hearing things. Then, worried-looking light blue-violet eyes came into view.
“It seems like you haven’t been breathing for about a minute now,” Diana said worriedly.
Realizing she had been holding her breath, Mizel quickly inhaled. “What is…” As soon as her breathing returned to normal, she sighed and spoke.
Mizel looked at the scene before her with a bewildered expression. Poison needles and arrows, precisely cut in half, were piled up in a pool of blood. Diana, standing in the middle, was completely unharmed.
“A monster…?” Mizel mumbled unconsciously and then quickly shut her mouth.
Diana, who had been silent for a moment, lowered her gaze slightly and began to speak softly. “I can’t explain it exactly, but I’m not a monster. Besides, I saved your life once, and just now, you almost killed me, so I’d like to keep this matter a secret.”
Diana smiled brightly. “Is that alright?”
It was an unspoken threat to keep her mouth shut if she wanted to live. But Mizel wasn’t offended at all. Diana’s words weren’t wrong. In fact, Mizel should be grateful for having her life saved and nearly killing her.
Trying not to look at the horror at her feet, Mizel sincerely apologized. “I’m sorry. Recently, there have been reports of mutant monsters appearing frequently, so I thought maybe…”
“It’s okay.”
Was it around this time that mutant monsters started appearing? Diana smiled faintly but was puzzled inside.
Before her regression, Rebecca, as a princess, occasionally led knights to deal with monsters. The frequency of monster appearances increased, and mutant monsters began to appear, which seemed to be around this time.
While Diana was deep in thought, Mizel was observing her closely. I’ve never heard or seen anything like this. Although it was rude, it wasn’t unreasonable for Mizel to mistake Diana for a monster. As the vice guild master of an information guild, it was her job to see and hear more than others. Yet she had never heard of an elementalist with such power.
I need to secure her. It was an instinct. Mizel felt the same way she did when she discovered a promising investment for the first time. The woman before her was a potential game-changer.
When faced with such a variable, Mizel usually took one of two actions. The first was to eliminate it cleanly, like stepping on a sprout. The second was to quickly build a friendly relationship. Usually, she leaned towards the first method, but Diana’s power, which she had just witnessed, made it clear she couldn’t kill her with her current strength. So, there was only one option left.
Anyway, I owe her my life. This isn’t bad at all. Mizel quickly made up her mind and adjusted her expression.
Around that time, Diana snapped out of her thoughts and spoke to Mizel, recalling her original purpose. “By the way, I came to request something. Can I pay with jewels?”
“No. You don’t need to pay at all. Not now, not in the future.”
“…Pardon?” Diana was taken aback and questioned her.
Then Mizel spread her arms wide and exclaimed with a bright smile. “It may be sudden, but I want to repay you by making you the guild master of Wings!”
This was the best solution Mizel could think of. She owed her life and saw something she shouldn’t have. Asking someone like that for money was akin to saying, ‘Please, cut my throat.’
To preserve her own life and the information guild Wings while gaining Diana’s favor. The best way was to make Diana the new guild master of Wings. If she couldn’t eliminate a future threat, the safest course was to join it. Given that Diana saved and worried about her, she didn’t seem to be a bad person.
“Even if you hadn’t killed the master… no, now the former guild master, I would have. He kept trying to do dirty things to the guild’s young errand runners…” Mizel showed signs of disgust, thinking about it again.
Finally, Diana understood why Mizel had become the guild master of Wings before her regression. In the original timeline, Mizel must have killed him instead of dying herself.
Meanwhile, seeing no response from Diana, Mizel added desperately. “You are our savior, to me and the members of Wings. Please give me a chance to repay you.”
“Hmm…” Diana groaned in distress. To be honest, Mizel’s proposal was very tempting.
I was planning to create a fake identity and slowly build my influence. Taking over the Wings guild would save her the trouble. And she would gain Mizel’s competent support. It was hard not to be tempted.
But I have to enter the imperial palace soon… Once she stayed in the palace, it would be difficult to fulfill her duties as the guild master of Wings. Moreover, Mizel would have become the guild master on her own if Diana had not intervened. So she hesitated, wondering if it was right for her to take that position.
Seeing Diana’s prolonged silence, Mizel played her trump card. “If it’s bothersome, I can handle all the practical duties of the guild master. You just need to use the Wings guild as you please.”
“I’ll do it.”
Her change of heart was swift. The offer to be treated like an honorary guild master made Diana quickly accept.
Creating a fake identity would have exhausted her emergency funds. Not having to pay each time she used Wings in the future was a huge advantage. Securing Kaden’s influence alone would require a lot of money.
“Thank you! Then shall we draw up a contract including the secrecy agreement? It would be more reassuring for you.” Mizel clapped her hands with a bright smile at Diana’s confirmation.
As she searched for a contract form on the desk, she asked warmly. “Come to think of it, I don’t know your name. May I know your name? I’m Mizel.”
“Ah, right. I’m Diana Sudsfield. Please take care of me.”
“…Eek?” Mizel bit her tongue.
