n

n

n“Well, everything’s fine.”

nLeonard clicked his tongue and climbed into the carriage.

n“I’ve never seen you make such a loud noise.”

n“……I’m sorry.”

n“Well, it’s okay. We’ve seen something interesting. Did you see Hikan’s face? Hey, one of the kids is gone for a second and that’s how people……”

nHe didn’t see Hikan often, but it was the first time he looked so lost.

nHe leaned against the back of the carriage with his hands behind his head.

n‘Not only father, even Hikan and Adrisha too, why are they so anxious about that kid?’

nWell, she is small and cute. She speaks in a friendly way.

n“Will I be like that if I have a cute little sister? Ah, I want to get my brother and bring him here.”

n

n

n“……”

nAdrisha lowered her eyes and said nothing. Leonard glanced at her secretly.

n“……What’s wrong? Is there something bothering you?”

n“No, it’s not like that. Sir Leonard.”

nLeonard was surprised as if he was burned. This is because Adrisha put her hand slightly on his lap.

nShe looked up at Leonard with a pitiful look.

n“Dalia is an ordinary child, isn’t she?”

n“Tha, that’s right.”

n“I don’t want you to talk about something that is not true. Can you not tell anyone what that attendant said? For me?”

n“Of course!”

nLeonard guaranteed. Only then did Adrisha feel satisfied and raise a hand over her chest to thank him.

n“It’s, it’s been a while since you call me that.”

nAfter Adrisha was rescued, she was his secret maid for a year. Leonard was the title that she called him back then.

nAt that time, the Empire was in a precarious situation because they were on the brink of war with the Holy Empire.

nAdrisha protected him several times from the assassins of the Holy Empire who came to kidnap him. That’s why he fell for Adrisha.

n“Back then, didn’t you promise to grant my wish? This is my wish, so you have to keep it.”

nAdrisha said with a serious look. Leonard also became serious and nodded eagerly.

n* * *

n“Ouch, it hurts!”

n“Stay still.”

nDalia held back her tears.

nAt first, she thought that it was okay because she didn’t have a drop of blood, but as time went by, blood started to flow out of the wound and it started to hurt.

nOn top of that, she was in a lot of pain when applying the disinfectant. She couldn’t move even when she tried to pull her leg back because Hikan was holding it tight.

nHikan wrapped the bandage skillfully. This world does not have band-aids, so she needs to use a bandage even with a wound like this.

nIt was just a scratch, but it was funny because she looked like someone who broke her leg.

nWhen Dalia laughed with tears in her eyes, Hikan looked at her sharply.

n“Are you laughing?”

n“……But.”

n“The Crown Prince told me everything. I heard you went to see the Emperor to raise Adrisha Beniter’s status. Why didn’t you tell me that?”

n‘Gasp, I got caught.’

nDalia recalled the Crown Prince’s face blankly. Really, no matter how light his mouth is, he can’t tell him that!

n“……that’s…….”

n“You’re grounded for a month. Stay at home.”

n“B, but……”

n“I won’t let Adrisha Beniter come either. Reflect on yourself.”

nThat’s too much.

nNo matter how much she……she……

nThe thought of the sin she committed, made her shut her mouth.

nStill, Dalia expressed her dissatisfaction. Hikan sighed looking at her and swept her cheek with the back of his hand.

n“How long are you going to upset me?”

n“……”

n“I realized today. I’m now……”

nHe blurred his words.

nDalia didn’t know what he was going to say, but she couldn’t say anything because of the atmosphere.

n* * *

nThat night.

nAdrisha dragged the royal guards into Aceras’ room. He was already packing up and getting ready to go out. This was also within her expectation.

n“Now you’re going to go on a night trip?”

nShe spoke harshly.

nAdrisha approached without hesitation and sat with one knee in front of him, not worrying of her dress.

nThen, with the other hand, she grabbed his jacket and pulled it in front of her own eyes.

n“You really……what are you doing? Are you selling confidential information to the Holy Empire?”

nEven though he was grabbed by the collar, Aceras smiled without panicking at all.

n“I’ve felt it from before, but you speak like a very noble lady. It’s weird, we’re from the same bottom level, right?”

n“……”

n“Isn’t that right, Miss Yustia?”

nAdrisha’s expression hardened.

nYustia was her real name before receiving this status. Aceras slapped her hand and cleared his way.

n“This wasn’t bad, either. The arrogant Emperor doesn’t think that anyone else can hide themselves from him.”

n“……”

nThe Emperor’s ability is to read other people’s emotions through physical contact.

nUntil now, he has used that ability in the right place to remove the unscrupulous forces early on and strengthen the imperial power.

nThe Emperor’s attendants were also those who had passed the strict tests.

nAnd yet, the fact that Aceras learned the secret of Dalia, and that he was hiding all this time without being caught……

nIt means that he cleverly avoided the Emperor’s ability, which means that he permeated the imperial family secretly and meticulously.

nAdrisha realized how terrifying the boy in front of her was.

nAceras smiled casually.

n“But I thought I got something big, so I was looking forward to it a little bit.”

n“You… really…”

n“But what a letdown. She’s nothing, she’s just a kid.”

n“……”

nAceras shrugged his shoulders.

n“Anyway, I’ll disappear as you wish. You don’t have to worry about it anymore, Miss Adrisha.”

nAdrisha chewed on her fine lips.

n“You think I’m gonna let you disappear?”

nShe raised her hand.

nShe’s going to call in the royal guards from outside. Still, he’s a man who is quick to think.

n‘I’d rather be with that girl more……’

nHe thought of the girl with the gray hair for a moment. But he quickly erased the idea and flicked his hand.

nA small pre-installed bomb that responds to a special sound exploded in the hallway outside the door.

nThere was a commotion. Adrisha was also distracted for a while.

nAceras took advantage of that moment and went to the window.

nA giant bird created with divine power was waiting for him. He didn’t waste any more time and got on top of the bird.

n“Aceras!”

nAceras heard Adrisha’s scream, but he didn’t care.

nHe didn’t even feel like mocking the loser.

nSitting on the bird’s back, he looked down at the panoramic view of the Imperial Palace from the sky. It may seem beautiful to others, but it was just boring to him.

nIt’s not fun. The world is boring.

nPerhaps that’s why he always craved for conflict, fighting, destruction, and a sea of fire.

nHe wanted to see the Empire burn up. The hatred that had been deeply hidden, grew bigger as time went by.

n‘Good thing Dalia Pesteros didn’t see that.’

nShe’s caught a lot of things, but there’s only one thing she hasn’t. If even that was caught, Dalia would never forgive him.

nAt the ball held at the Duke of Pesteros’ mansion, he sprinkled his divine power on a glass of champagne for the Duchess of Blueport.

nWhen divine power is mixed into the liquid, it turns into a substance that is close to holy water.

nChampagne is no exception. The divine power would continue to be the opposite of the transcendents with mana, and sometimes, like the relationship between plus and minus, would remove the mana of the transcendents for a while or leave their minds blank.

nIt has already been proven by several experiments.

nHe thought.

nPerhaps this could bring about a violent clash of power and mana, leading to a forced outburst of the transcendents?

nOf course, he didn’t expect to succeed. It was just an experiment.

n‘No, was it really unexpected?’

nDidn’t he dream of this for a very long time? The destruction of this empire and all the transcendents.

nNevertheless, if the Duchess of Blueport had really killed hundreds of people, something inside his heart would have changed somehow.

n

n

nBut that didn’t happen. Because of Dalia Pesteros, who has the ability to bring back the transcendent from the mana explosion.

nIf she’s in his hands, he’ll be able to get the Empire, no, even the entire continent.

nHe thought he could burn the Empire this time……

n‘Then……’

nThe handshake didn’t work, so he was going to dismiss that day as a coincidence.

nWhile hanging on the railing with Dalia, her arms brushed against his face as she struggled.

nAt that time, a certain energy was conveyed subtly. The power that let his dizzy head back to normal and make his old headache disappear.

nAnd the strong possessiveness that he wants to get his hands on her.

nIt showed that Dalia Pesteros can not only return the frenzy transcendent to normal, but also had the power to purify the soul that is corrupted by mana.

nDalia Pesteros is not a “kid who has nothing”. She has the power to control the continent.

n