After seating Spinel, who looked ready to pounce at any moment, I listened carefully to Artia’s story.

The secrets of Ilion that she revealed were each shocking, yet they touched upon the unease that had lingered in a corner of my mind.

“So the curse was ultimately…”

“It was holy power that sealed the dragon’s power within the Duke. Over time, the balance broke down, and eventually his body reached a point where it could no longer endure.”

“How… did you know that?”

This was a story not mentioned in the original work. Even Ilion believed it was just a curse until his death. It was strange to realize this fact now.

While searching for connections between the stories I had skipped over, one person suddenly came to mind.

“Wait, if we’re talking about dragons…”

I looked at Spinel. She glared at Artia with an irritated expression, grinding her teeth.

“Could Ceras, who supposedly died in Selvas, be…”

“She’s Ilion’s mother.”

Spinel’s answer turned my suspicion into certainty. Now all the puzzle pieces seemed to click into place.

I wanted to ask why they hadn’t told me until now, but conversely, there was no reason for them to tell me either.

From the beginning, Spinel had disapproved of Ilion, and she constantly told me that he would eventually die.

I was the one who had missed all those hints. If there was a problem, it lies with me for arbitrarily concluding that everything would be resolved if I just saved Artia.

“Where is the Duke now?”

“He went north for a subjugation mission.”

“Subjugation? Why?”

Why would someone in poor health go there? It was something that was difficult to understand.

“The Duke didn’t want you to get hurt…”

“So what are you trying to say? Are you telling me to stop someone who’s gone off to die?”

Spinel cut off Artia’s words sharply.

“I didn’t come here to discuss such simple matters. Miss Ravenne needs to know this…”

The conversation kept going in circles while my head was already aching. I quickly interrupted their argument to ask,

“What about sealing his mana?”

“Pardon?”

“Couldn’t we try sealing his mana with a holy relic?”

The two stopped fighting and looked at me.

“It won’t work.”

Artia shook her head skeptically.

“Why not?”

“Sealing mana doesn’t eliminate it — it just blocks its flow. It’s not much different from the holy power currently affecting the Duke’s body. Even if there were a way to eliminate all the mana in his body…”

“He wouldn’t be able to handle the overflowing holy power in return. His body would still break down.”

Spinel answered in Artia’s place.

What’s this? Are they saying there’s really no solution except death?

All my efforts until now would be wasted, and this wasn’t the ending I wanted at all.

I could handle a future where I’d feel jealous watching Ilion living well, but this kind of unsettling future…

“I need to go to the Imperial Palace.”

“What?”

“What?”

The two looked at me with bewildered expressions.

“Lily, please prepare a dress. I’m going to have an audience with His Majesty, so make it as proper as possible.”

I gave instructions to Lily while standing up.

“W-wait a moment, Ravenne. Why the Imperial Palace?”

Artia seemed to want to ask why I wasn’t going to Ilion instead. Of course I’ll go to him too. However,

“I can’t go to him without any plan.”

“Do you have something in mind?”

“I’ll have to figure that out starting now.”

If I’m going to slap that fool’s face, that is.

***

Spinel, who had been staring at the stairs where Ravenne had disappeared with a dumbfounded expression, turned to glare at Artia. She was quite displeased that a secret she had deliberately kept hidden had been exposed because of a mere human woman.

Though she wanted to eliminate the human before her immediately, she couldn’t. If she touched her carelessly, she would only earn Ravenne’s resentment.

“If anything happens to Ravenne, you’ll be the first one I deal with.”

“Do as you please.”

Artia replied nonchalantly, showing no regret for her actions.

“I understand that both the Duke and you are worried about Miss Ravenne being hurt after learning the truth.”

“How dare you speak like that.”

Artia continued, brushing off Spinel’s sarcasm.

“However, the Miss Ravenne I’ve seen isn’t someone who would break so easily.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Speaking as someone who once tried to trap and use her.”

“…Tch, whatever.”

Spinel frowned and crossed her arms. While she couldn’t stop Ravenne now that the truth was already known, she couldn’t help feeling angry.

Both Ravenne’s recent condition and her past that she had accidentally learned about concerned her.

How could anyone guarantee she wouldn’t break down? Humans are such fragile beings.

“…Weren’t you the one who liked Ilion? Why are you doing these unnecessary things?”

“Did Miss Ravenne say that?”

Spinel asked, remembering Ravenne’s drunken ramblings about how the two should be together.

“Then that’s Miss Ravenne’s misunderstanding. I don’t like the Duke.”

“Then?”

Artia paused for a moment, choosing her words.

“…I simply needed hope to live, and he needed a reason to end his life. That’s all.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Please tell Miss Ravenne.”

Not only did she speak in riddles, but the woman before her was also trying to pass on troublesome tasks. What did she take her for? Both of them were truly irritating people.

***

Emperor Antias rubbed his forehead with a slightly tired expression.

‘How did it come to this…’

After barely surviving and hiding for 10 years with the help of the previous Duke of Celestine, he had been planning to leave the capital and move elsewhere due to his increasingly striking resemblance to the previous emperor.

During that time, Ilion came to find him, and soon after, news of the emperor’s death arrived. Everything after that had been such a whirlwind that he could barely remember how time had passed.

Antias sighed quietly while looking at his schedule divided into minute intervals. They say you never know what life will bring, but he thought fifteen was too young to learn that lesson.

He almost preferred his time as a maid’s son running errands.

“Still…”

Though he was still far too inexperienced to bear the burden of being emperor, he didn’t want to give up.

He couldn’t fall behind that young lady who had boldly declared she would work at the Imperial Palace. A faint smile appeared on Antias’s face as he recalled Alice.

Knock knock. At the sound of knocking on the door, Antias quickly wiped the smile from his face and granted permission to enter.

“Lady Ravenne of House Rischefeld seeks an audience with Your Majesty.”

Rischefeld was the name of the lady Alice admired and followed.

Antias rose from his seat immediately, unable to hide his pleasure.

“Very well. I’ll go now.”

When he arrived at the audience chamber, Ravenne was waiting for him, looking somewhat more mature than usual.

Though she was indeed an adult, when she was with Alice, she didn’t seem much different from Alice, so this unfamiliar side of her felt a bit strange.

“I greet the Sun of the Empire.”

She offered an elegant greeting while looking up at him.

“Have you been well, Your Majesty?”

“Yes. Has the lady been well too?”

“I’ve been well thanks to Your Majesty’s consideration. Oh, and Alice is doing well too.”

Antias’s face reddened slightly at her playful addition, feeling his thoughts had been read.

Perhaps he had been mistaken about Ravenne seeming more mature.

Antias cleared his throat a couple of times before responding.

“Ahem, ahem, I’m glad to hear you’re both doing well.”

More importantly, he wondered why she had come to see him. It couldn’t be just to give news about Alice. Antias asked, curious about her reason for visiting.

“What brings you here today?”

“I have a favor to ask.”

After saying this, Ravenne paused briefly before continuing.

“I would like permission to access the forbidden library.”

***

The Empire was desperate to kill the dark mage Kasiel, but she wouldn’t die easily, it is said.

Though they cut her throat, stabbed her heart, and burned her body, she would mysteriously appear again each time. They wanted to kill her but couldn’t.

‘The Origin of Witches’ dealt with Kasiel’s story. It told of how exceptional a dark mage she was, and how much trouble the Empire went through trying to kill her.

This wasn’t to glorify Kasiel, however. Perhaps thinking it would be an obstacle to publication, the author wrote about her in as neutral a voice as possible.

“The forbidden library? Why there?”

Antias seemed surprised to hear me mention the forbidden library and asked back curiously.

“There’s a book I have to check.”

According to ‘The Origin of Witches,’ all of Kasiel’s spellbooks were confiscated and burned, with only a few being kept in the Imperial Palace’s forbidden library.

Someone who could come back to life no matter how many times she was killed must have known ways to defy death. That’s why I want to check the spellbooks she wrote.

“I’m sorry, but the forbidden library isn’t a place just anyone can enter freely.”

The response that came back was, predictably, a firm refusal.