“And I will possess a power that is not ignored anywhere, and I won’t have to be cautious.”

“Are you aiming for the throne?”

“I’m thinking of becoming royalty for a while, to get a title, but that’s not the power I’m talking about. It’s the power of equality in front of everyone. Money, precisely.”

Adelia made a circular gesture with her finger and smiled mischievously.

The Guardian of Light narrowed its eyes in disbelief and glanced at Adelia.

“Money…?”

“There’s no power as strong as money.”

Adelia confidently nodded her head.

Once she finishes her revenge and finds freedom, she doesn’t want to belong to anyone.

To live as Adelia, and not as a white mage, she needed a solid foundation.

White magic is a foundation so strong that no one dares to covet it.

“If you have a power so powerful that anyone would want to have it, everyone will want to use it. So I need something to keep them at bay. Like money or power.”

Once it is known that I, as the daughter of a count, possess white magic, there will be many hyenas rushing to get to me.

My father will undoubtedly try to use me in unethical ways, and the nobles will attempt to marry me or kidnap me.

“I’ve had enough of being used and treated like an object. I want to live confidently while doing everything I want at least once.”

Isn’t that what life is about?

“I like how you think. If you want to obtain strong power, you must pay a considerable price. Power cannot be given without a substantial cost.”

In this world, there is no unfounded kindness or power without a price. Even the gold coins and ingots scattered around are all prices paid by previous contractors.

“Of course. Among the rewards you’ve possessed so far, which one do you think I’ll like the most?”

Knowing this, Adelia was at ease. Although she didn’t have many possessions, she had a very suitable price among them.

“I’ll show you my memories.”

The memories of her past life.

Upon hearing those words, the Guardian of Light snorted and grumbled in annoyance.

“See these gold coins here? They were brought as payment by the previous human. But memories? That’s not a real price.”

“Aah. Enough with the test. That’s not the real price. The real price was all the memories of how they changed the world with white magic, wasn’t it?”

“Huh? How do you know even that? You really…”

What’s your identity?

The Guardian of Light looked at Adelia with a strange look in its eyes, swallowing its words.

The sight of him shaking his shoulders, asking what she was looking at, only hurt her feelings.

Adelia, who knew all the facts from the original work, was confident.

“It would be more interesting than what the other humans bought, wouldn’t it? I’m a person with two names.”

“That’s right.”

“Why do you think I have a first name? It’s from my past life. It must be an unheard-of memory, right? So let’s show you my memories instead of taking them. “

“But that’s a loss for me.”

“Come on. It’s more profitable for you to see the memories of the world you’ve never seen before first, and then see the memories of me using my power later. You get to see twice as many memories.”

“Is that so…?”

The wolf nodded its head as if possessed.

Adelia rolled her eyes at him and spoke.

“I usually don’t engage in business that results in losses, but this is special! I’m only doing this because you’re the Guardian of Light. Do you know how precious these memories are?”

“Special?”

“Yes, special.”

“Okay, let’s do it that way.”

In the end, the Guardian of Light succumbed to Adelia’s insistence.

And so, it became her second victim following the butler.

“This is the last thing I’ll ask. You’re a bit strange, so there might be side effects. Are you still okay with it?”

“Will it cause me to death or shorten my lifespan?”

“No, it won’t…”

“Then it’s fine.”

Adelia’s cool response made the Guardian of Light hesitate instead.

But soon, the cautious Guardian approached and bowed its head. Whether it was adapting or giving up, the sigh that followed was a bonus.

Its fluffy fur lightly brushed against Adelia’s small forehead.

‘Wow…’

Warm energy spread from her head.

Adelia gently closed her eyes and quietly accepted that energy.

Her short past life passed by in an instant, like a shooting star, and her mind was filled with information about white magic.

The energy that lingered in her head spread throughout my body, leaving traces in every corner before converging into her heart and completely merging with her being.

The Guardian of Light, removing its forehead, had a satisfied expression on its face.

“It’s beyond imagination. Even if I were trapped for five hundred years, I would still have something to entertain me.”

It even chuckled while mumbling what could be so amusing.

Self-moving piles of scrap metal, small pieces of cloth that moved with the fingers, boxes that showed something.

Even for the Guardian of Light, who had spent an eternity, it was an unfamiliar sight. That’s why it liked it so much.

“But what about the side effects? As long as it doesn’t harm my life, it doesn’t matter, but I have to know.”

“This power is special, so the more you use it, the more residue accumulates in your body. Of course, it gradually purifies, so it’s not a problem for ordinary people, but you’re different.”

“But I’m an ordinary person too?”

When Adelia asked in confusion, the Guardian of Light blew its nose as if it couldn’t believe it.

“What ordinary person? Your body and soul have different colors, so they can’t circulate properly. The core of the power is the heart, so the residue accumulates from the body, but your body has limited capacity. When it fills up the body, it starts to accumulate in the soul, but you can’t do that.”

“So… I shouldn’t use a lot of power at once?”

“Yes. If you don’t use it moderately according to the purification speed, you might faint, have nosebleeds, have your stomach turned upside down, or something like that. If you rest a little, you’ll recover completely. It’ll just be a bit painful.”

After hearing that, Adelia frowned and glared at the Guardian with sharp eyes.

“Ha… You should have told me that sooner.”

“If I had told you sooner, would you have refused the contract?”

“No, it’s better to live a bit longer with a little pain than to die without white magic.”

At saying those words, Adelia frowned and glared at the wolf with slanted eyes.

The Guardian of Light made a snorting sound as if amused by her ever-changing facial expressions.

“I knew you’d say that. Still, be careful. You’re weaker than the people you’ve encountered so far. Your body is naturally weak, so even if you recover, you’ll only be at an average level.”

“I thought having white magic would be enough, but apparently not…”

“So that’s what they call it nowadays, white magic. But white magic isn’t all-powerful. It’s not divine either.”

“Well, still… I won’t be dying from cardiac arrest. So I’ll take that.”

What’s better than not dying.

Adelia was calm since she had already experienced death.

The Guardian of Light understood her situation and didn’t bother asking further. Instead, it brought up a different topic.

“If you give me a name now, this contract will end.”

“A name…?”

Adelia asked with a puzzled expression on her face.

In the original story, the Guardian of Light was a being that gave power and took it back. It never said anything about asking for a name.

“You’re a bit of an anxious being, so I’ll make you my special master. You can call me anytime, and if you’re in danger, I can help you. We are connected, so I can also know your condition well.”

“If that’s the case, it’s not bad. As for a name… What would be good?”

Adelia pondered carefully, trying to find a name that would suit him well.

Fortunately, Adelia knew many words with good meanings.

“Then… Kai. I’ll call you Kai.”

“Sounds good. It means ‘sea’ in a divine language. I like it. From now on, you are my owner.”¹fun fact: her name, Bada, also means ‘sea’ in Korean

Kai shrank to about the size of Adelia’s waist. It still had the appearance of a large wolf, but its movements resembled that of a puppy.

Adelia placed her hand on Kai’s head. The soft silver fur brushed through her fingers.

“Then, can I take a few gold coins from here?”

“Well… a few is fine.”

Kai moved aside with a hesitant expression on its face.

Adelia hesitated for a moment, then put a few gold coins into her bag.

Seeing the bulging bag, she felt a sense of security.

Now, Adelia, who had become both a wielder of white magic and the Guardian of Light, gracefully left the cave with Kai.

Unlike before, she didn’t feel the cold, and her steps were not heavy.

It felt like she was taking her first steps towards living life.

“Now, where are we going? Your old house?”

When Kai asked while wandering beside her, Adelia shook her head.

“No, there’s somewhere I need to visit first.”

“Where?”

“Hmm… to rescue Slave No. 1.”

At her harsh words, Kai paused in its steps.

It was a sentence that didn’t match the radiant smile on Adelia’s face.

As Kai glimpsed at her memories and even her plans, it nodded silently.

‘These poor humans never change.’

It worried about the life of a person it didn’t even know while walking alongside them.

* * *