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Episode 7
“Great!”
Werner clapped his hands once, clearly trying to lighten the mood. He seemed aware that, unintentionally, it looked like two grown men were cornering me.
“Then I should probably explain the situation in detail, right?”
“Yes, please. What exactly did you mean earlier by ‘dark mages seem to be active again’?”
That was the part I was most curious about. I needed to know how much Tristan and Werner had figured out.
“Just as it sounds. We’ve found several traces suggesting dark mages are moving again on the continent.”
“But… that makes no sense. Three hundred years ago, after the Holy War, all dark mages were imprisoned on a remote island.”
Well, except for someone like me…
Tristan frowned slightly and replied,
“That was true. But the situation has changed a lot since then.”
The continent had recovered quickly, and over generations, the tragedy from three hundred years ago had slowly faded from memory.
The Papal States of three hundred years ago and the current one were worlds apart in terms of power.
“Ironically, without dark mages, the Papal State has no real purpose.”
“The Papal State occupies part of the Bellond Empire’s land under the pretext of defending against dark mages. Every hundred years, they renew that land-occupation contract with the Empire—and this fall is the renewal year.”
Hearing Werner’s explanation, the outline finally became clear.
“So the Empire is planning not to renew the contract this time.”
“That’s right. Correct.”
“But then… that makes even less sense. You said you found traces of dark mages moving.”
If dark mages existed, shouldn’t the contract be renewed? At my question, Werner scratched his cheek awkwardly.
“That’s the tricky part. Dark mages look exactly like ordinary humans, and only clergy can sense dark magic residue.”
He pulled a detector from his pocket.
“This device was made by the Papal State as well. So if they insist, ‘A dark mage has appeared!’ we don’t really have a way to verify it independently.”
What a mess.
The Papal State needed to prove its usefulness, so it might want to fabricate dark mages. Meanwhile, the Imperial side had no reliable way to confirm the truth.
That was why these two were investigating the existence of dark mages on their own.
So they’re not acting because they suspect me.
That, at least, was a relief. This was about the Papal State potentially pulling something before the contract renewal.
If I just play along moderately, it should be fine.
And honestly, this was useful information.
They didn’t even fully trust the dark-magic detectors.
Even if real dark magic residue was found, they’d likely assume it was a Papal State setup rather than an actual dark mage.
That’s probably what they wanted to believe.
This works in our favor. As long as we don’t deal with the Papal States, the Empire has no real way to hunt down dark mages.
No sane person would use dark magic openly in front of priests. In practice, that meant our identities were safe.
I was just about to relax—when Tristan casually dropped,
“The most recent trace was found halfway up the Rauden Mountains.”
Khk!
I choked immediately, coughing hard. Thankfully, I covered my mouth with my sleeve in time and avoided being rude.
“Oh my—are you alright?”
Werner handed me a handkerchief.
“Ah, yes. I was just surprised. The Rauden Mountains aren’t far from here.”
“Right. They’re west of the capital. Once you cross them, you reach the Chambel Marquessate, so there’s a lot of traffic. It’s quite concerning.”
Exactly. That marquessate was where Andrea’s national academy was located.
“…My younger brother travels there often. He commutes to the academy. Are you saying dark magic traces were found there?”
“Ah, don’t worry. The capital guard carefully manages that commuting route. The traces were found some distance away from it.”
That’s because we took a dangerous shortcut through the mountains…
“Still, I understand why you’d be worried.”
Everyone in the Empire knew how much the Walker siblings cherished their youngest. They didn’t find my concern strange at all.
“As I said, though, we still need further investigation to determine whether those traces truly belong to dark magic.”
They absolutely do…
“When we went in there directly, the detector went wild—red lights, loud alarms. Whatever it was, it left behind a very strong dark magic trace.”
I raised three zombies there…
Werner deliberately lowered his voice to sound ominous, probably trying to scare me. I was already terrified enough.
Cold sweat trickled down my spine.
“That should be enough explanation. Especially since time is tight.”
“Yes. You need to complete the investigation before fall.”
“Then let’s head back so you can pack.”
“…Excuse me?”
I thought I’d misheard.
“Tomorrow morning, we’ll head directly to the Rauden Mountains. I want you to confirm on-site whether the traces are real.”
“But, Your Highness… tomorrow is a holiday.”
“Exactly why we’re going. If we’re both absent on a weekday, people would find it suspicious.”
And once again, I was reminded—
Even a kind boss is still a boss.
He clearly assumed I would sacrifice my holiday and follow him all the way to the mountains for his sake.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
That was the only correct answer.
“We got lucky.”
Werner grinned broadly. The timing couldn’t have been better—discovering the Walker lady’s ability just like this.
“Perhaps God is helping you, Your Highness.”
“Helping me by abandoning the Papal State? If so, that’s one cruel god.”
“Your Highness. Someone might hear you.”
The Bellond Empire officially followed the Helios faith. While religious and political leaders were separate, the Papal States still held influence.
If Tristan’s remark reached their ears, they’d seize the chance to question his legitimacy.
“Still, isn’t it surprising? That the ‘stain of House Walker’ has such an ability.”
Werner recalled the woman who’d been sitting across from him earlier.
“I thought her un-Walker-like personality meant she lacked divine blessing. Turns out it’s just her nature.”
Many palace staff admired her gentle disposition. Watching her closely, she really was mild-tempered.
Sometimes, when she rolled her eyes, he wondered what was going on in that small head—like a puppy staring at snacks.
She couldn’t even properly refuse Tristan’s unreasonable request and ended up agreeing.
Werner barely held back his laughter.
“People like her are rare.”
“You never know.”
Tristan leaned against the window.
Emily Walker, as he’d observed her, was friendly, smiling, and approachable.
For a ducal lady, working as a palace clerk could’ve been humiliating—yet she accepted his rule of mutual respect regardless of rank without complaint.
“She has quite a few good rumors. Even treats servants kindly. No political ambition. No reason to be hated.”
To Werner, she was the perfect ally. Who would’ve thought the Walker family’s blemish would be this useful?
Tristan looked down at Emily’s back as she walked toward her carriage.
“A friend to everyone is a friend to no one.”
His gaze turned cold.
“Someone kind to all is someone who gives their heart to no one.”
“Oh come on. Your Highness’s suspicion disease doesn’t spare Lady Walker either, I see.”
Werner laughed it off lightly.
“Well then.”
Quiet darkness settled over the dining table. I looked at the three siblings sitting around it and declared solemnly,
“We’re starting our third emergency strategy meeting.”
“I have a question.”
“Raise your hand, and speak only when I allow it.”
Yulia raised her hand with a sulky expression.
“Now, starting with the first agenda”
“You said to raise our hands!”
“I can’t give everyone the floor just because they raise their hand.”
At my perfectly logical rebuttal, Yulia stared at me in disbelief.
“Why are we even doing this in the dark?!”
She pointed at the curtains covering every window. The single candle—the only light source—flickered dangerously.
“I was going for a ‘dark ritual meeting’ vibe, but… guess it’s not working. Still, isn’t darkness more comfortable than bright?”
“Do you think we’re vampires?”
“Sorry. I’ve never been a zombie before.”
That kind of image existed, right? Dark mages and their minions are holding shadowy meetings.
I thought they might prefer it, but apparently not.
When I pulled the curtains open, sunset light poured in.
The golden glow lit Edmond’s sharp jawline clearly.
“…I heard about what happened earlier.”
News of Isaac’s duel had already reached him.
“And that you left with the Crown Prince.”
“Yeah… about that. Things got complicated.”
I briefly summarized what Tristan told me—getting dragged into the imperial–papal power struggle and giving up my holiday to act as a dark-magic detector.
“Is he insane?!”
Yulia jumped up.
“Right?! You’re being dragged straight into enemy territory!”
“That Crown Prince has no work ethics! How dare he make you work on a weekend?!”
Ah—that was the problem?
Well, that was a problem, but… wasn’t there a bigger one?
I looked toward Isaac.
For once, he was serious, without a trace of humor.
Carefully making sure his wrist didn’t fall off, he even tapped my shoulder lightly.
“Should we report him to the labor office?”
…That’s not the main issue here.
