Ch.58Cutting Through the Darkness (2)

Clunk- Clatter-

The unpaved road, filled with rocks and stones, was enough to make the carriage shake with every turn of the wheels.

Amid the noisy rattling, now two days into our journey toward the duke’s residence, only one thought kept circling in my mind.

What if this time could last just a little longer?

Flick.

When her white hair fluttered against the bridge of my nose, I frowned at the ticklish sensation.

The fragrance from her hair was a sweet rose scent, slightly sweeter than Irene’s usual body scent, making my vision blur.

I inhaled deeply. To maintain my composure, I needed to endure a bit more—I was her knight, after all.

Thud.

I clenched my teeth at the weight pressing against my shoulder. In the rattling carriage, it was understandable.

I could certainly understand why sleeping Irene’s head would sway and rest against my shoulder.

But enduring it was another matter entirely. My heart felt like it would tear through my chest and leap out.

With labored breathing, I exhaled heavily and turned my head to carefully examine Irene’s head resting on my shoulder.

“…This is driving me crazy.”

Her gentle breathing brushed against my face.

Her breath, carrying her body heat—perhaps even warmer than her actual body temperature—touched me and dispersed.

Her eyes, usually filled with a cold demeanor, were gently closed,

and her long eyelashes occasionally fluttered with my breath.

Every time I saw this, my fingers twitched—clearly an impulse stirring within me.

Carefully gripping the carriage seat, I let out a heated breath into the air.

My shoulder felt heavy, but my heart felt even heavier.

I was acutely aware of Irene’s head resting motionlessly on my shoulder despite the shaking carriage.

I let out a hollow laugh at the scratchy sensation of her hair against my clothes.

To be honest, I welcomed this situation.

A shaking carriage, the person you love resting against your shoulder… isn’t that actually a pleasant situation?

The rose scent that always lingered on her filled the carriage, but it always felt fresh to me.

I breathed in deeply, savoring that ticklish scent that teased not just my nose but my heart as well.

Perhaps it was her slightly changed attitude since our conversation two days ago that created this situation.

She didn’t say anything, breathing softly without moving.

She simply added a light weight to my shoulder, somehow managing to stay asleep while leaning against me.

I wanted to close my eyes and rest a bit like her, but my pounding heart wouldn’t allow it.

My blood seemed to race through my body, heating it up.

Perhaps that’s why my breath felt so hot.

After gazing at the scenery outside the carriage window, I stared blankly at the familiar mansion that came into view.

We were almost at the duke’s residence.

Irene, who looked somewhat relieved, seemed to have somewhat overcome the news of the duke’s collapse.

But seeing something in person is quite different from just hearing about it.

If it’s black magic—a curse—things would get complicated.

I know a magician, but whether he would come right away was uncertain.

I hoped things would work out somehow.

The mansion, particularly noticeable in the Yuris duchy, came into view.

The forest densely planted on one side, those trees that always shrouded the duke’s office in darkness—I gazed at them briefly.

I carefully poked Irene’s cheek, who was still remarkably asleep.

“My lady.”

“…Mmm.”

“You need to wake up now.”

“Mmmmm.”

My eyes narrowed. The sound of her breathing seemed unstable.

Her heartbeat was the same, which made me wonder—could she already be awake?

“Are you already awake?”

“……”

As I carefully pushed her head away, she opened her eyes and stared into space.

Avoiding eye contact with me, Irene carefully rolled her eyes and then let out a faint sigh.

Could someone who had been lying against my shoulder until just now get up so naturally?

The sight was so amusing that I almost burst out laughing.

“Have we arrived?”

Though she tried to speak calmly and nonchalantly, I could feel the slight tremor in her voice.

But there was no need to call her out on it.

I nodded at her words, and Irene, looking outside the carriage, quietly closed her eyes.

“It will be alright. Perhaps he just collapsed from overwork.”

“…I hope so.”

There was a hint of sincerity in Irene’s voice,

so I silently gazed at the duke’s residence. I wished things would work out well,

but I had a bitter taste in my mouth thinking that was unlikely to happen.

#

The atmosphere at the duke’s residence was gloomy. According to the maid who announced the news of the duke’s collapse, only a few people knew about it,

but it had been enough time for ominous rumors to spread.

The security chief, who always looked stern, had shadows across his face, making it obvious to anyone that something was wrong.

As the lined-up knights thumped their spears on the ground,

Irene raised her hand and spoke with a frown.

“This isn’t necessary. Let’s go inside. Everyone, return to your posts.”

As she entered the duke’s residence, I turned my head at the gaze I felt from afar and saw Sir Chris.

Unlike usual, his deeply serious expression gave me a vague idea of the gravity of the situation.

Indeed, this wasn’t just a simple collapse.

The way the servants looked at Irene was quite subtle.

With rumors of the duke’s collapse spreading, Irene was the only one who would inherit if the duke died.

I thought they might be wondering if they should be cautious around her.

It was bitter, but that was the reality unfolding in this duke’s residence.

“I somewhat expected this.”

At the sudden voice, I looked up to see Irene continuing to speak while looking ahead.

“That magician you know, can you contact him right away?”

“…I’ll try.”

The fact that she brought up the magician meant she had her own suspicions about the duke’s condition.

I couldn’t give a definite answer. It had been quite some time since I met him,

so it was uncertain if he would still respond to my call. But I had to take the chance.

He would likely know the best possibility to save the duke at this point.

When I answered, Irene began walking forward without any particular response.

We climbed the stairs to the third floor, then walked along the creaking corridor to a door with a dragon’s mouth wide open.

With a click and a familiar hand movement, Irene opened the door, and darkness began to seep out from inside.

A pitch-black room without a trace of light—I thought the windows were covered, but they were actually wide open.

The light just didn’t reach inside; it was swallowed by the darkness emanating from within the room.

In that abyss where one couldn’t see even a step ahead, there was one person visible.

“Ha.”

A sigh escaped me involuntarily. The man lying on the bed bore no resemblance to the person I first met.

The head of the Yuris family, who once exuded such authority that it made my body tingle, no longer existed.

His body was so emaciated that his bones were clearly visible,

and his face, with protruding cheekbones that looked almost grotesque, was pale and bloodless.

A corpse—the darkness rising from Garoth Yuris’s body, which looked so precarious it brought such thoughts to mind.

It clearly pointed to one answer.

“…It’s a curse.”

The purple mist rising from the duke, and the black shadows consuming the surroundings.

Though I had never seen a curse before, I could tell immediately that these were fragments of a curse.

I frowned at the shadow, which had the same presence as black magicians, and then looked at Irene, pressing my lips together.

I didn’t want to see Irene’s expression after she spoke so impassively.

How could I possibly understand her feelings? She might appear unaffected on the outside,

but only she would know if that was truly the case.

I reached out to wrap my arm around her shoulder, but then grasped at empty air and let my hand fall limply.

What she needed was time to think.

I had already told her what I needed to say, so perhaps it was time for me to move separately.

Quietly, trying not to let her notice, I slipped out of the room and froze when I saw a familiar face.

“Sir Chris.”

“Did you see the duke’s condition?”

“I did… It seems we’re in quite a predicament.”

Before even resolving the issue with the Roman family, now a black magician’s curse—

the timing was so bad it made me think someone might have deliberately orchestrated this.

To think that the head of the Yuris family, who had stood firm for decades, would end up in such a state.

It meant the empire’s defenses were weakening, making it the perfect time for Extinction to operate freely.

Tap tap.

I touched the badge on my chest and quietly sighed.

I had already sent the signal, but would he be able to come quickly?

Sir Chris also seemed to sense that this matter was unusual, stroking his chin while staring at the door to the duke’s room.

“I’ve already experienced the Extinction crisis once, but this gives me a similar feeling.”

“…Is that so?”

“It doesn’t feel good. If we don’t catch it early, it will spread uncontrollably like a wildfire. With the incident at Mount Verden and now this, there seems to be a series of events targeting the Yuris family. Targeting the lady and the duke… Whatever they want, your role remains crucial.”

At those words, I could only offer a bitter smile. I knew.

Wasn’t it something I had known from the beginning—that this was the time when Extinction would truly emerge?

It was a responsibility I already carried, and in the future I envisioned, the duke and Irene were certainly present.

“I understand well.”

Perhaps I understood too well, which was the problem.

I felt like my breath was caught in my throat from the weight pressing on my chest.

My lips curved into a smile, but my eyes didn’t follow suit.

My narrowed eyes held a cold darkness. It was heavy.

All the people I had to protect, the responsibility I carried, the future I had to create.

“…Yes, it must be hardest for you.”

Sir Chris patted my shoulder lightly and walked past,

while I quietly made my way downstairs through the thick darkness.

The creaking of the floorboards was irritating.

The unsettling darkness enveloping this corridor, unlike usual, made it hard to breathe.

I withdrew the flame that rose nervously, and continued walking downstairs.

Soon, I couldn’t help but smile when I saw a familiar face.

“Rofena, were you waiting here?”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m not sure about the duke. We’ll have to monitor his condition—”

But Rofena shook her head, as if that wasn’t what she meant, and stared at me.

“I was asking about you, Sir. Your expression… doesn’t look good.”

Expression? At those words, I touched my face and felt my tightly pressed lips.

Horizontal, almost drooping—I could imagine the expression without looking in a mirror.

It probably wasn’t a good one. Concern was evident in Rofena’s eyes.

Just like the expression I had often seen in the past, I bit my lip.

“Are you worried about me?”

“It’s not worry… well, yes, it is worry. Your expression looks really bad.”

“…Thank you.”

But it was true that my heart felt lighter, so I smiled faintly and stroked Rofena’s hair.

It was amusing to see her no longer resisting my touch.

A word of concern from someone who resembled my sister was quite comforting to me.

The weight on my chest seemed to have lessened somewhat, so I shrugged and dramatically raised one arm.

“I’m fine. The duke will probably overcome this kind of illness without any trouble.”

“I believe it.”

“Who do you believe?”

“Just… I believe in both you and the lady.”

“You don’t believe in Sir Chris? He’ll be disappointed.”

“N-no, I believe in Sir Chris too, I believe in everyone.”

At my question about not believing in Sir Chris, Rofena started pouting again.

It was amusing that at 18 years old, she still hadn’t abandoned her old habits.

I might even feel a bit sad to see Rofena mature.

Perhaps it would be nice to see her like this even when she grows older.

I felt somewhat relieved. Rofena’s light atmosphere had lifted some of the burden from my heart.

Grateful for that, I tapped Rofena’s forehead, but she frowned and opened her small mouth.

I quickly avoided her snapping teeth, and Rofena grinned with half-closed eyes.

She seemed pleased that I had dodged, and her snickering made me laugh.

“Ugh, don’t hit me.”

I just tapped you lightly. But thinking that it might actually hurt her, I scratched my cheek.

It wasn’t even red, so why was she exaggerating so much?

But my thoughts didn’t continue for long. A sudden presence at the duke’s residence,

the sensation of the barrier surrounding the mansion being disturbed—my head quickly turned in that direction.

“Sir?”

“…No, stay here.”

Leaving behind a puzzled Rofena, I moved carefully for a while, then relaxed when I sensed that the presence had a familiar magical energy.

I had wondered how many people could easily penetrate the duke’s residence’s barrier, but with this mana, there was only one person.

As I walked toward the outside, pushing past knights who were rushing urgently from afar,

I soon saw a man waving his hand in the distance.

“Well, it’s been quite a while, Sir Evan.”

“I didn’t expect you to come so urgently after I sent the signal. If I had known, I would have informed others, but you arrived faster than I expected?”

My face brightened. The person who would know the most likely method to break the duke’s curse—

there was no ominousness to be read in his purple eyes.

His purple eyes were not related to black magic at all.

The one who had reached the pinnacle of magic in this empire. One who had mastered magical power and was stained by mana itself.

That’s why his eyes, stained with magical power, always shone with a brilliant purple hue.

Azest Merwin, the grand magician of this empire, looked at me and then stroked his long beard.

“The fact that you called me so urgently means something must have happened to the head of the Yuris family.”

“It’s black magic. It appears to be… a curse.”

Since I had already sought his help, there was no point in hiding anything more, so I spoke frankly.

Azest nodded as if he had expected it, and began walking toward the duke’s residence.

“Your role will likely be important.”

“Mine?”

“Because only you can cut off the source of the curse.”

With those somewhat meaningful words.