As I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was Vivian's disheveled green hair and her face stained with blood.

The dried crimson blood gave her sleeping face a surreal appearance.

In that sight, the image of young Vivian's face I had seen just moments ago overlapped, and I found myself unconsciously taken aback.

Startled, I tried to sit up, and that's when I felt Vivian's right hand and my hand entwined together.

I attempted to pull my hand away, but no matter how much I tried, it wouldn't let go, tightly holding onto my hand as if for dear life.

"Umm..."

I shook my arm, waking up Vivian from her slumber.

"Hmm?"

With a puzzled look in her eyes, Vivian glanced up at me and noticed our hands intertwined, causing her to let go.

"Where is this...?"

Still disoriented, Vivian seemed unable to gather her thoughts.

Just then, I sensed movement behind us.

"Hey, mage. Vivian."

When we turned around, Ivy was approaching us unharmed.

Did she manage to escape on her own?

"I'm glad you're both safe."

"Yeah, there were some close calls, but it's a relief that you two are fine. What about the dark mage?"

"Well..."

What should I say?

As I searched for the right words, I unintentionally looked down at Vivian, who still had a dazed expression on her face.

"Huh? He's dead, isn't he? Boloric's butler?"

Ivy looked around and saw the decapitated body of the dark mage.

"What about Christopher and Hazel? What happened?"

"Well, you see..."

It's complicated.

Since there were no witnesses, there was no evidence to prove that I was the dark mage. But if I were to claim responsibility for his death, would she believe me?

Will she start questioning how he was killed?

I decided to use Christopher, who was either dead or vanished during the battle, to divert the conversation.

"Christopher and I fought together to kill him."

"What? Wasn't he already half-dead? Where is he now?"

"The dark mage attacked him, and then..."

"What? Then what?"

"He disappeared without leaving a body."

Aivy looked at me suspiciously before sighing.

"Fuck. What a mess. Things keep happening, and now it's all tangled up like this."

She suddenly exploded in anger, muttering curses under her breath as she collected the dark mage's body.

And there was Vivian, still sitting on the ground with a blank expression.

"Did she experience the same thing as me?"

"That seems to be the case."

"What? How do you know what happened? Did you experience it too?"

"Yes."

"Whoa. But on top of escaping, you claimed to have killed the dark mage together with Christopher?"

"Yes."

I almost hesitated with my response, but I just went with it.

What's the point of pretending it isn't true?

Ivy continued to look at me and Vivian with a suspicious gaze, but that was all she could do.

There was nothing she could uncover from this situation.

"Alright then. Since I'm holding this, you take care of Vivian."

"Yes."

I approached Vivian, who was still sitting on the ground, and extended my hand.

"Vivian, let's go back."

"Yeah, I got it, Fairy."

"Yes?"

"Yeah?"

Both Vivian and I looked at each other in surprise, tilting our heads.

What's wrong? I'm the Fairy, aren't I?

"I'm talking about you being a Fairy."

Confused by my feigned ignorance, Vivian furrowed her brow and stared at my face intently.

"Vivian?"

"The voice."

"Yes?"

"The voice is the same..." "I don't know what you mean. Let's go."

Despite my urging, she still wore an expression that said she couldn't do anything about it.

As she reluctantly stood up, her hand that I had extended trembled slightly, and while leading the way, she occasionally turned her head to look back at me, tilting it questioningly.

What's the point of pretending not to know? Might as well doubt me to your heart's content.

.

.

.

.

On our way back, I told Ivy that I would go see Viscount Boloric first.

"Of course. Since the dark mage turned out to be the butler."

Ivy nodded her head in agreement.

"We need to keep him detained for now. The incident involving the dark mage is not just a matter for the Academy but a matter concerning the Empire as a whole."

Upon arriving at Boloric Castle, we could see soldiers and knights guarding the entrance with a foreboding presence.

"What the hell are these bastards doing?"

Ivy, already on edge due to the two students being killed or missing, marched forward and shouted.

"What's with you idiots? Can't you make way?"

"Who goes there? Identify yourself!"

"I'm Ivy Claire, an assistant professor at Rodren Academy! My actions here to arrest Viscount Boloric represent the Empire's stance against rebellion!"

"What, what? Why are you suddenly saying such things?"

"Your lordship here has been found to have colluded with the dark mage."

Ivy threw the corpse she had been carrying to the front and raised her staff high.

The soldiers and knights who saw his face let out astonished murmurs.

"That's right. You recognize this face, don't you? This guy was the dark mage who slaughtered the residents of Sulim Village. Not only that, he dared to harm Academy students. And yet, you still plan to protect the Viscount?"

"We, we know nothing about it! We were simply following Viscount's orders to guard the gate in anticipation of enemy attacks..."

"Now that you know, what should we do?"

"I-I'll step aside."

"Step aside? Stepping aside is obvious, but shouldn't you hurry and capture the Viscount?"

"Yes, y-yes!"

Since any involvement with the dark mage warranted severe punishment from the Empire, the soldiers and knights rushed to open the gate, their minds deep in contemplation.

"You did well."

"What are you saying? We need to hurry."

Ivy picked up the corpse again and began to run.

She was unexpectedly proactive, but thinking back on the information I knew about her, it made sense.

In the game, she harbored a strong grudge against dark mages.

Thanks to that, I had seen her capability during episodes related to dark mages.

"But now I'm the dark mage."

In any case, I had to be cautious to stay alive.

I followed Ivy's running figure and finally entered the mansion.

The knights must have informed them in advance because the doors to the mansion were wide open, and there was no one to stop us.

"Oh my, my. It's real. It's really butler, Ivan."

"It was strange, wasn't it? After suddenly driving out the previous butler, Thomas, they brought in a new person."

As Ivy carried the dark mage's corpse around, the mansion's servants began to whisper.

Listening to their conversation with one ear, I asked Ivy, "Why do you think Viscount Boloric formed an alliance with the dark mage?"

"How would I know? Whatever the reason may be, Boloric's days are numbered now."

Indeed, that was true.

Regardless of the reason, now that the evidence was clear, Boloric's fate was sealed.

As we made our way towards Baron Boloric's office, we were suddenly stopped by a knight who appeared out of nowhere.

"We have found the Viscount. He is currently in Edel's room."

Guided by him, we headed towards the location where the Viscount was said to be.

Already, soldiers and knights had surrounded the area, brandishing their swords and spears.

"Good work. Oh, someone make sure to contact the Empire's Investigation Division about this."

"Yes!"

Ivy, who had taken full control of the atmosphere, gave orders to the people as if they were her subordinates.

Finally, as we entered the room, we witnessed a bizarre sight.

As we stared at the scene, one of the knights called out to us with a trembling voice.

"Oh, you've arrived."

"What... is that?"

Ivy asked with a chilling voice, and the knight repeatedly shook his head, indicating that he didn't know either.

In the meantime, I approached the eerie sight.

"Hey, Adrias. Step back."

"It's fine."

As I approached, there was something grotesquely swollen, resembling a fleshy mass of blood-red flesh.

The Baron sat beside that fleshy mass and looked at me as I approached. "Ivan seems to be dead."

"Yes."

He calmly spoke to me and caressed the fleshy mass.

Then, from within the fleshy mass, a sound emerged that was more reminiscent of an animal than a human voice.

"Yes, yes. That's right. Edel, I'm sorry. I couldn't protect you until the end."

"Did you join hands with him because of your son?"

"Sure. Well, I expected this kind of outcome from the start, but I wanted to save my ailing son, even if it was just a little longer."

"Did he really want to continue living in this state?"

"Hah! Did you think I would end up like this? I admit that I made mistakes, but I was relieved that Edel was alive, even in this state."

He looked at the fleshy mass with eyes filled with remorse.

"I have no regrets. After all, Edel was all I had left. I may feel a little sorry for my late wife."

Then, he turned his head and spoke to Ivy.

"Now that the dark mage is dead, Edel will die in a few days anyway. I could dispose of him immediately, but could you just leave Edel alone until then? I know I don't deserve to ask for such a favor after committing such heinous acts. However, I hope you can recognize that this child is innocent."

"Shut up. Don't mock me with your filthy mouth."

Ivy said, drawing her sword.

And she approached aggressively.

"You damn bastard. Where in this world can you find someone without a story? Is it only you who went through all this? Try saying that nonsense to the people who died because of you, you son of a bitch."

"Ivy."

I quietly stood in front of Ivy, blocking her way.

"What's wrong? Why are you suddenly feeling sorry for that bastard?"

"There is an absolute hierarchy in the dark mage system. It's heavily censored, making it difficult to grow through self-study."

"What are you talking about all of a sudden?"

"To gather information about the dark mage's mentor, we should hand this person over to the Empire's Investigation Division. It's beneficial to interrogate this person before making any decisions. Other information might come to light."

After my words, Ivy released a rough breath, seeming to contemplate, and then bit her lip and sheathed her sword.

"Haah, you damn bastard."

"It's a rational judgment. Did you think I would have any sympathy? You think too little of me."

"Just shut up if you're going to be noisy."

Even in modern-day South Korea, I had killed numerous people.

Living a life focused solely on achieving my mission, erasing emotions.

Adrias had changed somewhat after becoming the dark mage, but it wasn't entirely true.

Ivy's words implied that I would sympathize with the person who had massacred the residents of the territory I managed.

Of course, I didn't.

However, Ivy was right that it was an emotional response.

Just as Aivy was about to turn away, there was a sudden noise.

"Edel!"

A spear as thick as an arm was lodged into the flesh next to the Viscount's side.

Startled by my sudden impulsive action, Ivy glared at me as if questioning what I was doing.

"So, as long as the Baron is alive, everything is fine, right? It seems like that thing can't even speak."

"You're insane."

"It's a rational decision."

Ivy shook her head with a look that seemed to say she was dealing with a lunatic, then ordered the soldiers to detain the Baron and left the room.

The Baron wept, tears streaming down his face, beside the lifeless flesh.

Ah, do these people truly understand?

What intentions drove me to kill Edel?

Of course, I intended to instill in Ivy the impression that I detest dark magic as much as she does.

But there was a bigger reason than that.

Think about it.

When the Imperial Investigation Corps arrives, will they only interrogate the Baron?

'They will probably try to find out what kind of dark magic was used and subject Edel to all sorts of torture and experiments.'

As if turning into such a monster wasn't agonizing enough.

He must have suffered tremendous pain.

Considering the experiments conducted by those mad wizards, it would be far better for him to die now.

Of course, it may be beyond my authority to make judgments about someone else's life.

But I have no regrets.

Because I don't believe I made the wrong decision.

'But still...'

Listening to the lamentations of a father who has just lost his son in front of me, I can't help but feel bitter.

.

.

.

.

Vivianne quietly observed Adrias, who wore a self-restrained smile with a bitter expression.

By looking at his expression, Vivianne could tell that he had different thoughts despite what he had said earlier.

Having been vigilant of others' intentions since childhood, she could perceive it.

"Adrias Cromwell."

As she repeated Adrias' name, her emerald eyes regained their spark.