“Dereck, who is she?”
A sinister intent flowed in Fina’s eyes.
Like a girl her age who did not want her only treasure to be taken away, her pupils were filled with venom.
Everything happened in an instant.
Katia was trying to compose herself and understand the situation when—
Clang!
Crash!
The reaction speed of the mana was so absurd that there was not even time to respond.
From Fina’s center, a dark, reddish mist spread out in an instant, wrapping around Katia’s body and lifting her into the air.
The sensation of death closing around her neck, arms, and waist made it difficult even to breathe.
“Cough… ngh…! Ack!”
Katia was a mage who was on the verge of reaching, or falling just short of, the four-star rank.
She had only been surpassed because Dereck’s growth had been abnormally fast; she was never someone who would be put to shame before others in terms of magical mastery.
But in front of Fina, she could not even put up a fight.
A human who manipulated mana at an impossibly fast speed.
In that instant, Katia understood that the blood-soaked girl was no ordinary person.
She was not just a high-level mage.
Upon seeing the aura of resentful spirits swirling around her, she opened her eyes wide.
‘A necromantic-branch mage!’
She wanted to scream, but she could not.
The mana wrapping around her pressed against her body as if it might crush it at any moment.
“Don’t tell me this thing is the master you follow so devotedly, Dereck? Hah, what a ridiculous joke. Her mana is weak, her reactions slow, and her level low.”
“Dereck, listen carefully. If you learn magic from a useless thing like this, you’ll spend your entire life stagnating.”
“Gh… ack…!”
“Oh… huh? Looking closely at her features, she seems familiar. Hmm… did you say she used to move around eastern society?”
“Katia… Katia… yes, I think I’ve seen you before.”
“Wh… what… are you… saying…”
“What was my name back then…? Amy…? Lani…? No… I know. Katlan. Yes, it must have been Katlan.”
Upon hearing that name, Katia’s pupils dilated even further.
Katlan.
A name she had only heard in her childhood.
That of a young noblewoman she had met while preparing for her debut in society.
Someone who had taught her a little magic and listened to some of her worries.
A bond from the past.
“My… it’s been so long. And the little brat from the Flameheart family now goes around calling herself a master.”
“But you should have accepted disciples appropriate to your level. How pathetic.”
“Y-you… who… are… you…”
“Don’t try to know too much. The problem is that Dereck can’t think clearly because of the emotional attachment he still has to you.”
“If you truly care about him, you should think that the best thing is not to drag him along with you and make him waste years of his life.”
Crack… crack.
“As long as you’re alive, you’ll only be an obstacle to Dereck. If he lets himself be led by useless feelings, he’ll squander precious time.”
“So, if you truly cherish your beloved disciple… you should accept dying here with your neck broken.”
Katia tried to breathe while clinging to the trace of mana crushing her throat, but it did not budge even slightly.
The difference in level between them was not something that effort could overcome.
Fina’s expression, seen from below, looked like that of a blood-soaked monster.
Her lips, curved into a smile, overflowed with pleasure.
She was willing to break Katia’s neck just to monopolize Dereck.
Crunch!
Ack!
Fwoosh!
But the mana strangling Katia’s body dispersed instantly, interfered with by another magical flow.
Crash!
Bang!
“Hah… cough… hah…!”
Katia fell heavily to the ground and struggled to catch her breath.
Dereck ran to her side and crouched down.
Judging by her condition, she did not seem to have suffered serious injuries.
“Are you all right?”
“Cough… yes, Dereck… I’m fine…”
Dereck’s transformation magic had dispersed Fina’s necromantic mana into the air.
Seeing this, Fina was momentarily stunned.
She knew Dereck had grown quickly, but she never imagined he could neutralize even her magic.
“Dereck… you can already undo even this master’s mana…”
“Fina. What happened in the Tigris territory?”
After shaking off the remaining mana, Dereck stood up.
In his eyes, which barely managed to maintain calm, complex emotions were mixed.
“Did something happen? Is that what matters to you right now?”
“I don’t know what kind of shock you suffered, but you don’t seem to be thinking normally.
It would be best for you to calm down first.”
“Dereck, I’ve never been this calm. My mind is clear; everything feels sharper.”
“Dereck… you must trust me.”
Fwoooooosh!
Fina’s ominous mana once again spread throughout the spacious study.
Her hair fluttered, and the blood-soaked dress seemed to gleam under the moonlight streaming in through the window.
She was the very incarnation of living death.
“Dereck… you are my only disciple… Trust your master… I will take you to a higher level…”
Crack!
When Fina clenched her fist, darkness spread through the surroundings.
The entire study seemed to be swallowed by a bottomless abyss.
Dereck lowered his stance slightly, ready to cast magic at any moment, while supporting Katia, who was still exhausted.
The hostility in his eyes was clearly directed at Fina.
Fwoosh!
Within the swirling mana, Fina met Dereck’s gaze and held her breath.
He was looking at her as an enemy.
Realizing this, she hastily dispersed her mana and spoke, shrinking back.
“Dereck… you… why are you looking at me like that?”
“…”
“I’m only acting for you… my only disciple… for you…”
“Fina.”
“I told you to call me master.”
“I asked you to calm down, Fina.”
Seeing Dereck draw a clear line, Fina swallowed with difficulty.
Then she tightly grabbed her violet hair and spoke in an almost pleading voice.
“Dereck… you must be under me. You are no one else’s disciple. You are my disciple.”
“…”
“Ah… I see… But for someone as immature as you, there must still be many temptations.”
As the atmosphere began to calm again, Fina let out several hollow laughs and, looking at Dereck holding Katia, formed a smile full of indulgence.
“Yes, that’s right. Following such an inexperienced woman, believing she is your master and wasting time with her, can also be a good experience. I am a good master, so I will respect your decision, Dereck.”
“For me, time is infinite. I can afford to warmly observe my disciple’s momentary straying.”
The Fina of old had never given the impression of being so cornered, nor had she spoken so much in this manner.
Seeing this sudden change, Dereck could not stop turning it over in his mind.
“Yes… even if the disciple commits foolishness, the master must embrace even his lack of virtue. When you understand how futile it is to play at being master and disciple with that insignificant brat, you must cling tightly to the hand of the one who is truly on your side—mine.”
Swish!
Fwoooosh!
Fina’s dark, reddish mana took the form of countless bats and gathered around her.
Hiding her body among them, Fina looked at Dereck with a gaze full of affection.
“You are my only disciple. Never forget that fact. Never forget that remaining in my arms is what benefits you the most.”
“…”
“When your fleeting deviation ends, come to the Tigris territory whenever you wish. Your only master will be waiting for you there, caressing beautiful corpses.”
That affection was so heavy it was terrifying.
With just a single drop of it, it felt as if the entire room became murky.
Something had happened in the Tigris territory.
That much was obvious, and Dereck was about to open his mouth when—
Swish!
Fwoooosh!
The swarm of bats once again transformed into a massive torrent of mana, and in the next instant, Fina vanished without leaving a trace.
“…”
All that remained was the study turned into chaos, stained with blood everywhere.
Katia, clinging to the back of a chair while catching her breath, and the servants who had come running in, shaken.
In the midst of them, Dereck stood still, his brow furrowed.
***
“Dereck, that girl from before was…”
“She is the other master I mentioned to you earlier. And as you could see, she is a black mage.”
“…”
At those words, Katia was left speechless.
The fact that Dereck had learned magic from a black mage was so shocking that it was impossible to believe.
Even if he did not use black magic himself, merely being associated with someone like that could be considered a serious crime.
Katia leaned against the back of the reception sofa and pressed her temples hard.
It seemed that dizziness was beginning to overtake her.
“How… how could something like this happen…”
“It’s complicated to explain, but in any case, I think it would be best for you to be careful, Master Katia.”
Once the study had been put in order and the situation reviewed, nothing seemed simple.
‘She went to the Tigris territory to revive Kalimford. So did she fail?’
It was known that Fina’s advanced corpse resurrection technique was complete.
Even so, the Fina Dereck had seen looked like someone from whom something enormous had been taken away.
She tried to replace that loss with something, and ended up developing a disturbing obsession with Dereck.
As all the pieces came together, Dereck’s expression grew even more grave.
“Dereck, there are many things I would like to ask you.”
Either way, what he needed to do now was explain everything that had happened to Katia.
***
♪ ♬ ♪
A humming can be heard.
Back in the Tigris territory, Fina walked among the servants with light, cheerful steps.
Her expression, as fresh as if she had cast off an enormous emotional burden, would have been unsettling to those who knew her well.
But to the common inhabitants of the territory, she simply seemed to be in a good mood.
Her eyes were darker and deeper than usual.
The servants greeted her as she passed.
‘The weather is nice. It seems spring is approaching.’
To that innocent greeting, Fina replied with a smile.
‘Yes, the weather is pleasant.’
The instant she finished responding, blood burst from the servants’ faces.
The modest yet functional castle of the Baron of Tigris.
However, when the continent’s highest-level necromantic mage advanced with a simple gesture, flowers of blood bloomed everywhere she passed.
Dark, reddish mana covered the corridors, and the servants who walked through them lost their sanity and began to writhe.
Among them, Fina moved forward with lively steps, madness and ecstasy mixed in equal measure.
“In the end, you will return to me, Dereck.”
Across countless reincarnations, she had known innumerable mages, but almost none possessed a vessel as vast as Dereck’s, nor burned with such a pure passion for magic.
Convinced that Dereck would eventually yearn for an even higher level of magic and come to her, Fina began staining the castle of the Baron of Tigris with blood, one by one, as if she were preparing her home for an upcoming guest.
Like a seasoned conductor guiding an orchestra, with each gesture of Fina, the house of Baron Tigris became covered in corpses.
And all the corpses obeyed her will.
“To teach properly, one must prepare a good nest. Perhaps I should decorate the castle a bit more. Prepare a training area, expand the space a little more… and eliminate everyone who unnecessarily obstructs this place of learning.”
There were no longer any pending matters in the house of Baron Tigris.
Everything had been gathered under her control, ready to be adorned.
Thorns sprouted and wrapped around the castle, and the ominous aura began to blanket the area.
Thus, the castle of Baron Tigris was gradually transformed into a breeding ground of necromantic magic.
Unlike the case of the Duchy of Beltus, the scale was smaller and the location was in a peripheral region, so the spread of news would inevitably be slower.
That meant Fina had more than enough time to devour the entire region.
Fwoooooosh!
Fina’s rampage was already predestined.
Dereck knew it as well.
However, the direction events were taking differed slightly from what he had imagined.
“Dereck… the time granted to this master is infinite, but even so, do not make me wait too long…”
Kneeling upon the throne located in the deepest part of the main building, covered in thorns, she whispered those words.
The dense darkness dwelling in her eyes grew ever deeper.
***
Whoooooosh!
In the midst of the northern tundra rose the castle of the Duchy of Rochester.
As he rode through the territory on horseback, Melverot exhaled, and his breath rose into the heavy, gray sky.
He had sent his daughter to the southwest of the continent and remained in the territory to govern its people.
He was already beginning to wonder how Siern was doing.
He thought about writing her a letter, but it was not easy for someone with his disposition.
As he gazed in silence at the distant expanse of snow, only the falling flakes filled his field of vision.
It was then that—
Beyond the horizon, someone was approaching.
“…”
In that frozen environment, a figure advanced unsteadily, barely covered in rags.
Crossing that vast and brutal tundra on foot was unthinkable.
Sensing that something was out of the ordinary, Melverot frowned and activated exploration magic to identify the figure slowly approaching.
“Lord Melverot. Someone is approaching from the tundra.”
“Yes. I can see it.”
The moment Melverot focused his gaze even more, that silhouette began to look familiar.
Though exhausted, covered in wounds, and completely withered, those features were impossible to forget.
It was the image of the great archmage who had already passed away.
Kalimford.
