TVJA 38

Chapter 38

Click.
With the sound of the sliding door shutting, the man let out a dry breath and slowly swept a hand over his heart.

“Duke, are you sure you’re alright?”

Perhaps he was concerned about the man who stood like a corpse beside him, because he gently tapped the man’s stiff shoulder and spoke up.

“It’s about the Lady.”

The moment the word “Lady” left his lips, the man—referred to as Duke—slowly turned his head and looked at him.

“What do you mean by that?”

His icy blue eyes were so cold they could make one’s knees buckle.

Anyone else would’ve looked away by now, but Theo was so familiar with those eyes after 20 years together that they felt almost friendly.

“That time…”

Theo trailed off, hesitating, then quickly clamped a hand over his mouth as if realizing his mistake.

Anyone still in the Duke’s household knew about that incident. It was infamous.

“You mean Endis?”

“…!”

Theo flinched as though he’d just uttered a forbidden word, his shoulders tightening as he turned back to look at the Duke, his face pale.

“N-No, I just…”

Normally, just hearing the syllable “En” from Endis’s name would’ve made the Duke’s expression harden—or he’d pretend not to hear it altogether.

What’s gotten into him?

“I actually spoke with Yuria the other day to clear up some misunderstandings about that matter.”

“What… what did the young lady say?”

Were they even close enough to have a conversation alone?

Theo’s face twisted with unease, like someone sinking into a muddy swamp.

They say people act out of character before they die. Two people who hardly exchanged words before—why were they suddenly so different?

Almost like they’d become someone else.

Theo gulped.

The saliva going down his throat tasted bitter.

“Not much.”

The Duke, who had been idly tapping the table with a fingernail, suddenly turned his body and tilted his head back.

His chair rocked slightly from the movement.

“She didn’t say a word.”

His expression was indifferent, like a cloud perched on a dried branch—dull and detached.

“She didn’t say she forgave me. Didn’t say she hated me. Not even a hollow ‘I’m fine.’”

“…”

“She just stared at me… like she’d never heard anything like that before in her life. With a completely blank face.”

As he moved, Theo’s lashes fluttered rapidly.

“I see.”

“Theo, that child…”

He stopped tapping the table and let out a suffocating sigh.

“She’s not the Yuria we knew.”

Theo’s eyes widened in disbelief.

His amber pupils only returned to normal after a long moment.

“Then… are you saying the lady here now is a fake?”

Was that a joke?

“Oh, come on, Duke.”

Theo’s tone was light and teasing, but the Duke remained silent. And silence was as good as an answer.

“I don’t know.”

“…”

“But even if her body is possessed by a demon, or even if she’s just a hollow shell, the fact remains—she’s my daughter.”

The Duke suddenly stood up, glaring fiercely at Theo, who stood frozen.

“So don’t entertain any foolish ideas.”

Theo, scolded without warning, slowly closed and opened his eyes.

Foolish ideas…?

Did the Duke think he was harboring ill will toward the Lady?

He felt a bit wronged, but as a subordinate, it wasn’t his place to argue.

“Yes, sir.”

“Go.”

With a brief bow, Theo gripped the doorknob tightly.

For some reason, her words kept spinning in his mind.

[Sigh… Sir Theo, is it?]
[I’m glad it was you, Sir Theo.]

That was definitely odd.

The lady…

“…never used formal speech with me before.”

Theo stopped in place, shaking his head to rid himself of the growing suspicion clouding his thoughts.

Long ago, there was a type of black magic said to embed demonic souls into human bodies—but it had been sealed away centuries ago because it was so dangerous and powerful.

And the last person who could use that magic… died long ago.

Or… was it that they vanished without a trace?

Either way, he only knew the story through rumors, so he couldn’t say for sure.

He furrowed his brows, trying to recall a sketch he’d seen once in Diel’s office, but the image remained blurry no matter how hard he tried.

Just a baseless rumor.

That’s all his thoughts amounted to—pointless delusions.

That the real soul of the lady had been replaced through black magic? That couldn’t possibly—

That’s just impossible.

Feeling embarrassed by the seriousness of his own reflection in the window, Theo brushed his hair back and walked briskly down the long corridor.

He’d clearly been reading too many novels lately.

“Kim Sword!”

With a cheerful voice, I flung open the door and looked around the room. He was slumped over the sofa when I left—where did he vanish off to?

Did he sink into the ground or fly into the sky? Just as I was looking around, I heard a long yawn from the corner of the bed.

「Yaaaawn… Master?」

That drowsy, dreamy voice was definitely his.

“Don’t tell me… you were asleep?”

He rubbed his eyes groggily and muttered in a sleepy voice.

「Even magic swords need sleep.」

“First I’ve heard of it.”

「Even a magic sword can’t use basic spells if it doesn’t get proper rest.」

Oh please, you’re using MY magic anyway.

“Whatever. That’s not the point!”

I clamped a hand over his big mouth and plopped down beside him, grinning.

“Thanks for healing Hans.”

He twitched his nose at my smile, lips twitching as if pleased.

「…It was nothing. If my master wishes it, even more difficult tasks are possible.」

“Even returning to my original world?”

As I gazed at him, eyes sparkling with hope, he turned away and muttered under his breath.

「That… would be difficult.」

“Didn’t expect anything anyway.”

「What?」

“Anyway, I saw Hans earlier—he was walking just fine, no limp at all.”

「…」

“It’s all thanks to you, Mr. Magic Sword.”

He scratched his neck, seemingly shy about the praise.

「I don’t know why, but ever since you became younger, it’s gotten easier to manage magic.」

“Magic management?”

He nodded lightly.

「Before, you had no magic at all. Now, you can handle basic healing spells.」

…I think I know why that is.

“Status window.”

At my murmur, a bluish screen appeared in the air.

<Nickname: Yuria Benestra>
<Title: Trusted by the Magic Sword>
<Occupation: Miner>
<Reputation: 5>
<Progress: 4%>

• Health: 120

• Intelligence: 105

• Agility: 110

• Strength: 105

• Luck: 100

• Charm: 130

• Magic: 110 (+50)

I placed my hands on my hips and admired the status window with satisfaction.

Good thing I split points between health and charm.

I’d spent ages cooped up figuring out how to allocate my stats. This game didn’t explain a thing—just told you to raise stats without saying which ones.

Turns out, there was a detailed explanation… written in tiny, almost invisible letters.

No wonder I missed it.

Anyway, to summarize: there are seven main stats for character growth.

Health measures your activity level—how long you can walk and move.

Intelligence affects how quickly you learn and apply new knowledge.

Agility and Strength are self-explanatory—speed and power.

They’re all important, but for me, the most crucial were Magic, Luck, and Charm.

Especially Luck, which couldn’t be raised with stat points. It could only be increased through special actions or locations.

This game is too hard!

I groaned, clutching my head. Kim Sword gave me a strange look, but I sighed deeply.

Back to the main point—about Charm and Magic.

Charm increases slowly as you raise a character’s affection. The higher your charm, the easier it is to raise their affection. It also changes how characters speak to or treat you.

That’s why I put my precious 10 points into Charm.

As for Magic, it represents magical ability. But there’s one thing to note:

Even if I have 160 magic, I can’t use it all at once.

It’s the maximum capacity, not something I can continually pour out.

Think of my body as a 1-liter bottle. It holds enough to fill a 100 ml glass about ten times.

Lastly—titles.

You gain titles from completing hidden quests.

I had two: “Companion of the Magic Sword” and “Trusted by the Magic Sword.” The first had no bonus, but the second gave +50 magic—a huge buff.

So, even if it was cheesy and cringe, I had to wear the title.

“Haaaaa…”

「Yuria?」

Shine-shine.

I looked up at the golden bold-lettered title above my head and sighed again.

I’d have to figure out how to hide it soon.

While Yuria was deep in thought, Sophie was also caught up in her own busyness.

“You there! Don’t slack off just because the weather’s nice—get the laundry!”

The mornings at House Benestra were always hectic.

Despite the estate’s size rivaling the palace, the number of servants was severely lacking.

And even that was only manageable because they paid double the usual wages. After all, a job is a job.

To them, working at a mansion with double the pay and too much to do wasn’t that different from an average job with less pay but manageable tasks.

Labor is a long game.

“How long does it take to fold laundry?!”

Especially on days like this, when sunlight was so strong it seemed to split into rainbows.

“…Sorry.”

More and more workers wanted to quit.

Karen, a newly hired maid with a white headscarf, kept bowing.

“I’m almost done. Just finishing up here.”

Karen wasn’t exactly skilled at her job.

“Ouch…”

There it is—tripped again carrying the laundry basket.

Sophie’s face cringed as Karen scraped her knee red. Watching her made Sophie’s own knee ache in sympathy.

While observing her, Sophie turned her head toward the ruckus at the front gate.

“Oh my, look at that.”

“That’s a carriage from the Grand Duke’s estate!”

“Shhh! Keep your voice down, En! The witch’ll hear!”

For reference, the witch was code for the head maid.

The younger maids’ chatter spread like waves.

“Do you think all that gold is real?”

“Why don’t you bite it and find out?”

Giggling like summer wildflowers, the girls whispered excitedly.

Sophie, however, looked unimpressed.

Using gold that only the royal family used—slathered on like paint, no less. It’d fall off the moment it took a bump.

What a waste.

She thought.

But her thoughts halted the moment she saw the person walking through the maids.

“Ahem! Stop gawking, all of you—back to work!”

Even the head maid kept glancing at the carriage.

If she was interested…

Who could it be?

Sophie’s heart beat faster.

Creak—

The golden carriage slowed as it entered the garden.

Watching in a daze, Sophie muttered,

“All the contracts should be wrapped up—so why…?”

There should be no reason for the Grand Duke to send anyone.

Then, the carriage door opened, and a clear voice as crisp as chimes brushed past her ear.

“Excuse me.”

She looked up at the refreshing voice to see a tall young man in a pristine white suit. He looked barely into adulthood.

“Excuse me, but are you Lady Yuria Benestra?”

The man smiled brightly as he gently took her hand.

“The young master said the most eye-catching lady here would be Lady Yuria.”

Sophie pulled her hand away and took a step back.

“Ah, I’m…”

Who is this guy?

Nervousness made Sophie’s fingertips clammy. He was strange.

Or maybe mocking her?

She was dressed plainly, like any servant. No noblewoman would dress like this. Not even a necklace.

“I’m Lady Yuria’s personal maid.”

The man, who had been staring into her eyes, seemed disappointed as he tucked one hand into his pocket.

“I see…”

He rummaged through his jacket and pulled out an ivory envelope with sharp edges—it looked freshly sealed.

“Young Master Kyler asked me to deliver this to the Lady.”

The envelope was faintly warm, likely from being kept close to his chest.

Sophie accepted it with a strange look.

“It’s an invitation. We’d have mailed it, but it was a last-minute decision, so I had to come in person.”

He gave a polite bow, smiling softly.

“My apologies for intruding like this.”

Holding both her hands, he smiled again, raising his brows ever so slightly.

His face, once gentle, now looked cunning—like a sly fox.

“I hope we meet again, if fate allows.”

As their eyes briefly met, she saw the most dazzling golden eyes she’d ever seen.

“…Yes.”

Sophie mumbled, watching him walk away.

She realized her grip on the envelope was too tight.

It felt like the fragile petals of a dried flower—ready to crumble at any moment.