CHAPTER 17 –
A Fleeting Moment
In that fleeting moment, Roziana thought.
Using forbidden magic gradually destroys the soul, ultimately erasing one’s very existence.
‘It’s forbidden because it’s that dangerous. What kind of idiot keeps using it?’
What could be the purpose of using dark magic at such a tremendous cost?
‘Not just once, but twice now.’
From the imperial palace a few days ago to the current Grand Duke’s residence—what are the odds that dark magic would be used twice in places she happened to be?
This felt like…
‘I’m being targeted.’
The newly born Princess Roziana was desired by the Holy Kingdom of Graham as a prophesied saint.
Nox, deeply connected to dragons, had chosen Roziana as Erika’s reincarnation.
‘But if I’m the target, why did the intruder just pass by my room at the palace last time?’
It would’ve been the easiest time to deal with her, being just a newborn then.
‘Am I overthinking things?’
The absence of Nox’s telepathic voice in this moment of danger also felt suspicious.
‘Something feels really wrong about this.’
Her witch’s intuition, once again stirred, was telling her that the world around her was turning with massive interlocking gears.
Who had orchestrated this grand scheme?
‘This won’t do. Completing the contract with Nox is important, but I need to get to the bottom of all this too.’
If she was being used for a specific purpose, she had to uncover it—starting now.
In truth, she was a simple and honest witch.
‘If I’m curious, I should ask.’
Roziana shouted toward the eerie, dark shadow of death.
“Who are you?!”
The intruder, draped in black from head to toe, revealed himself like a ghost.
“What do you want?”
A suffocating, powerful black energy surged forth just from his approach.
‘Evil creature. Must’ve sacrificed at least dozens of lives.’
The more sacrifices offered, the stronger the power of dark magic becomes.
The intruder approached without answering her question.
Well, of course they wouldn’t answer so easily.
‘Do I need to possess someone’s body again like last time?’
Possessing Mari like she did with Fiona would be useful, but Mari was nowhere to be seen. And using Matthew… she wasn’t sure if they shared five common traits to enable a possession.
At that moment, the intruder stopped abruptly.
Roziana’s eyes widened at the unexpected figure blocking her view.
A slender figure, arms and legs outstretched in front of her, clothed in pure white from head to toe.
“I- Ijef?”
She was sure everyone besides her had fainted from the intense dark energy.
Or so she thought.
Yet here Ijef stood, trembling so hard his tunic shook, fully conscious!
“You! How are you even awake?!”
“Y-Your Highness, I-I will p-protect you.”
Wow.
A gentle priest who wouldn’t even hurt a bug was now standing up to a terrifying intruder to protect her.
Even though he stuttered in fear.
‘This guy… seriously…’
At that moment, the intruder lunged straight at Ijef.
“No!”
As Roziana shouted, Ijef’s holy power instinctively burst from his body in response to the sudden attack.
Blinding light and the deathly darkness clashed mid-air.
“Nova!”
At Roziana’s call, a small, yellow divine beast appeared before her eyes.
The cute, bird-shaped griffin let out a screech and flapped its wings fiercely, generating a strong wind that blew the black mist off Ijef.
But that was its limit. The griffin vanished immediately.
“Ijef!”
Thick gray smoke began to rise from the slender priest’s body.
“Your… High… ness…”
With ragged breathing, Ijef collapsed before Roziana. His pale white skin now charred like ashes.
“…I… protected…”
“Shhh.”
Roziana gently placed her small hand over the bleeding lips of the priest.
“That’s enough.”
The fact that he stood against the darkness with such a fragile body was more than enough for Roziana.
“From now on, you’re mine.”
So I’ll protect you.
A three-year-old girl stepped down from the table to face the intruder.
‘This guy… he’s different from the one at the palace, isn’t he?’
Last time, she had used Fiona’s body to deal with the intruder, who had clearly spoken—he was human. Meaning, someone had granted a human dark powers and sent them to the palace.
But this one… wasn’t human.
A being of pure darkness with no language. A forbidden existence itself.
‘No way… is this a demon?’
Even after clashing directly with Ijef’s holy power and the young griffin’s attack, this dark being remained unfazed.
Still cloaked in a black hood and cape, it exuded only murderous intent.
‘Whatever it is, my body’s still too small. I don’t have nearly enough power to summon my dragon abilities.’
What about her witch’s power?
Despite being only three years old, she circulated mana through her inner circle.
Ijef would now realize she could use extraordinary power—but that didn’t matter.
He had already risked his life for her.
‘To fight dark magic, I need even stronger darkness.’
There’d be a cost, but it was the best option now.
Roziana chanted a spell she had created centuries ago.
From her small, lovely lips came a terrifying incantation.
“Daku Sedou, Naegeru Ora.”
(Dark Shadow, descend upon me.)
The space trembled violently.
While the intruder flinched in surprise—
Roziana threw the fork she had been gripping tightly in her hand.
As the fork flew, black shadows swirled around it like snakes.
The dark being spread his own black aura in response.
“Kiieek!”
The fork struck the center of the aura, unleashing a horrific scream and a sickening stench that swept through the air.
‘Not yet!’
Roziana kept drawing in more mana.
“J-Just a little more!”
Her small, three-year-old body began to levitate from the swirling mana.
Clatter. Clatter.
The elegant tableware on the banquet table and items in the guest room began to tremble and fall.
Finally, when she reached the mana level she needed, Roziana shouted in one breath:
“Sedou, devour!”
The black snake form that had pierced the intruder opened its massive jaws and swallowed the dark entity whole.
Crunch. Crunch.
Kuaaaagh.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
With a chilling scream and the reek of dozens of rotting corpses, the black being turned to ash and vanished.
“Ugh!”
Her small body hit the floor as she coughed up blood, her mana now spent.
“Y-Your Highness!”
Ijef’s desperate voice rang in her ears.
Mari and Matthew, now awake, rushed toward her.
‘Thank goodness…’
Swaying—
Relieved, Roziana immediately lost consciousness and collapsed.
“Thank you for answering the letter.”
A low, dry voice reached Edwin.
He was now facing the sender of the letter—someone he hadn’t seen for what felt like an eternity.
He knew this was the Hallucination Mountain, Secret Fog.
And he knew the fog here could conjure magical illusions.
So as soon as he entered the mountain, he used his ability to nullify the effects.
Zzzing—
The red earring on his ear vibrated and glowed—proof that his ability to cancel magic was active.
And yet, through the thick fog, stood a figure who looked like his beloved childhood friend.
Tenebres.
Illusion or delusion, just seeing Tenebres’ form made his eyes sting.
‘How?’
Edwin used his ability twice: once upon entering the mountain, and again upon encountering the letter’s sender.
There was ample time between uses, and the opponent should be unable to use magic for a while.
So what to make of someone who looked exactly like the friend he longed for?
‘Could it be that… this is their real appearance?’
He couldn’t see clearly through the fog, but it definitely looked like young Tenebres.
‘If I could get a little closer, I might be sure…’
So Edwin demanded:
“Come closer and prove what’s written in the letter.”
And at that moment—
Crack!
The red magic stone earring shattered into dust.
“!”
The medium of his ability was destroyed.
Without it, he could no longer confirm whether what he saw was real or an illusion.
“Ha!”
A scoff escaped the handsome tower master’s face.
To break an enchanted earring so easily… this person was no ordinary individual.
‘They were prepared for my ability.’
Someone was likely helping this figure from afar—so far Edwin couldn’t even sense them.
And they even knew the earring was the key to his ability.
Edwin’s eyes were now filled with caution.
The boy who looked like Tenebres held out an old box.
“!”
A white wooden box with red stripes.
Edwin recognized the wood immediately.
‘Birchwood that only grows in the Witch’s Forest!’
A place hidden by witch’s magic, only accessible to the chosen.
Tenebres’ image overlapped in Edwin’s mind.
The friend who had once proudly shown him a gift box from Erika, centuries ago.
This was undoubtedly Tenebres’ relic.
“The piece I brought is the handle of the broken cup.”
The boy, still looking like young Tenebres, met Edwin’s eyes as he spoke.
As he handed the box to Edwin—
[Something terrible has happened.]
A telepathic message from Nox, still at the Grand Duke’s house, reached Asterios.
—What’s wrong?—
Asterios sent a thought-message in return, though the distance made it magically draining.
[She summoned Dark Shadow.]
—!—
Asterios’ heart sank.
‘Why would she resort to using dark magic?’
[There was an intruder.]
Asterios’ face hardened.
‘Then I shouldn’t be here meeting Edwin!’
He had entrusted Roziana’s safety to Nox—but Nox, being bound to Roziana, was currently without a physical form.
He had even strengthened security and stationed Mari, a top-tier knight, at her side.
So how had they let things escalate to the point Roziana used dark magic?
—What’s her condition now?—
[She’s hanging in there… but likely hurt.]
—And everyone else? What were they doing?!—
[The intruders used dark magic.]
Asterios’ eyes darkened.
So there wasn’t just one intruder.
And the deadly aura must have knocked out even the magically gifted knights.
[While I blocked most of them… one got through.]
‘Damn it!’
No time to listen further.
He needed to wrap up this deal and return to the Grand Duke’s house immediately.
“I ask that, in return for the box, you no longer interfere in the Dreart Imperial family’s affairs.”
Asterios rushed to make his request to Edwin.
Edwin frowned at the absurd demand. No choice? No negotiation?
“The Imperial family? That’s not so easy. I’m actually about to be engaged to—”
“That engagement should be reconsidered.”
“…What?”
But Asterios didn’t wait to hear the rest.
Edwin’s brow furrowed in anger, but Asterios had already turned his back.
“Wait! Who are you?!”
But the figure had vanished—leaving Edwin alone.
As if no one had been there at all.
Edwin looked down at the wooden box in his hand.
It was proof.
It hadn’t been an illusion.
