Chapter 8

‘Maybe I should just kill everyone and become a calamity.’

Just before he completely lost his mind, by some twist of fate, Melody appeared.

In the early morning, when everyone else was asleep, Deonis headed to the Duchess’s room. The room was dark. On one wall hung a portrait of a woman with silver hair like his.

Fiona Theodel Valkaras.

The Great Reformer of the Empire.

That was the title used to refer to Deonis’s mother.

Born at the cost of his mother’s life, Deonis inherited the duty to ascend the throne and the mission to fulfill what Fiona had left undone.

To meet countless expectations, he endured a strict upbringing. It was harsh to the point of cruelty for a child, yet even that wasn’t enough to live up to his mother’s legacy.

And on the 13th anniversary of Fiona’s death, Deonis awakened his magical powers.

“Your Highness, are you all right? You look…”

“Ah… Aaargh… AAAAARGH!!”

The pain began in his heart and spread throughout his entire body. A sensation of his body rejecting the holy barrier. When he finally opened his eyes, free from the agony, Deonis realized the truth—he had become a mage.

“The incarnation sent by the god of darkness to destroy the world.”

“A monster who massacred hundreds of innocent imperial citizens.”

“A tribe destined to fall into madness and eventually become demons.”

He had long been familiar with the rumors surrounding mages.

“Born by killing his own mother, punished by the goddess…”

If this was the punishment he received for taking his mother’s life, he wanted to trade his life to bring hers back.

Instead of guilt for becoming a mage, what took root in his heart was rage. An anger directed at the goddess—why had she given him such a curse?

At first, people looked at him with pity. But with time, they began to treat him like a mere beast. Even those close to him were no exception.

“Nanny.”

“D-Don’t come near me, Your Highness. I—I don’t want to die. Please.”

It wasn’t truly living. He only endured because he had to survive.

So how could he describe the emotion he felt when he saw a mage walking freely within the holy barrier, without pain?

“They say she obtained a strange magical tool. From some girl.”

It vanished in an instant, turned to ashes—but the fleeting sensation he felt was unmistakable: liberation from that wretched pain.

Naturally, he became determined to find it, even if he had to tear the world apart.

And the answer was very close. Brazenly within the Temple of Light. Hidden within the goddess’s domain.

As Deonis was lost in thought, he suddenly saw a woman outside the window and began walking toward her.

“What are you doing?”

Startled by Deonis, Melody lowered her head and replied.

“Uh… photosynthesis.”

“At night?”

“My days and nights are flipped. I thought I’d soak in some moonlight.”

She was heading toward the castle wall. It was clear what she was thinking. Probably searching for a hole to escape through.

“That’s the outer wall.”

“Yes, it’s tall. I’m just sightseeing. This is my first time living in a castle.”

She was glancing around nervously and groveling. It was clear she was thinking about escaping. Was she naïve? Or maybe… cute?

“Why? Thinking of climbing over?”

“If I break the contract… it’ll hurt a lot, right? I mean, just hitting my hand with a hammer hurts.”

“You won’t die.”

“Do you think I could act all fine like you, Duke?”

“…No. Pain never gets easier.”

Her green eyes looked at him, filled with sympathy. Strangely, that gaze didn’t bother him.

Deonis turned to the knights and said,

“Someone said they found a dog hole on the north wall. Check it out.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The next day, Deonis found Melody loitering by the north wall.

“There’s no ‘dog hole’—we’ve decided to call it an ant hole.”

At her grumbling over the tiny hole, he chuckled softly.

She was a funny woman. Constantly catching his attention.

Maybe she was a new chance, sent by the goddess. But sometimes, the hope she brought felt like it was corroding him from the inside—and he wanted to kill her, just to erase it.

He didn’t want to drown in empty hope.

Watching Melody walk away, Deonis let out a hollow breath.

“Another failure today.”

It had been a week since Melody arrived at the duke’s estate. This was her thirty-first failure.

“I’ll be leaving to subjugate monsters soon.”

Deonis spoke while brushing the crumbled magic core dust off his hands.

“It’d be nice if something was complete by the time I return. I don’t care how hideous it looks.”

“‘Hideous’ is a bit harsh. I just focused on function over form.”

Melody recalled the magic formula of her failed prototype. She didn’t care about appearance. Even when she worked at the temple, people often said her creations weren’t exactly pretty enough for a vanity table.

God had given her a brain and dexterous hands—but not aesthetic sense or physical coordination. A person couldn’t have everything.

“Well, how long will you be gone?”

At her blunt question, Deonis smirked and replied,

“A month.”

Monster hunting was dangerous, but he’d be fine. He had exceptional swordsmanship and felt no pain outside the holy barrier.

Anna would probably miss seeing Deonis’s perfect face. Thinking such thoughts, she found herself staring at it again when Deonis spoke meaningfully.

“You’d better not think about running away.”

“We have a contract, don’t we?”

“The contract is written in rune script. You might figure out a way. I know how that smart brain works.”

“You’re right. Why didn’t I think of that?”

Why hadn’t she thought to alter someone else’s magic device? Excited, Melody began muttering the rune phrases likely used in the contract when Deonis warned her again.

“Don’t even try it. Unless you want everyone who helps you escape to be crippled.”

“I’d be the one running. Why go after innocent people?”

“Because they’re innocent, they’d only be crippled. Otherwise, I’d kill them. Take care while I’m gone. I’ve never left anything behind before, and it bothers me.”

Melody shook her head, dumbfounded, then held up two fingers.

“My room and the workshop. I’ll only be in those two places.”

After replying, she immediately returned to the workshop to think of ways to modify the contract’s magic. That’s when she heard the sound of hooves outside.

Melody opened the window and leaned out. A lavish, gold-trimmed carriage was racing through the gate.

Six horses. A royal carriage. From the imperial palace.

Anna, excited, tugged on her sleeve.

“Oh my, it’s the Crown Prince’s carriage. What brings him here without any notice?”

A bell rang—the signal for the servants to gather.

“There’s no need to dismount. The way back to the palace is that way.”

When she went outside with Anna, Deonis was already there, as if waiting to greet the guest.

Despite Deonis’s cold reception, the crown prince, Ryan, firmly stepped onto the ground.

Melody lowered her head but glanced at him briefly.

His pale blue hair fluttered in the breeze, and his eyes were a misty gray, like a clouded sky. His sharp jaw gave him a firm impression. He looked like a prince straight out of a fairy tale.