Chapter 28:
“Why? Did something happen?”
“What is it?? Why do you look like that?”
As soon as viewers saw Elysia’s serious expression, the chat flooded with question marks. She quickly shared the contents of the warning window with everyone.
“A warning just popped up… Apparently, Frillien might appear earlier than expected? Hmm…”
Elysia rested her chin in her hand.
‘This is a troublesome situation.’
Having played many games before, Elysia had a good grasp of how this ecosystem worked.
Whenever an event occurred, it would inevitably be linked to a quest.
In other words, the main character making an appearance meant another main quest was about to be triggered!
With a grim expression, Elysia muttered to herself,
“I haven’t even dealt with the Crown Prince properly yet… and now the real protagonist shows up?”
“Why did she say ‘deal with’ the Crown Prince LMAO”
“She sounds like a full-on villain 😂😂😂”
“She is the villainess tho lol”
“I just hope this doesn’t end up in a hassle where I have to juggle two main quests at once.”
Fortunately, the good news was that it was still just a warning—it wasn’t happening right this moment.
That meant she still had some time.
“But still, why is the protagonist’s appearance being pushed up in the first place?”
Now that she thought about it, something felt off.
From what she’d researched via the chat, the protagonist had a fixed entry point—set time, set date.
…The protagonist of this story is the Saintess.
She was foretold by the temple to appear on a specific date, and so the temple would offer her its protection.
Before her appearance, the authority of the clergy was weak, but once she arrived, it would surge dramatically.
A real-life saintess with the power to heal others—Frillien!
And to top it all off, she’d have even the royals, nobles, and mages alike falling for her!
The whole world would have its eyes on her!
“Of course I’m watching closely too! Ha, I wanna get close to her!”
As Elysia pondered, she spoke up with a serious face,
“Ssshh… You usually need a healer when hunting monsters. Maybe I should try asking her to join my party?”
“LMAOOOOO”
“Girl this isn’t that kind of game 😂”
“She’s treating the FL like a rare NPC recruit 😂”
“Of course, I do have some healing skills myself, but it’s standard practice to include a dedicated healer in your party. It just slipped out, habitually…”
Elysia licked her lips, clearly a bit disappointed—as if she genuinely saw Frillien as a potential recruitable teammate.
“Anyway, Frillien really is that exceptional.”
The Saintess—the world’s beloved protagonist.
“She’s bound to cause a stir when she shows up, but I don’t even know how to prepare for it.”
Elysia flicked through her alert windows and muttered,
“Also, when is the support center ever going to come back online? I’m working my butt off here!”
Ever since the last main quest, the system had only responded with: “The support center is temporarily unavailable. ㅠ.ㅠ”
“I mean… it’s not going to be gone forever, right?”
Elysia had sworn to kill the admin once they returned.
“Still… please come back. Just a little scolding. I promise it’ll be light.”
Just as she was fiddling with the chat window with a wistful expression, there came a knock at her door.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
“Yes? Who is it? If it’s a delivery, just leave it at the door—”
Elysia instinctively started answering before clamping her mouth shut.
‘Ah, right. This isn’t Korea. That was close.’
Someone outside might’ve overheard that and found it suspicious. And sure enough, an angry voice rang out from beyond the door.
“Elysia Sempherion! Why is your door locked again?”
“…Huh?”
What? That voice sounded so familiar—yet completely unexpected.
An uninvited guest had shown up. The voice just now belonged to none other than…
‘The Duke of Sempherion?!’
Why on earth was he knocking on her door? The same man who avoided even seeing her outside of mealtimes?
Her hesitation must’ve lasted a bit too long, because the Duke’s angry voice followed again.
“…Your father has returned home, and yet you don’t even show your face to greet him?”
‘Why all of a sudden?!’
Elysia looked utterly dumbfounded.
“Didn’t he never greet her either?? Hypocrite much”
“He did drag her out of the carriage yelling last time tho lol”
In any case, if she stayed holed up in her room, he’d definitely blow up again. Elysia sighed and cautiously cracked the door open.
“…What is it, Father?”
“I heard you just returned from the Mage Tower.”
The Duke was still in his outdoor attire. It seemed he too had gone out while she was away.
Apparently, as soon as he returned and heard she’d come back from the Tower, he made a beeline for her room.
Elysia tilted her head.
‘Was he curious about what happened to me there?’
Well, of course he would be. He’d want to know what kind of results she got.
Maybe he was wondering if she’d been officially acknowledged as a mage.
In a dry voice, Elysia replied,
“You could’ve asked me at dinner. I didn’t expect you to come all the way here.”
Wasn’t that his usual approach? Asking questions only at mealtimes? She truly hadn’t expected him to show up at her door.
But at her words, the Duke responded with a hint of surprise.
“…Were you planning to come to dinner?”
“Huh?”
Now that she thought about it, she hadn’t joined any family meals since she stormed out, swinging her napkin.
She’d stayed in her room, only accepting food deliveries.
He must’ve assumed she’d continue doing that, hence coming here himself.
‘Well, I still don’t want to eat with them, honestly.’
Even though her reply had been reflexive, Elysia still disliked eating with her family. The awkward tension and poisoned atmosphere were too hard to swallow.
‘And besides, he was the one who argued with me this morning. Why should I be the one groveling?’
That’s right. She’d almost forgotten, but they’d had a heated argument before she left for the Tower.
“No, I wasn’t planning on coming to dinner. I’m too tired today. The tests at the Tower drained all my mana—I’m totally exhausted.”
“…”
“So I locked the door to get some rest. I didn’t even know you’d come by.”
‘That should be a good enough excuse for not coming out to greet him, right?’
Now that she’d explained herself, she hoped he would just leave.
Elysia lowered her gaze, putting on a worn-out expression—like someone totally drained from overwork.
It was practically a strategy to keep him from scolding or questioning her further…
“…Actually, I heard something on the way back.”
But the Duke didn’t seem ready to leave just yet.
Still, Elysia’s excuse of being tired seemed to have softened his approach. His voice was calmer now. He stayed outside the door and added,
“You’ve officially been recognized as a mage, haven’t you?”
“…You already heard?”
She hadn’t even told the maids yet.
‘Well, I guess it’s not really a secret anyway.’
Plenty of mages had witnessed her test today. Jerome likely informed the palace immediately, and the Duke, as her guardian, must’ve been informed as well. If she started visiting the Tower regularly, the news would be out regardless.
“…Yes. Another mage in our family. It’s something to be proud of. Well done.”
‘…Hah?’
Was that supposed to be a compliment? And yet again, dragging the family name into it?
Without meaning to, Elysia’s tone turned sharp.
“No. I didn’t do this because I wanted praise.”
“…Elysia!”
“I didn’t do it for the family’s honor either.”
She pressed on without hesitation.
“Father, even after our argument this morning, you’re still the same. If I fail, I disgrace the family. If I succeed, it’s the family’s pride. I told you—I hate that way of thinking.”
The Duke clearly hadn’t expected her to talk back like this, and fell silent on the other side of the door. Elysia sighed and continued,
“I’ll be resting now.”
“Wait.”
Sensing she was about to shut the door, the Duke spoke again.
“…Fine, I understand. You succeeded, and that honor is yours.”
There was a faint sigh in his voice. For the first time, he seemed to yield, just a little. Elysia froze at that subtle shift.
“Congratulations on becoming a mage.”
“…”
“I know you’ve wanted this for a long time.”
Elysia stood frozen, not looking back.
It was hard to tell how sincere he was. Was he proud only now that he saw the results? Was he only now recognizing her as his daughter because of her abilities?
Or… was he genuinely happy for her success?
Still, there was one thing she was certain of:
“I know you’ve wanted this for a long time.”
So the original Elysia… had always dreamed of becoming a mage.
Somehow, that dream felt bittersweet. Elysia couldn’t find the words to reply and closed her mouth.
The setting sun cast long, amber shadows across her face.
