Chapter 91
The news of Davin Ainluk’s recovery rippled through the capital like a shockwave.
By coincidence, it became the hot topic at the Magia hideout as well.
“He really pulled it off. I’m truly at a loss for words beyond how extraordinary it is…”
Sierra exclaimed in admiration as she read the newspaper, and Glaster chimed in.
“As expected, the Tower Lord always comes through.”
It was the kind of response you’d expect from a devoted follower.
I glanced at the paper myself. There was no mention of me anywhere.
“It’s best to keep the fact that you’re a beast tamer a secret for now. Now that we know Father was targeted by a sorcerer, you could become a target too.”
Alferen had preemptively blocked any situation that might put me in danger.
I agreed there was no immediate need to reveal that I was a beast tamer, so I went along with his decision.
Still, one thing gnawed at me.
If it’s a sorcerer, then it has to be someone close to the imperial consort.
In the original story, there was a figure who always took the lead whenever Empress Rosaria did something villainous.
A man who usually disguised himself as a traveling merchant, working behind the scenes to bolster the empress’s influence.
It had to be the same sorcerer.
To think that man tried to kill Lord Davin.
With that thread pulled, the long-forgotten latter parts of the original story finally came flooding back.
The reason Nanael had no choice but to poison Alferen.
It was because he had discovered that the empress was connected to his father’s death.
After Lord Davin’s death, a sorcery circle was found on the ice dragon’s corpse—that was the trigger.
This time, Lord Davin hadn’t died, but Ordel had provided the clue.
I wonder how Empress Rosaria will react.
The newspapers were already plastered with headlines about Davin Ainluk’s miraculous recovery.
The empress would surely do anything to cover her tracks.
She can’t have Nanael poison him this time. So then…
My gaze naturally drifted to Edwin.
The one who might have created the poison that killed Alferen.
I was the only one who knew that, in the original story, the empress had been behind him.
But how did Edwin come to know the empress in the first place?
It wouldn’t have been easy for an illegitimate child to meet royalty.
I had watched him closely just in case, but I had never seen him in contact with her.
Could I have been wrong?
Edwin’s role as the empress’s shadow assassin wasn’t revealed until the middle of the original story.
What if, by some chance, he wasn’t yet working for her?
She might approach Edwin soon.
The thought made Edwin seem especially suspicious today.
I casually spoke to him as he fidgeted with his clothes in front of the mirror.
“Got a date or something?”
He was dressed far more carefully than usual, which prompted the question.
Edwin glanced away from the mirror and answered offhandedly.
“Yeah. I’ve got a very important meeting.”
“With who?”
“The person I love.”
The moment he answered with uncharacteristic seriousness,
Wait—did he run into Summer?!
Shocked, my eyes widened.
I had been so preoccupied with Alferen that I hadn’t paid any attention to Edwin.
The idea that he might cause trouble now filled me with dread.
Just then, Sierra folded the newspaper and said,
“Ah. You must be going to meet Lord Pierre.”
“Right. He’s staying in the capital for a while, so I’m going to greet him. We’ve arranged for him to stay at our house while he’s here.”
Edwin spoke proudly as he retied his cravat.
It was a relief that the person he was meeting wasn’t Summer.
Pierre… it can’t be the sorcerer I know, right?
A far worse premonition crept over me. The empress’s closest confidant—the sorcerer—was named Pierre.
Trying to sound casual, I asked,
“Who is this Lord Pierre?”
“Sierra says he’s the one who looked after Edwin when he was young.”
Edwin elaborated.
“Lord Pierre is like a father to me. If it weren’t for him, I’d have died long ago.”
What? Did Edwin just use someone’s name properly?
In the original story, the only person he ever addressed by name was Summer.
What do I do? He must really be precious to him!
My heart pounded.
Come on. There are plenty of people with the same name.
I desperately tried to rationalize that this Pierre was just a namesake, not the one I knew, when Sierra drove the final nail in.
“He’s a traveling merchant who wanders the continent. While running the Magia club, we often received help from him. He frequently shared information about magical plants and creatures.”
“Hahaha…”
I let out a hollow, soulless laugh.
Ha ha, ha ha. This was bad.
Contrary to my hopes, this Pierre was definitely that Pierre.
Edwin looked at me strangely.
“Celig seems especially odd today. Must be hungry.”
“It’s not Celig, it’s Delly. And you’re the weirdest one here—don’t talk.”
Sierra immediately corrected him and offered me bread.
“Want some?”
You and Edwin are just the same.
I took the bread from Sierra and let out a deep sigh.
How am I supposed to handle this?
The person most precious to Edwin was, to me, an enemy I’d gladly tear apart.
The likely scenario was clear.
The one who had connected Edwin—after he killed his family—to the empress had to be Pierre.
So that’s how he caught the empress’s eye—Pierre was the link.
If it was a request from the guardian who had saved his life, Edwin would have followed it without question.
Never dreaming that it would one day grieve Summer.
If only Summer had known and stopped him beforehand.
Unfortunately, in the original story, Summer only learned of Edwin’s involvement after Alferen’s death, which became the reason she pushed him even further away.
Even though the original plot was already a tangled mess, the critical turning points were still unfolding as scheduled.
Soon Edwin and Summer will cross paths.
If, like in the original, Summer didn’t remember Edwin, his descent into darkness would be all but guaranteed.
This won’t do. I have to make Summer remember Edwin!
My beloved Alferen was in danger—how could I, as his lover, just sit by?
I headed straight to the magic tower to see Summer.
* * *
The top floor of the magic tower.
A place only the Tower Lord was permitted to enter. Alferen and Davin stepped inside together.
“So you kept it all this time.”
Davin stared coldly at the ice dragon’s corpse.
Most monsters were magical flora and fauna that had been corrupted by demonic energy after failing to cross into the human realm.
Among them, high-level magical creatures like dragons were nothing short of catastrophic.
Back when beast tamers still existed, dragons could be reverse-summoned before turning dark, keeping damage relatively low. But now, beast tamers were extinct.
As a result, whenever a monster appeared, the four great ducal houses were responsible for subjugating it.
Six years ago, the ice dragon that had been in eternal slumber awakened and rampaged through the northern territory under the jurisdiction of House Ravernin.
At the time, Duke Ravernin’s affinity was the worst possible match for the ice dragon, so Davin had no choice but to join the subjugation.
The moment Davin pierced the ice dragon’s heart, a trap spell activated.
There had been much talk about the incident.
Ice dragons were magical creatures that wielded mana.
Because mages and ice dragons shared the same fundamental power, it was relatively easy for them to read each other’s moves.
Failing to detect a trap spell was the kind of mistake only a novice mage would make.
Yet the Tower Lord—and head of the prestigious Ainluk magical family—had fallen for such a rudimentary trick.
Many had pitied Davin at the time, but just as many had quietly mocked House Ainluk for the elementary error.
Davin clenched his fist tightly.
“That wasn’t the ice dragon’s power. I couldn’t sense any movement of mana at all.”
