Chapter 26
Daphne, who opened her eyes, ended up in a state where she couldn’t get out of bed due to muscle pain, as expected.
It seems even harder to move her body than when she used it before.
‘It must be more painful because I absorbed the black magic directly.’
Of course, it was as expected.
[Daphne Akion]
Mana: 50
She hadn’t expected her mana to rise this much…….
‘But it’s good?’
At this level, she could probably cast magic a couple of times with her original power.
Now that the situation had turned out like this, she wondered if she should just go around looking for black mages from now on.
If she just absorbed their power, it seemed like she could gather enough mana.
But to go around looking for them or to absorb their power, she first needed to recover from the muscle pain that was dominating her entire body.
“Ugh.”
Ouch, this is killing me.
Daphne let out a groan and barely moved her hand to pick up the mana stone that Tate had given her before leaving.
Then, as if it were candy, she put it in her mouth and started crunching on it.
‘It tastes disgustingly bad.’
But she had no choice but to eat it like this to accumulate mana little by little. To return to how she was before, she needed to raise her mana much higher than now.
“Aigoo, my poor arms.”
Crunch, crunch. Daphne muttered while chewing the mana stone.
It was then.
“Milady!”
“Are you awake?”
Anne and Anna entered the room. The tray Anne was holding had a thick sandwich that fit in one hand and coffee. Daphne’s eyes sparkled as she reached out her hand.
“I was just getting hungry.”
“Yes, I thought you might be, so I brought it. Shall we wash your hands first?”
Anne wiped Daphne’s hands with a wet towel and continued.
“How is your body feeling?”
“It’s better.”
“But you look more haggard than before. It seems like the weight you gained has fallen off.”
Anne drooped the corners of her eyes.
“This incident was really dangerous. If something big had happened to you, milady, I would have been truly sad.”
Anne recalled the time when Daphne was carried in.
A pale white face with no color, traces of vomiting blood, and a body that didn’t move at all.
Because she looked no different from a corpse, Anne almost fainted.
To lose Lady Daphne again……. Just the thought was horrifying.
“It’s good to think of others, but I wish you would think of yourself first, milady.”
“Th…… That’s right.”
At the moment she discovered the bomb, she had absorbed the mana thinking of herself first, but since she couldn’t say that, Daphne just smiled awkwardly.
“Anne. You shouldn’t say that. What milady accomplished this time is such a great thing.”
Anna interjected with a slight reprimand.
“There are countless people milady saved. Everyone is praising milady. Don’t you see those piled-up letters? Unlike before when it was dead quiet, they’re desperate to invite milady.”
Then, pointing to the letters stacked like a mountain on the table, she continued.
“I like it now. It feels like everyone recognizes milady’s heart.”
Usually, Anna didn’t smile much compared to Anne. But now she was smiling. While looking at Daphne.
“You did well, milady.”
“…….”
Daphne thought something felt strange.
Should she say that one corner of her chest felt ticklish.
Was it because she had never received such praise and worry from another being besides herself, not even from humans.
Because she had never heard the words ‘You did well.’…….
Daphne suddenly thought that this moment wasn’t bad. Daphne felt the smile rising on her lips and took a deep breath.
“You said there are letters?”
“Yes. I just collected them since reading might be hard for you right now, but would you like to see them?”
“Bring them out.”
Anne picked out a few from the piled letters and handed them to Daphne.
The sender’s name was that of a noble who had been at the Finch Marquisate during the terror incident.
The contents of the letters were all similar.
Thanks to Daphne, their lives were saved, the child wants to meet Lady Daphne and say thank you, they won’t forget this grace, please visit the mansion sometime……. such words of gratitude.
It felt different from when she received thanks from the merchants before.
She was just happy.
The fact that her goodwill could be reciprocated.
The fact that she was accepted without being rejected.
Daphne muttered while feeling various emotions bubbling up softly.
“It’s truly strange. Causality……. I didn’t think it could be severed so easily.”
If Celus was a ‘calamity,’ then this body of Daphne’s is nothing.
In other words, calamity or whatever, it doesn’t matter, and that’s why she can receive full treatment.
“How futile.”
The moments when the people she had saved with all her might turned around and blamed Daphne flashed through her mind.
But now it’s okay.
Because she received so many letters of gratitude that could cover those memories.
And from now on, even more…….
Daphne suppressed the slightly overwhelming emotions and lifted her head.
“Ah, milady. Shall we go back to the annex now? The doctor said it’s okay to move.”
Anne asked while handing Daphne the coffee.
This place is the main building of the grand duke’s residence. It was because they judged it unreasonable to send the collapsed Daphne to the annex where there were few servants.
“I’ve warmed up the room. What would you like to do?”
Anne added.
“Hmm.”
Daphne pondered for a moment while munching on the sandwich, then shook her head.
“No. I’ll stay here a few more days.”
“Yes? Why?”
“Probably…….”
Daphne, who sucked the sauce off her fingertip, looked out the window and grinned.
“A guest will come.”
***
The hooting of an owl under the moonlight in the quiet night.
An unfamiliar shadow seeps into the vast garden of the grand duke’s residence.
Regardless of the direction of the light, the shadow advancing little by little forward carries the aura of death.
Swish, swish, passing through the shadows of trees, passing through the shadows cast on walls, even passing through the shadows of the knights guarding the mansion, the aura of death is slowly ascending to the second floor.
Unlike the annex, which is covered with all sorts of magic circles, the main building of the grand duke’s mansion has almost no security facilities.
Isn’t residing there the empire’s foremost sword master, Heros Akion, the best security in itself?
He is a person with such developed senses that he can hear the rustling of fallen leaves from a hundred meters away.
That’s why there were hardly any beings targeting the Akion Grand Duke’s residence in the first place. To the extent that the saying “If you want to die as soon as you breathe, go there.” is openly circulating.
However, today was different. Now that Heros had been called to the imperial palace for the black magic terror and chimera investigation. The main building was more defenseless than ever.
‘I have to kill that brat before she returns to the annex.’
The one harboring the aura of death, the black mage targeting Daphne Akion, muttered lowly.
It would be a headache if Daphne returned to the annex. The annex had an incredible barrier that was rumored to be impenetrable even by a dragon. That’s why when assassinating Daphne before, they targeted when the child came to the main building.
‘I definitely killed her.’
She wasn’t breathing, I confirmed her heart had stopped, and I manipulated everyone’s memories.
But they say she’s alive.
‘How on earth?’
Failing the mission means death, but the leader gave him another chance. The chance to properly dispose of Daphne Akion.
‘This time for sure!’
If he misses this time, there won’t be another chance!
The black mage, who hid his body in the shadow of the door crack and entered the room, expanded his vision. Then he spotted the bed. It seemed like Daphne was lying there, given the bulging part.
The black mage quickly wrapped the aura of death around his right hand. The aura, sharpened like a keen blade, would rot the opponent’s flesh just by touching it.
“Die!”
He thrust his hand aiming at the heart of Daphne lying on the bed. At the same time, he released the aura of death.
He planned to completely dig out the heart.
Then, no matter what, she wouldn’t survive.
As before, since Daphne was inherently frail and had no abilities, he thought this attack would naturally work.
But his thought was spectacularly wrong.
“Bind him.”
Swish!
The shadow rising from the floor climbed up the black mage’s body.
“You foolish human.”
The shadow grabbed his neck tightly and lifted him into the air.
“This is how you use magic.”
Gak, keuk! The black mage struggled and tried to push away the shadow, but it was futile.
From the beginning, the subject of this magic was Daphne, that is, the black dragon
“H-how…….!”
The black mage shouted with a face pale as if he had seen a ghost, but Daphne was calm.
“I am a great being.”
A cold moonlight settled in Daphne’s pupils.
“Now, let’s have a conversation.”
☆▪︎▪︎☆▪︎▪︎☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
By Anna 💓
