Chapter 44

The Witch of Grief’s True Repayment

As I was gripped by that thought, His Highness Lian continued his explanation.

“Creating objects or energy from the void isn’t too difficult, but entering it… that’s quite a high level of skill. It took a month to construct the magic circle. And this is a one-time use. It’s inconvenient, with a complex magical structure and incantation—quite troublesome. Right now, I’m the only royal who can use it.”

“I-I see…”

So, if we got lost, no one could find us…

The more I thought about it, the more terrifying this magic seemed.

I recalled what His Highness Lian told me yesterday.

“My family, in addition to the Five Elemental Magics, developed special magics—known as light magic and dark magic.”

“My family are pioneers of special magic. We were greatly troubled by the king at the time who sought to exploit it… and so we rose up, I’ve heard. That was the Second Magic War, about four hundred years ago.”

The reason they won the Second Magic War and have maintained four hundred years of rule must be the absolute power of light and dark magic.
I haven’t yet heard about light magic’s abilities, but given the awe-inspiring nature of dark magic, light magic must be formidable too.

Everything is different from my era—Tsoabella.

Is it the Lumos Empire’s greatness?
Or has five hundred years of time advanced people and magic?

It felt like both, and I was trembling with apprehension when His Highness Lian spoke.

“We have about an hour until we arrive. …Since we’re here, shall we have a chat?”

True, there wasn’t much else to do…

(What’s outside the carriage window right now, anyway??)

The windows were covered with black curtains, but I was too scared to look.
It’d probably trigger a sanity check, so I decided not to peek. A wise choice.

I nodded once, and His Highness Lian smiled softly, as if relieved.

“Then, let’s continue yesterday’s conversation.”

After a brief pause, he asked me:

“Lady Felicia, about your time-leaping ability… is there anyone else who knows about it?”

“Someone who knows?”

I echoed, and he nodded in response.

“Yes. In the Lumos Empire, is there anyone who knows?”

His Highness Lian looked at me directly.

His serious gaze was almost painful—and for some reason, I felt I couldn’t afford to answer carelessly.

“…No. I didn’t even realize it myself until you pointed it out.”

“…I see, that’s good. So Lady Magnolia doesn’t know either?”

“Yes.”

At that moment, I recalled my conversation with the silver-haired girl, Magnolia, from yesterday.

“…Lady Magnolia told me about the charm unique magic placed on you.”

“—”

His Highness Lian caught his breath slightly.
In that instant, his honey-colored eyes slowly, over time, seemed to freeze.
From that reaction, I knew he avoided this topic.
And he likely avoided mentioning her name intentionally.

Still, I brought it up not for small talk.

It had occurred to me.
Right before I fell asleep last night.

Looking straight at His Highness Lian, I said:

“About dispelling the unique magic placed on you. In Tsoabella, five hundred years ago, it should be possible to dispel it.”

“That… may be true, but—”

His Highness Lian’s eyes widened in surprise for a moment, but he soon averted his gaze, speaking hesitantly.

“But in the Tsoabella Dynasty, they didn’t even know [Charm] unique magic existed. Would it be so easy to find a way to dispel it?”

“Indeed, not only the royals but most nobles were unaware of the existence of charm unique magic. But there are people who definitely knew.”

At that, His Highness Lian seemed to grasp my intent.
Frowning slightly, he continued my thought.

“Someone connected to the Abercrombie family, or the person themselves…”

I nodded in response.

“Come to think of it, in the Tsoabella Dynasty, the Abercrombie family held a ducal title, didn’t they?”

“Yes. …If it’s truly possible to return to five hundred years ago, infiltrating the Abercrombie Ducal House and checking their records might provide clues.”

That implied the danger of interacting with someone from the Abercrombie family.

The Abercrombie family was a key figure in sparking the First Magic War.
If they learned their unique magic would lead to Tsoabella’s downfall—
They might act preemptively, perhaps even killing Aaron Spender, who was destined to trigger the First Magic War.
If that happened, the First Magic War might not occur, and the Tsoabella Dynasty might not collapse.
As a result, the Lumos Empire might never be founded.

We don’t know what could alter the future.

“…It’s dangerous. One wrong move, and history could change. This empire itself could vanish.”

He must have realized the risk as well.
His Highness Lian said it clearly.

As a royal of the empire, choosing a path that could lead to the empire’s erasure—over dispelling the magic on himself—was likely not an option.

So, I smiled brightly.
With a bold, challenging grin, I told him:

“Have you forgotten my unique magic? My unique magic is [Presence Concealment]. …It’s the perfect skill for espionage!”