In the beginning, magic was a weapon made for war. Now, when the Empire devoured most of the territory and reigned as the master of the continent, it was developing mainly for practical purposses rather than military purposses.
However, even if the use changes, the essence does not change.
Magic is a murder weapon.
Whatever it is, it shows its true power only when it is used for a purpose close to its essence.
And Arthur Emers knows that all too well.
As Arthur stretched out his hand toward the Count, a pillar of earth rose again. The thick, pointed pillars did not simply block the Count’s front, but attacked one of his legs, limiting his actions. A deafening scream echoed through the forest. Birds resting in the trees were startled and flew into the sky with a rustling sound.
“Hey, this kid… my legs! Aww! Ahhh-!”
Count Nigor cried and shouted. He reached for his leg, where he felt terrible pain, but didn’t dare touch it.
Arthur looked down at the man, howling like a beast. I used to feel a little guilty about hurting people.
But today, strangely, when I heard the man’s scream, I couldn’t think of anything. No sympathy, no guilt.
Only calmness for no reason remains in my heart.
‘Why?’
The boy looked at his hand expressionlessly.
‘Why doesn’t I feel anything when he’s like that?’
Arthur used minimal magic to subdue his opponents whenever he helped his mother. It was extremely rare for blood to splatter like this one, and even if it did, he didn’t want to hurt his opponent. Arthur, who was worried, suddenly remembered the face of a maid.
‘Layla Hanson….’
Yes, I think it was all because of her.
The girl who showed me the cat and smiled, the girl that barely touched his chest, the girl who hid in the bushes and cried so sadly that the hearts of those who watched it… He was maddened when she told him that she had suffered terribly.
Arthur frowned and bit his lip.
‘She said she suffered because she were locked up in a dungeon. Had I known it would, I would have taken her out sooner. I stayed still, thinking that if she was locked up there she would not be able to get out of the mansion. I, why did I do that? Then it didn’t happen… Damn it….’
And, along with the guilt, I felt that I wanted to make the person who made her feel the same pain to the point of death. I wanted to crush the cause that made Layla unhappy.
It was for this reason that Arthur went out to catch the former of the runaway Count and his servants.
Arthur looked at Count Nigor again, and realized why he felt no emotion when he hurt her. What he did to Layla wasn’t something a human could do. He doesn’t know if it’s ‘something’ that pretends to be human. Yeah, obviously he’s not a person. It’s a human-like monster. No one feels guilty about killing a monster.
“AA AA AA-! stop!”
The Count let out a painful scream.
“It hurts, it hurts, it hurts! Please stop! Please stop! Why are you doing this to me?!”
The Count roared.
He had no idea why he had to be like this. Yes, the slave trade is illegal. But he will be imprisoned, there is no reason to have to suffer this much?
He was born as the son of a Count all his life and has lived a decent life. He did what he wanted to do and was never seriously assaulted or beaten by anyone.
Except for the high-ranking nobles, everyone was at his feet. So James Nigor was not used to this kind of situation at all.
It’s like crawling on the ground like a bug under his feet! I’m begging a boy who is much younger than me to stop bullying me and save my life!
‘Ughh!’
He felt like he was going to go crazy because his situation was painful and unfair.
“Are you doing this for a slave auction?! ugh? Then you picked the wrong opponent! The first person to propose to do this job was my servant! I’ve never thought of it and never wanted to do a slave auction in my life! But Oberon, that bastard tricked me doing this. To be able to earn as much money as a high-ranking aristocrat, to be able to obtain the greatest wealth in the Empire… I’m not at fault! I was fooled too! I fell for that scammer too! We are the same victim!”
“I don’t care.”
“What?”
“It doesn’t matter what excuses you use. You asked why? there’s no such thing as a reason I’m just doing this to see you howl.”
“That… what….”
The Count had a blank face as if he had been hit in the head at an unexpected moment. Arthur looked down at the man expressionlessly.
‘I will never tell you the real reason.’
Because of a maid named Layla Hanson, I wouldn’t even say this.
Because suffering without knowing the reason is more painful. Have you already experienced it? It was more painful to receive the empty gaze that was not loved without knowing the reason than when you knew the reason.
Arthur, who had been contemplating the past for a moment, came to his senses and opened his mouth.
“Do you know when a person feels the greatest pain?”
The answer doesn’t come back. The Count is only shaking his body with his head bowed. Doesn’t matter. Because it wasn’t a question I was hoping for an answer anyway.
The Count raised his head as if he had sensed an uneasy air.
A deep feeling of fear was cast in the pair of blue eyes. He’s foreseen. He knew what he was going to do.
‘Yeah… What you are thinking is correct.’
Arthur smiled.
“Aaghhh…!”
The Count let out a short scream. Arthur thought as he stretched out his hand in front of him. What in the world is a girl named Layla Hanson that makes him so upset? Could his tantrum deep within his heart be as deep as he is now that he had a simple crush on her? Can he feel this anger that burns so hot that his whole body heats up with the slightest bit of sympathy and slight affection?
No, I can’t.
Sympathy, or sorrow. Such petty emotions cannot change a person to this extent.
“But don’t worry. I’m not going to kill you.”
Then, this feeling is not just liking….
“Because you deserve the death penalty, you must never die. I’ll pour you a potion later.”
Is it love?
… And the flames created by magic burned splendidly.
****
While the flames were burning, Oberon, the servant of the Count, was running away from the monster chasing him. He was out of breath and his heart was beating like it was going to burst out of his mouth, but he couldn’t stop running.
If you get caught, you might die. This was such a joke.
He took a deep breath and grabbed his left arm. As the wind blows against his injured arm, he feels a piercing pain. For an instant, his mind went haywire. As the blood flowing from his cut grew more and more as time passed, Oberon’s face became increasingly white.
‘Not enough….’
I ripped off my clothes and tried to stop the bleeding, but it didn’t seem to help much. Oberon felt his body get cold and his vision blurred. He felt like he was going to fall at any moment, but he could never.
He turned his head to looked around.
‘I can not see…’
There is neither the sound of the grass being stepped by the foot nor the sound of the branches breaking. I couldn’t be bothered though. Were you not attacked after being reassured in this way before?
‘Where are you? Where the hell are you!’
Oberon, who was preoccupied with exploring the surroundings rather than his feet, stumbled over a stone and fell.
“Ugh…!”
His body slammed into the ground and dust rose. Oberon was about to get up. But there was no strength in his legs.
Deciding that it was better to hide than to run away, the man crawled and hid behind the huge stone in front of him.
Oberon, who sat on his back, pulled the loosely tied cloth around his arm to tie up the wound. No, he was trying to giving it strength.
‘Damn it, my hands aren’t strong enough. Damn it, damn it, damn it…! Nothing is going right!’
Oberon bit the fabric with his teeth and pulled it out.
‘Why…. Why did this happen? Did I do something wrong? No,There’s nothing wrong with that. Everything was perfect. I started the business by beating the likes of a tall nobleman, and everything went smoothly without any blockages. Since I was fortunate enough to trick the Duke Nikermann, it’s been pretty solid.’
Ughh, when my arm got so tight that it hurt, I spit out the cloth.
‘By the way, how did it end up like this? Was it all just a fleeting dream?’
He looked down at his messed up body and remembered what had just happened.
The auction was proceeding smoothly as usual. If it wasn’t for those who came suddenly, it would have been possible to earn a huge profit just like the last time.
When he saw the Duke of Emers and her knights taking people away, he shook his head and came to the conclusion that his business had been uncovered and taken as criminals. So, without thinking, he abandoned his master and ran away.
There was no guilt or hesitation in the process. This is because, in the first place, he did not think of the Count as his master, but rather looked down on him as a foolish drinker.
Oberon came out through the secret passage. But as he opened the door to the aisle and looked out, his hand slip through the gap, and someone grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him up.
It happened so suddenly that he couldn’t resist. Oberon was pulled out in an instant and thrown to the ground.
As soon as he swallowed the pain and looked up, what he saw a red eyes that clearly revealed their colors even in the dark.