Chapter 161
“What is it? Speak up.”
Since this wasn’t ordinary information, Chris expected the other party to make some grand demand.
But instead—
“When I become Grand Duke, I hope you’ll ease the hostility your family holds toward the Bloodsword Maga.”
“!!”
Chris’s face showed surprise.
The girl met his gaze steadily and continued.
“To stand against the Blood Curse, it would be best if our two houses weren’t enemies.”
Chris fell into thought for a moment.
‘No need to turn the Bloodsword Maga into an enemy just because of the Bloodthirsty Demon King. They’re separate matters.’
It was an unexpected revelation, but the Bloodsword Maga were not allies of the Bloodthirsty Demon King.
In fact, they were opposed.
Idrinne, who had once been the Grand Princess of the Bloodsword Maga, had somehow betrayed her house midway and defected to the Anax faction.
After conquering the Demon King’s Castle, she unleashed a horrific bloodbath upon the Bloodsword Maga.
‘Her name was Ria, wasn’t it? That girl also met a gruesome death.’
Chris remembered the name ‘Ria’ because she had died a terrible death at the hands of the Bloodthirsty Demon King.
He recalled what the Dark Gossip had said.
Nor why she dealt such a horrific death to her own kin, those close to her.
It was said the Bloodthirsty Demon King was especially cruel to those of his own bloodline with whom he had personal ties.
Chris remembered the rumors swirling around her madness at the time.
‘No point trying to understand a demon’s mind.’
The cruelty of the Bloodthirsty Demon King couldn’t be summed up by calling her a mere villain.
Her horror was akin to a demon from Gehenna itself.
‘If anything, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to ally with the Bloodsword Maga later to keep the Bloodthirsty Demon King in check.’
“Very well. When I become Grand Duke, I’ll reconsider our relationship with the Bloodsword Maga in a positive light.”
“Thank you! I knew you’d understand.”
The girl, Idrinne, smiled brightly, genuinely pleased by Chris’s response.
‘So innocent.’
Chris shrugged.
Though she seemed blunt, there was an undeniable purity about her.
“By the way, I have something to say in return.”
“What is it?”
“Be careful of your family’s Grand Princess, Idrinne.”
“!!”
Idrinne’s expression stiffened.
“What… do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. Idrinne is like a terrible demon—you’d do well to be cautious.”
From Idrinne’s perspective, this was a sudden and absurd accusation.
“N-no, the lady is nothing like that. She’s a kind person.”
“Kind? Idrinne? The bloodthirsty fiend? The ghost of the Demon King’s Castle would laugh at that.”
Chris’s sneer made Idrinne shake her head.
“Th-that’s not true! N-no, the lady is absolutely not like that!!”
“…You must respect Grand Princess Idrinne, then?”
“She’s the person I respect most in the world! There’s no one more admirable than her!”
Idrinne’s voice rose in frustration.
‘…No use arguing further.’
From what Simon had said earlier, it seemed Idrinne was carefully hiding her terrible true feelings.
“Well, I’ve said my piece. Do as you will.”
“What….”
“Anyway, come with me. I’ll let you leave the castle.”
Chris turned on his heel, and Idrinne let out a long sigh.
‘Well, I suppose it wouldn’t be strange if Grand Duke Christian thought poorly of me.’
She had a notorious reputation outside.
Always standing on the front lines of the Bloodsword Maga, stained with countless battles.
The Bloodthirsty Murderer.
The Vampire of Slaughter.
The Princess of Bloodshed.
These were the names her enemies called her.
‘But it’s not like I want to be that way.’
She steadied her mind.
‘I’ll clear up Grand Duke Christian’s misunderstanding.’
There was only one way.
She decided to get closer to Christian.
For the future of both houses, it would be better to build a bond.
‘And someday, when I reveal my true self, I’ll make him apologize for calling me names.’
Idrinne silently vowed.
“Let’s go now.”
Before leaving, she extended her hand toward Christian.
A gesture to shake hands.
“We’ll be seeing each other often. I look forward to working with you.”
Chris stared at her outstretched hand without taking it.
“I don’t think we’re at the point of shaking hands. I haven’t fully trusted you yet.”
“Ah, my apologies.”
Her face flushed red.
Her eagerness to become friends had made her overstep.
Chris chuckled softly at her expression.
You know that kind of person?
Someone you just want to tease when they’re around.
That was exactly the vibe.
“I won’t shake your hand just yet.”
Chris crossed his arms.
“But depending on what you do from now on, we might have a decent relationship.”
Did she understand?
Idrinne smiled and replied.
“Don’t worry. I will become your friend.”
“…Friend?”
“Yes. I will make it happen.”
Chris smiled faintly.
“Alright, I’ll be watching.”
Afterward, Chris parted ways with the vampire girl.
‘Patera, huh.’
His gaze darkened.
A test subject of the Mystic Maga.
Chris hadn’t met her often.
It was hard to find a suitable vessel to summon demonic energy.
But Chris knew a lot about the test subjects.
Perhaps even more than most of the Mystic Maga themselves.
There was a reason.
‘Because the Dark Gossip was one of the test subjects.’
Originally, the Dark Gossip was a nine-tailed fox from the Obsidian Maga, but due to certain circumstances, she was taken by the Mystic Maga and turned into a test subject.
Fortunately or unfortunately, she was a failed experiment and escaped just before being discarded, joining the hero’s party.
‘I have to make sure I don’t become a test subject in this life.’
Chris thought of the Dark Gossip.
The problem was, he didn’t know how she had been captured by the Mystic Maga.
Though she talked endlessly, she never spoke much about herself, so Chris knew little of her past.
‘Only that she was exiled from the Obsidian Maga.’
Anyway, thanks to her, Chris understood what test subjects were.
‘There’s a weakness to exploit. Of course, it won’t be easy.’
Not just difficult—originally, it was impossible.
Only Chris could attempt it.
‘But I have to succeed.’
Besides saving Marquis Shupen, there was another reason to accomplish this.
This might be a good opportunity.
He would definitely become Grand Duke.
‘If I can stop the Mystic Maga’s monsters with my own power and save Marquis Shupen, no one will oppose my succession.’
He could seal his position.
And not only that.
‘It’s a chance to raise awareness in the Magic Empire about the Mystic Maga. Most mages don’t even know what they truly are.’
Patera was born through a horrific process.
Chris planned to capture her as evidence to expose the Mystic Maga’s atrocities.
‘I can do this.’
With that resolve, he moved forward.
First, there was something he had to do.
“Have you come?”
A man with a fierce, blade-like presence.
Marquis Shupen greeted Chris with a sharp voice.
Their training duel was about to begin.
Before fighting the Mystic Maga’s monster, Shupen’s level had to be raised.
Flash!
A black energy blade flickered in Chris’s hand.
Its power was far beyond ordinary energy, but Shupen blocked the attack without the slightest falter.
He didn’t even make a big move.
He simply raised his hand wrapped in magical energy, and Chris’s black blade dissipated uselessly.
A clear display of their difference in skill.
But Chris didn’t give up and struck again with the black blade.
Shupen frowned and waved his hand as if brushing off a bug.
Then something astonishing happened.
Chris coughed up blood and was thrown backward without even being touched.
‘Impressive, as expected.’
Chris wiped the blood from his mouth.
What Shupen had just done looked simple, but it contained a trick that bent the laws of magic.
That was why Chris was affected without physical contact.
‘To wield power that bends the laws so easily… As I thought, Shupen has definitely reached the peak of the 7th rank.’
To put it simply, his vessel was already full.
He had all the conditions to reach the 8th rank.
The problem was the wall.
Many top-tier mages fail to break through and get stuck at the end of the 7th rank.
‘But it’s not impossible. With the right trigger, he can break through.’
A trigger is like a stepping stone to surpass the wall.
Shupen already had everything else.
Like a cup filled to the brim, a small shake could make it overflow.
That was why he requested this training duel.
Chris planned to provide Shupen with the trigger he needed through their fight.
“Get up. You’re not going to fall from something this small, are you?”
“Of course not.”
Chris rose and raised his sword again.
The same scene repeated several times.
Chris tried to land a hit, but it never connected.
Talent or not, the gap was just too great.
Shupen frowned.
“Perhaps it’s best to stop.”
“Not yet.”
“No matter how much you struggle, there are limits you just can’t cross.”
It was a point so obvious it didn’t even need saying.
From the start, this was a duel he had no chance of winning.
But then—
“Who says so?”
“…What?”
“Who decided what’s impossible? Who set these limits?”
Chris lifted the corner of his mouth into a smirk.
Despite his disheveled appearance from repeated defeats, his eyes still sparkled with the same fire.
Confidence radiated from him, almost tipping into arrogance.
“I’ve never lived my life drawing lines like that. Calling something a limit before even trying—that’s what cowards do, isn’t it?”
“!!”
“Tell me, Your Grace, are you a coward?”
The expression on Marquis Schupen’s face hardened, cold and sharp.
Something about Chris’s words clearly rubbed him the wrong way.
“Arrogant brat. You’d better not regret this.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to land a blow on Your Grace.”
The duel resumed.
But the scene repeated itself.
No matter how hard he tried, no matter what tactics he used, Chris’s blade couldn’t reach Marquis Schupen.
“This is truly the end.”
Then, just as Marquis Schupen moved to finish it—
A black steel blade shot forward.
Completely different from anything before.
A sharp, unexpected strike that pierced through his defenses, forcing Marquis Schupen to react hastily.
Shatter!
A magical barrier flared up from his fingertips, deflecting Chris’s black steel blade back.
But this time, Marquis Schupen’s expression wasn’t the usual indifferent one.
He had involuntarily raised a magical shield.
Has he grown? In such a short time?