Episode 25

“I truly asked you, Aunt, just to become like family to me—nothing more calculated than that. I wasn’t asking you to be my strength or anything like that.”

“!!”

Merian’s expression faltered, caught off guard.

“How naive. You really expect me to believe your request was that pure?”

Chris answered honestly.

“Of course, if you were to care for me like family and subtly offer help even when I didn’t ask for it… I wouldn’t be able to refuse.”

“What? Ha! You sly one.”

Merian burst out laughing at Chris’s bold words.

If Chris had openly asked her to be on his side, she would have refused.

If he had hidden his ambition completely and made a purely innocent plea, she would have refused as well.

But by cleverly admitting his desire without hiding it, she found herself unwilling to say no.

“It’s something that shouldn’t happen, but…”

Merian pulled out another cookie and bit into it with her ruby-red lips.

As expected, it was delicious.

“If a cook can make such wonderful cookies as gifts… then of course it’s only natural to cherish them.”

‘Good!’ Chris silently cheered.

He had gotten through.

“On one condition—can I taste these cookies again?”

“That depends on how you treat me.”

“What?”

“If you disappoint me, I might sulk, and then the cookies won’t taste the same.”

Merian laughed again at his playful warning to behave well.

The conversation felt light and pleasant.

“Alright. Then, as your aunt, may I say one thing?”

“Please do.”

“How about joining the Black Shadow Knights?”

“!!”

Chris’s face stiffened.

“That is…”

“I know. You want to become the heir, right? Aiming to be the master of the Dark Maga?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Merian’s gaze grew serious.

“The way you fought Melin was impressive. I’ve never seen anyone with talent like yours. You might even surpass Lord Noga.”

“…”

“But your rivals are no pushovers. I worry you might fall before your talent fully blooms.”

Fall.

A euphemism for death.

In any noble family, it was common for heirs to die in ‘accidents’ during succession battles.

‘It’s not an unfounded worry.’

Though Chris had won against Melin today, it wasn’t a decisive victory.

Without the holy sword and protective curses, the outcome would have been swift.

The heirs of the main family were no less skilled than Melin.

‘Especially those heirs—they probably have equipment just as good as mine, if not better.’

Magic swords and various auxiliary magical tools that could counter the holy sword were beyond comparison.

In other words, if Chris fought the main family’s heirs now, he would lose.

At least, for now.

“So you’re worried about me, Aunt.”

“Yes. Join the Black Shadow Knights, and I will protect you. You have what it takes to become the next leader of the Knights, maybe even more. Though you won’t become the family head.”

Count Kazar, who had been listening nearby, nodded in agreement.

He, too, was secretly worried.

Becoming an heir meant stepping into a deadly power struggle.

Especially as a branch family member, Chris would be a target.

But—

“If you want the Dark Maga but can’t overcome such obstacles, then you might as well die.”

“!!”

“And more importantly, I don’t think you’ve shown me your true strength today.”

Chris lifted the corner of his mouth in a sly smile.

“I don’t think I’m going to lose.”

Merian fell silent.

Such absurd confidence.

Come to think of it, he had been like this before fighting Melin.

And then he pulled off an impossible victory.

‘…I just don’t get it.’

She should have scoffed at that ridiculous confidence.

But she didn’t.

Instead, she found herself chuckling nervously, wondering if he might actually pull it off.

“…Alright, I understand. You’re a demon after all, so I can’t stop you from walking your chosen path.”

“Thank you.”

“But one last piece of advice, out of concern.”

Merian’s tone sharpened.

She was about to leave.

“Beware the First Princess.”

“The First Princess?”

Chris looked puzzled.

There were five heirs in the main family.

Three men and two women.

The First Princess was the youngest sister of the Second Prince, Eshed, who was considered the most likely heir.

“Yes. People see Eshed as the strongest candidate. That’s not wrong, but…”

Merian lowered her voice.

“In my opinion, the scariest of the five is the First Princess, Yulian.”

Chris listened carefully.

Merian was the head of the Black Shadow Knights, overseeing the family’s internal affairs.

Her words were trustworthy.

Yulian hid claws no one else knew about.

Chris also noticed Merian’s choice of the word ‘scary.’

There had to be a reason for such a grim description.

“Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Though he had just learned of another formidable opponent, it didn’t bother him.

No matter who stood in his way, he intended to crush them all.

“I’ll see you at the main family.”

Merian nodded at his farewell and spurred her horse away.

“…”

Chris watched her silhouette disappear into the darkness.

‘Strong.’

Both Count Kazar and Merian were powerful.

Six-star level.

In the Light faction, they were nationally renowned warriors.

Yet Chris had never even heard their names during the Great War.

How many such strong figures did the Magic Empire have?

‘No wonder the Light faction lost. They were outmatched.’

Chris thought.

‘I have to become stronger. Much stronger.’

He was an undeniable genius, but the road ahead was long.

To stand at the top of the Magic Empire and prevent the coming catastrophe.

And—

‘To enjoy the greatest wealth and glory!’

Chris returned to his room.

Tern tried to say something on the way, but Chris ignored him out of annoyance.

For now, his goal was to reach the second star level.

---

A few days later.

“Phew.”

Chris exhaled deeply.

From his outstretched hand, a dark, flickering energy rose.

Magic energy.

He had reached the stage where he could release magic energy outside his body—the second star!

‘It took just over a month since reaching the first star.’

Exactly one month and five days.

An unbelievable speed.

No one would believe it if told.

Yet Chris looked unsatisfied.

‘It took a bit longer than I expected. I wanted to cut it under a month.’

He had been training swordsmanship and dark magic simultaneously.

Thanks to that, he had mastered the Kazar family’s sword techniques—Mud Slash and Black Scythe—to perfection.

“…Insane.”

Count Kazar’s reaction upon seeing Chris’s swordsmanship.

In terms of form and skill, it was flawless.

Even compared to Count Kazar, who had trained for decades, Chris was no worse.

But that wasn’t all.

‘I’ve gotten used to dark magic, too.’

Chris had mastered all the dark magic in the Kazar family’s grimoire.

Mostly curses, but also destruction, illusions, summoning, and blood magic.

He had mentally recorded all dark magic above the first star level.

Since he fully understood them, he could use them once his level rose.

‘I wish I had more magic energy. Even with my talent, it’s hard to build it quickly.’

There were two things even his talent couldn’t overcome.

First, physical conditioning.

Though he gained stamina faster than others with less training, he still needed consistent effort.

Second, magic energy.

It was the same.

Magic energy accumulated through breathing techniques.

His keen senses allowed him to gather more with less effort than others.

But there was still a limit.

The amount of magic energy depended heavily on training time.

‘Unless I take some kind of elixir…’

Chris thought.

The good news was, unlike stamina, there was a workaround.

‘If I take an elixir, I can raise my star level faster.’

Raising one’s star level required several conditions.

Enlightenment, skill mastery.

And magic energy accumulation.

Taking an elixir could drastically shorten the time needed to build magic energy.

‘Many talented heirs from noble families use elixirs to level up quickly. Since I’m from a prestigious magic family, maybe I’ll get a chance to try one? The famous elixir of the Dark Maga is… the Black Pill.’

Magic noble families each had their own elixirs to amplify magic energy.

The problem was, only direct heirs had access.

The best elixirs were monopolized by the main line, while the leftovers went to the lesser branches.

‘I’ll probably only get some fake elixir like the Gray Pill, which has barely any effect. Is there any way to get the Black Pill?’

Chris narrowed his eyes.

There was no normal way.

He’d have to find a trick.

He recalled the process of making the Black Pill.

There was a season when the raw materials were hunted regularly.

‘That’s coming up soon. Maybe there’s a way…’

At that moment, Mari approached, her ghostly tail swaying.

[Congratulations on reaching the new star level. To celebrate… how about a glass of virgin’s blood juice?]

“…No thanks.”

[Or perhaps a juicy… sirloin steak? Beef is… the best, you know?]

That caught his attention.

After all, the pinnacle of food was beef.

Chris, who had exceptional cooking skills himself, knew no dish could surpass beef.

‘And somehow, orcs cooking beef just sounds like it would taste even better.’

It might be a prejudice, but the orc chef seemed better suited to barbecue than dessert.

“All right, bring on the beef.”

[Oh ho ho… I’ll make sure it’s prepared as bloody as possible.]

As Chris waited happily for the beef, an unexpected summons came.

“Master, the Count is calling for you.”

“Father?”

“Yes.”

Chris went to find Count Kazar.

“Father, it’s me.”

“Ah, come in. I have something to discuss with you.”

Chris tilted his head in confusion.

Count Kazar’s expression was grim.

Something was clearly wrong.

“What is it?”

“I informed the main family about the Sacred Black Rite. You and Tern are to undergo the ceremony.”

“And?”

“Only Tern has been approved. They refuse to grant you permission.”

“…Why?”

Count Kazar sighed deeply.

“They say they cannot allow you to partake in the sacred Dark Maga ritual because you have soiled the family’s honor until now.”

Chris frowned.

“Whose opinion is this exactly? Is it the will of Marquis Langham, the family’s acting head?”

If that were the case, it wouldn’t be easy to resolve.

But then Count Kazar said something unexpected.

“No, it’s not. Perhaps because of what Ashid recently did to you, Marquis Langham has not voiced any particular objection.”

“Then?”

“It seems those who are to undergo the Sacred Black Rite alongside you have raised objections.”

“You mean the others taking the rite with me… Lord Roine de Barron?”

Roine de Barron.

As the ‘de’ in his name indicated, he was the legitimate heir of the main family.

The very centerpiece of this Sacred Black Rite.