“Hah. Your sister is asking. What are you up to?”
“… ”
Hehehehe, a dry laugh seeped through Irene’s crimson lips.
What should I say?
To me, that laughter sounded like the roar of a large beast, stiffening my entire body.
As if an intangible hand squeezed my throat, my breath caught. It was understandable.
[Skill ‘Affection’ activated.]
[Irene Vermont]
[Age: 24]
[Affection: -99]
[Displays open disgust towards you to the point of exhaling life without regard, if not consciously restrained.]
Well, Irene was indeed exhaling life.
As her complexion turned contemplative, she briefly glanced at my frozen self.
Then, with an eye-rolling look, Irene swept her hair back.
As the suffocating presence subsided, a gasp escaped my lips.
“You startled me. I returned to the mansion and found you acting like a different person, almost like a rebellious phase had finally arrived. But I was relieved. You’re still my cowardly little brother.”
“… ”
Irene casually entered the carriage, pushing past me.
Unintentionally, I flinched and stepped back to give her space.
Already narrow, she insisted on sitting right in front of me and crossing her legs.
Naturally, the sharp heel of her shoe rested on my thigh, sending shivers down my spine.
“Do you want to answer my question? Don’t upset your sister.”
“What are you trying to say…?”
“Those talented children you kept whining about saving. I saved them, didn’t I? But what are you doing with them now? Is this an orphanage?”
“…”
I knew a day like this would come.
As a subordinate, reporting results was a given responsibility.
Of course, it wasn’t guaranteed to happen regularly; it could come unexpectedly, like now.
Preparations were made.
Hints obtained from Sylvia were there.
As the shoe heel gradually dug into my thigh, I parted my trembling lips.
“I’m conducting various experiments. It’s easy to ruin those kids, but reversing it is impossible. So, shouldn’t we try everything we can before destroying them? Accumulating research data.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“And to maximize the power of darkness, we need to increase the drop height. Simply put, they should be destroyed at their happiest moment to extract the maximum efficiency.”
“Is that all?”
“… What?”
“Even if Lord Kali was deceived, it would be troublesome if you think you could deceive me too.”
[Evil god ‘Kali’ stares at you with a distrustful gaze.]
Damn.
Irene chuckled dryly and pressed harder on my thigh.
The heel of her shoe dug deeper into my leg.
I suppressed a groan.
“Tell me the truth. What are you hiding?”
“… ”
Why was I exposed?
Was my lie too obvious?
That couldn’t be.
Aslan’s passive skill perfectly supported my lies.
All my sinister lines had to sound plausible.
Then why?
Could she detect lies?
Wait. Aslan had that ability too.
A petty ability, useful only when awake, but still an ability.
Just as I contracted with the evil god, Kali, perhaps Irene too…?
[Successfully identified the evil god.]
[Character profile updated.]
[Irene Vermont]
[Age: 24]
[Affection: -99]
[Displays open disgust towards you to the point of exhaling life without regard, if not consciously restrained.]
[*In contract with Evil God ‘Laura’.]
[Contract effect: Equips Laura’s Magic Eye. You can confirm whether the other party is lying.]
Sss…
A faint, misty figure began to appear behind Irene’s head.
Was such a thing also behind me?
Evil gods typically hitched rides on people’s backs like that?
“Focus and answer my question.”
“Ah!”
Kuuk.
As the heel pressed down, a groan escaped.
Trying to pull away, Irene grabbed my collar and pulled me closer.
With no way to escape, our eyes met.
Her crimson eyes seemed to pierce through me.
“Sister won’t tolerate your lies. Tell me the truth.”
“… ”
It wasn’t a bluff.
In front of that magic eye, no lie could pass.
So here, I had no choice but to confront it head-on.
Cold sweat trickled down my back.
“All the black magic I’ve researched so far is nonsense. Long ago, black magic existed, but now it’s practical. It’s all lies.”
“What? What do you mean? Then what about the books I retrieved for you?”
“They were all nonsense novels.”
“…”
Surprised, Irene’s expression slowly hardened.
She must have confirmed that everything I said was true.
Good. It’s getting through.
“So studying black magic means creating something from nothing. It’s beyond my ability. That’s why I need those children. They’ll conduct research in my place.”
“Huh. So you set up an orphanage at the mansion to teach the children?”
“That’s right.”
“…”
At least this time, it wasn’t a lie.
I had already planned to enlist Aslan’s research for the children.
Charlotte might be useless, but wasting Julia’s extraordinary mind would be a shame.
After staring at me for a while, Irene finally smiled slyly and released my collar.
“Ah, if that’s the case, I misunderstood. I thought you might be sympathizing with the children.”
She uncrossed her legs.
The threat to my second plan vanished in an instant.
“But aren’t you being too slow? How many years will it take for those kids to be ready to conduct research?”
“It won’t take long. They’re geniuses. I guarantee it.”
“Hmm… Alright. Can I expect something better next time we meet? It’ll be awkward if you keep complaining about difficulties. You understand what I mean?”
“… I understand.”
Irene waved as she exited the carriage.
The door thudded shut.
As the tension dissipated, I let out a relieved sigh.
‘She. How can that woman be so…?’
She kept insisting on results even though all the black magic books were rubbish.
Is she completely mad? Why is she so obsessed with black magic?
No wonder Aslan, growing up under such a sister, turned into a deranged psychopath.
I feel like I’m starting to understand the background of a villain’s corruption now.
‘There’s not much time. I have to do something.’
The same goes for academic presentations.
The same goes for Irene’s pressure.
Now I really have to achieve results in everything.
But how does one create black magic?
I don’t even know how to approach it.
How did Aslan manage to complete black magic?
‘Huh? Wait a minute. Was that really black magic?’
Suddenly, that thought crossed my mind.
The black magic Aslan displayed at the end of Chapter 1.
Was that truly black magic?
Could it have been some other magic that just resembled black magic?
I feel like I’m starting to see a direction.
***
“Alright. This is the dormitory. And that far room is yours.”
“Where is the end room?”
“It’s over there. The attic room.”
“…”
The supervisor finished the guide without any enthusiasm and turned away.
Yuri frowned deeply.
Was he displeased about being treated specially?
‘Well, I suppose that’s understandable.’
Of course, Yuri was equally baffled by the situation.
To be admitted without needing to take the exam, and to have been predetermined from the start…
It would be a blow to the sponsor’s pride if he didn’t perform well in school.
So they were convinced he had some talent…
But how? Based on what?
Could there be an ability to measure talent based on appearance?
Anyway, it was a bizarre case unprecedented in academy history.
“Wow! The attic room is huge!”
Climbing the ladder, Yuri’s face brightened with excitement.
Windows tightly sealed without a gap.
Walls that didn’t let the wind in.
And a soft bed…!
Is this heaven?
How can there be such a luxurious room?
Having experienced only the poor facilities of the orphanage all his life, Yuri had never encountered anything more luxurious.
“This isn’t the time for this!”
After rolling around on the bed for a while, Yuri suddenly snapped back to reality.
It wasn’t a time to just enjoy himself.
“I didn’t come here to have fun. Pull yourself together, Yuri.”
He came here to strengthen myself.
Ultimately, it was to save Julia and Charlotte.
Not to indulge in such a luxurious life.
Yuri repeated to himself, burying his face in the soft mattress.
Soft.
So soft that he forgot why he came here.
After tossing and turning for a while, Yuri suddenly remembered the person who had made all this possible.
“What a strange person…”
An anonymous sponsor.
While knowing his identity was impossible, it was said that contacting him was possible.
Yuri immediately unpacked and took out a pen, sitting neatly at the desk.
“What should I say… Hmm. Well, from head to toe, with a hat too, he wore all black clothes, so I guess I’ll call him Mr. Black.”
And so, scribbling away.
To Mr. Black.
Mr. Black, you ask?
That’s right… starting a gratitude letter.
