“Hmm?”

Upon closer inspection, she looked a bit younger than I remembered, but the woman before me was undoubtedly the Dark Spiritualist.

From the way she responded when I called her name to her outfit, it was identical to the one the Dark Spiritualist from my time.

The Dark Spiritualist standing in front of me had shoulder-length bobbed hair and an air of youthfulness beneath her translucent veil.

“Do you know me?”

Furthermore, her demeanor was quite sharp, and her tone was much colder compared to when I first met the Dark Spiritualist.

Even her manner of speaking was not polite but raw.

She radiated an aggressive pressure, as if she would eliminate even the slightest thing that annoyed her.

And I could now understand why the woman, who was sewing her hand earlier, fled upon hearing the sound of the Dark Spiritualist’s footsteps.

“Yes, I know you.”

“Hmm?”

Judging by the fact that she was still alive, she must be the Dark Spiritualist from the past. I wasn’t sure whether it was because the timelines were tangled or if Lehric was up to something else.

All I could tell was that the demon called Lehric was running this Manor in a rather diabolical way.

“Since we’re both Necromancers, I thought I’d ask. Do you know anything about Lemegeton?”

“…”

“Would it be easier to understand if I called it the Necromancy Stone?”

I see.

It seemed that the Dark Spiritualist had come here in the past to find Lemegeton.

From that, I was able to roughly grasp the flow of events and even sense the fate awaiting the woman in front of me.

Indeed, she failed.

The Dark Spiritualist failed and was eventually expelled from the Dream Demon Manor.

Before I entered the general store, the Dark Spiritualist said she didn’t know much about Demon Lords.

And during her battle with Magan, she reacted as if she was hearing about the relationship between the Demon Lord Lehric and Lemegeton for the first time.

I discreetly turned around to check one of the rules of the Dream Demon Manor again.

5. One can only stay in the Dream Demon Manor for five days. Exceeding this period will result in a forced expulsion.

8. If you are expelled from the Dream Demon Manor after five days, you will lose all memories of events that occurred here.

If that rule is correct, then the Dark Spiritualist accompanying me now must have lost her memory.

It seemed like she would lose her memory after five days.

“Hey you!”

The Dark Spiritualist called out to me.

As I turned my head slightly, she crossed her arms, displaying her displeasure.

“If you ignore me one more time, I’ll assume that you can’t speak and cut your tongue.”

“…”

I wasn’t sure how young this version of the Dark Spiritualist was, but she seemed quite fierce.

I looked at her silently and shook my head.

“I do not know.”

Honestly, I was still a bit conflicted.

Would her future change if I were to tell her about our story?

If it did change, in what way? And if so, would I be able to survive?

It felt like I needed to be careful with my words in more ways than one.

Regardless, even if she had a prickly temperament, she was my master who had taught me Necromancy.

But what if…

But really…

What if I give her a hint to not come to the academy…

Even if she did meet with Gideon, what if she didn’t come to Loberne Academy and didn’t meet the angel? Would the Dark Spiritualist still be alive?

I had many thoughts— from my principles of separating the living from the dead to my personal regret regarding the Dark Spiritualist.

It was difficult to come up with an immediate answer.

“Well, it’s not that easy, is it? But you are a citizen of the Kingdom?”

“Yes.”

Hearing my response, she tilted her head and looked around before shrugging her shoulders.

“You’re quite intriguing. I thought all Necromancers in the kingdom had hidden themselves, just like me, but you’re showing yourself quite openly.”

“…”

“On top of that, you’re also a noble, right? Your whole family could end up on the chopping block because of you alone.”

If I shared information about the future with her, what changes would occur?

Would she accept it?

Perhaps I may get a special sanction from the Manor, right?

Upon seeing the rules of the Dream Demon Manor, there seemed to be quite a few unknown ones, and among them, it seemed like there might be something related to different timelines.

It was a bit risky, but it was worth a try.

“I am a Necromancer recognized by the King.”

“…What?”

“I have been granted the title of Soul Whisperer and have been permitted to practice Black Magic in the Kingdom.”

“So, you’re from the future, aren’t you?”

Upon hearing those words, I looked around subtly. I was wondering if something would happen.

“Don’t worry. There are plenty of people here who are from the past and the future.”

“…”

“It seems like they don’t really care about us sharing such information in the Manor. Regardless, I never thought that a day would arrive when Griffin would accept a Dark Mage. How far from the future are you?”

Were the rules really that lax?

And as I continued conversing with the Dark Spiritualist, various possibilities were being erased in my mind.

“It seemed like you were somewhat familiar with me earlier. How am I doing?”

“…”

“Seeing that I came out of the lab, does that mean I succeeded?”

The Dark Spiritualist asked me with a look of excitement. I could feel her emotions rising through the semi-transparent veil.

“Honestly, I do not know.”

“Hmm?”

“I have only heard stories about you; I do not know you personally.”

“Ha, really?”

Though seemingly disappointed, she accepted it rather easily, saying it wasn’t all that strange.

Then she made a proposal with the gesture of her chin.

“Well, it seems you know a lot of things I do not and you also look useful, so I personally will give you a special tour of the Manor.”

“Sure.”

First of all, it did seem like I would have to walk around with the Dark Spiritualist to learn more about this place.

Instead of taking the left corridor where the woman who was sewing her hand had fled, we headed to the opposite corridor on the right. At the end of the corridor was a door leading to the dining room.

Fitting for a Manor of such grandeur, the dining room was adorned with luxurious tableware and lavish food.

“If you’re hungry, just eat.”

“First, I would like to hear your explanation.”

Just in case, I decided to avoid touching the food if possible. The Dark Spiritualist poured herself a cup of pre-brewed coffee from a silver drip pot and sat down.

“Well, everyone summoned to the Manor receives the same task. You need to find the lost rules in the Dream Demon Manor.”

“Rule No. 9, right?”

9. Rules about the Dream Demon Manor are hidden all over the Manor. You will be rewarded for finding them.

The Dark Spiritualist nodded with a gentle smile at the rule that immediately came to mind.

“That’s right. If you find the rules, you will be rewarded. And the biggest reward of all is escaping from this place.”

“Escape… I thought we would be expelled after five days anyway.”

The Dark Spiritualist took a sip of her coffee and responded.

“You lose all your memories. In other words, you will lose everything you gained.”

Clink.

She set down her cup of coffee and crossed her legs, her gaze piercing into me.

“You should think of this place as some sort of dungeon. You can find lots of treasures, but if you fail to escape, it’s all for nothing.”

Ssk.

The Dark Spiritualist pulled a note written on a rather luxurious piece of purple paper from her robe.

“The rules are written in various ways. Some are written on notes like this.”

She placed the note on the table and then pointed to an unlit fireplace on one side of the dining room.

Mana flowed from her fingers, setting the fireplace ablaze.

Soon, the flames in the fireplace formed words in the air.

21. Meals will be replenished daily. Please feel free to eat as much as you like.

And just like that, Rule No. 21 of the Dream Demon Manor dissolved and disappeared.

“You can also discover them in unique ways such as this.”

“Hmm.”

“I don’t know how many there are, but you can escape the Dream Demon Manor on finding the last rule.”

This raised another question for me.

“What did you gain by discovering these rules?”

The Dark Spiritualist had already discovered two rules. I wondered if she had obtained rewards so valuable that she wanted to escape.

The Dark Spiritualist, with a bewitching smile and her chin resting on her hand, answered teasingly.

“I still don’t trust you that much. Especially since all Necromancers other than me are shady. You haven’t forgotten Rule No. 6, have you?”

6. Engaging in combat within the Dream Demon Manor is not recommended.

While engaging in combat wasn’t encouraged, it meant that there were no penalties or measures to stop it.

Was she staying silent in case someone attacked and stole the reward she obtained by finding the rules?

She was surprisingly wise, unlike the Dark Spiritualist I was familiar with.

“Well, I’ve roughly told you everything I know, so do you have any other questions?”

The Dark Spiritualist asked as she refilled her cup. It seemed that she was ready to end the conversation, so after thinking for a moment, I decided to ask her one more question.

“How did you end up in this place?”

I came here through the general store, but I wasn’t sure if Lehric had already taken over the general store in her time.

So, I wondered if she met Lehric personally.

“Too bad.”

As if expecting me to ask this question, the Dark Spiritualist gestured with her chin toward the note she had placed on the table earlier.

With some lingering doubt, I opened it.

13. Do not let the other guests know how you came to the Dream Demon Manor.

“Huff.”

It seemed like there were quite a lot of rules. The Dark Spiritualist turned away, indicating she didn’t want to talk anymore.

Staring into space, she seemed deep in thought, so I decided to leave.

Just before closing the door to the dining room, I asked her one more personal question.

“How old are you now?”

I didn’t know the exact age of the Dark Spiritualist who had now become a soul, but I knew that she was around my age.

“Eighteen.”

That explained it.

I now understood why she was so fierce and why her manner of speaking was so brash.

I wondered if this was what the Dark Spiritualist would consider to be her dark past.

First, I should check out Room 110, my supposed room.

Setting aside my thoughts regarding the Dark Spiritualist for now, I closed the dining room door.

After all, there might be more information in ‘my room’.

Though I had no desire to be manipulated by the Manor which seemed to be Lehric’s playground, for now, it was better to remain cautious.

I could not predict how this situation might unfold.

It felt like I was walking through a minefield; I was worried that I might unknowingly trigger something dangerous in this Manor.

I headed back toward the entrance and down the left corridor, where the woman who was sewing her hand had fled to earlier.

There were boards specifying Room 101 to 110, with Room 110 at the very end.

The interior of Room 110 wasn’t anything special. It just had basic furniture like a bed and a table.

Although everything was of high quality, nothing really stood out or was noteworthy.

Except for one thing.

A single purple letter lying on the bed.

The letter was similar to the one the Dark Spiritualist had shown me earlier, the one with the Rule of the Dream Demon Manor written on it.

Feeling a sense of unease, I slowly reached out and unfolded it.

20. The Rules of the Dream Demon Manor are still applicable even if you are unaware of them.

Although the sentence seemed obvious, it was rather unsettling when it showed up in a situation like this.

As I mentioned earlier, it felt like walking through a minefield because you could unknowingly break hidden rules.

It was a place where coercive violence was applied, deeming ignorance as a wrong.

Did they give each room a specific rule?

If so, that meant each guest had at least found one rule.

At that moment, the space before me began to shimmer, and something emerged.

Since you were supposed to receive a reward on finding a rule, I figured that this might be it.

What fell into my hand was a familiar yet foreign object.

“This is…”

A black gem that was supposedly destroyed but was actually the demon’s insidious trick.

It was the Lemegeton, also known as the Necromancy Stone.