There was a way for Koko to transform into his main body and move to the house, but it was possible only for one person.

However, they couldn’t just leave the fainted Cassis on this rocky ground and go.

Rosha had thought about carrying him with magic, but levitation magic was quite a high-ranked magic for her to use at the moment. Perhaps the only useful magic in this situation would be weight reduction magic.

Suddenly, she remembered the carriage they rode earlier.

“It would be fine if the horses hadn’t run away due to the sinister aura of the demonic beast…”

Of course, she didn’t know how to drive the carriage, and her uncle who went down earlier might have acted first.

However, action preceded thought.

Having cast a weight reduction spell on the fainted Cassis, Rosha dragged him back down the path they came.

Koko occasionally looked at Cassis with pity, but all she wanted now was to quickly go back and rest.

When she went down to a road where the carriage could run, what appeared in front of her was—

“…What?”

It was a large carriage, entirely painted in black.

The door of the carriage, which stopped silently in front of her, opened with a creak.

A handsome man with purple eyes looked at her elegantly and opened his mouth.

“It seems like you need help.”

* * *

Rosha slowly lifted her eyelids.

She saw an unfamiliar wooden ceiling. Judging by her lack of memory on how she got here, she must have nearly fainted and fallen asleep in the meantime.

And before that…

Ah, right. She had met Duke Echerzen.

Thinking about it now, the timing seemed as if he had been waiting for her to arrive. It was almost certain when she recalled the conversation he had with Cedric earlier.

‘But it was an offer I absolutely couldn’t refuse…’

She was exhausted to the core, wishing for whatever will be, will be. Besides, she now had a bit of faith in ‘magic’.

Swoosh-

As she turned her gaze inward, she could feel the magic coursing through her body.

Would it feel like this if she had an extra eye or hand? She could now truly realize how fatal it is for a magician to lack magic.

Though the vessel to hold magic had significantly shrunk compared to the previous world…

‘It’s okay. I can start all over from the beginning.’

As much as she awakened her body with the pure magic of the rift, there would be new insights as she widened the vessel. Moreover, she could also address the regrets she had in the past, so it was rather good.

…But where the hell is this?

Considering there was no shaking, it wasn’t a carriage.

As she slowly turned her head, she saw Duke Echerzen, sitting near her bed, reading some documents.

Bright dawn light flowed down his cheek.

His silken black hair dyed by the blue hue coming through the worn-out window, his purple eyes silently scanning through the documents, his quiet appearance, all making it unclear what he was thinking.

She, who had been admiring his face for a moment, asked in a quiet voice:

“How long has it been since I fell asleep?”

“An hour.”

It was as if he had been waiting, he lightly put the documents aside and spoke.

“Your physical condition didn’t seem good, so I called a healer I know. This is the nearest village from where you were, and your brother is being treated right now.”

“…Thank you. I feel much better now.”

Hearing the Duke’s words, she indeed felt lighter.

Right after subduing the demonic beast, it felt like she had huge weights tied to her limbs, but now it felt as if it never happened.

She didn’t know his intentions for treating her, but she was thankful for now.

“That should be. The healer has a healing ability.”

Her words were cut off until just before the continuation.

‘…What did he just say?’

A person with a healing ability?

Her mind, just awakened from sleep, was slowly but steadily turning. Seeing him openly talking about abilities, it seemed he was almost certain that she had an ability and was testing her.

Before she knew it, the Duke’s glass-like eyes were coldly looking down at Rosha.

“So, may I ask what brought you to walk this secluded path late at night?”

“…You ask while knowing everything.”

Her thankfulness vanished completely upon scrutinizing every reaction of the man. She felt a momentary sense of betrayal.

With the feeling of not wanting to be pitied anymore, Rosha raised her upper body and retorted sharply.

“To put it simply, there was someone in the family I had to watch over. I was chasing after him and ran into a demonic beast, barely escaping alive.”

“Barely escaping alive, huh. I saw blue flames soaring into the sky and white ashes from here.”

The man’s eyes slightly narrowed.

“You are very skilled. Don’t you think so?”

“…How did you know I was here in the first place?”

Rosha hurriedly tried to change the topic as she had an uneasy feeling. Despite noticing her intent, the Duke calmly followed her rhythm.

“A week ago, I knew you overheard my conversation with the Count. I had no doubt you heard about the phenomenon of a crack in thin air’too, and I thought you would appear around here soon.”

“No, wait… you knew about that? How?”

It seemed like she got away without being noticed, or so she thought.

However, the answer she received was completely unexpected.

“I have a power related to space. I can easily feel the presence of someone hiding within a certain radius.”

Without being probed further, he willingly shared his ability.

Of course, it wasn’t a detailed explanation, but this alone was quite surprising.

Information about abilities could become a great weakness depending on the situation, and unless they were really close, one would usually not share such information.

‘A power related to space… That explains everything I’ve experienced so far.’

The force that attacked her when they first encountered might have been ripping through space, and what appeared to be absorbing the magic from the amulet was likely spatial distortion or spatial transfer.

With powers, a chosen one is given only one ability, but with keen intuition and creativity, endless applications are possible.

Especially a power related to space, the utility would be incredibly vast.

…Anyway.

‘He willingly gave me this valuable information.’

An ironic attitude that shared such information while pushing her into a corner.

By now, she had a guess.

Brushing her red-gold hair aside, Rosha asked straightforwardly:

“Duke, do you have a particular request for me?”

It wasn’t simply about desiring the relic she possessed. If it were about the relic, he would have taken the item tied to her thigh while she was unconscious.

Her guess was right.

The man blinked a few times as if surprised by her remark, then slowly raised the corner of his lips.

“Your words are true. I am…”

His eyes met hers directly.

So far, it was just superficial, but this time, it felt like consciousness met consciousness.

His eyes, contrary to the nefarious rumors in the world, were very clear, much like someone relentlessly moving towards a certain goal—more so than anyone she had recently met.

Then slowly, his lips parted.

“To prepare for the unprecedented event that will happen soon, I am gathering individuals with abilities like you.”

“…It didn’t seem like you were the type to value world peace.”

Rosha, who felt her breath hitch for a moment in his gaze, responded after a beat.

She was doing this to protect her family, but the Duke didn’t seem to have such motivations. Known to have no living family, rumors even circulated that he cold-bloodedly poisoned his father.

Nevertheless, the Duke continued without hesitation.

“But if there’s someone orchestrating this situation, the story changes. I intend to find out.”

“…Orchestrating?”

“It’s merely a speculation, so it’s hard to speak out. However, my guesses tend to be accurate. And of course, you’ll gain something from this as well.”

“What is that?”

“The hideous truth. For example…”

The man, prolonging his words, slowly bent down and whispered softly.

“Say, the reason why Count Aper has been lying unconscious for years…”

“…”

“Aren’t you curious who caused the accident to your parents?”

Rosha’s expression turned icier than ever.