## Chapter 176 – 176. Escape
#176. Escape
There was only one person Sylvia could call a witch.
I hurriedly opened the door to the room where I had locked Melissa, but the room was empty.
I looked around the room, not expecting her to escape.
There was a window, but it wasn’t designed to open.
Even if she opened the door and ran, there was no way she could avoid Sylvia’s senses.
More than anything, I couldn’t believe that a black magician could break free from a barrier imbued with divine power on her own.
I placed my hand on the floor and felt the lingering traces of the barrier.
She hadn’t broken the barrier from the inside. If she had, I would have noticed immediately.
Nor had she reverse-engineered the barrier from the inside to解除 it. If that were so easy, barrier magic would have become obsolete long ago.
‘If she didn’t reverse-engineer or break the barrier, how did she escape?’
It was as if Melissa, who had been trapped in the barrier, had vanished in an instant.
‘…Teleportation?’
That was absurd. I had heard that spatial magic had died out in this world.
But then I remembered Sylvia calling Melissa a witch of Malefice.
What if spatial magic hadn’t completely died out, but was monopolized by a specific group?
A plausible hypothesis was formed, but questions still remained.
In the first place, it was strange that she had used magic from the inside. There was no way the barrier Iris had helped design could be so flimsy.
“Hyunwoo Niim…”
“Iris?”
“P- Iris-nim!”
As Sylvia and I were examining the room together, Iris approached, clutching her head.
Sylvia supported the staggering Iris.
“Are you sure you should be up already?”
“Yes… I’m much better thanks to Hyunwoo-nim.”
Iris forced a smile, as if to reassure us.
As I stroked her hair and infused her with mana, I felt a sharp gaze from the side.
I didn’t need to turn my head to know who it was.
-Why.
Sylvia was still glaring at me, even though she must have heard the telepathic message.
It was an unspoken pressure to take my hand away immediately.
But I ignored Sylvia’s gaze, defiantly hugging Iris.
It wasn’t like she hadn’t done this before, and if I paid attention to her every time, I would only tire myself out.
-Jealous?
No sooner had I sent the telepathic message than Sylvia’s brow furrowed. Her clenched fist was trembling, as if she wanted to hit me.
If Iris hadn’t been there, she would have tried to scold me or resort to violence like last night.
Of course, when we were alone, she had to call me “dear,” so she would try to avoid being alone with me no matter what.
“I’ll take a look for a moment.”
Iris squatted down on the floor. A clear mana filled the room.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, but could you lend me a little mana?”
“Of course.”
Iris maintained her concentration for about ten minutes before opening her eyes.
Cold sweat streamed down her fair cheeks. I wiped it away with a handkerchief and checked her condition.
‘…It’s worse than I thought.’
The mana within her body was running low.
It wasn’t because of the seal.
It was likely the price she had paid for forcibly summoning the spirit last time.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Iris forced another bright smile, but her complexion didn’t look good at all.
But there was nothing I could do for now. Holy water wasn’t a panacea like an elixir.
I had to find a reward to give the spirit as soon as possible.
“Did you find out anything?”
“Yes, Melissa, was it? It seems she’s a contractor of a subordinate artifact.”
“Subordinate artifact?”
“A special artifact that can only be handled by someone who has a contract with it.”
I had never heard of such a thing.
According to Iris’s explanation, there were artifacts that occasionally awakened their own ego, and they decided on their own masters and formed contracts.
“In the case of weapons, they’re called ego swords. I’ve seen them a few times in the past, but I’ve never made a contract with one myself, so I didn’t notice. But the lingering scent of foreign mana in the room… it must be a subordinate artifact.”
Hearing the example of an ego sword, I finally understood what it was.
A sword with its own ego, often appearing in creative works, and sometimes the protagonist’s sub-heroine who transforms into a beautiful woman.
“But when I searched her body, there was nothing that looked like an artifact?”
I had undressed and washed Melissa after she fainted during sex, but I hadn’t seen anything like an artifact.
Instead, I knew she had moles on the inside of her thighs and under her right breast.
“Some subordinate artifacts don’t have a form.”
This time, Sylvia, who had been leaning against the wall, answered.
“Even if that’s not the case, since it has an ego, it can probably hide itself. I’ve seen people with ego swords a few times. They can move on their own to some extent, and they can also reduce their form.”
“…Is that really a weapon?”
At that point, isn’t it practically a weapon skin?
“It’ll be hard to track her, right?”
“Yes… I don’t know what kind of abilities the artifact has, so it’ll be difficult to track her.”
I left the room and threw myself onto the sofa.
I felt complicated in many ways, but honestly, I also felt relieved.
Now that I had learned that Malefice was a force that helped Resilia stage a rebellion, I had been constantly 고민 about what to do with Melissa.
‘Indecisive.’
Is this what it feels like to want a cigarette?
I felt a bitter taste in my mouth for no reason.
“Ah, that’s right. Iris.”
“Yes?”
I told Iris, who was sitting next to me, about what had happened in the underground vault last night and showed her the ‘Essence of Biresiel’.
I wanted to eat it right away and aim for the next realm, but if I ate it unprepared, it would be a free pass to the River Styx.
“…You said you got it from the underground vault?”
“Yeah, it was hidden in a double layer.”
Iris’s expression gradually became serious as she examined the essence.
“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s not that, but… it’s a little unsettling. I should say it feels like I instinctively want to get close to it…”
I took the essence back and put it back in my inventory.
The unsettling feeling she was talking about was probably due to this content in the item description.
[※Caution! Consumption may damage the body.]
Strictly speaking, black magic and demonic energy are different entities.
That’s not to say that demonic energy isn’t harmful to the human body.
It wasn’t hard to imagine what would happen if you suddenly accepted a large amount of demonic energy.
It was necessary to take it with something that could neutralize the demonic energy.
‘…Ah, come to think of it.’
This time, I took out a small wooden box from my inventory.
[Banya Divine Pill (般若神丹)
Grade: Unique
A divine pill containing the truth of the universe. It will dispel the darkness of ignorance and lead to the light of enlightenment.]
The Banya Divine Pill I got with the Diamond Sutra, wouldn’t it be okay to take it with this?
The item description was a bit strange, but the energy felt from the Banya Divine Pill itself was greater than the Essence of Biresiel.
But I put the wooden box back in.
No matter how I thought about it, it was crazy.
What would happen if a missile was fired and you fired a missile back?
‘They’ll collide and explode.’
The same goes for the Essence of Biresiel and the Banya Divine Pill.
Divine energy and demonic energy are conflicting energies.
If you can’t properly regulate and harmonize the two energies, they will eventually explode, and I will have to bear the brunt of the aftermath.
In the worst case, my body could explode.
‘Besides, I might have to give up most of the energy of the Banya Divine Pill.’
After all, it seems best to go back to Earth and find a way, as I originally planned.
With a slight regret, I looked through my inventory and found something I had forgotten all night.
[Bibu of Malbator
Grade: Rare
Conceals energy related to demons (魔).
※When worn, all energy related to demons (魔) is restricted.]
It was an artifact similar to the concealment necklace I had, which I had taken from Melissa.
Surprisingly, Iris showed interest in the bibu.
I gave the bibu to Iris, as I didn’t need it right now, and then left the room and went downstairs.
I asked the maid where Lina Hesler was and went straight to the main building.
The main building was crowded with people who had rushed in after hearing the news of the baron’s death, leaving no room to set foot.
I passed through them and headed for the study.
A maid stopped me as I was about to enter the study.
“I’m sorry, but the acting baroness has informed me that she cannot receive guests at this time. Due to an unexpected accident, she is busy with official duties, so please understand.”
“Then can you at least pass on a message? Just tell her it’s Henrik.”
To be already called the acting baroness by the servants.
It seems that the family’s takeover is proceeding smoothly.
“Ah, you’re the wizard Henrik?”
The maid bowed politely.
“I have been told by the acting baroness. I will guide you to a place where you can wait for a moment.”
I followed the maid to a small room nearby.
About 20 minutes passed, and Lina Hesler entered, opening the door.
“I’m sorry I’m late, things are getting so much busier than I thought…”
“It’s okay. It would be strange if you weren’t busy.”
The dress was a little less flashy than when she attended the party last night.
“What brings you here?”
“I think it’s time to talk about the reward for this.”
“…Is there any need to rush? How about having dinner together tonight…”
“It’s okay.”
I drew a line.
Since the city of Weibel has been doing what it has been doing, I won’t be able to have a friendly relationship with her, the lord.
“Since you’re busy, I’ll get straight to the point. What I’m asking the young lady for in return for this is a complete ban on slave hunting in the Great Forest and the treatment of elf slaves in Weibel.”
“…Pardon?”
Lina Hesler seemed very embarrassed, as if she hadn’t expected it at all.
But soon, the agitation in her eyes subsided, as if she had regained her usual composure.
“…I know I’m not in a position to say this, but I’ll say it without shame. Could you reconsider?”
She has a strange habit.
When she’s nervous, her tone becomes stiff.
“I’m sorry, but this is a demand. If you have difficulty accepting it, I have no choice but to burn down all the large slave traders in Weibel.”
“Wh-what…”
“I’ll say it one last time. Will you accept the control of slave hunting in the Great Forest and the ban on the treatment of elf slaves in Weibel?”
Lina Hesler seemed quite embarrassed, but there was only one option she could choose.
“…I understand.”
“Thank you..”
I grabbed the teacup.
It would have been a hassle if there was poison in the black tea, but fortunately, there was no poison.
