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“Shushu, I…!”

Alexandros spoke hurriedly, as if trying to make an excuse. His hand reached out to me desperately, and I could see the emotion in his eyes—he didn’t want to be hated. I looked straight at him and slowly opened my mouth.

“But despite all that, I still cherish you.”

Alexandros froze. The black blood of the basilisk trickled down his forehead, momentarily obscuring my view, but I continued to gaze at him.

‘A person more precious than the hatred for injustice.’

To me, that was Alexandros. I smiled gently at him, who stood there in a daze.

“Don’t worry. I…”

Wham!

In an instant, a bright light engulfed the surroundings. Powerful mana surged from nearby. I paused and covered my eyes.

And when I opened them again…

“Shushu!”

Familiar faces came into view.

Caesar, Reiner, Serenon, Yuli

An, El. Priests and holy knights.

Seeing them, my tension eased. I sighed in relief and gathered all the remaining mana to dismantle the barrier near the basilisk’s corpse.

‘Other people are coming.’

I felt the strange presence watching us from the tree on the right fade away. There was no need to trace it further; I could guess who it was.

From that presence came the scent of a wolf.

I slowly turned to Alexandros, who had a blank expression, and smiled.

“I care for you a lot.”

His body, which had been holding itself upright by using the sword like a cane, lost balance and crumbled.

With solid arms catching me and the scent of lilies tickling my nose, I lost consciousness.

“Uhmm…”

As if the lights turned back on in a dark room, my thoughts returned. I felt lighter than before I fell asleep.

“Shushu.”

As I slowly rose, I turned my head sharply at the soft voice calling my name. I opened my eyes wide.

“El.”

With sky-blue hair tied back in a low ponytail, and silver eyes sparkling like morning dew.

It was Elior.

I looked around in a little bit of a fluster, hardly believing I was inside a tent. The interior was resplendent, predominantly white and sky blue, exuding a holy vibe. Sacred symbols were woven into the carpet on the floor. Most notably, the faint scent of lilies enveloped the surrounding air. This was clearly El’s tent.

‘Why am I… here?’

I had seen El arrive via teleportation just before losing consciousness, but I could never have imagined that El would bring me to her tent. I thought Caesar, who arrived with me, would take care of me. As I awkwardly looked at him, El’s gaze sharpened.

“Do you even realize you should protect yourself? You should have waited for support before facing the basilisk with just two people! Do you want to die? How long would it take for you to collapse right in front of me…!”

“Wait, just a moment, El.”

I interrupted her with a sense of urgency, alarmed by the relentless torrent of scolding. Although El looked very angry, she halted her words upon my interruption. Rolling her eyes, she seemed annoyed, and I carefully opened my mouth.

“Um, so… first, how long have I been asleep…?”

“…Just about three hours.”

El sighed and raised her hand to tidy up my messy hair. I shrank back slightly but accepted her touch without a word. It was a familiar feeling.

“You can sleep a bit longer.”

“Um, but how could I dare sleep in El’s tent…?”

“Who else do you think can sleep in my tent besides you?”

Her silver eyes bore into mine with intensity. I felt embarrassed under her heavy gaze and scratched the back of my neck.

‘Three hours since I ended the basilisk… It’s about the time when the Hunting Tournament award ceremony begins.’

Though my body was still tired and it would be nice to rest a little longer as El suggested, I needed to get up to see the end of this hunting tournament. I gently pushed the blanket aside.

“Thank you for your consideration, but I think it’s time I got up.”

‘I need to wrap things up with Audi’s kid.

My bet with Audi was quite famous in the social circle. If I didn’t go out now, it would be a given that the rumors would spread, suggesting I had silently lost the gamble with Audi.

‘It’s funny that we’re only comparing dominance over animal prey after taking down two disasters.’

I chuckled lightly and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. Then I suddenly felt that the basilisk’s poison that had been swirling inside me was completely gone and looked puzzled.

“I’ve cured the poisoning in Shushu’s body with my divine power.”

As if sensing my confusion, El answered before I could even ask. I looked at her with wide eyes as she turned her shoulders lightly.

‘So that’s how it is—of course, I would be completely detoxified…’

The basilisk’s poison was lethal enough that even a regular person would die within five minutes of exposure. For someone like me, a Sword Master, it would take over three days for natural recovery to fully detox. Only someone like El, the Pope, could detoxify it in a single instant.

“Thank you for your help with the recovery.”

I smiled slightly and bowed respectfully. El sighed heavily as she looked at me with complex eyes.

“I purified the forest that was exposed to the basilisk’s poison. It will probably take a few more days to completely purify it, but for some reason, the basilisk’s corpse oxidized and disappeared, so there should be no further spread of the poison. And as for the man from the Atara delegation who was with you…”

Her silver eyes fixed on me intently.

“…Do you know his identity?”

‘Is she asking if I know that Leo is Alexandros?’

I pondered for a moment on how to respond but ultimately nodded cautiously. There was no reason for me to hide it from El. After exhaling a light breath, El slowly blinked.

“The Emperor, the Duke, and the other main figures are already aware of his identity, but it’s complicated to reveal it publicly. No matter how allied we are, it’s not good news for a king to be hiding his identity while visiting the Empire.”

Her words made perfect sense, and I nodded steadily. After a moment of gauging my reaction, she continued carefully.

“They won’t question you about your involvement in killing the basilisk. The news has already spread among the nobles participating in this hunting tournament. Everyone’s been buzzing about the details, but if the truth comes out, all the attention will turn to that guy. Then someone might figure out that he’s the king.”

*

In short, the key figures of the Empire were wary of drawing the attention of the nobles toward Alexandros. Given their position, it was entirely understandable, and I nodded in agreement.

“While you were sleeping, there was a meeting among the royal family, the temple, the duke’s house, the two counts, and the Atara delegation about how to hush this matter up. Firstly, thanks to me, Duke Crisis, the crown prince, and Count Einhart being there, we decided to skip the procedure of interrogating you since it wasn’t exactly a crime.”

‘Wow, they can just… skip that…?’

The fact that I, the main subject of such a significant incident, wouldn’t even be interrogated meant they were giving me way too much leeway.

I was reminded again of how extraordinary the people I was close with were, and I pursed my lips.

“But given that you were there when the incident occurred… since I brought you to my barracks while you were poisoned…”

‘Oh…’

It seemed El had been overly shocked when she saw me collapse. As I looked at her with a slightly ice-cold gaze, she subtly averted hers.

“So, the entire noble class already recognizes that you were at the scene of the incident.”

‘So much for being… the center of attention.’

I was in a time when I should be establishing my image as an inspector in the social circle. However, becoming the subject of such a major incident was unexpected. I wasn’t sure whether to be happy or sad, so my lips twisted.

‘Based on El’s explanation thus far…

What she was trying to convey was clear. Slowly stroking my chin, I stared directly at El.

“The main players in this incident are me and Leo, or rather, His Majesty the King, but since the king is in disguise, it would be difficult to reveal his involvement in this incident. Therefore, I intend to officially announce that I’m the sole individual implicated in this case.”

“Is that what you’re suggesting, El?”

El chewed her crimson lips. Her face was filled with guilt as she nodded with her eyes tightly shut.

“…The Emperor’s stance on this is particularly firm.”

So, it meant from above, they intended to wrap up this incident of a giant monster appearing in the forest where the hunting tournament was taking place by sacrificing me.

Not interrogating me meant they wouldn’t make this an official matter. Of course, they would still track the path of how the giant monster entered, but they wouldn’t hesitate to blame me.

However, if they officially declared me the subject of this incident, I wouldn’t be able to avoid any unofficial rumors.

‘A mysterious princess who single-handedly brought down a giant monster.’

I would find myself spreading that title among the nobility in the social circle. Taking a breath, I thumbed my lips.

‘…Not bad at all!’

I struggled to suppress my rising smile.

So I felt like I had just hit a jackpot of unexpected fortune.

‘It’s about time to make myself known… If they spread my fame for me, I would be grateful.’

The mysterious princess who took down the suddenly appearing giant monster. It was a very good title. I felt a bit guilty for monopolizing the credit even though we had subdued it together, but nevertheless, the rumors from this incident seemed likely to provide me with a tremendous advantage.

“…I’m really sorry.”

The low voice that came in while I was trying desperately to quell my rising smile made me turn my head abruptly. I tilted my head, confused by her apology.

“What does El have to be sorry for?”

“Shushu, you’re hiding that you’re Mir. But I made a mistake, causing others to become suspicious of you.”

It seemed El felt guilt for being unable to prevent the official announcement.

“I’ll keep the rumors from spreading inappropriately. So, please forgive me. Okay?”

She gently took my hand and rubbed her cheek against it. My fingertips touched her blushing warmth on her pale skin. Her silver eyes sparkled with a pleading gaze.

‘Like a puppy…

Even after seeing her, it’s still astonishing how beautiful she is.

I felt like my heart was being thrown out when I briefly fixed my gaze on her face, trying to tear myself away.

“I don’t need to monitor the rumors.”

“…What?”

El replied with a delayed reaction to my firm words. I grinned.

“The weirder and more exaggerated the rumors become, the better it is. The feel of ‘the mysterious princess who survived against a giant monster alone’ is fitting.”

“What?”

El continued to question me with a confused expression, but I kept grinning.

‘Ordinary nobles detest becoming the center of such buzz, but I need this kind of attention.’

I needed to make myself known. I wanted as many people as possible to be aware of me. So they wouldn’t oppose what was to come.

“It’s okay, El. I’ll be someone far greater than all those upcoming rumors.”

Mir.

A name far more significant and potent than any exaggerated rumors that would float around in people’s conversations from now on.

“So don’t be sorry. Everything is flowing more smoothly than I expected. You just need to watch and follow along the path I unfold from now on.”

I stroked El’s cheek with a playful smile. The soft skin brushed against my fingertips. The silver eyes gazed at me with a dazed expression.

‘No matter what you expect, there won’t be any disappointment for you.’

I am Mir, the black calamity. The name revered as both a mystery and a hero.

No matter what people expect in the future, I was confident I could exceed those expectations.

 

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