Chapter 78
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Denial (5)
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"I've sent someone to Flavia, so they'll bring our things soon. Then you can change into some dry clothes."
"We're not heading back to Flavia?"
I asked, dipping the coarse bread into the watery soup and eating it.
Father shook his head, his face a bit stiff.
"Some of the family knights were badly injured, so I asked the White Guard Knights in Flavia to lead the remaining delegation here. Once they're ready, we'll head straight to Elgrace from here."
"What did Duke Lesis say...?"
I knew the knights Father had brought were keeping an eye on the family knights.
Duke Lesis was probably in a similar situation.
Father said he'd kept the duke "safely tucked away" somewhere until the White Guard Knights arrived.
"We didn't talk much, but he claimed that Barkus kidnapped you all and that he rescued you. Clemence was furious when she heard that."
I let out a small laugh.
I could picture Clemence's angry face. She couldn't stomach such an absurd lie.
"The duchess is claiming Barkus kidnapped us too. Who would believe that?"
"The nobles of Elgrace will."
Father sighed bitterly.
"The duchess already sent a messenger. Sir Jenner didn't believe Barkus would do such a thing, but he said we had to inform the palace anyway.
By the time we arrive, everyone will believe that Court Mage Barkus kidnapped the White Guard Knight's granddaughter, along with Prius mages and holy mages."
"And that Duke Lesis and the family knights helped Prius rescue us... right."
Father nodded gravely.
The Lesis family planned to rally the nobles, painting Prince Raymond and the Court Mage Chief as criminals who had shattered a vital alliance.
We had been helplessly swept into the political turmoil of Lesion Kingdom.
There was nothing we could do without violating our principle of not meddling in foreign politics.
"Barkus..."
Thinking of him left me at a loss for words.
It wasn't his doing. His actions weren't right, of course, but it pained me that he'd been used until the end.
"I heard Barkus transformed into a demon right in front of everyone. He summoned Gatras and even created black Gatras. And Shuren said you finished him off."
Father's final words hung heavily in the air.
I clutched my face, recalling that moment.
"He asked me to go with him to Court Mage Chief Kaela Ermis. He said with my power and the knot-solving key, she'd be delighted."
"So he did send the Gatras to steal the knot-solving key from the Hope Merchant Group on her orders. That makes it clear who we need to watch out for in Elgrace's palace."
Kaela Ermis.
She'd handed Barkus the red flower box containing dragon blood, turning him into a demon.
I'd seen it happen right in front of me, yet I couldn't stop him.
If only I'd stopped him from consuming that black Eckronium without hesitation...
"I thought I could convince him. At least that he could suppress his nature like Ash and keep living."
"Ash was a special case even the sage who'd dealt with demons for ages had never seen. It's nearly impossible for a demon to suppress its instincts and refrain from taking lives."
Father gently stroked my hair with a warm hand.
"Don't dwell on it too much. Once he became a demon, there was no saving him. It's a miracle you stopped him before he lost his reason and killed more people."
That thought was my only consolation.
Father's words lightened the weight on my heart a little.
"Now, shall we take a look at those wounds?"
Grain approached me and Father after checking on the other patients.
I nodded and stood up.
We followed him deeper into the building.
To the room where Father had been resting—a small space with just a flat cot and a crude stone side table.
A white flag bearing Prius's emblem was draped over a large hole in the wall as a makeshift curtain.
"Take off your shirt for a moment."
After cleanly treating the scratch on my cheek, Grain said.
I peeled off my damp outer layers one by one, letting them drop beside me.
Father sat beneath the Prius emblem, watching Grain and me.
"I heard from Wedin that you took a tumble somewhere."
My body was a mess.
I already had plenty of scars from childhood injuries, but overnight, bruises and abrasions had multiplied.
When Grain placed his hand on my side, a groan escaped me involuntarily.
He chuckled and channeled a warm energy through his palm into my body.
"Wedin... Wedin must be hurt bad too."
Even saying that much was difficult.
I had more injuries than I'd realized.
With the tension since last night, I hadn't felt the pain or injuries much.
"Wedin's all patched up by me, so he's fine. You're resistant to holy magic, so even if he looked at you, it wouldn't have fully healed."
"I-is that so... Ugh..."
I clutched desperately at Grain's sleeve.
Every spot his hand touched burned hot, making my body tremble.
Grain smiled and mercilessly pressed his hands all over my body.
It had been years since that gentle smile felt resentful to me.
"If only I had the Rubiol or the Lamp of Life. But I left them in Flavia in the rush."
"I'm already grateful you came along."
Father, who had been watching the treatment, spoke up, and Grain laughed heartily.
"You're too kind, Blue Guard Knight. It's as busy as I expected. There, that should do it."
Grain finally pulled his hands away.
I couldn't even thank him properly amid my groans, and fearing he'd touch me again, I quickly stood up.
"Don't put those wet clothes back on. Wear this instead."
Father draped his cloak over my shoulders.
A heavy cloak with blue decorative fringes. Big and warm enough to wrap around me like a blanket.
"Lib, I've treated all your wounds, but they might hurt again. Tell me if they do."
"Yes, I will."
"Good. Then... Blue Guard Knight, I need to check your left arm again."
As I gathered my wet clothes from the floor, I glanced at Father sitting before Grain, unwrapping the bandage on his left arm.
Father's face was impassive, but the wound on his left arm was grotesquely twisted—hard to even look at.
It looked like melted skin chunks had been forcibly pieced back together.
"Is... is that okay...?"
A chill spread through me, my heart pounding.
I had no idea my crystal magic could cause something like this.
No one had ever survived being its target before.
"It's fine. It doesn't hurt."
Father said it casually, but Grain let out a small sigh.
"Of course it doesn't. Your sense of pain is gone too."
Grain placed his hands on Father's left arm a few times, then turned to me with a complicated expression.
"Lib, if you're okay with it, can I ask you a few things? About the magic you used."
"O-of course. I'll tell you everything I know."
I answered quickly, guilt twisting painfully inside me.
Grain nodded.
"Magic and holy arts are different fields, but the framework is similar. So I understand your magic changes the target's properties into crystal. It breaks down all existing tissue, alters the properties, and reconstructs it into crystal instantly. Right?"
"Y-yes... I think so..."
My voice trailed off in embarrassment. Grain continued undeterred.
"Then tell me how far and how you break down the tissue structure. In the Blue Guard Knight's case, the broken tissue and the parts lost after the change are mixed. If we can distinguish them, recovery will be faster... Lib?"
Grain stopped, looking at my face.
I was covering my mouth, nausea churning in my gut.
"Lib, you okay?"
Father asked worriedly.
"I-I'm fine."
I took a deep breath. The self-loathing I'd thought I'd shaken off tightened around my throat again.
"...Imperial magic doesn't activate with complex calculations or formulas like kingdom magic. All it needs is strong will. The will to kill the target... The rest is up to the magic."
Grain and Father stared at me silently.
Starting the next words was excruciating.
"So I can't give an exact answer on how my magic works... I'm sorry."
I couldn't help at all.
Burying my face in the cloak, I felt utterly dejected.
"Well... nothing we can do about that."
After a long pause, Grain spoke lightly. I looked up at him.
"Don't worry too much. It'll take time, but he'll make a full recovery."
"...Really? A full recovery?"
Grain grinned.
"Erban Medical Center has the world's best holy mages. We can heal anyone except the dead. Oh, excluding severe cases like malignant tumors."
"Or completely lost limbs."
Father added flatly.
I gave a wry smile.
"Sounds like a lot of exceptions..."
"Anyway, this is fully treatable. The tissue damage and loss aren't too severe, so if the Blue Guard Knight takes it easy and rests, he'll be back to normal soon."
"That's a tough condition."
Father sighed, his face complicated.
If he could heal, that would be a relief. Truly.
I let out a deep breath of relief.
"At most a month or two, and he'll be good. Sensations like pain will return by then too."
Grain resumed the treatment.
I decided to trust and wait patiently for him.
He'd saved me when I was on the brink of death as a child, so Father's wound should be easy for him.
"By the way, Lib, one thing I'm curious about."
As the treatment neared its end, Grain suddenly asked.
"You said imperial magic only needs strong will. So does that mean a 'will' to heal an arm won't activate the magic?"
"Yes. Even imperial magic can't work miracles. It always needs materials or a cost."
"Materials or a cost?"
Hmm, I thought for a moment.
"To heal an arm, you need precise knowledge of the body's structure and materials to rebuild the tissue. Without that, the magic manifests according to natural laws arbitrarily."
"It just makes whatever it wants?"
I nodded at Father's words.
"If you don't fully understand and shape the arm, fingers might twist, or nails could be missing."
Anything beyond my understanding gets left to natural laws.
Kingdom magic using catalysts tries to control and calculate every element, but imperial magic is limited to what's in the user's mind.
"Crystal magic suits my aptitude, so I didn't need to think about crystal structure or magic composition. Pure will was enough."
It felt engraved in my soul. As if from time immemorial. Beyond understanding or calculation.