Chapter 31
‘Well, she’s a saintess, so she probably didn’t die.’
At that moment, Karlin channeled his mana into the necklace.
The transparent gem suddenly flared a dark red, trembled violently for a moment, and then, as if nothing had happened, returned to being transparent.
“But the mana doesn’t work, huh.”
“Then what does work?”
“I don’t know. It could be holy power, blood, or even a soul.”
Karlin, having found it at the temple ruins, guessed it might be holy power and handed the necklace back.
Aria, just in case, tried infusing it with her spiritual power.
The gem briefly shimmered a faint purple, then returned to being transparent.
‘If it’s not spiritual power either, then it’s probably holy power.’
Aria thought that she might never be able to reveal the true nature of the necklace.
‘I don’t plan to get involved with the Holy Empire anyway.’
She put the necklace away with a somewhat uneasy expression.
Anyway, it was time to get to the main point.
“Break the core for me.”
“No.”
That was Karlin’s sharp response.
Hearing that, Aria felt like she’d been scammed.
“I asked you to prove it, not to say you’d do it.”
“You’re the scammer here.”
“Who’s the scammer!”
Karlin shouted, then glanced away sheepishly as if feeling guilty.
He had probably assumed there was no way an ten-year-old kid could do anything, so giving her the chance had been a mistake.
Still, Karlin didn’t want to kill Aria.
‘Or rather, I don’t want to be brutally killed by my employer for the crime of killing her.’
He was a supreme mage, unmatched by anyone, but even he couldn’t beat a demon.
“With your talent, you’ll reach that level eventually. With my help, you could even do it within a year. But risking your life because you couldn’t wait that one year?”
“If I die, I can’t help it…”
“That attitude is the problem!”
Karlin was frustrated.
Ordinary people, no matter how extreme their goal, leave their own life as a last resort.
It’s human instinct.
But Aria didn’t care about her life, not in the slightest.
“Even though I was involved, going alone to the lowest place was truly insane.”
He really had no right to scold her.
“My coordinates were set to the Papal City, so I assumed you had business there…”
Karlin suddenly began lecturing her. He said he sent her there assuming it would be safe, since the Holy Empire’s capital was known worldwide for its security.
‘Well… to me, the capital looks the most dangerous.’
The Holy Empire kept an eye on the sirens.
Physical recovery was the exclusive domain of holy power.
Healing illness and performing miracles could only be done by someone with holy power.
The existence of sirens itself could be seen as a challenge to God’s authority.
‘For now, only a few know about sirens, so they won’t intervene. But once the sirens’ name spreads and they are praised, the Empire will rush to find weaknesses.’
They’d discover that Aria’s song incites madness in people and use it as a pretext for war.
‘Just like in my previous life.’
Aria thought that the reason sirens had always lived in hiding, unrecorded in history, was probably the Holy Empire’s persecution.
Karlin abruptly stopped talking and, with a slightly annoyed expression, asked:
“You’re not listening to me, are you?”
“Mm.”
“You’re just waiting for me to stop lecturing and break the core for you, right?”
“Mm.”
“Sometimes I really think you’re suicidal.”
Normally he didn’t want to get involved, but she did want to change the future.
To do that, she first had to survive.
He clicked his tongue at Aria’s stubbornness and stood up.
“Well then, I’ll be off.”
Karlin muttered something as he drew a magic circle and then vanished into thin air.
‘What a reckless person…’
Aria let out a short sigh and stroked Silver, who was lying beside her.
“Next time you see a mage, bite his butt.”
“Woof!”
Silver barked loudly.
After finishing her singing practice, Aria wandered near the garden again.
Today was the day Sabina would send a letter.
“……”
But as usual, the messenger bird didn’t bring a single flower.
‘This hasn’t happened before…’
It felt ominous.
Aria stared at the empty sky until the sun began to set.
Dark clouds hung overhead, threatening rain.
“Ah-choo!”
It was cold.
Wearing a sleeveless summer dress, she shivered and sneezed.
The rain began to fall, drop by drop, as if on cue.
Aria frowned and reached out her hand toward the sky.
The rain quickly thickened.
Pitter-patter…
She was caught unprepared by the sudden downpour.
Suddenly, a black shadow appeared before her eyes.
It was an umbrella.
“You’re going to get sick again, huh.”
She tilted her head back as far as she could.
Lloyd was crouched down, looking at her with a displeased expression.
“You think you’re a flower or something?”
Huh?
“The rain isn’t falling for you.”
What a statement of the obvious.
Aria parted her lips to respond.
—Rain showers always come suddenly.
“Say something at least, like pretending to dodge it.”
That, she had no reply for.
Too lazy to move, she just stood in the rain, pretending to focus on the flowers in front of her.
Lloyd sighed.
“What do you do standing here in the garden every day? Isn’t it boring?”
She thought to herself, I’m waiting for a letter.
But since exchanging letters with Sabina was a secret, she didn’t say a word.
“Why did you have to stand here…”
Lloyd muttered softly, tilting his head slightly.
Aria heard it, but couldn’t tell what he meant.
At that moment, servants who had been searching for Lloyd came running, soaked from head to toe.
“You need to come quickly, Your Grace!”
“What happened?”
“The lady has suddenly suffered a seizure.”
So far, that kind of thing happened often.
But maybe this time was different.
The servant’s voice trembled embarrassingly as he spoke.
“The doctor said it might not last past today…”
What?
Aria jumped to her feet.
Could it already be the end?
She had expected it.
She had predicted this, but…
‘Not this fast.’
Aria bit her lip tightly.
She hadn’t even properly sung the first verse of the healing song yet.
‘Looks like my only option is to threaten the mage into breaking the core.’
Resolving to do that, she hurriedly started moving.
At that moment, a strong hand grabbed her wrist.
Aria’s eyes widened, and she looked up, meeting his sharp gaze.
“Your wrist has healed.”
Her wrist, bruised from being hit by the jaguar, was now completely fine.
It hadn’t been seriously injured in the first place.
“I’ll prepare a mansion for you in the Duke’s domain. I don’t enjoy pushing a child who wants to live back into death’s path.”
“……”
“I’ll get you anything you want. No matter the cost, no matter the time, I’ll get it for you.”
Now was not the time for that.
Aria struggled to pull her wrist free.
—Let go.
But Lloyd held on tightly and didn’t release it.
He handed her the black umbrella he was holding.
Despite the gentle gesture, his eyes were as black as the night sky, his voice icy.
“So get out of here.”
This time, it was serious.
A firm command didn’t need a harsh expression; his calm sincerity was clear.
Aria, holding the oversized umbrella, froze for a moment.
“Call Dana.”
After ordering the servants, Lloyd left without looking back.
Aria stood there, dazed, until Dana arrived and escorted her to her room.
“Why does it always rain at times like this?”
Dana muttered, frustrated, as she watched the drizzle.
This is really the last chance.
Aria bit her lip, thinking, It’s finally here.
‘I must save her, no matter what.’
She recalled the time she went back after her mother, Sophia, passed away.
The despair she felt then was similar.
Even with enough ability to save someone, the helplessness of being unable to defy physical laws…
Is this fate? Is this natural order?
‘No way.’
Returning through time had already broken the bounds of fate and natural order.
If she had been given a miraculous chance, she would create a miracle.
At dawn, Aria opened her eyes with a flash.
She carefully rose and slipped out of her room.
Then she ran down the corridor.
She narrowly avoided servants several times, hiding around corners to escape detection.
She called Silver and climbed onto his back.
“To the East Tower.”
The rain lashed her face mercilessly.
Shivering from her soaked clothes, she ignored it and gritted her teeth.
She went to the mage and declared:
“I will cure the Duchess.”
“……”
“Once again, I ask. Break the core, as you promised before.”
It was a bold declaration: to change the future, to defy fate.
