Chapter 96

Kizef, who had been entangled with Maximus, twisted the direction and steered him to the right place to be attacked.

Startled, Penelope dropped the remote controller with the button.

“B-Brother!”

Raven, who was watching leisurely with arms crossed, said to Kizef.

[If you use magic, it will be easily solved, why are you being hit?]

“It’s a bit difficult to use magic right now and I knew you could help.”

The banquet was crowded with people, I didn’t want to cause any fuss.

[If you say, please help me.]

“…….”

Kizef hated it, but then spoke with a clenched mouth. Perhaps having harassed him enough, Raven’s eyes became thinner and black smoke stretched toward Maximus, who was sitting on the floor.

The smoke changed its shape and became limp like a liquid, moving as if it had free will, shutting Maximus’ mouth and binding his limbs.

“Ugh…!!”

The terrified Maximus struggled more and twisted his body, but the more he did, the more the black liquid tightened him like a rope.

Flop!

Penelope, who was watching it, was startled and collapsed, then started to crawl away in fear.

Kizef silently watched Raven play with Maximus. Like a child who touched a toy after a long time, Raven pressed Maximus even more intimidatingly.

Now Maximus could see Raven’s form.

Raven smiled brightly at him. Maximus was realizing little by little that he wasn’t human, but the next moment, the dark-haired boy’s words gave him goosebumps.

“Can you see me? I’m the Grim Ripper, the one who guides the dead.”

(Note: there are no brackets because Raven is visible from here on.)

Maximus’s pupils widened in surprise. He must have thought it was time for him to die. His mouth was still blocked and unable to speak, only his head shook violently.

Raven pulled out the scroll for the list and glanced at Maximus, tapping his cheek. Maximus, who met his golden eyes, turned white as if caught in a trap, unable to move.

“Maximus von Cavill, 15 years old. He grew up in a wealthy marquis family, but he’s a total scumbag and has a dog-like personality…Hm…No matter how you live, you will go to hell. You’re a perfect example of human garbage.”

Shhhh.

Raven spread the long scroll.

“It’s a long list of your evil deeds.”

“Uhh!”

Swoosh.

Raven’s black liquid-like smoke was wrapped around Penelope’s ankle, which had been trembling without being able to escape.

“Where are you going? Your brother is here.”

“Kyaaa! S-S-Save me!”

Raven also held Penelope next to Maximus.

Around the time Maximus and Penelope were struggling, as if in denial of everything, as if they were on the verge of death.

A little girl came up from the darkness and asked.

“…What are you doing here?”

Raven looked at Luciel with interest.

“It’s you.”

* * *

Luciel had happily finished her work and was wandering around after going out to the banquet hall to find Kizef.

When Kizef was nowhere to be seen, she became a little worried and used the teleport ring. Come to think of it, he had said he was looking for Maximus even when he talked to Penelope.

After the transport light faded, she could see the garden. At the sight unfolding before her eyes, Luciel had no choice but to embrace the curiosity.

A strange boy with a sense of deep darkness was with Kizef and Maximus.

“Luciel.”

Kizef quickly approached Luciel.

“Kizef, how did all this happen? Wait, you hurt your face.”

Luciel anxiously looked up at him, and Kizef, who had wiped the blood from his lips, answered.

“It’s nothing. It’s too long to explain. Luciel, do you know that guy? Maximus von Cavill, the eldest son of the Marquis Cavill. It was on your list.”

Luciel’s eyes fluttered as she saw Maximus whose mouth was muffled.

‘There’s no way she doesn’t know.’

Maximus von Cavill.

Isn’t he the husband who tormented and cowardly laughed at Luciel in her previous life? He said she was an idiot, treated her like an animal, and ignored her.

A human being she wanted to pass by without looking back regardless of anything in this life.

Luciel remembered the past of being bullied by him for a moment. Looking at the culprit, her heart ached and her anger surged. Her tightly clenched fists trembled, but she hid them behind her dress. She had to make an excuse, but she couldn’t think of anything, it was like cold water suddenly poured on her.

“That…”

Luciel barely opened her trembling lips to let out a word.

“Ah, the one we met by chance in the academy’s dormitory. The list was just for practice, to write the name of other nobles.”

Luciel slightly frowned.

She didn’t know that Kizef would have seen the note with the revenge targets she wrote by chance. There was nothing more to hide from Kizef, who even knew her true identity, but the situation seemed ambiguous to reveal such an important fact now.

Only then did Luciel wonder who the unfamiliar dark-haired boy was. The low temperature felt by her skin and the darkness that seems to be sucked her in. And the smell of death.

Did I run into him somewhere? I felt a strange sense of dread.

‘It’s definitely the first time I’ve seen him…I don’t think he’s human.’

“Who is that person?”

“Ah…”

As Kizef was about to speak with a dark expression on his face, Raven reached out and held his white hand out.

Luciel was a little surprised because the hand she held was cold.

“Nice to meet you, little lady. My name is Raven. Kizef’s friend.”

“Oh, I’m Luciel. What are you?”

“Well, you noticed right away. After all, I think I’m too lazy to pretend to be human.”

As Raven brushed his black hair down to the nape of his neck, he grinned.

“I am a reaper.”

“Reaper…?”

“The one who guides people who are about to die. Oh, don’t be too scared. I’m not going to take anyone here.”

“…Yes.”

Was it because of the cold sensation and the smell of death?

However, the image was completely different from the Grim Reaper that Luciel had vaguely imagined, and as if looking inside her thoughts, Raven grinned.

“You didn’t know that the Reaper could be such a handsome boy, right? I was giving him a lesson. Luciel, what kind of punishment would you like to inflict on Maximus?”

“What…? Me?”

Why do you ask that? Rather, I was more curious about the relationship between the Reaper and Kizef.

“Yes. This guy is a very bad guy. So I’m going to give him some scolding.”

“Wait a minute. Did Maximus make Kizef’s face like that?”

With a very angry face, Luciel took a step closer to Maximus. Then she kicked him in the shin with all her might. She was small in size, but her small feet were quite spicy.

“Ugh!”

“Don’t bother my husband.”

Seeing this, Raven grabbed his stomach and started to laugh.

“I don’t think it hurts if you hit him like that? Shall I get revenge for you…?”

“Then hit him hard. About ten times.”

Raven lowered his height for a moment with sharp eyes as if looking into Luciel’s insides, then whispered into her ear.

“Is that really all you want?”

“…What does that mean?”

“You know better, don’t you?”

As their distance was getting closer, Kizef intercepted them and pulled her closer to him as if to protect Luciel.

“Luciel. Come on. You don’t have to deal with everything that guys ask you.”

Raven glanced at Luciel and nodded his head.

The white little girl looked as soft as a cotton doll. The rich facial features that made people look forward to her future also contributed to her loveliness.

“…I can see why Kizef has been neglecting me all this time.”

Raven teasingly laughed, and Kizef’s ears turned red.

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“I’ll scold them moderately and erase their memories, so you two should go on a date.”

“You…ah, never mind.”

As if responding to the word ‘date’, Kizef’s ears and cheeks became even redder.

He grabbed Luciel’s hand and the two left the garden without a word until they reached the lilac garden where a large fountain was beautifully gushing water.

The moist night dew, the gentle breeze, and the crying of grass insects.

“Would you like to sit here and rest?”

“Yes.”

As they sat down by the fountain, their faces grew closer. Kizef’s wounds were of concern. Not only did his mouth burst, but his lips were bleeding and his cheeks were scratched and swollen.

“You can’t get scars on your pretty face.”

Mumbling with a sad face, Luciel opened the pink bag embroidered with strawberries. Inside her bag, she found a small piece of cloth patch and one round, solid ointment that she puts on when she gets flesh wounds.

When Luciel fell and her knee was slightly peeled, Bessie asked Cicline to prepare it.

While Luciel was grumbling, Kizef was looking at her white, soft face.

Was it because of the starlight?

The inside of Luciel’s jewelry-eyes, without the eye color-changing magic, was exceptionally shiny and pretty today. As he pretended not to notice his beating heart, Kizef muttered belatedly.

“It’s okay…”

“First, look down. Or lie down here.”

Luciel pointed to her leg. Kizef hesitated, and Luciel pulled him to lay him down.

“…!”

He thought she was small and weak, but Luciel was quite strong, and her knee pillow was soft, probably because of the hem of the dress.

Kizef was stiffening his neck for fear of giving Luciel a hard time.

Luciel put the ointment on her hand, applied it to his wounds, and meticulously applied the cloth paste.

“It’s done.”

In the shadow that Luciel’s face had created, Kizef closed his eyes as if he couldn’t breathe for a moment. While Luciel was treating him, he had a strange idea that getting hurt wasn’t a bad thing.

He thought it was a strange thought to have.

While stroking the pain relief patch, he said.

“…T-thank you.”

“Yes.”

Luciel didn’t ask anything. But I’m sure she was curious about how he got to know the Grim Reaper.

‘Are you trusting and waiting for me?’