CH 64

“Woah, this is amazing.”

At Father Antonio’s astonished cry, I slowly opened my eyes and looked into the water.

“Huh…?”

The water was like a dark red liquid monster fluttering before, but now it just spread in the water at a constant concentration. 

Most of all, it looked like the color was fading. 

It was a fantastic sight. But after seeing this scene, I was even more convinced that my powers seemed to be the kind that could dispel these evil spirits.

Before the sand rat out in the hourglass, the dark red liquid became clear and transparent.

“I think this is enough. Can I take out my hand?”

Father Antonio merely nodded then faced Enoch, his face grave. Enoch’s expression was not that different from his. 

“W-what’s the problem?” I looked at them, and Father Antonio sighed deeply.

“Hmm, that’s a lot quicker than I expected.”

“How’s it compared to the temple goddess?”

“The goddess is no match for her. It would take her two full days and two nights to purify blood to this extent.”

I didn’t understand what they were talking about, but it seemed to be about my ability. But why did they look so serious?

After Father Antonio had settled down, we sat face to face at the table again.

“I can confirm that the Count has excellent purifying powers.”

‘Purifying powers.’

It made sense. I drove away the effects of the medicine on the Duke, purified the undead bird, and let it lead to a comfortable death.

At first, I thought that the ability I had wasn’t good, that it killed living things. But when I heard they were forced to live by evil forces in the first place, I realized that wasn’t the case. 

“Your Highness, how and for what purpose did the incident at the duchy take place? Am I the one who purified them?”

When Enoch remained silent, the priest smiled and said, “You can tell her. As long as she is born with the ability anyway, she cannot lead a completely irrelevant life.”

“…Fine. But I wanted the Count to live a normal life.”

In Enoch’s muffled voice, I could hear his sincere concern once more. It would be in the same vein as he said before I came here.

Did he mean it would be hard for me to live a normal life as soon as I understood what he said?

However, coming to this world was already out of the ordinary. What difference would it make to have one more unique ability?

“It’s okay, Your Highness. Anyway, it’s my choice. Tell me, please.”

“Alright. First, all of the undead incidents you saw at the duchy were fueled by black magic.”

“Black magic? Is it different from normal magic?”

Enoch nodded once and continued. “Magic is the product of talent and hard work. Once’s magical ability is determined by the mastery to control mana, that is, how much magical power you have and how efficiently you can use it.”

Enoch briefly explained the basic concepts of magic and then moved on to black magic.

“But black magic is an entirely different concept. There’s no talent or effort required. One would have to form a contract with the devil and draw powers from him.”

“Devil… and a contract. There must be a price for that.”

“You’re right. The user’s soul is collateral for the contract.”

“If you sell your soul like that… what will happen?”

“Nothing significant at first. So, even though black magic users are careful, they get more and more reckless. Then the instincts and desires are stimulated and they become emotional.”

Surprisingly, the first thing that came to mind was Rupert. So maybe the emotional changes he had shown me recently had something to do with that.

“Do you become emotional just by being exposed? Without using dark magic?”

“Yes. Long-term exposure can result in black magic-like changes.”

“Ah… Then.”

Chloe really dabbled in black magic. She never did anything outright, but everything she did was suspicious.

“If you keep using black magic like that… What will happen later?”

This time, Father Antonio answered. “As they get more and more emotional, they lose reason and behave unusually; then the devil will eat their soul. After that, the devil will take over their body.”

“The devil… their body…”

Wasn’t this more serious than I thought? Demons appeared in this world. 

“That’s why black magicians who are still conscious often take their life before they’re completely consumed. Or the people around him who know him give him rest.”

“You know that yet you still use black magic… Just, why? Why?” I talked with Chloe in mind. They never mentioned that Chloe used black magic, but I was already convinced.

Chlo was the beloved female protagonist in the novel. So what was it that she lacked to put her hands in black magic? 

I didn’t voice out my concern, but Enoch continued as if answering my unspoken question. 

“People who want what they can’t have mostly turn to black magic,” he said. “So all black magic is a product of greed.” 

At Enoch’s words, I looked blankly at him. 

“Anyway, you have the power of purification. If the temple finds out, they won’t let you go.”

“What do you mean…? why wouldn’t they?”

Anxiety rolled in. What did it mean to be taken by the temple? 

“They will say that the saintess has appeared for the first time in hundreds of years, and they try’ll to take you to the temple. You will be treated preciously, but at the same time, your life will belong to the temple. Every move will be monitored, and every event you have will be supervised…”

He spoke of what it would be like if the temple really did take me in as the Saintess. 

“Saintess…”

It was such an unrealistic word. And even if Enoch didn’t explain it, it was obvious that the future would be bothersome.

‘Saintess’ was probably just a pretty title; they would probably drag me around, asking me to use my ability for one thing or another. Was this why Enoch didn’t want to tell me? Now it made sense.

I paused and looked at Father Antonio. “Are you alright, Father? In any case, you belong to the temple, right?” 

“Well, I don’t know why His Highness believed in me to come here,” Father Antonio said, but I thought I knew why Enoch came here.

“Father Antonio is one of the few priests capable of exorcism. He belongs to the temple, but he has a lot of different duties, so he goes out and spends his life separately.” 

“I’m just an oddball.”

In addition to Enoch’s introduction, there was a sense of playfulness in Father Antonio’s voice. 

“But if I’m not mistaken, the Count’s abilities seem stronger than the last time.”

“Rather than stronger, it’s become more solid. That’s how often they were exposed. The ability that had been hidden before manifested every time she came in contact with the black magic.”

When they talked about being exposed often, did it mean Chloe had tried black magic on me, too? 

It would have been weirder if she hadn’t. If so, up to what extent did she use it?

“Anyway, I shouldn’t reveal this ability to anyone, right?”

“If that’s what the Count wants.”

“…Of course.”

I had no desire to live as a Saintess. It would have been fine if he told me this, but why did Enoch want to hide it so much? Was it because he didn’t trust me?

It didn’t matter anymore because I knew it now. I would have to live my life as quietly as possible. 

As long as I had the ability to purify, I was safe from Chloe’s safe tactics. That’s what mattered.

The Duke of Clifford’s funeral ended. 

Rupert held the funeral as quietly as possible without informing the rest of society, keeping it to the people in the castle. 

The Duke’s body was buried in the mausoleum, and they prayed a short prayer to complete the funeral procedure. The employees stared at Rupert, curiosity and anxiety in their gazes. 

Rupert didn’t mind it, and as soon as the funeral was over, he entered the castle. Chloe, wearing a black dress and a hat with black lace that covered her face, followed him.

As Rupert headed for the room upstairs, she continued to follow him. The room on this floor was the room Erin had occupied a while ago.

As soon as he arrived in the room, he took off his coat, untied his tie, and laid it loosely on the table. Chloe stood behind his back and wrapped her arms around him.

Startled, Rupert stiffened, pulled her away, and turned around.

“Rupert?”

“…Ah, Chloe. I’m a little tired.”

Rupert ruffled his hair and sat across the sofa. Chloe smiled sadly, hiding her awkwardness, and she sat next to him.

“I get it. It’s hard to hold a funeral alone, and well, Madam, too.”

Rupert stared blankly in the air. 

Chloe continued sullenly, taking his silence as sympathy, “You’re in such a difficult situation yet she’s the first to go… She’s still the hostess of this house. She doesn’t seem to have a sense of responsibility.”

“Still?”

Rupert stayed silent the whole time until he heard that word. Chloe was flustered, but skillfully moved on from it.

“Until you want it.”

Rupert looked at her feeble smile and opened his mouth quietly. His voice was low and heavy.

“Chloe, you said that taking that drug doesn’t mean he will die right away.”