“Seems like it’s mixed with a hemorrhagic poison.”
The duke spat the words out through gritted teeth as he approached me. Then he unfastened his cufflinks.
He no longer seemed even interested in stopping the bleeding.
When he pressed the cufflink, a short but sharp blade popped out. With it, he cut the ropes binding my wrists and ankles.
“You’ve put a spell on it, haven’t you?”
“It came off pretty easily, didn’t it?” I asked, rotating my sore wrist. He sheathed the blade again and said nonchalantly,
“Because it was cut with a magical tool.”
“Ah…”
I thought it was unusual that the blade was hidden, but considering he carried it on his person, it was probably no ordinary magic tool.
I nodded and stepped closer to him.
“Let me see your wound.”
“I’m fine.”
He still hid his hand, which was dripping blood. I grabbed his arm.
My wrist stung, but the duke was the bigger concern.
“You say it’s a hemorrhagic poison, but we still need to stop the bleeding.”
I tore a piece of my skirt.
The duke’s voice trembled as he said,
“What are you—!”
“It’s fine.”
I was glad I hadn’t come out in just my pajamas. I wrapped his wound with the fabric. It wouldn’t stop the bleeding completely, but I couldn’t leave it as it was.
After carefully checking, I stepped back and saw his ears under his black hair turn red.
…Well, of course. A proper lady wouldn’t expose her legs so easily.
Embarrassed, I cleared my throat and said,
“How do we get out now?”
I looked around. The room, made of smooth white material, had no windows or doors.
The increasing sense of confinement made it seem like the air didn’t circulate either.
I punched the nearby wall.
“No echo… it’s pretty thick.”
I looked back at the duke and added,
“You brought a teleportation tool, right?”
I assumed he had a tool for movement since he had appeared suddenly.
But he shook his head.
“I have one, but it’s hard to use.”
“Huh?”
“Strangely, ever since we came into this room, the mana has been disrupted. The knights outside are breaking through the walls, so if we wait a little, we should be able to leave.”
For a room that someone was supposedly breaking through, it was far too quiet. I frowned.
“But I don’t hear anything at all.”
At my words, he came over and tapped the wall. Then he made a frustrated expression.
“When I entered, there were already cracks on the surface… it seems the inside is lined with a special material.”
“What do we do then?”
How long would we have to wait?
It’s too narrow—could we last until the wall is broken?
Then the duke spoke.
“Your leg… is it okay?”
“Huh?”
My leg stung. I finally remembered the scalpel had grazed it.
Looking down, I saw a fine line of blood seeping through my silk stocking. Fortunately, it didn’t seem deep.
I shrugged.
“I’m fine. It’ll heal soon…”
Though I tried to reassure him, I couldn’t finish the sentence.
The duke knelt down and very carefully examined my leg.
My face heated with embarrassment.
He pressed my wound lightly with his sleeve—softly, as if a butterfly had landed.
“…Stand up.”
“Sorry.”
In a voice as soft as a butterfly’s wings, he apologized to me.
“For what?”
“For shouting at you while you were trapped, for doubting you, and for not managing my household staff properly so that you had to go through this…”
He looked at me with eyes full of regret and self-reproach.
His red eyes were not frightening at all.
I shook my head.
“Maybe I was just acting.”
“There’s no point in further doubt toward someone who could have died.”
He said this, bowing his head. His usual assertive demeanor was gone. Feeling awkward, I quickly changed the subject.
“Alright. Glad the misunderstanding’s cleared up. By the way, how did you know I was here?”
“…I had you under surveillance.”
Dorian’s face turned red as he spoke. Then he added,
“If we had put precautions in place so you wouldn’t be kidnapped, this wouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry for not trusting you and keeping you under watch.”
How did someone so careless end up as the mastermind? I hesitated, then gently patted his shoulder.
“No need to apologize. Thanks to that, I was saved, and you came to rescue me. Any further apologies are pointless.”
I crouched and looked him in the eye. He widened his eyes in surprise.
I held his shoulders with both hands.
“The important thing now is figuring out how to get out. You said they’re breaking the walls outside, but with the hemorrhagic poison, we need to hurry. There’s no other way?”
I looked around, my heart racing.
It wasn’t just about oxygen; being trapped in a completely smooth white small room could easily trigger panic.
I helped the duke to his feet.
“Any other magical tools?”
“No. And in such a small space, any magic tool could put us at greater risk.”
He answered calmly. It made sense. Even an explosive magic tool could backfire in this tiny room.
‘What should I do…’
Maybe the corners are weaker than the rest?
If I put more mana than usual into a cutting tool… it mustn’t break before the wall does.
If I aim at the bottom, will the whole wall collapse? Would the top be safer?
A hammer would’ve been better.
I kept my hand on the duke’s shoulder, aiming at the wall behind him.
If only I could remove that wall…
Then, suddenly.
Blue mist began rising from the floor, enveloping the wall I was staring at.
Bang!
A crack formed in the wall, which seemed carved from a single stone block, precisely where the mist touched.
I gripped my hands without realizing it.
“What… is this?!”
The duke, now looking at the same spot, was too shocked to speak.
The mist began corroding the wall.
Ssshhh.
Our eyes met again. I saw ripples in his pupils and said,
“You said no magical tools, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“But that…”
I stopped myself from finishing the sentence.
In the original story, the blue mist represented the Brecht family’s mana. The protagonists had used residual mana in a magic tool to catch the duke.
But I’d never heard of magic activating purely from mana.
Besides, the duke should not be able to use magic without a tool!
“It’s my mana.”
He seemed to think I said it because I didn’t know what it was, and his voice was bewildered. But he didn’t seem to understand the situation either.
Could the duke have a special constitution allowing him to use magic via verbal command? In the original, he hadn’t awakened such powers.
But if that were the case, there would have been a proper spell in what he said earlier, and there wasn’t.
The cracked wall slowly melted away, creating a huge crater.
“Mana moved on its own?”
“Believe it or not, yes.”
The duke seemed the least convinced of all. He clearly had no idea he possessed this ability.
I unconsciously tightened my grip on his shoulder, then realized and quickly let go.
“Sorry!”
As soon as I released my hand, the mana surrounding the wall dispersed.
“Huh?”
We both gasped in dumbfounded amazement.
The room became calm again, as if nothing had happened. Remaining debris fell with a soft plink.
Could it be…
Compelled by instinct, I placed my hands back on the duke’s shoulder, wishing the wall would disappear again.
Maybe it’s nothing, but just in case… the professor’s voice about high mana affinity echoed in my head.
If this is some kind of possession buff…
I focused.
“Remove the wall.”
Swoooosh.
The dark blue mist began rising from the floor once more, slowly enveloping the wall like it had a will of its own.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the mist until it covered the wall completely.
My face tingled, and a deep exhilaration rose from within me.
Even if the sky fell, there’s a way out!
The duke and I met eyes again.
“…Is that you?”
“I think so.”
I quickly added, glancing at him.
“Don’t ask how I did it. I don’t know either.”
“You seem calm for someone who knows nothing… fine.”
There was a sharpness in his tone. I flinched, but he didn’t press further.
He looked at his mana with curiosity.
The mist now fully engulfed the wall. The crater in the center was growing deeper and wider.
The wall’s thickness where it had cracked was immense.
‘Judging by the seamless surface, it looks like it was carved from a single massive rock. Where did they get such a stone?’
The previously plain white rock was tinged with pale blue along the broken edges.
Was it the duke’s mana?
If mana acts directly without a tool, it leaves traces like this?
I squinted to see more closely.
Could it be…
Carved entirely from a single stone? The room had no lights, no windows, yet it was suspiciously bright and white.
I tore my gaze away from the wall and looked at the duke.
“Looking closely… this isn’t ordinary rock. If it’s okay, may I come a little closer to see?”
