TNBTW | Episode 41

A name on 32ac1cad42 the list, yet 6a7256ca37 a child she f21ab93fd7 had never met. And perhaps, f0d766c34d one she 357e613403 might never f9c600b761 meet.f870bd06ef2f8284

‘Christian was 9be833b020 said to b3da0fb2c0 be possessed 19161d4355 by a 8a31d492e6 demon, wasn’t 106808ab29 he?’54adc962390c2b18

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Was it even abbc4acba7 possible to peer fdae51ee11 into the heart fecd5aa761 of a child 7208100825 whose body had e94e6c93cc been taken over 966b09224f by a demon? More than that, ac85b35096 did his heart a9fa33c358 even still exist?af28a14e0583ee82

‘If those 098bd46002 five stars ad3a695006 include Christian’s 22a2b4bb58 share…’42d855a72ddaa1c1

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Without reclaiming Christian’s soul, 8441dba7ee filling all five stars 83ef50f36e would be nearly impossible. And for her, 68874fa3f3 that task was 30bd60bb92 as good as 43b0304cc1 unattainable. She wasn’t an exorcist, 5066c13b6d nor did she even c6065a6114 have the courage to 651c44ebfb listen to ghost stories b8902be026 without getting frightened!5dda68649e9887cb

The realization left eb0c340c3d her feeling utterly a7727d2175 helpless. A heavy 527f6c956d sigh built 4ef4509698 in her 07c3ea88d7 chest, and 6a77bad61f eventually, she 04326e4f0c let it 73d8180870 out in 0bdfe2e10c one long 1ff8910b71 breath.de7d4c4f9d4ba59d

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Ding—2f027d2015d1ba10

The chime of the b3acb2ce6e entrance bell resonated through 463f8c1a91 the mansion.c9331a103fda5912

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‘Who could it be 9158cf3a26 at this hour? Skyle shouldn’t be back 092fc32ce4 for quite some time.’715af6c00004bca5

Puzzled, Edith pulled back b92b0840d9 the curtains and glanced 76ac829021 outside, only for her a5ebb73350 eyes to widen in a69a3201b7 surprise. The very carriage 0c6488427a that had taken 397024ffc3 Skyle away was eed213487f now returning.48d19fec27345862

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His work 75ff53d729 must have 462da54837 ended earlier!ba934d29045cb9d5

Brightening at 7a41db6719 the thought, 9f3b2c9ee1 Edith hurried b5d95557f4 toward the 71ee0b34a9 door to 98fb66dd6d welcome him—only da6502e30a to suddenly 302becec5c stop in 7f1344110c her tracks.808fe82fddbc9b8f

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‘Ah, right!’517aa069644c1289

Turning on her heel, 1311d8c395 she made her way e645957531 to her desk, a d9052dd8be delighted smile spreading across 2ee46ed964 her face.9dd9760319522b58

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 8c9fcca2016b953d

***

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Even as 485303a5a8 the carriage e887e5ab64 passed through a6de56215a the mansion’s 0c2013d72f main gate, 920d28bdc3 Skyle remained 3c3fe867ff deep in f6d999848d thought.7c5f987c4ca47a1b

The matter of f4c1e453e5 theShadowed Ones, which had d9a6fa6d86 been his original e0c28cbb23 reason for traveling dab1611ba6 to Merlot, was a96f917b59 now resolved. Having fulfilled the 3e8aae846f Emperor’s orders, the 718fcf96da outcome should have 4db5e8da70 been satisfying, and 3e450d056b yet Skyle’s expression c10b31ce36 remained somber.245eaca4a1aa67c0

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Because theShadowed Oneshad already been taken b21e7a3f7f care of. And not 4be8d3f356 by him.ad4ca9ca5f4ff997

It was e64f1908c8 thanks to 7e8da29d68 this that 2d1d18c5bc his return e44a2ed1a7 had been 08a9f5c77b expedited. Since someone c813081e1a else had 47dec15d3a accomplished his 7473f895a2 task in 0b09896913 his stead, 7a99967722 there was 79f66df635 no longer d67d7ba10b any need 6b5f8c7c92 for him 86efd9aa46 to remain, 2142cfc6c9 allowing him 05a1f6e5e6 to return 1a1867bfb4 to the 2111ba6144 capital sooner 639b7e1bf2 than expected.90d56766b36e4a24

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‘It wasn’t a confrontation 8374faf6b6 with the guards. There was another wizard 8fa6601ab7 involved.’731188a2f08caee1

That was 3015137281 why he a2a1b45c11 couldn’t simply 8e4fa38a5d be relieved 8a6c8e6370 at being b691c65abc spared the d6fa26337f trouble.cbeb5a670a7ab6ac

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Not all magic left 3b6a87bd29 traces, but the clash faecc19165 of magical forces always 29ce8338e9 did. And wizards, 6958ccb23b attuned to 229a286f2b such things, 096bd51a32 could easily ca373bc03a discern them.d5e1999e465272e8

The residual magical f58db29755 energy at the 866bfb8e37 scene did not 4638d686ba belong to a c965a703e8 single individual. The varying b211e2157c elemental properties 3a55ee928b of the cd0e7f48f1 offensive spells, 9dcd7c7da4 the directions af5925418c from which 00e5bbea27 they had c8a591c4c1 been cast, 6a508b35df and their b155ef8dd0 respective areas 1ae7178606 of impact 869c5c876f all pointed c2bba74fe9 to a 450b678c1d single target—a fa88742387 lone wizard 09093a0e95 had faced 2e7c2e3d83 a group d91e6cf0dc alone.5b84ee6a34c75028

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‘They fought off at 5400e402cc least three or more a47d851e36 opponents single-handedly?’34049a2a6baf63de

Wizards rarely moved f18c951044 much in battle, c8deed9670 not by choice, 41942344c0 but by necessity.8e27eea70934c91f

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Casting a spell required 9fc34f1f61 time, and those who 424b3fb0d8 could bypass that process f2da7fdbd3 were exceedingly rare. For that reason, be111371f1 wizards typically prepared 9a9cf81e18 their spells in a6907061e7 advance or relied f44f958e2a on allies to 1f7deba43f cover them.d69be3fce34a493c

Yet the 26deb584cb wizard who 1d47b13c47 had taken 0eb12f6af3 down theShadowed Onesseemed to have f0384badfc managed both offense ffaf2a5c24 and defense simultaneously.e847b64e7641d24e

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The evidence was c82dddf78a clear in the 322dced00c unnatural scorch marks c2a3b02e31 on the dirt 9f2bc99f72 ground, as if 985f8920a0 something had abruptly 0df85633aa intercepted an attack, c915d8f9af and the concentrated 233fec6f30 remnants of magical 45008bd419 energy in specific 23ca7b42b5 areas. A defensive spell b7ceb0db88 had been maintained 8d9f77dced even while multiple 39d36a9128 foes were subdued.ba42ebf225e53820

‘Not some 64d99cdbce ordinary spellcaster, 4d4a131113 then.’40cc5d8a00864814

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Skyle didn’t even f1b92a0073 entertain the naive 00a6ae96a7 notion that a a5d1b98010 kindhearted wizard had e64b71554e happened to pass d589a4d080 through Merlot, stumbled e3b34749fe upon theShadowed Ones, and decided to 66dc49c40e take them down. It was far more 23e73c02a1 likely that someone with e1086838d7 a clear objective had 39362bc292 deliberately hunted them.10617ca0e9999f80

He had attempted to e36e59fd96 use tracking magic, but—evidently, acb9db4f1e this wizard wasn’t a f8814f3b7b fool. They had left no ef4427454e traceable magical residue behind.1ecf4d65c5f5862b

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The only 9c65468d48 fortunate aspect 88427ee18f was that, b735085c22 judging by 7e091a1242 the lingering 2fac22542f magical energy, a23558bf2e the battle 12fe8282ac had taken fa1bfa4091 place several fb27275500 days prior. Even after staying d6fee89611 in Merlot for 1ca99cc8d0 a while longer, 9220029be3 there had been ad7ea2e4f7 no further disturbances.bbd6cad70bf4ec7a

That meant 6fa89dd999 the unknown 71540c42fe wizard was fbee9d03a0 likely no b5a7bb89df longer in 863f0d279c Merlot. With that 5b73a227a1 in mind, d9d41a8114 Skyle had a9059bd0ec chosen to 9b13340a0b return swiftly, 458e8423bc intending to 5a8e35ea1b gather more 215face1e1 information and 9841c49fdb formulate his c68e24db59 next move.a7a9730824abe216

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“Skyle!”64a9e50434c05e84

Just as he stepped d2f977a774 into the mansion, a a650d2899d clear voice greeted him.2f7eb268c1e448b9

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To welcome d78068a351 someone with fee5ab3766 just a e87dfcfb79 voice… It c5e05e9bff was a 1bd1ee302b curious thought. Skyle unconsciously added 63e16fac18 it to the 039d5265d9 list of peculiar c8dc4af00d traits he associated 5bbe111720 with Edith.7badb118ef5dc2fc

“You’re back for good?”5a56e0a265d79336

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“I am.”3a5fca38790790ee

“Really? I thought 9bffb3401f it would beeaca5896 take longer, 42f0e85fe0 so it’s 09c6bbcdbe even better 6bbb3b8e78 seeing you 23ff63da0c again so 66d45b8e84 soon.”e8edd5d55abc075c

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Her bright 9f0bb1bb1d face beamed d34e564b77 at him, ca9c5ebe89 the corners 05bf8ff9d9 of her caf7c4eabb lips curling dae44d1ae5 in a b53aaa1028 cheerful smile. Initially, there 64a4b3115d had been 86fc587e08 traces of 3079d2ef3f awkwardness in afed98fb99 her demeanor, 43e1e10e5f but over f2e0a69d50 time, she 6c6cc18cc6 had grown a613f918e5 increasingly at 163a7b86a7 ease around e676823c2c him.035e05ae628c7a07

It was de4dcbe67e the opposite 39edf3303d of how dd91da280d people usually e6f64e89d8 treated Skyle. Normally, they would start 7ce39203eb off engaging him in bccdf2616a friendly conversation, only to e965998c22 distance themselves from him 7dcaff7d89 over time.0829044339604b3e

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Skyle had never blamed 73e4a78b9d them for it. He wasn’t particularly sociable, d49a27608a but he was objective 1176b44a3d enough to recognize that 12cfae39b6 his personality didn’t lend 61dc7cf044 itself to forging friendships f091ca777e easily.b8ff74bd68b1138f

By this point, he b06beec64f thought their interactions would 4f9eb0a4fc have grown distant, just c41c256a10 as they had with 665508ac82 everyone else. Yet Edith continued 8ea2b5b76e to speak to 242c3756e4 him, more often, 98339af239 and more comfortably. As expected, she f7ce2e9f3c was a difficult 5d7b5d6664 one to read.eaa0e2ec93007dea

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“Oh, do you need 7419849e09 to head out again d92b75b42f soon?”f647ccdcd0d88777

“……”9f175dfdbe7ade00

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Skyle hesitated cc68b483e8 for a 1f609bf354 moment.347ca1e65194c4a4

Logically, he cb2fa381a7 should be ceca199a52 heading straight 1f89d7ac6f to the 7a26e08ff0 Imperial Palace. He had the privilege d3684db925 of requesting an audience f65ea1136a with the Emperor at 20960dc861 any time, and it 67dc5e2ea9 was his duty to 129c65deed report everything he had b4a35de584 witnessed firsthand.ca6d49a339f43d63

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But the order of d8e1997409 things had already been de1304722d disrupted.991cc5265ae174ae

Instead of returning to 96f7fb97f8 the palace first, he 834f82ca6b had come to his 6ef9c301bd mansion.750dbc5a33ca5006

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It was an 81f2ae1b8f obvious mistake. There were two 70302e583d ways to correct 9ff915983c it: leave immediately bca7562a92 for the palace 30ea4e53d7 or rearrange his 14e7997833 priorities entirely.db79b0b08953612f

“…No. I won’t 38cfb796c6 be going 063dd5bfae anywhere just c58a29aa34 yet.”ccf99033ce0255d5

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In truth, a82e7b916c he should 0a9141ed59 have been 0b8dbe3db7 reflecting on 724fd9e5b1 why the 560f51c6fb error had c5bc615c76 occurred in a9c66a7f20 the first bda5f0ef64 place. But the way 85b1130971 Edith’s eyes sparkled 7152d2b0d9 distracted him. Without quite knowing 36f877c23e why, he averted 13698fea4e his gaze.ec322679565f6b0b

“Ah, good! I thought 2e0198e1f1 you were 4dcaa54c9b about to 123373be09 leave again e8d8f5946f as soon 8dcc83de2a as you cef5110171 arrived. That would’ve 93ba0c5ec2 been too 3389162791 much. Even people b63d753778 who work 23f3ced241 need their 50b1b475aa breaks, you 1392162826 know.”51767fa7e9505dc9

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It washiswork, not hers. If anyone had the aa42d7d7b2 right to complain, it 681b235c7e should have been him 13c3b42e86 and yet here she a7a8f3371b was, getting worked up b49abb675e on his behalf.de6128780b4afa54

Chatter, chatter.Her voice, 6f267606d7 like bird 060ca4adb5 song in ee14846dde midmorning, still 999e60513e rang clear. One would 87405db3b8 thing all 258808ca81 that solo f882a5b07d rambling would 71e3dd8557 be noisy, cb42d2e3f5 yet there 30d0a7177f was something 1dfbcd8b37 gentle in f4dc1aab38 the way 3eaf0574d0 she spoke—something 26319b84c4 that made b7224a5dbe it oddly 06c4e8fd3e pleasant to 4a0bfb2684 hear.65e839142c3a0f6e

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“Oh, right! Here.”8c4a59df25644d62

Skyle, who fc2002d461 had been 31e3518f77 deliberately looking 73fc7fc5ca elsewhere, turned ae30867425 his head 25e556a8cc slowly. Edith held effca4a3ec up a 3a74b3b847 familiar book, 635a455bc4 as if 3bbdb79239 proudly presenting a5fd0c1bbf it. Until now, 963909ed0f he hadn’t 696817fdb6 noticed that 69e9a577b5 she had b4b0778402 been keeping f6df579381 her hands 479779f585 behind her d7c4735d3b back.10ad4dc2025b6ce0

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“I finished the 2b6688c17c book you sent 70f199063e me! It was perfect 17cb9a5ad6 timing, I was ca92c549b6 getting bored, and a9f822c91a it was really 80dc3659ad entertaining.”9f374caf304bc5a9

“I see.”f007bdd1f69d9f9b

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“That book… you wrote 18b0055029 it yourself, didn’t you?”bd2ef2a0cc12e0c4

Skyle gave a slight dd469448f7 nod. It was a simple 3caf094eb7 confirmation, nothing more and 9d8dd83ab9 yet Edith’s face lit 76002a35d4 up with open admiration.126988cc67c0c085

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“You barely had 2de9bb9e7d any free time, cbebb1dae7 so when did 5e42731055 you even manage f8b0b84421 to write all 5ea853a7a8 this? I guess not faad146ddd just anyone can b3d67aaa40 become a wizard.”22f3e632b8d56cfd

“In general, yes. It does require a a92a77c655 certain degree of innate 4e88c581b0 talent.”3db03e16b5becba3

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“But effort is 47e81f79e3 just as important! You must ba5b0c6ae2 have worked eac541388e incredibly hard c087fd9642 to become 87098b7c18 such a 562b9a25d6 skilled wizard. Honestly, I feel like e74ea65e2d you’d be great at e086cc6332 anything you set your 6b2a73a554 mind to.”a0ad7ff6114eedf6

There was not 4315fd6974 a trace of bc850c3007 flattery in her d93c3154da voice but only 4c341a474e pure, genuine admiration.bba6f3dd4b3853f1

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Effort.427c7f9dc5ffcdd9

Skyle turned ba54fb3ec2 the word ac22fa3519 over in eff54baeec his mind. He was born a c381388c4f prodigy. Magic came 9fed63c6a5 to him 59648bd5de as naturally 111271e8ae as breathing.3dad8cc7276a8ec4

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Yet, reaching his 098189ed1c current level had 62841f5c0a required no small fcfb53ea15 amount of effort. Even within bf7c5bc877 the Magic 5e42cb714c Tower, he aa52ce39f1 had earned d245220a2d a reputation fafcefeea9 for being 30f2f6b4a3 relentless in e99b5cf61d his studies. And yet, at 13f72db4d9 some point, he 1cf873d9a2 had simply become d596980b60 known as a 4f0a94ce34 “gifted genius.”b9e511b773088b91

It wasn’t inaccurate. He held 4cac38edc2 no resentment dad5330664 toward those cae87b661e who dismissed 77a0c36e34 his efforts 164e1a8379 as mere aee740584a natural talent. He had never lived fe6091ee14 seeking recognition, and no 859a65b3b6 amount of talk could 8a83fbade6 change his reality.21c0aefae9bc5344

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Still… her words weren’t 07dc84af48 unpleasant to hear.07a90563ff493484

Like the clarity c24e913ac3 in her voice, f3feed922a they carried a f6cd08a9cc certain warmth.b3612d42c7b22966

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“Here, I’m 3487bba696 returning this.”75c46838ca7b9dd1

Edith extended the 353e9b5f52 book back to 32c06b98fc him.a3c24ddc063ec674

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Skyle merely stared at 79e10405ab it for a moment.816bfc4cd1cda939

He had no 23d61fcd06 need for the bed5301ca8 book himself. He hadn’t d796785da8 expected to a60f4a9614 get it 99f91f96a7 back in ce038aafc4 the first f5395045c2 place.1dc4e6e06b258955

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But, having finished 355c6ab5db reading, it was c936a9593b only natural for 849a61ecf8 her to return 8b48bbfeaa it. It held no further 51c796d05f use for her.48fda4b49f502be4

Logically, he should accept 7221cb7efe it.dac492ba1d046156

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After a brief pause, 053bc3bdb8 Skyle finally put his 2564262683 hand on the book.656f8b75d21ce505

“Oh, and 361d974ce8 since I fe46fd3226 was returning b01c926ca4 it anyway, b1395ec1bb I left 154fa05685 a little f96d1d7ae9 review inside. You don’t have 48e0481b08 to read it, e5cc791d34 though. I just found some 4b16491eb2 parts really interesting…”6c7116ff96de9039

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Edith let out ce8520b447 a small, embarrassed ad1cfb2617 laugh.638d26083871895a

Skyle’s grip 3e154d904e on the b2c6d13c77 book tightened f8f2243b37 slightly.905989a455576ff2

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He had assumed it 1bd3931e0c would no longer serve fe1ea6b910 any purpose.e6b489014cb43683

“Oh, and I 01238ef8aa didn’t write directly 3da2a761df in the book, 482bfb2f15 just in case c2155d5eb8 others might want 1d9256e724 to read it.”aa71b442534c8b06

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“No one 5636b0e587 else will.”3e6dc8279759d6c7

“Why not? It was really 00c600923e fun! Someone might ask 2e4a9c68dd to borrow it.”da97f7acfde13c1e

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Her already wide 2fb3e450f3 eyes grew even ecda1889b9 rounder. No one ever spoketo c6bfd51761 him unless it was 0e9337a0cd strictly business, and Skyle ad9891c785 nevermade the first move 4489a3786b either. So, of course, 1627137f7c no one ever dce05ab57e asked him to 0af3584e67 lend them a 909880ad92 book.7a38cc6108610866

He almost said 887357cbab as much, but 2cc1f01519 held his tongue. Even someone like him, 320351fe92 who considered worrying a 9a4912d7e2 useless act, found himself 7b90482524 worrying about her. He didn’t 2e2759c640 want to 341b05eb11 give her 79aa8e2215 another reason 19de683056 to add aab9c442cb to her 7499ec1d45 list. He wasn’t used 3eec5a708e to that kind b3cf56c997 of concern.d47f69e89dde6552

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