Spiritual Realm.

The Dragonkin, who had sealed themselves away and been imprisoned for a thousand years—long past mere centuries...

[Kuaaaah!]

[Shut up already.]

As they modified an artifact for Alon in real time, they pondered.

About the “black thing” clinging behind Alon.

...What in the world is that?

By sealing themselves, the Dragonkin had lost most of their power.

Even their name and abilities had been scattered somewhere in this world when they sealed themselves, leaving them weaker still. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

And yet, the Dragonkin could still see the two eyes behind Alon.

Because of the divinity they had possessed since the age of forgotten gods.

A being that can interfere with eternity...?

Unlike the “blue one,” the “black one” actively interfered whenever they tried to speculate about it—without Alon noticing.

With overwhelming power.

That power...

It made their entire body shudder.

Even though they were in a spiritual form.

Just by scattering its residual echoes, it could erase their very existence without hesitation. A terrifying force unlike anything they had ever encountered.

In truth, even if it hadn’t threatened them, there was little the Dragonkin could deduce.

However, despite their lack of understanding, it didn’t seem like the black one intended to harm the last remaining mage in this world.

Even if they couldn’t grasp that enigmatic existence completely, some intentions could be inferred from its actions.

...No. It almost seemed like it was helping.

In the end, the Dragonkin let out a heavy sigh.

Even if they tried to imagine what it was, they had far too little information.

And so...

...Just what is that thing, that he carries something so terrifying behind him...?

Muttering softly, they could do nothing but drift blankly through the spiritual plane.

*****

About two weeks later, as they neared the end of their desert crossing...

“Godfather, I think I’ll be heading back now.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. My work here is done, and there’s something I need to take care of.”

“You seem to have a lot to do.”

At Alon’s words, Rine let out a small chuckle.

“Most things are handled by my capable secretary, so I’m not that busy. But there are still some things I have to do myself.”

“......”

“Like preparing a gift for you, Godfather.”

“...A gift for me?”

Alon was briefly puzzled, but he answered anyway.

“...I don’t need anything too extravagant.”

It was true.

He’d felt the tiniest bit disappointed when no one had prepared a gift for his last birthday, but that didn’t mean he was expecting anything grand.

Of course, a bigger gift would be nice, but what he really wanted was simply for someone to remember his birthday.

“No. This is something I genuinely want to give you.”

“...Is that so?”

“Yes. I want to give you a gift you’ll never forget.”

“If you insist, I won’t stop you. But don’t overdo it.”

“I won’t.”

Rine slowly shook her head.

“I want to build a relationship with you too, Godfather.”

“...A relationship?”

“Yes. Like Seolrang.”

Why was Seolrang suddenly being brought up here...?

After a brief moment of thought, Alon spoke.

“...Seolrang and you—you’re both like family to me.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. If you’re preparing a big gift just because of that, you really don’t have to. No matter what you think, I truly see both of you the same way.”

He cared equally for all of the Five Great Sins.

“Then do it for me too. That thing.”

“...That thing?”

“Yes. The one you did for Seolrang.”

Unlike before, Rine was being surprisingly direct.

Alon hesitated for a moment, then gently placed his hands over her ears.

A brief silence.

“Mm~ Thank you.”

At the end of it, Rine smiled again.

“...Are you satisfied?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s good.”

A simple exchange.

Yet the commotion around them grew.

[What is that? It seems meaningless.]

“Ugh, you’re so clueless. Well, I guess a snake without hands wouldn’t understand—”

[Hah, another human brat acting up. So do you know what it is, then?]

“Of course.”

[What is it?]

“I don’t know.”

[...?]

[?]

[Didn’t you say you knew?]

“I lied.”

[...]

Basiliora stared at Evan with an expression that clearly said, This bastard...

As they watched the nonsensical exchange, they finally emerged from the desert.

“Well then, I’ll be off now, Godfather.”

“Alright. I’ll visit sometime.”

“I’ll come see you on your birthday.”

Alon parted ways with Rine.

And after his carriage had traveled far into the distance, Rine turned around.

“...The relationship between me and Godfather... isn’t just that.”

She whispered softly.

I want something deeper than anyone else.

Her jade-green eyes shimmered faintly.

“More than anyone.”

She walked forward, quietly.

*****

Alon arrived in the Marquisate of Palatio about two weeks later.

And the moment he saw the estate...

“...Is this really the marquis’ estate?”

He couldn’t help but be shocked.

He’d only been gone for a month, yet the estate was even larger and more magnificent.

“Wow, that was fast. It’s only been a month, but everything’s changed so much. Is this thanks to magic construction?”

“Magic construction?”

“Yes. Apparently, if you have enough money, you can hire mages to build structures rapidly.”

“I see...”

Only then did he understand why the estate had changed so dramatically in such a short time.

And when he stepped inside the house...

“Hello.”

“Are you alright...?”

“Uh, um... I think I’m fine. Maybe. Maybe not.”

Penia was there, looking utterly exhausted.

“...Did something happen?”

She looked like she’d been wrung dry—withered to the core.

Feeling uneasy, Alon asked.

Penia gave him a self-deprecating smile.

“A lot happened—Ah.”

Then, as if she’d suddenly realized something, she snapped to attention.

“Nothing happened!”

She hurriedly corrected herself.

“Yes, really. Absolutely nothing happened. Right. Of course.”

As Penia’s energy abruptly drained again and her movements slowed, Alon wore a strange expression for a moment.

But soon, he understood why she looked so utterly exhausted.

“Wait, did you actually finish all of this?”

“...Didn’t you tell me to do it before you left?”

At Penia’s resentful look, Alon shifted his gaze to the research journal she had brought.

It was so thick it could practically be classified as a legal textbook, and Alon’s mouth fell slightly open.

“No, what I meant was just a ‘preliminary’ summary.”

...Huh? What?

“I clearly said to just compile the mana array sums according to the formula.”

“But isn’t the combination method included in the sum?”

“No, it’s not.”

What? Then what the hell have I been doing this whole time...?

Penia’s face went blank with despair.

Alon felt a little guilty.

Even if he hadn’t explicitly told her to do all of this, the fact remained that she’d put in a tremendous amount of work.

Wondering if there was some way to make it up to her, Alon suddenly let out a quiet ah and spoke.

“...Would you like to take this, if it’s alright with you?”

He handed Penia a glass vial.

“What’s this?”

Her eyes—heavy with exhaustion, injustice, and frustration—fixed on him with suspicion.

Alon met her gaze awkwardly.

“...I heard it’s a very high-quality catalyst.”

“A high-quality catalyst?”

“Yeah.”

He wasn’t entirely sure what it did; he was just repeating what Seolrang’s secretary had told him.

Well, Rine seemed to think it was incredible too.

So he figured it would serve as a decent reward for Penia.

Penia took the vial with a doubtful look and carefully infused a bit of mana into it.

—Gasp!

She recoiled immediately.

“W-Where did you get this?!”

“Why?”

Penia’s voice trembled. Even Alon was baffled by her extreme reaction.

“T-This is unbelievable! Even in the Twisting Forest, this would be impossible to find—it’s an absolutely incredible catalyst...! With this, I could finish experiments I haven’t been able to complete. No, I could repeat them at least five times over!”

Muttering rapidly to herself, she clutched the vial tightly, her earlier resentment replaced by eyes shimmering with excitement.

It was as if all her prior suffering had been wiped away, replaced with the thrill of listing all the magical experiments she could attempt now.

“Hehehe~”

When she even let out a strange giggle, Alon was reminded again that she was, at her core, a born magician.

“Does this count as compensation?”

“Yes, yes, absolutely!! More than enough!!”

Watching her twirl in place like a child handed a kitten, Alon recalled something the servants had mentioned earlier.

“Now that I think about it, I heard Yutia came to see you. Did anything happen?”

A casual remark.

But—

Thunk!

Penia abruptly froze.

She forced herself to move stiffly, like a broken machine, and answered in a cheerfully forced voice.

“Yes, of course! Nothing happened at all!”

“...Really?”

“Yes. Absolutely nothing happened. Not at all.”

It was painfully awkward.

“Uh, I-I should get going.”

“...? Alright.”

“Yes.”

Her eyes suddenly welled with tears as she hurriedly fled the room.

What exactly happened...?

Watching her retreat, Alon could only wear a puzzled expression again.

*****

About two weeks after Marquis Palatio returned...

Outside the land of the elves, Greynifra, Philde and Perion arrived near the Palatio Marquisate.

“Hmm-hmm~”

“You seem to be in a good mood.”

Perion glanced at Philde, who was humming happily.

Philde nodded.

“Of course! I much prefer wandering through human towns over staying in Greynifra.”

“That’s... an unusual preference.”

“It’s called curiosity. Instead of locking myself in a room to research magic, I’d rather travel the world while doing it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yep.”

“...But isn’t what you actually do just lounge around and drink?”

“Mm, is that so? That’s fun too.”

Even as Perion pointed it out, Philde leisurely took another sip of her drink.

Perion watched her skeptically, then shook his head slightly and continued.

“By the way, Lady Philde.”

“Hm?”

“Have you ever seen the ‘Primordial Elf’?”

“Nope.”

“...But Spirit Eyes allow you to see souls. If you’ve never seen the Primordial Elf’s soul, how do you distinguish it from others?”

Philde thought for a moment, then gave a simple answer.

“I don’t.”

“...Excuse me?”

“I don’t distinguish them.”

What?

Perion’s expression hardened.

“So... does that mean you lied to Her Majesty?”

Seeing his reaction, Philde chuckled.

“Lied? No way. There’s a method, of course.”

“...And what method is that?”

“Listen closely. A soul is always structured to match the body perfectly. If a soul doesn’t belong to its body, there’s a mismatch.”

“So if I just check for a soul that doesn’t align with its body—”

“That’s it.”

Philde casually took another sip from her bottle.

“Though honestly, I think the chances of that happening are less than 1%.”

“...That rare?”

“I’ve never seen it happen before.”

“Then isn’t the probability effectively zero?”

“You’re the one who was suspicious, weren’t you?”

Perion fell silent for a moment, then realized something.

“...You just wanted an excuse to leave, didn’t you?”

“Maybe a little? But hey, I am checking, aren’t I?”

Philde let out a bizarre laugh, and Perion’s eyes went cold.

...And this woman is supposed to be a ninth-circle mage?

He sighed—though only briefly.

“We’ve arrived.”

“Oh, this is it?”

Still tipsy and in a good mood, Philde flicked her fingers.

At once, distinct elven spirit magic activated, and a hidden magic formation silently spread around the marquisate’s outer walls.

Seeing its immense scale, Perion let out a low whistle.

A moment of silence followed.

Then, eyes closed, Philde suddenly spoke.

“Found him.”

A playful smirk crossed her lips.

At that moment, the magic formation projected an image of Marquis Palatio inside his office.

“Now then, let’s take a closer look~”

In a lazy voice, she activated Spirit Eyes.

And then—

“...Huh?”

Perion saw it.

The face that had been smiling just moments ago abruptly froze, twisted into pure horror.

And he heard it.

“...The soul doesn’t match?”

A whisper of disbelief slipped from her lips.