My Desertion Would Be Faster Than Heros' Obsession-Chapter 147

Now that all my questions had been answered, I could use the necklace right away—but there was still one concern lingering in my mind.

‘If I leave now, we’ll end up capturing the Second Prince’s forces.’

The Second Prince’s faction was one of the few pieces on the board that could be used against the current imperial family. Of course, they had once been part of the Adolph royal lineage, so I had no intention of fully supporting them, but they were still useful.

That was why I had planned to delay my escape, stalling for time to send them further away instead of capturing them outright.

“How many Black Mages are working under them?” I asked.

The Black Mage grimaced as if reluctant to answer, but since he had already been drugged and was about to die anyway, he shrugged and replied.

“Most of the Black Mages who were hiding in the Empire joined them. The current imperial family has abandoned us, after all.”

“If the Second Prince is dead, then he can’t inherit the throne. How do they ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) plan to seize power?”

“There are plenty of nobles who supported him who can still take control, even without the Second Prince... And more importantly...”

His voice grew weaker, as if his consciousness was beginning to fade.

“The Second Prince was born of the royal bloodline... His body couldn’t be desecrated... He took poison and died, but his body has been perfectly preserved.”

“So?”

“If certain conditions are met, black magic can be used to bring a dead person back to life... It’s a complicated process, but it is possible.”

“Bringing back the dead? That’s complete nonsense.”

It was an unbelievable claim. If such black magic was truly possible, wouldn’t countless people have already tried everything to use it?

“Well... The necessary materials are extremely difficult to obtain, so there are hardly any recorded instances of it being performed...”

The Black Mage’s voice trailed off into a faint murmur.

It was an interesting topic, but I had no one I desperately wanted to resurrect, nor did I have any desire to go through hell and back searching for those mysterious materials. I had no particular interest in that magic.

Besides, looking at my own deteriorating condition in this subspace, I was realizing more than ever that black magic was not something to be used lightly.

“Well, have we gotten everything we need?”

Just as I signaled to Karon and Benny that we were done, a loud voice rang out.

“What the hell are you doing over there?!”

One of the officers had spotted us.

We had to check if Karon’s necklace actually worked—fast. Before the officers got back, we had to escape.

“Karon, take out the necklace! Now!”

“Yes!”

At my command, Karon pulled out the necklace and held it toward the Black Mage.

...Nothing happened.

“What the hell? Then what was the black magic inside it even supposed to be used for?”

I muttered in confusion, and at that moment, the Black Mage suddenly lifted his head. His gaze swept over us, and in an instant, his eyes burned with fury.

“You dare mock me?!”

It seemed he had finally realized that we weren’t officers but mere soldiers and was enraged that he had been tricked.

The moment his voice rang out in aggression, the necklace in Karon’s hand suddenly began to glow.

The light shot up as if attacking the sky, growing brighter and brighter, until cracks began to form in the air above us. It looked as if the very sky was about to collapse onto the ground.

“What... What the hell is this?!”

At the same time, the entire space was engulfed in blinding light. We couldn’t see anything.

“Lady Salvia!”

My subordinates called out from both sides. I quickly grabbed Benny’s and Karon’s hands tightly and braced myself, waiting for the light to subside.

A moment later, we were outside the subspace.

“...Did it break?”

It was definitely the same grassy area where we had been waiting earlier. My instincts had been right.

“What the hell? How did we get out so easily...?”

The Black Mage, still bound, mumbled in disbelief, his face utterly blank.

I was still a little dazed myself, but I forced a grin and responded.

“It’s the power of love, you bastard.”

This was the very love that a father had wanted to bestow upon his son!

People who didn’t understand the power of love were truly pitiful.

***

A short while later, we managed to explain the situation to the officers.

Cough, cough!

Well, to be precise, my condition wasn’t great, so I had to leave early.

“Lady Salvia, please leave it to me and go receive treatment. From this moment forward, I, Benny—the daughter of Lieutenant General Jaiden—will provide the full explanation.”

“Th-Three-Star’s daughter?!”

Judging by how Benny was confidently speaking, it seemed like she would have no trouble handling the officers.

In any case, I slipped away and went to find the medics.

While we had been trapped in the subspace, the Second Prince’s forces had gotten so far ahead that there was no point in trying to pursue them. With tracking no longer an option, we decided to return to our respective units. But before that, I planned to receive medical treatment. Thankfully, there were medics who had accompanied us for the joint training exercises.

“Alright, how’s your stomach feeling?” one of the medics asked.

“No.”

“...Pardon?”

“I mean, no, it’s not fine.”

“Then I’ll give you some digestive medicine.”

“...It’s not that kind of stomach problem.”

Of course, the Border Defense Army’s medics were as useless as ever.

“But you just said your stomach wasn’t okay.”

“No, my organs are not okay!”

“Then how about some digestive medicine—”

“It’s not digestion; my blood is literally refluxing!”

“In that case... would you like to try swallowing some hemostatic medicine?”

“...I’ll just rely on natural healing.”

I should’ve known better than to expect anything from these lunatics.

I ended up giving up on medical help and sat dejectedly on the ground. That’s when I spotted Aquila approaching.

“Aquilaaa...”

“...Where are you hurt?”

The moment Aquila saw the bloodstains on my clothes, his expression turned serious. A lethal aura began to radiate from him.

“Where is the injury?”

But before he could get more worked up, one of the medics intervened.

Aquila fell silent for a moment, then, with a sullen expression, said, “My head... I have a headache.”

“Then I’ll wrap a bandage around your head.”

“...It’s an internal issue, not an external one.”

“Then I’ll give you an ointment to inhale through your nose.”

“...I’ll just rely on natural healing.”

After enduring the Border Defense Army’s idiotic medical procedures, Aquila finally managed to sit beside me. Since we were technically both “injured,” no one bothered us.

“Shouldn’t you be getting proper treatment instead of just sitting here?” he asked.

“Here?”

“......”

He didn’t say anything, which meant even he acknowledged that the medics were useless.

“I’ll be fine soon anyway. It’s just the aftereffects of black magic.”

Besides, Arkon bodies were incredibly resilient. Our physical capabilities were high, and our recovery rates matched. Even the burns on my leg from the dragon incident had healed without leaving a single scar.

After hearing my response, Aquila simply took my hand and held it tightly, as if trying to comfort me. His warmth spread through me, and for some reason, the throbbing headache that had been bothering me moments ago started to fade.

“...Aquila.”

“Yeah?”

“I was thinking about you earlier.”

And within that warmth, I decided to tell him what had been on my mind.

When the Black Mage told me there was a way to return to my original world...

Ironically, that was the exact moment I realized what love was. The question that had been plaguing me for so long found its answer in that moment.

“Aquila, as long as you’re by my side, this is my world.”

Aquila had promised to always stay by my side, and because of that, this place had become my world. If Aquila were in another world, then I would follow him there, and that place would become my world.

That was why I had no reason to return to my original world.

As I calmly processed my emotions, a realization hit me.

This was love.

I loved him.

“With you, I feel like I can do anything.”

At my words, Aquila stared at me with sharp eyes, then slowly curled his lips into a smile. A genuine, soft smile that even reached his eyes.

It was the warmest expression I had ever seen from him.

“I feel the same,” he said, meeting my gaze.

“You are my world, Salvia.”

A strange feeling washed over me.

Once, I had cursed this world, loathed it, and longed for my original one.

Yet now, I felt nothing but happiness. I couldn’t imagine being any happier than I was at this moment. It felt like I was floating above the clouds, and for once, I wasn’t afraid of falling.

Because even if I did fall, I knew Aquila would be right there beside me.

And that was why I had come to love this world.

***

"We’ll be heading back soon. Get ready."

"Yes, sir!"

At the company commander’s command, Luna glanced at Salvia.

They had completed their mission and were preparing to return to their original unit. Everyone looked exhausted and worn out, but the battalion commander had promised that once they were back, they’d get leave from both guard duty and monster subjugation. That was the only thing keeping Luna going.

However, one thing unsettled her—the fact that Salvia was smiling.

Normally, if Salvia was smiling, it meant she wasn’t actually happy but was suppressing her anger. Curious about what was going on, Luna cautiously approached her.

“Lady Salvia, did something good happen?”

“No, nothing much~. But by the way, Luna, your blonde hair looks really pretty today.”

“...Huh?”

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Luna’s eyes widened in shock. Salvia, who normally hated blonde hair, was giving her a compliment? Something was seriously wrong!

“And Ash, now that I think about it, your name is actually kind of cool.”

“...I think she’s finally lost her mind.”

Luna had already noticed that her superior had been acting a little crazy ever since she started experiencing love, but now it seemed like she had completely lost it.

Luna exchanged glances with the other recruits. Right now, Salvia was in an exceptionally good mood—so good that she might let anything slide with a laugh. That meant now was the perfect time to confess to any past mistakes they had covered up.

At Luna’s cue, one of the recruits hesitantly stepped forward and spoke.

“Lady Salvia, um... About that time when the company commander raided our unit because someone broke his flowerpot... Actually, I was the one who did it.”

“...What did you just say, you little shit?!”

“W-Wait—”

“I’m gonna kill you when we get back, you bastard!”

Luna shook her head at the unfolding chaos.

‘No matter how good her mood is, some things will never change...’

She had been foolish to think Salvia would ever become gentler just because she was in love.