–Blood Pact… be careful…

Even as she was on the verge of death, Bella tried to deliver her final warning.

Remembering those words, Luca’s eyes turned sharp as he gripped his arm tightly.

Crack!

“Keugh!”

“Geurgh!”

A savage sound came from Miros’s throat. Donovan, flustered, reached out to him, but froze at Luca’s chilling voice.

“If you come any closer, this guy will really die.”

“…!”

Luca pressed right up against Miros, choking his neck with his arm.

In this situation, it was impossible to separate Luca from Miros without hurting Miros.

Donovan stood there, trembling, unable to do anything.

“Return to your original form.”

“…”

“If you don’t hurry, this guy will die.”

Donovan hesitated, but the hesitation didn’t last long. The whites of Miros’s eyes were already beginning to show.

Sssshhhh.

“So that’s your true form?”

“… That’s right.”

Donovan returned to his human form. Wearing a humiliated expression, he glared at Luca.

“Now let go of the young lord…”

Thud!

“!”

At that moment, a longsword flew in from somewhere and stabbed into Donovan’s back.

“This is for ruining the Academy.”

Luca spoke flatly, twitching his finger.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Three more swords materialized from thin air and pierced Donovan’s back.

“Keugh!”

“This is for bothering me. And this one is for my master…”

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Again, more swords flew in from somewhere and stabbed Donovan in the back.

“Ugh… ugh…”

Donovan groaned in agony. Meanwhile, Luca loosened his arm slightly from Miros’s neck.

Miros finally caught his breath and looked at Donovan.

“…!”

“And this is for Bella.”

Thudthudthudthudthud!

Dozens of swords suddenly flew in at once, impaling Donovan’s back. By now, Donovan looked almost like a porcupine.

“Do…no…van…!”

Tears welled up at the corners of Miros’s eyes. Luca twisted his lips and flicked his finger one last time.

“And this is for ‘Luca Traverse’.”

Thud!

“!”

A final sword pierced through Donovan’s head. Donovan violently convulsed, then finally went limp. Seeing this, Miros’s head dropped low.

“Don’t worry too much. You’ll feel pain just as great as that.”

“I… allow it.”

“?”

At that moment, Miros spoke with great effort.

“I allow… the third stage transformation!”

Thump!

Instantly, Donovan’s still body convulsed violently.

Crack, crack, crack!

And in an instant, he swelled to gigantic proportions.

Donovan literally took on the shape of a giant.

Even during his first transformation, he was already about three meters tall, but now, in the third stage, he easily exceeded 30 meters.

It was as if a building had suddenly risen before their eyes.

“Keugh!”

Luca was blown backward, rolling across the ground.

The massive shockwave from the transformation scattered the clouds and dispelled the Different World.

Luckily, Luca had surrounded himself with cloud, so he wasn’t further injured.

“Hahaha! You got careless, Luca Traverse!”

Freed from Luca’s grasp, Miros erupted in laughter and leaped onto Donovan’s shoulder.

“You’ll regret not finishing this sooner!”

Miros shouted gleefully, convinced of his victory.

But before he could fully savor that triumph, Luca, who had been lying on the ground, pulled something out and gave a cold, crooked grin.

“I anticipated that too. Not sure if you’ll hear me, but…”

Shshshshssh!

“!”

Suddenly, countless naval-blue magic circles floated up.

Even though it was broad daylight, the circles filled the sky like stars at night.

At the center of them stood a beautiful woman in a black maxi dress.

“Finally, it’s my turn.”

“You’re… Herote Marcato…!”

Miros looked at her in panic. He couldn’t understand why she, who had never shown herself until now, appeared at this very moment.

“D-Donovan! Run!”

“That… uh…”

“Donovan…?”

Even without Miros’s orders, Donovan had tried to flee. But from the moment the navy radiance filled the sky, Donovan couldn’t move.

“To think the Kisen family succeeded with this. How many people did they have to kill?”

“…!”

Before anyone realized it, Herote appeared in front of Miros.

He would have tried to step back, but atop Donovan’s shoulder, there was nowhere to go.

“Are you the one who caused this commotion?”

“I… I…”

One of only three 10th-tier mages on the continent.

To have a 10th-tier mage, the dream of all mages, before his eyes, Miros couldn’t say a word.

Whoosh!

Then, the scenery changed in an instant. Miros looked around, bewildered.

“Wh–where is this…?”

“Welcome to my laboratory. You should feel honored. Apart from Eltima, you’re the first person to enter here.”

Herote giggled, crossing her legs on a chair that had appeared from nowhere.

Miros was also on a chair—the only difference was that his whole body was restrained to it.

“!”

“Now~ Why don’t you tell me everything you know?”

With a seductive look, Herote gently wiggled her finger.

Grab! Grab! Grab!

“Ugh?!”

From the magic circles that appeared in midair, pure white hands identical to Herote’s emerged and grabbed at Miros’s body.

Everywhere the hands touched, magic circles appeared, binding him stiffly to the chair.

Sssssk!

“Ahhh!”

Before he knew it, the hands were reaching for Miros’s face. Then—a pale finger thrust through his head.

“Aaaagh! Mm!”

Miros screamed in unbearable agony, but another hand soon covered his mouth. Herote smiled with her eyes.

“Well. Time for you to pay for what you’ve done.”

He would not die so easily. At least not until he had spilled everything he knew.

* * *

At some point, Donovan and Miros vanished. The navy magic circles that had colored the sky disappeared as well.

Herote appeared before Luca, who was lying on the ground, and reached out a hand.

“You did well.”

Luca quietly looked at her hand, then took it.

“… Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Smiling, Herote helped him to his feet. Luca blinked.

‘Why is she dressed like that…?’

Whether in the original story or when he’d first seen her here, Herote always wore a thick robe.

But now, seeing her in a tight maxi dress, he didn’t know where to look.

“The little one from the Kisen marquis family is being dissected by my clone in the lab right now. We’ll get the information soon.”

“Dissected?”

When Luca grimaced in discomfort, Herote gave a benign smile.

“Want me to show you? I was going to do it to you, too.”

“… I’ll pass.”

Suddenly, he felt grateful to the inner Luca Traverse.

He couldn’t even imagine what might have happened if Luca Traverse hadn’t stepped in to stop her then.

“You’re… Herote Marcato?”

At that moment, Milia, who had been observing the situation, approached them.

Herote glanced over Milia and Isella, then smiled wryly.

“Nice to meet you. Noble bloodline.”

“!”

“And the one beside you—the Heir of the Night? Impressive for someone so young.”

Herote instantly saw through their identities. Milia swallowed nervously.

‘If I could make this woman an ally…!’

Even becoming the continent’s first empress would not be out of the question.

But Milia quickly discarded that thought. The figure known as Herote Marcato was beyond her.

‘Greed beyond my means leads only to destruction.’

With that thought, Milia glanced at Luca.

“What did you do with that giant?”

“I compressed him and tossed him into the lab as well.”

“Compressed him?”

“Want to see?”

“… No, thanks.”

Luca, exchanging words with Herote so casually—Milia could only stare in awe.

‘He talks down even to such a legendary figure. He’s really out of his mind.’

But then she reconsidered.

‘No, if calling her informally was disrespectful, Herote Marcato wouldn’t let it pass. The fact she allows it means it’s permitted.’

With that realization, Milia pursed her lips.

‘Just how many women does he charm?’

All she could do was marvel at Luca’s charm—even legends of magic fell for him.

“Luca!”

“Ottbo. You’re alive.”

Having taken shelter, Ottbo had been blown far away by the shockwave from Donovan’s transformation. He returned, dirty but unharmed.

“Hehe, I kept it safe—Wait, dean?!”

Ottbo approached with a bright smile, but was startled at seeing Herote.

Herote stared intently at Ottbo, then tilted her head.

“So the Gress family is still like this?”

“Uh… yes?”

Not understanding what she meant, Ottbo tilted his head. Herote stared at him for a moment, then looked at Luca.

“That kid is your friend, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm. Then it’s fine.”

Herote reached out to Ottbo.

Zap!

“?”

A small spark popped on Ottbo’s forehead.

“That’s done. Anyway, all the old mage families are like that.”

Brushing her hand off lightly, Herote brought a puzzled look to Luca’s face.

“What did you do?”

“Something good.”

“?”

Luca looked puzzled, and Ottbo rubbed his own forehead, also bewildered.

Seemingly unwilling to reveal the answer, Herote simply smiled sweetly and changed the subject.

“Well, with everything solved, you should go enjoy the festival now.”

“The festival, huh.”

Luca wore a subtle expression and looked at Herote.

“Can I ask you for a favor?”

“You can ask ten.”

She answered with a pleasant smile, as if she meant it.

She was more than satisfied—for catching the demon’s tail, for letting her handle things before Eltima arrived, all thanks to this adorable little swordsman.

She truly was ready to grant as many as ten favors.

“Send me to the infirmary.”

At his request, Herote looked momentarily puzzled, then nodded.

“Okay.”

* * *

Bella was lying in a private hospital room. Beside her, Whistle kept watch.

“Master. You came?”

“Yes. How is Bella?”

“She seems well-treated. Her life force is stable.”

Thankfully, the treatment seemed successful. Luca let out a sigh of relief. Whistle flew over to him.

“Looks like you resolved things.”

“Yeah. I settled everything cleanly.”

Luca replied briskly, but Whistle seemed more interested in something else.

“And you succeeded! The Different World!”

“Well, not perfect, but I managed to implement it pretty decently.”

“Amazing! As expected of you, master!”

Whistle couldn’t hide her admiration. At the time, she thought she might lose Luca forever—watching him drain his life force to save Bella.

But seeing him now, successfully deploying Different World, a rush of emotion welled up.

“But, master, are you all right?”

“What do you mean?”

“Different World is an extremely difficult technique, you know. Did your mental strength hold out?”

At Whistle’s question, Luca tilted his head.

“What do you mean? I’m perfectly fi—”

Collapse!

Just then, Luca’s legs gave out beneath him.

“Master! Are you okay?!”

“W-Wait… What’s…”

On top of everything else, a slight dizziness hit him.

‘Was my adrenaline pumping? I must’ve been forcing myself to stand firm.’

The tension from all the emergencies now released, his body couldn’t hold out any longer.

“Master! Let’s get you back to your hospital room!”

“… Yeah, you’re right.”

Having confirmed Bella’s safety and solved every problem, it was time to rest. Recognizing this, Luca leaned on Whistle and headed for his own hospital room.

“Luca! Where have you been?”

“?”

But when he arrived at the room, there was already a visitor waiting. Seeing him, Luca let out a reluctant sigh.

“You…”

“Time to go apply for grade representative!”

“… Ah.”

With a bright grin on his face—Archiond. Luca had completely forgotten about him.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep