"Ah..."
Thump! Thump!
Alicia felt her heart pounding fiercely. Standing before the man she had been searching for, her mind went completely blank, as if she had beco a simpleton.
Soon enough, amidst her whitened thoughts, questions began to flit by.
Even if he was a professor, a man shouldn’t be able to enter the won’s dormitories so freely. How did he get here?
No, more importantly, why did he co?
Could it be that he knew she was looking for him and ca here on his own...
“Ahem.”
A cough brought her back to her senses. Startled, Alicia turned toward the sound, where...
"Princess Alicia, do you have a mont?"
"...Headmistress?"
A woman with fiery red hair, golden eyes, and an explosively commanding presence that naturally captivated attention stood there—none other than Ines Karrandar, the Headmistress of Labyrinth Academy.
Realizing her presence, Alicia imdiately lowered her head in a bow.
Ines, a descendant of the Karrandar family with dragon’s blood, was among the most formidable beings of the mortal realm. Even the Emperor of the Empire dared not treat her lightly.
Moreover, Ines was the one who had allowed Alicia to return to the academy despite her demonic affliction and kept it a secret. To Alicia, she was a benefactor deserving of the utmost respect.
"It is an honor to et you, Headmistress..."
"There’s no need for such formalities. Lift your head."
Ines helped Alicia straighten her posture before she could finish her bow. Alicia hesitated for a mont before speaking.
"But..."
"More importantly, may I co in? I have sothing to discuss regarding your situation."
"Ah..."
At the ntion of her "situation," Alicia’s gaze instinctively darted to Yujin, who stood there with a serene smile.
Surely, this had sothing to do with him as well. After all, ever since he intervened yesterday, her nightmares had ceased, and neither hallucinations nor whispers tornted her.
Unlike the borrowed powers from other transcendents that often caused side effects, his intervention had caused no rejection at all.
Perhaps... he might have a solution. That was why she had sought him out in the first place.
"...Understood. Please, both of you, co in."
Alicia decided to invite them inside. There was no reason to refuse.
"Thank you. I’ll step in, then."
"Excuse us."
The two entered Alicia’s dormitory—a space that, while luxurious and well-furnished, was devoid of unnecessary items beyond what was essential.
Inside the spacious room, a table and sofa were arranged, where the three took their seats.
Yujin and Headmistress Ines sat side by side on the long sofa, while Alicia took the seat across from them.
As they settled in, Alicia glanced at the empty table in front of them and opened her mouth to speak.
"I must apologize. I don’t have any refreshnts or tea prepared... I’m afraid I can’t offer you proper hospitality."
"It’s quite all right. It would be unreasonable to expect hospitality when we ca unannounced. If anything, I should apologize for intruding."
"No, Headmistress. You’ve co because of my problem. You have no reason to apologize..."
"Enough. Let’s not waste ti on such fruitless exchanges, shall we?"
"...Understood."
At the Headmistress’s firm words, Alicia nodded, cutting the polite chatter short. Yet even as the conversation continued, she couldn’t help but steal glances at Yujin, clearly still conscious of his presence.
Noticing this, the Headmistress spoke again.
"I see. You’re curious about the man I brought with ."
"......"
"It’s true that, as a general rule, n—even professors—are not allowed in the won’s dormitories. However, given the gravity of this matter, I made an exception and personally brought him here. You understand why, don’t you?"
"...Yes."
Alicia nodded, and the Headmistress, seeing her understanding, nodded in return before continuing.
"Have you introduced yourselves to each other?"
"I’ve introduced myself, but I haven’t had the honor of hearing the princess’s introduction yet."
At last, the man who had been quietly sitting beside Ines—Yujin—spoke up.
"Well, the circumstances were a bit awkward back then. Shall I reintroduce myself? It’s a pleasure to et you, Princess Alicia. I’m Han Yujin, recently appointed as a professor of magical studies. As you can tell from my na, I hail from the Eastern Continent."
"Han Yujin..."
The Eastern Continent? That was unexpected. It wasn’t a place particularly known for its affinity with magic, and yet here he was, a professor of magical studies.
Alicia mulled over his introduction. No matter how she thought about it, she had never heard of him before.
It wasn’t her fault. Barely a week had passed since his groundbreaking thesis on space-ti magic had spread far and wide. During that ti, Alicia had been too consud by her own struggles with the demonic seed to pay attention to external news.
After reflecting on his words for a mont, Alicia placed a hand over her chest, straightened her posture, and, with royal poise, lowered her head.
"It’s a pleasure to et you, Professor Yujin. I am Alicia von Arsedium, Second Princess of the Arsedium Empire."
Since he was soone personally brought by the Headmistress and had already provided her with so relief from her affliction, Alicia felt it was only proper to introduce herself formally.
Yujin smiled warmly and replied, "It’s a pleasure to et you, Your Highness. I’m glad to see you’re doing much better than yesterday."
Alicia flinched.
"At those words, Alicia recalled the events of the previous day—how she had lost control, driven by the demonic energy consuming her, and how she had despaired, shedding uncontrollable tears. She also rembered screaming at him, rejecting his approach.
As the mory of her disgraceful behavior resurfaced, her face flushed red, and she spoke in a small voice.
"...Please, forget what happened then."
"Haha, if Your Highness asks to forget, then I shall."
"Ahem."
The Headmistress cleared her throat, cutting through the awkward atmosphere.
"Now that the introductions seem to be over... Princess Alicia, may I ask you a few questions?"
"Ah... yes, of course."
Alicia quickly composed herself and looked at the Headmistress, who continued speaking.
"First, let inform you that Professor Yujin here is already aware of your situation. So don’t be too startled when I bring it up in his presence."
"I understand."
She wasn’t surprised. Yesterday, he had seen through the demon inhabiting her body instantly. He might have even been fully briefed by the Headmistress afterward.
The Headmistress nodded and asked, "To begin with... you don’t seem as troubled today. In fact, you look rather at ease."
"...To be honest... yes, that’s correct."
"Have you had any nightmares?"
"No, I haven’t."
"Any hallucinations or voices?"
"I’ve neither seen nor heard anything."
"Do you have any idea why that might be?"
"That’s..."
Alicia hesitated and glanced at Yujin. The Headmistress nodded as if to confirm her suspicions.
"You’re correct. The reason you’re feeling better is due to sothing Professor Yujin did for you yesterday."
"Sothing he did..."
At those words, Alicia absentmindedly touched the flower blooming in her right eye and asked cautiously, "What exactly do you an by 'sothing'?"
"It’s quite simple. He sealed the demonic energy consuming Your Highness’s body."
"......"
It was Yujin who answered her question. Alicia’s face went blank for a mont before she asked, "Is... is that even possible?"
"Forgive for saying this, but if it weren’t possible, Your Highness would still be suffering as you were yesterday."
"......"
He wasn’t wrong. She couldn’t argue. If Yujin hadn’t intervened, she would have woken up as usual, plagued by nightmares, hallucinations, and voices.
But even so...
"However... no court mage in the royal palace was able to accomplish such a feat. Not even you, Headmistress..."
"That’s..."
The Headmistress found herself at a loss for words. She knew she wasn’t capable of such a thing. Sealing the power of a transcendent’s seed? That was far beyond the realm of mortals.
Both the Headmistress and Alicia understood this fact. Alicia, as the host of the demonic seed, probably knew it better than anyone else.
"...I rember the magic Professor Yujin used yesterday."
With those words, Alicia fixed her gaze on Yujin.
He sat there, his eyes half-closed, wearing an enigmatic smile that betrayed no hint of his true thoughts.
"I’m no expert in magic, but even I could tell that it was beyond the level of human capability. Its structure was so complex that I couldn’t even begin to comprehend it."
"......"
"I must ask you sothing. Professor Yujin... are you truly human?"
At her question, Yujin’s smile deepened. He looked at Alicia, who flinched under his gaze, and finally spoke.
"Your Highness, while I am a professor, I am not the type to provide tedious explanations or spoon-feed answers. If anything, I’m more inclined to ask questions myself."
"......"
"I have no obligation to explain myself to you. Frankly, I have no intention of doing so. However, there is one thing I will say."
Still wearing that inscrutable smile, Yujin continued, "Your Highness, do you wish to resolve your problem?"
"...Of course..."
Who would want to live with a demon parasitizing their body? Perhaps a dark mage might see it as a blessing, but not her.
More than anything, she didn’t want to endure a life of pain, only to be consud and erased by the demon in the end.
"In that case, I will make you an offer you cannot refuse."
Yujin smiled knowingly as he extended his hand toward her.
"I will help you solve your problem. In return, however, you must grant one thing I desire."
"Ah..."
To Alicia, his outstretched hand seed like a demonic contract—a sweet, yet perilous trap, like a spider’s web.
As she looked at it, she couldn’t help but wonder if she was imagining things. Perhaps, she thought, she was indulging in a childish fantasy, like the prince from the fairy tales her mother once told her.
Of course, this was no fairy tale.
And yet, she couldn’t bring herself to refuse him.
"...Yes."
And so, she took his hand, sealing the dangerous pact.
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