EP.80 23-1. Who’s the Uninvited Guest?
***
After the chaos from earlier settled, I finally returned to the Magic Club room.
And as expected—
"Hiyahhhh!! A monster!"
"Hahaha, Ariel. It’s just Licht and Mardol."
"Oh... it is them...?"
There stood Kainel, dressed in a yellow Cerberus costume, and Ariel, looking like a red Cheshire Cat.
"Awooo! Awuuu! Ah—wait, that’s not right. Kurrrrlrk."
An oblivious golden retriever and a tsundere red cat.
The nicknames suited them too well.
I watched the lively scene, holding my extra helmet in one hand, feeling amused—
Until an odd unease crept in.
‘...Something feels off.’
Inside the inner pocket of my coat, a single rose rested.
A Mana Rose.
I had stopped by the men’s dormitory on the way here to retrieve it, just in case.
As a high-grade item, it wouldn’t wither from lack of water.
It would simply absorb mana from the surroundings and sustain itself.
‘If it wasn’t meant to be carried, she wouldn’t have told me to bring it.’
I thought back to Lynn, the black-haired girl I had saved earlier.
There was something unnerving about how similar she seemed to me.
And the way she spoke before leaving...
The developers loved their Easter eggs.
If this was an event item, I needed to hold onto it.
In games, there were often hidden quests that required certain key items to unlock.
I weighed the possibilities—
‘...Was she really my future child?’
‘But why is her hair black when her brother’s is brown?’
If that were true—
It would mean that I never ended up with the Nameless Saintess.
I immediately shook my head, rejecting the idea.
Absolutely not.
There was no way.
This was just another random event.
A classic cliché.
Children mistaking the protagonist for their father happened all the time in romance novels.
It was a common trope that our Saintess loved reading about.
‘It’s just coincidence.’
There was zero chance.
It was an honest mistake—
She had only called me Dad because of my armor.
And Ipherit, her actual brother, had apologized for the confusion.
"Licht, what are you doing?"
"...Nothing."
At least Mardol hadn’t been dragged into that so-called future.
If she had, Lynn would’ve called her Mom, too.
Since that didn’t happen, I could put my mind at ease.
"That Dullahan disguise is... disturbingly realistic."
"It’s all thanks to Mardol."
Right now, my head appeared completely invisible due to her glass magic.
Transparent shards of glass floated around my neck, creating a distorted effect.
Magic was a manifestation of the mind.
The sharp and cold nature of her glass—
It suited her.
"Licht, helmet."
"Ah, yes."
Mardol suddenly reached toward me, her golden wolf eyes glimmering.
"We need to add fire to it, right? Mardol?"
"Yeah. Ariel, please."
Fwoosh.
A burst of blue flames surged as Ariel cast her spell.
Mardol, confirming the spell was complete, turned back to me.
"Licht, here. It’s not hot."
"...Ah."
Inside the black helmet, fire flickered.
It danced within the darkness, twisting and swaying like a living thing.
My breath caught in my throat.
The sight alone suffocated me.
The past rushed in.
I thought I had overcome it.
But seeing it—
And holding it—
Were two different things.
Cold sweat ran down my back.
"Licht?"
"Haaah..."
I was still afraid of fire.
My legs buckled.
My vision blurred.
"Licht! Are you okay?!"
"Licht, what’s wrong?!"
Even Kainel and Ariel noticed.
Sweat dripped from the edges of my helmet, pooling like I had just stepped out of a shower.
"Licht."
"J-Just... give me a second..."
"Licht, if you're scared, you don’t have to do this."
Mardol pulled the helmet back into her arms, cradling it carefully—
Like it was something precious.
"I’ll carry it."
I could breathe again.
The suffocating weight lifted.
I could finally steady my racing heart.
"...Thank you, Mardol."
"So, what about the Dullahan disguise? Doesn’t Licht have to carry the helmet?"
"It’s fine. I have a solution."
Mardol turned to me, touching her glass magic.
Her fingertips lightly tapped the forehead of my floating helmet.
"Speak, Licht. It should be fine now."
"Ah... Yes, I think—wait."
My voice echoed—
But not from my mouth.
The helmet Mardol was holding projected my words instead.
"...A voice modulation spell?"
"That’s right. Clever."
So that’s how her helmet’s distorted voice worked.
It sounded deep and resonant, as if spoken inside a cave.
"Well done—"
Mardol almost patted my head.
Her branch-covered hand instinctively reached toward me—
Before hesitating.
"Mardol?"
"Ah... Sorry, Licht. I just... wanted to encourage you."
Did she stop because she realized what she was doing?
Like I was some lost puppy?
I smirked.
Unlike Lupus in the sequel, she was... surprisingly kind.
"So now, Mardol has to stick with Licht the whole time?"
That was when the sharp-eared red cat—Ariel—
Planted a flag.
A big one.
Should I break it?
But she was the only one who had noticed my fear—
And actually protected me from it.
I hesitated.
I didn’t want to be the type to betray someone’s kindness.
It was unexpected.
Back in reality, most people mocked fear—
Not shielded you from it.
"It’s fine—"
"I'm fine, Ariel."
Mardol had answered before I even could.
But just this once—I'll let her do what she wants.
If it wasn’t for her just now, things could have gone very badly.
My heart was still racing like a hammer against my ribs.
"…I trust Licht."
"..."
"It wouldn’t look right otherwise. A Dullahan with a floating head would be weird."
This felt like too much of a flag, but thinking back—
Mardol was the kind of person willing to give up a Dragon Heart for me.
She was just… a good person.
There’s no way she likes me.
If she did, the status window would’ve reacted immediately.
"Then, Kainel and Ariel—please focus on scaring people."
"Got it, Licht. And you? Don’t push yourself too hard. Get some rest."
"...Thank you."
I still needed to raise their romance score, so this would help.
With the tension fading, exhaustion washed over me.
Maybe I should take a nap at the dorms.
"…Licht."
"Yes, Mardol?"
"Here. Want one?"
She held out… a candy.
She still had these? From that group project we did together?
Where was she even keeping them in that huge armor?
"…Thank you."
Mardol was watching me closely as I lifted my visor just slightly and popped the candy into my mouth.
"…Ah. Too bad."
"Not a chance. Hah."
So she wanted to see my face?
Not happening.
If she saw my burns, she’d hate them.
They weren’t ordinary scars.
They were something I got as a kid, before I even knew how to protect myself.
The memory alone made my chest tighten.
For a moment, my vision blurred.
Still not over it, huh?
Regret wasn't the right word, but—
A familiar sweetness melted on my tongue.
The taste of honey and sugar soothed my nerves.
These were Stamina Recovery items.
I’d never actually eaten one before—
I had saved them.
For her.
For our Saintess.
"...It’s sweet. Thanks, Mardol."
"Good. You look better now, Licht."
I had always been saving them, thinking of giving them to her.
But they were delicious.
For the first time, I let myself forget.
‘…Wait.’
For the first time, I noticed.
Mardol’s golden eyes—
Today, they looked… beautiful.
This wasn’t right.
Was it because I was still shaken?
‘Damn suspension bridge effect.’
My heart was still pounding.
Maybe it was like that time with Kainel and the carriage.
A shock to the system making things seem… more than they were.
This wasn’t because I—
I didn’t—
I wouldn’t—
Not when I already had our Saintess.
"...Licht? What’s wrong?"
"It’s… nothing."
I swallowed.
The sweetness lingered, sinking into the moment.
Today, for the first time—
I felt guilty for something I hadn’t even done.
‘The only one for me is our Saintess.’
‘Get it together, Lee Soo-hyun.’
I clenched my fists, forcing the thought away.
***
Meanwhile, at a fountain somewhere in the Empire—
"…There’s no way this Kainel could have broken my authority."
A man with a monocle flipped through his notebook, confirming something.
"A new Hero, huh… A new Hero. The gods are at it again."
He sighed, picking up his pen to jot something down.
"Excuse me, sir! Spare a coin…!"
"Hmph. And who might you be?"
A hunchbacked man in tattered rags appeared beside him, his voice desperate.
"…Ah. Tom, was it?"
"Huh? How do you know my name, sir…?"
The well-dressed man barely reacted—
As if swatting away a fly.
*"I have my ways."
"Oh, please, sir! Just a single coin! Have mercy!"
The beggar persisted, his eyes pleading.
The gentleman sighed, clearly irritated, before standing up.
"Instead of begging—why don’t you dig here?"
He gestured toward the fountain’s base.
"...Huh? Why?"
"There’s a treasure underneath. Buy a shovel. Dig."
With an elegant flick of his wrist, he tossed a single silver coin.
"Oh, thank you, sir! Thank you!"
"Do be careful, Tom."
The beggar bowed deeply, overjoyed—
Unaware that the man had already written something in his notebook:
—Year 18 of the Empire. At approximately 1:00 AM, Tom digs beneath the fountain, finds treasure, attempts to retrieve it… and falls to his death.—
The well-dressed man snapped the book shut.
"If I left you alone, you would’ve joined a band of thieves and become a murderer."
His expression didn’t waver—
As if he had merely brushed off some dust.
"This much, I hope you’ll forgive me for, Tom."
Adjusting his tie, he turned away.
His destination—
The Grand Hearts Academia.
"Two Heroes this time…?"
Slipping his notebook back into his pocket, his mind fixated on a certain name.
Licht, the Black Knight.
His thoughts wavered—
Then corrected themselves.
"No."
A single step.
"Not Licht."
Another step.
"It would be more accurate to call him—"
A smirk tugged at his lips.
The well-dressed man walked straight toward the summer festival.
"—Lee Soo-hyun."