Chapter 61

Chapter 61
## Chapter 61

Dereck picked up Leigh’s two arms, which had fallen to the floor, and tied them tightly to his back using a torn curtain.

Then, he wrapped the rest of the fabric around his entire body and used the Level 1 Stellar transformation spell, **Attribute Imbuement**, to harden it like stone.

The sequence of actions flowed so naturally that it seemed as if he had done it countless times before. Freya, sitting in a corner of the hallway, watched Dereck with wide eyes.

“Master Katia’s former student? I heard he was a commoner, and yet…”

Five minutes earlier, Lady Freya had tried to flee quickly from Dereck, but she was captured instantly.

It was the first time in her life that her confusion magic had been detected so rapidly. She was so shocked that she had pleaded for her life, but the white-haired mercenary recognized Freya and reassured her.

Without mentioning her last name or affiliation, the boy, who introduced himself briefly as Dereck, said he knew Freya was the eldest daughter of Count Elvester’s family.

The man who greeted her politely, following noble etiquette, radiated a calm entirely different from the monster who had just subdued Leigh.

“Did you say your name is Dereck? Master Katia spoke a lot about you. She said you had an exceptional talent for magic among the common people…”

“How is Master Katia?”

“…Of course she is doing well. Her position as the magic instructor for the Elvester family is admired by everyone.”

Dereck, who was firmly securing the bindings, responded without even looking at Freya. Given the circumstances, he could not afford the luxury of observing all formalities with the Count’s daughter.

—

“It seems we are like siblings. I also received great teachings from Master Katia. Knowing she is well is a relief. But now is not the time for nostalgia.”

After completely immobilizing Leigh, Dereck spoke.

“The young lady of the Beltus family is hiding in the upper section of the VIP rooms. We plan to gather the survivors there, so head up as well.”

“No, I… I was trying to escape the mansion.”

“Outside the mansion, there are moving corpses. If you try to escape recklessly on your own, you will regret it.”

“If I decide to escape, no one can catch me. I even escaped alone from the great fire at Roventer Castle caused by bandits.”

*Didn’t I just catch you?*

“…”

Freya could not respond. But only because Dereck’s ability to perceive magic was abnormally sharp.

In reality, Countess Freya was so skilled at diverting others’ attention that even Katia had to search the entire mansion with all her strength just to barely find her.

Dereck rested his chin on his hand and stayed thinking for a moment.

Indeed, the level of Freya’s illusion magic had reached a considerable degree. If Drest had not personally trained him in magic detection, he probably would not have even noticed her.

It seemed unlikely that ordinary detection magic would work on Freya.

A third-rate mage would hardly detect her presence, so she could easily avoid the corpse monsters.

It crossed his mind that perhaps it would be better to send Freya out of the mansion to seek help. It was a very viable alternative.

‘I’ve seen many people die… but why is this girl so calm?’

Meanwhile, Freya watched Dereck as if she had discovered a magic unicorn. Even in a mansion full of possessed people, he was looking for survivors, had subdued Leigh, and had even stopped her, without showing the slightest nervousness.

His magic skill was excellent, his judgment precise, and fate linked him to Katia. Freya quickly re-evaluated her situation.

“It’s better to trust this guy for now. My instinct tells me so.”

—

“Later I will head to the guest rooms and meet the young lady of the Beltus family. But… what is your plan for gathering the survivors? Given the situation, wouldn’t it be better to focus on escaping first?”

“Let’s save as many as we can. Every guest in this mansion is a key figure in the empire, aren’t they?”

*Loyalty to the empire?*

“If someone from the empire asks me, I’ll say yes.”

“And the real reason?”

“On one hand, I have the duty to save lives as a human being. On the other, if I save the guests, I will probably be rewarded.”

It was said that the nobles of the northeast would pay hundreds of gold coins for their lives without blinking. They would donate that amount generously even to rescue prisoners, so saving a noble’s life was considered a great achievement.

“There is no law that says a person’s motivations have to fit into a single category, right?”

Just by listening to those words, Freya felt she had glimpsed a facet of Dereck’s character. Deep down, he was a good person, but he was not naive regarding personal benefit.

He was selfish when convenient and altruistic when it mattered.

Much better than someone obsessed solely with one extreme. Freya took off the necklace she was wearing and handed it to Dereck.

“…What is this?”

“It’s a magic accessory gifted to me by the Arendelle Academy at my coming-of-age ceremony. It’s part of a set with this ring; when used together, they allow each person to detect the other’s location.”

“Is it not expensive?”

“It’s better not to know the price. Either way, if we move through this mansion, we should be able to keep track of each other.”

Dereck quickly put the necklace around his neck and hid it under his clothes.

“If you go to the main hall, you will see many unconscious mages sitting at the banquet table. Most don’t seem to be dead.”

*Banquet table?*

“Yes. I don’t know why, but the servants of this mansion are still preparing the ball. In fact, it looks more like some kind of ritual than a dance.”

—

Dereck frowned.

A ritual where a banquet is served, music is played, and mages are murdered was, literally, something only a necromancer would do.

By worshipping the god of corpses or the god of souls, they would murder a high-level mage to absorb the magic power embedded in their soul and transfer part of it to another mage.

Disguising it as a ball was undoubtedly a clever move. It allowed high-ranking guests to gather naturally, and the music and food would not raise suspicions.

Taking advantage of Diella’s debut event as an excuse, the guests let their guard down completely.

It was the mansion of the Duplain family, one of the most prestigious on the continent.

No one could have imagined that something so heinous would happen.

The problem was that, from Duke Duplain to his subordinates, there was not a single person who seemed capable of leading such madness. Especially Dereck, who knew the Duplain family well, was sure of it. Valerian, Leigh, Aiselin, Diella… none would dare touch such a taboo.

«There must have been some shocking trigger. Someone provoked them… or maybe they were corrupted by a magic artifact with its own will…»

Dereck quickly assessed the possibilities. It was impossible to guess hastily which of the Duplain family had turned to necromancy.

However, Dereck had enough reasons to suspect someone.

— Before reaching adulthood, Valerian Duplain will become involved with necromancy.

— And when that happens, you must kill him.

Drest, who had foreseen everything, had already warned Dereck. He told him he must kill Valerian. No one else.

He himself, who was already a 6-star mage, would not get involved. Now that events had unfolded this way, his intention was clearer than ever.

The majority of the continent’s illustrious guests were captured and in danger of death.

If Dereck cleared the crime scene and captured the culprit, the merit would be incalculable.

Saving the lives of numerous nobles would catapult Dereck to a new level. The empire would have no choice but to reward him publicly.

Drest planned to hand all that merit to Dereck.

—

He had trained him back then to ensure he reached the level necessary to subdue Valerian, who would one day be lured by necromancy.

“It was impossible to know how far in advance he had planned everything.”

Having a 6-star scout mage as backup was fundamental. However, Dereck felt torn.

The Valerian he remembered was a young man sweating profusely while clumsily sewing a doll to win favor with his sister Diella.

He had always been a person who only thought of his family: the most worthy candidate to lead House Duplain in the future.

Dereck, who rarely recognized the work of others, saw Valerian as a leader who deserved everyone’s respect.

«However… if he strays from the path, he must be eliminated.»

Because Dereck was a man of firm character. Even in moments of great emotional turmoil, he never hesitated to draw his sword when the situation required it.

And so, Dereck advanced with a firm step toward the main hall of the mansion.

***

The moon was approaching its highest point.

Even near midnight, the moonlight illuminated the main hall of the Duplain mansion.

*Step, step.*

Upon entering, an indescribable scene unfolded before him.

Several banquet tables stretched in a straight line along the immense hall.

Sumptuous banquets were spread temptingly upon them, and numerous unconscious mages lay slumped on both sides.

An orchestra, apparently absorbed, sat in silence near the grand staircase, clutching their luxurious string instruments against their chests, with vacant stares.

Each chandelier held flickering candles, and the center of the hall, where the host of the event should have been, was empty, bathed in moonlight.

If there had been a lively murmur, it would have been no different from a real ball. But the silence was absolute.

As Dereck crossed the corridor, only the echo of his footsteps disturbed the air.

—

He frowned as he looked around. The mages lined up in front of the tables were unconscious, but still alive.

There had been no intention of killing them before the ritual. Sacrificing so many mages to rise in rank was not something a sane mind would do.

All the famous necromancers in history who attempted such feats ended up beheaded and erased from the records.

That was the nature of touching the forbidden.

As he walked through that unnatural place and turned his gaze toward the center of the hallway, he saw him.

The moonlight filtered through the stained glass of one of the walls and illuminated precisely that spot.

It was probably the seat reserved for the host of the ball. Right in front, a man was leaning back in a wooden chair, his head bowed deeply.

His blonde hair, now shoulder-length, was longer than before, with gray strands interspersed. His skin was pale and his build seemed more robust.

He used to dress like a distinguished noble, but now he wore steel armor adorned with elaborate engravings.

Although his appearance was more appropriate for the next head of the family, there was a dark and unstable aura around him that had not been present before.

Dereck stopped, maintaining his distance.

“…”

“Who is this? Dereck. You have come to witness Diella’s debut.”

“…Lord Valerian. You have changed a lot.”

“Yes. Time changes people. Even so, I am sincerely honored that my dear little sister’s most respected teacher has come in person. As the host of this ball, I thank you.”

Valerian raised his head to look at Dereck.

His pale and sinister figure came into view. His pupils were trembling as if an earthquake had shaken them.

“However, as you can see, the ball has been cancelled due to certain circumstances. If Diella returns to the mansion… could you take her back to Ebelstein?”

“…”

“In my current state, there is no one I trust enough to entrust with that request.”

—

Behind Valerian was the grandest and most majestic chair in the entire hall.

It was the seat reserved for the highest-ranking figure at the event.

While Valerian’s seat was well-lit by the moonlight, the other chair remained partially hidden in the shadow.

Dereck took a few steps to the side and slightly adjusted his angle of vision.

Little by little, the figure sitting on that throne became visible.

At the moment he recognized who it was —with his head bowed— Dereck narrowed his eyes even further.

Raymond Oswald Duplain, the Duke.

The head of the family was slumped in the seat, with a dagger driven into his chest.

The dagger boasted the unmistakable emblem of an eagle, the symbol of House Duplain.

“…”

Valerian’s expression softened upon seeing that Dereck had identified the Duke.

“As you can see… now I am busy picking up the pieces of my mistakes.”

Valerian remained standing with a bitter smile. The metallic sound of the armor echoed through the hall.

“…What are you doing here?”

*Didn’t I just tell you?*

Valerian responded with a faint, indecipherable smile, lowering his voice softly.

“I am picking up the pieces of my mistakes.”

Dereck remained motionless, watching Valerian in silence, without blinking. At times firm, at times compassionate, his gaze was now resolute. There was no need to ask about his intentions.

Valerian looked at him in silence, and finally lowered his gaze, defeated.

“I see…”

With that gesture of resignation, he kept his gaze fixed on the floor for an instant.

Then, he raised his hand, enveloped in magic. A wave of dark, reddish, and ominous energy spread through the room, concentrating at Valerian’s fingertips until it took the form of a staff.

It was known as the relic of the five-star summoner Rozin. But, contrary to popular belief, Rozin was not a summoner.

Dereck frowned in silence.

*Zas!*

The hall, bathed in moonlight. Its master, now standing, looked at Dereck.

The necromancer Valerian.

Now he was the master of that mansion.