“Huh, huh!”

Carlton let out a startled sound, then quickly covered his mouth with his pot-lid-like hand, as if realizing his mistake.

His action was so obviously caught red-handed that even without a reply, it already felt like he’d been heard.

‘So you really tried to steal Calspelliver today?’

I looked up at Ascan with disbelief in my eyes. He let out a quiet sigh and glanced at Carlton as if scolding him.

Sensing the situation, Carlton lowered his head deeply and murmured softly,

“…I’m sorry, Captain.”

Ascan replied in a voice even lower than before.

“Be prepared to face disciplinary action.”

“Yes.”

Carlton bowed his head without another word.

Though I felt guilty that Carlton was being punished because of me, I couldn’t stay silent now—I’d just learned something far more important.

“Tell me, was the reason you tried to divert Marquis Manoko’s attention really just to steal Calspelliver?”

“You’ve already figured it out, haven’t you? Since the Marquis has moved, the plan is hopeless. Let’s go get your wound treated first.”

Ascan no longer denied it. He seemed to have decided it didn’t matter if I found out, since the plan was already ruined.

From his current attitude, I could infer many things.

First, Ascan was not truly loyal to Helsion.

If Ascan had genuinely served Emperor Helsion, he would never have even considered stealing Calspelliver—the treasure of the Kalua Empire.

And…

It was highly likely that Ascan had turned to darkness.

The thing I’d feared was gradually becoming reality. Apparently, just like in the novel, his desire for Calspelliver stemmed from wanting to bring about the world’s destruction.

‘What should I do?’

I pressed my uninjured hand against my throbbing head.

Having read the novel , I knew Ascan’s childhood better than anyone.

I absolutely didn’t blame him for wanting the world’s end. If I were in his place, I probably would’ve made the same choice.

I’d only ever wished, from the very beginning until now, for him to be happy.

Right now, he likely wanted to destroy the world out of revenge against it—but even if he succeeded, nothing would truly change.

The children who died in the laboratory wouldn’t come back to life, and countless innocent people would be sacrificed along the way to world’s end.

In the end, only emptiness and desolation would remain.

I had no intention of standing by and watching Ascan vanish into the flames of revenge.

It wasn’t that I told him not to seek revenge—just that destroying the world wasn’t the way.

‘I prayed your past would be different from what I saw in the novel…’

So far, many original plot points had already changed. So I’d hoped perhaps Ascan’s painful past, as depicted in the novel, might have been altered too.

But it wasn’t. If Ascan had truly turned dark, then it was highly probable that the painful history I’d read about in the novel had actually occurred.

Until now, seeing him as Count Atreus’s personal guard captain, he’d seemed perfectly fine—I hadn’t realized his heart was likely rotting from within.

Just thinking about all the suffering he must have endured made my heart ache.

“…You must’ve had it so hard.”

I knew everything, yet I hadn’t protected him.

The thought of Ascan enduring such cruel trials without me there made my nose sting with pity.

“Lady Brellof?”

Ascan looked at me with a puzzled expression. From his perspective, my sudden sniffling for no apparent reason must’ve been quite surprising.

“Sorry, I think I’ve caught a cold.”

I made up an excuse to avoid causing unnecessary worry, but Ascan didn’t seem convinced. Still, I couldn’t possibly explain everything I was feeling, so I forced a smile instead.

Right. It wasn’t too late, even now.

From this moment on, I wouldn’t let those who tormented Ascan get away with it.

I splashed cold water on my face with my uninjured hand to clear my head.

There was no time to wallow in sentiment. Luphilmo’s movement meant stealing Calspelliver had just become much harder.

If I’d held Luphilmo back like Bill suggested, they might’ve succeeded—but Ascan came to rescue me, so the plan fell apart.

In short, they’d abandoned Calspelliver and come all this way for me. That meant I absolutely couldn’t just sit here doing nothing.

‘If it’s what you want, I’ll make sure you get it.’

In the original story, Calspelliver was Ascan’s weapon. It needed to find its true owner.

I looked at Ascan seriously and said,

“Since you’ve been honest with me, tell me exactly how you planned to steal Calspelliver. Who knows? Maybe I can help.”

Ascan glanced at my bleeding hand and firmly shook his head.

“Enough. Let’s go see the doctor.”

“We don’t have time. Calspelliver’s been under ironclad security until now. We might never get another chance like today.”

“You don’t need to worry about it.”

Ascan remained completely unmoved. I could tell he prioritized treating my wound above all else.

The answer came unexpectedly from somewhere else.

“Brother, what’s there to hide in this situation? We’ve got nothing to lose—just tell her.”

The person slowly revealing himself before us was none other than Bill.

Ascan glanced at Bill with an unreadable expression, then quietly said to me,

“Listen to me.”

“Tell me. If you don’t explain properly, I won’t take a single step from here.”

When I took a firm stance, Ascan frowned.

Then Bill, who’d been silently listening to our exchange, finally spoke.

“Lady Brellof, our original plan was to switch Calspelliver with a replica during transport. But Marquis Manoko suddenly volunteered to supervise the transport, making execution impossible.”

At Bill’s explanation, Ascan spoke in an even lower voice.

“Bill, stop.”

“What’s the harm? We’ve got no hope now, but who knows?”

Based on Bill’s explanation alone, many parts still didn’t make sense to me.

I asked the questions forming in my mind.

“Exactly what became difficult? Did Marquis Manoko’s supervision eliminate the timing to swap in the replica?”

“There are three locations inside the Imperial Palace with ironclad security. Only the Emperor knows which one holds Calspelliver. We mean we’ve lost the ability to locate the real one.”

Only after listening to Bill’s continued explanation did I fully understand.

Currently, three processions are transporting Calspelliver from the banquet hall. Only one carries the real sword; the other two contain empty boxes.

Only Helsion knows which box holds the real Calspelliver and its storage location—even Luphilmo, supervising all three processions, remains unaware.

Right now, unless Ascan and the Royal Guard can inspect all three processions without Luphilmo noticing, there’s no way to locate the real Calspelliver.

Without Luphilmo’s interference, they might’ve found it—but with surveillance in place, time constraints now made success nearly impossible.

I nodded firmly.

“I understand what you mean.”

In short, all we needed was to identify which procession held the real Calspelliver.

Fortunately, I’d personally drawn Calspelliver at today’s banquet—and memorized over half the magical formulas engraved on it.

I’d done it just in case, never imagining it would help in a situation like this.

“I have a good method.”

At my words, the gazes of Ascan, Bill, and Carlton focused on me.

“You see this bracelet I’m wearing? I can summon a magical engineering weapon with it. Simply put, it can attract things like a magnet…”

Impatient as ever, Carlton interrupted with a breathless expression.

“Lady Brellof, even with that explanation, I won’t understand—just tell us the conclusion. What’s your method?”

“I memorized the magical formulas engraved on Calspelliver at the banquet. If I modify this bracelet and apply those formulas, I can make Calspelliver move slightly. Then, we’ll hear a sound and identify which box holds the real one.”

Bill, listening quietly, asked with disbelief.

“You memorized the countless magical formulas engraved on Calspelliver in that short time?”

“Not all—about half. But that’s enough.”

“Is that even possible?”

“I may look like this, but I’m a genius, you know.”

I grinned and mentally listed what I’d need immediately.

“To modify my bracelet, I need a magical engineering machine. Any type that can inscribe magical formulas will do.”

Bill nodded. Though he’d seemed somewhat mocking when he first appeared, he now looked more passionate than anyone.

“I’ll bring it. Wait here.”

“Wait. Before modifying the bracelet, I’d like paper and a pen to double-check everything.”

This time, Carlton stepped forward eagerly, as if he’d been waiting.

“I’ll get the paper and pen.”

“Yes. Please hurry.”

Carlton and Bill vanished instantly without even replying—I knew they’d gone to fetch the items I requested.

Thankfully, it seemed Ascan’s plan to steal Calspelliver might still succeed.

I looked at Ascan with a relieved expression. Yet for some reason, his face looked less happy and somehow darker.

Just in case, I followed his gaze—and saw he was staring at my palm, deliberately pricked with thorns to resist hypnosis.

It would’ve been a lie to say the wound didn’t hurt—but right now, stealing Calspelliver was far more urgent.

Wound treatment could wait; Calspelliver might never offer another opportunity like this.

“I’m fine.”

Seeing Ascan’s worried look, I spoke first—but for some reason, he only looked more displeased.

“Why won’t you ever listen to me?”

“Calspelliver is more important than this stupid wound.”

“What makes you so sure of that?”

His question caught me off guard. To anyone, the legendary magical sword Calspelliver was obviously more important than a minor injury.

Ascan looked at me with dark, sinking eyes and said,

“It’s hard to restrain myself from dragging you to the doctor by force.”

“No, don’t. To me, Calspelliver matters more than wound treatment.”

“Why go this far?”

“It’s what you want, isn’t it?”

At my words, Ascan’s rigid expression crumbled. He grimaced as if he could no longer hold back.

“Tanashia.”

Not “Lady Brellof” or “you”—my name.

For some reason, my heart thumped heavily.

Ascan gazed at me with eyes full of longing. I couldn’t precisely define it, but his expression clearly showed he’d reached the limit of his patience.

“When I look at you, I feel like I’m going to go mad.”

Bill and Carlton returned instantly with everything I’d requested.

I quickly grabbed the pen and organized the magical formulas on paper. The moment the formulas were complete, I modified the bracelet using the magical engineering machine.

Zzzt, zzzt.

Light flashed like welding sparks.

I changed the bracelet’s function—from summoning my magical engineering weapon to attracting Calspelliver.

Once the modification succeeded, I stood up and shouted,

“It’s done!”

At my words, Ascan swiftly approached and took the bracelet. Then he immediately ordered Carlton in a low voice,

“Take Lady Brellof to the doctor. Now.”

“Yes, Captain.”

It was an unexpected command. I’d intended to witness the theft of Calspelliver myself.

“Wait…!”

Ascan must’ve noticed I was about to protest—he looked at me with a terrifying gaze and spoke again.

“No more.”

He hadn’t said much, but I could feel that if I refused, he’d drag me there by force.

Ascan stared at my wounded palm with somber eyes, then continued in an even lower voice.

“This is enough. Leave the rest to me.”

Come to think of it, this was about stealing Calspelliver.

Since revealing identities was impossible, I couldn’t use magical engineering weapons. Even if I went, I wouldn’t be of much help.

Reluctantly, I nodded. Ascan lightly patted my hair as if approving my decision.

“Wait for me. I’ll finish quickly and come back.”

“Be careful not to get hurt.”

At my reminder, Ascan frowned and laughed.

“Who are you to say that to whom?”

I was the only one here with an injury.

Feeling embarrassed that I’d said something so ridiculous, I smiled awkwardly—then Ascan looked at me with unexpectedly softened eyes before leaving the room with Bill.

Even without words, I knew they’d gone toward where Calspelliver was being transported.

As I silently watched the direction where Ascan disappeared, Carlton approached and spoke cautiously.

“I’ll escort you to the doctor.”

“Ah, yes.”

Perhaps because I felt I’d finished everything I could do, my tension dissolved—and the pain I’d been suppressing surged forward.

I wrapped my injured palm with my other hand and followed Carlton.

Now, all I could do was pray that Ascan succeeded and returned with Calspelliver.