“Now, stop and turn back,” Karmen said firmly to Siervian. Having confirmed, she obediently stepped back.

[Karmen Kasselov]
Mood: Extreme anxiety
Thoughts: Should I send Siervian back to the palace using teleportation magic? …Damn it, there’s no corresponding magic circle, so it could fail. Besides, there are damn Kurchad ores all around here.

Siervian cautiously took Karmen’s hand, signaling him to calm down.

Karmen’s face turned red instantly, but Siervian didn’t let go of his hand.

In that state, Siervian carefully addressed the people around them.

“I can find out where the Werewolf King is.”

“What…!”

“It’s possible to distinguish with the naked eye…?”

Despite the knights’ bewildered reactions, Siervian calmly recalled what she had just seen.

When she looked outside, she saw someone with the status window indicating ‘Werewolf King.’

Unlike the status windows of humans, it didn’t have categories like “Mood” or “Thoughts.” And ordinary werewolves didn’t have status windows at all. Only the Werewolf King had a floating status window above its head, displaying that name.

‘Does the status window only appear for very powerful monsters? Anyway, I need to use this to think of a way to safely leave this place.’

It was true that the monsters still wandering near the mine were known for their high intelligence, and they cleverly unfolded a mana shield to deceive their senses.

“Are you sure, Your Highness?” Carmel, looking unconvinced, asked her.

There was only one way to make them believe in this situation.

“Yes. I can locate precisely where it is, although I can’t explain the method. I swear on my mana.”

“Ahh…!”

For a mage, a mana oath was the most powerful oath. Breaking it would scatter all mana, rendering the person unable to use magic ever again.

“Siervian…!”

Surprised by her shocking vow, Karmen tightly grasped Siervian’s hand. Still, she gently patted Karmen’s hand as if to say it was alright.

“We have to take advantage of this.”

Upon her declaration, the knights exchanged silent glances.

However, the situation remained negative.

“Princess, although it’s fortunate that you can identify the Werewolf King, it’s dangerous to leave this place now.”

“That’s right, Your Highness. The monsters’ movements are different from ordinary werewolves, probably due to receiving orders.”

Guild Master Delphi, holding his injured shoulder, spoke up. In this sudden situation, they had been tasked with guarding the mine and preventing the werewolves’ movements.

However, Carmel, the knight with the most experience in dealing with monsters, cautiously said, “I believe we need to deal with the Werewolf King as soon as possible.”

“Sir Carmel, why?”

“I heard that the Tower Lord sent a message to the palace earlier.”

He cautiously looked at the Tower Lord, seeking the support of his opinion.

“There were Hamphi mixed in with the werewolves earlier.”

“That’s troubling.”

Hamphi were rat-like monsters about half the size of werewolves, though their claws and teeth were too vicious to be considered mere rats.

Having Hamphi under their command meant that the Werewolf King was cunning and old.

They would sometimes enlist weaker monsters as their subordinates, after all.

“A Werewolf King with Hamphi under its command is dangerous. If we keep stalling, they might escape and head toward the city.”

“The city…!” Siervian exclaimed in surprise at the explanation.

Come to think of it, this mine was not located deep in the mountains, but rather quite close to the city.

“…Actually, even before you all arrived, I attempted to use a large-scale magic alone.”

“Karmen?”

Taking a deep breath, Karmen explained urgently, making sure to convey that he didn’t intend to do something reckless.

“I couldn’t deploy the communication magic quickly enough due to having to save people. Since the communication mana needed to reach far outside was being drawn toward the ores, I had no choice.”

Kurchad ores had a high mana conductivity. That’s why the communication mana couldn’t extend far outside because it was being attracted to the ores.

“Karmen, even so…”

“I didn’t expect reinforcements to arrive so quickly. I also believed that the Werewolf King’s momentum was too overwhelming and we needed to protect the city.”

[Turana Ellison]
Mood: Admirable
Thoughts: That rascal, I thought he wasn’t paying attention, but he was diligently learning.
…Today, I strangely wanted to follow the princess. If it weren’t for that, I would have almost lost my only disciple.

‘I’m glad. I’m really glad.’

Although the matter was not yet resolved, Siervian considered it fortunate that she had acted recklessly.

‘This is the future I’ve changed. So I have to protect it.’

Originally, in her previous life, it was Count Mirccino who encountered the monsters in this place. It was thanks to him that Karmen became responsible for this place.

“Mage Karmen. How were you planning to leave?”

They had returned to the central square of the mine without realizing it. It was because Karmen naturally led them there.

A mage who was unconscious and lying there in a miserable state caught her attention.

‘Unconscious people don’t have a status window.’

Karmen pointed to the mage and said as if it were fortunate.

“I was trying to interrogate that guy, thinking he was hiding some magic items or something, without knowing about mana overflow.”

“Tsk. You’re lacking in learning, my disciple.”

“…How did you guess that it was mana overflow, something that was used in war?”

The gaze of the Tower Lord turned to the unconscious magician at Karmen’s words.

During the war, mana overflow was a common sight. Isolated mages in enemy territory would induce a mana overflow, summoning nearby monsters and resorting to a mutually assured destruction with the enemy. It was something that he didn’t expect to see so near the city during this peaceful time.

“On that side, I was digging an emergency escape route in case of an accident in the tunnel.”

His plan was like this. If they could dig a little further on that side, they could head outside the valley. It was a strategy to divert the monsters’ attention as much as possible toward the front of the tunnel and attack them from behind. Since they would be outside after they got out, they could use communication magic until the main force arrived, giving them time.

[Karmen Kasselov]
Thoughts: I thought I would have to use a large-scale magic and hope that the Werewolf King would fall into it, but I was lucky.

‘I never thought Karmen would do something so reckless!’

It was at that moment that Siervian understood his inner thoughts and made up her mind to firmly instruct him not to do such things in the future.

A desperate voice could be heard from behind.

“What’s going on, you guys!”

“Sir Delphi?”

“What happened, Guild Master?”

Reflexively running in that direction, the Guild Master was holding on to the guild members who were lying down, bleeding, and losing consciousness, crying.

They had been injured while blocking the werewolf until the end.

“Oh no…!”

“Can’t you use healing magic? Tower Lord, please!”

Both the Tower Lord and Karmen’s faces froze. Neither of them had a natural affinity for healing magic.

Any mage could cast healing magic. However, healing magic required a very specific affinity. Healing magic by a mage who did not have the right affinity did not have much effect.

Karmen had already tried to use healing magic on them, but it was useless.

“That old man is particularly unsuited for that. I can help you go peacefully, but…”

Ignoring his grim voice, Siervian approached the wounded with tears streaming down her face.

‘It’s because of me.’

It was because she had recommended the Justice Guild to this position.

It was because of her that Karmen ended up here.

In an abrupt self-reproach, Siervian instinctively moved her mana.

“Stay strong.”

“Princess?”

“Siervian?”

Siervian, who had just awakened, didn’t have time to figure out her true potential. She was too preoccupied with the fight against the nobles to focus on her abilities. So, no one knew exactly how this healing magic would manifest.

“You can’t die.”

Siervian shed tears while looking into the face of a guild member who was unknowingly nearing death.

‘I can do it.’

As if responding to her determination, a burst of light erupted brightly. Her strong will not to sacrifice any more lives was vividly expressed. Suddenly, she remembered a dream she had in her time of awakening. It was when she had embraced the ‘friend’ who followed her.

‘I can do it!’

As if fast-forwarding time, the patients’ wounds began to disappear. The bleeding from the bite of the werewolf’s massive claw gradually ceased.

“The princess…!”

“Hmm, it seems like you have an affinity for healing magic. Haha, you truly possess the blessings of the Empire.”

The magic, which emitted a bright light that could blind everyone’s eyes, finally stopped once the patients’ complexion improved.

“Ah.”

There were five guild members who had been wandering in the wilderness. After healing them all, Siervian’s legs suddenly lost strength due to the sudden depletion of mana.

“Siervian!”

Karmen quickly approached and supported her. He had many things he wanted to say, but he couldn’t bring himself to say anything with a vicious expression.

[Karmen Kasselov]
Thoughts: What an idiot! What was she thinking, recklessly using up her mana for healing magic without even considering the amount!

Even though he had tried to hold back his scolding, it was useless against her.

‘I can see it all anyway.’

Nevertheless, she had saved everyone. Relief washed over her, and she smiled faintly.

Because of that, Karmen couldn’t hold back his anger and scolded.

“Don’t laugh as if you did something great!”

—