At the truth that flowed from Herdin’s mouth, Gerard’s eyes began to tremble violently.

The only person who knew that he had killed Casion and Eloise was Esmeralda.

Now that she was dead, the truth should have been rightfully buried…

How did Herdin know about this fact?

No, more than that.

‘How did he know to come here?’

The moment he pondered this question, Herdin opened his mouth as if he had read his mind.

“Did you send Caligo to me with this intention from the start, Your Holiness?”

It was Gerard who recommended Caligo, a peer, as an apprentice knight to Herdin, who was going through an unstable period after losing both parents overnight.

At the time, he believed that Gerard, who had been close to his mother, had sent him out of concern.

But only yesterday did he learn that there was a ‘real reason’ why Gerard had sent Caligo to him.

‘I saw someone approaching Sir Caligo just now.’

Last night, the knight who came to see Herdin was the one assigned to watch Caligo.

‘Did you see who it was?’

‘Well, I hope I saw it wrong, but…’

The knight hesitated for a moment before continuing.

‘…It was His Holiness the Pope.’

He went on to say that Gerard had used black magic to brainwash Caligo.

Herdin was considerably shocked by the identity of the culprit he had never expected.

Why?

The first emotion that arose was curiosity.

What kind of bad blood did he have with the Delmarks to go this far?

It seemed strange that he would seek revenge even on himself and Blair, who were her children, if it was simply a matter of having feelings for his mother.

Then what reason could he have to harbor such resentment against the ‘Delmarks’ themselves?

As Herdin pondered, he remembered a portrait he had seen in a corner room of the duke’s residence when he was young.

“No, now…”

Herdin looked at Gerard across from him.

Even after recalling that face at the end of his deduction, he initially thought it was impossible. After all, the person in the portrait had died decades ago.

But if by some miracle he was alive.

Wouldn’t he look like this? The face he had imagined was standing right before his eyes.

What had been mere speculation became a certainty the moment he properly faced Gerard.

Herdin lunged at Gerard with his sword, his eyes filled with killing intent.

Kwang―!

Gerard barely managed to block Herdin’s attack using black magic. A tremendous roar echoed as the black magic and Herdin’s sword collided.

Between the precariously clashing sword and black magic, Herdin’s cold voice came through.

“Should I call you ‘Uncle’?”

Gerard, who seemed momentarily flustered, soon burst into laughter.

‘I thought I could hide my hostility to the end without being discovered.’

Although it was an unexpected turn of events, seeing Herdin’s face quietly enraged made him think this was quite interesting too.

He had been somewhat regretful that Casion had died without knowing that he was the source of all his misfortunes.

He had wanted to see him angry and despairing until his last breath, realizing he had been manipulated by him.

But seeing that expression on Herdin, who resembled Casion, brought him more elation than ever before.

“You’re quick-witted.”

So despair more, be more enraged.

“Unlike your brother.”

As much as your father’s share.

At the remark about being quick-witted, Herdin coldly self-deprecated.

This person without memories of his past life wouldn’t know.

How long it had taken him to reach this truth.

What price he had paid to stand here.

It was a truth he had never reached in his past life.

And the reason he was able to touch this truth was because he had confided everything to Blair.

If only I had discussed and sought solutions with you in my past life.

Then, without you getting hurt, without me losing you, without having to take such a long detour… could we have been happy?

He felt a belated regret for his foolish choices of the past.

But it was only for a moment.

Because not adding more regrets on top of that regret was the only way to atone for the past.

Herdin gripped his sword again and immediately lunged forward. Gerard quickly parried Herdin’s attack, but even the transmitted shockwave shook his body.

It was clear that the rumor of him being the empire’s best magic swordsman was not an exaggeration.

He needed to drive Herdin to the extreme to make him overcome the second restriction, but it seemed impossible in the current situation.

‘Really, he’s irritatingly similar to his father.’

Gerard spoke to divert Herdin’s attention while fending off his overwhelming attacks.

“Aren’t you curious why even you got involved with me?”

But Herdin’s response was cold.

“Should I be?”

He continued his attacks without pause and added:

“No matter what unfortunate narrative you attach, the fact that you’re a villain won’t change.”

Cutting off Gerard’s words, Herdin unleashed a flurry of attacks at high speed. He had judged that close combat would be more advantageous than magic in this enclosed space.

As he had expected, as it turned into close combat, Gerard began to be pushed back. Although he was blocking all the attacks, he would be feeling the shockwaves fully.

As if to prove this, all of Gerard’s attacks were missing and hitting the walls or ceiling of the basement. Even though the closer distance should make magic easier to aim.

Just as Herdin, having pushed Gerard against the wall, was about to launch his final strike.

Kung!

Gerard’s misfired magic hit the ceiling and caused it to collapse.

Herdin gritted his teeth as he saw the building debris falling towards him.

‘This was his purpose from the start…!’

It was too late to cast magic to remove the debris.

He sliced through the falling debris with his sword, but it was not enough to block all the countless falling pieces.

Gerard watched Herdin being buried under the rubble with a satisfied smile. However, the attack did not stop there.

‘I’ll push him to the extreme with this opportunity.’

His goal was not simply to kill Herdin, but to make him go berserk and self-destruct.

Gerard unleashed merciless black magic towards the building debris covering Herdin.

A little pain might help suppress the rampage, but pain close to death would draw out survival instincts and induce a rampage.

He would absorb the mana of his loved one, causing her death, and self-destruct.

How beautiful would that face be, wrapped in despair?

It was the perfect downfall of Casion and the Delmarks that he had longed for so much.

‘…Why is there no reaction?’

But even after unleashing attacks for a while, it remained quiet. As long as he possessed the power of the Delmarks, he shouldn’t die from this much.

Feeling perplexed, Gerard took a step towards the building debris.

Kwang!

The quiet building debris crumbled to dust, and Herdin revealed himself.

Gerard, who had been smiling with satisfaction thinking Herdin would surely have gone berserk by now, hesitated when he saw Herdin approaching him.

‘How…’

Although threatening mana was rippling around Herdin, his eyes were clearly fixed on Gerard.

While biting his left hand to the bone.

Before the shaken Gerard could form his next plan, Herdin closed the distance rapidly and plunged his sword into Gerard’s heart.

“Kuhek…”

The sword that had pierced his heart was withdrawn without hesitation.

Herdin coldly gazed at Gerard’s eyes, bloodshot and red, at the long-standing source of vengeance who had taken his parents and family, and who had taken Blair from him.

“It took quite a long time.”

As the sword was pulled out, Gerard’s body collapsed.

Coughing up blood and glaring at Herdin, he soon opened his mouth with a smile full of madness.

“It’s not… over yet.”

The smile of the dying man was indescribably grotesque.

Herdin quietly looked at Gerard, who was laughing as if making a last struggle, and then beheaded him.

Only then did silence fall.

It was the end of a grueling revenge spanning two lifetimes.

The first thing that came to mind at that end was Blair’s face.

Now he had to return. To her side, where she would be waiting for him.

Just as he took a step to return to Blair, Herdin’s footsteps suddenly halted as he sensed something.

‘The mana…’

Unstable mana was flowing out of his body, uncontrolled.

Seeing this, Herdin instinctively realized.

‘The imprint, it hasn’t disappeared.’

The black magic circle, which should have vanished when the caster died, was clearly rippling on his back.

* * *

“The undead attack on Nerha a few days ago was all orchestrated by the Duchess.”

At that time, Miela went to Raymond as Gerard had instructed and exposed Blair as a black magic user.

“There’s a black magic circle on the Duchess’s body, you should check it once.”

It was just that one statement.

But with those words alone, Raymond immediately turned to suspect Blair and Herdin.

His favorable attitude towards Herdin until now was only in anticipation of the benefits he could bring, not out of pure goodwill or great trust.

After all, Herdin, who planned to promote port business in Libren, was a rival that Raymond had to keep in check.

Raymond, enraged by Miela’s words, sent her to the villa along with knights. However, there was no way the Delmark’s servants would easily let in armed knights.

While Nerha’s knights and Delmark’s servants were arguing, Luth, who had noticed the commotion, came out from inside the villa.

“What’s the matter?”

“We’ve come to see the Duchess.”

“So, what business do the knights have with the Duchess?”

“We’ve heard that the Duchess was involved in black magic. For the sake of friendly relations with Nerha, please cooperate with our inspection.”

Luth frowned slightly and replied.

“I’m sorry, but the Duchess is not here.”

“If you don’t cooperate, we’ll have no choice but to be suspicious.”

“No matter how urgent the matter is, to come threateningly like this to a lady, and one who is not alone—”

Nerha’s knights pushed Luth aside and barged into the villa. Miela headed towards Blair’s room along with the knights.

Expecting to see her considerably flustered face.

“My lady, may we see you for a moment?”

But there was no answer from inside the room.

Perplexed by this, Miela suddenly felt an ominous premonition and flung open the door without permission. At the same time, Miela’s eyes wavered.

The empty room without its owner greeted her with only a chilly atmosphere.