His once-handsome features were now utterly ruined, vanished without a trace.

Even his radiant golden hair had burned away, turning ashen red and pitch-black; his flawless, blemish-free skin was now mottled and stained, veined with garish crimson streaks.

His pretty lips were tainted black, and his eyes—described in the original story as having lost all whites, leaving only fiercely scarlet irises—were so horrifying to behold they caused pain merely to look upon.

My eyes welled up.

“If I become a monster…”

Pitter-patter. Tears finally fell.

“No one will find me beautiful anymore.”

I knew even this wasn’t real blackmail, that it wouldn’t work—but I had to say something.

Anything else, fine—but black magic? Absolutely not. It’s something you must never do. Not even as a joke.

“You’re crying over a single joke? Is this really worth tears?”

Seeing me trembling with anxiety, Edan placed his large hand atop my head, gently stroking my hair again and again to soothe me.

“Alright. I promise.”

“Really?”

“Yes. No matter what happens, I won’t touch black magic.”

Just then—

As I nodded my head, the closed portal flared with blue light, illuminating the entire library.

“My Lord!”

It was Ruben. His voice was urgent, stiff with tension.

Even without seeing his face, I knew something deeply wrong had occurred.

Edan straightened his posture. Without questioning Ruben—who had brought other subordinates—he swept his gaze over them.

“What’s happened?”

For just a moment, Ruben’s wavering eyes brushed against mine.

He bowed his head and continued his report in a trembling voice.

“The Wall… has been destroyed.”

As he spoke, Ruben extended both hands, offering Edan a sword.

It was far longer and larger than the one Edan usually wielded—taller than me if stood upright.

Without hesitation, Edan grasped the sword.

“Status?”

“Demons are flooding out onto the plains. We’re holding them back, but it seems we’ll be overrun.”

Ruben seemed to have much more to say, but he kept glancing at my expression—

As if worried I might be frightened.

I could sense him deliberately suppressing his emotions, choosing only the most essential words to convey.

I quickly turned my head toward the window.

Beyond the mountain ridge, the sun still hung low. Twilight had not yet fully faded.

This wasn’t the time for demons to emerge.

Even if the Wall had collapsed, unless the rift was opened, demons couldn’t reach the Wall itself.

Yet they were pouring out.

“E-Edan.”

I grabbed his arm as he fastened his cloak.

Edan looked down at me, his eyes chillingly cold.

“It’s fine. I’ll be back.”

I didn’t know the exact situation, but I understood the consequences it would bring.

Edan would stop the demons by any means necessary—and afterward, he’d suffer excruciating agony.

I pulled a small vial from my pocket and pressed it into Edan’s hand.

“Drink this if it gets too hard.”

Edan took the vial and gave a small nod.

“Alright.”

Urgency radiated from him.

Gently pushing my hand away from his arm, Edan swiftly turned around.

From his shoulders, I felt a burden so heavy it was nearly impossible to describe.

You’re not the one who’ll vomit. I can heal you—again and again, as many times as needed.

So don’t hesitate. Fight.

I tried to say it—but Edan vanished instantly beyond the portal.

Twelve hours had passed since Edan left for the North. I hadn’t slept a wink all night, eyes wide open until dawn.

Yet sleep still wouldn’t come—in fact, my mind grew sharper.

An indescribable anxiety surged over me.

I knew Edan, empowered by his ability, was strong enough that no one could touch him.

But why this restlessness?

Vividly, the vast northern plains appeared before my eyes.

The immense land stretching between the unbreakable Wall and the northern cities, split by a wide river.

Without portals, it would’ve taken days to travel from the Wall to the city.

Yet with that vast expanse between them, demons—given their speed—could turn the city into chaos in an instant.

Even during the festival, they’d flown from the barely visible horizon straight into the city in mere moments.

Even ground-bound demons, simply by virtue of their size, ran faster than knights could chase.

The wisest, least damaging course was surely to block the breach and eliminate them right there.

‘Even so… it’s not an easy task.’

I didn’t know how badly the Wall had collapsed, but stopping the flood of demons would inevitably cause massive casualties.

Again and again, the memory of the battle against demons in the North replayed in my mind.

Dry air, towering walls, knights swinging swords wildly amid spraying blood as they fought demons.

And Edan, standing at the center.

‘Why did the Wall break?’

The demon purge was clearly nearing its end, and Edan had finally found enough peace to focus solely on winter preparations.

No matter how I thought about it, there was no reason for the Wall to collapse.

Unless… someone deliberately destroyed it.

“Sigh.”

Not a single magic tome caught my attention.

I closed the book and slowly walked down from the tower’s top floor.

The morning sun, newly risen, cast light across the castle garden and through windows everywhere.

Though I hadn’t slept, my condition wasn’t bad. The power stolen by Ivy had almost fully returned.

I activated my healing ability, sending it flowing throughout the entire castle.

So Edan would feel better when he returned.

Step by slow step, I poured healing energy into walls, doors, ceilings—every surface.

I spread even more generously around the library, where the portal lay.

And finally, I opened the door to Edan’s bedroom.

Sorry for intruding without permission—but given the circumstances…

Edan’s bedroom was always bleak whenever I entered.

I glanced lightly around the bland, nearly empty room as I stepped inside.

‘This place needs a lot too.’

He’d need to rest here when he returned.

I saturated the room with healing energy—just as much as the library—letting it slowly seep into walls and bed.

Just as I turned to leave—

The drawer beside the bed’s console was slightly ajar.

“What’s this?”

At first, I meant to just close it—but a red ribbon stuck out, so I opened the drawer and pulled out the object inside.

A thick, dark-brown scroll, half-rolled and poorly stored.

The red ribbon lay carelessly tossed atop it.

“…”

I shouldn’t look.

Yet, without thinking, I picked up the scroll.

The moment I read its contents, I froze.

“This can’t be real.”

It was a formal proposal for a political marriage between Edan and Princess Ciela Hestia of the Eastern Empire.

No matter how many times I reread it from the beginning, the named groom remained Edan Dietrich, Second Prince.

Maxium’s rumored marriage proposal.

It was real. The day Queen Henzela summoned Edan—the day he was punished—he’d received this.

My heart pounded. Unable to believe it, I stared blankly down at the scroll.

Edan Dietrich.

Ciela Hestia.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from those two names written side by side.

And then—too late—I noticed the final line of the letter and was engulfed in shock.

My fingers clenched tightly around the scroll.

At the bottom lay Princess Ciela’s signature.

And…

“This… can’t be true…”

Edan’s signature was there too.

Had lack of sleep made me see wrong? I rubbed my eyes and looked again. I squeezed them shut, then reopened them—but unmistakably, it was Edan’s signature.

His name, Edan Dietrich, scrawled in precise cursive handwriting.

“He… agreed?”

My legs nearly gave out, and I almost collapsed where I stood.

Truly, nothing in this world ever goes according to plan.

Why can’t even one single thing go my way?

If this was going to happen, why not just let me escape from here?

Even when Maxium mentioned the political marriage, I hadn’t taken it seriously.

I don’t know why.

Maybe because Edan was always so gentle to me. Because he treated me so well.

Because he promised to protect me—I vaguely believed he’d always stay by my side.

Because I’m someone he needs.

Even though I’m searching for ways to heal without returning to the temple, I still believed I’d somehow remain beside him.

“Edan Dietrich…”

I traced his signature letter by letter with my eyes.

No matter how many times I looked, it was unmistakably his name.

Only then did I suddenly recall Ruben bumping into me as he tried to enter Edan’s room—and turning back.

Could he have come to retrieve this?

That day, Ruben had worried I might use healing on Edan.

A bitter laugh escaped me.

So that’s why he pretended it was nothing and left?

Was he afraid that if I discovered he’d come for this, I’d get hurt and refuse to heal Edan at all?

Thud. I set the scroll down and pressed my palms hard against my stinging eyes.

“Aren’t you an idiot?”

Even seeing this—I still have no choice but to heal Edan.

Because I like him.

Because I like him too much.

My nose stung with sorrow.

I pressed my palms harder against my eyes, then carefully rerolled the scroll.

I wrapped the red ribbon tightly around it like a bow and placed it back into the console drawer.

Then I firmly pushed the drawer shut.

“I hope it stays closed like this forever.”

I murmured blankly, staring down at the drawer—

BANG!

With a blinding blue flash, a tremendous noise erupted from the garden.

I flinched, then rushed to the window—only to see the castle gate shattered, and a figure in black robes striding calmly through the breach.

Hillstain…? No. Hillstain wouldn’t come like this anymore.

And whoever entered like this couldn’t possibly be a good person.

I sprinted down to the first floor.

I planned to hide in the Archmage’s secret chamber, connected to the reception hall.

Only Edan, Ruben, Maxium, and I knew of that place.

But the moment I stepped into the lobby on the first floor, the front door burst open—and I froze in place.

“Latieana Merigold.”

A tall man called my name, slowly removing his black robes.

A handsome man with soft black hair.

The moment our eyes met—his sharp, gleaming gaze locking onto mine—I instantly lost consciousness.