The red carpet laid out all the way to the entrance of the Duke’s estate still stretched far ahead, making my vision blur with dizziness. I had only intended to quietly discuss the map and then leave—how on earth did it come to this?

Edan Dietrich would’ve been utterly horrified if he’d come along. Or perhaps… he might’ve enjoyed it. After all, Edan remains unnervingly calm in unexpected situations.

“Your complexion looks unwell.”

“It’s nothing. More importantly, Duke, I received the gifts you sent last time. My apologies for the belated thanks.”

“Did you like them?”

I recalled the gifts Dante Ian had sent to the Grand Duke’s estate for me after Ivy Violet’s incident.

It wasn’t just Dante’s gifts—items from Hillstain Mathias and the Temple were mixed in too. Whether I liked them or not was irrelevant. Thanks to the jealous Edan, they were now stashed away in the warehouse.

“Yes.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

It was a lie, but since Dante looked pleased, I let it be.

“Do you remember that place we visited last time—the one filled with portals?”

“You mean the room on the top floor?”

How could I forget the place where dozens of portals had opened?

“Yes. We’ll teleport directly to the location marked on the map from there. I’ve prepared everything—let’s make this quick.”

“Wait—you already know the exact location?”

“His Grace the Grand Duke explained it to me in advance. He mentioned the map was drawn quite meticulously. Even based solely on his geographical descriptions, I could easily deduce the location. There’s nowhere in the desert unfamiliar to me. Don’t worry.”

Dante whispered softly, smiling as gently as sunlight.

He really does look like a different person when he’s acting normally. No wonder he was the gentle male lead in the original story.

Well, gentle in personality—not physically.

I knew he hadn’t removed his clothes to show off, but desert fashion truly is something else.

His finely sculpted muscles were blatantly exposed, majestically flexing right before my eyes.

Just as we neared the entrance of the Duke’s estate and I was beginning to grow accustomed to the swaying palm trees beside me, a short, bobbed hairdo suddenly burst out from inside.

“Big sister!”

“Young Duke!”

Noah blinked his large eyes and beamed widely.

“Have you been well?”

“Thanks to you! And you? Did you get my gift? I’m so happy to see you—can I at least hold your hand up to there?”

“Of course. Here.”

I smiled brightly and extended my hand; Noah eagerly grabbed it.

Then, swinging our joined hands vigorously back and forth, he began walking.

“Thank you for the gift. I keep it in my bedroom at the Grand Duke’s estate and look at it every day.”

“Really? Then I’ll give you another one.”

Noah gazed at me intently with golden, sparkling eyes.

“Yes, I’d like that.”

It was hard to refuse him, so I simply nodded.

It was a bird adorned with enormous gemstones, but given Noah’s wealth, accepting it shouldn’t be an issue. Still, I hoped he’d forget about it—I hadn’t agreed because I truly wanted it.

Whether Noah sensed my inner thoughts or not, he looked absolutely delighted.

“But big sister, how’s that scary Grand Duke doing?”

“He’s doing well.”

Noah narrowed his eyes suspiciously, lowered his voice, and asked again,

“Are you really okay?”

Edan had clearly made a strong negative impression. Seeing Noah’s innocent concern, I leaned down, cupped my hand near his ear, and whispered,

“Actually… I’ve started liking that Grand Duke.”

Noah’s pupils trembled as if struck by an earthquake.

“…Why?”

Our conversation ended abruptly—we had reached the entrance of the Grand Duke’s estate and needed to immediately step through the portal.

“See you next time, Young Duke.”

Noah waved at me regretfully.

As I climbed the stairs, I turned back several times to wave at Noah.

Once his figure disappeared entirely as we crossed floors, I asked Dante,

“How is the Young Duke’s health?”

“Thanks to the pepper, he’s improved tremendously. The symptoms were temporary and have been steadily diminishing. It’s entirely thanks to Latieana Merigold.”

“Not at all. I hope the side effects vanish quickly.”

“Yes.”

Dante, still the doting older brother, smiled more brightly than ever.

Standing before the portal, Dante extended his hand.

I was already quite accustomed to portal travel and didn’t need assistance—even without Edan, I had no desire to engage in actions that might be misinterpreted.

Seeing me subtly step backward, Dante looked momentarily confused, then awkwardly rubbed his neck.

“Ah, I seem to have caused misunderstanding. That wasn’t my intention. Could you hand me the map?”

Though the atmosphere briefly turned awkward due to the misunderstanding, fortunately, Maxim quickly pulled out the map.

“If it’s the map, here it is.”

Dante spread it out fully and rapidly scanned the overall layout.

The previously gentle atmosphere instantly shifted—he scrutinized the map with sharp, piercing eyes.

“This location nearly matches what His Grace described. Fortunately, the portal connection has negligible error.”

Nodding, Dante and I stepped through the portal together.

This place differed entirely from the Duke’s estate, where soft sand sank beneath one’s feet. Here, the terrain was dry, entirely composed of hard, brown stones.

The moment we exited the portal, Dante strode forward decisively without hesitation.

Under the protective escort of Southern knights flanking us left, right, and rear, Maxim and I hurried after him.

“This place is…”

Where we arrived was the entrance to a massive cave.

“Shall we go in?”

Even facing the pitch-dark cave, Dante didn’t hesitate for a second. As he boldly stepped inside, I asked,

“Duke, is this a place you know?”

“No.”

“Is this your first time here?”

“That’s correct. Is there a problem?”

“You acted as if you’d visited many times before.”

He truly moved with that level of familiarity.

“No need to worry. Whatever appears, I’ll protect Latieana Merigold above all.”

Dante smiled lightly and walked inside.

The cave was surprisingly deep and carried a mysterious atmosphere. Although no visible light source existed, the deeper we went, the brighter it became.

Given this was a place touched by the Archmage, such oddities were expected—but the origin of the light remained unknown.

“By the way, what exactly is the purpose of coming here?”

“Didn’t Edan explain anything to you?”

“His Grace only instructed me to guide you. If it’s sensitive, I won’t press further…”

At that moment, Maxim, who had been wide-eyed and silently following, eagerly jumped into the conversation.

“Latieana Merigold, wouldn’t it be fine to tell Duke Dante? We’ll likely need his continued assistance anyway.”

He had a point.

Considering the diary, even the Archmage had spent years working here. I couldn’t possibly understand everything in a single visit.

I hadn’t even explained my recent discovery to Edan yet…

“We’re here to seal the entrance where the monsters emerge.”

Dante stopped walking, as if he’d heard something impossible.

His previously relaxed expression turned to bewilderment.

“Is such a thing even possible?”

“It’s not certain yet, but I’ve found a method. The definitive answer should be here.”

Dante blinked at my unwavering tone, then resumed walking.

“If such a thing were possible…”

Ha. A faint chuckle escaped behind Dante’s trailing, blurred words.

“That would be truly wonderful.”

Muttering as if to himself, Dante took a firm step forward and walked silently ahead.

I stared at his deep-blue hair, as dark as the pre-dawn night.

Following his neatly trimmed nape, his sun-kissed, thick neck led straight to broad, squared shoulders.

And across his back rested scars worthy of being called “badges of honor.”

They were far thicker and deeper than the ones on Edan’s body.

Would Killian Dietrich have similar scars? As Crown Prince, he’d likely been protected—any scars he had would be minor. Hillstain Mathias probably had some.

Truthfully, Hillstain wasn’t weak, but given how utterly he’d been overpowered by Edan or Killian, he must be less capable than them.

He might be the happiest of all if the monsters’ passage were sealed.

The thought of the cunning Hillstain made my brows furrow unconsciously.

‘Latieana Merigold should pray for this peace to last longer.’

I’d brushed it off as insignificant, but those words had lodged like a thorn in one corner of my heart.

Currently, a fragile peace holds—but if circumstances change, Hillstain will turn his back on me at any moment.

He’d unsheathe his sword against Edan without hesitation, coveting my healing power.

It’s possible other Gifted individuals might do the same. And Edan will fight to protect me.

But Edan isn’t immortal. He might die horribly, just as he did in the original story. I can’t let that happen.

I don’t yet know what the Archmage’s so-called “artifact” is—but I’ll find out. Whatever it is, I’ll obtain it and offer it up.

At the end of the long corridor, the path opened into a vast circular space with an open sky above.

The interior glowed with an overall orange hue; flowing stone formations occupied positions from ceiling to floor, supported by pillars stretching top to bottom. But the most striking feature was the object at the center.

“A mirror…?”

It was an enormous rectangular mirror.

Without needing to speak, the three of us approached and examined it.

It stood perfectly upright without any visible stand—an almost miraculous feat, as if fused directly into the ground.

“Could this be the artifact?”

To Maxim’s question, I shook my head.

“It can’t be. If this were the artifact, that wouldn’t be impossible.”

“Hmm. True enough.”

At that moment, Dante, who had been inspecting the mirror’s rear, tapped it lightly with his hand.

“The back is sealed. It appears to be an ordinary mirror.”

“Really? It’s enormous, but mirrors like this exist everywhere.”

Following Dante’s lead, Maxim placed his hand against the mirror’s front surface.

I stood before the mirror, arms crossed, scrutinizing it meticulously.

What on earth was I supposed to do with this? No matter how I looked, it was just a perfectly ordinary mirror framed in silver, with nothing unusual about it.

“Ah! L, Latieana Merigold! I’ve figured it out!”

Maxim, who had been frowning deeply behind his glasses in deep thought, suddenly shouted loudly.

“This mirror is strange!”