Chapter 270

Chapter 59: Disturbance (4)

Meanwhile, at that very moment, when Ulan and Istan were saying their goodbyes, Fertisha, who had returned to her accommodation alone, suddenly widened her eyes in shock.

“…Huh?”

There was only one reason for her surprise.

She simply couldn’t grasp what Rimer Yen Lapis had just said.

Staring blankly for a moment with a flustered expression, she quickly turned to Rimer and asked, “Wait, what do you mean…?”

“Just as I mentioned earlier.”

Rimer interrupted her. Clad in armor and wielding a sword, Rimer looked at Fertisha with a deadpan expression and continued in a business-like tone, “I will be escorting the Princess back to the Imperial Castle in three hours. So please make haste in your preparations.”

A bombshell of a statement.

Unlike Rimer, who wore a stiff expression, Fertisha still looked utterly dumbfounded.

“But, but why? You said we’d return to the castle around the weekend…”

“The situation has changed.”

It changed this afternoon.

Rimer, having received an imperial decree from Crown Prince Chartang, was instructed to bring Fertisha back to the castle ahead of schedule.

“Still, this is way too sudden…”

Fertisha bit her lip slightly, finally realizing the gravity of the situation. However, she couldn’t just stay panicked, so she started thinking hard.

She needed to inform Ulan and the others about the change in schedule.

‘Everyone, including Ulan, thinks I’m going back to the castle this weekend.’

If she stayed quiet, all the plans made earlier would go up in smoke.

With a determined will, Fertisha quietly called for her spirits, careful not to let Rimer catch on. She needed to tell Ulan.

But that turned out to be impossible.

“…Huh?”

She felt no presence from her spirits.

Not a single one of the voices that always chatted nearby could be heard. Upon realizing this, Fertisha muttered in a bewildered tone, “W-why…?”

“No need to be surprised.”

At that moment, Rimer spoke up, almost as if she knew what Fertisha was trying to do. She narrowed her eyes and held up a black pendant around her neck.

“The absence of the spirits’ voices is likely due to this.”

“W-what is that…?”

“It’s a magical artifact I received from Count D’muehl Ron Dermore. It can temporarily deceive the spirits’ senses.”

Such a thing exists?

But more importantly, why did Rimer even have something like that?

A whirlpool of questions spun in her mind.

But right now, that wasn’t the important part.

“Ugh!”

Stomping her foot on the ground with all her strength, Fertisha suddenly reached out for Rimer, trying to snatch the magical artifact from her neck.

Of course, it was a futile endeavor.

“Don’t exhaust yourself for nothing.”

“Ugh!”

Rimer was a knight of her master.

Meanwhile, Fertisha couldn’t even handle her spirits right now. She had no chance in this contest and frowned in frustration.

“Why are you going this far?!

“It’s precautionary.”

“Precaution for what…?”

“Ulan Bator.”

Her voice dropped coldly.

Rimer’s brown eyes flickered sharply. She then explained without hesitation why she mentioned Ulan.

“To prevent that barbarian, who has a connection with the Princess, from getting involved in this.”

When she received the imperial command, D’muehl, who was nearby, had handed her the magical artifact and discreetly warned her.

To be cautious of Ulan.

If Fertisha tried to leave the academy, he might stir up some trouble. Rimer partially agreed with this statement.

‘That man is dangerous.’

It’s hard to tell what he’s thinking, and even harder to predict where he’ll jump next.

Thus, if Fertisha sent her spirits to call for help, there was a great chance he would come rushing to her rescue.

‘So…’

To eliminate the risk factor named Ulan, Rimer decided to follow Count Dermore’s advice. Having concluded her memories, she turned back to Fertisha and spoke again.

“So please hurry with your preparations.”

“Lady Lapis…”

“There isn’t much time left.”

Rimer replied coolly and sat down on a chair in the center of the room, ensuring the artifact’s power would spread well around her.

Little did Rimer know, however.

That in a place where the artifact’s influence did not reach, something was eavesdropping on all their conversations from the shadows outside the window.

7.

It was well past midnight. After seeing Istan off, Ulan and his group headed back to the dorm, engaging in light conversation.

It was late, and after such a hectic day, they were feeling tired.

“Let’s meet again tomorrow.”

“Yeah, you get some good rest too, Ulan.”

After a brief farewell, the three girls walked toward the front door of the girls’ dormitory. Then, just as they were about to exit, Ulan, who had just said goodbye, suddenly opened his mouth again.

“Wait a minute.”

His unexpected statement made the three girls, including Noa, stop and turn back.

“Huh?”

“What? What’s up?”

Iris and Delia asked curiously, but Ulan wasn’t talking to them.

Because he had been staring into empty air since he first muttered.

“Speak one at a time.”

Ulan’s gaze was fixed solely on the shimmering lights that only he could see.

They were Fertisha’s spirits.

The suddenly revealed spirits were chattering anxiously, unable to hide their feelings of urgency.

“It’s a disaster! A huge disaster!”

“We can’t get to Fertisha!”

“Can’t get to her? What does that mean?”

Ulan tilted his head in confusion and asked. In response, the spirits replied once more.

“I don’t know. We can’t smell her.”

“We know she’s inside, but…”

“We can’t find her exact location!”

All they returned were still nonsensical answers. As the noise began to resonate painfully in his head, Noa stepped in.

“What’s going on?”

“Um, well…”

Ulan explained that he was communicating with the spirits and relayed everything he heard without missing a beat.

After a moment, Noa pieced together what the spirits were trying to convey.

“So, to summarize, you know where Tisha is, but you can’t feel her presence.”

“Oh, that seems to be the case.”

Noa’s summary hit the nail on the head.

As the anxious spirits all responded in agreement, it was then that Ivella, who had been quietly listening, spoke up, looking puzzled.

“But how can that suddenly happen?”

When they had headed to the capital together earlier that morning, Fertisha was talking and communicating with her spirits. How could such a thing occur in less than a day?

Before Ivella’s question could finish, Delia ventured a guess.

“Maybe she’s using a magical artifact?”

“Huh? A magical artifact?”

“Like, one that weakens the spirits’ power.”

As soon as Delia finished her explanation, Noa, who had been deep in thought, nodded seriously.

“That could very well be the case.”

“Really?”

“Is there really something like that?”

Ivella looked surprised.

Then Delia, who had put forth the idea, also looked shocked. Honestly, she had just tossed that out as a possibility.

Meanwhile, Noa nodded again.

“Yes, among the magical artifacts owned by the Magic Tower, there was something similar to what Delia mentioned.”

When she was playing as Fertisha in the original story, she had stumbled upon a magical artifact with similar powers during her chance visit to the Magic Tower right after she joined the hero party as a bard.

‘The Pendant of Magical Scent.’

This magical artifact, shaped like a necklace, releases an awful stench that disrupts the senses of spirits within a twenty-step radius of the owner.

Recalling this, Noa explained the Pendant of Magical Scent to Ulan and the others.

“Wow, I can’t believe there was something like that.”

“But who would even use such a thing…?”

Delia reacted with amazement while Ivella seemed puzzled. Then Ulan, with his eyes gleaming fiercely, stated,

“There’s only one possibility for the culprit.”

Rimer Yen Lapis.

She was the one who called Fertisha.

Moreover, if the Lapis family were involved, getting their hands on a magical artifact from the Magic Tower wouldn’t be too difficult.

‘But what stands out here is…’

How Rimer obtained the Pendant of Magical Scent. Because there’s a special process to borrow magical artifacts stored in the Magic Tower.

‘You need to know the exact name of the magical artifact.’

Only by knowing the precise name and effect of the magical artifact one wishes to borrow, would the Magic Tower grant it.

And only the wizards affiliated with the Magic Tower are aware of the list of magical artifacts.

In other words, to borrow a magical artifact, one must seek help from a wizard associated with the Magic Tower.

Based on what was mentioned earlier, there was only one name that sprang to mind.

‘…Count Dermore.’

A man who now serves as a close aide to Chartang.

He was a wizard associated with the Magic Tower and was believed to be linked to the Abyss Worshippers and, in turn, the Lord of the Abyss.

So it wouldn’t be surprising if he managed to obtain a magical artifact capable of suppressing Fertisha’s powers.

“So, what do we do now?”

“Shouldn’t we go check it out now?”

Meanwhile, Delia and Ivella looked concerned as they appeared to grasp the severity of the situation.

But at that moment, Noa shook her head.

“We can’t do that.”

“What? Why not?”

“If we recklessly act before our plan even starts, we’ll be the first to be suspected once the abduction goes through.”

Noa’s words were a valid response.

Delia nodded as if agreeing. Conversely, Ivella retorted, wondering if this was really the time to be weighing such concerns.

“But what if we get back earlier than expected?”

“Honestly, that’s probably not going to happen…”

Noa was about to say it wouldn’t happen but ended up falling silent. After thinking it over, Ivella’s point did hold some weight.

Because the person who summoned Fertisha to the Imperial Castle was none other than Crown Prince Chartang. Just as they were in a moment of hesitation,

“Then I’ll go.”

Suddenly, Ulan stood up.

He turned toward the direction of Fertisha’s accommodation, as if he was about to set off right away.

“If I hide my presence and keep an eye on their territory from a distance, I shouldn’t get caught.”

Of course, he wouldn’t.

At present, Ulan had reached a level of mastery that surpassed any of the Empire’s masters. Rimer wouldn’t be able to detect Ulan’s presence at all.

‘But…’

He couldn’t shake off a sense of unease.

For reasons unknown, the thought of the watchful eyes Iris had mentioned earlier lingered in his mind. As he hesitated to respond,

“No, there’s no need.”

A suddenly lowered voice interrupted him.

It was a strangely familiar voice. As he looked around to find where the voice was coming from, Ulan’s shadow suddenly rippled.

From it, a small black figure popped out, taking on a shape.

“I’ve seen everything that happened inside.”

The existence, now taking the form of a little girl, grinned mischievously with the face of young Fertisha — it was none other than the Spirit of the Abyss.