"Hello, brother."
"...what are you doing?"
"I'm brother's daily maid today."
"Are you kidding me?"
Hikan dashed up from the bed. He left Dalia behind and went out into the hallway.
There was no one.
The lights in the hallway were also off. All the employees of Pesteros estate have disappeared.
Dalia's quiet voice was heard from behind.
"I dismissed the employees. I'm afraid that brother will be a threat to them."
"With whose order? I'm the owner of this place."
"I'm a Pesteros too. His Majesty has given me permission. And brother also told me to do the same."
"...."
He had nothing to say.
Hikan bit his lips and sat back on the bed.
Dalia said quietly.
"His Majesty told me. It's because of brother's mana is awakening. He said we'll just have to put up with it a little longer."
"I know that too."
He knew the manual when mana was awakening.
Everyone knows. The problem is that you can't do anything when the situation comes.
His head was telling him to get angry, but he couldn't feel angry when he heard that voice.
He covered his face and said.
"What is this all about? If that's the case, why aren't you leaving and staying here instead?"
"...I'm sorry. I can't leave my brother alone without saying anything...."
"...."
"She's lying!"
"Get lost! Tell her to get lost!"
Hikan closed his eyes tightly because of the headache.
Dalia looked at Hikan's troubled expression, which was holding back various emotions.
After hearing the butler's story yesterday, she couldn't possibly evacuate with other employees and leave him alone. She didn't want to leave Hikan alone twice.
Dalia came forward and tried to hold Hikan's hand. It was her last attempt.
However, Hikan shook it off in the air too. As he swung his hand in the air, there was a sharp bursting sound.
'What?'
After a while, Dalia realized what the bursting sound was.
Damn it.
Blood drained from Dalia's face.
Unaware of her expression, Hikan gestured.
"That's enough, now go. Did you get the scroll? Come back in a week."
"...Well, I brought water and food to the dining hall."
"Okay."
He shook his hand as if he couldn't stand it any longer. Dalia quickly got out of the room.
Click.
The door closed.
Dalia put her back on the closed door. Then she took out the magic scroll with trembling hands.
'I'm screwed.'
The magic scroll had already broken into pieces.
When Hikan shook her hand away, a runaway mana broke through him and even broke the scroll.
Hikan, whose mana is just about to awaken, could not control his power yet.
Just knowing this, she was going to escape too.
If the door is not sealed by the scroll, a catastrophe may occur when a man that can't control his mana is released into the street.
'...'
What to do now?
"I am relieved that you have received one from the Emperor, but there are two more scrolls behind the library's bookshelf. Really, really, just in case you need to know."
Does she have no other choice but to take it?
The problem is, she already heard a loud sound of something breaking inside. And the study is connected to Hikan's bedroom.
Will Hikan wait for Dalia to go back in and take the scroll out of the back of the bookcase?
'I don't think so.'
Dalia was deeply troubled.
She didn't have the courage to go in, so she sat there for a long time, doing nothing.
However, the sound inside was getting louder as time went by. She can't just hold on like this forever.
She made her mind and walked to the side and stood in front of the door of the connected study instead of the bedroom door.
By the time she opened the door, the study was already a mess.
Dalia stared blankly at the bookcase, which had already been thrown out of the window. Scrolls flew over the sky too.
In the middle of the study, Hikan stood with an expressionless face.
'As expected.'
Dalia lamented.
His mana awakening has already entered the second stage. And now Dalia didn't even have a scroll.
How on earth should we solve this situation?
Dalia stood there absentmindedly, making eye contact with Hikan.
* * *
Two hours ago on the same day.
The Emperor, who had been working at the palace all night, snapped his fountain pen.
"I can't."
The aide was flustered and handed him a new fountain pen.
Instead of receiving it, the Emperor punched the desk. Thanks to staying up all night, there was a crack on the desk to show that he can't control his strength well.
"What, what do you mean?"
"What if Miss Dalia gets hurt because of that punk Hikan? Can I bear the guilt?"
"...oh."
The Emperor held his head. The aide hesitated for a while and carefully presented a new document.
"Y, you still have to take care of other things...."
"Yeah, I can't go. Should the Emperor pay attention to every single one of these things?"
'I think you're paying enough attention right now.'
The aide had a thought that he couldn't get out of his mouth.
The Emperor shook his head.
"Yeah, this kind of thing bothers me, and it's not working. There's a good resource for this."
"Who is that?"
"The sinner who wasted my precious time."
"...."
"Send the 2nd Prince Cedric Vercelona Michelio to the Pesteros estate right now. We go with method number three."
Sometimes a beating is a medicine.
It is questionable whether Hikan will get hit smoothly. It was his duty to stop Hikan first and save Miss Dalia who stayed.
* * *
Cedric the Second Prince put his chin on the carriage window.
He was the only one who did not have any connection with Adrisha in any of the original routes. At least, Leonard married Adrisha in the game-over-ending event.
He pointed the road ahead and smiled softly.
"My father is too much. Why would he leave the task of stopping a transcendent to another transcendent of the same family? No one wants to do such a crazy thing."
"...."
"Don't you think it's too much to make me do that? And the Duke of Pesteros awakened late, so he'd be in a worse condition."
"...."
"But I can't kill him, right?
He said the frightening words casually, but no answer came back.
Cedric sighed and looked back.
"Yes, I'm sorry. Will you please stop crying, Adrisha?"
He handed her a handkerchief. Adrisha continued to wipe her tears with the handkerchief.
She was so distracted by the recent Aceras ascension as Pope that she paid little attention to Dalia.
The one who know Dalia's secret are actually a transcendent who hid his abilities and have risen to the position of Pope of the Holy Empire. Thanks to this, Adrisha and the Emperor were paying close attention to him.
Moreover, Dalia didn't say anything to her. So of course she was relieved, but she didn't expect this to happen.
Dalia has not yet escaped from the estate, which is said to be in a mess.
Adrisha felt dizzy when she thought of Dalia in it.
'No, crying won't solve anything.'
Adrisha stopped crying and started to hiccup.
'It's pathetic.'
Cedric shook his head and tried to use his mana.
'I'm not in a good condition.'
He used too much magic at the end in order to avoid getting caught by his father.
Cedric can freely use magic with multiple attributes.
This time, it was going to find Dalia, who was still in the mansion, put her to sleep, attack Hikan and knock him out.
'It's easy to say, but I don't know if it works.'
Still, he wondered if it would be dangerous for Hikan to shield his sister like that.
'It's the second time I've met her.'
Rarely, Cedric remembered her because she was someone who is 'nothing to read'. (*t/n: maybe because others approached him with ulterior motives, and Dalia had no such desire)
Before he knew it, the carriage arrived at the estate. As the situation was urgent, he had to do it quickly. Cedric quickly entered the mansion and began to look for Dalia.
The mansion was constructed with open structure on the 1st and 2nd floor, and the 2nd floor consisted of only corridors at the edges.
Fortunately, as soon as he opened the front door of the mansion, she was right in sight. Right in front of the study on the second floor.
The problem is that the door of the study is wide open, and there is almost a 100% chance that Hikan is in the study.
'I need to be quick.'
He jumped straight up to the second floor with the power of the wind under his feet. Dalia looked at him in surprise.
Cedric smiled and spoke to her.
"Hi, long time no see. You are Dalia right?"