Yami fell silent for a brief moment. The terrifying pressure radiating from his body gradually dissipated, and he lazily sheathed the katana in his hand back at his waist.
This was, without a doubt, a deal that benefited the Clover Kingdom with no downsides whatsoever.
The other party's objective was also clear enough—nothing more than to hide himself, to completely remove his own existence from this entire affair.
As for the Eye of the Midnight Sun, that was one thing. They were clearly on the weaker side, so wanting to conceal themselves was understandable. But cooperating with the kingdom while still remaining highly wary of the Magic Knights…
How could Yami not think deeper about that?
Whether there were traitors within the Magic Knights who had betrayed the Clover Kingdom was another matter entirely. But this mysterious young man standing before him—wasn't he being a little too kind to the Black Bulls?
Yami studied Yuuki carefully. He had never seen this face before. Of course, appearances could be disguised—but a person's ki was far harder to change.
It was unfamiliar ki… yet it gave Yami an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
That feeling was eerily similar to what he'd felt back when the Eye of the Midnight Sun invaded the royal capital—when he had faced their leader, Licht.
"If Captain Yami has no objections," Yuuki said calmly, a smile appearing on his face, "then the deal is settled."
He tossed the magic stone in his hand toward Yami.
A so-called deal was nothing more than an exchange of interests. And if you wanted the other party to accept it, you had to make the benefits crystal clear—ideally aligning both sides' interests entirely.
During their first deal, Yuuki and Yami had merely exchanged benefits on the surface. Yami had still harbored deep wariness and hostility toward him.
But now—
This mysterious figure who had only ever appeared through communication magic had finally shown himself in person… and had even killed Vetto with his own hands.
That alone had made Yami see something unmistakable:
Overwhelming power.
And an undeniable threat.
The brief clash just now hadn't been a friendly spar. When Yami used Dark Cloaked Dimension Slash in combination with Black Hole, he had absolutely intended to kill Yuuki.
And yet—
The Dimension Slash Yami had awakened by surpassing his limits was blocked.
Blocked head-on.
With sheer force.
In truth, at that very moment, the deal had already been concluded.
Because Yami had no desire whatsoever to face a future where, on top of dealing with enemies on the level of Licht and the Third Eye, he also had to contend with another magic knight as powerful as Yuuki.
Especially since Yuuki had deliberately dropped hints earlier—subtle reminders that there were still members of the Eye of the Midnight Sun hidden within the kingdom.
Under such circumstances, even if Yuuki had said nothing, Yami would have chosen to conceal all information regarding him.
As for deliberately leaking it out to incite internal conflict within the Eye of the Midnight Sun and letting the Clover Kingdom reap the benefits—
Yami had considered it.
But after seeing how completely unfamiliar Vetto had looked upon Yuuki in the Underwater Temple, Yami understood something clearly:
Even within the Eye of the Midnight Sun, Yuuki was deeply hidden.
"Two of your squad members saw Vetto die by my hand," Yuuki said with a faint smile, looking at Yami's relaxed posture. "But I trust Captain Yami has a way to make sure that information doesn't leak out."
Sometimes, there was no need to reveal everything.
All it took was exposing a single fuse—the other party would naturally assume it was connected to an entire chain of explosive barrels.
Yuuki knew very well that his identity likely wouldn't stay hidden for long.
"Then, farewell, Captain Yami."
He raised a hand in a casual wave. In the next instant, space magic enveloped him, and he vanished.
Watching Yuuki disappear, Yami pulled another cigarette from his pocket and clenched it between his teeth.
"Ice, minerals, space…" he muttered. "Just where the hell did the Eye of the Midnight Sun dig up a bunch of monsters like that?"
In that brief exchange alone, Yami had witnessed three different attributes from Yuuki—on top of recalling how one of his subordinates had once displayed dual-attribute magic.
Even Yami, who had always been confident in the Magic Knights, couldn't help but feel uneasy.
At least the Eye of the Midnight Sun was tearing itself apart from within.
Yuuki didn't leave using space magic immediately. Instead, he returned once more to the Underwater Temple—he hadn't forgotten the Game Magic in the High Priest's possession.
Without the High Priest sensing anything at all, Yuuki casually knocked him unconscious, perfectly replicated the Game Magic, created a duplicate grimoire for it, and only then returned to the royal capital.
Leon Town — The Tavern
Business was still booming.
At noon, there were fewer people drinking, but plenty of customers came for the food. The tavern's signature tofu dishes, in particular, continued to draw in wealthy patrons.
Mariella disguised as Yuuki, moved tirelessly through the main hall, appearing no different from usual.
Yet anyone paying close attention would notice that her peripheral vision never once left the direction of the kitchen.
The slightest disturbance—and she would react instantly.
Before long, the midday rush ended. After the final table left, Mariella wiped down the tables and looked expressionlessly toward Rebecca, who had entered the hall.
The atmosphere between them was stiff—neither wanted to say a single unnecessary word.
"When are you going to let me leave?" Rebecca finally snapped, her voice cold.
Ever since she'd discovered the truth about Mariella impersonating Yuuki, she hadn't been allowed to step outside the tavern once. At least Mariella hadn't restricted Marco and the others.
Rebecca had no choice but to send her younger siblings to stay at the church for a few days.
"When the time comes," Mariella replied flatly.
Rebecca's blue-green eyes filled with helplessness. The gap between them was far too great—resistance was meaningless.
The only good news was that the other party didn't seem intent on harming Yuuki. Otherwise, she would've been silenced long ago rather than merely confined.
"…Can you tell me something about Yuuki?" Rebecca asked suddenly after a moment of silence.
Mariella didn't even bother responding, ignoring her entirely.
Rebecca wasn't disappointed. With her stubborn nature, she wasn't about to give up so easily.
Just as she was about to speak again, Mariella suddenly stepped away from the door and walked straight toward her.
Rebecca instinctively took a step back, fear flashing across her face.
"Come with me."
Without further explanation, Mariella placed a hand on Rebecca's shoulder and pushed her toward the stairs.
At first, Rebecca was frightened—but she quickly realized where they were headed.
Yuuki's room.
He's back.
The thought flashed through her mind. She even sped up on her own, no longer needing Mariella to push her.
Inside the room—
Yuuki immediately sensed Mariella and Rebecca approaching, which made him pause in surprise.
Since he had returned, Mariella should have come alone to switch identities back. Why bring Rebecca?
"Was I discovered…?"
The realization struck him instantly. Surprise flickered across his face, followed by a slight frown.
He hadn't expected Rebecca to notice anything amiss—especially not with Mariella's abilities. He didn't know whether to praise Rebecca's sharp perception or blame Mariella for being careless.
Knock. Knock.
A soft knock sounded at the door.
"…Come in," Yuuki sighed inwardly and replied calmly.
The door opened. Mariella entered with Rebecca in tow.
The moment she stepped inside, Mariella reverted to her original appearance and bowed deeply.
"My apologies, Lord Yuuki."
Only then did Rebecca realize that the person impersonating Yuuki… had been a woman.
"Rebecca."
Yuuki ignored Mariella and looked straight at Rebecca, an awkward expression on his face.
Bang—
Tears shimmered in Rebecca's eyes. The moment their gazes met, she rushed toward him.
But before she could reach him—
Mariella, who had been standing with her head lowered, raised her arm and pressed her hand back onto Rebecca's shoulder.
A torrent of magic power surged forth, forcibly freezing Rebecca in place.
She felt a bone-chilling cold spread through her body, as if she'd been thrown into an icy cavern in the depths of winter.
"Mariella."
Yuuki's calm voice rang out.
Mariella instantly withdrew her hand and lowered her head again.
Yuuki stepped forward, gently stroking Rebecca's red, curly hair.
"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I worried you."
Warm, soothing magic flowed from his hand and spread through her body, erasing the cold in an instant—as though it had never existed.
"I thought something had happened to you," Rebecca said, her eyes red as she looked at him.
"I didn't expect you to see through her disguise," Yuuki said with a wry smile. "What I'm doing is dangerous, so I didn't tell you. From now on, you can pretend you don't know anything. Just run the tavern peacefully—if something really happens, you won't be implicated."
Rebecca suddenly recalled something.
Back when Yuuki had signed the tavern agreement, he'd used the name of the priest from his village.
With Asta and Yuno—both Magic Knights—frequenting the place, and with no contract bearing Yuuki's real name…
He'd already prepared her an escape route back then.
"I want to help you."
Rebecca lifted her head, determination shining through her tear-filled eyes.
Yuuki fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"What I plan to do is to stand against every royal and noble in the entire kingdom."
"I want to help you," Rebecca repeated, unwavering.
Yuuki looked into her blue-green eyes, then shrugged.
"If you're really that determined… I'll take you somewhere later."
"Okay!"
She agreed without hesitation.
"Um… Marco and the others have been staying at the church for three days now," Rebecca added softly. "I want to bring them back first."
"No problem," Yuuki replied gently.
Rebecca nodded hard and hurried out of the room toward the church.
For a moment, only Yuuki and Mariella remained.
"My apologies, Lord Yuuki. I caused you trouble," Mariella said, bowing once more.
"It's no big deal," Yuuki waved it off casually. "Just don't leave such obvious openings when you face enemies in the future."
"Understood, Lord Yuuki."
Relieved that there would be no punishment, Mariella raised her head. Her gaze instinctively followed Rebecca's departing figure outside the window.
"…What a shame."
Yuuki raised an eyebrow. "A shame?"
"This subordinate has observed that Miss Rebecca seems to have feelings for you, Lord Yuuki."
She stood straight, her tone entirely analytical rather than emotional.
"It's a pity. She's only an ordinary person. Your goals are not something ordinary people can understand—and you are not someone who favors the weak."
Yuuki looked at Mariella in mild surprise, amused by how clinically she analyzed matters of the heart.
"Heh… hahaha."
He chuckled, then said playfully,
"Even if she is ordinary, I can make her no longer ordinary."
"Though you're right about one thing—there's too much I need to do. Feelings like that can wait."
More importantly… he was only fifteen years old. By the kingdom's laws, he was nowhere near marriageable age.
Yuuki clicked his tongue inwardly. How did this even turn into that kind of topic?
Mariella's eyes sharpened as realization struck her.
Given Lord Yuuki's ability to bestow power upon others, perhaps there was no such thing as "ordinary" in his eyes—only whether someone was worthy of receiving power.
"Lord Yuuki… letting Rebecca leave alone—could there be unforeseen risks?"
Yuuki merely smiled in response, saying nothing.
Understanding his intent, Mariella bowed and vanished through the window. Within a few breaths, she was gone.
About twenty minutes later, she returned silently and stood beside Yuuki once more.
Not long after, Rebecca brought Marx, Luka, and the others back to the tavern. After settling her siblings and hanging a "Closed Tonight" sign outside, she returned upstairs.
"Let's go," Yuuki said with a smile.
"Mm."
Mariella activated her space magic, enveloping all three of them.
In the next instant, they vanished from the room.
(End of Chapter)
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T/N: Sorry about yesterday, I wasn't feeling well after work so I just slept off after posting the Patreon chapters.