Chapter 74

The bakery was illuminated only by the moonlight, with not a single light turned on.

Turan explained to Meisa how he had obtained such information and why he had investigated it.

As the conversation naturally progressed, he also mentioned his past, the abilities he possessed, the companions he had met along the way, and the presence of Solif.

Perhaps because this was the third time explaining it, he realized that he could now present his story more coherently than before. Feeling this, Turan concluded by explaining the various secrets he had uncovered during his journey and the hypotheses he had inferred from them.

Finally, after demonstrating the bloodline abilities of both House Zahar and House Aravion, Meisa, who had been silently listening until now, finally spoke.

Her words were unexpectedly sharp and critical.

“There are quite a few logical leaps, and the evidence is lacking.”

“That’s true.”

Turan nodded in agreement without hesitation.

Up until now, he had only gathered indirect evidence. He had not secured any definitive physical proof of a god’s existence or the true identity of those oppressing Meisa.

Without directly meeting the librarian to obtain relevant information or personally experiencing things within the labyrinth, his claims could easily be dismissed as nothing more than an absurd conspiracy theory.

“But I believe that your own life experiences so far serve as evidence in themselves.”

A woman born into one of the great noble houses, one of the most prestigious statuses in this world, yet subjected to an almost absurd degree of oppression.

Turan’s hypothesis clearly explained why she had ended up living such a miserable life.

“That’s true. That’s why I’ll believe it. Or maybe I should say I want to believe it.”

Wanting to believe, it was likely Meisa’s true feelings.

Because only by believing it could she assure herself that she was not insane and that the true evil was her cursed family.

After taking a few measured breaths, she looked at Turan and asked,

“Then, what should I do now?”

“First, we need to prepare for your escape.”

Unlike the relatively young head of House Varaha, the head of House Aravion was already an old man who could die at any moment in the next few years.

No matter how powerful a wizard she was, she was not strong enough to completely fend off the grasp of someone who might even be a godlike entity. That meant she had to flee while she still had the chance.

“Escape…”

From her murmured response, Turan could detect both fear and a sense of learned helplessness.

Meisa was a grand wizard, nearly unmatched except for the heads of the great noble houses, yet she was, at the same time, just an emotionally immature adult who had lived her entire life oppressed within the confines of her family.

Considering that she was only about twenty-two years old, she was still quite young for a noble.

Of course, from Turan’s perspective, she was still older than he was.

Then, as if something had come to her mind, a faint trace of fear flickered across her gaunt face.

“If I escape, will they retaliate against my aunt’s side?”

Everyone knew how dearly Meisa valued her maternal family, House Berk. It was entirely plausible that they would be oppressed in retaliation for her defection.

Since he had already considered this issue, Turan immediately provided the answer he had prepared.

“That is a possibility. That’s why, after escaping, I plan to distribute some of the documents we obtained this time among the vassal houses.”

House Aravion had a total of seventeen vassal houses scattered across Takein Plains and its surrounding areas.

Among them, three or four houses were closely tied to the faction of middle-aged nobles, but the rest maintained relatively loose lord-vassal relationships.

If Meisa, under her name, exposed the corruption committed by House Aravion’s executives?

“They will find it difficult to oppress House Berk for the time being. They’ll lose justification.”

If Meisa revealed the wrongdoings of House Aravion’s executives and House Berk was then targeted, the other vassal houses would inevitably see it as an unreasonable tyranny by their liege family.

Moreover, not only the younger nobles who had been suppressed all this time, but also several upright elder nobles would likely find such a situation unacceptable.

No matter how much the middle-aged faction wielded power within House Aravion with the support of the family head, attempting to suppress all opposition by force would undoubtedly split the family in half.

There was no guarantee that oppressing House Berk would bring Meisa back, so such an action would be little more than a temper tantrum with far too many consequences.

“Ah…”

“Of course, in a few decades, the impact of the corruption documents will weaken, but by then, we need to find a way to oppose the family head. Or just hope he dies of old age.”

With the combined strength of Meisa, Solif, and Turan, they could easily hunt even mythical-grade magical beasts.

While such creatures born near the domains of great noble houses were usually hunted down quickly, some still survived in remote, untouched regions, such as the sea or other uncharted territories.

Searching for them across the vast world would take considerable time, but with a bit of luck, it was not impossible to amass power rivaling that of the great noble houses within a decade or two.

This was the most realistic and effective strategy given their current circumstances.

After all, they could not simply wait for Meisa to be sacrificed for the sake of House Berk.

After a few minutes of silence, Meisa finally nodded with difficulty.

“…Alright. I’ll be in your care from now on, Turan.”

And with that, Turan gained another companion.

*

Once their discussion had reached a conclusion, they began planning the specifics of their escape.

“Leaving the estate itself won’t be too difficult. I always wear my magic artifacts, so I can just insist that I want to go for a walk and slip away. Though, we’ll need to deal with that woman first.”

“You mean Reto?”

“Yes.”

Reto, a noble of House Zahar who served the nobles of House Aravion.

Escaping without dealing with her first would only lead to immediate pursuit.

Turan could erase any traces of her within the estate, but he could not prevent her from using other means to track them.

“Based on what I found while searching this place, she is the only noble within House Aravion who carries Zahar blood. If she is eliminated, we’ll have plenty of time to escape. Are you close to her?”

Though Turan had not been able to monitor everything while investigating the nobles over the past few days, he had occasionally noticed Reto visiting Meisa’s mansion.

She had even brought fairy tales directly to Meisa, suggesting that they might share some level of familiarity.

At his question, Meisa shook her head.

“To be honest, I did feel some familiarity with her. But not anymore.”

During her time of isolation, Meisa had found a small sense of comfort in Reto, who was one of the few people that maintained regular contact with her without being replaced. However, she had deliberately kept her distance, fearing that growing too close might lead to Reto being replaced as well.

Even so, she had occasionally found solace in subtle exchanges, such as sharing stories about the fairy tales her mother used to read to her.

“It’s ridiculous. That I secretly cherished the woman who killed my family and tormented me…”

Like someone lost in madness, Meisa muttered about her past suffering.

How, while she was resting, the window had suddenly shattered without warning.

How, when she looked away for just a moment, the clothes in her room had been torn to shreds.

How the portrait of her family that she had kept close to her heart had mysteriously vanished.

Each time something happened, she had reported it to the family members, mostly the elders, but they had dismissed her concerns as mere overreaction.

At first, whenever such incidents occurred, she had responded by unleashing bursts of light and firing off attack magic. But eventually, she had stopped reacting altogether.

After all, no matter what came after her, the protective magic artifacts she wore were enough to keep her safe.

In the end, she had come to coexist with the unseen entity tormenting her, as if it were some kind of ghost.

As Turan listened to the specific details of what was described in the documents as “providing appropriate stimuli” in a dry and detached manner, he felt a pang of sympathy.

If an ordinary person had suffered such things, they would have long since succumbed to the pressure and gone insane.

“So, I don’t care what happens to that woman. No, I want her to die in the most miserable and horrific way possible.”

Meisa spoke through her tears, admitting that she would likely struggle to control her emotions if she encountered Reto before their escape.

It seemed that whatever familiarity she had once felt had transformed into betrayal and hatred many times over.

Because of that, Turan could now plan to capture and torture Reto if necessary, without any pangs of conscience.

“Then, I’ll take care of that woman. Besides her, are there any other tracking magic artifacts that House Aravion uses? Ones capable of pursuing someone over long distances.”

The magic artifact Meisa had used last time was designed to detect hidden enemies at close range, making it useful in fights against Zahar nobles but not for long-distance tracking.

Given how persistently they had hunted down the dark elves, there had to be artifacts designed for that purpose.

As expected, Meisa nodded in confirmation.

“There is. The one I used was returned to the main family, but there’s an astrology-based tracking artifact that utilizes constellations. My uncle Cadrum… that bastard… probably still has it.”

Turan briefly considered that calling her uncle a bastard was, in a way, an insult to her grandfather as well, but he chose not to comment.

After all, he doubted his own Zahar relatives on his father’s side were any more respectable.

“I’ve already been inside his residence, so I can steal it just before we escape.”

“Having a Zahar bloodline ally really makes things convenient. You can just steal whatever we need.”

Now that she had a little breathing room, Meisa managed to joke with a small laugh, her eyes still red from crying.

The two of them continued discussing potential issues and brainstorming solutions, but the conclusion they arrived at was rather comical.

While Meisa would simply have to walk out on her own, Turan would be the one running around in all directions, handling all the loose ends.

“…Are you sure you can handle all of this by yourself? I should at least-”

“I can handle it. First, let’s focus on your escape, Meisa. If you suddenly claim you’re going for a walk out of nowhere, it will raise suspicion. So, starting tomorrow, go out for a walk every day. People become desensitized to things that happen repeatedly.”

“You want me to make it part of my routine.”

“Yes. Also, we need to address your health as soon as possible. Even if you do manage to escape, you’ll collapse before you get far at this rate.”

“Mm…”

Meisa’s face darkened slightly, as if this was a subject she did not want to discuss.

But her physical condition was indeed severe.

She slept nearly thirteen hours a day, almost as if unconscious, and even a slight overuse of magic caused her to feel dizzy. No matter how powerful a wizard she was, escaping in this state would be difficult.

With that in mind, Turan finally brought up a topic he had been holding back.

“Does your refusal to eat have something to do with your deceased family?”

“…Yes.”

That was all Meisa said before pressing her lips together, clearly unwilling to elaborate.

Since it was not an urgent matter that needed to be addressed immediately, Turan naturally shifted the conversation.

“You won’t be able to fix this on your own, will you?”

“I don’t think so… probably not.”

It was not as if Meisa had made no attempts to overcome her eating disorder.

Not wanting to expose her weakness, she had lied to others, claiming she was merely trying to maintain a lighter physique. In secret, she had tried to sneak and eat various delicious foods, hoping to provide herself with some nutrition.

But every time she tried to swallow something, the faces of her mother and younger brother would appear in her mind, and an unbearable wave of nausea would follow.

In the end, the makeshift method Meisa had devised was to repeatedly eat and vomit, just as she had done earlier.

By doing so, even a tiny amount of food managed to stay in her body, slightly improving her health.

Realizing anew that Turan had witnessed her in such a state, Meisa averted her gaze in embarrassment.

Knowing that showing any reaction would only make her feel even more ashamed, Turan deliberately maintained a mechanical demeanor.

“Then I will assist you.”

“How?”

“I’ll feed you myself.”

Meisa was momentarily at a loss for words and simply stared at Turan.

Feeding someone directly… wasn’t that something out of a decadent romance novel from the old empire?

Passing food from mouth to mouth…

For a brief moment, she wondered if she should feel insulted, but surprisingly, there was not even a hint of personal sentiment in Turan’s expression.

“W-Will that method actually help? I’m not sure…”

Even to herself, Meisa’s response sounded awkward and uncertain.

Realizing that his words might have been misleading, Turan clarified.

“I meant that I will knock you out and insert liquefied food directly into your throat using a tube. Even if you wake up and vomit later, some of it will still remain in your body.”

“Oh.”

That was a method she had never tried before.

Or rather, it would be more accurate to say she had never been able to try it.

She had no one in her family she could trust, and when it came to the people of House Berk, she had always felt the need to act strong.

While Meisa was still stunned by the sheer brutality of the method, Turan retrieved some emergency food supplies from his large-capacity pouch.

Dried bean powder, jerky, vegetables…

He lacked knowledge of complex nutritional science, but he at least understood the basic principle that a balanced diet was essential for good health.

The porridge he made by grinding and mixing these ingredients with water looked unappetizing, but since it was going straight into her stomach, taste was irrelevant.

Finally, he found a thin rod nearby and shaped it using Ignition Magic and Telekinesis Magic, crafting a metal tube suitable for inserting food directly into the stomach.

“It’s ready.”

“But… how am I supposed to pass out? Should I drain all my magic like last time?”

“That wouldn’t be good. You’re barely maintaining your health with magic as it is. If you exhaust yourself completely, you’ll lose even the strength to endure. If you remove your protective magic artifacts, I can put you to sleep quickly and cleanly.”

Being completely defenseless in front of someone else and allowing herself to be knocked unconscious…

It was a terrifying request, but after a brief hesitation, Meisa moved to a secluded corner and removed her protective magic artifacts.

“It’s done.”

“I’ll wake you up as soon as it’s over.”

After reassuring her, Turan moved behind Meisa and wrapped his arm around her slender neck.

Who would have thought that the restraint techniques he had learned from Haram would be useful in a situation like this?

Fortunately, unlike Haram, whose thick, muscular neck was like a log, Meisa’s was so thin and frail that her veins were visibly protruding, making the technique easier to execute.

Blocking this specific blood vessel was supposed to be the key to making someone lose consciousness quickly, wasn’t it?

“Ghhk-”

Applying just the right amount of force and adjusting the pressure carefully, Turan tightened his grip around her slender neck for about ten seconds.

Meisa instinctively struggled for a moment before her body went limp.