* * *

“Is it really okay to leave him like that?”

I suddenly began worrying about Piel, who had collapsed earlier.

He hadn’t completely surrendered his body to the demon, and if the injuries were severe, things could get complicated.

Even Baek Yigang had gone to such lengths, risking everything to attack in order to save his younger sibling.

If Piel were to die here, it would undoubtedly create a troublesome situation.

“If the host’s body gets damaged, the demon inhabiting it suffers the same. On top of that, being stabbed with a demonic sword would’ve had a significant impact. If he doesn’t want to die, he’ll protect himself somehow.”

Ah, now that I think about it… that sword… It seemed oddly familiar. Wasn’t it Full Moon?

Though not as powerful as a holy sword, a demonic sword would still deal significantly more damage compared to ordinary human-made swords.

“Still, you could’ve given me a heads-up. Do you know how worried I was about you messing up?”

“Worry about yourself. You’re powerless as it is.”

What’s with the attitude? I was genuinely concerned, yet he picks a fight?

Also, for the record, I’m not powerless!

I was just about to defeat the demon in a truly magnificent manner when you swooped in and stole the spotlight!

As I loudly protested, Baek Yigang ignored me entirely, pulling out a small pouch and sprinkling something over Anna and Asel.

“What’s that?”

“Tea powder from the princess. Supposedly effective in neutralizing paralysis poison.”

“Huh? But this isn’t paralysis poison, is it?”

“It is. What Piel used wasn’t Akilla powder.”

Wait, what? I’d assumed it was Akilla for sure.

Well, I guess it makes sense.

With so many kinds of poison out there, enhanced Akilla must be a rare resource he couldn’t afford to use freely.

That was a relief, at least.

If it really had been Akilla powder, everyone who’d collapsed would’ve been long dead by now.

Before long, Asel and Anna blinked their eyes open.

“Your Highness…! Are you alright?”

“Sir Dowoon! You’re bleeding!”

Seeing Baek Yigang and me standing before them, Asel and Anna gasped in horror.

“Oh, this isn’t my blood. Can you stand?”

“Yes, thank you.”

Confirming that Anna and Asel were conscious again, Baek Yigang stopped sprinkling the powder and handed the rest to them.

“Take care of the others. Lock the second prince in the underground prison.”

“As you command.”

While the two busied themselves waking the other fallen knights, Baek Yigang grabbed my hand and led me outside.

The corridor was littered with unconscious knights sprawled everywhere.

“You’re heading out already? There’s probably still poison lingering in the palace.”

“I gave advance notice. The Magic Department should prove its worth at times like these.”

“…Ah, the Magic Department.”

When I voiced my concern, Baek Yigang nonchalantly dismissed it.

His response reminded me of something Rez once said.

‘You should know by now that His Highness works the Magic Department to the bone.’

Yeah, that was spot-on.

“They’ll handle clearing out the poison.”

By “they,” he likely meant Cedric, Blue, and Reggie.

For someone already short-staffed, to task just those three with cleansing the entire palace… Baek Yigang was as ruthless as ever.

“Do you think three people can manage such a large area?”

“…I’ve requested reinforcements from the Wizard Tower. There’s nothing to worry about.”

The mention of the Wizard Tower caught me off guard.

Knowing Baek Yigang’s aversion to the Wizard Tower, it was unexpected.

But why?

Now that I think about it, I’ve never asked him why he dislikes the Wizard Tower.

“Hey, can I ask why you hate the Wizard Tower?”

“….”

As expected, he didn’t answer.

His lips remained tightly sealed, clearly unwilling to speak.

Was it that difficult to talk about?

I thought we were close enough now for him to share such things… Maybe not.

Just as I was about to feel disheartened, Baek Yigang finally broke his silence.

“The Empress was from the Wizard Tower.”

…Huh? Why bring up the Empress all of a sudden?

“The Empress? You mean your mother?”

When I hesitantly asked, Baek Yigang gave a slow nod.

Wait, what? I’d avoided bringing up such a sensitive topic, and now he just casually drops this bomb?

And the reason for his hatred of the Wizard Tower was tied to the late Empress?!

My mind spun as I tried to process this revelation.

The answers to questions I’d never dared to ask suddenly came flooding in.

“The Empress was a Dark Wizard.”

“What?”

What kind of plot twist was this? The Empress… a Dark Wizard?

This was something that hadn’t been mentioned in the original story.

While Ian, who shared the same parents, was the protagonist, the Empress had died when Ian was still very young, leaving little opportunity for her story to be explored.

Thus, any episodes related to the Empress had been glossed over.

Who could’ve imagined such a truth was hidden in the gaps?

“The Empress possessed the potential to become a grand Wizard. Driven by her thirst for knowledge, she sought forbidden powers with the Wizard Tower’s help, which led to her downfall.”

It wasn’t hard to guess that the forbidden power was demonic in nature.

And it was clear that this power had ultimately corrupted her into a Dark Wizard.

I listened silently as Baek Yigang continued.

“The Wizard Tower tried to conceal her corruption. Meanwhile, they sought a way to save her from the black magic that was eating away at her life.”

“There’s no way they could’ve found one….”

Usually, when a Wizard succumbed to corruption, there were only two outcomes: they either died or went on a rampage with newfound, uncontrollable power before dying.

“They proposed a solution: transferring the corrupt power to another vessel.”

Wait… No way. This can’t be going where I think it is.

“And the Empress happened to be pregnant at the time.”

“…So that vessel was you?”

Baek Yigang nodded again.

“More precisely, my infant name.”

“Your infant name?”

That reminded me of a line from the original story I’d brushed aside.

It mentioned that Baek Yigang’s infant name, Hail Dirzio, carried an ominous power.

But I hadn’t paid it much mind, thinking it was nothing important.

“My infant name carries the remnants of the dark magic. It’s a legacy of the Empress’s corruption.”

A person’s name holds significant power, especially an infant name, the first name bestowed upon a new life in an unfamiliar world.

It embodies the essence of a person’s identity.

To imbue such a name with dark magic… That was beyond cruel.

And yet, I’d been casually calling him by that name from the start….

Looking back, it was a miracle Baek Yigang hadn’t killed me.

Despite his warnings, I’d stubbornly continued using it.

“Because I was born with that cursed name, the Empress’s health deteriorated after childbirth. She died immediately after giving birth to Ian.”

Baek Yigang spoke with a calm expression, though his words were anything but.

In essence, the dark power Baek Yigang wielded was the result of the Empress trading her life for it.

Even now, every time he used dark magic, the remnants of her power slowly ate away at his own life force.

“Does the Tower know? That you’re still practicing dark magic?”

“They do.”

“And they’re just letting it slide?”

“If it’s revealed that I’m a Dark Wizard, I can’t become emperor.”

Ah, now I fully understood why Baek Yigang was so wary of the Tower.

To him, the Tower was the culprit that not only burdened him with unwanted dark powers but also took the Empress’s life.

And now, they were trying to exploit that power to manipulate Baek Yigang.

“Then the Tower must have known the Empress wouldn’t live long. That’s why they passed the power to you while you were still in the womb.”

“Exactly. The Tower never intended to save the Empress. Once they found the power they wanted, they needed someone new to safely harbor it.”

“I thought Piel was the worst villain in this whole thing… turns out I was wrong.”

Now it was clear.

The real villain was someone else.

But what was the Tower trying to achieve with dark magic to go this far?

“What’s the Tower’s real goal?”

“To keep someone capable of wielding that power close by. So they can use them whenever they want.”

“And keeping them close… means you becoming emperor.”

Baek Yigang responded to my words with a faint, ambiguous smile.

That was enough of a confirmation. I let out a complicated sigh.

The position of emperor that he desired was also what the Tower wanted.

If Baek Yigang, a Dark Wizard, became emperor, the Tower would hold the ultimate leverage over him—a deadly secret only they possessed.

This would make it easier for them to control him as they pleased.

“But you also have something on the Tower. You know they drove the Empress to her death.”

“Maybe… but I have no proof. All I did was read the memories embedded in the magical traces she left behind.”

The Tower could prove Baek Yigang was a Dark Wizard anytime they wanted.

In contrast, Baek Yigang had no evidence against the Tower’s involvement in the Empress’s death.

He couldn’t have had any in the first place.

Those events had unfolded long before he was even born.

The more I pieced the situation together, the more bitterly impressed I was.

How desperate Baek Yigang must have been to seek help from such a horrifying Tower.

But it also showed how much he cared about this nation.

* * *