The chilly night air brushed gently against Theresia's skin, sending a faint shiver through her as consciousness slowly returned.
When she opened her eyes, the boundless expanse of stars stretched above, reminding her vividly of the sky over a small town long ago burned to ashes.
As an assassin, she had long trained herself to avoid ever lifting her face to the sky. Now, staring upward again after so many years filled her with an odd blend of nostalgia and unease.
If only she hadn't been tied up like a rice dumpling or forcibly awakened, the moment would have been truly pleasant.
"Miss Theresia, correct?"
"Or perhaps I should say, 'Mage Killer'?"
At the calm voice, Theresia turned her head to find Linen Norton seated exactly where he'd been earlier, at the card table. Opposite him, however, sat a visibly annoyed Hysteria and a brown-haired girl she also recognized—Elena, the illusion mage, and the quietest member of Linen's study group.
The girl's presence was so thin and harmless, a model student without any vices, that Theresia hadn't considered her a threat at all—much less anticipated her involvement in a trap orchestrated by Linen.
"This isn't another illusion, is it?" Theresia mocked herself with a cold smirk.
Linen smiled back—and promptly slapped her across the face.
"You—?!"
Theresia's eyes widened slightly in shock.
"I thought this would clarify your predicament better than words," Linen remarked calmly, eyes coldly fixed on her.
"You…never cease to surprise me," she said meaningfully.
She'd suspected the entire card duel was a setup from the beginning and thought she'd seen through the real trap—the humiliation of wearing a maid costume was trivial, but it would force her to reveal and discard all her hidden weapons. Yet she hadn't anticipated her own sudden attack being precisely part of Linen's plan as well.
Clearly, the card games and playful banter had been mere theater; Linen had targeted her from the moment she declared her intentions.
Theresia's gaze finally rested on the sulky Hysteria. She sighed deeply.
"I admit defeat. Who would've thought that Her Highness possessed such impeccable acting skills? Her performance and intuition were flawless—and more surprisingly, she risked herself willingly for you. I can accept this loss."
"Perhaps you have hidden charms I've failed to notice."
Hearing this, Hysteria suddenly flushed deeply, glaring fiercely at Linen. Elena lowered her head, gripping her skirt tightly to suppress laughter, while Linen slightly averted his gaze.
"Of course," Linen responded smoothly. "Princess Hysteria is my most valued ally. Her wisdom and reliability are equal to her excellent character."
Hysteria merely huffed, falling silent again.
Theresia sighed once more, asking plainly.
"So, what are you planning to do with me now? Let me make this clear upfront: the Tower of Chronomancy and I share only a cooperative relationship. If you're planning to trade me to them, you might as well abandon the idea now. Once I fail, those Arcana madmen consider me worthless."
Both Elena and Hysteria glanced at Linen, curious. Although both had assisted willingly or unwillingly in capturing the assassin, Linen had not yet revealed his intentions for afterward.
At Theresia's question, Linen smiled gently, carefully examining her from head to toe. His indifferent yet appraising gaze made her instinctively curl her legs closer as he spoke calmly.
"Aren't you underestimating your own worth, Miss Theresia?"
"What do you mean? I have no reason to deceive you," she answered coldly, a bad feeling rising in her chest.
"You misunderstand," Linen chuckled lightly. "I know your ties with the Tower of Chronomancy aren't particularly close. Considering your true aim is eliminating [Forbidden Arcana], I'm actually surprised you cooperated with them at all."
"You—!"
Theresia's eyes widened uncontrollably. She couldn't believe he'd casually exposed her deepest secret.
Yet Linen swiftly changed topics.
"Do you know how much female Arcana mages fetch on the black market? Especially one as famous as yourself, the Mage Killer—your additional value hardly needs mentioning."
"Slavery… the black market?"
Theresia's eyes flickered with genuine fear. She was familiar with many black-market venues, but slave traders were people she despised and avoided at all costs. To those merchants, human lives meant nothing—just commodities to mutilate for profit at a customer's whim.
Arcana fanatics from the Tower might dissect a person for arcane knowledge, but black-market slave traders would blind a captive simply because it would fetch a better price.
And for an assassin like Theresia, whose enemies filled the empire, falling into such hands would be a fate too horrifying even to imagine without nausea rising.
A noble young master wouldn't typically lower himself to deal with such vile individuals, but Theresia had a strong intuition Linen Norton absolutely would.
After all, if he could convince the proud Flame Rose princess to risk herself for him, what couldn't he do?
"Hey, Trash Norton, isn't this different from what you told Elena…told us?" Hysteria suddenly interrupted unhappily.
Linen immediately changed his expression, smiling reassuringly: "I'm joking, of course. I'm merely a student. How could I possibly know such shady people?"
But he definitely wasn't joking!
Theresia's heart pounded anxiously.
"Relax, Miss Theresia. It's past curfew, and I can't even leave the academy grounds. I'll simply hand you over to campus security, and from there you'll quietly end up in the Shadow Knights' prison. Luckily, I have some friends there."
Theresia outwardly stayed calm but secretly breathed a quiet sigh of relief. The Shadow Knights were brutal, but at least the Tower of Chronomancy held enough sway there to attempt rescuing her, given how useful an asset she was.
"Should we go with you?" Elena asked quietly.
"No need. Silva wants to limit the number of people involved. I'm sure you understand."
Elena nodded, clearly relieved to avoid the intimidating Shadow Knights captain. Standing up, she gently tugged Hysteria along.
"Then we'll go first, Linen."
"Good night, you two. And Princess Hysteria—I officially declare our misunderstanding resolved. We're now the world's greatest study partners."
"Really?! Who… who'd want to be your best partner!"
Hysteria protested dishonestly, turning her flushed face away as she let Elena lead her out.
Watching the two leave, Linen remained seated, quietly waiting. Theresia finally couldn't resist asking.
"Weren't you taking me to the Shadow Knights? What are you waiting for?"
At that, Linen turned back toward her, smiling again.
"Princess Hysteria is incredibly talented at Arcana, so sometimes she overlooks simple questions. But what about you, Miss Assassin—would you easily hand over your captured prey?"
"What…what do you mean?" Theresia frowned, a creeping dread overtaking her.
"It means—"
Linen's hand abruptly caressed Theresia's face, fingertips tracing her jaw, cheek, and finally her lips. Then, in an instant, his gentle touch turned forceful, releasing that familiar pink mist from his palm directly into her mouth.
No way, not again!?
Theresia desperately resisted losing consciousness, eyes rolling up involuntarily as overwhelming exhaustion surged through her mind.
"My house is quite spacious, you know~"
As darkness reclaimed her again, Theresia heard Linen's leisurely whisper.