I Became the Dark Wizard Who Rules Over the Heroines

2 – Admission-2

In this world, the power of darkness was one of the easiest and fastest ways to gain power.

Each person makes a pact with the darkness for their own reasons. Though they may have become slightly abnormal, they were not constantly condemned or treated as things that should not exist.

It was natural. If the citizens were being torn apart by monsters and beasts, the dying people wouldn’t have the luxury to consider what kind of power their savior possessed.

Natural disasters, wild beasts, and wars led many people to follow the power of darkness, from nobles and mercenaries to pirates and even some knights.

However, they had a significant weakness.

“Do you not see it? If you serve Lord Ernst, you should trust your own judgment more than the words from my mouth.”

Ernst – the family to which Katarina belonged, and a nobleman of the Arben Kingdom.

The woman standing before me didn’t look like a proper knight, but she, at least as a woman serving his family, should have understood how the power of darkness works.

“But, oh no, it’s an illusion!”

“Of course it’s an illusion. In that case, I should be leaving now, right?”

I was lucky. She had seen too much, to her disadvantage.

If she had entered here a bit later, she could have thought that she had detected my weakness without any suspicion.

If she had not seen this fact at all, she would have obeyed the family’s orders as usual and thought about tormenting others.

If she lacked the ability to grasp the flow of magic, she could have finished the day quietly, not realizing what had happened.

“Illusion… no way. That’s impossible…”

She had the wisdom not to believe my words. She lacked the courage to face the unpleasant truth.

She was an incredibly unlucky woman.

“But it happened! Right before my eyes! That… power…”

Many scholars believed that this fragment of the void was a part of pure darkness.

Only a devil can directly draw power from this void, and demon kings or dark archons merely borrow the power of the devil.

Even the most potent dark mages or dark knights only borrow the power of the dark archon with whom they’ve made a pact.

That would have been the world’s rules she believed in.

“Really?”

However, the knightess before me had seen me draw power from this place.

There are two possibilities. Either I’m a manifestation of a devil, or I’m a dark magician who has made a pact with a demon far stronger than they can even imagine.

Sadly, she is wise enough to reach such a conclusion.

“Then… what will you do?”

“…What?”

“Perhaps you should report this. Aren’t you serving Lady Katarina? If this happens, you should tell your master-“

“No, no… it’s not!”

She submits. Far too easily, she falls to her knees.

This is the weakness of those who have chosen the path of darkness.

Their will is broken, the dark power that once made them strong is now strangling them.

The moment their will cracks, even slightly, the power of darkness becomes submissive to stronger beings.

Those who use the power of light can resist. No matter how desperate the situation or how unfavourable the battle, they can arm themselves for the right reasons.

But these people are different.

They capitulate to those who serve more powerful demon kings, to those more brutal and cruel, to those more prepared and crafty.

It’s not merely a matter of lacking the strength to fight. A steadfast person might somehow have the strength left to arm themselves.

But the dark power they coveted gives in the moment it senses a stronger will, regardless of the will of its master.

“I see.”

I smiled faintly, slowly looking down at the kneeling knightess before me.

“Please tell me the name of your master! If you could let me know whose grace you’ve been under…”

“Well, how should I explain this…”

But I am different.

Even in the face of fragmented emptiness, I could stand, unaffected by my own emotions.

Who should I serve…

There is no need to embody her anxiety in clear words.

She is completely misunderstanding. While my strength is not weak, it is not as overwhelming and absolute as she imagines.

Although my current output of power is not weak, if I were to confront Cataril with this amount of power, I would almost certainly fail.

Nevertheless, she is misunderstanding. Uncertainties, incomprehensible circumstances are leading her to fear.

Can’t I simply say it doesn’t exist?

I can feel her eyes trembling.

Even if I am the manifestation of the devil, it was a sentence I could utter, and it could be interpreted as a desire not to reveal the Archduke I contracted.

I understand.

She kneeled.

I haven’t properly introduced myself yet. What’s your name?

Kellin… it’s Kellin.

That’s a good name. I look forward to working with you. I’m Wade.

I reached out my hand lightly. Kellin held my shaking hand with her eyes trembling.

If there is anything I can help you with…

It’s fine for now. But we’re classmates of the same academy, aren’t we? I hope we can get along well.

Oh, I understand!

She is not weak. Her loyalty to the Ernst family, and her affection for Lady Cataril must have been genuine.

Yet, she can’t help but succumb.

It’s fine.

If someone other than Kellin had seen this scene, it might have caused headaches.

I’ll go ahead.

After leaving her alone, I walked out of the warehouse casually. It was dark at night, so the people monitoring this place might be dozing off.

I got a result.

It’s late.

In the dark room, magic was swirling and flowing.

Cataril’s black hair swayed softly in the faint wind.

You weren’t scared…

This man is strange.

He’s not angry at the unfairness. Any student of the academy, even a freshman, would have naturally felt the unfairness of the situation.

He’s not scared either. If he feared the Ernst family’s power, or the power that Cataril had, he would have bowed his head deeper.

Without doing anything, he simply bowed his head as if he was bored.

It’s dangerous.

You should know. Ignorance is a sin.

Just like a citizen who committed a murder and lives in fear of his crime being exposed, a black magician who does not know something must live in fear of when he will hang himself.

It could be an overreaction. He might have been too stupid to assess the situation, or just a dull person.

But don’t let your guard down. Her father always emphasized that a small gap can bring down a fortress.

“As will become apparent…”

Kellin was not skilled in combat. But she was a chambermaid to a blue-blood, so she had enough talent to enter the academy even as a freshman.

However, Kellin’s true merit lied in her heavy mouth and light steps. The ability that allowed her to survive inside the mansion of the blue-blood, like a sheet of thin ice.

Despite years of moving as her limbs, gathering rumors, and involving herself in plots, Kellin faithfully carried out all her tasks without betraying Katarin.

She would do the same this time.

“So, so sorry I’m late. I’ll gladly take the punishment.”

She was panting.

It wasn’t merely turning others down that had her breathing like this. Katarin had a strange sense of unrest.

Kellin was now certainly revealing emotions she had never once shown her before.

“So, the mission?”

“…I’m sorry.”

Something was off. As Kellin bowed her head in apology, Katarin could think of dozens of reasons why Kellin’s behavior was strange.

She might have failed. She might not have investigated that unknown brash man properly.

The academy is a dangerous place. He could have an insanely strong master or guardian.

There are countless stories where a normal looking aristocrat turns out to be a royal bastard.

Even so, there was no reason to hide failure.

But Kellin lowered her head. Not out of guilt over her failure, but because she feared making eye contact with her current mistress.

She was hiding something. She was lying. Her loyalty has already crumbled.

…What a shame.

To aristocrats, anyone not of their kind is merely a tool. To Katarin, Kellin was a tool that she had grown quite fond of.

A doll valuable enough to be kept clean from even the smallest speck of dust, under the careful watch of her parents, and hand-washed gently when needed.

In the end, even you’ve come to this.

People change, and she came back like this. It was a joke.

Kellin had to know just how deeply infiltrated she was with dense magic. Also, how could she not have known that the Katarin she was facing was such a powerful necromancer?

Knowing full well she can’t resist, what kind of promises did she receive that she’s lying right before her master?

A fleeting suspicion crossed Katarin’s mind, but she couldn’t reprimand her on this issue just yet.

The term was about to begin. She needed a maid to serve her.

For now, it would be best to let Kellin indulge in her own stupidity and arrogance.

Breaking her wings would be a delight equal to the pain it would cause her.