The separate group—who had been holding meetings in the white tent—finally decided on how to infiltrate the guild on their end and Arthur had seen the team off who were going to steal the archives.

Deciding that a whole group larger than the original three was going to draw too much attention, Arthur and Daraia opted not to send more people as backup. City guards are on high alert when it’s nighttime so even more than two people would arouse suspicion.

The plan was simple: one of the members of the team casts illusion magic to stage a fake murder scene right in the middle of the busiest road where people were still casually walking. That will send the whole district into a frenzy which will draw the guards away from the guild. Luckily, they don’t need to try that hard to make it a big scene since the street was near the guild. In fact, it was just a few blocks down the street.

Patrols would prioritize capturing the murderer before they can harm anyone else. No soldier would stand idly by when a murder happens right in front of their eyes. Of course, they’ll use a fake body (crafted with illusion magic) to fool the patrols, instead of actual corpses which would just be inhuman (even if was a bandit’s corpse).

Arthur was the one who proposed this since it was the safest option to ensure zero casualties and create a big distraction that will send the entire district into a frenzy.

Now that that was out of the way, they’ll need to have faith in the three volunteers who were all from the rescue party and possessed assassin-based skills that were superior to Thief skills. In Star Fantasy, Thief was a generic Shadow Ability user while Assassin was its evolution class just like Supreme Sorcerer was to Sorcerer. Shadow Abilities refers to dark magic that manipulates shadows to fool one’s senses or make the shadows a weapon.

Even standing under the shade of a building was enough to fool a person’s senses who was looking right at you. You could slip away and they’ll never even notice. Of course, this ability is pointless in this situation since there’s no one left to fool but it has another merit: everything you touch emits no sound. You can break a vase and no one would hear it even if they’re on the other side of a wall. This makes breaking and entering far easier. You can smash a window and they won’t hear it.

Arthur didn’t consider the possibility of the guild master’s office having some kind of magic lock due to his ignorance surrounding guilds and their practices. Even if he did, Daraia assured everyone that guilds don’t typically do this. If you actually have a magic lock or some other kind of difficult lock that’s way too obvious then you’re basically telling the thieves where your valuables are hidden.

One would normally assume that the most important documents or items would be located in the storage rooms which always have high-tier magic locks protecting them.

Dungeon Archives aren’t exactly that important to ordinary thieves since they’d prioritize stuff that look expensive, right? Dungeon archives don’t fit into that category, making the heist (?) a breeze.

The only thing left to do now is wait.

**

It had been five hours since Evelyn and the others had arrived so it was already nighttime.

Evelyn decided to exclude herself from the meeting that took place earlier so she wasn’t aware of their plans on getting the archives. Anais, Shirley and some other students also decided not to interfere and placed their trust in Arthur.

Flora seemed to know but she wasn’t interested in talking about it, choosing to instead playing drinking games with the boys who were trying to get her drunk for obvious reasons.

Evelyn stole a cursory glance as Sabrina who was humming a merry tune.

“Brina is so cute… Why did I have to dump her because I thought I didn’t deserve her…” Evelyn could hear Hadd’s disgruntled voice.

“You lost big, buddy!” Charkley hit his back with a grin, “It’s my turn to get Brina, gehehehe. I wonder what her sweat tastes like~”

“Sabrina isn’t interested in a tub of lard, you oaf. Especially not one with degenerate fetishes like you.” Hadd said coldly.

“Stop making fun of my weight, you bastard! I’m not that fat!”

“When was the last time you’ve seen your toes?”

“Uh, well…” Charkley tried pushing in his gut and looking down.

“If you can’t even cut your own toenails then that means you’re too fat, Fatty. Humph.”

“Y-You!”

Evelyn turned her attention away from Charkley who was now chasing Hadd (well, trying to at least) around camp.

She focused on the long-haired beauty whose pale blonde hair was dancing in the wind as she skipped around the campfire with a plate in her hands.

“Here you go, Al~!” Sabrina, who had volunteered to prepare food earlier today after Keetha’s persuasion, approached Arnold with a plate of stew and a smile on her face.

‘I’ll never get used to her smiling at that guy… We used to gossip about him in secret all the time. What’s up with this sudden change?’

Maybe the image she had of him inside her head changed after what he did for her? Even Evelyn was surprised that Arnold would go out of his way to help someone, especially someone who had shown her hatred for him many times.

Arnold took the bowl of stew. Sabrina watched him silently as he put his spoon into the stew and held it up to his mouth. Eyeing her, he put the spoon in his mouth and began chewing.

Evelyn noticed that his right hand—holding the bowl—was trembling a bit. This is something that probably only she had noticed.

“H-How is it?” Sabrina asked while fidgeting with her fingers.

“…Good, I guess.”

Her face brightened up when he said that. She turned around with a barely disguised grin.

“Call me if you need seconds, okay!” she ran off to get everyone else’s bowls to distribute them.

Why did she ask him what he thought when it was a team effort to make the food? Maybe she was the head cook? Evelyn knew how good Sabrina’s cooking was. She had been over at the Beurot Manor many times and Sabrina had personally made dinner on several occasions.

The thought of “her future husband will be a lucky man” arises whenever she recalled how delicious Sabrina’s cooking was.

‘……….’ in any case, Evelyn couldn’t believe her eyes. The piece of meat she picked up fell back into her plate.

She looked at Shirley, who was greedily tearing apart a lamb thigh (it was raw). Everyone got used to Shirley’s messy eating habits so it wasn’t out of the ordinary seeing that. Also, there was no reason for her to worry about parasites or bacteria since demihumans have way stronger stomach acid than humans.

It was still a bit much seeing Shirley tear flesh with the teeth of a wild animal no matter how many times Evelyn sees it.

“Uhm, Shirley, since when has Sabrina been acting like… that…?”

Shirley frowned at Evelyn with her cheeks still full of meat, not knowing what “that” refers to, most likely.

“You know, a maiden trying to impress her crush…”

Shirley swallowed the meat and put a finger on her lip.

“Hmm… I’ve noticed her acting like that for the last hour since he woke up and joined us at the campfire. One minute she asks if he’s thirsty, the next if he has any dirty clothing that needs washing… She’s constantly around him or nearby watching him.”

Evelyn looked around the camp.

Yeah… Sabrina wasn’t the only one keeping an eye on him. Many of Evelyn’s fellow classmates were looking at Arnold who was calmly reading through some kind of skill book while eating his stew.

She could hear some whispers:

-“Arnold with a stubble looks pretty sexy, don’t you think…?”

-“Yeah, I didn’t expect him to become even more handsome with a beard. Imagine what he looks like with a full-grown one?”

-“I really want to talk to him…”

‘Ugh, stop acting like children in love, you lot!’ Evelyn couldn’t believe her ears and eyes. Their eyes were practically glued to Arnold the whole night.

Did him saving Sabrina change their opinion of him that quick!? Sure, Evelyn was grateful for what Arnold did but that wasn’t an indication that he changed.

Evelyn could see Anais making her way over to Arnold with a few books plus a scroll in her hands. She plopped down next to Arnold (their thighs were touching) and opened the scroll before speaking to him. Arnold closed his book with a sigh and turned to her, giving her his full attention.

Evelyn couldn’t hear what they were talking about over all the chatter around them. Anais spoke with a serious expression. She was holding a scroll with the same runic formula that Arnold told the magicians to learn.

It wasn’t just an “ask and get an answer” type of conversation. Arnold was speaking to Anais as if the two were fellow magicians, probably going over complex theories and formulas that no one besides the magicians could understand.

‘I think can understand why he would choose Anais to help him with magic control.’ Rather, Evelyn would’ve been surprised if he hadn’t asked her to join him.

Anais is a studious freak when it comes to magic, getting perfect scores all around. She was offered the opportunity to join the Second Magic Tower’s junior program after graduation (upon completion, one would be granted the title of Elite Magician) but she declined the offer because she wanted to pursue a teaching career at the Magic University.

Being a professor who teaches advanced arcane theory and history is different from working under the tower as an elite mage. From what Evelyn knows, there’s no difference in what both professions are allowed to access in the Magic Tower’s Archives. Even as a professor she’ll be granted the knowledge that the towers have collected throughout centuries of their existence. Becoming an elite mage will only be more work for her. The restrictions were less and there were more benefits that she will enjoy as a professor.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Evelyn knows that Anais is passionate about helping others, especially when it comes to the magic fields that are out there today.

Many call her the person most deserving of “Archmage Candidate” but it remains to be seen if the current Archmage will even acknowledge her.

“Evelyn?” Shirley looked up at Evelyn in confusion when she stood up.

“I-I’m just going to listen to what they’re talking about.” She replied half-heartedly and began walking towards Arnold and Anais.

She stealthily stole a glance as the two after sitting on a nearby log that was right next to them.

“—If I knew you were so good at magic theory then I would’ve come to you to help with my extra studies.” Anais said innocently.

“Everyone would’ve laughed at you. It’s not every day that a senior goes to her junior for help with schoolwork.”

‘No, anyone would think you’re the older one, Arnold.’

Anais blushed, “You’re right but… It would’ve been a good excuse to spend more time with you, you know…”

“We live in two different worlds, Anais. My father rarely makes contact with his great-uncle due to trivial family issues that they can’t bother to sort out. You’ve always been the obedient daughter who listens to whatever her father tells her—Stay away from that tyrant Arnold von Berkley, is what he told you, right?”

Anais lowered her head and nodded gravely.

“You can’t bring yourself to disobey the person who raised you, can you? How far does your obedience go? Will you marry whoever he tells you to? Would you listen to him if he told you that you’ll join Tivurgian House’s private army instead of going to the Magic University—which is your dream to attend? Will you become his second wife if he felt that he does not have enough children? Well?”

“I…” Anais tried to answer but Arnold spoke over her.

“Even after nine years you’re still his obedient little girl.” His words made her lower her head even more, “He’s already picked someone out for you, hasn’t he?”

“….” Anais lowered her head even further.

“Who is it?”

“It’s… Uhm… Lord Hans…”

‘Wait, Anais’ father is working on making Hans her husband?’

“Hmm…” Arnold looked at Hans.

He was merrily drinking with Flora and the guys as their boisterous laughter filled the camp. You wouldn’t think that all of their deaths were already assured if Arnold decided to abandon them now. Maybe they were just trying to forget.

‘Miss Flora’s breast is on the verge of popping out of her sweater…’ Evelyn had a fleeting thought when she saw Flora who was only wearing a small sweater that exposed her toned belly and her normal adventurer skirt.

“What do you think of Hans?” Arnold looked back at Anais.

“He’s the one most likely to become the heir of the Ayried due to his potential as both a fighter and a leader of a House. He’s handsome and very charming and always makes his company feel comfortable which is why he’s so popular with the juniors…”

“What a stiff response. I meant do you like him as a person?”

“I… I think so…”

“Hmm, is that so.”

Anais’ head suddenly shot up, “This is the moment you assure me you that you’ll save me from this engagement, you know! You’re supposed to the reliable older brother!”

She pouted at Arnold.

“I’m not the older brother… In any case, you’ve been reading way too many romance novels. If the two Heads already decided that your engagement with Hans is final then there’s nothing outsiders can do.”

“Then say you’ll marry me!” Anais shouted.

‘Wha…’

The camp suddenly went silent as everyone looked at her.

Anais covered her mouth as tears welled up in her eyes and her face turned red. Pretending that they didn’t hear what she said, everyone went back to what they were doing earlier.

Arnold glanced at her, not minding the stares that he was receiving.

“As I said, outsiders can’t just demand you be handed over to them, not even someone from another ducal family. Your brother, however, is the next Head of the House so he can renounce the marriage even after the ceremony but this will upset the Ayried family and they’ll turn hostile.”

“….” Anais slowly lowered her hands. Evelyn could see her lips quivering.

“I’ll speak to my father.” Arnold spoke again, “The emperor’s 60th banquet is coming up so he’ll definitely throw a big party that even those of humble birth can attend. I’m officially not a noble anymore so even I can attend. I’ll find my father during the banquet and ask if he can change your father’s mind.”

“B-But will that really work?”

“The Tivurgian House needs the Ayried House which is why the marriage is happening in the first place, right? If I find something of equal value to the unification of Houses that will ensure the Tirvurgian House’s survival then your father might change his mind. Hell, he might even jump at the chance.”

“Y-You can really do that?”

Arnold leaned close, “If I do then you’ll have another debt to settle, Anais.”

Anais blushed as she said “too close, too close!” while waving her hands incessantly to which Arnold just scoffed at and moved away.

Someone came up to Arnold as Evelyn was trying to process what he and Anais were talking about.

“Uhm, Al!” Madilith called out to him in a high-pitched voice, “C-Can I talk to you for a moment?”

Arnold put down his plate and looked up at her with an “I’m listening” posture.

“I meant alone…” Madilith awkwardly said. To this Arnold glanced at Anais.

“It’s okay, Al. I’ll wait for you.”

Arnold shrugged as if it couldn’t be helped and stood up. With Arnold in tow, Madilith went towards a secluded area outside camp. Evelyn naturally followed the two. Definitely not due to her burning curiosity.

Surely Arnold doesn’t have his Warrior Sense active, thought Evelyn hopefully. Despite hoping so, she still used spirits to mask her footsteps and presence.

Finding a nice bush that wasn’t too far from a small forest where Madilith had taken Arnold, Evelyn enhanced her senses.

‘Hmm, the sound is heavily encoded with disruptive magic. That sly girl used magic to prevent any eavesdropping.’

Of course, that didn’t mean it was impossible for her to eavesdrop. Spirits were nature’s natural spies and transmitters. Evelyn can get the spirits to convey what Madilith is saying. While this might sound convenient, Evelyn still had to translate the language the spirits used to speak to her in real-time. Spirits speak in slurred Elven Tongue which made it had to hear everything they were saying. Due to this, Evelyn found it hard to understand everything that would be conveyed. Despite this, she could still use body language and read lips to further understand what their conversation was about.

Madilith’s rosy cheeks were illuminated by the moonlight as she looked up at Arnold like someone who had fallen in love at first sight all over again.

She said something to Arnold while her hands were clasped in front of her chest.

--~~~

Evelyn tried to piece everything together in a split second.

-“I was a fool for breaking up with you back then… I’ve missed you so much…. I’ve missed your embrace and your kisses… Even though I was the one who told you we couldn’t be together anymore, I still felt like you were the one who ignored me even though you respected my wishes to break it off.”

--~~~

-“I’ve watched you from afar, you know? I watched how you flirted with other girls. I heard how you slept with nearly half of the girls in my grade. I hated it. I hated how they didn’t take their last year of the academy as seriously as I did… I began to hate myself after a while and see myself as a fool… Even if I lose out on a few perfect scores, it’s a small sacrifice to make for true l-love… That’s right, I said it! You’re my true love, Al!”

Arnold just stood there silently as he listened.

--~~~

-“I feel a piece of me slipping away every time I think about you. Even though I tell myself I can confess my true feelings, I never gain enough courage. This… This is how I’ve felt for two years… I thought that if I seek someone else that the feelings will just go away but…”

She fidgeted and blushed.

--~~~

-“I realized that true love can never be extinguished because it’s an insatiable fire at the bottom of my heart.”

She clutched her hands on her chest while her gaze swam around the area.

--~~~

-“W-Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Arnold looked at her for a second before saying:

--~~~

-“That love you feel is real. I know this. But the obsession is overshadowing it and overwhelming it like a plague. Not even having multiple sources of relief was enough for you so you want to project it all onto a single person—me.”

‘Wait, what does Arnold mean…?’ despite already figuring it out, Evelyn still couldn’t accept it.

Madilith had been doing it with other guys…? Why did Evelyn not know this?

-~~~

-“Love wasn’t your goal. Satisfying your desires is your only goal. Why not just tell me what you want? That way I can know.”

She was silent for a few seconds as she stared into his eyes. Her big round eyes narrowed into slits and the air around her changed. She looked to the ground, avoiding his gaze.

--~~~

-“Tell you my desires…? I…I want…”

She clenched her fists before looking back up at him with her big green eyes which carried a determined light.

-“I-I want us to have ten of your children. Yes, ten is enough. I’ll feed them lots so they grow up big and strong like their father and beautiful like their mother. We can all live on a farm. I’ve already picked the perfect place. I’ve been learning Green Magic which will help us grow crops faster and which we can sell to a local town so we won’t need anyone else’s money, not my parents nor yours. Ah but what about our marriage? I want us to have a bi~g wedding! Afterwards we can consummate on a hill overlooking the full moon just like Abatha and Jadush before Jadush was sent to the army in the latest volume of Unbreakable Love. I want you to be mine alone so I need to make sure no one else can look at you. I’ve thought about my options: should I remove your eyes after our wedding ceremony when you’re drunk and fill you with drugs that drain your strength so that you can’t resist? You’re so strong but I’m just a weak little girl who can easily be overpowered so I need to make sure you can’t move, hehehehe. I’ll put your eyes on a jar overlooking our bed where we’ll have loooots and looooots of sex. I wouldn’t do this to hurt you, okay!? I just want you to stay with me forever. Your mutilated eyes looking at our bodies joining together through our genitals. I-I can’t believe I said that! I’m so embarrassed… That bitch Celeste. That cow tits little shit. I want to kill her! She’s the reason I can’t even get close to you! I want to cut off her breasts and shove it down her throat. She doesn’t deserve them! A-Ah but putting them on me might be better since you like big breasts, right Al? I’ve always hated my body. I’m small, thin and barely have a chest that can arouse you. I know most of the girls you’ve been with have bigger breasts and butts… Why couldn’t I have been born so well-endowed… Ah, my mind is wandering, sorry! I just get so angry when I think about you looking at other girls and comparing their bodies to mine… A-Anyway, I’ve picked out a nice outfit for you to wear as my pet—Ahhh! Did I say pet!? I-I meant husband! Yes, husband! I-It’s a fancy suit that I bought after saving up enough money. I removed the crotch area so that I don’t have to worry about pulling down your pants when I’m ready to g-give you more c-children! When you make me angry, I’ll kick you in the crotch! A-Ah, did I really just say that!? What’s wrong with you Madie!? You’ll scare him away! D-Do you understand, Al? Do you understand now? Do you? Do you? Do you see how much I love you, how deep my feelings go? How far I’m willing to go? I’ll chew your food for you, clean you, pamper you with gifts if you’re a good pe—husband! You're everything to me. My only reason for living. And I'll do anything, absolutely anything, to keep us together. No matter the cost. And we can be happy, forever. Just you and me. I’ve been studying immortality and I think I can make us stay alive forever if we become vampires! I just need a willing and trustworthy vampire to help me but they’re so hard to find!”

Haa, haa, out of breath Madilith’s heart-filled eyes looked up at him as she was glued to his chest. Meanwhile, Arnold’s cold expression didn’t change at all.

Arnold closed his eyes and breathed quietly.

He stepped back and turned around without a word. Madilith suddenly grabbed him from behind and sank to her knees in an attempt to stop him. “D-Don’t go! S-Say something! Please!” Evelyn could hear muffled screaming due to Madilith’s barrier.

Arnold could easily shake her off. She was just a frail magician and he was a warrior, after all. Yet Evelyn could see a mix of different emotions on his face before he spoke to Madilith.

-“I heard you and Hofir were together. Why are you here demanding I take you back when you have someone who actually loves you?”

-“That’s… I…”

She let go of Arnold and just sat there on the ground.

She then made a determined expression and looked up at him.

-“If you can easily jump from one person to the other then that decreases the value you hold as a woman. This is the same reason brothel wenches are scorned by society.”

-“T-Then just one more time! Just one more time to give me a memory to remember you by! If you won’t fulfil my desires then at least grant me this!” the implied meaning here was obvious.

Arnold was obviously not going to accept her so she was now compromising. Evelyn could almost see the disgust that was in Arnold’s eyes, surface on his face.

‘….’

Evelyn didn’t know what this feeling was inside her seeing her friend begging like a beggar on the street or a third-class whore in the red-light district.

Was it disgust? Maybe the disgust came from her ramblings earlier.

Pity? Perhaps this feeling was accurate. Or just part of how she truly felt.

It was certainly not indifference or a good reaction in her friend’s favor.

-“A memory to remember me by?”

Madilith nodded with a red face.

-”You’d want this memory even if it’s possible you might die tomorrow?”

-“Yesh!” perhaps sensing that Arnold wasn’t against the idea (in her eyes) Madilith’s speech was slurred and a trail of saliva leaked down her mouth. Evelyn could almost count the hearts in her eyes. If she had a tail then it would’ve wagged furiously.

-“I see… If I fail to get rid of the curse then we’ll all die anyway. Embracing someone—no matter what kind of crazy person they are—in my final moments doesn’t seem so bad. In fact, that’s what I imagined I might do before dying, whether it’s by old age or a sickness.”

‘He’s… really going along with it even though Madilith is being so unreasonable...?’

Madilith jumped up and hugged him like a child who got what she wanted. She suddenly planted her lips on his and hugged his head even tighter. Arnold didn’t push her away since he was the one who agreed to grant her request.

“M… Madilith…?”

“Eh?” Suddenly hearing someone’s voice from behind her, Evelyn looked back while startled. She hadn’t been focusing on her surroundings so anyone could’ve snuck up to her in that moment.

Hofir was standing there with a blank expression on his face.