Dark Fantasy Normalized

The light briefly returned to the man's eyes.

The very first thing he did upon regaining consciousness—barely—was to surrender. To despair.

"This... this won't do. One last favor, please. Kill me. Before I lose what’s left of myself."

He was a warrior who had touched upon the realm of the Seventh Rank.

No battlefield, no brush with death had ever broken his will.

And yet here he was, lying on a bed, unblemished and uninjured, calmly accepting his end.

It was unbearably hollow. Devastatingly clear.

Such was the fate of one addicted to Clouded Truth.

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Of course, it was the herb used in the Dark Elves’ elixirs.

The noble felt the raging flame rising inside her.

She thought—

If she could just have this power, the wall blocking her would no longer be a problem.

A day passed. Then two. Then half a month.

"It's burning... it's burning...!"

The noble writhed, consumed by the fire that surged as if to swallow her whole.

The unrefined flame never calmed.

It only grew hotter with each passing moment.

Until it completely burned the man away.

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The retainers remembered the old master’s majestic presence.

"You dare test me? Fine. I accept your challenge, you wretched little beast."

Back then, no one had called it arrogance.

The master had been the head of a great house and master of the Blue Tower.

And the opponent had been nothing more than a low-ranked demon.

A year passed since that day.

The once-prosperous domain collapsed.

The master’s eyes, once full of wisdom and courage, were now clouded and dull.

All of it—because a great mage accepted even a fragment of a lesser demon’s power.

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"...Master?"

"Hm?"

"Are you... really feeling okay?"

As breakfast neared its end, Katria cautiously asked Lisir.

"...Wait! Now that I think of it—"

"...!"

"Is your hairstyle different from usual!?"

"?"

"Wait, no. I meant your makeup!"

"?"

"No, not that either. I mean the bread tastes...!"

"..."

"Damn it. Is this really all I amount to? Sorry, Tia. What did I miss?"

"It's nothing like that. I just... I was wondering if you were uncomfortable or in pain—"

"Uncomfortable, huh—well, if I had to pick something... there’s too much bread. I’d like more meat, less bread."

Too much bread, not enough meat.

That, according to Lisir—who had been poisoned by Clouded Truth, consumed Saebaekryeon, and was partially overtaken by Verdandes’ power—was the entirety of his discomfort.

Katria finally felt it.

The wrongness.

Lisir looked far too normal on the outside.

As if nothing had ever happened.

As if, for some unknown reason, all their problems had been resolved.

"Meat, right!? Got it! Starting tonight—no, starting with dinner today—I’ll make sure that’s taken care of!"

Katria spoke with energetic cheer.

It was the most natural expression of the cheerful maid persona she had ever shown.

Her heart was pounding.

Maybe—just maybe—a miracle had happened without her realizing it.

"Khff...!"

But that hope was denied immediately.

Just as Lisir opened his mouth to say something, he clamped a hand over it and coughed.

"Master!?"

He looked at the palm he had coughed into.

It was stained dark red.

***

Yesterday.

After his spar with Meltas, Lisir had spent the rest of the day in chaos.

Triggered by the sudden outburst of Vision Magic, he had checked his physical condition—only to find all sorts of things built up inside him.

So, he spent the entire night consolidating it all and making it truly his.

He channeled mana until he was satisfied with the control he had.

As a result, mana backlash and overload followed.

Nothing to worry about.

Since the time his body nearly collapsed from a past mana overload, he'd drastically lowered his danger threshold.

It was like muscle soreness—an annoyance, not a concern.

Then what is this?

Lisir stared at the blood staining his hand.

Hm?

He then realized that the strange discomfort he’d felt in his body since yesterday had disappeared.

Come to think of it, Blue Breathing is supposed to flush impurities from the body.

That was his rough guess.

And surprisingly, he was almost right.

Verdandes.

The lingering remnant of the demon who had once ruled the desert, had been expelled from his body as waste.

Lisir, feeling oddly refreshed, spoke.

***

"It’s fine. It’s nothing, really. You don’t have to worry."

He wore a gentle smile.

Even with blood still at the corners of his mouth.

Katria, without realizing it, found herself staring at his face.

And the longer she looked, the more she saw what hadn’t been visible before.

Clear signs of exhaustion.

"Ah..."

She finally understood.

He didn’t seem fine because he was fine.

He only seemed fine—because he was pretending to be.

"..."

It should have been obvious.

How could he possibly be okay?

Even now, his body and mind were surely being eroded.

Katria felt overwhelming self-loathing.

She thought of herself just moments ago—running from reality, denying the obvious.

"Tia...!?"

"How...?"

Her expression twisted with anguish.

"How can you still smile like that...?"

Startled, Lisir glanced down at his hand.

Damn. Why is the waste coming out the top? Can’t it just exit the normal way?

Thinking the maid had been shocked by the sight of him coughing up blood, he gave her a kind smile, trying to reassure her.

"It’s okay, Tia. It’s nothing at all. So please—don’t worry like that."

"...!"

A flood of emotion.

The cheerful maid mask Katria had been wearing crumbled completely.

She clasped both hands over her face, as if to dam the surge within her.

Lisir’s expression had pierced straight through her heart.

What could she possibly say to him?

It’s okay, Tia. It’s nothing.

To someone who had no grasp of his own state, and remained blindly optimistic.

So don’t worry like that.

To someone who, even now, was worried about her.

How wonderful it would’ve been—

You’re right. It’ll be okay.

—if she could smile and reassure him in return.

But she couldn’t.

The fatigue too deep to hide even with acting.

The blood he’d coughed up.

Katria could feel it now—that the end she had desperately tried to postpone was right in front of her.

Lisir.

He wouldn’t survive the day.

She had failed to save him.

In the end, she had destroyed him.

The man who had saved her world.

Pity and guilt toward Lisir.

Loathing and disappointment toward herself.

It all tangled around her throat like a noose.

She could barely breathe.

The urge to sob rose from her chest, suffocating.

"Tia...?"

But she couldn’t cry.

She had no right.

No right to burden him with her grief.

So then what?

What should she do now?

"...Master!"

Maid Tia lifted her head.

"May I ask one favor?"

"A favor?"

"Yes! I’d like to spend the day with you, Master!"

She spoke with the brightest smile she could muster.

"...Shall we?"

Lisir couldn’t refuse her request.

Because in her brilliantly smiling eyes—tears were already forming.

***

It was a day like any other, save for the fact that the maid stayed glued to his side.

Having resolved most of the merchant leaders’ requests, Lisir went about his usual routine at the Tower.

He read, trained his body, and had just been heading to another lesson with Meltas when—

"Master!"

Maid Tia called out, unable to hide her restlessness.

Spending one’s final day in such an ordinary routine...

Lisir had no idea what that looked like from her perspective.

Throb.

To Tia, Lisir was someone who loved life.

It was only natural.

"If it’s not too forward, may I ask something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"If today were your last day, what would you want to do?"

"...Hmm? I’ve never really thought about it."

"..."

Throb.

Again, it made sense—but he wasn’t prepared to face his end.

"Then let me ask another way—what do you want to do right now?"

"..."

What’s with her today?

Lisir tried to grasp what she was thinking.

She’d clearly been acting strange since the moment she saw him coughing blood.

Like she was anxious—on edge.

Is she afraid that if something happens to me, she’ll be made a slave again?

Lisir nodded to himself.

Today, he decided, would be dedicated to easing her mind.

"Tia, would you like a tour of the Tower?"

"...Yes! I’d love that!"

They smiled at each other, relieved.

***

The final stop of their tour was a pond tucked in one corner of the Tower’s courtyard.

Lisir and Katria sat side by side on a bench, watching the sunset paint the water in red and gold.

Katria thought to herself—

What a peaceful silence.

Just like he said, it truly was beautiful.

She wished time would stop, just like this.

"Tia."

"...!"

Lisir’s voice broke through the stillness.

Because no—time does not stop.

His remaining hours would continue to tick away.

"So, how was it? ...Did you have fun?"

That look in his eyes.

Katria understood.

Why he had spent today with her.

He had gifted her his time.

Without even knowing that it was his time.

In the end, even to the very end, she had been the one receiving help.

The one causing trouble.

"Master."

"Hm?"

"Today... I really enjoyed it."

"Yeah? I’m glad to hear that."

"Truly, really, really... I don’t think I’ll ever have a happier day in my life..."

"That much? Maybe I should start offering Tower tours."

"What about you, Master?"

Lisir smiled as brightly as he could, hoping to reassure her.

"It was great. So great, I could die today and have no regrets."

"...!"

Throb.

Katria turned her gaze from him and looked back at the pond.

"If it’s not too much, would you... spend tomorrow with me, too?"

"Shall we?"

"Tomorrow... I’d like to go outside the Tower... See Bondales with you..."

"Alright. Sounds good."

"...I’m so happy."

Katria beamed.

Lisir gently patted her back.

Because her shining smile—was accompanied by falling tears.

And ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) just like that, the day came to an end.

***

"Tia. Wake up. We’ve got a city to tour—Bondales is waiting."

"..."