TRWTVPS 07

Chapter 7

Lilia’s older brother had once worked as Erin’s personal attendant.
Erin had killed him simply because she found him unpleasant, and on that day, Lilia lost her only family.

Caron could understand what kind of feelings drove Lilia to learn magic.
If the same thing had happened to him, he too would have devoted his entire life to revenge.

A headache gradually crept in, and Caron pressed a hand to his forehead.

Though Lilia was a commoner, she was an exceptional mage watched closely by the Magic Tower.
Her talent was so outstanding that kingdoms lined up to recruit her the moment she graduated from the academy.
He had even heard that one Magic Tower offered to take her in as the disciple of its master.

‘It shouldn’t happen… but under no circumstances must my sister go on a monster subjugation mission.’

He made that vow as he looked at Lilia.

However, what Caron failed to consider was just how incredibly unlucky he was today.

Click.

With the sound of the door opening, Ferdin entered the office. Derek rushed toward him with a bright expression.

He naturally took Ferdin’s coat and hung it on the rack, then looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Ferdin’s mood seemed extremely foul.

If so, there could only be one reason.

Erin Rius.

It was obvious that something unpleasant had happened while talking with her.

Derek frowned as if he could already guess.

Erin must have caused trouble again. Just what had she said to upset Ferdin so much?

“What did Erin Rius say?”

At Derek’s question, Ferdin’s lips stiffened. But it was something he had to tell everyone anyway.

After a brief silence, he spoke in a low voice.

“It seems… Erin Rius will be joining the monster subjugation this time.”

Caron had always thought of Erin as something like a flower.

Someone he had to protect.
Someone he should shield from the wind and embrace when she struggled.

He still remembered what his mother had told him before she died.

“Take care of Erin.”

So protecting his only sister had naturally become his duty.

As a child, Caron sometimes wondered:

Would there ever come a day when I hate my sister?

Each time, he firmly shook his head.

There was no way he could ever hate her.

He liked it when Erin smiled at him.
He liked how she would read to him in her clumsy voice before he slept.
He liked how she called out, “Caron—” when she saw him.

‘Then why… has she changed so much?’

At some point, Erin had changed.

The kind Erin Rius, who treated servants well, was gone.
Instead, he began hearing stories of her constantly tormenting and beating the staff.
As a result, several servants left their posts every day.

At first, Caron tried to help her no matter what.
After all, she was his only sister.

But the Marchioness gently persuaded him otherwise.

She stroked his cheek and smiled kindly.

“Caron, if you truly care for Erin, you must give her space so she can overcome this on her own.”

“But more and more people are starting to hate her… If I act that way too…”

“Don’t worry. I will take care of Erin. You don’t need to concern yourself. I will correct everything that’s wrong.”

Caron wasn’t sure if that was right.

But since his stepmother was so kind to him, he believed she must also be a good parent to Erin.

‘But then why…?’

Why was Erin getting worse instead?

Arriving at Erin’s dormitory door, Caron knocked.

“Caron?”

Erin opened the door and called his name.

It seemed she had been resting—her hair was slightly disheveled, and there was a faint look of surprise in her eyes.

Did I come somewhere I shouldn’t have?

Caron frowned slightly.

For some reason, his mood worsened.

Without realizing it, he glanced at Erin’s hands.

The wounds on her palms had worsened since morning.

‘What on earth has she been doing?’

If you’re injured, shouldn’t you try not to use that part?

Since morning, Erin had been strange—strange enough that he couldn’t ignore it.

She felt like a completely different person.

“Can I come in? I have something to say.”

At his words, Erin’s expression stiffened slightly.

It was as if she didn’t want to talk to him.

After a moment of hesitation, she nodded.

That hesitation felt unfamiliar to Caron.

Erin had always wanted to talk to him.

But he had kept his distance, believing it was for her sake—just as his stepmother had advised.

He had never once considered how that must have made Erin feel.

His stomach churned.

Inside, Erin’s room was far more bare than he had expected.

That, too, was unnatural.

She was famous for her extravagance—spending the equivalent of three months’ wages in a single day was nothing unusual.

So where had all the jewels she bought gone?

‘Yet her carriage was lavishly decorated…’

There was too much about Erin that he didn’t know.

The first proper conversation they’d had in nearly a year—and all he’d done that morning was scold her.

Seeing her now, she looked far more fragile than before.

‘Is she even eating properly?’

Her arms were so thin they looked like they might snap, and her face was pale.

Then the rumors he had heard earlier came to mind.

“They say Erin Rius perfectly recreated the Rius family swordsmanship.”

Even Caron hadn’t achieved that yet.

Of course, there were many interpretations of what “perfect” meant.

People likely didn’t even understand what true mastery of Rius swordsmanship looked like.

No—outsiders discussing it at all was meaningless.

But what mattered was that others perceived it as “perfect.”

That Erin had taken up a sword… and used it.

That alone made no sense.

Erin… didn’t know swordsmanship.

As a child, she had only watched him train—she had never properly learned it.

“I heard you had a swordsmanship evaluation.”

“……”

“They say you used Rius swordsmanship. Is that even possible? You…”

“It’s been a while, Caron.”

Caron was momentarily speechless.

Had his sister always been capable of making such an expression?

Her face looked as if she had just encountered a long-missed memory.

A while?

They had spoken just that morning.

Of course, she didn’t mean it that way.

Erin’s green eyes reminded him of a vast meadow.

They seemed to hold more time than even their father’s.

Caron felt an eerie sensation.

“A while…?”

“Yes. It feels like it’s been a long time since we’ve had a proper conversation.”

As she spoke, Erin placed a cup of warm milk in front of him.

Caron stared at it, again at a loss for words.

She was treating him like a five-year-old.

And yet… it didn’t feel bad.

It felt like the old Erin—the warm and kind sister she used to be, before she was called a villainess.

But that didn’t mean he could overlook her actions.

“I heard from Sir Ferdin that you’re joining the monster subjugation. Do you even understand what that means? To participate, you have to rank in the top five of the beginner class. It’s that dangerous. It’s not somewhere you can go just because you want to.”

He was right.

Only the top five of each class could participate.

That meant being among the most talented even among swordsmanship students.

Caron knew just how difficult that was.

He himself had struggled relentlessly just to rank in the top five of the intermediate class.

Erin, unlike him and the trainee knights, was still in the beginner class.

There was no way she could make the top five.

“I know.”

Erin calmly took a sip of her coffee.

Her composure left Caron speechless once more.

But remembering why he had come, he continued.

“Then what are you thinking? Are you trying to die? Lady Asili is also joining the subjugation. Do you have any idea how that looks to others?”

“……”

“No—forget the lady. The real problem is Lilia. There are people out there just waiting for a chance to kill you!”

At his rising voice, Erin widened her eyes in surprise.

Caron felt relieved, thinking she had finally grasped reality.

But the words that followed completely shattered his expectations.