There Are No Bad Young Ladies in the World

The Beltus Subjugation (1)

– ‘Have you ever seen a master-level mage fighting with all their might?’

Sometimes, Fine was so easygoing and unruly that Derek doubted if she was really a 6-star mage.

However, since she occasionally had a chilling look in her eyes and hit the weak points, Derek didn’t take her lightly… but Fine seemed to think she wasn’t being respected enough and would grumble for no reason.

She would get furious, telling him to respect his master like the sky, but she didn’t seem to realize that her own behavior was not very trustworthy.

On the day when the first semester of Ravenclaw Training School was almost over, most of the ladies started returning to their territories to enjoy the break, but Fine didn’t seem to want to return to the Tigris territory.

She just lay on the sofa in one corner of Derek’s office, munching on financiers and Mont Blancs baked by the servants, talking proudly.

– ‘Ironically, when you reach the position of a master, you rarely have to compete with others using magic. When you become someone who reigns and rules, you have fewer opportunities to use your power. It’s truly paradoxical.’

– ‘Have you ever seen it yourself, Master?’

– ‘Of course. Well… In the southwest of the continent, Duplain, Belmiard, and Beltus were the real powers… I’ve heard that the Duke of Duplain could float the entire mansion site in the air if he wanted, and the Marquis of Belmiard once sank three or four ships at once.’

I’ve heard that a 5-star mage could be called a war weapon.

Of course, since there aren’t many of them, they all have significant social status… they just don’t have the opportunity to show their power directly.

– ‘There is always a reason why those in the position of power are there. Even the Marquis of Belmiard is still only a full 4-star mage, not yet reaching 5-star. It’s unimaginable how far his level could go.’

– ‘…’

– ‘When you meet monsters like Melverot and Drest, you tend to lose your sense of reality. Always remember that master-level mages are like armies in themselves. Munch munch. Slurp…’

There was no seriousness in Fine’s appearance as she munched on the bread with her lips tightly closed.

The new patissier who joined the baron’s household this time was so much to his liking that he even added a note not to fire him without his permission.

After all, from the perspective of a grand mage who had reached the rank of a 6-star, even a head mage was perceived as just ‘someone who can do a bit.’

Derek felt a strange sense of discomfort as he looked at Fine, but soon he spoke with a sigh.

– “Grand Duke Beltus is a 5-star summoner, and I’ve heard that he handles high-level spirits and legendary summoned creatures with biological summoning magic, and summons historical magical artifacts with non-biological summoning magic.”

– “Yes. If you’re too careless, even I might get caught off guard by that troublesome guy. He seems like an ambitious person who is overly obsessed with power and has a twisted personality, but in reality, he’s just an old man stuck in his ways. Consider yourself lucky to have an open-minded master like me.”

– “It’s not realistic to expect me to deal with such a person.”

– “Yes. You need to take it seriously.”

Fine spoke with a seductive smile, narrowing her eyes.

– “If you’re careless, you’ll die immediately.”

– “You speak so easily.”

– “Oh my. I don’t ask for the impossible. Don’t underestimate my discerning eye. Didn’t I tell you? I can see right through what kind of person a mage like you, Derek, is.”

Watching him munch on mille-feuille, brioche, croissants, and madeleines, he looked like a rodent eating, but his eyes were as sharp as ever.

– “Some people say that it’s pitiful and unfortunate that you, Derek, were born a commoner and lived as a beggar rolling around in the slums. Really, they’re fools with no discernment. Derek, that harsh environment was a blessing for you, a heaven-sent opportunity.”

Fine had a rough idea of what she was going to say.

She seemed to be forming a kind of empathy with Derek that she couldn’t see in others.

– “Do you think you would have reached your current level of skill if you had been born as a noble and lived a leisurely life in a peaceful and elegant household? Not at all. The power of the nobility is so sweet. It would be fortunate if you didn’t become a fat pig.”

– “…”

– “Even extraordinary talent means nothing if it’s not nurtured by the environment. And you, you’re someone whose eyes only come alive on a bloody battlefield, not in a well-equipped magical practice ground of an elegant mansion. Your talent blossomed in the cutthroat survival competition of life and death.”

Fine spoke without changing her expression.

– “So, crawl into the crisis of death. Fortunately, the specialty of this heavenly master is dealing with death.”

– “What if I die?”

– “That would be unfortunate.”

– “…”

– “But if you survive, you’ll become stronger.”

Fine, not caring about the crumbs on her cheeks, looked at Derek with gleaming eyes and said.

– “Probably more than you think.”

*

– Paaah!

The ominous magic power rising from Denis’s luggage began to take on a massive form.

It wasn’t hard to feel that the momentum of the magic power alone was unusual.

As Denise approached the luggage to check what was happening, a burst of magic exploded from it, and she was thrown against the wall.

– Boom! Bang!

– Fwoosh!

“Ah, ah…!”

Denise’s petite body flew towards the bookshelf and crashed into it, causing books to fall and cover her head.

As Denise cast a bewildered glance towards the luggage, a sinister, dark red magic was slowly expanding from it.

What is happening right now?

Anyone would be taken aback and hold their breath in such a situation, but Denise swallowed dryly and regained her composure.

She was always someone who could remain calm in a crisis.

She had to knock on the door and call for help. This was not something she could handle alone.

As Denise pushed aside the scattered books and stood up, a withered hand emerged from the massive magical aftermath.

“What… what…?”

While Denise uttered a dazed sound, a terrifying figure rose from the light.

It was an Arch Lich, a deathly necromancer that could only be encountered in the deepest labyrinths of the White Zone.

Though magical creatures were known to exist, this was the most malevolent of them all. The space where the Arch Lich resided would become a vast labyrinth, a breeding ground for magical creatures, engulfing the area and bringing death.

A skull covered in various trinkets and tattered cloth began to float, holding a large staff.

The chill emanating from the magic was enough to send shivers down one’s spine just by touching it.

Death itself had arrived, making the labyrinth of the White Zone safer than this room.

Breathing out a frosty breath, the eerie skull floated and scanned the surroundings.

This grand mansion, where noble humans nested, seemed like an ideal structure for the skull to claim as its own.

There was a separate facility for handling magic, and the hill that jutted out in the middle of the vast forest provided significant geographical advantages.

The being that summoned it to this world. A high-ranking 6-star necromancer had engraved a command deep within its instincts.

Make a nest.

This Beltus mansion was the perfect place for the Arch Lich to reside and wield death, so it would drive out all other living beings and claim it as its base.

As this instinct arose, a frosty gleam emanated from the empty eye sockets of the skull.

5-star necromancy spell ‘Arrival of the Dead’

Magical creatures that dealt with death… No one knew anything about the monster named Pine that summoned such beings from the deepest parts of the White Zone’s labyrinth.

Only the result remained, gathering magic in this place.

Spirits gathered, and corpses rose from the ground. As the traces of the bloodstained necromancy filled the room, Denise hesitated no longer.

– Boom!

Denise broke down the door with combat magic and dashed out.

Fear was evident in her eyes, but she hadn’t completely lost her sanity. She was on the verge of collapsing, her legs about to give out, but the instinct to run was still there.

– Crash! Bang!

She tripped over the threshold and fell flat on the floor, but Denise gritted her teeth and got up.

As she ran out into the hallway, the startled servants shouted at her.

“Miss Denise! This is… You can’t do this! If you destroy the mansion…”

“The room…! Look at the room…!”

Denise said this while pressing down on her bleeding knee that had scraped the floor. And just as she was about to dash out again, the servants also froze in place, seeing the enormous disaster that had arrived in the room.

Denise thought she had to leave them and run away.

As she was about to run down the hallway, she turned back, grabbed the collar of a trembling servant who couldn’t adapt to the situation, and shouted.

“What are you doing?! Run, run quickly!”

As Denise was dragging the servants out, a massive amount of vengeful spirits began pouring out from the room.

It was a prelude to disaster.

*

“We must go to the Belthus Duchy immediately. Gather as many troops as possible.”

Derek, who had ridden out from the territory early in the morning, spoke confidently in front of Countess Rodeia.

The reason he sought out Countess Rodeia first, above anyone else, was because she was a person who never hesitated when it came to necromancy.

If she sensed traces of necromancy, she was the type of person who would break through the front gate of the Belmiard Count’s mansion.

He was confident that she would be the first to act, as she had a certain level of trust in Derek.

“Yes. I received your letter. I was sure that necromancy was involved in the Belthus Duchy.”

Countess Rodeia looked at Derek with a favorable gaze. She had seen up close how adept he was at dealing with necromancy when they captured Leonard.

However, despite this, Countess Rodeia was also a ruler who commanded and ruled over a territory.

There was a reason why her daughter, Lady Trisha, was so afraid of her.

It seemed like she moved solely out of hatred for necromancy, but she was a person who never missed important details when it mattered.

“However, moving the troops requires caution. Above all, taking military action towards the Belthus Duchy based solely on your word is too rash.”

Derek had expected this.

She was not someone who would move the troops just based on his words.

Therefore, he had to create an urgent situation. It had to be a situation so dire that if they didn’t move the troops immediately, something terrible would happen, and at the same time, it had to be a serious matter that could bring down the Grand Duke of Belthus.

“There is a high possibility that a high-ranking demon of at least five stars will appear at the Grand Duke of Belthus’s mansion. One that uses necromancy.”

“…Is that true?”

The luxurious reception room of the Count of Rodeia.

Even when training, she wore her armor meticulously, making her imposing presence all the more remarkable given her small stature.

The holy blood sword she always wore at her waist was also quite large, making it a wonder how this elderly woman could wield it.

“Such an entity cannot be easily summoned unless it is a high-ranking necromancy spell. Could it be that the Grand Duke of Beltus really…”

“If we delay, the situation will escalate. We must act quickly.”

“…Are you sure you can take responsibility for that statement?”

“I swear on the honor of the Barony of Ravenclaw.”

It wasn’t just the words of some random passerby, but the words of a noble whose status and affiliation were clearly confirmed, sworn on their honor.

It was a situation that couldn’t be easily dismissed, but it was also difficult to trust completely.

A ruler’s decisiveness was needed, but it wasn’t a situation where one could act recklessly.

The Countess of Rodeia pressed her brow, showing a cautious demeanor that even in extreme situations, one must confirm what needs to be confirmed.

“Even if that is true, how do you know that? The Grand Duke of Beltus is a cunning man. He wouldn’t easily reveal his weaknesses to a baron from the frontier.”

“Yes. But I also have some knowledge of dealing with necromancers. Just like when we captured Leonard. And… I didn’t discover this top-secret information on my own.”

It meant that Derrick had a reliable informant.

He couldn’t help but ask what that was.

At those words, Derrick, with a serious expression, spoke.

“The Grand Duke of Beltus used his status and authority to tightly control the members of his domain, but there are those who do not follow him. Among those under the Grand Duke of Beltus, there is someone who noticed the existence of necromancy and revealed everything to me.”

“You know the authority of the Grand Duke of Beltus better than anyone, don’t you?”

“Yes. Despite that, there is an insider who revealed all the facts.”

Bringing down the Grand Duke of Beltus.

If he left the Grand Duke of Beltus, who trampled and slandered him, to his own devices, he would forever live in disgrace in this noble society.

Therefore, he couldn’t leave the Grand Duke of Beltus alone.

However, it wasn’t good for even his disciple, who had maintained a relationship with him through thick and thin, to be swept away by the family’s crisis.

Therefore, Derrick devised a new stratagem.

“Lady Denise. She came to the Barony of Ravenclaw and confided in me about the darkness of Beltus.”

Everyone knew that Denise had been studying under Derrick for a long time.

The Countess of Rodeia also knew well that Lady Denise trusted Derrick greatly and had deep connections within the social circles.

Therefore, it couldn’t be said that what Derrick was saying was entirely unrealistic.

“If he is researching necromancy of such a high rank that it is reckless, it is highly likely to lead to a major accident. She had already foreseen that possibility. She was well-versed in exploratory magic and deeply understood the internal affairs of Beltus.”

When all this is over, if someone must become the real power behind Beltus… it would be best if it were someone favorable to Derrick.

Therefore, if one person had to be brought up from the crumbling Beltus family… that person was already decided.

“…”

Rodeia’s expression had become even more serious.

If moving the soldiers turned out to be in vain, then Derek could simply be held accountable.

However, if they did not move and it led to a great disaster… who would take responsibility for that?

Risk and return. When you put both on the scales, the conclusion comes faster than you think.

In the end, the choice that Countess Rodeia would make… was already determined.

Her determination and drive were at an extraordinary level.