“Hmm……”
Katana thought for a moment before answering.
“If there’s magic that can erase other magic, then maybe it’s possible. A magic tool is just an object that holds magic. If the magic inside is erased, it will just become an empty tool.”
An empty tool? But when I checked again after the meeting, Baron Gobet’s magic tool was still working fine. The only thing that disappeared was the recorded video—everything else was normal.
“What about other ways? Can’t we just erase the video but keep the magic tool working?”
“Well… maybe there’s a spell like that, but I don’t know one.”
“What about a way that doesn’t use magic?”
“Only magic can erase magic.”
“I see……”
“Why are you asking?”
“No reason, I just got curious.”
Katana quickly lost interest and went back to talking with Floria.
I felt uneasy. In the end, there was no real way to erase just the video.
If it was magic that Katana didn’t know, then most people wouldn’t know it either. Besides, Caesar couldn’t even use magic.
And if Caesar had really erased the video, he would have told me. There was no reason to keep it a secret.
‘Even if he awakened, there’s no reason to hide it.’
I shook my head. Maybe I was just overthinking things.
‘Maybe I should sleep.’
The mat was big enough for several people to lie on. Katana and Floria were already lying down, chatting.
Just as I was about to lie down too, a strong wind blew past. Whoosh. If I slept like this, I would definitely catch a cold. I didn’t mind, but when it got colder, Katana and Floria would start complaining for sure.
I searched the picnic basket, but there was no blanket. After thinking for a moment, I got up.
“Where are you going?”
Katana looked up at me.
“I’m going to check with the maids to see if they have any blankets. If something happens, just shout.”
“Mm, okay.”
Katana waved her hand lazily. I stepped off the mat and walked toward the forest where the maids were.
There were guards nearby, and more importantly, Katana was here, so I wasn’t worried. She was strong enough to put a barrier spell on my bracelet, after all.
Soon, tall trees blocked my path. At first, the forest looked too thick to walk through, but if I went a little further, there was an open space inside. Sitting there always felt peaceful, like I was the only one surrounded by trees.
The maids had gone this way earlier, so they were probably here. I pushed through the trees and walked forward. In the distance, I heard their voices.
‘They’re really here.’
I was about to call out to them when something they said made me stop.
“But there’s no way His Majesty would do that.”
‘…Huh?’
If they were talking about something else, I would have let them know I was here. But they were talking about Caesar.
“We’re not the only ones talking about this. The rumor has spread everywhere. His Majesty seems quiet and kind, but actually…”
The maid’s voice got too quiet to hear.
‘Actually what? What about Caesar?’
I hesitated, then took out my magic bracelet and put in a yellow gemstone. It hid my presence and made their voices clearer.
Now I could hear them again.
“There’s even a witness. Or should I say, the person it happened to?”
“Happened to? What do you mean? What did His Majesty do?”
“Well! There’s a noble family that lost their title and got kicked out of the empire.”
‘What?’
I thought carefully.
So, the maids were saying that Caesar had taken away someone’s noble title and sent them away—and because of that, there were bad rumors about him.
But Caesar never told me anything like that.
‘Taking away a family’s title… That’s too serious for him not to mention it.’
“There must have been a reason.”
One of the maids said exactly what I was thinking.
‘Yeah, there must have been a reason.’
Maybe he didn’t think it was important. Or maybe he just didn’t get the chance to tell me because I was busy with Baron Gobet’s matters.
“A reason?”
But another maid continued, as if she didn’t believe it.
“Yes, there was a reason. The crime of speaking to His Majesty.”
“That’s ridiculous. They lost their title and got kicked out just for talking to him?”
“I’m serious!”
“Where did you even hear this from? Isn’t it just gossip?”
“There’s proof.”
The maid took something from her pocket and carefully showed it to the others.
“Look. This is the official document saying why they were exiled. No noble family gets treated like this. It’s obvious that it was just an excuse.”
“It really says that?”
Even with the bracelet, I was too far to see what they were holding.
But from the way the other maid’s attitude changed, it must have been real proof.
“I heard this wasn’t the only family. If His Majesty doesn’t like someone, he just kicks them out.”
“What?”
“And you know what’s even scarier…”
The maid lowered her voice and whispered.
“They say His Majesty has a terrifying power. They say if you meet his eyes, he can kill you instantly.”
“…That’s ridiculous.”
One of the maids laughed like it was a joke.
But I… I felt frozen in place.
A terrifying power—there was only one thing that could mean. Caesar’s awakening.
Suddenly, the maid’s words didn’t seem so ridiculous anymore.
‘But Caesar hasn’t awakened, so he doesn’t have that kind of power…’
I was still confused when the maid spoke again.
“Well, I think that rumor might be exaggerated. But you know what happened after he became emperor. How the previous Empress started acting.”
“Ah…”
“She barely leaves the palace anymore, and the former princess has way more guards than before. We all had to move here for a reason.”
“You’re saying… they’re scared of His Majesty?”
“What else could it be?”
“Then, does that mean…”
The maid hesitated before whispering.
“His Majesty is actually a cruel tyrant?”
Snap.
At that moment, a twig broke under my foot.
“What was that?”
The maids gasped and turned toward the forest. Without thinking, I spun around and ran.
****
While Evelyn was away at Summerhill, Caesar was training.
It wasn’t his usual sword training. Instead of practicing in the training grounds, he was in his office with Alvin. The door was locked tightly.
The large desk had been cleared, and Caesar sat in front of it.
“Alvin, bring the next one.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Alvin placed an apple on the desk. Caesar stared at it intently. A faint ripple—one that only he could sense—spread through the air.
“Check it.”
“Yes.”
Without hesitation, Alvin drew the sword from his waist and sliced the apple in half.
At first glance, nothing seemed different. But the apple’s seeds had completely disappeared.
“It worked.”
Caesar gave a small nod.
This was training for his ability—the power of erasure. He was trying to figure out how to use it better and understand its limits.
To train properly, Caesar had told Alvin most of the details about his ability. Alvin was the only one who could help him. Of course, he had made sure to keep it a strict secret.
It had already been several months since they started this training. They only practiced when Evelyn was away, so they didn’t have much time.
But the results were showing. Bit by bit, Caesar was learning about his unique power—something that had never existed before and that no one had taught him.
To erase something, the most important condition was that Caesar had to see it.
But simply seeing it wasn’t enough—he had to recognize what it was.
For example, if there was an apple inside a closed wooden box, Caesar couldn’t erase it because he couldn’t see it directly.
However, if he already knew that there was an apple inside, then he could erase it.
In other words, it wasn’t just about vision. He needed to be aware of the object’s identity.
If something was too far away to recognize clearly, even if he could see it, he couldn’t erase it.
Alvin examined the apple with fascination and said,
“So, you can erase just the seeds.”
“Yes. Even though I don’t know exactly what they look like or how many there are, I can still erase them.”
In other words, it didn’t matter if the apple inside the box was green, red, rotten, or fresh. As long as he knew it was an apple, he could erase it.
‘That must be why I was able to erase that recording, too.’
Caesar recalled the meeting from a few days ago—the first time he had ever used his power in a real situation.
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