Noble Lady Reformation Guide

“I’ve come to kill the 6-star confusion mage.”

Despite such an absurd declaration, Kohella did not show the slightest hint of bewilderment.

She simply sat down on the sofa and rested her chin on her hand, calmly observing Linus’s true intention as he put forward that strange proposal.

“Linus Rugel Belmierd. I believe I saw you a long time ago, when you attended a prayer at the Kremton Monastery. You’ve changed quite a bit since then.”

“That was when the blood hadn’t yet dried from my head. I’m honored that you remember me, Lady Kohella.”

“I have a good memory. When I learned you were the eldest son of the Belmierd family, I made sure to remember you. But it seems life has tested you more than expected. Compared to back then, you’ve become much more carefree.”

The Linus Kohella remembered did not have the unkempt appearance he had now.

He wore his red hair neatly cut at ear level, his sharp chin lifted proudly, and his eyes burned with ambition.

He was dressed in well-kept noble attire and carried the confidence befitting the heir of an influential family.

However, the Linus now standing before her was little more than a vagrant who did not even shave regularly.

The stench of alcohol mixed with tobacco that emanated from his body made it impossible to mistake him for a young lord of a noble house.

His red ponytail, carelessly tied behind his back, was greasy, but he seemed not to care at all.

On the contrary, he shook his head and wore a nonchalant expression.

“Everyone goes through hardships in life. I won’t ask what happened within the Belmierd family.”

“It’s nothing so extraordinary. Fairly common matters among noble houses.”

Linus replied in a rough voice.

His cloak, draped carelessly, was covered in accumulated grime.

“I had a dream. It didn’t turn out well. And I got a bit lost.”

“…”

“But living like this, strangely enough, life isn’t so bad. So I decided to keep going this way.”

Kohella still did not trust him.

Sensing that distrust, Linus let out a dry laugh and sat down across from her.

The room where the emperor had been murdered.

Sitting face to face, the two observed each other in silence, as if by reading the other’s gaze they could also read their thoughts.

Before Kohella, head of the magic advisors of Gremport Palace, there was no room for cheap tricks.

So Linus relaxed his shoulders and spoke frankly.

“I wanted to become a hero.”

Kohella was someone who deeply respected those who possessed outstanding magical talent.

However, Linus was not someone who could be considered outstanding even with generosity.

At best, he barely reached a mediocre one-star level.

For the eldest son of the illustrious Belmierd family, his talent was lamentably insufficient.

It was not hard to imagine why Linus had ended up wandering aimlessly.

Lacking ability commensurate with one’s lineage is something that eventually consumes a person.

However, Kohella’s deduction was only half correct.

“My mother was a commoner.”

“…”

“The mother of my younger brother, Leonard, was as well. Of the three siblings, the only one who inherited purely noble blood was Ellen.”

Suddenly, Linus brought up the most delicate and hidden point of the Belmierd family.

To Kohella’s eyes, it resembled a gambler placing his bet on the table.

Revealing a secret that could never be mentioned publicly was a way to force her to listen carefully.

The murky affairs of a noble family like the Belmierds were more than enough of a wager to capture her interest.

“My father was already roaming battlefields long before he received the title of frontier count. And as those who know him well are aware, when one spends too much time waging war in distant lands, it isn’t rare to fall into some deviation.”

On battlefields where blood flowed freely and corpses piled up, it was common for soldiers, carried along by their comrades, to frequent local brothels or engage in fleeting affairs.

Normally, such things were treated as youthful indiscretions and buried in the heat of war upon returning home.

But Count Belmierd could not do that.

He could not regard the life born of that indiscretion as a mere mistake of the past, nor pretend it had never existed.

So he brought Linus and Leonard, sons of a prostitute, into the Belmierd manor and raised them under his roof, determined to take responsibility to the end.

Even Countess Belmierd, a truly kind woman, loved Linus and Leonard as if she herself had given birth to them, allowing them to stand with dignity as legitimate members of the family.

That was why Linus deeply respected the woman who did not share his blood.

“Then what became of your biological mother?”

“She died quite a long time ago. She survived by selling her body on battlefields, so perhaps expecting her to live many years was too much.”

Linus let out a bitter laugh.

“Even so, they say she was happy knowing I would live comfortably with the Belmierd family. It’s ridiculous. Knowing her fate was to starve to death on the streets, she secretly put me on a ship bound for this continent, even bribing people with what little she had.”

“…”

“I suppose that’s what gave me my stubbornness. Even with incomplete noble blood, I wanted to prove that I could rise in this aristocratic society regardless. In a world rotten to the core by lineage, I wanted to deny it with my very existence.”

Kohella remembered well the fervor of that ambition.

The young Linus she had seen at the monastery seemed the very embodiment of that fire.

What did blood matter?

Even if incomplete, the determination to prove his worth was extraordinary.

It was no coincidence that Kohella still remembered his face after so many years.

However, there was no need to ask how that ambition had ended.

“That’s right. Great ambitions don’t always lead to glorious endings.”

Linus gave a bitter smile.

His younger sister was Ellen.

A child chosen by the gods, a bud destined to become a ruler.

Ellen, a pure-blooded noble, awakened her mana for the first time at the age of ten.

Even other qualities befitting a ruler far surpassed those of Linus, something he could not help but acknowledge.

“You know it well, Lady Kohella. There are those who, no matter how desperately they cling to incomplete blood, never manage to reach the summit. And there are also those who, starting as penniless orphans in the slums, surpass 4 stars and set their sights on 5.”

“…”

“Those are the ones who become heroes.”

There was no sadness or inferiority complex in Linus.

That phase had ended a very long time ago.

All that seemed to remain in that ragged man was the ability to place his bets where the odds were highest at the gaming table.

“If you’re going to place a bet, you have to do it on people like that.”

Kohella understood immediately.

The impetuous, ambitious youth Linus once was no longer existed.

The man sitting before her was someone who only bet when the odds were favorable and, if he won, collected the money and left.

A true gambler, the kind who wandered the betting dens.

***

“¿D-Dereck…?”

“Lady Aiselin…?”

When Dereck turned around after killing the magic advisor who had been used by the confusion mage, a familiar face appeared among the trees of the forest.

Not much time had passed since Dereck had left the main hall, determined to draw the confusion mage out by himself.

Despite having ordered that no one separate from Princess Roselin under any circumstances, Aiselin had left the academic building without hesitation and followed him there.

“I-I’m sorry… I was really worried…”

“How did you manage to leave the main hall?”

“I took a detour. It wasn’t that difficult. I don’t think there’s anyone who knows the structure of the academic building better than I do.”

Aiselin had memorized all the blueprints of the buildings of the Ravenclaw Academy.

Leaving the main hall was, in truth, not a big deal for her.

It was a night with the moon high in the sky.

Although Dereck had even resorted to using the Book of Longing to make threats as a bluff, the confusion mage had not appeared.

He had probably realized that the declaration was nothing more than bait meant to force him out.

Dereck explained the entire situation to Aiselin.

“I-I see… bait… to lure the confusion mage…”

“If he doesn’t respond, we might really have to use the Book of Longing, but we’re not yet in a situation where we need to gamble our lives.”

“Even so…!”

Aiselin suddenly composed herself and stared straight at Dereck.

It was not common to see her with such a firm expression—she, who was always as gentle as water.

In the forest bathed in moonlight, Aiselin bit her lower lip and spoke.

“Talking about dying or not dying… please, don’t say it even as a joke. Even if it was part of the plan, you could at least have warned me a little…”

“…”

“I truly thought something had happened to you, Lord Dereck… I had no choice but to run out. If you had really died protecting the nobles… that would have been too… too tragic.”

“I’m sorry. But I couldn’t warn you in advance. No matter what I said, the moment I did, it would also reach the ears of the confusion mage.”

Dereck apologized sincerely to Aiselin, who had lowered her gaze with a sad expression.

He had not imagined that she would rush out in such desperation.

The two of them began walking back toward the main hall, remaining silent for a while.

Aiselin walked with her head lowered, as if ashamed of having acted impulsively.

Dereck pressed his brow, and to ease the situation, changed the subject.

“Still, it’s unexpected that the confusion mage didn’t appear in person. With such a variable, I thought he would definitely show himself…”

“Yes… I also wonder what would have happened if you had really read the Book of Longing. Why didn’t he appear even then?”

Walking together through the silent streets of the campus, Aiselin and Dereck sank into their thoughts.

The academic buildings, carefully constructed day by day, passed before them.

There were still no students, and the atmosphere was gloomy, but when late spring arrived, this place would become a sanctuary of learning filled with life.

Aiselin, who dreamed of that future, sighed as she felt the cutting air of the Ravenclaw Academy.

“I never imagined it would turn into a scene of murders. Many of the items in the main hall were destroyed, and the entrance to Amaryllis House is covered in blood…”

“It’s only a temporary situation. If we resolve all of this properly, we’ll be able to inaugurate the academy as planned.”

“I hope so. Both you and I have worked so hard.”

Aiselin clenched her fists tightly and looked once more at the academic buildings.

“Let’s finish this situation properly and open the academy as if nothing had happened.”

“Of course.”

“But for that, we’ll have to catch the culprit—what do you think, Dereck? With so few clues, it must be difficult…”

“Well, for now, I’ve thought of a few things I want to ask Princess Roselin.”

“…Really? In the main hall, you looked completely exhausted…”

Princess Roselin was the only person completely free from the influence of the confusion mage.

If Dereck had truly encountered the mage several times and lost those memories, Roselin could not possibly be unaware.

No matter how capable a confusion mage might be, he could not erase Princess Roselin’s memories.

That meant Roselin was hiding something.

“…”

Dereck felt a strange sense of discomfort.

Princess Roselin had lost her father to an unknown confusion mage.

She had no reason to hide information.

She was in a position where she would do anything to catch the culprit.

Then why conceal something from Dereck?

“…Lord Dereck?”

“Sorry, I was thinking for a moment.”

Dereck stopped abruptly, rested his chin on his hand, and sank into deep thought.

The reason Princess Roselin was hiding something.

There was only one possible explanation.

Saying it would be useless.

Suddenly, Dereck felt as if the blood began to race through his head.

He reconstructed the entire situation from Princess Roselin’s point of view.

Emperor Gattrel, her father, had died.

At the hands of a confusion mage whose identity was almost impossible to discern.

Whether disguised among the crowd or hidden in a way that transcended even perception, he was not someone easy to capture.

But what if Dereck managed to find him using all kinds of ingenuity and variables?

Even then, it would make no sense.

A confusion mage who had reached the extreme of his art would erase the memories of everyone present and act as if he had never been discovered.

No matter how much they tracked him down and found him, everything would be meaningless.

If he erased the memories, everything would become something that never happened.

At most, a faint sense of incongruity would remain—and even that could be manipulated.

However, Princess Roselin’s memories could not be erased.

She could continue to exist, knowing who the culprit was.

And even if everyone else’s memories disappeared, she would insist again and again, pointing out the true culprit, trying to convince everyone.

And everyone would eventually believe her.

But even that would be meaningless.

It would be enough to erase all memories again and turn everything into a never happened.

Manipulating the memories of hundreds of people present so that everything fit coherently was an overly difficult and exhausting task, and as long as a reference point like Roselin existed, everything would ultimately fall apart.

In contrast, erasing all memories and turning everything into something that never happened was a simple and direct process.

It only consumed a bit more mana.

Facing a 6-star confusion mage was that absurd and unfair.

No matter what happened, if he wished it, he could turn everything into something that never occurred.

A true swindler.

Dereck swallowed as he recalled the previous night.

He did not remember it well.

In fact, it was strange that he had not noticed it earlier.

If one does not pay conscious attention, it is not even easy to realize.

That is the true terror of confusion magic.

Even the sense of incongruity and déjà vu can be completely erased by that sharp magical force.

Not much time had passed since the emperor was assassinated, yet he had the strange feeling that several nights had already gone by.

That discomfort, as if countless unrecognized memories had piled up, is difficult to perceive unless one deliberately tries.

How many times had the memories been erased?

The princess, sitting on the railing of the main hall and observing everyone from above—what kind of struggle had she been fighting during the last two nights?

Princess Roselin, burning with thirst for revenge right after the emperor’s assassination—what had she endured to end up so utterly exhausted, gritting her teeth like that?

Was it just fatigue from not sleeping?

No.

— She had identified the true identity of the confusion mage and had tried to warn the people in the place again and again, but always failed.

No matter how much she warned them, everyone forgot.

No matter what she did, the 6-star confusion mage reacted instantly and erased all memories.

Of course, not even a 6-star confusion mage possessed infinite mana.

If Princess Roselin endured until the end, sooner or later that individual’s mana would be exhausted and the situation could break.

But unfortunately, there was a time limit.

Kohella could only maintain control of the area through the barrier formation for three days.

That meant that if the subject endured for just three days, he would be free and able to leave the place.

If that was the case, the two previous nights had been a war between the confusion mage and Princess Roselin.

Dereck imagined it.

Even if she called Dereck to warn him, even if she called Kohella, even if she tried by any means to secretly convey the culprit’s identity, everything would be read and discovered instantly.

Even using notes or hints, as long as the enemy could read memories, nothing would make sense.

Warning, warning, and warning again—everything would end up becoming something that never happened.

It would be like being trapped in a scenario where everything was already decided.

Having the murderer of her father right in front of her and being unable to do absolutely anything.

The princess, sitting alone on the railing of the second floor of the main hall, observing the nobles with tired eyes, was not simply standing guard.

She was undoubtedly watching the true confusion mage mixed among them.

He was too strong to kill directly.

Warning someone was meaningless.

If those three nights passed, the barrier formation would dissipate, and the confusion mage, right there, in front of everyone, would be free.

Having the enemy of the emperor in the same space, within arm’s reach, and yet having no way to warn anyone.

A prison without bars.

That must have been the endless hell, like an infinite cycle, that Princess Roselin had endured over the last two nights.

Now he understood why her expression was so haggard and why, when speaking with Dereck, she seemed to say disjointed things.

The pieces of the puzzle began to fit together one by one.

Dereck pulled a letter from his chest.

It was the letter Princess Roselin had given him before leaving the main hall.

— It’s a blessing formula passed down by the imperial family. They say it’s the method the hero Rosenheim and Kalimford used during the subjugation of the level-ten deposit.

That blatant lie existed only to conceal the letter’s true contents.

It was one of Princess Roselin’s many attempts to inform Dereck of the culprit’s identity, resorting to all kinds of methods.

Even if it was a futile effort, she had undoubtedly been repeating it again and again.

So what did this letter say?

“D-Dereck…? Th-that letter… what is it…?”

Aiselin spoke with eyes full of doubt.

Dereck opened the letter in silence.

And began to read its contents calmly.

It was not a long text, but Dereck’s eyes opened wide.

How… how could he have forgotten something so obvious until now?

[ Aiselin Eleanor Duplain is currently on vacation.

— Roselin ]

— I will be away temporarily to reconnect with myself. I will return in one week.

Before the inspection event, Aiselin had left the place because Dereck kept taking her work.

She had completely disengaged from the event and had not even attended.

That had unquestionably happened.

And yet, everyone had forgotten it.

As if someone had torn that fragment out of memory.

Aiselin Eleanor Duplain.

That she was here, in this place, was not normal.

Dereck raised his head.

In the moonlit clearing, Aiselin’s eyes, bathed in that gentle light, flew open.

“Oh my.”

From her back, a dark red magic began to seep out.

“Then we’ll have to erase it again.”

Crack!

Dereck leaped backward to create distance and fired a mana arrow straight at her face.