Noble Lady Reformation Guide - Chapter 60: Drop of Blood (6)

The reason Lady Freya of the Freya family was able to avoid the disaster at the Duplain mansion was because the Mont Blanc she ate during afternoon tea was delicious.

It sounds absurd, but in reality, she was sitting in a corner of the mansion’s kitchen, holding a beautiful Mont Blanc dessert on a plate in her lap.

The servants, busy as if possessed while delivering food to the ballroom, didn’t even notice her hiding under a table in the corner.

While silently watching the servants move like machines, Lady Freya was confused about what to do.

‘…’

If you explained it, the situation wasn’t complicated.

Normally, her strict tutor Katia kept a close eye on her back home, but she was delighted to be able to eat pastries freely at the southwestern ball, far from her tutor’s interference.

So, after sampling various drinks, she fell in love with the Mont Blanc that the Duplain mansion’s pastry chef proudly served.

While the other nobles rested in their private rooms, she told her loyal maid she was going to the restroom, then headed to the kitchen to grab more Mont Blanc.

It was far too shameful for the eldest daughter of the prestigious Elvester family to sneak into the Duplain mansion’s kitchen just to secretly eat desserts. So she used her ability—Confusion Spell—to take food without the servants noticing.

‘What’s really going on?’

It was the kind of situation where most would tremble in fear, yet she looked perfectly calm, holding her Mont Blanc steadily.

Even amid the chaos, she nibbled on a honey bun as if she were enjoying a picnic in this eerie place.

Freya wiped the crumbs from her mouth and recalled the message her tutor had left before she left the mansion:

“Lady Diella of the Duplain family will likely become the most influential person in the southwestern empire. So please, don’t be rude at her ball and, I beg you, don’t focus too much on the food. Mind your manners and make a good impression.”

“Lord Kohella will also be at the Duplain mansion, so if you see him, make sure to greet him properly… Hmm… If there’s a ball at the Duplain mansion, my former pupil might also be there.”

Tutor Katia, who constantly interfered and instructed Freya, was someone she feared.

She had always been kind and warm when teaching Dereck, an exemplary student in every way, but knew how to be ruthless in disciplining and controlling her pupils.

To manage Freya, who was weak to gluttony, and to hone her vague magical skills, Katia sometimes had to become a demon.

“Former student of Tutor Katia? What family is he from?”

“He was a commoner from the slums. Very talented and passionate about magic, but I couldn’t bring him to the Elvester estate, so we parted ways in Ebelstein. We still exchange letters occasionally… He’s now working as a magic instructor in the noble society of Ebelstein. So if you attend any social events there, you might run into him.”

“You teach commoners too? That’s surprising.”

When Freya, sitting on her bed, asked that, the elderly mage sitting at the desk with a quill gave a bitter smile.

“Is there a difference in the way magic is handled? Sometimes, even among commoners, there are people highly knowledgeable in magic.”

“Even if they dedicate their whole life, they’ll only become a 3-star mage, right? I wonder what the point is in trying so hard for magic. It must feel meaningless from a teaching perspective too.”

“…”

When Freya spoke harshly, Katia made a complicated expression and gently placed her hand on Freya’s head.

After thinking for a moment, she finally replied briefly:

“You’re right. No commoner can wield magic as well as nobles.”

Freya could tell from Katia’s expression that she was hiding something. She clearly knew something about her former student but didn’t want to talk about it.

“My former student is exceptional, but he could never become as skilled a mage as the nobles.”

That expression was definitely the one she used when lying. Katia rarely lied, which made it easy to tell when she was keeping something secret.

Although Freya didn’t know who Katia Flameheart’s former student was, it was clear that person meant something special to her.

Katia could be terrifying when angry, but she was the best teacher Freya had ever had. If Katia still cared about that person, then they must have had talent beyond Freya’s imagination.

That’s why Freya kept her eyes open, even at the southwestern ball. The mage Katia had mentioned might be in attendance.

After asking around the ballroom, she learned that Katia’s former pupil, named Dereck, had been teaching Diella of the Duplain family.

For the Duplain family—so prestigious they’d hire a commoner as a magic tutor—he had to be exceptional at first glance.

She spent the entire day sitting in the tearoom, observing anyone who looked like a commoner, but found no one who seemed extraordinary.

“Judging by the scale of this disaster, they were probably dragged off and killed.”

Freya chewed and swallowed the last bite of her Mont Blanc with indifferent eyes. Then she brushed the crumbs from the plate and placed it on the marble floor, stretching her whole body.

“Ah.”

Even with strange monsters wandering the hallway, she stretched her stiff body with soft movements, like a rodent waking from a nap.

And then, magic began to stir in her eyes.

Freya, the countess, was an expert in illusions, having learned magic from Katia.

Even putting aside direct combat skills, she was adept at deceiving crowds and vanishing without a trace, moving back and forth undetected.

Her confidence in her abilities kept her calm, even in the midst of chaos.

At the Elvester family mansion, if she decided to hide, the only person who could find her was Katia. Among the ordinary servants, no one could perceive Lady Freya’s stealthy movements.

“Let’s get out of this mansion now. This is going to take a while… If I run into commoners, I can just reveal my identity and toss them a few gold coins, right…?”

Her hair, swaying with magic, draped over her shoulders like a cloak. She was a girl strangely devoid of any sense of crisis.

Her attitude wasn’t just bravery or strength in the face of danger. It was as if she had her emotions completely under control. She was so composed, it seemed like she might hum a tune even in the middle of a battlefield.

Quietly rising from the corner of the table, she peeked into the main hall, where the food was being prepared step by step.

The servants were dragging unconscious guests and seating them at various round tables in the main hall. A lavish banquet was being arranged on the tables, and the band was tuning their instruments, preparing for the climax of the party.

Although the scene was strange and grotesque, Freya remained unfazed as she recited the level 1 confusion spell, Sound Barrier.

Whoosh.

A bluish magical energy enveloped her, beginning to erase all sounds.

Then she used the level 2 confusion spell, Illusion, scattering copies of herself throughout the hallway.

Freya’s illusions, confidently striding forward, lacked vitality up close, but they were enough to distract the corpse-like monsters wandering outside.

‘Next, I’ll use a presence-concealing spell and sneak around the mansion’s central garden to escape. If there are still horses in the stables, I might ride one and flee across the plains. Should I check just in case? Hmm… I’m not very good at riding—I always get scolded in lessons.’

Just as Freya was stretching and moving toward the hallway—

Bang!

“Hmm…?”

Bang! Crash! Crash!

A loud noise, as if something had slammed into the ground, echoed from the upper part of the hallway.

Sensing something was off, Freya sharpened her senses.

Bang! Crash! Smash!

Crack!

After a series of crashes, the ceiling above her suddenly collapsed.

“Ahhh!”

Freya cried out in surprise and quickly backed away. But with her small steps, she didn’t get far.

While conjuring protective magic, chunks of marble and dust began to fall.

Boom! Crash!

Scream! Bang!

When Freya, who had fallen back in an awkward posture, looked up, she witnessed an unbelievable scene.

A white-haired boy, who had fallen along with the rubble from the upper floor, was pinning down a man in armor beneath his knees. Both were covered in dust and scratches.

At a glance, it was clearly a fight to the death.

“Wh-What is this…?!”

Clang! Clang!

Bang!

From the hole in the ceiling, more furniture—tables and chandeliers—continued to fall noisily.

Amid the chaos, the white-haired boy who was stomping on the armored man quickly turned to face Freya.

“….”

“What…? A… survivor…?”

That was the moment when Freya barely managed to get a sentence out.

The man pinned beneath the boy pushed against the floor, using magic to fling him away.

Bang!

The white-haired mercenary was hurled against the wall by the impact. It all happened in an instant.

When the wounded man stood up, Lady Freya furrowed her brow.

Rumble.

Through the dust falling from his body, a pair of red eyes gleamed.

“That man… he’s the second son of the Duplain family…!”

Leigh’s eyes were filled with madness, his body torn and exhausted, barely able to stand. He was panting like a starving beast.

He had lost his mind.

The way he recklessly unleashed magic in all directions, ready to destroy anything that moved, reminded Freya of the enraged bull she had once seen in an arena.

But unlike a bull, Leigh used magic. And that was far worse. Freya tried to hide immediately, but the monster—foaming blood at the mouth and with bulging eyes—was already radiating magical energy.

“Oh no!”

It was then that Freya, unable to keep up with the speed of the events, clenched her teeth tightly.

Crack!

Before she realized it, the white-haired boy had risen from the debris and was gripping Leigh’s head tightly.

Moving like lightning, he smashed the madman’s head into the ground.

Crack!

Leigh’s head hit the floor with a dry, grotesque sound, and his body rolled over once again.

Before he could get back up, the boy kicked him hard in the abdomen.

Crunch! Splash!

Blood gushed from Leigh’s mouth. Each of the boy’s movements was fluid and precise. It wasn’t his first time subduing a monster like this.

“U-uwah…”

“If you stay there, you’ll die. Get as far away as you can…”

“Behind you! Behind! Behind!”

As the boy warned Freya, Leigh had already stood up and was swinging a wooden chair.

The boy quickly lowered his stance and recited a spell, blasting the chair apart with a magic explosion.

His movements were like those of a seasoned duelist. If this had been a duel with weapons, things might have been different—but in a real battle requiring skill and magical control, Leigh couldn’t beat Dereck.

Even though his strength and ferocity had been enhanced by necromantic magic, he still couldn’t match Dereck.

Still, even the winner of this clash wouldn’t escape unscathed.

Every blow from Leigh left visible marks on Dereck’s body. A direct spell or a hit to the cheek drew blood, but Dereck didn’t flinch.

He was used to pain. To Freya, both Dereck and Leigh looked like monsters.

“Who is that man…!”

Leigh, no matter what people said, was the second son of the Duplain family. Although he had always been overshadowed by his older brother Valerian, he was known for his exceptional skills.

But now, under the influence of strange magic, he had become a beast… and even so, he was being overpowered by someone who appeared to be a mere commoner.

Crash! Bang! Crash! Crash!

The magic forming in his hands took the shape of a giant flaming spear.

Bang! Scream!

But in terms of reaction speed, Leigh couldn’t match Dereck.

Dereck’s specialty was firing magical arrows that interrupted enemy spells before they were completed.

Even though Leigh was a formidable mage, his magic lacked precision. Dereck, who had fought countless types of spells, stood like an impenetrable wall.

No matter how furious the bull, if it charged at a wall over and over, all it would do was break its own skull.

The man, beyond reason, didn’t know how to give up, even when his magic failed. If spells didn’t work, he punched, bit, clawed—anything to kill Dereck.

Crack!

A blow landed on Dereck’s side, but he tensed his abdomen with a deep inhale and withstood the hit.

Without staggering or losing ground, Dereck stretched out his hand and gripped Leigh’s entire head.

“Ra… hahaha.”

At the moment Leigh, bloodied, tried to bite Dereck’s hand—

Crack!

Star Level 1 Spell – Electric Shock.

Electricity surged from Dereck’s hand, running through Leigh’s head.

Crack!

No matter how strong you are, taking a spell at that range would knock you out.

Soon after, Leigh’s movements, halted by Dereck’s grip, began to weaken.

Sssss…

Leigh’s legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the marble floor with a heavy thud. A small cloud of dust rose. Dereck shook his hand and loosened his wrist.

The end came in an instant.

“My god…”

Despite the vast physical difference, Dereck had subdued the giant man with ease.

Standing over the man sprawled on the ground, Dereck simply breathed heavily, none of his wounds appearing fatal.

“What… what was that…”

Freya, lying on the ground, swallowed hard.

At that moment, Dereck turned sharply to look at her.

His face was covered in dried blood. His eyes, blood-red. He looked like just another monster—one who had subdued the giant without any effort.

The killer instinct still gleaming in his eyes after defeating Leigh was enough to make anyone’s skin crawl.

Freya forgot to breathe and quickly released her magic.

‘If I use illusion magic to hide, I can escape! No matter what, I shouldn’t face a monster like that!’

She released her magic and used the highest-level illusion spell she could handle.

Star Level 2 Illusion Spell – Momentary Invisibility.

It was a spell that made her completely vanish from her opponent’s sight for a moment. The duration was short, but it was enough to gain time and run toward the exit.

Just as she was about to kick open the window and dash into the central garden—

Bang!

But something unbelievable happened.

The guy grabbed Freya by the back of the neck just as she was about to fully disappear.

Freya nearly stumbled on the hem of her dress but managed to avoid falling thanks to Dereck’s grip.

“Ugh, pant…”

Freya swallowed dryly.

‘Detection magic…! Magical or lifeform detection…! At least Star Level 2…!’

This commoner was at least a 2-star level. She realized that—but it was too late to process it while being held by the nape of her neck.

When Freya turned her head, there he was—the blood-covered monster, staring at her with red eyes.

In the end, there was only one thing Freya could do.

“Please… save me…”

It was a plea from the depths of her being, casting aside all noble pride.

In moments like this, she was a clever girl.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelCet