"It's dangerous, so please stay about ten steps away."
'What's going on here, why is it like this?'
After about five minutes of desperate attempts, this was my reaction upon witnessing the black flames starting to rise in my hand.
"Let me say it again, you could die, you know?"
'Someone help me, damn it.'
My original plan was to subtly reveal the traces of dark magic left in the teacup to give Meredia a hint.
In fact, it was a plan that most people wouldn't even dare to attempt due to the dangers of dark magic, but I had something to rely on.
Do you know why the Lingard family, with all its internal and external problems, has managed to maintain its appearance until now?
It's precisely because of their hereditary aptitude for 'white magic.'
Of course, the problem is that for some reason, it's now on the brink of extinction.
Still, since it's one of the few skills I possess, I've trained enough to use it in situations like this.
That's why, trusting in my past results, I intended to let a tiny amount of white magic flow into the teacup, revealing its traces only to Meredia—so what on earth is happening now?
At this rate, Meredia might mistake me for a dark mage.
If that happens, I'm finished.
Because, surprisingly, the beings Meredia despises most in the world are dark mages.
Even in the game, every dark mage who approached Meredia during her notorious phase ended up dead at her hands, whether directly or indirectly.
And it wasn't just dark mages—anyone associated with dark magic met the same fate.
Even the emperor, the very sun of the current empire, couldn't escape Meredia's mad obsession and was ultimately eliminated.
'The emperor was quite an extraordinary figure, too.'
Can you believe that even the emperor, ranked first in overall stats in the game and the most likely final boss after Meredia, is eliminated in most routes simply because of his association with dark magic?
And here I am, boldly putting on a dark magic fire show right in front of such a person.
"So, is that the 'interesting thing' you were talking about?"
And as expected, the patience of Meredia, the dark mage slayer, seems to be running thin.
'How am I supposed to react to that?'
Watching her drop the formal speech, slightly trembling her right hand as she emits a murderous aura, makes it hard for me to breathe.
'It was supposed to be a small, simple curse, enough to fit in a teacup. Why is this happening?'
So, if I don't want to be killed on the spot, I need to do something about this curse, which for some reason is going berserk the moment it reacts with my white magic.
The typical solution in such situations would, of course, be to inject a large amount of white magic to neutralize the dark magic. But unfortunately, that's not an option.
Because, frankly, it's a bit embarrassing to admit, but my white magic isn't exactly impressive.
Normal white magic emits a bright and warm aura. However, the white magic I was born with somehow radiates a dark and cold wavelength.
The elders of my family say that, in a way, it feels even more unsettling than dark magic. Honestly, that might be an exaggeration, but it's clear that my white magic is far from ordinary.
Fortunately, up until now, there's never been an issue with the fundamental effectiveness of my white magic, so I've reluctantly continued to practice.
But to think something like this would happen in my first real-life application.
If I had known, I would've tried experimenting with actual dark magic at least once. Then again, that's taboo.
Anyway, since things have come to this, there's only one solution left.
Excluding white magic, one of the most effective ways to remove a curse caused by dark magic is to eliminate the very caster of that dark magic.
However, even in the original game, the identity of the accomplice who betrayed Meredia and helped poison me was never revealed.
So, in this case, the most efficient method would be to eliminate the medium—the teacup.
Honestly, I'd love to just throw the teacup to the floor before my hand gets any worse.
But if the dark magic spreads everywhere, it would be a disaster, so the best option is to break it while it's protected by my white magic in my hand.
In theory, there's no problem.
Of course, my white magic tends to deviate slightly from theory, but I have no other choice right now.
"My lady."
Yes, let's put out this immediate fire first and calmly explain the situation.
Actually, someone interfered with this incident and cursed the teacup, and you almost unintentionally killed me.
"Rats are best dealt with as soon as they're seen."
Just as I was tightening my grip, about to start with a meaningful introduction for that explanation—
"Actually, this teacup…"
"Urgh!!"
A sudden choking scream came from among the servants murmuring about ten steps away, just as I had instructed.
Thud…
Before I could even process the situation, a young attendant, his whole body turning pale, clutched his chest and collapsed to the floor.
"S-save me…"
Trembling all over as if in agony, he desperately crawled towards me, reaching out with all his strength.
Wait a minute. What is happening now?
"Help me…"
"Huh?"
Getting engaged sure is tough, seriously.
°°°°°°°°°
"Rats are best dealt with as soon as they're seen."
By the time Whitney uttered those cryptic words, Meredia's patience had already hit rock bottom.
'Should I just kill him?'
However, upon witnessing what happened next, she had no choice but to set that thought aside.
"Please… this isn't what you promised…"
The attendant, desperately crawling towards Whitney, had bloodshot eyes and black smoke rising from his mouth.
According to Meredia's extensive knowledge, these were typical signs of mana circuit reflux, commonly used as a penalty in silencing curses.
"Save me…"
Perhaps understanding this well, the attendant forced his now-stiffening limbs to move forward, his fading voice pleading for help.
"Me? Save you?"
Watching this scene as calmly as Meredia, Whitney tilted his head slightly, his expression genuinely curious.
"Why?"
And that was the end.
"Ugh…"
As soon as Whitney's indifferent words left his lips, the attendant let out a final breathy sound and collapsed completely, never lifting his head again.
"H-he's dead…"
Gasp…
While they had always been prepared for a moment like this to come while serving their master, witnessing an actual death left the subordinates' faces pale.
"Why are you asking this to me in the first place?"
In the now chilling atmosphere, only Whitney's muttered words of frustration echoed as he brushed off the crumbled teacup from his palm.
"Ha."
It was at that moment that the corners of Meredia's mouth slightly curled up.
'I wondered what kind of nerve it took to pull off something like this, but it seems there was some thought behind it.'
Up until just now, the situation had been nothing short of a checkmate for Meredia.
She had no idea how it was possible, but one thing was clear—Whitney knew the full scope of the incident in advance.
Whitney went even further, setting a trap for Meredia in return.
A bold trap that turned a minor mishap—where her fiancé collapsed from ingesting a sleeping drug during a tea party—into a major incident framed as an assassination attempt using dark magic.
If it had been the former, even if discovered, it could've been easily covered up using the Duke's power. But the moment dark magic is involved, things get complicated.
Anyone associated with dark magic is executed without exception, even if they have royal blood. In fact, depending on the severity, even the Emperor, the greatest figure in the empire, could be dethroned.
Of course, if it doesn't get exposed, there's no problem. But the issue is that Whitney had already orchestrated everything in advance.
Even if she killed him here to silence him, the informants he had likely prepared would send letters to the Imperial Court or the Holy Kingdom within a day.
If that happens, no matter how powerful the Embergreen Duchy is, Meredia's life would be on the line in a heresy trial in the Holy Kingdom.
If they couldn't prove Whitney's scheme in court—clearly planned with meticulous detail—it would be over. And even if they somehow did, the backlash would be immense.
Considering that the Holy Kingdom already held a grudge against the Embergreen Duchy, even Meredia felt a chill down her spine.
'But now, the likelihood of that happening is slim.'
Instead of accusing the Duchy, Whitney had chosen to eliminate both the dark mage, who was clearly in cahoots, and the only piece of evidence with his own hands.
Judging from that servant's reaction, Whitney's cold and ruthless actions were likely not part of any prior agreement.
In other words, Whitney never intended to accuse the Duchy from the start.
So what was the real purpose behind all of this?
As Meredia pondered rapidly, she soon formed a hypothesis.
"The situation is a mess, but I still need to say what must be said."
Could it be that everything Whitney had done so far was merely to prove how much he could get away with against the Duchess? A rather terrifying hypothesis.
"As I mentioned before, I am a white mage. Thanks to that, I was able to detect the dark magic on the teacup, and that's why I did all this—to show you."
And that frightening hypothesis quickly began to turn into reality as Whitney, who had been staring at the lifeless servant with a frown, calmly turned to Meredia and continued speaking.
"I don't know why the servant suddenly had a seizure and collapsed, but I can offer the most plausible theory."
She still had no idea how he managed to plant a spy—especially a dark mage—among the carefully selected servants of the Duchy.
"There was a third party manipulating everything behind the scenes."
"A third party, huh."
"Since things weren't going as planned, they probably got rid of their pawn quickly."
But that didn't matter to Meredia anymore.
What mattered now was that Whitney, having proven his abilities through this series of events, was proposing a deal to her.
"Therefore, neither I nor you are at fault."
"..."
"Do you understand?"
It was only then that Meredia understood Whitney's true goal.
His sudden talk about a third party, after having just displayed such a chilling demeanor, was an overt signal to quietly bury what had happened today—an explicit sign of goodwill.
And the "friendship" he sought through such extreme measures surely required something only Meredia herself could provide.
"…I see."
If Whitney had been a dark mage himself or had shown even a shred of mercy to the dark mage earlier, Meredia would never have accepted his proposal.
But in Meredia's eyes, despite some suspicious aspects, Whitney had clearly wielded white magic.
Moreover, even though working with a dark mage—even for the sake of proving his competence—was questionable, he had ruthlessly killed that same mage right in front of her.
If it were an ordinary person, they'd never associate with him again, but for Meredia, that was actually a point in his favor.
"Let's just say that's what happened today."
"Thank you for understanding. Then, I suppose it's time…"
"Well then, why don't you tell me what you really want?"
Since she had already dropped the pretense, Meredia asked Whitney directly.
"What I want… you say?"
"I understand what you're implying. So now it's time to hear your true objective. Surely you didn't really come here just to get engaged to me."
"That's exactly it, though."
Whitney tilted his head and scratched it awkwardly, but to Meredia, who had already seen through him, it was nothing more than a facade.
"Even with that expression, it's not convincing at all. Just tell me what you want."
"Well, if you insist…"
With a faint note of irritation in her voice, Meredia's sharp words prompted Whitney to stare at her silently for a moment before finally reaching into his coat.
"All you need to do is sign here."
As he spoke, he pulled out an envelope containing documents, wearing a chilling smile that made Meredia's hand hesitate slightly as she reached for it.
"That's the only thing I want."
Handing her the envelope calmly, Whitney added in a soft voice, his face now openly displaying a sinister grin with no trace of pretense.
"So, you've finally shown your true colors."
"Pardon?"
"Annoying as it is, I'll let it slide this time."
And that was the same for Meredia, who had flinched slightly at Whitney's smile.
It was the first time in her life that she had encountered someone of the same ilk—or perhaps even more dangerous.
For her, this was one of the few new and intense stimuli in her life, so she decided to generously overlook the rudeness he had committed in the name of proving his abilities.
"Well… anyway, you can take your time to think it over and give me your answer."
"Alright. I'll read it carefully and give you a reply soon. Escort Sir Whitney out."
"You could review it here, you know."
"There are always eyes and ears around, after all."
"Well then…"
Once they found common ground, their conversation began to flow smoothly, like water over polished stones.
"Oh, next time we sit down together, I'll serve you proper tea."
"Huh?"
"Since we're in the same boat now. There probably won't be any poison."
"Ahahaha."
"Huhuhu."
As their chilling laughter overlapped in the garden where someone had died just moments ago, the servants, struggling to carry the limp body of the fallen attendant, wore even more dismal expressions.
It was the inadvertent birth of the empire's most dreadful duo.
'Whitney Lingard… might turn out to be quite a useful card.'
'What the hell? Is she planning to poison me again if things go south?'
Though their thoughts couldn't have been more different.
*****
Regardless, Meredia, unusually in good spirits and even cracking jokes, had sent Whitney off with ease.
"…What the hell."
But several minutes later, alone in her room—the breeding ground of all her sinister schemes—she locked the door and checked the contents of the envelope.
Her expression reverted to the same look she had when Whitney had stood back up after coughing up blood.
[Marriage Proposal]
"…What does he really want?"
What Whitney had left for her was none other than a marriage proposal.