Right after putting Elicia to sleep, Yujin didn’t send her back right away.
Instead, he set off to find someone who could be of help in this situation.
“That’s how it happened.”
“……”
And, as expected, that someone was none other than Ines Karandar, the academy’s Headmistress.
Though she greeted him politely when he strode into her office, that courtesy lasted only a moment. As soon as she saw Elicia, fast asleep as if she had fainted, she looked flustered. Yujin wasted no time in giving an explanation.
And now—
“…Wait a moment, Sir Yujin. I’m having trouble understanding what you just said…”
.
Holding her head as if she were feeling dizzy, Ines spoke while looking at him. Yujin didn’t seem to care and he continued.
“It seems Her Highness has started to rely on me emotionally to an excessive degree. All I did was hint, rather indirectly, that our connection would end once her problem was resolved. But she lost control.”
His explanation was remarkably brief. In fact, it was identical, word for word, to the one he had already given. Ines swayed slightly.
“No, that doesn’t make any sense…”
“Headmistress, you do understand, don’t you? You just haven’t fully accepted the situation yet.”
“……..”
Still unable to wrap her head around it, Ines tried to protest, but after hearing his words, she had nothing to say.
After a moment of pressing her fingers against her temple with her eyes closed in silence, she finally seemed to collect her thoughts and spoke.
“…Sir Yujin, how in the world did it come to this?”
“How, indeed…”
Yujin let out a bitter chuckle before laying Elicia down on the sofa in the Headmistress’s office.
“I thought she had stabilized somewhat after the demonic power was sealed, but she still seemed mentally unstable. I suppose having someone there to help her made her naturally grow dependent. This kind of problem is definitely difficult to handle. I can’t just leave someone in such a fragile state to fend for themselves, but at the same time, I can’t fully accept her either.”
“I-I see…”
That did sound like a difficult problem. It was essentially a dilemma.
If Elicia could overcome her hardships on her own, that would be ideal. However, since she couldn’t do it alone, she needed help.
But at the same time, it was just as difficult to ensure she didn’t become overly dependent on the person helping her. She was already in a mentally unstable state, needing something to lean on. Yet, paradoxically, she had to be prevented from relying on that support too much.
“I might have approached this too clinically, despite not being an expert myself. I did set some boundaries, but it seems her emotions have grown too deep regardless. Because of them, she even lost control of the demonic power she normally couldn’t handle.”
“…Is it that serious?”
Ines’s expression hardened. If Elicia had been able to unleash the very demonic power Yujin had sealed, it was impossible to gauge just how strong her emotions must have been.
“We need to find a way to gradually resolve this… but it won’t be easy.”
“…Then, Sir Yujin, wouldn’t it be better to address it directly with magic? Perhaps by interfering with her mind?”
“………”
At Ines’s cautious suggestion, Yujin fell silent. Slowly, he turned to look at her with his narrow eyes.
“………!”
It was the second time Ines had locked eyes with those crimson pupils. The first had been when she mistook him for a dark mage and attacked him.
The memory of those eyes had never faded from her mind.
And now, facing them once more, she found herself frozen in place, like a frog caught before a serpent.
“…Headmistress, are you serious?”
His quiet question cut through the air. Ines who was still stiff lowered her head in response.
“…I-I apologize.”
“There’s nothing for you to apologize to me for. But to Her Highness… that may have been a deeply disrespectful suggestion.”
“……….”
“Of course, it’s not that I haven’t considered your method, Headmistress. Naturally, directly interfering with the mind would be far more convenient. It’s not as if I dislike taking the easier path.”
After saying this, Yujin lowered his gaze to look at Elicia.
“By erecting a powerful barrier to prevent any outside interference with her mind, manipulating her thoughts to make her perceive her emotions and traumas as insignificant, and ultimately even altering her very sense of self, if I did all of that, there would be nothing difficult about it. After all, regardless of the magic involved, it is still Her Highness who is in control of her body. As long as her mind remains intact, the demon’s ego, which has no means to attack, will inevitably be defeated. Of course, there’s no guarantee that what’s left in the end will really be Her Highness.”
“……”
“Headmistress.”
Yujin turned his gaze back to Ines.
“I made a promise to Her Highness. To make sure that she survives with her sense of self completely intact. And that promise still stands. That’s why I have no intention of accepting a method that involves interfering with her mind to solve this problem.”
“…I’m sorry. I was reckless.”
As a headmistress, she felt ashamed. She had believed she cared for her student, yet the moment she heard that Elicia had nearly lost control, she was so consumed by the urgency of the situation that she considered a method that disregarded basic human decency.
“It’s alright. It’s true that the current situation is anything but easy.”
With that, Yujin turned away from her and looked back at Elicia. Her face was so peaceful now that it was hard to believe that she had smiled with such malice just moments ago.
It was because Yujin had cast a spell. It was a blessing of sorts where he wished her a good dream.
What kind of dream was she seeing now?
Well, unless he entered her mind, Yujin had no way of knowing.
“In any case, I believe it would be best if she doesn’t see me for the time being.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. At least for now, it would be better if she had someone else by her side. Whether it be her family or someone else she can rely on. There’s no guarantee that she won’t wake up and lose control again the moment she sees me.”
“Then, as for Princess Elicia’s condition…”
“I’m not saying I intend to avoid her forever. Once she has regained some emotional stability, I’ll begin exploring the root of these feelings and gradually work towards resolving them. After all, the very reason she harbors such emotions is also the source of her suffering. If I can address that, these misguided feelings should naturally begin to fade. By the time the treatment is complete, I intend to leave her with nothing more than a slightly embarrassing memory.”
“……”
Hearing those words, Ines looked at Yujin with a genuine sense of curiosity and asked:
“Um… Sir Yujin, this might be a very rude question, but…”
“You may ask. As long as it’s nothing too outrageous, I’ll answer whatever I can.”
“Well… what do you plan to do if Princess Elicia’s emotions remain unresolved?”
“……”
At those words, Yujin fell silent for a moment as if in thought.
If her emotions remain unresolved…?
“For now, I intend to do everything in my power to prevent that from happening. However… if it does come to that, I won’t be able to avoid taking responsibility in my own way.”
“When you say responsibility…?”
“If it comes down to it, I’m prepared to bear the weight of her feelings.”
“!”
At that, Ines’ eyes widened. She asked with a slightly trembling voice,
“A-Are you saying… you would accept Princess Elicia’s feelings?”
“If Her Highness has developed these misguided emotions entirely because of me, then I can’t just turn away from them. Failure always comes with consequences. And if this is my failure, then I must accept it as well.”
“……”
When she heard Yujin’s words, Ines was left speechless with her mouth slightly open. She eventually asked,
“Do you really have to go that far? No matter what, you are a Transcendent…”
“Like I said, failure comes with consequences.”
Yujin turned to Ines once more and asked,
“Tell me, Headmistress. Do you believe that a Transcendent should turn a blind eye to their failures just to avoid facing the cost?”
“…..…!”
“Was the dragon you envisioned a being so devoid of pride?”
At those words, Ines’ face turned pale. She spoke.
“I-I have never thought that! I just felt that you were getting too deeply entangled in matters of the lower world…!”
“Is that so? I suppose it might have seemed that way to you. However, I believe you may be misunderstanding something.”
“Huh…?”
“I’m not being forcibly tied down by the affairs of the lower world. I chose to be involved of my own will, and I don’t see my choice as a shackle.”
Saying this, Yujin shrugged before continuing.
“Since it was my decision, there’s no point in calling it a shackle or anything of the sort. I made this choice freely, and freedom without consequence is nothing more than indulgence.”
“……”
“If this is the result of my own free choice, then it’s my responsibility to bear it as well. There’s no reason for me to entertain the notion that, as a Transcendent, I should be exempt from such responsibilities just because others say so.”
“…I apologize.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. I just wanted you to understand. What you said wasn’t freeing me from a shackle. It was, in fact, interfering with my freedom.”
At those words, Ines lowered her head and her face turned red. Realizing just how shallow her thoughts had been, she felt ashamed. It was a feeling she had been experiencing quite often today.
Yujin spoke as he looked at her.
“In any case, it would be best if Her Highness doesn’t see me for the next few days. The demonic power has been sealed, so for now, she should return to the imperial palace and spend time with her family. There’s no longer any need to search for a solution within the labyrinth.”
“Ah, by that, you mean…”
As Ines began to speak, Yujin nodded his head and finished her sentence for her.
“Yes. Since Her Highness no longer has a reason to remain at the academy, I’d like you to take the necessary steps to send her back to the imperial palace. As a professor, this isn’t something I can do myself.”
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