CLAIRE’S POV
I felt a deep sense of loss in me but never quite learned what caused it. Regardless, we continued to expose corrupt nobles and even contacted the Resistance. Somehow, by following what Rae said, we were able to meet with their leader. I didn’t quite understand the meaning or significance of her actions, but Rae seemed to find value in going out of her way to meet the Resistance.
We then cornered Salas with tremendous help from Ralaire, bringing us to the present moment when we were about to settle things once and for all.
“Lilly, you poor soul… May the Spirit have mercy on you.” The moment Salas said those words, Lilly collapsed as though she had suddenly been cursed.
“Cardinal Lilly?!” I cried out, running up to her.
“Get away from her, Miss Claire!” Rae pulled me away by tugging my clothes. I saw a metallic gleam appear where I had just been standing, as a few strands of my hair fell through the air.
“Good grief… You couldn’t make things easy for me, eh?” A casual voice, out of place in the tense moment, spoke up.
Warily, Rae stepped between me and Lilly. “You…”
“Heya, Rae, Miss Claire. It’s been, what, since yesterday?” Lilly spoke as though she were a completely different person. I recognized this new persona, however. It was the masked man who had stood in our way a number of times now.
“Salas! What have you done to Cardinal Lilly?!” I yelled.
Salas ignored me. “Commoner, you are a dual-caster, right?”
“Answer me!” I yelled.
“Oh, but I am. My specialty in my Academy days was suggestion magic…and my research was in artificially giving someone multiple attributes.” Salas gave a sinister smile.
“Guards, apprehend Salas and Lilly,” King l’Ausseil ordered. The guards surrounded the two, but…
“You think this riffraff can stop me?” Lilly produced a dagger from nowhere and immediately forced the royal guards on the defensive. These royal guards were, by all means, the best of the best. I doubted even Rae could come out unscathed in a battle against them all. But somehow, Lilly overpowered them all with ease. She was just that much better in combat.
“Cardinal Lilly, stop!” I yelled.
“It’s useless. That’s Lilly, but it’s not her.” Salas laughed scornfully. “I was trying to artificially create a dual-caster. I was only partially successful, though.”
“What do you mean?” Rae asked.
“I originally intended to imbue individuals with a second attribute,” he said, like he was explaining something to a student in danger of failing the class. “But in the end, I could only do so by embedding a second personality within that person. You see, the new personality naturally came with a new magical attribute.”
Lilly’s magical attribute should be water. If what Salas was saying was true, then she had to have another attribute now. But was such a thing even possible?
“So the masked assassin was Miss Lilly all along?” Rae asked.
“Indeed, and she relayed everything your little investigation uncovered straight to me. Though I suppose I was still outwitted in the end,” he said with a wry smile. That had to be why we couldn’t find any issues when we first checked his ledger that one time. Lilly had been feeding him information.
“But she looks completely different!” I cried. “No disguise should be able to change her that much.”
“It’s probably a magical tool. Remember the one Lilly lent us so I could switch places with Lady Yu?” Rae said.
I recalled exactly what she was talking about. I had only thought it was awfully convenient Lilly had such a thing, but now I understood it was what she used to disguise herself.
“Does the original Lilly know about this?” Rae asked. From her stiff tone, I could tell she already half expected his answer.
“No, she doesn’t. If she did, I imagine she would try to take her own life,” Salas answered.
How despicable. How could he take such a pure-hearted girl and use her as a pawn for his own schemes?
“Now, Lilly,” Salas ordered. “It’s time to kill all these people.”
“That’s quite an ask. Claire and Rae won’t go down easily.”
“I’m sure you’re up to the task.”
“Of course I am. But who’s to say I’ll be able to keep you safe at the same time?”
“Hmph…”
The two talked as Lilly defeated the royal guards one after another. There was no hesitation in her strikes. I couldn’t bear to watch her hurt others so casually.
“In that case, prioritize my escape,” Salas said.
“As if we’d let you get away!” I yelled, already preparing my Magic Ray. I didn’t want to fatally wound Lilly, but the situation being what it was, I was prepared to do what I had to. I moved to a spot where I could keep my eyes on them both and warned, “Salas, Cardinal Lilly. I cannot modulate the effects of this spell. Surrender, if you want to live.”
“Well, what now?” Lilly asked as she defeated the last of the Royal Guards surrounding her. She began working on the Royal Guards surrounding Salas next. She seemed to be ignoring my threat entirely.
“Cardinal Lilly, stop!” I warned her. “If you make one more move, I will fire!”
“Go ahead and try.” She ignored me, continuing to swing her dagger. I couldn’t allow her to do any further harm.
“…Forgive me!”
I steeled my will and fired Magic Ray at Lilly. Four beams of light shot forth toward her small frame, but…
“Wh-what?!” My magic scattered like mist before reaching her.
“I forgot to mention, but Lilly here is my masterpiece,” Salas said with a wide grin. “She’s not on Princess Manaria’s level, perhaps, but she can rival her in one particular regard.”
“…Is that Spellbreaker?” Rae asked.
“No, no, nothing as grand as that. This Lilly has high aptitude in wind magic. Her specialty is manipulating time.”
Manipulating…time? Then my Magic Ray must have been rewound to a time before it was structured into a spell—when it was just the component magical energy. What an absurd ability.
“You called her your masterpiece,” Rae said. “Does that mean there are others?”
“Of course. What parent would test an unverified process on their own child? I didn’t start on Lilly until I’d perfected my technique. Let’s see, how many orphans did I break before I got here? Ten? Twenty? No, maybe more,” Salas answered coolly, despite the horrific nature of his words.