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Chapter 60: Nikita’s Side Story

At another exit of the Demon Dungeon.

A silver-haired woman stumbled out, almost rolling.

“Nikita!”

A man who rushed out quickly supported her.

The man, who looked exactly like Nikita, was her older brother, Nia Cynthia.

“N-Nia, brother.”

Nikita clenched her fist tightly.

Then, without warning, she struck Nia in the side.

“Ugh!”

“Why… Why didn’t you tell me sooner?! You could’ve just let me know you were alive!”

“S-Sorry, Nikita. If I had contacted you, someone would surely have become suspicious.”

Nia looked at the furious Nikita, not knowing how to handle her.

He had never seen Nikita so emotional before.

She, too, couldn’t control her emotions at that moment.

The surge of feelings within her was overwhelming.

Her mind kept drifting to one man.

The man who had stopped her and sent her here against her will.

When he left the academy, she hadn’t even seen him off.

And yet, he had returned to the academy and stayed by her side, steadfastly protecting her.

“If I had known, none of this would’ve happened…”

Nikita bit her lip tightly.

“Did… Did Vikamon keep it from me because you silenced him, brother?”

“No, that was his decision. In fact, he was the one who saved me.”

Nikita’s eyes widened.

“Vikamon… Perhaps…”

She realized he might have known for a long time that Nia was going to be assassinated.

Perhaps that was why he returned to Zerion Academy.

But for whose sake?

‘It was me.’

Nikita had always known Vikamon’s feelings for her.

After all, she was destined to be used as a pawn in a political marriage by the Marquis Cynthia family.

She couldn’t accept his feelings, and Vikamon understood this.

So, he never confessed his love to her.

‘He…’

Vikamon had left the academy after becoming entangled with Lucas.

At the time, the group he attacked had included the third princess.

As a result, he was exiled from both the academy and his family.

‘Could there have been… another reason?’

Perhaps there had been some reason he had to return as Hannon.

And if that reason was connected to her?

If, as a third-year, Vikamon couldn’t protect the second-year third princess…

And if he stayed by the princess’s side to prevent Nia’s assassination?

‘Did he really sacrifice everything, even being cast out by his family, just for me?’

Nikita’s lips trembled.

Surely, such thoughts were far-fetched.

But when she recalled Vikamon’s face as he looked at her in his final moments,

She couldn’t entirely dismiss the idea.

Vikamon, in his guise as Hannon, had always stayed by Nikita’s side.

He supported her so she wouldn’t struggle, knowing how much she overexerted herself.

His actions mirrored how Vikamon had been in the past.

‘The reason he didn’t tell me about Nia’s death immediately…’

Was likely to avoid any chance that the third princess’s faction might notice something.

And in case Nikita lost control, he must have been preparing to stop her by revealing the truth.

Nikita recalled Vikamon’s bittersweet smile as he looked at her in his guise as Hannon.

‘You knew… all along, didn’t you?’

After hearing of Nia’s death, Nikita had turned to the magic of ancient dragons.

Once one dabbled in dragon magic, there was no turning back.

Vikamon knew this and smiled that way because of it.

‘And today…’

To completely erase the dragon magic that had been etched into Nikita,

Vikamon had prepared everything on his own and ultimately saved her.

‘Why…’

Nikita wanted to ask again.

Why had he gone so far for her?

She desperately wanted to ask him herself.

But she already knew the answer.

「It’s alright.」

「As long as Nikita is safe, that’s enough.」

The gentle words he had spoken to her.

Now that she realized Vikamon’s true identity, those words made complete sense.

「Nikita, be happy.」

Even if his feelings weren’t returned, it didn’t matter.

As long as Nikita was happy, that was enough for him.

That’s what Vikamon had been saying.

Her blurry vision held the image of Vikamon, battered and broken.

His body was scarred with lightning and molten steel.

And in the end, he had taken something from her.

Though she didn’t know exactly what it was,

She was certain it was related to dragon magic.

He had sacrificed everything, even his own body, for her.

Her chest felt tight.

An indescribable storm of emotions raged within her.

It felt like her heart was being torn apart.

She regretted not once acknowledging his feelings.

“So foolish…”

Nikita clutched at the fabric over her chest.

She pounded her heart, trying to relieve the pressure.

“Truly…”

Thick tears streamed down her face.

Even so, they couldn’t obscure the image of his final expression.

It flowed.

The emotions overflowed endlessly.

This was a first for her.

Except for Nia, no one had ever truly cared for her.

No, even the brilliant Nia couldn’t fully see her for who she was.

A genius could never fully understand a commoner.

Just as a commoner could never fully understand a genius.

But Vikamon was like Nikita—a commoner.

He lacked talent in magic and was treated as useless by the Niflheim family.

He was the only person who stood on the same plane as her.

Perhaps that was why she had ignored him even more.

Seeing him meant seeing herself.

Subconsciously aware of this, she had turned away.

Yet, Vikamon had always looked at her.

His gaze was unwavering and sincere.

Nikita’s efforts had always been dismissed as natural because she was born into the Marquis Cynthia family.

No matter how great her achievements, they were simply expected of her.

But Vikamon praised her.

He acknowledged her efforts and expressed his respect.

Nikita found solace in that.

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In contrast, the Marquis Cynthia family never recognized her work.

No matter what she accomplished, she couldn’t escape being used as a pawn in their political games.

But at this moment—

She had completely broken free from Cynthia.

Having touched the magic of the ancient dragon, the Marquisate of Cynthia would no longer regard her as one of their own.

Freedom.

For the first time, Nikita had been granted freedom.

A life where she could live as Nikita, not as Nikita Cynthia.

And this was the life she had longed for more than anything else.

The real reason she crumbled after Nia's death—

It was because she had realized the wretchedness of a life reduced to being used for political gain.

And the one who gave her this new life was none other than Vikamon.

It was as if he was saying to her:

Even someone like me, cast out by my family, is living boldly like this.

Why couldn’t you, Nikita, do the same?

The life he showed her,

The path he had walked,

It all returned to Nikita.

She could live.

She absolutely could live.

Vikamon had abandoned his family and shone brilliantly.

Because she had seen him, she believed she, too, could live that way.

Nikita was a hard worker.

She knew how to pick herself up even after falling.

And this time, she wasn’t doing it alone.

"Truly, how foolish."

She could no longer hold back her tears.

She wanted to meet him immediately and tell him everything.

She wanted to confront him about each and every one of his actions.

More than anything—

She wanted to tell him about the emotions welling up inside her right now.

"…Nikita, a real Hannon was discovered recently."

At that moment, Nia’s voice reached Nikita’s ears.

"He’s not Hannon Irey, is he?"

Even those in the First Prince’s faction at the academy had confirmed that he wasn’t Hannon.

Hearing Nia’s question, Nikita bit her lip.

"…I cannot tell you who he is."

Nikita kept the secret.

For his sake, this truth could not be revealed.

Nia nodded.

"I’m telling you this just so you know what tool he used."

"A tool?"

"A tool that perfectly mimics Hannon’s appearance."

Nikita recalled that he had also disguised himself as Hania.

"That tool is called the Bandages of Veil. Classified purely, it’s a type of divine artifact."

Nia’s face darkened as he spoke.

Divine artifacts always carried inherent risks.

It wasn’t uncommon for people to die because of them.

"Brother, could it be… there are side effects?"

"…Yes. The Bandages of Veil cause one of the three elements of emotion to disappear with continued use."

Nikita’s eyes widened gradually.

"Emotion…?"

"Sadness, anger, or love—the three universal emotions humans feel. One of them vanishes. And further research suggests it might not stop at just one, depending on the length of use."

Nikita froze, her eyes wide open.

Sadness, anger, love.

It had already been six months since Vikamon began using the Bandages of Veil.

If he had lost his emotions—

She already knew the most likely first candidate.

"No…"

Nikita denied it.

"No. No way…"

She had only just begun to prepare herself to face his true feelings.

To think that they might disappear—

Nikita couldn’t accept it.

And knowing that it was because of her made it all the more unbearable.

‘The “Be happy” Vikamon told me…’

Perhaps it was his farewell to the emotions fading away within him.

"I have to go back immediately!"

"Nikita, if you return now, you’ll only put yourself in danger!"

Nia urgently tried to stop her.

"And wasn’t this his choice, to protect you?"

If Nikita returned now, all of Vikamon’s actions would lose their meaning.

Knowing this, Nikita suppressed her emotions and clenched her fists tightly.

"…I understand."

Nikita accepted it.

"But someday…"

When she met him again—

‘Even if he has lost his emotions,’

She would bring them back to him.

‘I’ve received so much from him.’

So, she would surely return it to him.

Nikita’s blue eyes settled on the demon dungeon.

Those eyes were now filled with a single person.

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