Chapter 25
The Most Perfect Existence
"You are my most precious treasure. Don't worry. This father will surely cure your illness."
Count Felix Ideana was an endlessly affectionate father to his only daughter.
He was willing to do anything for his sickly daughter since she was young.
Luise respected and loved such a father.
Until that incident.
That is, the winter of the year she turned fifteen.
"What on earth is this..."
Luise sat down on the spot upon seeing the corpses piled up like a hill behind Paradel Castle.
People, so mangled that it was difficult to recognize their faces, were stacked in layers.
"I heard that Lupus have been disappearing recently."
Luise recalled the words of Shed, the slave who followed her.
The Lupus who had disappeared from Ideana.
They were here, dead.
'Why is it the same as my dream?'
Luise squeezed her eyes shut.
Nightmares were projected onto the countless deaths and surfaced.
She often had nightmares.
When her illness worsened, nightmares always followed, and after having nightmares, her illness improved, but she often couldn't sleep through the night.
And most recently, the nightmare she had was about the deaths of the Lupus.
To be exact, it was a dream of her massacring the Lupus.
In the nightmare, her body was out of control, running wild on its own.
Her mind was forcibly subdued, as if being toyed with by the rampaging body.
She slaughtered the Lupus indiscriminately.
Even as the Lupus resisted, stabbing her with swords, running away, and screaming, the massacre did not stop.
The pain of the blades of those resisting piercing her body was excruciating, as if she were about to suffocate.
But it was nothing compared to the shock of taking so many lives.
Even after waking up from the nightmare, all those sensations remained vivid, tormenting her.
Her hands were still full of blood, and it felt as if screams were ringing in her ears.
Still, it was a dream.
Because it was a dream, it could be undone after crying and beating her chest all night.
But before her eyes, there was death that could not be erased with a few tears.
Luise wished that even this was a nightmare.
There was no reason for so many Lupus to die.
It wasn't like there was an epidemic, and there hadn't even been a war recently.
'I don't know what's going on at all...'
At the same time, the face of Shed Lupus flashed through her mind.
"Pamen is not visible. May I go look for him for a moment?"
Two days ago, Shed had said that his Lupus, who was like a brother to him, had disappeared, and asked for permission to leave his post for a while.
And he had not been seen since.
Luise's mind snapped to attention.
Could it be that Shed was also among those mangled corpses?
Luise squeezed her eyes shut in front of the corpses whose faces were not visible.
That couldn't be. Shed was strong and clever and...
She wanted to believe that he was not dead.
That Shed was not among them.
But... he was a Lupus. A slave.
In Ideana, the position of the Lupus was like that of an animal, and they were sent to battles as mercenary slaves to be used as bait or shields for the knights.
The same was true of Shed.
He had gone to battlefields as a child soldier since he was ten years old, and had overcome dangerous moments several times.
And he could be slaughtered by the sword of power at any time.
Whenever the slaves brought back spoils of war or hunted game from the battlefield or hunting grounds, Luise would always check first to see if he had returned alive.
Yes. He was a slave, and she was the young lady of the Ideana County.
She knew she shouldn't, but she...
"Luise, why are you here?"
At that moment, a familiar voice was heard.
Luise turned her head.
"...Father?"
"How did you get out of this mansion?"
Count Felix Ideana stood in front of the foul-smelling corpses.
With a face as if he was annoyed by a troublesome situation.
"What happened...?"
Luise asked Felix, still sitting on the ground.
Some time ago, after hearing about the Lupus disappearance case from Shed, she had asked her father to investigate it.
"It's so kind of you to care so much for the slaves, Luise. Since you asked, I'll look into it."
He had definitely said that.
"..."
Felix fell silent before her.
The silence that settled over the blood seemed to be strangling Luise.
"Please, say something!"
The stench from the corpses was making the nightmare more and more vivid.
It was as if the nightmare had been reality.
Felix lowered his eyes as if contemplating for a moment, lost in thought.
"Well... there's no need to hide it anymore. It's time for you to know."
He muttered quietly, then gently stroked her cheek.
"Rejoice, my beloved daughter."
In front of the mountain of corpses, Felix smiled.
"You are complete."
Felix said, gently holding Luise's kneeling hands.
Luise's mind froze.
She couldn't understand what her father was saying.
"Complete...?"
"My daughter, the most perfect being in the world."
Felix lifted Luise up and looked at her with warm eyes.
The affectionate smile seen against the backdrop of the red corpses looked bizarre to Luise.
"It was an unavoidable sacrifice for you."
He said, hugging his daughter.
For Luise Ideana, the Lupus had to be killed.
"For me...?"
Luise couldn't understand at all.
Even her father's smile felt unreal, and everything felt like it was floating.
"Yes. Luise. You have become the strongest human in the world."
Her father kept whispering words she couldn't understand.
As Luise became confused, Felix smiled and took Luise's hand and moved his steps.
Luise had no choice but to follow him, dragged along with trembling steps.
"The unstable period was a bit long. But it was a success in the end."
Felix said, walking leisurely among the corpses.
His relaxed gait was like strolling through a morning forest full of fresh fragrance.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Luise was confused and confused again.
It was as if she had been thrown into a vortex of distorted time, encountering random moments and unexpected events.
"From last year, Ideana no longer needed mercenary slaves for Demon Beast hunting, right?"
Felix said.
From last year, Felix had declared that he would no longer use the Lupus mercenary slaves who had been mobilized for Demon Beast hunting.
The mercenary slaves were abandoned without receiving any compensation, or they were transferred to other harsh positions to serve as slaves.
Luise remembered that incident clearly.
At that time, Luise had begged him to let her use Shed.
"The fact that the Demon Beasts have disappeared and the Lupus are no longer needed is all thanks to you."
Felix took her beyond the hill of disgusting corpses.
And there, the corpses of Demon Beasts were scattered, with bright red blood flowing like a stream.
In an instant, Luise vomited on the floor, having held it back since earlier.
"Ugh, ugh...!"
Even after throwing up on the floor, the nausea did not subside.
The nightmares she had in the past came back to haunt her.
That is, at that time, Luise Ideana had slaughtered the Demon Beasts that were attacking her.
Even those sensations gradually began to emerge clearly.
"There's no need to be afraid. You did it."
Felix whispered, looking at his daughter.
He grabbed Luise's shoulder, who was breathing heavily, and made her face death head-on.
To be exact, the Demon Beasts that had been hunted down by the power of Luise Ideana.
"Ancient sorcery has powerful power. A little sacrifice was needed, but that's not a problem for our family."
Felix whispered affectionately.
Only Divine Power and Aura were used in the world, but in ancient times, there was tremendous power that surpassed Divine Power and Aura.
Many people coveted that power, and obtained it.
But now, ancient sorcery has disappeared into the annals of history.
It was because of the scars that power left on history.
Ancient sorcery required the sacrifice of life in exchange for great power.
This led to terrible massacres and wars, and the Temple called it Black Magic and strictly forbade humans from touching that power again.
The power that had been taboo for so long.
Felix Ideana had coveted that power.
"The Lupus were especially good. They are species with very strong vitality. They were a great help in making your power stronger."
He sacrificed hundreds of Lupus to make his daughter stronger.
Luise shook her head at her father's peaceful smile.
"This is crazy, why those people, ugh...!"
"They are Lupus. They have made a noble sacrifice that is not suitable for slaves. They will be more than happy to give their lives for such a great achievement."
Felix stared at the dead in the distance with an expression devoid of any guilt.
To him, the Lupus were not human.
To him, the Lupus were, so to speak, like this.
A sheep sacrificed to the Temple for the happiness of humans.
A pig that goes up to the altar of the dining table for the joy of humans.
"Isn't it amazing that you can gain this kind of power without sacrificing other people?"
The 'people' he was talking about did not include the Lupus.
Luise's head was spinning.
Those people died because of me?
I never wanted that.
I don't even have such great power...!
"You don't seem to believe it."
Felix stared at Luise's confused face and gently reached out his hand.
When Luise flinched and stepped back, Felix smiled as if to reassure her.
"Now, test it. Your power."
Felix supported her and helped her up, then called the knights of the Ideana family.
Then, a Lupus was dragged out by the knights.
A body that was limply drooping as if unconscious.
"Shed...?"
The one she was looking for was in her father's hands.
Felix leisurely straightened his clothes and looked at Shed.
"That guy tried to kill me last night."
Felix said.
"Traitors need to be executed accordingly."
