I thought I must have misheard. It couldn’t be. The Crown Prince I’d met today would never suddenly order me to strip.
Maybe he said “laughing mushroom” instead? Or perhaps my clothes smelled so foul he wanted to remove them.
Standing there confused, I watched Reynold pick up a sword from the desk and tap my clothes with the tip of its scabbard.
“Take off your clothes.”
“Why… take them off?”
“I need to verify something.”
I grew ever more bewildered at what he could possibly want to inspect. I fidgeted with my hem, hesitating, and Reynold sighed deeply.
“Shall I strip you myself, or will you do it?”
I absolutely refused the idea of him undressing me.
Fine—undressing isn’t going to kill me.
After a moment’s hesitation, I reluctantly yanked off only my upper garment. Reynold’s gaze drifted slowly from my face downward.
I instinctively hunched my shoulders under his scrutiny. Ignoring my discomfort, Reynold stared me down and murmured,
“My memory wasn’t wrong. Though it’s over ten years ago now.”
A conversation requires mutual understanding, but Reynold’s words made no sense.
“We’ve met before.”
“…Me?”
I echoed in disbelief.
In the novel, Rishian in human form never appeared—at least in my memory. Yet Reynold’s eyes held absolute certainty.
“Fifteen years ago, you appeared in the capital in black robes as the great sage Rishian Felix. I’d only seen your face once, so I was uncertain, but hearing the name confirmed it.”
I nearly forgot how to breathe.
Even if I’d heard “Rishian” from Kyle, knowing the surname “Felix” meant he truly knew me.
“For five years you performed countless miracles, then you vanished without a trace over ten years ago. Everyone assumed you died somewhere unknown—yet here you are, alive.”
I had no knowledge of that backstory detail.
Unsure what to answer, I blinked, and Reynold prodded my chest with the scabbard tip.
“Look at this scar. After seeing that, will you still deny it?”
I lowered my head to examine my chest. Since taking human form, I’d never inspected my own body closely.
There, across the firm flesh of my chest, was a curious scar in a distinct red shape.
I didn’t know why Reynold knew of a scar I’d never noticed, but his words rang true.
“Why that dumbfounded look? Explain yourself. Why did you suddenly disappear, why masquerade as a woodcutter with Kyle, and why look completely clueless now?”
I had no ready answer. My eyes darted, searching for a way out.
“This is what happened….”
In possession-fantasy novels, one often uses a certain tactic in dire straits. I wasn’t sure it was wise, but nothing else occurred to me.
“…I… lost my memory.”
Reynold lifted an eyebrow and let out a short exhale.
After a brief persuasion, Reynold believed I’d lost my memory—and even treated me well.
He lent me fresh clothes in place of my filthy rags and treated me to a lavish dinner. It had been so long since I’d had a proper meal that my spoon moved eagerly across the table.
As I forced food into my mouth, Reynold sat opposite and watched me. They say there’s nothing more repulsive than watching someone eat.
“What will happen to Kyle and the others?”
Amidst the sumptuous feast, my conscience stirred at their plight.
“Since you let the Black Flame Dragon escape, they’ll be brought to the capital for trial.”
Since I was now a stranger, I could pretend not to know them. In fact, if they received guilty verdicts and prison, that would suit me fine. They’d never hunt the dragon again.
Yet my conscience shouted that I couldn’t abandon them. It was exhausting wearing a villain’s body with a good person’s heart.
“I went to the lair with them, but when we arrived it was empty. They never lied.”
“I’ll save your defense of them for the court. I only follow the emperor’s orders.”
Reynold replied indifferently, propping his elbow on the table and resting his chin in his palm.
“So, did you truly lose your memory? Nothing at all?”
“That seems to be the case. When I came to recently, I had no memory of the past.”
It wasn’t an outright lie—just a slight alteration. In truth, when I woke in the lair, I remembered nothing of Rishian.
“Don’t know the reason or the motive?”
Reynold pretended annoyance as his questions grew tiresome now that his stomach was full.
“Other than my name, nothing comes to mind.”
“After you vanished, the Black Flame Dragon began its rampage. Do you know how many searched for you? You were nowhere when we needed you, then suddenly appeared with the Hero’s party—it’s absurd.”
The reason Rishian vanished when the dragon appeared was obvious: Rishian was the Black Flame Dragon.
“Then you’ve forgotten all the magic you once used? You’ve become a completely ordinary person?”
“Yeah, nothing returns.”
“Is there any chance you could use magic again?”
Certainly there was. I possessed abundant mana and still had the grimoire.
But I didn’t want to get involved. Admitting magic now would surely have me dragged into that dragon hunt.
“I don’t think so.”
“You don’t think so… meaning there’s a slim possibility?”
Reynold clung to that scrap of hope, probing the issue. I needed to assert my incompetence decisively.
“No—there is none. In my current state, I can’t even handle a low-class monster alone. If you don’t believe me, confirm it with Kyle.”
“Our last hope has evaporated.”
Reynold didn’t bother hiding his disappointment, even with me seated before him.
“Then you planned to leave. Where were you headed?”
“I haven’t decided yet. I only planned to stay with Kyle’s party until we left the forest, then part ways.”
It seemed Reynold would finally let me go—but his next words were exactly the opposite.
“What will we do about this? Since we’ve met by chance, I must report to His Majesty. So you’ll come quietly.”
Oh no—a disaster.
I’d foolishly believed I’d be released after our chat. Now it was too late.
“Guards! Load this one into the prisoner wagon as well!”
At Reynold’s shout, soldiers surged into the tent.
Having offered me hospitality moments ago, he now treated me as he did the Hero’s party. With no choice, I followed the guards out.
Surrounded by soldiers, I walked a short way among tents until we reached a large carriage near the forest’s edge. Inside the crudely barred vehicle sat Kyle and the others.
“Rishian!”
Kyle leapt up when he saw me approaching.
“I thought you’d left—why are you back?”
I had expected my freedom by now, not to be confined in a stinking prisoner wagon alongside the Hero’s party.
“Get in!”
A guard opened the door and roughly shoved me inside. I had no chance to resist.
“How did your conversation take so long?”
Kyle clung to me from the corner, but exhausted, I waved him off.
“I’m tired. I’ll tell you tomorrow.”