Two hours passed.
No more sounds could be heard from outside.
The place had become eerily quiet, and the cold night air made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
“Looks like they’re gone.” Marc stood up and walked toward the entrance of the prison.
Sera suddenly stood in front of him, stopping him.
“Are you sure they’re gone?” Sera still looked wary of whatever might be waiting outside.
“Lady Sera.
You know I have experience with these things.” “Even so, there’s a chance they’re still out there.” Ignoring their conversation, which made it clear that they knew each other, I headed toward the entrance and peeked through the gap in the door.
There was no one outside.
However, I could see the aftermath of the destruction—damaged plants, broken trees, and several corpses scattered across the grounds.
There seemed to be a lot of dead bodies outside.
I slowly opened the door and looked around.
Once I was certain it was safe, I opened it wide and finally saw the extent of the devastation.
A mansion stood in complete disarray.
Numerous windows had been shattered, and even the doors appeared badly damaged.
It seemed that the prison where I had first awakened was located somewhere within the estate of a wealthy person.
The plants that had once decorated the mansion were completely destroyed.
Even the statues had been smashed apart, with some reduced to nothing but their legs.
Worse yet, corpses were scattered everywhere.
I even saw one hanging from a second-floor window.
Men and women.
Knights and servants.
They all looked equally horrible.
The corpses were in terrible condition.
Some had lost their heads.
Others had their upper bodies completely crushed.
Some had even been torn in half, as though something had pulled them apart from opposite directions.
My eyes began to water, and nausea rose from the pit of my stomach.
A sickening feeling overwhelmed me as I stared at the horrifying scene.
“What did they go through?” I muttered to myself as I tried to comprehend what I was seeing.
Sera and Marc also stepped outside.
They were shocked by the sight, but their reactions were completely different.
Marc remained silent.
He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh before walking toward the corpses to check whether any of them were still alive.
Although it was obvious that no one could possibly have survived this massacre.
Meanwhile, Sera immediately lowered her head.
Her body trembled as sweat covered her skin, and her face turned pale.
She vomited several times, though there wasn’t much left in her stomach.
I followed Marc and checked the corpses scattered around the mansion while searching for anything that might be useful.
Apparently, Marc had the same idea.
He was already carrying a round iron shield and a sword.
I took a sword from one of the corpses.
I wasn’t particularly skilled with a sword, but at least I could swing it well enough to defend myself.
Sera eventually stood up again and staggered forward.
I tried to help her by extending my hand.
“Are you okay?” Slap.
She slapped my hand away.
“Don’t touch me!” She walked past me and headed toward the mansion.
Marc continued examining the destruction around the estate, while Sera entered the building.
Since Sera was a woman without any visible means of defending herself, I decided to follow her for the time being, leaving Marc behind.
“Why are you following me?” Sera seemed annoyed by my presence.
“I can’t exactly leave a woman alone without any means of defense after something like this.” “There’s no need to worry.
I can take care of myself.” Sera stopped and turned toward me.
“You must think I’m just some helpless woman, don’t you?” “Sorry if this offends you, but that’s exactly how you look to me.” Sera seemed irritated by my answer.
I could tell from the sharp look in her eyes.
Suddenly, flames appeared around the palm of her right hand.
She threw the fire straight at me.
I immediately dodged.
Fortunately, the flames missed me.
What was that just now?
“How about now?
Do I still look weak to you?” “Were you trying to kill me?” I was slightly angry that she had suddenly attacked me.
“Want another one?” “No, thank you.
I understand.
You’re strong.” “Good.
I’m glad you understand.” Sera turned around and continued walking.
I had no idea where she was going, but I continued following her.
“You’re still following me?” “I’m rather curious about this place.
By the way, how did you do that earlier?” “Because I’m a mage.” Ah, right.
Fantasy.
I had completely forgotten about that part after arriving in this world.
If that’s the case, then perhaps Blight was some kind of fantasy monster attacking this place.
I’d assume that for now.
It would make things easier to understand.
In any fantasy world, one of the most fundamental elements was magic—or some kind of mysterious supernatural power.
I wanted to use it too.
“I want to do that as well.” I muttered to myself.
“Are you stupid?” Sera suddenly insulted me while casually walking ahead.
“Why did you suddenly call me stupid?” “Because of what you just said.
Only mages can do what I did, and only women can become mages.” “Why?” My mind immediately filled with questions.
Why could only women become mages?
“I don’t know.
Besides, not every woman can become a mage.
Becoming a mage is an innate talent.
That’s common knowledge.
Don’t you know something that basic?” “Sorry.
I’m lacking knowledge.” Sera stopped in front of a room.
She opened the door and stepped inside.
A middle-aged man’s corpse was lying face-down on the floor.
His back had been ripped open, exposing his white bones.
“Even in death, you still look pathetic.” Sera clearly knew him.
“You know him?” “He was the Baron who owned this place.
Although he was only a Baron, he possessed a great deal of wealth, possessions, and luxurious items.
All of it came from his dirty dealings.” “You really know a lot about him.” I was rather surprised.
“He was my father.” Sera’s expression darkened.
“But I hated him.
He only saw me as a tool for a political marriage.
He suddenly brought me here, even though my mother was nothing more than his mistress.” Sera walked past the middle-aged man’s corpse, stepping over it without hesitation.
So that’s the plot twist.
Now I understood why she had been imprisoned while wearing a dress.
I was guessing she had rebelled against her father, and he had locked her away to stop her.
Sera opened a drawer beside the bed, searching for something.
After a moment, she found a box.
Sera sat on the bed, completely ignoring the corpse of a woman lying behind her.
She opened the box.
Inside was an exquisite necklace in the shape of a rose, made from red crystal.
I had a lot of questions, but I decided to save them for later.
I glanced at the middle-aged man’s corpse on the floor.
He seemed to have been reaching for something before he died.
His hand was pointing toward a drawer beneath a painting directly across from the bed.
Curious, I opened the drawers one by one.
After checking all of them, I couldn’t find anything particularly special.
Except for a case that looked like a briefcase made of leather.
I picked it up and opened it.
Inside was something that immediately caught my attention.
There was a flintlock pistol, along with seven small pouches of gunpowder and seven small metal balls.
“I was actually happy to find some fantasy elements with magic appearing in this world, but I never expected something like this to shatter the fantasy image in my head.” I muttered to myself.
Fortunately, Sera didn’t hear me.
But after thinking about it again, perhaps this made sense.
If only women could become mages, then men—and anyone without magical abilities—might have a lower social standing in this world.
Perhaps that’s why people had developed weapons like this to defend themselves.
“Even so, why were the guards I saw outside carrying swords?
Is this thing not yet in mass production, or is its use restricted?” Another question was added to the growing list in my head.