What A Family Is (5)

Morgan and his son, Morgan II, have disappeared.

By now, Cohen City must be in chaos.

After all, the king and the prince have disappeared without a word.

However, Reed knew that this incident was not a kidnapping.

'The research on possession magic is over.'

The magic that Morgan requested Freesia to research.

As a reward, Freesia turned Cohen City upside down with the 'Desire Massacre' and enjoyed her game.

'I thought it would be completed soon... but it was completed too quickly.'

At least, he thought it would end around the time when the magic reaction gauntlet was completed, but Freesia's abilities exceeded his imagination.

"What's the matter?"

"...Nothing. You should take a break today."

"Huh?"

"There's no need to hurry now. Rest well today and tomorrow."

There is no meaning now.

Kaitlyn nodded and went back to her room, and Reed sat down with a serious face and looked at the note.

'It would be hard to stop Freesia, even if we are fully prepared...'

If a battle breaks out, it will end with Freesia's overwhelming victory, and the Silence Tower will fall.

Reed knew well that anyone who opposed Freesia always met such a fate.

'But I can't back down.'

Running away after bluffing loudly was something Reed couldn't accept.

The situation was urgent, so he moved first.

Reed walked towards Phoebe, who was waiting in front of his office.

"Tower Master, what's wrong?"

Seeing his unusually serious face, Phoebe's face also hardened.

"Can you check where the Master of the Black Sky Tower is now?"

"The Master of the Black Sky Tower? Understood!"

Phoebe manipulated the panel and contacted the Black Sky Tower.

A moment later, Phoebe, who received the response, nodded at Reed.

"Yes! The Master of the Black Sky Tower is currently in the tower."

Her deal was only developing the possession magic for Morgan and Morgan II.

She didn't participate in the ritual.

For a moment, he wondered if she intended to take power by seizing Morgan's weakness, but what she wanted was, after all, only the magic.

"Phoebe."

"Yes."

"Tell the Black Sky Tower this. I will visit her to return that item today."

"...Understood."

Phoebe contacted the Black Sky Tower once more.

"Can I ask you one last thing?"

Then, Phoebe smiled and answered.

"There's no such thing as 'the last' for the Tower Master. As long as I am alive and breathing, I will fulfill all your requests."

The loyal servant of the Tower Master.

In the original game, she was dreadfully loyal to Reed.

Although she failed to protect the final boss, her loyalty was so high that she even performed self-destruction magic against the protagonist's party.

Reed knew of Phoebe's loyalty well, so he couldn't help but hesitate about the request he was about to make.

Anxiety crept in, wondering if he might be using her loyalty to bring her to ruin.

"Join me, Phoebe. I need your help."

***

The eternally floating black sky and barren earth.

Reed, who stepped out of the sky carriage and parked it nearby, felt fear as if his blood was being drained from his body.

Reed's pupils shone golden.

He drew mana to resist the poison emanating from the land of death.

'But this is merely a warning.'

It was courtesy of Black Sky, a warning to not approach rashly as this place was truly dangerous.

If that warning is violated, it moves on to the next stage.

Reed looked down at his feet.

'Death Knights and skeleton soldiers are sleeping beneath this.'

A two-tiered defense to protect the Black Sky Tower.

In case of emergency, the undead soldiers sleeping underground are awoken to ambush intruders.

Exposed to the poison and gradually weakened, the intruders' lives are cut short to create new undead soldiers, and everything is cleanly erased as if nothing happened when they are sent back underground.

Even if they come back alive, the probability that everyone will survive is 0%.

You should not approach the tower for any reason if you are hostile to the Black Sky.

'But I must approach.'

Reed, who showed hostility to Freesia, set foot on that land today.

The land where the souls that could not die are asleep.

Reed looked up at the huge gate.

A metal door decorated with dragon skulls.

Reed glanced at Phoebe standing next to him.

As expected, she was looking up at the dragon's bone with an unfazed expression.

Shortly after, the dragon's head split vertically and the gate began to open.

"Welcome, Master of the Silence Tower."

The one who greeted him was a man known as the secretary of Freesia, commonly called the Ma-gun.

The man was not particularly skilled as a magician, but he became Freesia's closest aide solely through his ability to handle tasks.

And he was the most normal person who didn't fit in this Black Sky Tower at all.

"This way."

He led Reed and Phoebe to the reception room.

The inside was filled with fresh air, making the poison that hovered outside seem insignificant.

'It really is magnificent.'

The Black Sky Tower was so luxurious and dignified in every detail that it made the Silence Tower look shabby.

The place where Reed and Phoebe went up was the top floor.

This is commonly where the tower masters' offices are located.

"Do you not have a separate reception room?"

"I was instructed to bring you to the office. I understand it's impolite, but please understand...."

Ma-gun bowed respectfully and apologized.

"And since only the Master of the Silence Tower is allowed, the deputy tower master must wait here with me."

At his words, Reed and Phoebe exchanged glances.

Her face was full of anxiety.

"It doesn't matter."

The most tense one was Reed, but he walked towards the door pretending to be calm.

The door to the office opened, revealing the inside.

A room where darkness spread out like a watercolor painting.

A long red carpet stretched out on the obsidian floor.

A black throne that signified the king of this place.

Freesia was lying there.

With one armrest as a pillow and the other one as a footrest.

"Welcome, Reed. Is this your first time in the Black Sky?"

"I can't remember."

"Neither can I. But judging by the fact that I don't remember, you must have been quite boring back then."

Reed stepped on the red carpet and entered.

Freesia, who had been lying down, snapped her fingers.

Then the door slowly closed.

There's no need to check it out.

It will never open unless Freesia orders it.

'I could be trapped here.'

But Reed was prepared for that.

Reed appraised her abilities with his "Talent Appraisal".

———————————

Name: Freesia Vulcan Darksider

Occupation: Master of the Black Sky Tower

Age: 131 years old

Alignment: Chaos · Evil

Health: 1,067/1,067

Stamina: 550/550

Mana: 31,900/31,900

[Attributes]

"Undead Empress", "Shadow Master", "Master of the Black Sky Tower", "Broken Ring that Defies Fate", "Lineage of Vulcan"

[Skills]

<Magic Lv.6>, <Magic Theory Lv.6>, <Mana Sensitivity Lv.6>, <Necromancy Lv.6>, <Curse Magic Lv.5>, <Elemental Sensitivity Lv.5>

[Undisclosed Attributes & Abilities]

———————————

As expected from a woman who has lived for 131 years and held the position of tower master for 100 years, her abilities were monstrous.

Her stats were so overwhelming that the magnesium gauntlet he had brought with him just in case seemed foolish.

'Even if I had made a magic responsive glove, I wouldn't have stood a chance.'

Moreover, this place is Freesia's home ground.

But Reed didn't lose heart.

'There's a reason why Freesia won't kill me.'

Therefore, he walked confidently.

Reed, who arrived in front of Freesia, took out an item and showed it to her.

"I've come to return this."

It was the perfume he had promised to return someday.

Looking down at the perfume, Freesia curled her lips into a cat-like smile.

"I didn't think I'd get this back. Actually, I wished you would use this perfume."

"I don't want to use it because I know what kind of malice you've infused into it."

"Then shouldn't you have smashed it instead of returning it?"

"I promised to return it, so that's what I'm doing."

Reed placed the perfume on the armrest.

Watching his action, Freesia started to laugh delightedly.

"You're so gentle, it's too cool~. Reed, are you sure you don't want to live here with me?"

Reed did not get swept away in her atmosphere.

"Where are Morgan and his son now?"

At Reed's straightforward question, Freesia's face, which had been laughing like a young girl, returned to its original state.

"So, you intend to interfere with them, Reed?"

"Didn't you know that from the beginning?"

"I knew. But I didn't think you'd have the guts to come and say it directly to me. I thought you'd play up to me more, lower your head. No, that's the normal course of action."

She is Freesia Vulcan Darkrider.

Master of the Black Sky Tower and the terror of all wizards and the continent.

Even if one were a tower master, there was no one who dared to openly oppose her.

"Give up on the father and son. Even if I overlook you saving the girl due to your youthful spirit, I can't let this slide."

"If Morgan takes over his son's body, everything will be meaningless."

"I made a contract with Morgan. He fulfilled his part of the contract faithfully, so I need to keep mine."

It was true. If she broke the contract, she couldn't ignore the penalty.

In other words, it meant that Freesia could not use the possession magic.

And the fact that she firmly stated she wouldn't break the contract meant that she needed the magic Morgan gave her.

"Is that magic so precious to you?"

"Morgan gave me what I wanted. Unlike you, Reed, who came straight to me, he asked very politely."

"I can't understand why a mage who has nothing to envy others would cling to that magic."

"… Nothing to envy?"

Freesia's expression twisted, her eyes beginning to glow red.

He had touched the trigger of her trauma.

Her magic was unpredictable.

That unpredictability always started with a surprise attack.

"Ugh!"

The shadow behind Reed wrapped around his body and moved on its own.

Reed tried to focus mana on his gauntlet to neutralize its ability, but...

Before the light could circle in the mana crystal, the shadow completely covered Reed's right hand.

"Don't resist. If you resist, I'll kill you right away."

Freesia rose from her seat, and Reed was thrown onto the place where Freesia had been lying.

Freesia climbed on top of him.

Reed, who had been looking down at Freesia, now looked up at her.

Her red eyes were staring at him.

As red as the red moon when vampires appear.

"Do you envy me, Reed? Envy being in this body that can't even age? I noticed it when you couldn't give up your daughter, but you really have a trashy taste, don't you?"

She sneered and mocked, but the main emotion was anger.

Reed said nothing and just stared straight into her eyes.

After a moment, she, whose anger had subsided, grabbed Reed's collar and whispered in his ear.

"Fine, I'll give up that magic. But if you gain something, you have to lose something."

"What do you want?"

"Your little one."

The 'little one' was Rosaria.

From the moment Reed crossed over to this world and first confronted Freesia, she had her sights set on Rosaria.

She was asking for her again.

"Hand that little one over to me, Reed Adeleheights Roton. Then I will listen to you."

She corrected herself.

"No, I'll do whatever you want. If you want, I'll hand over the Black Sky, and I'll even become your lover or a dog. I'll do whatever you want."

It was an extreme condition, incomparable to the initial proposal.

But Reed immediately responded to her demand.

"No matter what you offer, I cannot give you Rosaria."

Freesia's face contorted fiercely.

Power filled the hands of Freesia that were holding Reed's collar.

"You're selfish, really selfish! That selfishness of wanting to gain everything without losing anything! The arrogance of expecting me to understand that! Do I look so easy to you!"

"I'm refusing because your demand is absurd. Why do you think such an extreme condition could be met?"

Then Freesia responded to Reed in a more composed voice.

"The ability that child possesses is what I want. That little one will be the lantern that will show me the way to become complete."

Freesia did not back down any further.

"Choose. Either hand over the little one or leave quietly. There will be no further negotiations."

Lose Rosaria or lose Adonis.

'I don't want to lose anyone.'

At the crossroads of choice, Reed tried hard to think.

'How can the possession magic and Rosaria be the same?'

Possession magic.

Rosaria.

Freesia Vulcan Darkrider.

What she ultimately wants.

She wants Rosaria enough to give up the possession magic.

No, she wants Rosaria enough to give up even herself.

Why?

He had to think.

No one knows her background.

Recalling her status window and the events of the future, he desperately tried to figure out what she ultimately wanted.

He remained silent until Freesia could no longer bear it, thinking about what she wanted.

Finally, Freesia's limit came.

Her mouth slowly opened.

"Alright."

But Reed was one step faster.

Freesia swallowed back what she was about to say.

"Are you saying you'll hand over the little one?"

"No."

"Are you trying to play word games again?"

"No. I'll give you what you truly want."

With a fierce expression, Freesia asked with her last ounce of patience.

"What do I want?"

"...Death."