The Worldview Where Everyone is Destined to Die

Chapter 8: Make sure to remember (1)

I slowly turned the faucet off, wondering if it would be better to erase the magic circle and escape this unknown situation or whether it would be better to preserve the traces, which could be used as evidence.

I thought a lot in a moment, but in the end, my concerns seemed useless.

The magic circle couldnt be erased by the water and was clear enough to be seen through the new white shirt I was given to wear.

And the moment I stepped out of the shower, Theodore, who was, well, an elite dark mage and seemed to have keen attention, noticed it immediately.

Magic circle?

Wouldnt Theodore have been able to clear me of any charges of being the real culprit if we didnt choose to run, and he said something like, it is a shame that you survived this far, but you die now!

Not just that, Theodore pulled my shirt up to check the pattern himself closely.

That-

Water was dripping down my wet hair.

Theodore, who was observing the magic circle while being hit with water droplets, looked at my face and then at the magic circle for a moment, and his eyes shook.

What is it?

A little while later, Arthur approached us.

I just shrugged and pointed at Theodore who looked like he was holding me by my collar.

I think we need to calm down a little.

Theo.

Arthur called Theodore, who was looking at my face with utmost concentration, to step back from me.

Thanks to this, Arthur could now see the magic circle on my chest.

Magic Circle?

Such a fun dj vu.

Only if I wasnt the main character in this situation.

But since we couldnt stand like this forever, I pushed the two people to sit near the tea table and sat down too.

The surroundings looked neat and tidy, unlike before entering the shower.

Looking closely, it seemed like Arthur had a bit of wall set up.

I looked with respect at those books and the writing tools organized cleanly on the no-dust bookshelf and belatedly opened my mouth to the two people who were looking at me with their mouths shut.

I wanted to speak first, but young master Theodore was faster at this.

Theodore broke into a cold sweat and his heart beat faster, wondering if there was something wrong.

However, the expressionless face he had honed as a child of a merchant was working well now.

After washing it off, I noticed something, it didnt come off and so I checked and it seemed like this. I was wondering if it would be better to clean it or leave it for evidence.

What magic is that?

It seemed like not all of the students in Crown of Thorns class are skilled mages.

Despite the question from Arthur, Theodore was silent, like he was lost in his thoughts.

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In the end, Theodore slowly regained his senses after Arthur called him once more.

Make sure to remember.

Uh?

Such a random word that I thought he just woke up from his dream.

But as if that were the answer, Arthur slowly leaned back into his chair, running his fingers through his hair. He spoke with an exhausted face.

I thought it was strange, but for some reason I couldnt understand it.

If you understand now could you explain?

I had no choice but to halt their discussion of the two magically gifted people before more confusion arose.

And Theodore slowly opened his mouth.

That is a form of magic circle. It isnt the standard magic circle used but in the case of one's own magic, there is a problem of plagiarism through reverse interpretations of a magic spell

To put it in simple words, it is to strengthen the security of magic by using a passcode on the magic circle.

Since we had different syllabuses it was difficult for me to understand.

Even if Theodore thought I was dumb, there was nothing I could do, but this formal young master continued to talk without any sign of it.

But the strange thing is this.

Right, to the point now.

The signature on that magic circle is mine.

Was this a confession of being the culprit?

This moment the Cruz familys social skills, which have been memorized and mastered with my body and mind throughout my life, came into action.

I didnt know if my heart was pounding fast or if I was being influenced by the confusion Theodore seemed to have, but I could feel a heavy tension rising in the air.

Theodore showed his discomfort by removing and placing his thumb among the fingers he had clasped on the knee.

What is the chance of it being stolen?

The key to deciphering the signature is by head alone.

But there is no chance that something roughly scribbled was correct, right?

It will be a great coincidence if there is a high probability that a rough scribble will perfectly match the fingerprint of Arma Cruz.

Theodore was convinced that the magic circle on my left chest was his. As time went by, the incident turned more and more complicated.

To sum it up, you personally engraved the magic circle with the message <Make sure to remember> on me, who was unconscious, right?

Rationally seems like it.

Now, Theodore seemed as confused as I was when I saw the blood.

Among them, there was no one who could give an answer to this question.

I decided to leave the unsolved questions and start solving the problems which could be solved.

Good, then anyway, can I leave this magic circle alone?

What is used in the magic circle is the ink of a mage. It won't be erased now but when certain conditions are met, it will be erased.

What conditions?

It is written there <I will definitely remember>.

It will never be erased.

Theodore doesnt even know what I did, so what is there to remember?

I tried to forget my nervousness by pressing my hand on the magic circle, but I couldnt feel the slightest irregularity.

To put it in a positive manner, I should be thankful that what Theodore left on my chest wasnt a thing from his family account book or a spicy diary of an adolescent boy saying he hated the world.

Can I leave it alone like this?

It has already been activated, and all that remains is this milestone.

For now, one thing is confirmed.

There was no need to bother with this issue any longer, and it was fine as long as it didn't cause me harm. There wasnt much time left to waste here by worrying about this either.

Theodore lowered his head as he looked at me.

Is that all?

What?

About the interrogation of this magic circle on my body.

You said you dont remember? Do you remember and yet you lied to us?

No.

It cannot be helped then, right?

Arthur, who was listening to our talks, raised his eyebrow.

As I looked at Arthur, who had been quietly listening to our talks but not butting in, a picture came to mind of him as a loyal hunting dog around the feet of Theodore.

Arthur glared at me as if he knew what I was thinking about.

Actually, it isnt that I dont trust you, but I dont doubt your innocence.

I wanted to say something nice since he looked like he believed me, but the truth is, there was a reason why I did this.

One of the reasons I know Theodore didnt use the spell on me was because of the rules of Aegis Academy.

<Prohibition on magic use in the academy>

Those majoring in magic, those with talent for magic and most of them who took the path of mages after graduating from the academy were strictly asked not to use magic within the academy premises.

Rather than simply leaving it up to the cadets thoughts on whether or not to use magic, the detection magic of the staff was so tight that it wouldnt allow even a single hair to pass through.

If one could bypass the academys detection spell and cast this spell on me, it would be amazing. I will treat it like you signed it, so I will not erase it and let it be.

It was a joke, but Theodore didnt laugh.

Of course, I didn't even find it funny.

The real reason was that Theodores words werent lies but there was another reason for it.

Theodore before wearing that eyepatch.

There were two Theodores for me.

The one in front of me and the other in the dream.

This is Theodore, the one without eyepatch, whom I shot.

It felt like the two had merged to one, as if the before and after had changed, but that was the only thing I could even think of at the moment.

Lets not think any more.

Theodore sat quietly like a doll, engrossed in his own thoughts.

I wanted to send Theodore back to the dorm before it was too late, but it seemed like Theodore wouldnt get back on his feet any time soon.

Theo.

It was late at night, Thedore who looked troubled wasnt moving.

Arthur seemed to think for a second, and eventually took out a mattress from the bed for Theodore and laid a blanket on the hard iron frame.

Arthurs room, which suddenly turned into a 3 person room, was now cramped.

Theo, enough now, Sleep tight already.

Right, you too.

-Huk

Pretending to not notice Theodore, who looked like he couldnt hold on. Arthur washed his hands and face, blew out the candles on the desk, and immediately lay down on bed.

I shook off as much water as I could and leaned my wet head against the armrest of the sofa.

Phew

A part of the golden brown hair, darkened by wet water, was blocking my vision like a prion cell.

The nightmare, the murder, being pushed into a one man dorm to sleep with someone I wasnt even close to, was all absurd, but I had one more problem to worry about.

Things are so much more complicated than I thought.

As time passed and events happened, the story was heading to one end.

Maybe it was me who had to die.

Actually, it wasnt that difficult to come to that conclusion.

First, it was strange that I survived this incident.

This was because the situation was too much to believe that he had done so with the intention of being framed as the culprit of a murder case.

It was strange to drag a 180cm adult man wandering around the crime scene where there is a high chance of evidence of murder being left.

In other words, given the situation of lying on the altar and many more, I was probably the one who should have died there.

-rustle.

At that moment, the sound of Theodore turning over came, like he just got up.

No, maybe it is Arthur Usher.

I felt goosebumps rise on my arms in an instant, but I couldnt tell if it was because I only realized now that the trouble had come or because I was in a situation of sleeping with my enemy.

Yes, there is one more problem.

I tried to calm my breathing and not fall asleep despite closing my eyes.

Why did Arthur act like that?

I couldnt understand the current situation where Arthur Usher, who was clearly at the incident, was cooperating with us like he knew nothing.